Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints Grieve to Witness in Their Brethren
Jump to: Torrey'sLibrarySubtopicsTerms
Topical Encyclopedia
In the biblical narrative, alliances and associations with the enemies of God are consistently portrayed as perilous and spiritually detrimental. The Scriptures provide numerous accounts where such alliances lead to moral and spiritual decline, invoking grief among the faithful who witness their brethren entangled in these compromising relationships.

Old Testament Warnings and Examples

The Old Testament is replete with warnings against forming alliances with pagan nations and adopting their practices. In Deuteronomy 7:2-4 , God commands the Israelites, "And when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your children away from following Me to serve other gods."

The account of King Solomon serves as a poignant example. Despite his wisdom, Solomon's alliances through marriage to foreign women led him astray. 1 Kings 11:4 states, "For when Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the LORD his God, as his father David had been." This deviation from God's commandments resulted in the division of the kingdom and long-lasting consequences for Israel.

New Testament Admonitions

The New Testament continues this theme, urging believers to remain separate from worldly influences that oppose God. In 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 , Paul exhorts, "Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?"

The early church faced challenges as believers were tempted to conform to the surrounding pagan culture. The apostle James warns in James 4:4 , "You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God."

The Grief of the Saints

Throughout Scripture, the saints express deep sorrow when witnessing their brethren form alliances with the enemies of God. The prophet Jeremiah laments the spiritual adultery of Israel, crying out in Jeremiah 9:1 , "Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears! I would weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people."

Similarly, the apostle Paul expresses anguish over the spiritual state of his fellow Jews in Romans 9:2-3 , "I have deep sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my own flesh and blood."

The Call to Holiness

The biblical call to holiness and separation from the enemies of God is a recurring theme. Believers are urged to live distinct lives, reflecting the holiness of God. In 1 Peter 1:15-16 , Peter writes, "But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do, for it is written: 'Be holy, because I am holy.'"

The grief of the saints serves as a reminder of the spiritual dangers inherent in alliances with those who oppose God. It underscores the importance of faithfulness and the call to remain steadfast in the face of worldly temptations.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Genesis 26:35
Which were a grief of mind to Isaac and to Rebekah.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ezra 9:3
And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonished.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ezra 10:6
Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water: for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried away.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Period iii. The Dissolution of the Imperial State Church and the ...
... the ancient order and coming into closer alliance with the ... give me victory over these
my enemies, and I ... Fathers, filled with the Spirit of God, decreed should ...
/.../ayer/a source book for ancient church history/period iii the dissolution of.htm

part ii
... the soul or the ship of human society; and pray ... you look upon the images of God's
saints, believe that ... By whatever passions enemies may attack you, endure it ...
//christianbookshelf.org/calvin/my life in christ/part ii.htm

Resources
What is the Southern Baptist Convention, and what do Southern Baptists believe? | GotQuestions.org

Questions about Christianity (All) | GotQuestions.org

What is the National Council of Churches? | GotQuestions.org

Alliance: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible ConcordanceBible DictionaryBible EncyclopediaTopical BibleBible Thesuarus
Subtopics

Alliance

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are a Proof of Folly

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are Defiling

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are Degrading

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are Enslaved

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are Ensnaring

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are Ruinous to Moral Character

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God are Ruinous to Spiritual Interest

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: A Call to Come out From

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Ahaziah

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Blessedness of Avoiding

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Blessedness of Forsaking

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Children Who Enter Into, Bring Shame Upon Their Parents

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Evil Consequences of

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Avoiding: Church of Ephesus

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Avoiding: David

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Avoiding: Jeremiah

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Avoiding: Joseph of Arimathaea

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Avoiding: Man of God

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Avoiding: Nehemiah

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Forsaking: Israelites

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of Forsaking: Sons of the Priests

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of the Judgments of God Against: Ahaziah

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of the Judgments of God Against: Judas Iscariot

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Examples of the Judgments of God Against: Korah

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Exhortations to Hate and Avoid

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Exhortations to Shun all Inducements To

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Forbidden

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Have Led to Murder and Human Sacrifice

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Involve Saints in Their Guiltiness

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Involve Saints in Their Punishment

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Israel

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Israelites

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Jehoram

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Jehoshaphat

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Judas Iscariot

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Lead to Idolatry

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Means of Preservation From

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Persons in Authority should Denounce

