War with the Amalekites
A hearty welcome to you today. If you’re wondering what Before and After is about, here’s an excerpt from part 1:
In this new post, Before and After, I’ll be digging into what happened before and after significant events in the Bible. What do the Before Events and After Events teach us about God and ourselves? What can we learn from The Main Event, the Before Event and the After Event—when we consider all three?
I’ve learned this important truth:
We can find treasures in every segment of the Bible,
regardless of the subject’s length or familiarity.
We’re in Group 4 of Before and After. In part 9, we explored the Before Event—manna from heaven. In part 10, we dug into The Main Event—water from the rock,. (See the beginning of part 8 for a summary of Group 1 thru Group 3.)
It’s time to unpack the After Event about a sudden war. We could be tempted to breeze through these nine verses—reading them once and calling it done. But let’s slow down and take our time. What does God have for us? What does he want us to see and consider?
Today on Choosing Peace, you’ll read about moms with young children, gold and silver jewelry, and PCMs.
War with the Amalekites
The Israelites were wandering in the wilderness when the Lord gave them water from the rock, covered last time. What a glorious miracle.
What happened next?
Then Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim.
Exodus 17:8, New Heart English Bible
Vicious attack
Who were the Amalekites? Nomadic raiders and plunderers. Think of the Vikings. The introductory verse above may seem ambiguous, but the passage below gives us important clarity on what went down.
This was not a disagreement. A “peaceful protest.” A minor brawl. A boundary dispute. A fist fight between rivals.
Remember what Amalek did to you by the way as you came forth out of Egypt; how he met you by the way, and struck the hindmost of you, all who lagged behind you, when you were faint and weary; and he did not fear God. Therefore it shall be, when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies all around, in the land which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance to possess it, that you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under the sky; you shall not forget.
Deuteronomy 25:17-19, New Heart English Bible
As the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, the people who lagged behind the large group included moms with young children, the elderly, the injured and the disabled—the weakest among them.
The innocents who couldn’t defend themselves
were slaughtered—struck down by the swords of the Amalekites.
Who did the Amalekites brutally murder? Whose bodies and blood covered the ground? Close your eyes for a moment and envision this gruesome scene.
The Lord’s response
Needless to say, God took this vicious attack very seriously. The passage from Deuteronomy quoted above is one of many laws given to the nation of Israel. It wasn’t a piece of friendly advice. It was a law given by the Lord Almighty. Here’s an expanded paraphrase from yours truly: “After you’ve conquered The Promised Land, wipe out the Amalekites. They killed your grandfather. Your pregnant wife. Your one-year-old son. Do. Not. Forget. I’m giving you an important assignment. I said it and I meant it!”
Consequences for disobedience
We also encountered the Amalekites in the story of Queen Esther, which took place roughly a thousand years later. From part 7 of The Beauty of the Bible:
What would make [Haman, the realm’s top administrator,] go from “You offended me” to “I’m going to eliminate your entire race”? Genocide? Women and children? What in the world? See this Got Questions article to learn about the long-term hatred between Haman’s people, the Amalekites, and the Jews. (The last, short paragraph is an excellent summary.) In 1 Samuel 15, we learn that God commanded King Saul to annihilate the Amalekites and Saul disobeyed God. There were serious, long-term consequences for said disobedience.
The easy way out
Because the Israelites failed to obey God’s law and his subsequent explicit instructions about the Amalekites, battles continued. The problem didn’t go away. The easy way out—doing nothing or failing to finish the job—left The Door to Danger wide open.
The danger of the Amalekites dramatically impacted future generations.
Reflection
Has the Holy Spirit given you instructions that you’ve failed to obey? What consequences have you and others experienced? Pray and ask the Lord to strengthen you and give you wisdom and courage.
Do or die
The next segment of our Bible passage reveals much.
Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men for us, and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with God’s rod in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. It happened, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side. His hands were steady until sunset. Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
Exodus 17:9-13, New Heart English Bible
Impromptu army
When the Israelites were rescued from slavery, they received gold and silver jewelry and clothing from the Egyptians in what we could call a “soft plundering.” They asked; they received. But they didn’t ask for weapons.
