The Defeat of the Amalekites

· The time is around 1445 B.C.  Not long ago from this point, the Israelites had just escaped Egypt. 

· Egypt, a world power, was defeated when God parted the Red Sea and caused it to crash down on their armies. 

· Shortly after this event, the Israelites are in an area called Rephidim and they are on their way to the Promised Land.

Exodus 17:8-16 says:

8 At Rephidim, Amalek came and fought against Israel.

9 Moses said to Joshua, “Select some men for us and go fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with God’s staff in my hand.”

10 Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

11 While Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, but whenever he put his hand down, Amalek prevailed.

12 When Moses’s hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down.

13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword.

14 The Lord then said to Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua: I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven.”

15 And Moses built an altar and named it, “The Lord Is My Banner.”

16 He said, “Indeed, my hand is lifted up toward the Lord’s throne. The Lord will be at war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

Exodus 17:8

8 At Rephidim, Amalek came and fought against Israel.

· This was a surprise attack from the Amalekites. 

· The Amalekites were presumably descended from a man named Amalek the son of Eliphaz, and Eliphaz was the son of Esau. 

· When Jacob, also known as Israel, came back home, his brother Esau welcomed him back with open arms. 

· When the Israelites came back, they did not receive the same welcome. 

· Just like Esau, the Amalekites cared for nothing about God. 

· The Amalekites were the Israelites first enemy after crossing the Red Sea. 

· In Deuteronomy 25:17–18, it says:

17 “Remember what the Amalekites did to you on the journey after you left Egypt.

18 They met you along the way and attacked all your stragglers from behind when you were tired and weary. They did not fear God.

· The Amalekites attacked the weary and tired Israelites—a fellow descendent of Abraham and Isaac. 

· The Amalekites were attacking the weakest members of the Israelites—the elderly, the women, and the children. 

· The Amalekites were a nomadic tribe and desert wanderers. 

· It can be argued whether the Amalekites were better trained than the Israelites or not, but what we see here is a desert tribe attacking newly freed slaves. 

Exodus 17:9

9 Moses said to Joshua, “Select some men for us and go fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with God’s staff in my hand.”

· Here in verse 9 is the first time where Joshua is named in the Bible. 

· Joshua was likely in his prime—somewhere between the ages of 20 and 45. 

· His name means “the LORD is salvation.” 

· The battle with the Amalekites would be Joshua’s first battle. 

· He would later go on to not only become Moses’ successor, but, thanks to God, Joshua is also perhaps one of the greatest generals in human history.

· The rod of God was a powerful symbol for the Israelites. 

o It has also been called the rod of Moses, or Aaron’s rod. 

· By this point, the rod of God had accomplished many miracles in the mind of the Israelites:

Exodus 4:2-4

The first time the rod turned into a snake

Exodus 7:9-12

It turned into a snake again but it ate the other snake-turned staves.

Exodus 7:20

Turned a river into blood

Exodus 8:5

Made frogs come onto land

Exodus 8:17

Produced lice

Exodus 9:23

Produced thunder, lightning, and hail

Exodus 10:13

Brought in locusts

Exodus 14:16

Parted the Red Sea

Exodus 17:5-6

Produced water from rocks

Exodus 17:10

10 Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

· This is an important leadership point. 

· As a leader there are times where you need to delegate. 

· The leader cannot do everything. 

· Moses empowered Joshua to lead the Israelites in the actual battle against the Amalekites; this showed how much Moses trusted Joshua and he believed in Joshua’s military capacity. 

· While Joshua obediently followed Moses’ direction, Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up the hill. 

· At that time, Moses was around 80 years old. 

· Aaron is Moses' older brother and is about 3 years older than him. 

· And according to Jewish tradition, Hur is Miriam’s husband and the brother-in-law to Aaron and Moses. 

· Hur was also the grandfather of Bezaleel, who would become the architect of the tabernacle. 

· These three elders were probably unfit for battle, so they oversaw the battle and provided prayer and intercession for the Israelites to God; this was the best help they could provide. 

