Our temptation to assist God is a demonstration of our lack of understanding of His great strength.
Amaziah became king of the two tribes of Judah when he was 25 years of age. The chronicler provides an interesting and honest assessment of his reign—“He did what was right in the Lord’s sight but not completely” (2 Chron. 25:2 HCSB). You will see the relevance of this statement in the story which follows.
Amaziah wanted to subdue the Edomites. His resolve was demonstrated as he marshaled 300,000 choice men from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Thinking this number might be insufficient, he hired 100,000 mercenaries from Israel for 7,500 pounds of silver.
What he failed to realize was that this reliance on his military might had led him to make an ungodly alliance. An unnamed prophet warned him not to depend on these men who had abandoned the one true God for idols. The sin of Amaziah was not simply making an unholy alliance with idolatrous Israel; it was his confidence in military might rather than God. When headed for battle, his first thought was to assemble an army rather than pray.
The Chronicler writes, “God has power to help and to bring down” (2 Chron. 25:8). Are you ever guilty of making your own plans, marshalling your own resources and ignoring the promises of God?
Prayer. Father, I don’t want it to be said of me, “he did what was right in God’s sight, but not completely”. Teach me to trust in You. Amen