A shocking reality hits us in verse 9 above. Israel had no army. No captains or lieutenants. No sergeants or corporals. No armory or military storage unit. Their one general, Joshua, had one night to assemble fighters who’d grown up in slavery. Did they have any experience with swords or bows and arrows? What weapons were available?
Calling the Israelite forces the underdogs in this battle would be a gross understatement. Their army didn’t exist the day before. They had no training that we know of. They were, without a doubt, an impromptu army. And some of them lost loved ones that day during the Amalekite attack.
Special forces
When we think of special forces, we probably think of elite groups like the Green Berets or Navy Seals. In reality, we find the most valuable special forces in places like the verses above—when the power of God Almighty is on beautiful display—bestowed as he chooses.
In the last post, we saw the Lord bestow power on Moses, his chosen leader, who was roughly 80 years old. Moses obeyed God and performed a remarkable miracle in the wilderness—providing water for thousands of people and their livestock. Moses used three things: a staff, a rock and the power of God. Epic. And in the battle described above, men who’d never held a weapon were victorious against experienced raiders. Would you expect brick makers to conquer Vikings? Not in this lifetime. But this is the power of God.
Men who didn’t know what they were doing
were empowered by God Almighty
to kill vicious enemies and protect their people.
Were people watching and praying? Most definitely.
Watching the battle
From this post about strength and psychological warfare:
I chose the remarkable painting below for the Documentaries page. The title speaks loudly into today’s post: Courage, Anxiety and Despair—Watching the Battle. Courage is holding her knife, leaning forward. She’s ready to fight. She’s fully engaged.
Peaceful Reader, if you are Anxiety or Despair, it’s my sincere hope that exploring Choosing Peace and the great resources recommended will help you become Courage. We need you to be a truth-speaker for the squadron. It’s time to come out of the shadows.
Chosen to lead
Joshua had a big job and so did Moses. Joshua, the general, led their brand-new fighting forces in battle—sword in hand. And Moses led them all spiritually from the top of a nearby hill—“God’s rod” in hand. When Moses’ hand was up, his troops prevailed. When his hand was down, they were struck down. It was “do or die.” The Lord provided the help Moses desperately needed. His brother Aaron and a man named Hur were already there. Each one held up one of Moses’ arms so their people could be victorious. Were Moses, Aaron and Hur praying fervently during this battle? No doubt about it. They knew God was their only hope, and they were in constant contact with him.
Connecting the dots
Did some of the people notice what was going on at the top of the hill? Absolutely.
We learned last time in The Main Event that some of the people wanted to kill Moses. The Lord shut down the conspiracy and protected him simultaneously with the miracle—water from the rock. Today, in our After Event, the people saw that God’s life-or-death protection was directly linked to his chosen leader, Moses. It was undeniable.
Remembering the day
Did the war with the Amalekites solidify Moses’ position in his people’s minds as their leader? I believe it did. Powerfully. When your husband comes home from his first battle because your leader’s hands were up, the value of your leader skyrockets. And you don’t forget it. This is the kind of story you tell your children and your grandchildren. “Remember the day when…?”
Some of the people were chosen to acknowledge and remember the truth.
May we also aspire to be truth-seekers and truth-speakers.
Chosen to help
Moses needed help. There was no way he could hold his hands up all day. I can’t imagine holding my hands up for even 30 minutes. The Lord provided everything Moses needed. He didn’t need 30 men. He needed two—one for each arm. The Lord provided a rock for Moses to sit on. And let’s not under-value this reality. The Lord strengthened Aaron and Hur so they could hold someone else’s arm up for hours! Were angels holding Aaron and Hur’s arms? Think about it.
Moses willingly and gratefully received Aaron and Hur’s essential help.
Receiving help
Sometimes, for various reasons, we can be resistant to asking for help or accepting help. Guilty as charged. If you or someone you know has ever struggled in this area, read this post.
Before and after my two surgeries last year, I became comfortable asking for and receiving help. Praise the Lord. In part 1 and part 2 of Simplicity, I celebrated the Lord’s many blessings through other people’s help. I think you’ll love these tender posts filled with personal stories.