Exodus 17:11

11 While Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, but whenever he put his hand down, Amalek prevailed.

· When Moses held up the rod of God, the Israelites were winning the battle, but when he lowered the rod of God, the Amalekites were winning the battle. 

· The Hebrew word for “held up” can also mean “to rise” or “to be high actively.” 

· The Hebrew word for “let down” also means “to rest” or “to settle down.” 

· An application for us today would be that if we are active in our faith we do well in our spiritual battles, but if we rest in our faith we will lose in our spiritual battles. 

· Are you an active Christian or a sleeping Christian? 

· Are you growing in your faith—or is the enemy happy where you are?

Exodus 17:12

12 When Moses’s hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down.

· This verse brings up another important part in leadership. 

· Leaders need support. 

· They can get tired. 

· They can get burnt out. 

· They can fail. 

· Without support, they stay that way. 

· This battle went on all day. 

· Moses did everything he could to keep the rod of God up. 

· He surely alternated the rod between his hands to keep that rod up. 

· Even after doing this for hours, his arms got tired. 

· No matter how much “will” Moses had, his body would not allow him to keep the rod up by himself. 

· So, Aaron and Hur brought Moses a stone to sit on. 

· This partially helped Moses, but what this really accomplished was it allowed Aaron and Hur to help Moses more effectively. 

· While Moses sat, they alternated keeping Moses’ hand with the rod up. 

· They went back and forth all day until the battle was over.

Exodus 17:13

13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword.         

· Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and secured the victory. 

· This proved disastrous for the Amalekites. 

· God had won the Israelites a great victory. 

· This moment revealed that when God fights for His people, His purposes prevail. 

· Those who walk in obedience may face trials, but they can trust that God’s presence and power will sustain them through every battle. 

Exodus 17:14

4 The Lord then said to Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua: I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven.”

· God wanted Moses to write down everything that had happened in the battle. 

· “Write this for a memorial.” 

· This story was to be remembered by the Israelites and especially by Joshua. 

· This was the first recorded battle involving Joshua. 

· Memorials are made to help us remember the past. 

· The first time I was in South Korea, I took the DMZ tour; DMZ is an acronym for demilitarized zone. 

· During this tour I learned quite a bit. 

· I learned how South Koreans and Americans effectively came together to fight off Communism. 

· There were statues and other memorials that educated me and other tourists on what South Korean and American soldiers went through during this struggle that occurred back in 1950 to 1953; over 70 years ago. 

· These events happened before many of us were born. 

· Because the Korean War happened within a few years of World War II and the Vietnam War, to Americans it is often referred to as “The Forgotten War.”

· The memorials in South Korea and in Washington D.C. help remind us of the history that is still impacting us today.

· Sadly, in the United States today there are memorials being brought down and destroyed because they are considered offensive. 

· A famous quote by George Santayana who said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

· What memorials do you have? 

· Do you keep track of the battles that God has helped you win? 

· Everyone should have a prayer journal of your answered prayers, an answered prayer wall, or some other unique way to help remind you of the battles that God had helped you overcome.  

· By having one of these things, it can give you great encouragement when you go through new battles. 

· In your next battle you can keep your head up because you know God has gotten you through hard battles in the past. 

· As mentioned before, Joshua eventually becomes a great general. 

· I am sure that Joshua remembered his first battle as a general. 

· Here in v.14, it is prophesied that “[God]will completely blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven.”

· Joshua did not destroy them, but he would be the first Israelite general, among others, to defeat them in battle.

· When God said He would blot out their memory from heaven, this means that the Amalekites would be removed from significance.

· The only reason they are remembered today is because of their appearance in God’s word.

Exodus 17:15

15 And Moses built an altar and named it, “The Lord Is My Banner.”      

· After the battle, Moses built an altar. 

· An altar’s primary use was for sacrifices, and this altar would most likely be used for thank-offerings. 

