THE AFFLICTIONS AND BLESSINGS OF THE WILDERNESS Because the pagan peoples in Canaan cared for gods, especially those which they thought were the source of fertility, growth, and reproduction, the prophet Moses confirmed that it is the grace of God that is the source of all blessings. In this chapter Moses reveals to his people that the secret behind the wandering in the wilderness, is that, although God allows His people to enter into affliction, yet His eyes are compassionate to them in the midst of their affliction, until He brings them out of it, to thank God, and to realize His exalted goodness toward them. God in His love for man, while He grants him His life-giving commandment to give him Himself, to enter with him into a relationship of love and to present to him blessings in abundance, with the same love, He brings him into the narrow road; Why? a. For justification: “To humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not” (2). b. For crowning: Having been justified by being brought to death through affliction, we prove worthy of getting greater blessings; “For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs…” (7). c. For chastisement: “As a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you” (5). d. To keep you from falling into pride or self- righteousness: “not to say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth’” (17). e. To give us the chance to see God, to get in touch with Him, and to enjoy His works in new experiences: “He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know” (3). In the midst of the furnace of fire, the three young men gained a new experience, when the Son of God appeared among them to turn the fire into dew. So, together with the fire of affliction, the believer will experience a new vision of God, and a heavenly taste of food, counted as new to him. f. Transforming the energies from evil, to new energies of edification: “Who brought water for you out of the rock of flint” (15). If our senses and our energies became hard as flint, God will bring from them fountains of water that quench the thirsty souls; and turn the wilderness into a divine paradise. 1. Keeping the commandment is the goal of the wilderness 1-2. 2. The compassionate eyes of God amid the wilderness 3-4. 3. A fatherly chastisement 5. 4. An abundance after the wilderness 6-9. 5. Thanksgiving and remembrance of God’s blessings 11-16. 6. Not leaning upon oneself 17-18. 7. Not leaning upon foreign gods 19-20. 1- KEEPING THE COMMANDMENT IS THE GOAL OF THE WILDERNESS We have seen how the encounter with the Person of God Himself, is connected to keeping His commandment. The goal of the commandment He presents, is for man to conform to the Spirit of God, to get back to his origin – the image and the likeness of God. By that the image is drawn to the origin, and the origin will find pleasure in 7 His living image proclaimed in man. If God has not allowed His people to cross over from Egypt to Canaan in a short time, but let them make it in years, that was to test their depths, in order that they may keep His commandment, to enjoy it, to live by it, and to inherit the heavenly Canaan. “Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers. And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you keep His commandment or not” (Deut. 8:1, 2). It is obvious that the issue of obedience; namely, the enjoyment of the commandment of the Lord, was the goal of those forty years in the wilderness. If those years refer to our temporal life, which is just like a perpetual journey, during which we cross over from the land of bondage to enter into the heavenly Canaan, it is fitting for us to concentrate on the word of God, enjoy His commandment, and strive by His Holy Spirit, to practice obedience to it; and that through our union with the incarnate Word, who, “though He was the Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered” (Hebrew 5:5). By our union with Him, we enjoy the Word; and gain the honor of fellowship with Him in His nature; namely, the honor of the perfect obedience to God the Father. What is our commitment, as far as the commandment is concerned? (1) Accepting all the commandments. As the commandments are one integral unit, either we accept them as a whole, or be counted as though rejecting them all. Accepting the commandments in their depth, is an acceptance of the Person of the divine Word working in us. Either we accept Him, to dwell in Him, and to let Him abide in us; or to become outside Him, and not enjoy Him. The Word of God cannot be divided! (2) Saying “be careful,” this implies getting preoccupied with, and caring for the commandments; to let them draw our hearts and minds, and occupy our whole being. He, who accepts the incarnate Word of God, will praise by his whole being, and not just by his tongue, saying: “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine” (Songs 6:3). (3) Saying “to observe,” the prophet proclaims that the commandment is not merely a theoretical thought to be preoccupied with; nor a philosophy that we embrace; nor a principle of which we talk; but a life we practice. The goal of the commandment is to bring man back, as though to the paradisiacal life, to hear what was said to his parents Adam and Eve, to