Verses about help
Let’s face it. We all need God’s help. Will you read these two verses out loud? More importantly, will you receive them in your heart and life? Will you ask God for help?
For you have been my help. I will rejoice in the shadow of your wings. My soul stays close to you. Your right hand holds me up.
Psalm 63:7-8, New Heart English Bible
Your turn
Think of a time when you asked God for help. What was going on? How did God respond to your plea? How do you view that time now? What did you learn? Has your faith deepened because of that experience? Close your eyes and reflect on that situation and how it impacted you. Talk to God about it.
Jehovah Nissi
Let’s dig into the conclusion of this After Event. What happened after the Israelites’ victory in battle?
The LORD said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial on a scroll, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under the sky.” Moses built an altar, and called its name [Jehovah Nissi—] the LORD our Banner. He said, “A hand upon the throne of the LORD. The LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”
Exodus 17:14-16, New Heart English Bible
We receive one of the names of God—Jehovah Nissi—
from the altar Moses built after this great victory.
The declarations and the altar
The Lord basically said: “The Amalekites will be wiped out. The pain they inflicted will no longer hurt my people. Moses, write it down. Speak it regularly to Joshua, your general. The Amalekites will be history.”
Moses built an altar to worship God for giving them a remarkable victory. Sacrifices were offered to God on the altar. The nation of Israel would’ve spent time in gratitude—worshiping and praising God. The altar also served to commemorate what happened in Rephidim—God’s victory over brutal enemies. Moses named the altar Jehovah Nissi, which means: “The Lord Is My Banner.” What does that really mean?
Seeing the banner
When the brand-new Israelite forces went into battle, each tribe carried a banner at the front of their troops and held it high on a pole to show where they were and who they represented.
A banner symbolizes victory in battle. It also represents allegiance. Jehovah Nissi means, “We’re not fighting for our family, our tribe, our group, our school, our town, our state or our nation. We’re fighting for the Lord. We are the Lord’s army.”
When our son Logan attended a classical Christian school, the students spent four years in Nissi Hall. In those days, fifth through eighth grade wasn’t called middle school; it was called logic school. They took logic classes. They learned to identify truth from lies. They learned critical thinking. And the meaning of Jehovah Nissi was carved in stone outside the door to Nissi Hall.
A banner for generations
I can’t tell you how grateful we are for Logan’s 14 years at Covenant Christian Academy and the quality friendships he still enjoys today from that strong foundation. Men’s Bible study. Birthday parties. Weddings. Watching football. And more….
Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
and his greatness is unsearchable.
Psalm 145:3, King James Version
Peaceful Readers, that is my favorite Bible verse. I say it and think it a lot. The other day, I wrote it in my journal. For my 12 favorite scriptures, see this post.
The banner hymn
The 1865 hymn “Onward, Christian Soldiers” depicts Jehovah Nissi—The Lord Is My Banner. I always liked singing this hymn when I was growing up. I understand it much better now. Here are the first two verses:
Onward, Christian Soldiers
by Sabine Baring-Gould
(Public domain)
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before!
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle, see his banner go!
Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before!
At the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee;
On, then, Christian soldiers, on to victory!
Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise;
Brothers, lift your voices, loud your anthems raise!
(More lyrics and information here.)
Enjoy this acapella version by Dolce Music, a small group from Zambia.
Timeless war
Theologians vary widely in their interpretations of the final sentence in our Bible passage.
“The LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”
Exodus 17:16b, New Heart English Bible
As for me, I like to stay in context. Since the Lord said in verse 14 (NHEB): “…I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under the sky,” we should keep that definitive statement—yea, verily—God’s guarantee—in mind.
Since God said the Amalekites would be wiped out, what does the “war with Amalek from generation to generation” refer to? Perhaps it refers to future wars (in King Saul’s day, and later, for Queen Esther). Or maybe it references the timeless wars between God and his enemies.
Current events
Sometimes I include current events on Choosing Peace to help my Peaceful Readers navigate the landscape we live in. I focus on information in these four areas: freedom, safety, security and health.
