Elohim is the military commander who leads the wars of His people in every age, past and present, as well as the end of the present age, and at the close of the messianic age when the evil one is again loosed for a short time.  

When we allow Him to be our military commander, we discover that success is always contingent upon obeying His directives.  

Refusing to follow His divine battle advice, however, is disastrous.  King Josiah, for instance, kept a glorious Passover.  He restored the Temple to its former glory.  Yet, in the end, he disobeyed divine military counsel. 

In 2 Chronicles 35:20-24, Josiah learned that Neho, the King of Egypt was headed to Carchemish on the Euphrates River to engage in war.  He went out to meet him near Megiddo, where the international highway connected Egypt to Damascus.  This battle did not concern Josiah, nor the Kingdom of Judah.

Neho sent envoys to him with a message.  “Do I have a conflict with you, king of Yehudah?  No, I am not coming today to attack you, but to attack the dynasty with whom I am at war.  God has ordered me to hurry.  So, don’t meddle with God who is with me; and He will not destroy you.”

Nevertheless, Josiah was determined to go after him.  He disguised himself to fight and ignored what Neho said, which was from the mouth of Elohim.  It was then that Egyptian archers shot and mortally wounded him.  

Elohim fights wars, and we are soldiers in training.  As Psalm 144:1 declares, “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers to fight.”  

Elohim trains His people for war so that we will cooperate with His theocracy, and fulfill His divine intentions for the earth.