Kingdom Publicity

Moses and the Israelites were bound for the promised land. But to get there they had to cross through the territory of the Amorites. The kings of the Amorites refused to let them pass and came up against them with all their armies. King Sihon and King Og were, themselves, giants and their armies were vast and fierce.

Israel had walked into an ambush set by satan himself. His intent was to deny the Israelites what God had promised them. He must've thought he'd succeeded as the Amorites greatly out numbered Israel and had them surrounded on every side.

After he (Moses) had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, which dwelt at Astaroth in Edrei (Deu 1:4)

God was with Moses and Israel. Sihon and Og were both killed that day and their armies scattered to the four winds. To better understand how this applies to us, we have to examine the meanings of the names given in the text.

Sihon means "chaos". Og means "intimidation". Sihon lived in a place called Heshbon which means "contrivance or deception". Og lived in a city called Astaroth which means "to increase by greed".

This says to me that whenever we, as did Moses, actively pursue the Kingdom and the Lord's promises, the enemy will always try to ambush us by using others to cause chaos through outright deception (lies) and intimidation rooted in greed. Victory over this comes only when we stand firm in our determination to press into the Kingdom promises. We evidence this determination by refusing to allow satan's distractions to draw us away from our goal. Just as Peter when he walked on water did so only when his eyes were fixed on the King.

The battle between Israel and the Amorites took place in a city called Edrei which literally means "publicity". This speaks of the witness to the world that results from Kingdom Victory over the enemy. As Christ was ambushed by the Jews and nailed to a cross, only to rise again on the third day to proclaim His public Kingdom Victory, our testimony over having defeated the lies and intimidations sent to destroy us, is the "publicity" of the Kingdom that satan fears most.

And (Rahab) said to them, "I know that the LORD has given you this land and that dread of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you. For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings you completely destroyed across the Jordan. When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on earth below. (Jos 2:9-11)