Intro
Today’s post was about the Israelites and war with the Amalekites. We know war is destructive.
Peaceful Readers, most of the battles we face aren’t physical.
The battles fought today are battles for our minds.
We’ve all heard this expression: “Perception is reality.” Think about the voices you listen to and who you watch. Are you on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok? I’m not. Be ever-so-careful, and consider eliminating or greatly restricting your participation in these Perception Control Modules or PCMs, as I like to call them. They weren’t programmed to help you. They were programmed to literally change your mind—pervasively.
While warfare has changed through the ages where weapons are concerned, the general aims remain the same—to conquer and rule, to inhabit, to acquire resources, to retaliate, to enslave, to commit genocide.
Today’s hidden warfare
In the section called The Battle in this post, the first topic I tackled was AI—artificial intelligence. Here’s a snippet:
Fifth generation warfare:
legacy media, social media, and AI
Into the Light
Last month, Brandon and I watched Into the Light by Mike Smith, the follow-up to Out of Shadows, described in this post. This one-hour documentary is well worth your time.
We find ourselves deep in fifth generation warfare, which seeks permanent individual and societal changes done primarily thru social media—“influence operations” to change thinking, attitudes and behavior. You’ll learn many things about this long-term psyop.
♦ Legacy news manipulated/used to “prep the battle space”
♦ Creating fear, polarizing people, and brainwashing
♦ Each social media platform = “a domain of war”
♦ AI’s impact on social media
♦ Lack of ethical constraints on AI
…What is Into the Light’s key statement?
“Technology is our prison.”
We find ourselves deep in the throes of fifth generation warfare. Very deep.
The journalist
One of the defining moments in the documentary Into the Light, described above, comes when a decorated journalist realized, on camera, that her PR guy has actually been her handler all this time. The “news” she traveled to see and reported about was all staged. She had no idea that she was being manipulated and lied to as a means to manipulate the masses. She unknowingly facilitated fifth generation warfare, and she was horrified.
Learn more about artificial intelligence in this post and see Current Events in the index.
We think of fifth generation warfare as a fairly recent development. It’s not.
What would you say if I told you that certain well-known aspects of American History are patently false? Let’s consider one chapter of history—or scripted history, shall we say. Are you sitting down? You might want to grab a piece of chocolate or your favorite treat.
Martin Luther King, Jr. and the civil rights movement
Take your time watching the two videos below. I watched the first one twice—once by myself and once with Brandon. It is epic, to say the least.
1. “Was MLK a Christian Hero? Shocking Revelations Uncovered”
Allie Beth Stuckey, Episode 1233, with guest Chad O. Jackson (1 hour, 15 minutes)
♦ Marxism, communism and MLK, Jr.
♦ The civil rights movement’s planned photo opps
♦ MLK, Jr.’s real name
♦ Not a Christian; why a preacher?
After you watch this important interview, ask yourself these questions:
♦ What civil rights tactics were duplicated by BLM and Antifa, and why?
♦ Why did communist Russia target the black community in the U.S.?
Chad O. Jackson’s website includes ways to watch his two-season documentary series: The MLK Project: Images Unmasked.
2. “Martin Luther King Jr. Is NOT Who You Think He Is”
Matt Walsh, “The Real History of Civil Rights, part 1” (1 hour, six minutes)
♦ Civil rights icons: Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks and more
♦ Control over MLK’s public image; relatives’ lawsuits
♦ Rewriting U.S. history; fabricating “new” heroes
Both Allie Beth Stuckey’s podcast and Matt Walsh’s documentary-style video cover MLK’s prolific sexual immorality and his communist advisor/handler.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was not a hero. He was a communist bent on our country’s destruction. He preached about Jesus, but didn’t believe in him. He was a liar and a sham. Please share this reality and these resources with others. People need to know the truth.
Many thanks to Charlene for warning me about MLK. Who will you warn?
Stoking the communist revolution fire
Communist “social justice” tactics continue. Funding/committing violence. The photo opps. The alleged victims—I mean paid rioters. The rioters’ victims—business owners, communities, citizens.
