May 10 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

Isaiah 46:1-2 vividly describes the position of the Babylonian gods. Two gods are mentioned by name: Bel and Nebo. Both of these idols will be destroyed. Bel, also known as Marduk, was considered the supreme ruler in the realm of the gods. The second god, Nebo, was the god of writing and interpretation and was in charge of kings and princes. Several Babylonian kings and commanders bear his name.

The Babylonians proudly boasted of the strength of these gods. Yet the living God lets them know who is in control. The Lord sends Cyrus as His instrument to strike the Babylonian empire a deadly blow. The Lord will not be ridiculed or mocked. The gods who are worshipped by the Babylonians cannot help at a most critical moment. All the honour these idols receive is out of place. The power ascribed to them is nonsense.

Bel and Nebo have been created by human hands. That’s why they cannot be separated from their images. These gods have to be carried around and looked after by those who made them. They are a burden and not a help. The images of these gods are carted around in proud procession at religious festivals. At the downfall of the Babylonian empire, they are, ironically, carried away on tired beasts. These gods give no power but weary the creatures who carry their images. What a sight! God wants the peoples of the earth to know that idols will always be defeated, along with those who made them. Babylon’s man-made gods are radically different from the living God! The gods of Babylon sink to their knees just when they are needed most. They stoop down, having been struck by the mighty hand of God. The Lord knocks them off their feet, just as he had done to Dagon (1 Samuel 5), to show those who worship these dead objects how silly and foolish they are to place their trust in them.

Without a doubt, Isaiah’s words are fulfilled when the Persians and the Medes take Babylon by storm. These words receive their ultimate fulfilment with the coming of Christ. Where the kingdom of Jesus is established all idols fall to the ground. The Lord Jesus tolerates no rivals. Let us seek our well-being in the living God. It has never gone well for those who allowed themselves to be carried away with idols.