“Do not go down to Egypt…”
Egypt, in the Bible, represents the world and its pleasures, just as Babylon is a symbol of idolatry and fase religions. In “Egypt” you can find everything you want (except God, of course).
No wonder God advised Isaac personally not to go down to Egypt. Why? Because going to Egypt means taking a step back in our Christian life; it means leaving the Mountain of the Lord to descend into the “valley of sin and death.”
But doesn’t God send us into the valley to preach his saving gospel? He certainly does. The difference is found in the purpose or motivation to go back to “Egypt.” Its one thing to descend as God’s ambassadors to spread the good news, and quite another to go back to the world to satisfy our carnal appetites. It is not the same to “feed” the unbelievers with the “bread of heaven” as to be fed with the poisonous, yet tastier “food” of the world.
“Isaac dug again the wells…”
When there is need in our lives (and who is not needy?), God wants us to return, not to Egypt, but to God. He will give us power, wisdom, and strength.
We can dig another well; we can begin anew. How can we dig wells of blessings? With prayer. God will hear our cries of desperation and will come to our rescue in his always-perfect time. God will open heaven’s windows and pour his manifold blessings over us so that we never again return to Egypt.
A. G.
