Ezekiel 29: Can I Support a ‘Heathen’ President?
“I have given him the land of Egypt for his labor wherewith he served against It, because they wrought for me, saith the Lord.”
Ezekiel 29:20
“Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord, and Nebuchadrezzar the King of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land.”
Jeremiah 25:9
“And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him.”
Jeremiah 27:6
“Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the god of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon; build ye houses…take ye wives…that ye may be increased there…and seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives and pray unto the Lord for it: for In the peace thereof shall ye have peace.”
Jeremiah 29:4-7
“Thou, O king, are a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory…and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou are this head of gold.”
Daniel 3:38
As Christians, we live in a sinful world. We are called to be separate, but yet, we must interact and live in this sinful world until we are called to our true home. This balance of our spiritual designation versus our physical environment is often very difficult to maintain.
The misunderstanding of this balance was made very apparent to me during the term of our last president, former President Donald Trump. In fact, never before had I been confronted with the concern of voting for and supporting a ‘non-Christian’ president in the way that I was the last 4 years. Of course, the timing of this concern was very interesting to me since these same ‘Christians’ were never before concerned about voting for a TRUE ‘Christian’ president. The hypocrisy was annoying as these same people decided to support another clearly non-Christian candidate (with an overtly anti-Christian stance). I can’t control other apostate Christians, but I can control what I do. So, as a serious and genuine Christian, I had to ask myself, “Can I vote for a president that is unabashedly not Christian?” And of course this leads to the question, “Can God support a president that is not Christian?”
The answer to these questions is yes. As a Christian, I can confidently say that I am proud that I voted for and supported President Trump. It does not mean that I supported all of actions up until and during his presidency, but I did and do support his pro-life, pro-religious, and pro-Bible stances! He furthered Biblical policies more than any president before him which includes the presidents that pretended to be Christian but clearly were not (at least by how I saw their actions, but I will admit that only God can see the heart). Not only does my vote for Trump make logical sense, but I can back this up Biblically. We have many examples of God using ‘heathens’ to further his purpose. The example I would like to focus on here is none other than the great king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.
King Nebuchadnezzar
There are very few heathen kings in the Bible that any student of the Bible knows more about than Nebuchadnezzar. He is a major feature of the Old Testament and Old Testament prophecy. In fact, New Testament end-time prophecy even uses the kingdom of Babylon to describe the final world empire.
Nebuchadnezzar reigned as king of Babylon from around 605 BC – 562 BC. After the Assyrian empire fell in 612 BC, Babylon emerged as the next major empire to control the region. Nebuchadnezzar assumed his father’s place on the throne and launched a military campaign that expanded the Babylonian kingdom, and he even expanded the city of Babylon itself building amazing wonders such as the Ishtar Gate and the Hanging Gardens.
His significance to God’s people is due to his invasion of Judah. In 605, 597, 587 BC, Nebuchadnezzar captures or besieges Jerusalem 3 times. In 605 BC, Nebuchadnezzar marches south, subdues Judah, and takes nobility and tradesmen captive to Babylon. The prophet Daniel was included in this group. In 597 BC, Nebuchadnezzar returns to Jerusalem to take treasure from the temple and more captives, such as Ezekiel, due to Judah’s rebellion against Babylon. Finally, in 587 BC, Zedekiah rebels against Babylon for the final time which results in the terrible final siege of Jerusalem where many are killed or taken captive and the city and temple are ultimately destroyed.
Unlike the the Assyrian army that God used previously, Babylon’s appearance in the Bible is far more detailed and frequent. As a result, Nebuchadnezzar is mentioned and detailed even more than many Jewish Biblical heroes! According to the Biblical account, it seems to me that God also dealt with Nebuchadnezzar more than any other heathen king mentioned in the Word of God.
God’s Instrument
Although the use of a heathen nation as God’s hand of judgement on his people and other nations isn’t unique to Babylon, the fact that Nebuchadnezzar is so often personally named is unusual. Over and over again in the Bible, Nebuchadnezzar is called God’s ‘servant’ and the nations are told to submit to him and to not do so would result in punishment. Not only are the outside nations told to submit to Nebuchadnezzar’s rule, but the captives held in Babylon are as well!
“Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon; (After that Jeconiah the king, and the queen, and the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the carpenters, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem;) By the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon) saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon; Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.”
Jeremiah 29:1-7 KJV
Here we can see that Jeremiah is telling those captives in Babylon to submit to the city and ruler that they live in and under. Ezekiel not only embodies this but so does Daniel! Daniel submitted to Nebuchadnezzar and even was promoted to a high position in Babylon!
“In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah came this word unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Thus saith the Lord to me; Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck, And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah; And command them to say unto their masters, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye say unto your masters; I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me. And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him. And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son’s son, until the very time of his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him. And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.”
Jeremiah 27:1-8 KJV
Again, we see the command to submit to Nebuchadnezzar, but this time Judah and the surrounding nations are required to submit. Here Jeremiah tells king Zedekiah of Judah along with a gathering of ambassadors from surrounding nations to yield to Babylon and to not rebel against him. Shortly after this prophecy given to the various rulers of the region, Zedekiah, king of Judah, decides to not heed to Jeremiah’s warning. Instead, he and the other nations choose to rebel and look to Egypt for salvation. All of these nations are decimated by Nebuchadnezzar and needless amounts of people die due to their pride. If these countries would have submitted, Nebuchadnezzar would have still ruled them, but it is likely that their lands and people would have remained intact.
All of these passages (and the many passages in the Bible that I do not quote here) are clear on this point: Nebuchadnezzar is being used by God and as such submission to his rule is required!
