God said to Ezekiel: “Say to the Ammonites, ‘Hear the word of the Lord God! Thus says the Lord God: “Because you said, ‘Aha!’ against my sanctuary when it was profaned, and against the land of Israel when it was desolate, and against the house of Judah when they went into captivity, indeed, therefore, I will deliver you as a possession to the men of the East, and they shall set their encampments among you and make their dwellings among you; they shall eat your fruit, and they shall drink your milk. And I will make Rabbah a stable for camels and Ammon a resting place for flocks. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.’” Ezekiel 25:3-5 (NKJV)
Families can be strange, can’t they? Whether family by blood or of the heart, it’s likely that there is one who just doesn’t quite fit in. There’s usually one who just has to march to a different drumbeat and will head off blithely into the sunset full of confidence that success is just around the corner – and not just a run-of-the-mill success but a resounding, earth-shaking success that will rattle the world on its axis. Quite often that family member isn’t heard from again.
When Abraham was called to travel from Ur to a place that God had destined him, he took his nephew, Lot, and the two of them became quite wealthy. Their livestock filled the countryside and created havoc. Abraham told Lot that they needed to separate so that everything would calm down, and Lot moved to Sodom.
When God decided to destroy Sodom, Lot and his family left. Unfortunately, Lot’s wife had difficulty with the move and turned into a pillar of salt. Lot and his two daughters ended up living in a cave in the mountains. As sometimes happens, the daughters decided that they lived in a wasteland where there weren’t any men around to marry. They wanted children so they decided to take things into their own hands by getting their father drunk and becoming pregnant. The oldest daughter had a son and named him Moab. He became the founder of the Moabite nation. The youngest daughter had a son named Ben-Ammi who founded the Ammonite nation.
Both the Ammonites and the Moabites snickered when Israel and Judah, founded by descendants of Abraham, got into trouble. God decided to reduce both Ammon and Moab to ruins because they rejoiced at the downfall of their brothers. Within five years after the destruction of Jerusalem, Ammon and Moab were both invaded and destroyed by the Babylonians.
It’s important to be careful when rejoicing at the downfall of a family member – no matter how far out on the family tree they are! The old countries of Ammon and Moab are now part of Jordan. When God destroys something, it stays destroyed. Just something to think about!
Becky Gillette is a former teacher, newspaper reporter, and preacher who seeks to take an original approach to life’s lessons. She has recently published her first book, Jessie’s Corner: Something To Think About, which is now available for purchase. Based on several lesser-known scriptures from the Bible, this is a collection of articles which she wrote for a weekly newspaper.
