Isaiah 2:10–22

He calls on them to hide in the dust because of the day of the LORD. There is no doubt that day has not yet fallen on the pride and idolatry of man. Read this passage in a believing spirit, and any fair mind will be convinced. Neither Nebuchadnezzar nor Titus on the one hand, nor the gospel on the other, has anything to do with the Lord's coming to carry out the all-embracing judgment of man pictured here. The true God would break down those who bowed down to idols. The hand of the Highest would be on everything high and lifted up. The idols will pass away completely, and men will go into caves and holes from before the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth. All will be verified when Christ appears, not before.

The day of the LORD will be upon all the glory of man, and upon all his idols. They may well stop regarding man, for their own God will judge and strike down His people on the earth, the place of His rest.

The day of the LORD will fall on everything that has fed the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. It will fall on everything men have delighted in, so as to shut God out and shut Christ out of their hearts. It will fall on everything that has fed the self-exaltation which has marked man all along, which marks him more and more now, and which marks this present day to a degree that is frightening to think about.

Verse 10 invites everyone who has ears to hear. It calls them in where the remnant hide through the upheavals and terrors of that day. Their voice is the one we have been hearing in Psalm 46.

The prophet sees the LORD rising up out of the dwelling place of His holiness, coming out in judgment to carry out the purposes just announced. Seeing the effect on men, the prophet cries, "Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD." For when the day of His wrath comes, who will be able to stand? Isaiah cries out with the same event in view: "Enter into the rock and hide in the dust."

The rest of the chapter goes on to show how this period of blessing comes in. Is it by grace proclaimed? No, but by fearful judgments carried out. This terrible shaking of the earth, and this bringing down of man's pride, has one result: "the LORD alone will be exalted in that day."

He comes with the clouds. Every eye will see Him, including those who pierced Him. All the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Where then will the rock be, or the dust, to hide man from the LORD? For "the haughty looks of man shall be brought low… and the LORD alone will be exalted in that day."

If their land was full of silver and gold, and endless treasures; if it was full of horses and chariots, it was also full of idols! What sin and shame! "So man is humbled, and each one is brought low—do not forgive them!" (v. 9), cries the angry prophet.

Read this passage in a believing spirit, and any fair mind will be convinced. Neither Nebuchadnezzar nor Titus on one side, nor the gospel on the other, has anything to do with the Lord's coming to carry out the judgment of all mankind pictured here. The true God would break down those who bowed down to idols. The hand of the Highest would be on all that is high and lifted up. It will all come true when Christ appears, and not before.

"Man's Day" (1 Cor. 4:3, margin) is that long period of human pride and self-will. It began when sin entered the world, and God's judgment will end it at the revelation of Jesus Christ. During Man's Day God is nothing, and man is all. The Day of the Lord will reverse the conditions. Isaiah 2:10-22 is the first passage of Scripture that names that Day. It vividly describes the complete overthrow of everything man has boasted in, so that Jehovah alone may be exalted. Terror will fill men's minds when this happens. All human schemes and achievements will fall to pieces, never to be patched up again.

The list of things on which the day of the Lord will fall in judgment is very impressive. It is clear: it will make a clean sweep of all the things in which fallen man boasts, even things pleasant and artistic. Some have imagined that this day will accept and even expand what man's inventive skill has produced, as the way into the millennial age. Instead it will remove those things, along with the idols and the idol-worshipping ideas that gave them birth.

It is the day of the Lord on all the pride of man, to bring it low. It is the day when every refuge of lies will be swept away, and every empty thought of his laid bare. He will completely abolish the idols. Yes, those who were their slaves will throw them to the moles and the bats. "And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day." Then the way is open for blessing, as wide as the judgment that has brought it in.

Grace bows our hearts now, and with joy we confess His name! Judgment will in that day break the proud spirit of the enemy.

The solemn winding up of Man's Day, and the ushering in of the Day of the Lord. "Man's Day" is that long period of human pride and self-will which began when sin entered the world, and divine judgment will end it at the revelation of Jesus Christ. During Man's Day God is nothing, and man is everything. The Day of the Lord will reverse the conditions. Isaiah 2:10-22 is the first passage of Scripture that names that Day. It describes in vivid detail the complete overthrow of everything man has boasted in, so that Jehovah alone may be exalted.

