Daily Manna · Day 131 · May 11
He Goes Before
“And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.”
Tomorrow has a shape you cannot see. A first day, a scan, a conversation you have rehearsed a dozen times and still dread.
There was a conversation behind this verse. An old man of a hundred and twenty who has just been told he is not crossing over, and a younger man who has to.
"Take them in."
"You were the one who was supposed to take them in."
"I am not going. You are going, and he goes before you."
"Into what? The cities are walled up to heaven. There are giants there; I saw them myself."
"Yes. He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee. Read it slowly. I did not say the cities are small."
That is the substance of Deuteronomy 31, and Moses says it to Joshua in front of the whole nation on purpose, so the promise is public and cannot be quietly renegotiated later on a bad night. Notice what is promised and what is not. Not an easy country; Canaan was full of armies and Joshua buried people there. What is promised is the order of arrival. He it is that doth go before thee. The danger stays exactly as real as it was. The company changes.
So, a blessing over you, in the words they were given. May the LORD go before you into the room you are dreading. May he be there when you walk in and still there when you leave. May he not fail you, nor forsake you. Fear not, neither be dismayed.
Daily Manna runs on a two-year cycle. The year two reading for day 131 is No Daysman (Job 9:33).