Lesson 109 - Junior

Memory Verse

"But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us" (Psalm 44:7).

Notes

Water from a Well

As the Children of Israel journeyed through the wilderness, they had many experiences, which proved that God is a very present help in the time of trouble ([PS:46:1]). God told them that He would furnish water, but the Children of Israel had to dig the well. Usually that is the case with a Christian, too. God gives the blessings but a Christian opens the way with consecrations. The princes and nobles of the people dug the wells. Even though they had high positions they wanted to do something for the people. There is work for everyone. Jesus told His disciples that the great among them would be the servant of all ([MAK:10:43-44]).

Many times the expression "digging" is used when one is seeking God. That means to get the hindrances out of the way, to go deep with the Lord in consecrations, then God sends the waters of blessing as He did to the Children of Israel: "When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them" (Isaiah 41:17).

A Song of Praises

A song of praise came forth from the Children of Israel.

"Spring up, O well, Spring up, O well,

Our Lord has promised water

While in this dry place we dwell,

Though singing might seem vain

All Israel joined the strain

And they sang 'Spring up, O well'

Till the water came."

In like manner a Christian offers praises to God, even before as well as after He answers prayer and sends water for the thirsty soul. "There with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation" (Isaiah 12:3). Jesus said, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink" (John 7:37).

Passage Refused

As the Children of Israel neared Canaan, they came into the land of their enemies. They moved into the territory between the Moabites and the Amorites. Many years before this, God had revealed to Abraham that the Children of Israel would serve strangers but that they would come again into the Promised Land ([GEN:15:13-16]). God showed Abraham that the Amorites, among whom he dwelt, would still be in the land when the Children of Israel returned. The Amorites did not worship the true God; they were in idolatry. God, in His great mercy, did not cut them off immediately in their sins but gave them a chance to repent. For 400 years God had spared them because their iniquity was "not yet full." As the yeas went by, the Amorites showed no turning to God; instead, they were farther and farther from the living God. But everyone comes to the place when he must make a decision to serve God or refuse Him. God had been patient and long-suffering, but now the time had come for a decision. God is not pleased in the death of the wicked. If they would turn from their sins and rebellion, God would spare them. The iniquity of the Amorites was almost "full." They were hanging in the balance. What was their choice?

The Children of Israel were peaceable and sent a message to Sihon king of the Amorites at Heshbon, asking permission to go through his country. They agreed to keep on the highway, doing no damage to the fields or vineyards. They would pay for their food, and offered to pay for even the water from their wells ([DUE:2:28]). Sihon not only refused the request but he also gathered his army to fight against Israel.

Some time before this, the Edomites had refused the Israelites permission to go through the land of Edom. Israel did not fight but peaceably went around that country. The Edomites did not prevent the Children of Israel from getting to Canaan but they did retard their progress. Sihon of the Amorites did even worse, for he was determined to hinder that which God had commanded. The words of Gamaliel, a doctor of law in the disciples' time, were true in the case of Sihon and are still true today: "If this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought: but if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it" (Acts 5:38, 39).

Defeat of Sihon

The Israelites had no intention of fighting Sihon, but when he came against them his army was defeated and the entire country came into the possession of the Israelites. Every person today is either a help or a hindrance to those about him. "He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad" (Matthew 12:30). They who try to hinder God's cause find that they cannot prevent its progress but they, themselves, come to nought.

Sihon the Amorites had taken the land from the Moabites and, no doubt, he felt secure in his possessions. But those who have their treasures in earthly possessions are disappointed, for such things are not sure nor secure. "Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal;" (Matthew 6:20). Sihon had depended upon his own wisdom. He thought that he was secure in the riches of the possessions he had taken from the Moabites, but now he was conquered by God. "Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle" (Proverbs 23:5).

This calamity would not have come upon the Amorites of Heshbon if they and their king, Sihon, had dealt kindly with God's people. "They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn" (Job 24:24).

Insecurity

Og, king of Bashan, was also an Amorite ([DEU:31:4]). He should have been warned by the defeat of Sihon; but perhaps because of his size he thought he was better able to deal with the Israelites. He was a giant ([DEU:3:11]). Of his own accord he went to battle against God's chosen people and thus caused his own ruin. Og was not only defeated but he and his people were destroyed. The Israelites took possession of the wealthy land including walled cities ([DEU:3:5]), cattle ([DEU:3:7]), sheep ([DEU:32:14]), and the oaks of Bashan ([ISA:2:13]).

The Amorites did their utmost to secure themselves and their possessions against the judgments of God, but all in vain. "According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay" (Isaiah 59:18). God had spared them for many years to give them a chance to turn from their ways, but they continued to rebel against God and His people. "Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil" (Ecclesiastes 8:11).

Against the opposition of the Amorites the Children of Israel were "more than conquerors" (Romans 8:37). This encouragement spurred them on to receive the rest of their inheritance in the Promised Land. "For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them" (Psalm 44:3).

Questions

1. What request did the Israelites ask of the Amorites?

2. Who started the war between them?

3. Why did Og fight against the Children of Israel?

4. What happened to the two kings of the Amorites?

5. Why did God pronounce judgment on the Amorites?