The Hidden God

Thus says the LORD:

The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia,

and the Sabeans, tall of stature,

shall come over to you and be yours,

they shall follow you;

they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.

They will make supplication to you, saying,

“God is with you alone, and there is no other;

there is no god besides him.”

Truly, you are a God who hides himself,

O God of Israel, the Savior.

All of them are put to shame and confounded,

the makers of idols go in confusion together.

But Israel is saved by the LORD

with everlasting salvation;

you shall not be put to shame or confounded

to all eternity. (Isaiah 45:14-17)

What you see is not always what you get. Egypt and Ethiopia were near each other in Africa. Sometimes Ethiopia was ruled by the Egyptians. Sometimes the Egyptians were ruled by the Ethiopians. Seba, or Sheba, from which the Sabeans came, was located in what is today Yemen, which is on the coast of the Arabian peninsula. They may also have established colonies along the coast of Ethiopia. One of their queens once visited Solomon.

Isaiah predicted that the people of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sabea would turn to worshipping the God of Israel. But they wouldn’t do that because of beautiful idols stationed in a beautiful temple. The God of Israel was something far more than just a pretty statue.

Alone among the peoples of the world, the Jews did not make physical representations of their God. The God of Israel was not visible, nor was he ever to be made visible. While the other gods had visible representations, they were powerless and did nothing. The God of Israel was invisible, but powerful and did everything. The hidden God became visible in what he accomplished. Faith could then be placed on Him who could not be seen because of the evidence of his actions that could be(Hebrews 11:1).

Send to Kindle