No weapon formed against me shall prosper, unless the Lord holds the sword.
Often when we are faced with adversity or affliction we rush out to resist it in the name of the Lord. Yet what if the Lord is the source of this adversity or affliction?
‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians who are outside the wall besieging you. And I will gather them inside this city. I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm in anger and fury and great wrath. I will strike down those who live in this city—both men and animals—and they will die of a terrible plague. After that, declares the Lord, I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague, sword and famine, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who seek their lives. He will put them to the sword; he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion.’
“Furthermore, tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death. Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; he will escape with his life. I have determined to do this city harm and not good, declares the Lord. It will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire.’
Jeremiah 21:4-10
In some cases, the wisdom of the Lord will lead us to surrender to adversity rather than resist it; for when the Lord is the source, fighting against Him will never bring a victory.
To remain in the Lord means that we remain in His will in all seasons. If it is a season to quit, then our faithfulness to the Lord will be measured by our willingness to let go.