Consider last month’s arrest of Heidi Beirich, a former top official of SPLC—the Southern Poverty Law Center. It appears that the SPLC, a group that allegedly combats white supremacists, actually sent the Ku Klux Klan and other nefarious groups lots of money to stoke the fire and keep themselves in a job. Photo opps matter, don’t you know.
If you watch the Allie Beth Stuckey video, the SPLC case will smack you upside the head as an example that mirrors this disturbing reality: Some black pastors bombed their own churches to stoke the civil rights movement’s fire. As I quoted in part 10, “There’s nothing new under the sun.”
Mass surveillance
Maybe you remember feeling creeped out by the mass surveillance scenes in The Dark Knight, a 2008 Batman movie. Maybe you remember feeling creeped out by the 2016 movie about Edward Snowden, the mass surveillance whistleblower. Maybe you feel creeped out by the Flock cameras photographing you in your car, especially after responses to the 2026 Super Bowl ads blew up the internet. (See this post.)
Pay special attention to these two short videos.
1. “Media Has Been Doing This For YEARS And Thought You Wouldn’t Notice”
Glenn Beck—a must-see (13-minute segment)
Drink in the ramifications of the rampant falsifying of written information online, plus pervasive mass surveillance.
♦ Stealth editing = “normal operating procedure” in newsrooms
♦ No “first edition” or “second edition,” only the current version
♦ Edits/cuts, which change the meaning of research, studies, autobiographies, everything written
♦ AI writing ads and articles using fake names, bios and photos
♦ Controlling the truth: “the cheapest control ever invented”
♦ Mass surveillance via phones and social media
♦ Our anticipated responses tested on our “digital twin”
♦ China’s super-powered AI engine used for control and punishment
Make a special note of this part—the history of Google and why they gave it to us for free:
“You’re not the customer. You’re the product.”
~ Glenn Beck
The day after watching this podcast, I started shopping for a Linux-based flip phone (non-Google; non-Apple). Not a “smartphone.” A private phone. I’ll keep you posted.
2. “Federal Law Mandates AI Cameras in ALL New Cars Starting Next Year”
Facts Matter with Roman Balmakov—extremely important (14 minutes)
Cars are becoming advanced surveillance pods. Learn about the government mandate effective 2027. Beware! Cameras, biometric data taken from your hands via the steering wheel, automatic shut-down mechanisms, every conversation recorded. Roman Balmakov asks these vital questions: “Where does all the data go?” “Who owns that data?”
“This is a clear expansion of the surveillance state.”
~ Roman Balmakov
Brandon and I found this information very disturbing. We drive older vehicles to safeguard our family from built-in monitoring devices—tools for mass surveillance.
Conclusion
Let’s take a deep breath. All is not doom and gloom, Peaceful Readers. The darkness of current events isn’t the ultimate truth. Our salvation, won for us by Jesus Christ, is the ultimate truth. Nothing supersedes that reality. Nothing subverts that reality. Nothing surpasses that reality. Our eternal safety in heaven has been secured. Our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. As Jesus said right before he died on the cross: “It is finished.”
As followers of Jesus, how should we view current events and other difficult circumstances? Through the lens of the Bible. Violence, deception and chaos are nothing new. Remember these words of Jesus:
“I have told you these things, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble; but cheer up! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33, World English Bible
There are times when we need to back away from current events and calm our minds. Reflect on Philippians 4:4-9, written by the apostle Paul to the church at Philippi. And do what it says.
Think about pure, excellent,
praise-worthy things—and thank God.
If you don’t know Jesus yet, read the Exploring Christianity section in part 10 and find an Alpha class near you. Ask big questions. Seek big answers.
Coming next
In part 12, I’ll wrap up these Before and After posts, including Group 4’s main takeaways—manna from heaven, water from the rock, and war with the Amalekites. What have we learned? Do the posts from Daniel, 2 Chronicles, Luke and Exodus have anything in common? I’m really looking forward to finding out.
Thanks for reading and for Choosing Peace.
Closing word and song
“We Raise the Banner of Faith” by Unseen Worship
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