EGW → Biblical Foundation
Select an Ellen White book from the sidebar to see each passage mapped to the Bible verses it amplifies, cites, or echoes.
Scripture Index
Ellen White & Bible Cross-Reference
Psalms 20:7
"Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God."
"“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: But we will remember the name of Jehovah our God.” Psalm 20:7 . PP 716.4"
This is a direct quote from Psalm 20:7, making it an explicit allusion.
"Near Lake Merom he fell upon the camp of the allies and utterly routed their forces. “The Lord delivered them into the hand of Israel, who smote them, and chased them ... until they left them none remaining.” The chariots and horses that had been the pride and boast of the Canaanites were not to be appropriated by Israel. At the command of God the chariots were burned, and the horses lamed, and thus rendered unfit for use in battle. The Israelites were not to put their trust in chariots or horses, but “in the name of the Lord their God.” PP 510.3"
EGW directly quotes and interprets Psalm 20:7 in the context of the Israelites' victory, emphasizing the importance of trusting in God rather than military might.
"they might be brought? Oh, no! Instead of making their petitions to the God of heaven and relying solely upon His power, they petitioned the legislature and were refused. They showed their weakness and exposed their lack of faith. All this only served to bring that peculiar class, Sabbathkeepers, into special notice, and expose them to be crowded into difficult places by those who have no sympathy for them. 1T 356.3"
The EGW passage criticizes those who petitioned the legislature instead of relying on God, which parallels the sentiment in Psalm 20:7 about trusting in earthly powers (chariots and horses) rather than in the Lord. The core idea is misplaced trust.
"Jehoshaphat was a man of courage and valor. For years he had been strengthening his armies and his fortified cities. He was well prepared to meet almost any foe; yet in this crisis he put not his trust in the arm of flesh. Not by disciplined armies and fenced cities, but by a living faith in the God of Israel, could he hope to gain the victory over these heathen who boasted of their power to humble Judah in the eyes of the nations. PK 198.4 “Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.” PK 199.1"
Both passages contrast reliance on military strength with trust in God. The EGW passage describes Jehoshaphat's decision to seek God's help instead of relying on his army, echoing the sentiment in Psalm 20:7 about trusting in God rather than chariots and horses.
"They were to become thoroughly impressed with the idea that their strength was not in the wisdom of man, nor in his might, but only in the God of their salvation. They were thus to become accustomed to putting themselves out of the question and relying wholly upon their divine Leader. 4T 163.2"
Both passages contrast reliance on human strength/wisdom with reliance on God. The EGW passage emphasizes relying wholly on God, while Psalm 20:7 contrasts trusting in chariots and horses with remembering the name of the Lord.
"The faith of Asa was put to a severe test when “Zerah the Ethiopian with an host of a thousand thousand, and three hundred chariots,” invaded his kingdom. Verse 9 . In this crisis Asa did not put his trust in the “fenced cities in Judah” that he had built, with “walls, and towers, gates, and bars,” nor in the “mighty men of valor” in his carefully trained army. Verses 6-8 . The king's trust was in Jehovah of hosts, in whose name marvelous deliverances had been wrought in behalf of Israel of old. Setting his forces in battle array, he sought the help of God. PK 110.2"
Both passages contrast trusting in military might with trusting in God. Asa didn't trust in his army, and Psalm 20:7 states some trust in chariots, but the psalmist trusts in God.
"In this matter, Ezra and his companions saw an opportunity to magnify the name of God before the heathen. Faith in the power of the living God would be strengthened if the Israelites themselves should now reveal implicit faith in their divine Leader. They therefore determined to put their trust wholly in Him. They would ask for no guard of soldiers. They would give the heathen no occasion to ascribe to the strength of man the glory that belongs to God alone. They could not afford to arouse in the minds of their heathen friends one doubt as to the sincerity of their dependence on God as His people. Strength would be gained, not through wealth, not through the power and influence of idolatrous men, but through the favor of God. Only by keeping the law of the Lord before them, and striving to obey it, would they be protected. PK 615.2"
Both passages contrast reliance on earthly power with trust in God. Ezra's decision to forgo a military escort to avoid giving the heathen the impression that their success depended on human strength aligns with the sentiment in Psalm 20:7, which contrasts trust in chariots and horses with remembering the name of the Lord. The EGW passage amplifies the idea of magnifying God's name through faith and dependence on Him, echoing the principle in the Psalm.
"One of the principles most firmly maintained by Luther was that there should be no resort to secular power in support of the Reformation, and no appeal to arms for its defense. He rejoiced that the gospel was confessed by princes of the empire; but when they proposed to unite in a defensive league, he declared that “the doctrine of the gospel should be defended by God alone.... The less man meddled in the work, the more striking would be God's intervention in its behalf. All the politic precautions suggested were, in his view, attributable to unworthy fear and sinful mistrust.”—D'Aubigne, London ed., b. 10, ch. 14. GC 209.1"
The EGW passage, discussing Luther's rejection of secular power for defending the Reformation, aligns with the sentiment of Psalm 20:7, which contrasts trusting in earthly means (chariots and horses) with remembering the name of the Lord. Both emphasize reliance on God rather than human strength.
"God was the strength of Judah in this crisis, and He is the strength of His people today. We are not to trust in princes, or to set men in the place of God. We are to remember that human beings are fallible and erring, and that He who has all power is our strong tower of defense. In every emergency we are to feel that the battle is His. His resources are limitless, and apparent impossibilities will make the victory all the greater. PK 202.4"
Both passages contrast reliance on human power with trust in God. The EGW passage expands on the principle found in Psalms 20:7.
"The great victory that God had gained for them had made the Israelites self-confident. Because He had promised them the land of Canaan they felt secure, and failed to realize that divine help alone could give them success. Even Joshua laid his plans for the conquest of Ai without seeking counsel from God. PP 493.4"
The EGW passage describes the Israelites trusting in their own strength after a victory, rather than relying on God. This parallels the sentiment in Psalm 20:7, which contrasts trusting in earthly power with remembering the Lord our God.