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2 Chronicles 13:8 "And now you think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David, because you are a great multitude and have with you the golden calves which Jeroboam made you for gods."

 

So says the doubly-outnumbered Abijah, king of Judah, to King Jeroboam and all of Israel. As Abijah's army faces Jeroboam's mightier one, Abijah reminds Israel that it is Judah in which the kingship of David continues (2 Chronicles 13:5), and that Jeroboam and those following him turned against the Lord when they defied King Rehoboam, Solomon's son, and rebelled against the house of David (2 Chronicles 13:6). He contrasts Judah's continuation of the covenant with Israel's forsaking of it, and says therefore God is with Judah, so Israel cannot succeed in this battle. (2 Chronicles 13:10-12). This is ultimately true, God gave Israel into Judah's hands that day. (2 Chronicles 13:13-18). 

 

Multitudes don't matter against the Kingdom of God. I am reminded of a meme I took to heart during COVID, and which remains my screensaver to this day (and which, ironically, was begun by an atheist group). A single man stands facing a huge throng of people, saying simply "Yes, you all are wrong." Israel's army was double the size of Judah's. Jeroboam had also laid an ambush for Judah's forces (2 Chronicles 13:13). None of that mattered because Judah was with the Lord and Israel was not, Israel was "all wrong.".

 

The forces of evil are legion. They will make us feel like there is no way we can stand against them. But one man, David's successor, the Son of God, has already defeated them. He established a new covenant, and has shown us the way to resist those with the golden calves of false gods. It is not pain-free, it certainly wasn't for Him, but it is pretty simple. We just stand up to them and tell them that they are wrong, that they cannot defeat the Truth, and God will have our backs.