📖 The families of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had 44,760 men trained for war—physically fit and skilled in handling shield, sword, and bow. They fought against the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab. God helped them as they fought. God handed the Hagrites and all their allies over to them, because they cried out to him during the battle. God answered their prayers because they trusted him. They plundered the Hagrite herds and flocks: 50,000 camels, 250,000 sheep, and 2,000 donkeys. They also captured 100,000 people. Many were killed, because the battle was God’s. They lived in that country until the exile.
—I Chronicles 5:18-22 The Message
The families of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh were physically fit and skilled in handling shields, swords, and bows. Despite possessing all of this, they still put their trust and dependency in God. Their trust and dependency were not in their skill. Their trust was not in their physical strength. There may be people who are stronger than us. There may be people that are more skilled than we are. That is why we cannot look to ourselves. We must always look to God because God is the One that causes us to triumph. God knows how to give us the victory. It is important for us to do our part. We must develop our skills. We must become knowledgeable. We must endeavor to get better every day. But at the end of the day, we are nothing without God. We may have to fight a battle; but we are not in it alone. When we know who is with us, we already know the outcome. The battle is not ours; the battle is the Lord’s.
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