Articles
Don’t Put Your Trust in Horses!
Throughout history horses have been used in warfare, even up until the 1940s. In the Old
Testament we know there are several references of mounted men on horses, and horses that were
used to pull chariots. If they were so important to a country’s safety and its ability to wage war,
why did God tell the Israelite people not to have many horses?
We find God’s warning to the Israelites: “The king, moreover, must not acquire great
numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the
LORD has told you, ‘You are not to go back that way again’” (Deuteronomy 17:16). We see
Moses warning the Israelite nation to keep them from having anything further to do with the
people of Egypt. However, I think there is more to it than that.
We know that this rule was not always followed. “Solomon accumulated chariots and
horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the
chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem” (1 Kings 10:26). There is some debate over the
exact numbers in this verse, but we do know that he accumulated a lot of horses. We know that
Solomon had great power and influence during his reign and went as far as marrying a princess
from Egypt. We also know he was led astray.
God wanted the people to put their trust in Him. Not their weapons, armies, or horses. God
had promised the Israelites that He would protect them and had shown that He could, and would
destroy their enemies. However the people lacked faith at times and chose not to obey God. We
see a reminder in the book of Psalms, most likely written by David, of how God wanted His
people to be. “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD
our God” (Psalm 20:7). Anytime we put our trust in something other than God we will fail.
~Brad Tolbert
