A War Cry
“When Judah turned around, behold, they were attacked both front and rear; so they cried to the Lord, and the priests blew the trumpets. Then the men of Judah raised a war cry, and when the men of Judah raised the war cry, then it was that God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.”
2 Chronicles 13:14-15
Things looked pretty bleak for Judah… They were surrounded on every side by their enemies.
What did they do? Did they surrender? No! They cried out to God.
Theglobalwatch.com explains:
“This crying out is the Hebrew word “Tsa’aq” (צָעַק ṣâ‘aq or tsa’aq). The word connotes an alertness to trouble that catalyzes an awakening and releases a cry of anguish in us. It will incite a gathering for agreement with others.”
Other examples:
- Genesis 27:34 Esau’s cry when he realizes Jacob had stolen his birthright.
- Genesis 41:55 The cry of the people of Egypt when there was a famine in the land.
- Exodus 5:8, 15 The cry of the Israelites when Pharaoh laid extra work on them in making bricks.
Theglobalwatch.com goes on to say:
“The “War Cry,” the rua, is a sure sound. It leaves no room for doubt or dismay. In our story it was a pivotal sound…. The “War cry,” or Heb. rua, is a different stance than tsa’aq. It is a stance that moves us beyond our prayers, petitions, and even declarations into a catalytic posture between God and what we see on earth. It is a position of full trust in God. Doubting and despair have dropped off our radar…”
- It was the shout that blew down the walls of Jericho, “And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: ‘Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!’” Joshua 6:16.
- It was the shout that Gideon’s army released when they defeated the Midianites, Judges 7:21.
- It was the shout that shook the earth when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, 1 Samuel 4:5. Once we have cried out to God, sounding the trumpet of war, we then issue a war cry, a declaration of faith that God is answering our prayer. Cry out to God! He is listening.
