No matter how self-assured a person may be, when the enemy comes against them, they will see that they were wrong not to have made the Lord their Refuge, their Fortress, and their very present Help in times of attack by the devil and his demons (Psalm 18.2; Psalm 46.1). The Edomites didn't think that one day they would be visited by the same tribulations that beset the Israelites, their cousins. Self-confidence is a weapon offered by the evil one to those who do not serve God! 

           The enemy knows that self-confidence will lead a person into his arms of destruction. Instead of looking to the Lord for help, they forget that behind this attitude, the enemy is insisting that they don’t fear his attacks or forbid him, in the Name of Jesus, from attacking them. Now, many people live deluded lives, without giving the Most High His rightful place in their lives (Matthew 22.37,38), so they fall into the traps of Hell.

           The prophet sensed that the enemy, Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king, would attack Edom and wreak havoc in that country. Today, if you check on the internet the situation of the country that Jacob's brother once founded, you will be amazed, because there is nothing that shows the heyday of this nation and its people. It is on a par with Sodom and Gomorrah. The fall of Edom is a warning to those who live in self-confidence: in the blink of an eye, they will fall too!

           They didn't even realize that they would fall in a short time. Just like Judah, which didn't believe it would be visited and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, the Edomites didn't even notice the arrival of the lion of the North, the Babylonian king. They laughed when Judah fell; they even took cities from the Israelites and began to colonize them. However, with the flood from the Jordan, the fort's dwelling was worthless. In a moment, God made them run away and disappear. Pray and stand firm in your faith!

           To this day, the Most High keeps the place once occupied by that nation uninhabitable; there is no planting or harvesting there. Their strongholds have been scattered throughout the world, and they are nowhere to be found. God is Lord of the Earth, for it is His creation. Where sin abounds, and man turns against the Lord, any heyday becomes a disgrace. But we need to keep preaching the Gospel so that unbelievers can be reached!

            The Lord asks who would push Him - would defy Him? Well, the Most High wants His children to be faithful to Him and do his will, visiting the poor in spirit, covering those who don’t have the garment of heaven, feeding the hungry and giving the Water of Life to those who perish for lack of divine strength (Matthew 25.34-40).

            No shepherd will fail to receive Christ's reward (1 Peter 5.4); after all, this servant is God's instrument to lead the Lord's flock to green pastures and still waters (Psalm 23.2). This shepherd will be like David, who delivered his sheep from the mouths of the lion and the bear. He must be after God's own heart. What do you say about that?

           In Christ, with love,

           R. R. Soares