live, to multiply, and to have authority over the earth. The prophet says: “that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess.” By the commandment we would acquire the Word of God, the Giver of life, live, produce many fruits, have children in the Lord, enter into the heavenly life, and possess, to say together wit St. John the Theologian: “He has made us kings and priests to His God and Father” (Revelation 1:6). Of the blessings of the commandment, is to remember God’s dealings with us; as He brings us into the wilderness to let us discover our humility and weakness; then to proclaim to Him either our observance of the commandment or our rejection of it. To make us realize that all what take place around us, are not, as some assume, mere coincidence, but happen through a divine wisdom and according to an exalted plan, to let us enjoy divine blessings amid the wilderness. In the epistle of James it is said: “God tempts no one” (James 1:13); whereas 8 here he says: “He tests you”(3). St. Augustine says: [We have to understand that there are two kinds of temptations. A temptation that deceives, and another that justifies. Concerning the one that deceives, it is said, “God tempts no one;” whereas, concerning the one which justifies, it is said, “He tests you1.”] This chapter reveals the shortest and safest road that leads to the heavenly Canaan; namely, the discovery of God’s plan through the past events. The historical events seem to some as being temporal and human. But, the pure heart feels through these events the proclamations of God. The journey of life, although including several events; yet all of them are like threads interwoven together to proclaim the unbroken twine of God’s care. 2- THE COMPASSIONATE EYES OF GOD AMID THE WILDERNESS “So, He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna, which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years” (Deut. 8:3,4). “He humbled you”: The wandering in the wilderness was a punishment, which came on the previous generation, in order to motivate the present generation toward humility and submission. Having reached the outskirts of Canaan, it is fitting for them not to forget the long period of the wilderness; as it was for them like a school where they learned that man is a hungry being who needs a kind of food he, or his fathers did not knew; the manna that came down from heaven (Exodus 16:28); namely, the Word of God, the Giver of life. The believer realizes that God cares for all his needs, grants him garments that do not wear out and keeps his feet from swelling. God cares for his food, drink, clothing and his health. God supports and fulfills his life, in His own divine way – by the heavenly manna. God who grants man the bread to fulfill his body, is Himself who grants his soul His divine mysteries, “the spiritual manna,” to fulfill its needs. Whoever concentrates his sight on the material bread, would become indebted to the dust for what it presents to him; whereas he, who concentrates his sight on the living knowledge of God, would become indebted to Him with his life. He allows temptations, to make us feel humility, yet He allows it within the limits of our benefit and edification, so that we do not come out of it hungry or naked or ill; but victorious, grown-ups, and crowned with glory. He allows temptations, for us to discover the true God, His care, mercies, and love! If He allowed them to wander in the wilderness, yet there, they did not need to plow the earth, to plant and water it, to gather the crops, to grind the grains, to bake the bread, or to cook the food. They did not need someone to weave fabrics for them, to sew garments, or to make sandals or shoes. They did not need physicians, medications, or hospitals. The garments and footwear of their children did not wear out; but grew bigger, with the continuous growth of their bodies. The Lord Christ quoted verse 4, when He responded to Satan, who asked him to turn the stones into bread (Matthew 4:3, 4). In the midst of the wilderness, the people kept on eating the same food, morning, noon, and evening, all along the years. Likewise, they did not change their 1 St. Augustine: On the Gospel of St. John, tract. 43:5. 9 clothes. Although they walked through a dry and barren wilderness, yet they were fulfilled by God’s exalted care, to confirm to them, that their true fulfillment is not in food, drink, clothing, adornments, or luxurious life, but in God’s love, and the enjoyment of His exalted fatherhood. And as the Lord Christ commands us: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). He commands His disciples as well, saying: “I say to you, ‘Do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?’” (Matthew 6:25); and from His apostles, He enquired: “When I sent you without money bag, sack, and sandals, did you lack anything?” (Luke 22:35) As far as the believer is concerned, although the road may be like a wilderness, yet it is safe, and will not harm his feet, as it is said: “He will guard the feet of His saints” (1 Samuel 2:9), and about the wicked, it is said: “The way of the unfaithful is hard” (Proverb 13:15). Man often preoccupies himself with filling his belly with the corruptible bread; but not caring for fulfilling his