Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 17:13-16

13 And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

14 And the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.

15 And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi:

16 For he said, Because the Lord hath sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

At the end of the day, Joshua and the Israelite army prevailed and the Amalekites suffered a loss. However this was only a setback for the Amalekites, not an utter defeat. Nevertheless, the Lord used this opportunity to vow that He would, ultimately, “utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek.”

It is worth considering, has this vow been fulfilled? Referring to the Biblical record, it was almost accomplished in Saul’s military campaign, but Saul stopped short of the Lord’s mandate, and was sharply reproved for that, allowing the Amalekites to limp on, eventually becoming a thorn in the side of Israel once more.

We have no record that states the Amalekites were ever, completely eradicated, at least not by the Israelites. Perhaps they were conquered by the Assyrians or the Babylonians, or perhaps they were assimilated into other cultures, and the people have been “put out of remembrance” that way. Or, perhaps the people are still present to this day, and the Lord is biding His time before fulfilling His declaration.

A prophecy that we do know was fulfilled was the one given in verse 16. The Lord assured the Israelites that they would war with the Amalekites for generations, and as discussed yesterday, that most certainly did occur. Depending on whatever became of the Amalekites, perhaps in some form the feud still goes on even today.

Posted on by Abe Austin

The Need for Refreshing- Isaiah 53:6, Deuteronomy 6:6, 8-9, 2 Peter 1:12 (NLT)

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.
And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

Therefore, I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught.

COMMENTARY

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way
I do believe that when most of us make a commitment, we really do intend to hold fast to it. People do not get married intending for it to end in divorce, or sign a contract intending to breach it, or enter baptism intending to return to their old sins. And yet they do. All the time. We are a wayward flock and always have been.
There is a very simple reason for this behavior. We are temporal beings constrained by time. Though we have the memory of the past and the hope of the future, we can only ever live in the present. Memories and hopes can influence us, but the immediacy of now will often drown them out. Thus we may have felt very strongly back when we made marriage vows, signed contracts, and entered baptism; but the weight of those moments do not last forever. Our every vow comes with an expiration date.
If you have noticed this tendency to wander, know that it is not a failing in you as an individual. It is a universal, and unavoidable, failing of the entire human race. We may not forget what we have promised, but we do forget the feelings we held when we made them.

And these word shall be bound for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house.
Therefore, I will always remind you about these things
God is well aware of this forgetful nature in us, and as such has always taught his people to regularly refresh their vows. He instructed the Israelites to bind the words of the laws on their hands, in little boxes on their foreheads, and on the posts of their doors. He had them do this so that they would see constant reminders of what they had been called to. The disciples of Jesus were given the Sacrament, and told to come together oft to repeat that commitment ceremony.
Yes, our hearts stray, but we can choose every day to recommit them. Yes, our vows come with expiration dates, but we can extend them with new ones. When I keep the commandments today, it is not because of a commitment I made once years ago, it is because of the one I made last Sunday when I partook of the sacrament, and this morning when I said my prayers. We are a forgetful race, but we can remind ourselves.