“And Moses built an altar and called the name of it Jehovah Nissi” (Ex. xvii. 15).
HE margin tells us that this means, “The Lord is my Banner.” That is the lesson of the whole incident recorded previously. Israel had their first battle with the enemy. Amalek was the foe and Amalek represents the flesh, our sinful nature. The battle was not theirs but God’s. Joshua’s fighting alone could not prevail. It was only when the hands of Moses were held up as a token of confidence in God and victory through Him that the enemy was defeated. The Lord was their banner. The closing verse is very striking if we take the marginal reading “Because the hand is upon the throne of the Lord,” that is, the hand of our faith, “therefore the Lord will have war with Amalek,” that is, the Lord shall fight for us and we shall conquer through His Name.