soul with the eternal spiritual manna; the Word of God, the life-Giver. That is why the Church cares for practicing long periods of fasting, not to humble the body with hunger, but to lift the soul up to heaven, to seek a heavenly meal, as is fitting for it. Blessed is he, who knows how to be fulfilled in Christ, not bodily, but spiritually, the fulfillment provided by knowledge1. St. Ambrose You should know for sure that the enemy attacks the heart through the way of the full belly. Fr John of Cronstadt Be the master of your belly, before it becomes your master. Whoever cares for his gluttony, while hoping for conquering the spirit of corruption in himself, is like him, who tries to quench the fire with oil2. St. John Climacus They despised the food of the angels, moaning for the meat of Egypt. The prophet Moses fasted for 40 days and forty nights on the Mount of Sinai, demonstrating that “man does not live on bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.” With an empty stomach he received the Law written by the finger of God; whereas his people ate, drank, then got up to play, and made for themselves a golden calf; preferring it to the glory of God. The labor of several years was lost through a single hour of fulfillment! Moses broke the two stone tablets, realizing that the drunken people could not hear the Word of God3. When the first man obeyed his belly and not the Lord, he was driven out of paradise to the valley of tears4. After giving great care to your thoughts, it is fitting for you to arm yourselves with the weapon of fasting; saying together with David: “I chastened my soul with fasting” (Psalm 69:10); and, “I have eaten ashes like bread” (Psalm 102:9); and, “But as for me, when they were sick, I wore sackcloth” (Psalm 35:13). 1 St. Ambrose: The Duties of the Clergy, Book X, 17 (92). 2 Ladder, step 14. 3 St. Jerome: Against Jovinianus, Book 2:15. 4 St. Jerome: Ep. 22:10. 10 Eve was driven out of Paradise because she ate the forbidden fruit; whereas Elijah after fasting for 40 days, was carried by a chariot of fire up to heaven. For duration of 40 days and 40 nights, Moses lived an intimate encounter with God, confirming the truth of the words: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord” (3). The Savior of the world, by whose virtues and the example of His life, He left us a role model to follow (John 13:15; 1 Peter 2:21)), directly after His Baptism, was taken up by the Spirit to wrestle with Satan (Matthew 4:1). And once He conquered him, He delivered him to His disciples to trample with their feet, as expressed by the apostle Paul, saying: “God will crush Satan under your feet shortly” (Romans 16:20). After the Savior fasted for 40 days, Satan tried to set a trap for Him through food, saying to Him: “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread” (Matthew 4:3). According to the Law, on the tenth day of the seventh month, after the blowing of the trumpet, a fast is proclaimed for the entire Jewish people; and “Any person who is not afflicted of soul, he shall be cut off from his people” (Leviticus 23:27-29). In the book of ‘Job,’ it is written about Behemoth, that “his strength is in his hips, and his power is in his stomach muscles” (Job 40:16)1. St. Jerome 3- A FATHERLY CHASTISEMENT The wilderness was not merely a school by which man discovers his weaknesses, to see God as his only Mster; but it is a school of God’s love. In the wilderness, the believer enters under the fatherly chastisement, in order to gain new experiences, and growth in wisdom and understanding. “So you should know in your heart, that as a man chastens his son, so the lord your God chastens you” (Deut. 8:5). And as the Psalmist says: “Blessed is the man whom You instruct, O Lord, and teach out of Your law” (Psalm 94:12). God rebukes in order to correct; and corrects in order to keep us for Himself2. St. Cyprian Together with the good things that God provides His people, he also provides them with eternal chastisements to keep them by the spirit of adoption (4,5). Chastisement, as far as the believer is concerned, is not punishment he fears and of which he gets terrified, but it is a school, where he enjoys knowledge and continuous growth. It is the door of fervent prayer, which brings man up to the bosom of his heavenly Father. Chastisement is the beginning of the way, for God to proclaim Himself to the chastised, who realizes the truth of himself, and by which he realizes God; because he, who realizes himself, realizes God. That is why the early fathers, like St. Clement of Alexandria, and St. Anthony the Great, concentrate on how man can realize his own depths. Through chastisement, man realizes that, by himself, he is nothing, whereas by God, he can do anything. It can be said that chastisement through affliction has a double goal: a. For man to recognize himself; and accordingly, to recognize God, working in man’s heart and in his inner man. b. For man to withdraw from the way of sin, to receive the righteousness of Christ in him; and to bear the obedience of sonhood, which is of the Lord Christ 1 St. Jerome: Letter 130:10. 2 Epistle 7:5. 11 toward His Father, the One with Him in essence. This is God’s plan in chastisement: To let us recognize God; to enjoy the Lord Christ in Him, and to share His features. 