From these and similar passages, we learn that "the day of the Lord" carries the deeply solemn thought of judgment on the world — on apostate Israel — on man and his ways — on everything the human heart prizes and longs after… Man has the upper hand now, the Lord will have the upper hand then.

It is man, whom God has exalted in Christ, in His own gracious and wonderful way, but who, on the other hand, by self-exaltation debases himself to his own ruin… "Man's day" is a day of human aggrandisement with what he has robbed from God, and of self-exaltation by the very things God's mercy has enriched him with. And therefore the day of the Lord must fall "against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up."

You only need to read this passage in a believing spirit, and it will convince any fair mind. Neither Nebuchadnezzar nor Titus, nor the gospel, has anything to do with the Lord's coming to carry out the all-embracing judgment of man pictured here… All of it will come true when Christ appears, not before.

The day of the Lord will come upon everything that has served the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. It will come upon everything men have delighted in, so as to shut out God and exclude Christ from their hearts. It will come upon everything that has fed man's self-exaltation. That self-exaltation has marked him all along. It marks him more and more now, and it marks this day we live in to a frightening degree.

How good to know, in all that day of terror, that God is supreme above and within all the schemes of His enemies!… It is the day of the Lord upon all the pride of man, to bring it low. It is the day when every refuge of lies will be swept away and all the emptiness of his thoughts exposed. "The idols He shall utterly abolish." Yes, those who were their slaves will fling them to the moles and the bats. "And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day." Then the way is prepared for blessing, as wide as the judgment that introduced it.

Man delights in display. The testimony is simply to be lowly in heart. This is not natural to the mind. In trying to avoid display one may easily make an idol out of apparent humility. There is a humility of the flesh as well as a pride of the flesh, and both fall under the heading of pride. To work at appearing humble is to be proud… "The pride of life is not from the Father but is from the world." The world is passing away. So the pride of life must be passing too, because it is part of the world. It will meet its end in the day of the Lord.

In Scripture the earth stands for the nations under settled, stable government. The sea naturally suggests great crowds, and especially people in a state of disorder. A tree, on the other hand, is a well known Scripture figure for a great one of the earth.

Nothing lifts itself up the way a tree does, so the "tree" is singled out here: the axe is laid at its root.

In Scripture the cedar is always used to picture power or high standing, if not pride. When the king of Israel wanted to pour contempt on the king of Judah, he compared himself to a cedar and Judah's king to a thistle. The Psalmist uses it for the prosperity of the righteous: he will "grow like a cedar in Lebanon." When judgment comes on the great of the earth, the prophet Isaiah says it is the day of the Lord on the cedars of Lebanon. These mark the cedar as the symbol of dignity and power.

The oaks of Bashan stand as a symbol of great strength and height, which God brings down in His judgment.

Even the grandeur of nature as it now is must fall. Still more the impressive buildings of man, which are small by comparison. What are their high towers and walled defences beside lofty hills and towering mountains? Strong, fine ships will be broken, and pleasant pictures will fade into nothing. The Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

Everything that has served the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life — everything men have delighted in, so as to shut God out and keep Christ out of their hearts — everything that has fed the self-exaltation that has marked man all along… the day of the Lord will fall on all of it.

You only need to read this passage in a believing spirit, and any fair mind will be convinced. Neither Nebuchadnezzar or Titus on the one hand, nor the gospel on the other, has anything to do with the Lord's coming to carry out the all-embracing judgment of man pictured here… All will be proved true when Christ appears, not before.

It is the day of the Lord on all the pride of man, to bring it low. It is the day when every refuge of lies will be swept away, and all the emptiness of his thoughts will be laid bare… "And the Lord alone will be exalted in that day." Then the way is open for blessing, as wide as the judgment that has brought it in.

The day of the Lord will be upon everything that has fed the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, and the pride of life. It will be upon everything men have delighted in, so as to shut out God and exclude Christ from their hearts. It will be upon everything that has contributed to the self-exaltation which has marked man all along, and marks him more and more now.

