When our loving God calls us to obey, it is always for our good. When God’s people disobey Him, they will be chastened.

In building the nation of Israel, the Lord gave His people an unconditional promise that they would inherit the Promised Land. God would fulfil this promise despite their disobedience as the Messiah will be born through this nation. God’s divine protection of Israel involves the following three aspects:

1.  God’s presence with them (Exod 23:20-21)

God promised to send “an Angel” (Exod 23:20) to guide them and keep them safe if they obeyed His commands. This Angel is taken to refer to God the Son, thus it signifies God’s presence with His people.

This is a comforting truth, but it requires God’s people to be obedient to Him.

2.  God’s promised blessings on them (Exod 23:22-26)

God promised to bless and protect them if they obeyed His commands. God’s people were not to worship nor serve the idols of the Canaanites but to destroy them. God’s people were to worship and serve God only, and the promised blessings would be given to them.

It was a blessing to Israel to be a distinct people, different from the world, to live in holiness and separation from sin.

Do you enjoy God’s promises? Do you count it a privilege to live and testify for Him? Do you trust the Lord?

3.  God’s guarantee of the possession of the land (Exod 23:27-33)

God promised to put the fear of Him into the Canaanites’ hearts. He used hornets to drive them out of the land. In His wisdom, God drove the Canaanites out of the Promised Land slowly. The Bible frequently shows us how God fulfils His will, even through unexpected, mysterious means. The hornets may be small creatures, but God can use them to trouble the Canaanites and drive them out of the land.

As believers, we need to fear God, obey Him and live holy lives, that we may be set apart from the world.