4. AN ABUNDANCE AFTER THE WILDERNESS “Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and fear Him. For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs that flow out of valleys and hills. A land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive and honey; a land in which you eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron and out of whose hills you can dig copper” (Deut. 8:6-9). In the Old Testament, God presents the good land, a land of brooks, where fountains and springs flow out of valleys and hills, that provide man with all his needs of fruits and crops (7). Whereas in the New Testament, the Lord Christ presents the bosom of God the Father as an inheritance for us, in which we settle down forever, safely, with no war or enemy; where the fountains of the Holy Spirit flow in us, to conform us to the icon of Christ, and to make us like Him. It was not possible for the Israelites to realize the exalted secret of God, nor to experience the exalted heavenly life; they could only realize the good land, the brooks, the fountains, the grains, the barley, the vineyards, the figs, the pomegranates, the olives, and the honey. “A good land” (7): Travelers through the wilderness on their way from Egypt, tell how, once they reach Palestine, they welcome the sight of its flowery plains, its green hills; and the temperate crops that its high altitude provides. “Whose stones are iron” (9) and “copper”: In the mountains, south of Lebanon, the eastern region of the sea of Galilee, and south of the Dead Sea, there is iron. The region of ‘Arabah,’ south of the Dead Sea is rich in iron and copper; and some copper mines go back to the days of king Solomon, in the region of ‘Zarethan (1 Kings 7:45-46); and even before the days of Solomon in ‘Temnah’ in the region of ‘Negev.’When He brings us into the wilderness for chastisement; if we proclaim our observation of the commandments of the Lord, and our enjoyment of fearing Him; He will then bring us forth from affliction to abundance. Instead of the barren land, He will bring us forth to the good land. Instead of draught, we would enjoy brooks of living water and inexhaustible fountains. Instead of the dry wilderness, we would enjoy fields loaded with crops and fruits. Instead of great need, we would be in need of nothing. Instead of hills and mountains of stones, we would find mines of iron and copper. It will be as though, through the affliction of the wilderness, man would enter into what is like the paradise of Eden, to live and work good lands, watered by brooks and fountains; and would get inexhaustible crops and precious resources. He presented to them these gifts for the following reasons: 1. To realize God’s exalted care. After a long life in the wilderness, they get an abundance that they did not expect. 2. To realize the blessings of keeping the commandments of God, who grants the obedient, heavenly and temporal blessings. 12 3. God transforms the labor of others into comfort for His believers; they shall find fields, they did not plant; wells, they did not dig; and rich resources, for which they did not labor. 4. What they gain now is a symbol of what they are going to gain, by entering into the higher Jerusalem, and enjoying the heavenly Canaan. 5. He did not refer to all the crops and fruits of Canaan; but chose only the following: Wheat and barley: Wheat as food for man; and barley for beasts and birds. God fulfills the need of man, and that of his beasts and birds. Vines: The juice of grapes, or the wine, refers to the spiritual joy, which is the food of the soul. As He cares for their bodies, He also cares for their souls, fulfilling them with heavenly joy. Figs: referring to the Church, each of its individual seeds carries no taste, but when the seeds assemble together within a cover, that would give them sweetness. So is the believer; whatever his position in the church may be, would be tasteless and valueless, unless he unites with his brothers within the cover of unity and love. God cares for the congregation as a whole, as well as for every member. Pomegranates: Its juice is used in the hot countries in summer, as a cool drink. God cares for our comfort, granting us coolness amid the afflictions. Olives: Its oil is used as a healthy food, for illumination purposes and as a medication. God cares for the well being of His people, as well as for their enlightenment. Honey: The believers experience the sweetness of intimacy with God. 5. THANKSGIVING AND REMEMBRANCE OF GOD’S BLESSINGS “When you have eaten and are full, then you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you. Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes, which I command you today. Lest – when you have eaten, and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; When your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the rock of flint; Who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you, and that He might test you, to do you good in the end” (Deut. 8:10-16). God granted His people a good land, to let them eat, be fulfilled, and bless the Lord; then to be in their turn a good land which bears the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, and perpetual thanksgiving to the Giver of blessings. The life of thanksgiving reveals holy hearts that get in touch with God’s love, to realize the secrets of His love, and respond to Him. Whereas the souls that forget God’s care and blessings; fall in pride, and disregard God’s work with them; He, who brought them over from the wilderness, the dwelling place of fiery serpents and scorpions; the thirsty land where there is no 13 water; to a good land flooding with good natural resources. Instead of the wilderness with its deadly serpents, He gave them pastures with cattle and sheep; and, instead of a desert, He granted them land rich in silver and gold. Amid the barren wilderness, He brought for them water out of the rock of flint; a fountain that kept accompanying them all the way, until they crossed over to a land rich in rain and profuse springs. Prophets of the Old Testaments often concentrated on the presence of rain in the Promised Land, as a sign of the gifts of heaven in the new Testament; calling the Messianic era, ‘the era of water.’ St Jerome noticed the connection between the fiery serpents and scorpions, and the thirst for water. In a letter to ‘Oceanus,’ noble Roman, with a zealous faith, he wrote about the blessings of water and baptism, saying1: At the beginning of creation, the Spirit of God hovered over the face of water; out of which, He brought the little world; a symbol of the Christian infant who is plunged in the water of baptism. The word ‘heaven’ in Hebrew (shamyim) means “he who comes out of water.” The living heavenly creatures seen by the prophet Ezekiel in his vision, with the likeness of the firmament above their heads, with the color of an awesome crystal, stretched out over their heads (Ezekiel 1:22), like very compressed water. In the middle of the Garden of Eden, there was a river with four heads watering it (Genesis 2:10). In the vision of Ezekiel about the new house of the Lord, he saw water flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east. The water healed and granted life to the dead souls (Ezekiel 47:1-9). When the world fell into sin, it was not possible to purify it except by the great flood. After the unclean bird got out, the dove of the Holy Spirit returned to ‘Noah,’ then came back later to Christ in the River Jordan, and carried in its beak the branch preaching peace to the entire world. In the water of the Red Sea, Pharaoh and his soldiers, who refused to allow the people of God to depart from the land of Egypt, drowned. By that, the sea became a symbol of our baptism. In the book of Psalms, the perdition of Pharaoh was so described: “You divided the sea by your strength. You broke the heads of the sea serpents in the waters. You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces” (Psalm 74:13, 14 LXX). Like when the tree cast into the bitter water, made it sweet, to water seventy palm trees. So did the cross with the life-giving water of the Law to the seventy disciples of Christ (Exodus 15:23-27; Luke 10:1). Abraham and Isaac dug wells; and the Philistines tried to stop them (Genesis 26:15, 18). Beersheba, the city of the oath (Genesis 21:31), and Gihon, where Solomon was a king, got their names after springs (1 kings 1:38; 2 Chronicles 32:30). Eleazar, the servant of Abraham, met Rebecca near a well of water (Genesis 24:15, 16). Where Rachel was drawing water from a well, she got a kiss from Jacob (Genesis 1 St. Jerome: Letter 69:6. 14 29:11). While the daughters of the priest of Median were on their way to a well; and were afflicted by shepherds; they were helped by Moses who drove away the intruders (Exodus 2:16, 17). The predecessor of the Lord (St. John the Baptist) in Salim (namely, peace) prepared the people for Christ by a fountain of water (John 3:23). The Lord Himself preached the Kingdom of heaven, only after He purified the Jordan through being baptized by plunging in it (Matthew 3:13, 14). The Savior told Nicodemus in a secret way: “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of heaven” (John 3:5). As the ministry of Christ started by water, it ended in the same way; when, out of his side, pierced by a spear; water and blood flowed; as symbols of Baptism and martyrdom (John 9:34). After His resurrection, He sent His apostles to the Gentiles, and commanded them to baptize them by the sacrament of the Trinity (Matthew 28:19). When the Jews repented their evil ways, St. Peter sent them to get baptized (Acts 2:38). Paul, the persecutor of the church; the ravenous wolf of Benjamin (Genesis 49:27); bowed his head before Ananias, one of the herd of Christ; and did not regain his insight before he received the balm of Baptism (Acts 9:17, 18,). By the reading of the prophet, the eunuch under Candace the queen of Ethiopia, got prepared for the Baptism of Christ (acts 8:27-38); and, contrary to nature, the Ethiopian changed his skin, and the leopard its spots (Jeremiah 13:23). “The voice of the Lord is over the waters… The Lord is over many waters (Psalm 29:3). “Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep; which have come up from the washing, everyone of which bears twins, and none is barren among them” (Songs 4:2). The prophet Micah referring to the grace of Baptism, says, “He will again