There is a day of Jehovah on all the earth... The hand of Jehovah will be against all that the world exalts. Everything or everyone that is lifted up shall be brought low: Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.

Scripture itself gives the force of the figure. Jeremiah speaks of the mighty Babylonian kingdom this way. It looked so firmly established in its might and greatness that no one could overthrow it, yet Jehovah threatens it with consuming judgment — a "burnt mountain." A mountain as a symbol represents a kingdom (Isa. 2:2; Zech. 4:7; Jer. 51:25) or a firmly established power (Ps. 46:2; Rev. 6:14; Rev. 16:20). The idea to grasp in these prophetic symbols is a strong, united, established power — and this power itself becomes the subject of God's governmental vengeance.

The mountains speak of higher governmental authorities, and the little hills, lesser authorities.

Not a single relic shall be left... He will show that where man has most pride, God will do better. For all that is in the world, the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, and the pride of life must pass away. Even the grandeur of nature as it now stands must fall. Still more must the imposing structures of man fall, small as they are by comparison. What are their high towers and fenced walls next to lofty hills and sublime mountains?

Whatever the gospel may achieve for believers — and it makes them fit for God's light and heavenly glory — there can be no real deliverance for the earth and the nations until Messiah comes again in glory. Then He will execute judgment on the living and reign in peace... The judgment of man, of his pride and his idols, will come in the day of Jehovah, so that all the nations may flow to Zion in heart-homage, as the beginning of Isaiah 2 describes.

The rest of the chapter goes on to show how this period of blessing will be brought in. Is it by grace proclaimed? No, but by fearful judgments carried out... The result of this terrible shaking of the earth, and bringing down the pride of man, is that "Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day."

Grace bows our hearts now, and with joy we confess His name! Judgment will in that day break the proud spirit of the enemy. When His wrath is kindled but a little — the beginning of His judgment — they perish from the way.

A place to which ships were sent from Palestine. Some suppose it refers to a Spanish city named Tartessus. This would seem a suitable place from which to obtain silver, iron, tin and lead.

Here the expression "pleasant pictures" is thought to mean "pictures of desire," as the margin reads. It refers to anything their hearts were set on.

The true God would break down those who bowed down to idols. The hand of the Highest would be on all that is high and lifted up. The idols will pass away completely. Men will go into caves and holes because of the terror of Jehovah and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth with great power. All of this will come true when Christ appears, not before.

The day of the Lord will be upon everything that has fed the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of life. It will be upon everything people have delighted in, so as to shut out God and exclude Christ from their hearts. It will be upon everything that has fed the self-exaltation that has marked man all along. Think what the pride of man's heart is doing at this very moment. It is gathering the wealth and energies of all nations into one grand display, to show the whole world what human skill and energy can achieve.

The day of the Lord will clearly make a clean sweep of all the things fallen man boasts in, even things pleasant and artistic. Some have imagined that it will accept and even enlarge the products of man's inventive skill, as an opening to the thousand-year age to come. Instead, it will remove them, along with the idols and idolatrous notions that produced them. Today men are humbled as they receive the grace and truth of the gospel. Then they will be brought low and their false glory will depart, as the glory of the Lord shines out.

Not a single relic will be left. God will wipe the slate clean of all the busy works of man on the earth for the last six thousand years… and He will show that where man has most pride, God will do better… Even the grandeur of nature as it is must fall. Still more must the imposing structures of man fall, small as they are in comparison. What are their high towers and fenced walls next to lofty hills and grand mountains? Strong and splendid ships will be broken and pleasant pictures will fade into nothing. Jehovah alone will be exalted in that day… The day of Jehovah joins two things: God will deal with the heavens and the earth, the whole vast creation, and at the same time He will stoop to the smallest trifles of men and women… Nothing will escape His eye and hand.

"Pleasant pictures" are named by Isaiah among the things on which judgment will fall in the day of the Lord. We must not expect to find a literal text that speaks directly to each of the artificial occupations of this highly artificial age. And if the Lord has not laid down rules for His people in these matters, it is certainly not fitting for them to lay down rules for one another. A single eye will enable us to form a sound judgment in all such things.