Proper Submission
Ok, so if Jews are supposed to submit to a heathen king, then does that mean they can embrace what is evil about that heathen king? Absolutely not! They had to submit to Nebuchadnezzar’s power and rule, but they were not to embrace their idolatry and evil. I know this because we have an example: Daniel.
Daniel was among the first group of Jews taken captive to Babylon from Jerusalem, and it is through the story of Daniel, that we not only get a glimpse into Nebuchadnezzar the man and his kingdom, but how Daniel was able to submit to a heathen king but still serve the one true God. You see, Daniel did both and so must we! So, Daniel is a great place to see how we can serve God but submit to heathen rule.
Daniel (and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) lived in Babylon and served the king but never compromised on following God even when his life depended upon it. God’s law came first whenever it conflicted with man’s law. Daniel was even willing to go to the lion’s den if need be. God provided for Daniel and saved him from death. Due to Daniel’s honest service to the king, Daniel was even promoted in Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego even went into the furnace for not bowing down to Nebuchadnezzar’s idol. In the end, they too were promoted within the Babylonian kingdom.
If you need a few other examples of how Biblical heroes were able to serve God and a secular ruler at the same time, look at Esther, Joseph, and even Jonathan (oh, and by the way Jesus deals with this issue as well). So, Daniel proves that one can not only remain a servant of God under a secular rule but even succeed during that rule.
The Struggle
As we do today, many Jews also felt the struggle between serving God and living in a secular world. Habakkuk is a great example of a Jew who felt this way. In the book of Habakkuk, the prophet records his grievances with God. Habakkuk most likely lived during the Babylonian invasions of Judah witnessing the ruthless Babylonian take over of Judah. He saw how Jews were killed and taken captive. He even likely had heard of God’s command through Jeremiah and Ezekiel to submit to Nebuchadnezzar’s rule.
So, he asks the question that all Christians ask themselves at some point, ‘why does God allow evil people to rule us?’ Through recorded prayers and answers Habakkuk received, we see how God answered this question: He is using Babylon to judge Judah and the surrounding nations and while this may appear unfair, those who disobey God, must be judged. Furthermore, Babylon herself will eventually be judged because of the pleasure she took in destroying Judah.
The fact is that God can use non-believers for His purpose. To us, it may seem unfair or as though God isn’t there, but in reality, God is at work! The non-believers choices will also be judged eventually.
Voting for a “Heathen” President
Now, how does all of this Bible history relate to voting for a president?
1. Submitting to a non-believer’s rule is can be Biblically correct.
2. It is possible to both submit to a non-believer’s rule AND still serve God.
3. A non-believer can still be used by God to accomplish His will.
So, is it wrong to vote for a ‘non-Christian’ president? No. The Jews were commanded to submit to Nebuchadnezzar (a heathen king) because he was being used to judge the nations at the time. God, through Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Habakkuk (and others), told the people this. Some listened, such as Daniel, but unfortunately others did not, such as king Zedekiah.
Of course, there are a ton of non-believing candidates for presidency. For example, in the 2016 election, both Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton vied for our votes. Now, as I just outlined above, I can chose to vote for either of these non-believing candidates, but how would I choose which one Biblically? The difference between Nebuchadnezzar and any other king at the time, let’s say such as Pharaoh of Egypt, is that Nebuchadnezzar was the specific king being used to accomplish God’s will. Pharaoh was not. So, to chose to side with Pharaoh, was a sin (which Zedekiah did and which led to his and his kingdom’s demise). Applying this same logic to our voting scenario, the question we must ask is this: Which candidate is furthering God’s will? This is where we evaluate the candidates policy against God’s Word. The Jews had to evaluate their potential leaders against God’s Word that came through Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and other prophets, and we must do so against the Bible. It was CLEAR that Donald Trump’s proposed policies furthered God’s kingdom more than Hilary Clintons. I’ll list just a few:
Donald Trump
Pro-life
Supports Israel
Religious Freedom
Against forcing people to accept homosexuality and other non-Biblical life choices
Hilary Clinton
Pro-choice
Anti-Israel
Anti-Religious Freedom
Pushed homosexuality and other non-biblical choices on people
Yes, Donald Trump didn’t always act Christian. Or course, he didn’t claim to be one, after all. But, neither did Hilary Clinton. Nebuchadnezzar didn’t act like a believing Jew. He didn’t even claim to be a believing Jew. He worship idols and killed Jews. I don’t expect the world to act Christian because they aren’t. So, Biblically, how Trump ACTS isn’t necessarily my determining factor for submission to him. Maybe Hilary Clinton sounded nicer, but make no mistake, she was still a non-believer and her policies were the OPPOSITE of what the Bible requires. The question isn’t necessarily about how the leader acts when dealing with a non-believer, it is all about who is furthering the Kingdom of God. In the case of the 2016 election, that was clearly Trump.
Using the Bible as my example, I can stand confident, as a Christian woman, in my vote for Donald Trump during the 2016 election. His presidency lived up to the policies that he promised. He did more for Christianity than any other supposed ‘Christian’ president before him.. So, why were so many ‘Christians’ so heatedly against him? My guess is that these ‘Christians’ enjoy the lip-service more than the action. They were able to stand on their moral high-horse that they built (not God) and demand we all bow down to it in the name of ‘God.’ The irony is that in their hypocrisy, they supported polices that actually worked against God’s purposes and, like king Zedekiah and all those Jews who placed their hope in leaders other than the one accomplishing God’s will, they just might bring destruction not only upon themselves but on the people of this nation.