Don't Go Down to Egypt!
Then the Lord appeared to him and said:
“Do not go down to Egypt;
live in the land of which I shall tell you”
(Genesis 26:2 NKJV)
Don’t go down to Egypt! These words jumped off the page of the book I was reading. I was walking through a trial and there were some tempting paths available to bail out, but all those paths led back to previous situations. I knew God did not want me to do that, but when the days grew long and my legs got tired from walking, I just wanted to chuck in the whole sorry mess and go back.
In the Bible, “down to Egypt” is used to describe a situation or place that we turn to when we are not trusting Him fully and we act on our own judgement. We turn to what appears to be an easy or obvious solution. God also warns numerous times not to “trust in horses and chariots,” which is tied to going down to Egypt. The overarching theme is that we are to trust in Him only to take care of us.
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their chariots and in the great strength of their horsemen, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel, or seek help from the Lord (Isaiah 31:1 NIV).
Abraham went down to Egypt and it got him into a heap of trouble. Famine had come upon the land where he was living and instead of seeking God, he decided to take matters into his own hands and headed off to the land of the Pharaohs. But that decision would have far-reaching consequences, consequences that are still impacting the world today.
His wife, Sarah was a beautiful woman and Abraham feared that the Egyptians would kill him to take her, so he pretended Sarah was his sister. But it backfired horribly when the Egyptian king saw Sarah’s beauty and took her into his palace, planning to marry her. He also gave Abraham many gifts because of her – servants, cattle, and other animals, which increased Abraham’s wealth dramatically.
He treated Abram well for her sake. He had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male and female servants, female donkeys, and camels (Genesis 12: 16 NKJV).
While Abraham may have failed to protect his wife, God did not. He brought a plague on the house of Pharaoh, who soon cottoned onto the truth and told Abraham to take Sarah and leave Egypt immediately. Abraham left Egypt with the cattle and gifts that the Pharaoh had given him. On the surface that sounds good, but those gifts brought unintended consequences. One of those gifts by the name of Hagar came back to haunt Abraham (see Genesis chapters 16 and 21).
The increase to his herds also resulted in he and Lot having to go separate ways to ensure enough land for both. Lot settled in Sodom, which came to a fiery and unpleasant end. Lot even lost his wife when, against God’s strict orders, she turned to look back at the burning city. The sojourn in Egypt had serious repercussions in many areas of their lives.
It is so tempting to go down to Egypt – to take what appears to be the obvious or easy way out. When circumstances become difficult, remain where God has placed you until He tells you to move. Seek God’s will for the situation. Don’t go down to Egypt.
Whoever believes will not be in haste (Isaiah 28:16 ESV)