Lastly, he calls on them to hide in the dust because of the day of Jehovah. That day certainly has not yet fallen on the pride and idolatry of man… You only need to read the passage in a believing spirit. It will convince any fair mind that neither Nebuchadnezzar nor Titus on the one hand, nor the gospel on the other, has anything to do with the Lord's coming to carry out the all-embracing judgment of man pictured here. The true God would break down those who bowed down to idols. The hand of the Highest would be on all that is high and lifted up.

It is man, whom God has exalted in Christ, in His own gracious and wonderful way. But by exalting himself, man debases himself to his own ruin… "man's day" is a day when man makes himself great with what he has robbed from God, and lifts himself up by what God's mercy has given him.

Instead of accepting and even enlarging the products of man's inventive skill as an introduction to the millennial age, as some have imagined, it will remove them, along with the idols and the idolatrous notions that gave them birth.

It is the day of the Lord upon all the pride of man, to bring it low. It is the day when every refuge of lies shall be swept away and all the vanity of his thoughts shall be exposed. "The idols He shall utterly abolish." Yes, those who have been their slaves shall fling them to the moles and the bats. "And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day." Then the way is prepared for blessing, as wide as the judgment which introduced it.

Grace bows our hearts now, and with joy we confess His name! Judgment will in that day break the proud spirit of the enemy.

This is not yet eternity. It is the age to come, when the idols will completely pass away and Jehovah alone will be exalted. The word, therefore, is "Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?" (v. 22). Man as such cannot hold on to his own breath, still less keep others in that day. Everything must depend on the sovereign pleasure of Him whose glory will no longer be hidden, and whose will is then shown in righteousness.

There is a day of Jehovah on all the earth. The hand of Jehovah will be against all that the world exalts. Everything or everyone that is lifted up shall be brought low: Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day. God will purify the earthly people by His judgments.

The true God would break down those who bowed down to idols. The hand of the Most High would fall on all that is high and lifted up. The idols shall utterly pass away. Men will go into caves and holes, away from the terror of Jehovah and from the glory of His majesty, when He rises up to shake the earth with power. All of this will come true when Christ appears, and not before. How can Christians imagine that the gospel has done this work, or ever could? Most of mankind are openly idolaters, and most of the baptized are really idolaters too.

This is not eternity yet. It is the age to come, when the idols shall utterly pass away and Jehovah alone shall be exalted... The gospel does much for believers. It makes them fit for God's light and heavenly glory. But there can be no real deliverance for the earth and the nations until Messiah comes again in glory, judging the living and reigning in peace.

This controversy with idolatry is now coming to an end. The sun rises and drives away the unclean things of the night: "Jehovah is to be feared above all gods." Truly: for what are they? "all the gods of the peoples are idols" — or as the word means, "nothings" — "but Jehovah made the heavens."

It is the day of the Lord on all the pride of man, to bring it low. On that day God sweeps away every refuge of lies and exposes the emptiness of man's thoughts. "The idols He shall utterly abolish." Yes, those who have been their slaves shall fling them to the moles and to the bats. "And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day." Then the way is open for blessing, as wide as the judgment that brought it in.

Isaiah, the son of Amoz, looked forward to idols being utterly abolished (Isa. 2:18). Earthly saints will look back on that once it is done, for only one object of adoration will remain. Men will then turn to one object of worship alone. He is the True God, the Living God, the Everlasting God, the Maker of all things, the Creator of heaven and earth, and also the Redeemer and Saviour of His people.

A short and solemn warning comes with all this truth and grace: "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." Every object outside Christ that man's heart sets up and clings to, Satan makes into an idol. They may not for the present be gold or silver, or stone or wood, but of a subtler kind. Yet the day hastens when the mass of the Jews, little as they think it possible, will return to their old sin; and so will Christendom, even where they have boasted of their Protestantism and of their unbeatable hatred of Roman idolatry.

