The LORD made his people very fruitful; he made them too numerous for their foes… - Psalm 105:24

Today’s Scripture Reading (March 16, 2016): Psalm 105

It might be that the deadliest thing happening on the Korean Peninsula is the isolation of North Korea. The truth is that isolation can do one of two things. It does have the power to weaken a people group, and this is obviously the hope of the nations as they try to isolate North Korea. But there is a chance that isolation can cause a different worldview to develop that in the end strengthens the resolve of the nation. Rather than weakening a nation, isolation can knit a people tightly together.

This idea of knitting a people together is essentially the story of Israel in Egypt. Historians have long marveled over the change that happened to the descendants of Jacob during the 400 years they spent in Egypt. When they left Canaan they were a family. When they returned they were a nation of people with their own distinct beliefs, goals, and God. The transformation happened because they were isolated in Egypt. In fact, they process may not have been possible if the family of Jacob had remained in Canaan. God had orchestrated the events perfectly for the development of his nation; his people.

In Canaan, Israel would have been subjected to the various beliefs of their neighbors and this reliance on Yahweh would have probably never taken place. In Egypt, the people were shunned because the act of being a shepherd was detestable to the Egyptians (Genesis 46:34). Isolated, they developed their own culture and were allowed to follow their own God rather than be inundated with the gods of Egypt. The isolation and hatred of this people who were shepherds did result in slavery, but that simply bound the people even more tightly together. By the time they emerged, a miracle had taken place. The Lord made his people very fruitful; he made them too numerous for their foes. Rather than weakening Israel, the isolation of Israel forged them into a force that neighboring countries could not reckon with, and the people retook the land of Canaan and moved back home.

Is it possible that something similar could happen in North Korea? That is a question that can’t be answered, but there is evidence that North Korea even now is forging a worldview that is very different from the worldview of its neighbors. She is defining what is right according to that worldview, and that could have lasting repercussions on the Korean Peninsula. While the world hopes for a weakened and destabilized North Korea, isolation could result in the opposite under the right leadership – just as it did for Israel in Egypt.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm 106