From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.
Acts 17:26 NIV
This verse comes in the middle of Paul’s address to the leading men of the Areopagus in Athens. He was trying to convince them that the gods they served were nothing but human-made images. And that they should serve the living God instead. This God is not a provincial god like others they were familiar with. But the living God is over all nations. He has determined when in history each nation would exist. And He has set definite boundaries on the land they would occupy.
I readily admit that I do not understand why God has created some of the nations that He has and has given them the authority that they have. His wisdom and purpose are beyond my comprehension. But it is comforting to know that God is over all the nations. He has not only created them. But He has set bounds beyond which they cannot go. And, in some way that I do not understand, He is using them to accomplish his purpose in creation. What an amazing God we serve!