Read this passage in a believing spirit, and any fair mind will be convinced. Here the Lord comes to carry out the all-embracing judgment of man. That has nothing to do with Nebuchadnezzar or Titus. It has nothing to do with the gospel either. The true God would break down those who bowed down to idols. The hand of the Highest would be on all that is high and lifted up. All this will come true when Christ appears, not before.

The God whom creation has offended keeps silent for now. But the moment is coming fast when He will speak — not in grace, but in unsparing judgment. He "rises to terrify the earth" (Isa. 2:19, 21).

The day of the Lord will be upon everything that has fed the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. It will be upon everything men have delighted in, so as to shut out God and keep Christ out of their hearts. It will be upon everything that has fed man's self-exaltation. That self-exaltation has marked man all along. It marks him more and more now, and it marks the day we live in to a degree that is fearful to think about.

It is the day of the Lord upon all the pride of man, to bring it low. It is the day when every refuge of lies will be swept away, and all the emptiness of his thoughts exposed. He will utterly abolish the idols. Yes, those who were once their slaves will fling them to the moles and to the bats. The Lord alone will be exalted in that day. Then the way opens for blessing, as wide as the judgment that brought it in.

Adam and Eve disobeyed the word of God. Then they were afraid, and they tried to hide from His presence among the trees of the garden of Eden (Gen. 3:8, 10). People will repeat that useless hiding on a huge scale in the future. Kings and great men and rich men will call on the mountains and rocks to fall on them and hide them from the face of the One sitting on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb (Rev. 6:15-16).

What a contrast with Israel's own sweet singer! Despite his sins, he could say by grace, "You are my hiding place!" (Ps. 32:7). He hid in God, not from God. Before him stood One who could and would cover all his iniquities, and charge nothing to his account. Our effort to cover our sins, or to escape from His presence, is useless.

It would be useless then to call for the help of man: his day will have ended. In that day Jehovah rises to terrify the earth… "Stop regarding man, whose breath is in his nostrils; of what account is he?" (v. 22). Man as such cannot even hold on to his own breath, still less keep others alive in that day. The judgment of man, his pride and his idols, falls in the day of Jehovah, so that all the nations may then flow to Zion in heart-homage, as the beginning of Isaiah 2 describes.

How can anyone confuse this with the gospel! It is not yet eternity but the age to come, when the idols shall utterly pass away and Jehovah alone shall be exalted. So the word is, "Stop relying on man, whose breath is in his nostrils. What is he worth?" Man cannot hold on to his own breath. Still less can he keep others alive in that day... "That day" is the day of Jehovah. Whatever the gospel may do for believers, there can be no real deliverance for the earth and the nations until Messiah comes again in glory. He will come judging the living and reigning in peace.

"Their land is full of silver and gold, and there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses, and there is no end to their chariots. Their land is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, what their own fingers have made." Their sin was completely unpardonable. Judah had such glorious prospects from God's sure word, yet they chased heathen superstitions, not only Gentile wealth and power, but sadly their idols too.

The bat was forbidden to be eaten under the law (Leviticus 11:19; Deuteronomy 14:18). Several species are found in Palestine: they live in the tombs and caves, and are at home in darkness. Where there are many of them the smell is very offensive. Their home is a fitting picture of darkness and foulness. It is the place where men will throw their idols of gold and silver, when Jehovah rises up to deal with the earth.

The rest of the chapter shows how this period of blessing will come in. Is it by grace preached? No, it is by fearful judgments carried out. "The day of Jehovah" comes and destroys the pride of man. It makes him throw his idols to the moles and to the bats, and run "into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the rugged cliffs, for fear of Jehovah, and for the glory of His majesty."

The Jews have long and completely laid aside idolatry... The iniquity was only suppressed and shifted for the time. It is only held down, not destroyed or rooted out... Idolatry will surely come back. It will come back not only among the Christianised Gentiles, but among the Jews, little as they may expect it. It is a settled truth of Scripture that the mere absence of evil is never deliverance from its power. An empty, swept, or even decorated condition in itself means no final escape.

It is the day when every refuge of lies shall be swept away, and all the emptiness of his thoughts shall be exposed. "The idols He shall utterly abolish." Yes, those who have been their slaves shall fling them to the moles and to the bats. "And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day." Then the way is prepared for blessing, as wide as the judgment that has brought it in.