have compassion on us; and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea” (Micah 7:19). Some may wonder: ‘Knowing that there are deadly serpents and scorpions, and no water, in the wilderness; why did He allow His people to go through that narrow way?’ 1. In order that the believer would discover his inner depths. In the midst of affliction, it is easier for the believer to have his sight withdraw to his depths to see it. God led His people along the wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions, where He has been their Guard and Support, until they crossed over to the good safe land. So it is fitting for us to realize that God brings us down to our depths, to realize how they are full of deadly serpents that crept into us, either by our own will, or through our slothfulness, to see how He will transform our barren nature into a new one, and how He will transform our spiritual dryness into the fellowship of the divine nature, to become as though in the new Canaan. God’s love is behind that transformation of man, whom sin corrupted, into incorruption. Because man, by his complete freedom, chose sin, affliction became necessary, to take him away from its course. 15 The human nature is just as barren and fruitless as that wilderness; and just as filled with serpents and scorpions; with broods of vipers (Matthew 3:7)… Yet, we should not fear; because the leader of our path is not Moses but Jesus1. St. John Chrysostom 2- Bringing us over into affliction, and realizing how helpless human hands are to support us, we would look toward God, as the only One who can transform the affliction into a way for our salvation, our inner happiness, and our glory. The Holy Bible confirms everywhere the need of man, after his fall into sin, for affliction. The whole book, especially this present book, confirms the fact, that affliction is the way of entry into real happiness. 6. NOT LEANING UPON ONE-SELF The foremost of sins and its head, that crept, even to heavenly creatures, and brought down Satan and his hosts, is pride, or selfishness. The enemy aimed this same arrow to the hearts of our parents Adam and Eve, when he said to Eve: “You will become like God” (Genesis 3:5). And he still is aiming it to humanity; to let us assume that we are gods, and it is by our power and the might of our hand, that we have achieved all these material, social, and spiritual gains. The cure for this would be to recall God’s dealings with us, His exalted care, and His perpetual gifts. He says: “Then you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.’ And you shall remember the Lord Your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day” (Deut. 8:17, 18). 7. NOT LEANING ON FOREIGN GODS Not remembering God’s gifts, and forgetting His exalted care, would not only lead us to pride, to set gods out of ourselves, but would also divert us, like idolaters, to set for ourselves gods, other than the true God, by leaning upon human arms, human experiences; possibilities, knowledge, or social positions; several gods, before which man bows, disregarding the true God. In other words, instead of resorting to God, who granted us all these blessings with His hands; we transform them into a call for idolatry. “Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroys before you, you shall perish, because you would not be obedient to the voice of the Lord your God” (Deut. 8:19, 20). God has no partiality; Whoever leans upon Him and obeys Him, will enjoy the reward; Whereas he, who resort to other gods, disregarding His care, and disobeying His commandments, will lose His blessings. He gives man complete freedom to choose his own way. 1 In Ephes. Hom. 23. 16 AN INSPIRATION FROM THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY (Chapter 8) LET ME CROSS OVER THE WILDERNESS OF MY LIFE Accompany me, O my God, with Your amazing care. By Your exalted fatherhood, support me, in the wilderness. You transform the wilderness of my life into a Paradise. You walk with me to train me amid the sufferings. You keep and support my heart; to let it become wholly Yours. In the middle of the wilderness, I feel a severe thirst. What will quench my thirst, but the fountain emerging from your side, O the rock that accompanies me?! In the middle of the wilderness, I feel a deadly hunger’ Send me the heavenly manna. Grant me Your life-giving word, the heavenly bread. Grant me Your knowledge; the eternal food. I cry out to You: Until when shall I only care to fulfill my belly?! And not be preoccupied with fulfilling my soul?! By my own will, the fiery serpents got into my nature. The scorpions found a place for themselves. I came into a deadly thirst. By Your cross, You kill every serpent. And trample over the scorpions under my feet. And let the fountain of Your Holy Spirit flow inside me. You, amazingly, transform the wilderness of my nature. Into the fellowship of Your divine nature. What should I offer You in the middle of this wilderness? I have nothing to offer You, O the rich God! Accept my thanksgiving as a sacrifice of love. I remember Your exalted care. I remember Your amazing practical love. I remember Your daily dealings with me with Your exalted love!
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