"For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way; because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him" (Ezra 8: 22).
An armed regiment would have been desirable, but Ezra feard that the heathen king would think his professions of faith in God to be mere hypocrisy or imagine that the God of Israel was not able to preserve His own worshippers. He could not bring his mind to lean on an arm of flesh in a matter so evidently of the Lord. Therefore, the caravan set out with no visible protection, guarded by Him who is the sword and shield of His people. Few believers feel this holy jealousy for God. Even those who walk by faith occasionally mar the luster of their life by craving aid from man. It is a most blessed th ing to stand upright on the Rock of Ages, upheld by the Lord alone. Would any believer seek state endowments for their Church if they remembered that the Lord is dishonored by their asking government aid? Cannot the Lord supply the needs of His own cause? Would we run hastily to friends and relations for assistance if we remembered that the Lord is magnified by our implicit reliance on His solitary arm? My soul, wait only on God. "But," says one, "are we not to make use of any other sources?" Assuredly, but our fault seldom lies in their neglect. Far more frequently it springs out of foolishly believing in them instead of believing in God.