For the Israelite, separation from the nations was right and proper. However, concerning this matter we read: they “separated themselves from the people of the lands unto the law of God” (Neh. 10:28). It is human to approach things in this manner, and consequently, it must end in failure. When we get to the final chapter of this book we shall see this very thing. I don’t mean to suggest that the people had not been exercised by the law of Jehovah, but it will not work when we attempt to separate from, so that we might turn to God. Rather, a turning to God will, of necessity, result in a turning from all that is contrary to Him. The saints at Thessalonika “turned to God from idols” (1 Thess. 1:9) — they didn’t turn from idols to serve God. The Nazarite was to separate himself unto the Lord (Num. 6:2); the consequences of that separation follow (Num. 6:39). Many an unbeliever has tried to separate themselves from this world and the sin that characterizes it, hoping to turn to God, only to fail. Whether in salvation or our walk, it is first submission to God, and then as a consequence, we will have the power to turn from those things that defile.