It would be one of the most sophisticated water systems of its day, tediously dug under the ancient City of David. A tunnel was forged out of the solid rock beneath the holy city of Jerusalem, laboriously chiseled by hand, a long S-shaped curve that gently sloped downward from the Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam, providing fresh, clean water for the residents of Jerusalem. But that engineering marvel must be stopped up today, for “Sennacherib (King of Assyria) was coming,” and the inhabitants of Jerusalem were in serious peril.
King Hezekiah had overseen a massive and arduous water project constructed under his royal city; he had “made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city…straight down to the west side of the city of David.” But when godly Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib intended to “fight against Jerusalem,” war against the people of God, he devised a wise plan of action. Hezekiah assembled his counselors, his top men, and they decided to “stop the waters,” cut off that fresh spring water that sustained the inhabitants of Jerusalem. He gathered “much people” and they “stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land.” Those same hands that worked so hard to complete this challenging, grueling project would now work with equal fervor to block up the flow. Why? Why undo all their meticulous work? Hezekiah would exert all this effort to make the siege more difficult for his enemy, Sennacherib. You want to attack us? Well, we aren’t going to make it easy. You will do it without life-sustaining water for your troops!
So what lesson does that experience hold for us, living centuries later, far removed from the reach of evil King Sennacherib? We have an enemy more formidable than this Assyrian king, and he disguises himself as “an angel of light.” He is that “roaring lion,” roaming about in the shadows, waiting for the perfect opportunity to pounce on our spiritual lives. We are commanded to “resist” him, and perhaps we could take a lesson from an ancient water cut-off strategy and make that inevitable attack more difficult for Satan; we could become a little more proactive and place safeguards in our lives by stopping the flow of what we allow to enter our city.
Perhaps we could stop the flow of those things that may give the forces of evil entrance into our lives. Could we cut off some unfiltered media sources, eliminate some worldly entertainment, discontinue interaction with ungodly company, or plug up questionable reading materials? Parents, could we more closely monitor what we allow to enter our home and surround our children on a daily basis, do some plugging up the flow on their behalf? Could we close the windows of temptation before he gains access to our hearts and minds? He will attack, attempting to snuff out the candle of our testimony for God and the joy of our fellowship with God. That fact is inevitable. So let’s prepare for the enemy and make his job just a bit more difficult. Let’s go on the offensive and cut off his water supply!
Ephesians 4:27 Neither give place to the devil.
Lord, make me wise to the attacks of Satan, and help me make my life impenetrable. Help me to see any areas in my life where I could initiate some action and cut off his access to my life.