HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, February 13, 2025 – God may, on occasion, have us go under the authority of ungodly people, not as a punishment but as a form of protection. Joseph under the Egyptians and Jeremiah under the Chaldeans are some examples that immediately spring to mind, but scripture also tells us how David sought refuge among his enemies for a time, and how Mary and Joseph fled with baby Jesus to Egypt. The Bible is full of examples of God’s people seeking sanctuary among heathens, having been sent there by God and so being fully protected by God while there.

Today, with spiritual conditions growing worse and worse across former Christendom, we may well one day soon be directed by God to seek shelter among unbelievers and remain under their authority for a time. Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, was not an Israelite, but God used him not only to mete out the punishment due to the Israelites but also to shelter those who followed the prophet Jeremiah’s directives. In following those directives and putting themselves under the authority of the man who’d slaughtered their leaders and demolished their temple, they were actually putting themselves under God’s authority.

Our worldly leaders are not by any measure godly people, but God still uses them for his purposes, and some of them appear to be very much aware of that. In this regard, they’re not unlike Nebuchadnezzar, who saw himself as a ruler not of a country, but of an empire. Understanding the expansive role they’re playing on the world stage has made some leaders magnanimous towards those who support their vision or are at least not antagonistic towards them. Recall how Nebuchadnezzar was especially kind to Daniel, and how the Chaldeans, at the king’s orders, looked after Jeremiah and the rag-tag remnant that followed him out of besieged Jerusalem. The Israelites who humbled themselves under their victors were treated better by the heathens than by their own people. This is God’s doing and proof positive that he’ll never leave or betray us, as long as we do his will.

While I don’t anticipate that believers will flourish in the years to come, I do know they’ll be protected under certain leaders and even welcomed, particularly in places where leaders have stated publicly that religion is the only way to achieve happiness. Elsewhere in the world, however, including here in Canada, believers are being threatened into silence either by vaguely worded hate speech laws against religious expression or by pending legislation that outright prohibits the use of scripture as a justification for publicly stated opinions. For instance, if I state in this blog that a man can’t be woman or that a man can’t marry a man, I could in some not-too-distant future be imprisoned for publishing my scripture-based beliefs.

As born-again believers, we are first and foremost to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God. In some cases, this might also include humbling ourselves even under the king of New Babylon for a time to take advantage of his God-designated protection and sanctuary. If God guides us there, God will protect us, as long as we continue to do his will.