Manipulation vs. Relationship

Listen to our friend Mesuli tell how the Israelites tried to manipulate God.

Once the Israelites arrived in the land God had promised them, many adopted the local pagan gods. The Israelites’ relationship with God was no longer a priority for the people. It was ritualistic and empty instead.

The Israelites rejected their covenant relationship with God for the gods whom they thought they could manipulate for their own gain. Then they applied their manipulative practices to God himself. The Israelites reduced God’s holy presence in their midst to an object rather than a relationship. Their fractured relationship led to defeat at the hands of their enemies. Once the ark (where God chose to meet with his people) was captured, the Lord demonstrated through the ark that he was not to be played around with. God proved that he had the power to defeat the Philistines decisively, but he absolutely would not allow his people to think they could control him or manipulate him.

Ironically, the Israelites could have had all they wanted—not only a land flowing with milk and honey, but God’s presence and a relationship with him. A genuine relationship with God would have been true prosperity for them. Instead, they thought they had to manipulate God. But their manipulation brought their demise. The glory of God was gone.

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If you'd like to know more about how the Israelites tried to manipulate God but later found peace and true prosperity in a relationship with him, take a look at Judges 2:1–4 and 1 Samuel 4–7.