The enemies of God’s people know no compromise. The devil is looking for those he can devour.
With one final flourish to the dark side, Deuteronomy 25 concludes with a solemn reminder: “Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you were coming out of Egypt, how he met you on the way and attacked your rear ranks, all the stragglers at your rear, when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God” (vv 17-18). Not only could Israel expect trouble within the nation, they were being reminded that they would always be surrounded by those who would seek to destroy them, as they do to this day. Amalek was a grandson of Esau’s, and his family, like Jacob’s, had grown into a nation. Fierce and implacable, they were the first to assault the Israelites after their exodus from Egypt. Notice their tactics: like wolves, they had attacked the stragglers and the weary. And, reads the indictment, “he did not fear God.” On the other hand, the newly-appointed commander, Joshua, and his men routed and defeated Amalek, due to the intercession of Moses, Aaron, and Hur on the hilltop. Later, Samuel would instruct King Saul to eradicate this clan because the Amalekites were determined to destroy Israel. In a very inopportune show of sympathy, Saul spared the ruling family, the house of Agag. Although Samuel subsequently killed Agag, evidently some of his family escaped and, many years later, Haman, “the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to annihilate them” (Est 9:24). Were it not for Mordecai, Esther, and the God “who works all things according to the counsel of His will” (Eph 1:11), Haman might have succeeded in doing what the Amalekites had longed to accomplish—wiping out the hope of a Savior. How grateful we are that the enemies of God’s people today are just as sure to fail.