Traces Of Lockdowns & Social Distancing In The Bible

We are now living in the days of a global pandemic caused by COVID-19.

Many countries have resorted to lockdowns and social distancing to contain and minimize the outbreak.

Interestingly, the Bible has many excellent examples of lockdowns and social distancing that will teach us how to wise up and walk humbly before God.

1. Noah and his family was in the ark for one year and ten days, about 370 days.

Genesis 7:11-13
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.
13 On the very same day Noah and Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark—

Genesis 8:13-16
13 And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry.
14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried.
15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying,
16 “Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you.

2. Joseph was in prison for at least 2 years.

Genesis 40:23-41:1
40:23 Yet the chief butler did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.
41:1 Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river.

3. Moses was alone with God on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

Exodus 24:18
So Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

4. After Elijah proclaimed a drought to Ahab, he was commanded by the LORD to hide himself by a brook for an unspecified but very long period of time till the brook dried up.

1 Kings 17:1-7
1 And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word.”
2 Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying,
3 “Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan.
4 And it will be that you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.”
5 So he went and did according to the word of the LORD, for he went and stayed by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan.
6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook.
7 And it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.

5. Jesus was alone in the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights.

Matthew 4:1-2
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.

6. After Paul’s conversion, he disappeared into the desert for about three years. It was there and then the Holy Spirit instructed him in the ways of God.

Galatians 1:17-18 (TLB)
17 I didn’t go up to Jerusalem to consult with those who were apostles before I was. No, I went away into the deserts of Arabia and then came back to the city of Damascus.
18 It was not until three years later that I finally went to Jerusalem for a visit with Peter and stayed there with him for fifteen days.

7. The apostle John was exiled to the island of Patmos during the latter years of his life. There the Lord inspired him to write the Book of Revelation.

Revelation 1:9
I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.

We are exhorted to take refuge in the Lord during troubled times by going home, and locking our doors. We are to hide for a little while until the Lord’s anger has passed.

Isaiah 26:20
Come, my people, enter your chambers,
And shut your doors behind you;
Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment,
Until the indignation is past.

As we can see through these godly examples in the Bible, God is drawing us into His inner courts and chambers for us to spend time alone with Him, away from the crowds and noises. It is in moments like these, we learn that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

God will provide for all our daily needs. He will send us hidden manna, and He will quench our thirst. We will know what really matters is knowing Him, trusting Him, obeying Him and loving Him. He will reveal to us who He really is. He will also strengthen us from within, and give us a peace that surpasses all understanding! We will also know that there is hope in Christ alone!

We only need to be still, and know that He is God. He will be exalted among the nations, and He will be exalted in the earth! The Lord of hosts is with us. Truly God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble.

Therefore we will not fear.

Written on: 22 March 2020