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Pious Parents Prohibit, to Their Children

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Provoke God to Leave Mean to Reap the Fruits of Them

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Provoke the Anger of God

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Punishment of

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Rehoboam

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints are Separate From

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints Deprecate

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints Grieve to Meet With, in Their Intercourse With The

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints Grieve to Witness in Their Brethren

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints Hate and Avoid

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints should be Circumspect when Unintentionally Thrown Into

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Sin of, to be Confessed, Deeply Repented of, and Forsaken

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Solomon

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: The Wicked are Prone To

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: The Wicked Tempt Saints To

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Unbecoming in Those Called Saints

Alliances

Alliances: Abraham and Abimelech

Alliances: Ahaz and Tiglath

Alliances: Asa and Benhadad

Alliances: Between Abraham and Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner

Alliances: Canaanitish Nations Against Israel

Alliances: Isaac and Abimelech

Alliances: Jehoshaphat and Ahab

Alliances: Jehoshaphat and Ahaziah

Alliances: Joshua and the Gibeonites

Alliances: Moabites, Amalekites, and Ammonites

Alliances: Political with Idolaters Forbidden

Alliances: Ratification of by Giving the Hand

Alliances: Ratification of by Oaths

Alliances: Rezin and Pekah

Alliances: Solomon and Hiram

Alliances: Zedekiah and Pharaoh

Related Terms

Benhadad (24 Occurrences)

Lacedaemonians

Jehoshaphat (79 Occurrences)

Ahaziah (34 Occurrences)

Jezebel (20 Occurrences)

Ahab (85 Occurrences)

Macedonia (23 Occurrences)

Tyre (59 Occurrences)

Asmoneans

League (20 Occurrences)

Immanuel (3 Occurrences)

Rhegium (1 Occurrence)

Eglon (13 Occurrences)

Pekah (11 Occurrences)

Battle (282 Occurrences)

Carchemish (3 Occurrences)

Hiram (21 Occurrences)

Hezekiah (124 Occurrences)

Solomon (277 Occurrences)

Bethhoron (12 Occurrences)

Beth-horon (12 Occurrences)

Hittites (39 Occurrences)

Allied (13 Occurrences)

Isaiah (64 Occurrences)

Moabites (26 Occurrences)

Balaam (62 Occurrences)

Pharisees (86 Occurrences)

Maccabees

Moab (162 Occurrences)

Captivity (141 Occurrences)

Hamath (36 Occurrences)

Zidon (25 Occurrences)

Zedekiah (63 Occurrences)

Zobah (15 Occurrences)

Kin (18 Occurrences)

Kir-haraseth (1 Occurrence)

Kirharaseth (1 Occurrence)

Nebuchadnezzar (90 Occurrences)

Jabin (8 Occurrences)

Joab (128 Occurrences)

Josiah (51 Occurrences)

Jehonadab (2 Occurrences)

Greeks (22 Occurrences)

Grecians (4 Occurrences)

With (66342 Occurrences)

Fable

Treaty (25 Occurrences)

Relationship (4 Occurrences)

Related (45 Occurrences)

Ruth (19 Occurrences)

Eumenes

Detect (3 Occurrences)

Media (14 Occurrences)

Merodach-baladan (2 Occurrences)

Merodachbaladan (1 Occurrence)

Mamre (10 Occurrences)

Merab (4 Occurrences)

Prince (160 Occurrences)

Pharaohnecoh

Pharaoh-necoh (3 Occurrences)

Prisoner (87 Occurrences)

Propose (8 Occurrences)

Phicol (3 Occurrences)

Partnership (4 Occurrences)

Pashur (12 Occurrences)

Brotherly (8 Occurrences)

Benjamin (167 Occurrences)

Hebron (71 Occurrences)

Confederate (3 Occurrences)

Cyrene (7 Occurrences)

Connection (72 Occurrences)

Chios (1 Occurrence)

Chephirah (4 Occurrences)

Confederacy (2 Occurrences)

Conspire (18 Occurrences)

Chub (1 Occurrence)

Anathema (6 Occurrences)

Acco (2 Occurrences)

Asa (54 Occurrences)

Alliance and Society With the Enemies of God: Saints Grieve to Meet With, in Their Intercourse With The
Top of Page
Top of Page