1 Chronicles 5:26 (KJV)
And the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, and the spirit of Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria, and he carried them away, even the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and brought them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river Gozan, unto this day.
I take it that the books of 1 and 2 Chronicles are designed to inform those Jews returning from Babylonian captivity of their heritage and roots. They are returning to a land that they have been told all their lives belonged to them, but that they have never once lived in. The writer of the books, under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, wants them to know from whence they came.
One of the chief lessons is this: the returning Jews are not all of them. Only the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and some of Levi are returning (there is also a large portion of Simeon). The northern kingdom of Israel was taken much earlier than the southern kingdom and by Assyria rather than Babylon. And they never returned. First and Second Chronicles emphasize that those who returned to rebuild the land were those loyal to the royal family established by the LORD—that of David’s family.
But here’s the detail of our text. Even previous, by almost twenty years, to the capture of the northern kingdom by Assyria, was the capture of the two and a half tribes that chose their land outside of the Promised Land. God gave them that land by permission, much as He gave Israel the king they wanted by permission. But permission does not always equal protection from the consequences of the request. By claiming the land outside the Promised Land, they were outside the God-given boundary of the Jordan River, separated from the center of their national worship, closer to enemy nations, and more difficult to defend by their leadership.
God allowed Lot to choose the well-watered plains. God allowed Israel to have a king like the other nations. God allowed these tribes to remain east of the Jordan. But in each case, there were long-term, devastating consequences.
The Bible is not a difficult book to understand for those who are saved and who study it. The general lessons God gives for life and godliness are not challenging to comprehend. That God allows people—even those who claim to know and follow Him—to do things other than what is written does not equal His blessing on doing them, nor does it promise protection from the consequences of those choices.
#PermissionIsNotBlessing #ConsequencesOfChoice #BibleTruths #LearnFromIsrael #GodsBoundaries
The Wrong Side of the Jordan—and the Price They Paid
What do you think—does God’s permission always mean His protection?
Drop a comment below and share your thoughts or a Scripture that comes to mind. I’d enjoy hearing how you see it.
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