· Additionally, the altar was a memorial to the battle that God had just won for them.

· In other English translations it will say, “Jehovah-nissi,” one of God’s great names which means “The LORD is my banner.” 

· As a flag today is a symbol of a nation, the rod of God was a symbol of God. 

· It is interesting to note that the banners of the ancient world armies were poles with an ornament on top of the pole. 

· Flags and draperies were not used during this time. 

· Can you imagine being an Israelite warrior at this time? 

o You are fighting and occasionally you look up and see the rod of God, your banner being raised high. 

o Knowing that God is leading you to victory.

Exodus 17:16

16 He said, “Indeed, my hand is lifted up toward the Lord’s throne. The Lord will be at war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

· As mentioned before, it was prophesied that the memory of the Amalekites would be blotted out.

· Joshua would be the first to defeat them. 

· In Numbers 14, the Amalekites and Canaanites defeated the Israelites, because they foolishly attacked them without God.

· The Amalekites would cause the Israelites issues again in Judges 3 and 6, but God raised up the judges Ehud and Gideon, who delivered the Israelites from their enemies.

· King Saul would also engage with the Amalekites in 1 Samuel 15:7-9 says:

7 Then Saul struck down the Amalekites from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is next to Egypt.

8 He captured King Agag of Amalek alive, but he completely destroyed all the rest of the people with the sword.

9 Saul and the troops spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, goats, cattle, and choice animals, as well as the young rams and the best of everything else. They were not willing to destroy them, but they did destroy all the worthless and unwanted things.

· The next defeat of the Amalekites came at the hands of King David in 2 Samuel 8:11-12 which says:

11 King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold he had dedicated from all the nations he had subdued—

12 from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, the Amalekites, and the spoil of Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

· The prophecy would be continued by the Amalekites final defeat during the reign of King Hezekiah in 1 Chronicles 4:41-43:

41 These who were recorded by name came in the days of King Hezekiah of Judah, attacked the Hamites’ tents and the Meunites who were found there, and set them apart for destruction, as they are today. Then they settled in their place because there was pasture for their flocks.

42 Now five hundred men from these sons of Simeon went with Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the descendants of Ishi, as their leaders to Mount Seir.

43 They struck down the remnant of the Amalekites who had escaped, and they still live there today.

· When the Amalekites raised their hand against the Israelites, they raised their hand up against God Himself.  Their disregard of God led to their destruction.

Points

· Can you remember your first battle after being saved? 

· We were like Israel when they fought the Amalekites, inexperienced in warfare because we had never been in a spiritual battle before. 

· There are three things that we as Christians need to do:  prepare for the battle, fight the battle, and remember the battle. 

· We are not to be like the Israelites in this battle, because we should not be surprised that the enemy is going to attack us. 

· If the enemy is not attacking us, we are exactly where he wants us to be; out of the fight. 

· God did not save us just so we could go to sleep in the corner when war breaks out. 

· We need to be ready to fight. 

· We must know the enemy’s tactics. 

· They have not changed since he tempted Eve back in the Garden of Eden. 

· He is going to make us question God, and he is going to lie, because he wants us to sin so that we get separated from God. 

· The enemy knows that without God, we are easy pickings. 

· We need to be prepared for battle.

· Next, we have to fight the battle. 

· In Joshua 1:9, God said this to the newly appointed leader of the Israelites:

Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

· How should we fight? 

o We fight by prayer and we need to pray. 

o We need to resist temptation. 

o We need to put our focus on Christ. 

§ Jehovah-nissi; the LORD is my banner. 

o You cannot win a victory if you are too afraid of the fight.

· Remember the battle. 

· How you choose to remember the battles is up to you. 

· When you win a battle, know that another one will come, but it makes a difference when you know that God got your through the last battle. 

· James 1:2-4 says:

2 Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials,

3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

4 And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.

· The more battles you fight, the better equipped you will be in this spiritual war. 

· We have already won the war, but we do not have to let the enemy win some battles on the way.