You need only read this passage in a believing spirit to convince any fair mind of one thing. Neither Nebuchadnezzar or Titus on the one hand, nor the gospel on the other, has anything to do with the Lord's coming to carry out the all-embracing judgment of man pictured here… The idols will completely pass away, and men will go into caves and holes from before the terror of the LORD and from the glory of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth mightily. All of it will come true when Christ appears, not before.

The rest of the chapter shows how this time of blessing comes in. Is it by grace proclaimed? No, by fearful judgments carried out. "The day of the LORD" comes, destroying the pride of man… This terrible shaking of the earth brings the pride of man down. The result is that "the LORD alone will be exalted in that day."

The day of the Lord will be upon everything that has served the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. It will be upon everything men have delighted in, so as to shut out God and exclude Christ from their hearts. It will be upon everything that has fed the self-exaltation that has marked man all along, and marks him more and more now.

It is the day when God sweeps away every refuge of lies and exposes the emptiness of man's thoughts… The people who were slaves to their idols will fling them to the moles and to the bats… Then the way is open for blessing, as wide as the judgment that brought it in.

Idolatry is only held down, not destroyed or uprooted. God will judge it in that day… Idolatry will certainly reappear… It is an unchanging truth of Scripture that the mere absence of evil is never a deliverance from its power.

Adam and Eve disobeyed the word of God. They were afraid, so they tried to hide from His presence among the trees of the garden of Eden (Gen. 3:8, 10). People will try the same useless hiding on a huge scale in the future. Kings and great men and rich men will call on the mountains and rocks to fall on them and hide them from the face of the One sitting on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb (Rev. 6:15-16).

There is wrath coming upon the world, but God has made a hiding-place for you. Isaiah spoke of it: "a man will be like a hiding place from the wind." If you want shelter from the wrath to come, you will find it in Christ. You will find Him an ark of refuge. Noah was warned by God about things not yet seen, and in fear he built an ark to save his household. But a judgment is coming that no wooden ark could shelter you from. Where will you find a hiding place in that day? God has prepared a shelter from that storm. Where is it? It is Christ at the right hand of God.

It is not yet eternity but the age to come when the idols shall utterly pass away and Jehovah alone shall be exalted. The word, therefore, is "Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils, for what is he worth?" (v. 22). Man as such is not able to keep his own life-breath, still less to keep others in that day. Everything must depend on the sovereign pleasure of Him whose glory will no longer be hidden. His will is then to be displayed in righteousness.

The sense seems simple to me, though many translators and commentators miss it. It is not Christ, nor man in Christ, that is meant, but man in nature, man self-exalting and yet idol-loving. "Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils (easily snuffed out, therefore, as far as life here is concerned): for what is he worth?" The man whose pride and idolatry will meet such a striking doom in the day of the Lord can never be a support to rest on. On the other hand, 2 Chronicles 35:21 has a different subject, so the English translators had to change the wording there. The sense there is not at all "cease from leaning on God," but, as the English version rightly has it, "hold back from meddling with God." It is a question of context, not of Hebrew.

The people were extremely ungrateful and in revolt. Provoked by this, Moses "spoke rashly with his lips." "Hear now, you rebels; shall we bring water for you out of this rock?" Who asked this of him? Moses was overcome by evil instead of overcoming evil with good. The man who had so long lived as the meekest of men failed completely in that very respect at the last… "Cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils; for what is he worth?"

Adam, as God made him, was a picture of Christ; as he made himself in his fall, he becomes a contrast to Christ… Never was a finer man placed in finer circumstances than Adam — yet he fell. As fallen, he became the head of a race of men like himself. What can come from such a source? If the fountain is polluted we shall not expect clean water to flow from it. Let us once and for all "cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils," and turn to Him in whom alone perfection beyond compare dwells.

How instructive all this is! What a sad mistake it is to lean on human strength! And yet how prone we all are to do so in one way or another! We lean on our fellow-mortal instead of leaning on the living God, and in the end we find we have been trusting a broken reed. "Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth, or a foot out of joint."