When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah: “Since they have humbled themselves, I will not destroy them but will soon give them deliverance. My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. 8 They will, however, become subject to him, so that they may learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands.” From today’s reading in 2 Chronicles 12:7-8 (NIV)
In response to the repentance of His people, God granted the people of Judah some deliverance. God did not allow them to be completely destroyed, but he did not deliver them completely either. He allowed some consequences to come to them. This was in order to teach them the vast difference between serving Yahweh, the living LORD, the King of kings and serving the kings of the other countries around them.
Praise God for his goodness, mercy and wisdom. He hears our cries of repentance and pleas for help, but sometimes the deliverance looks different than what we expect. Sometimes there are lessons we need to learn. We can be assured that this is always for our good and his glory.
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