DEUTERONOMY 17-29
“Purge the evil.” That seems to be the resounding theme in the beginning. I counted it 9 times. The Israelites were commanded to remain clean and pure by purging the ungodly from among them. Moses says in 18:15 ” The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own borthers. You must listen to him.” Everyone knows who that prophet is, but do we always honor Him? Jesus was the ultimate prophet, and He’s already been compared to Moses in our previous readings.
In chapter 20, he tells them to not be afraid when they go to battle because God will be with them. v4 “For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.”
23:12-13 Thank you for indoor plumbing and privacy.
Chapter 27- Moses tells the people to keep all the commands he’s given when they get into the promised land, set up an altar with stones covered in plaster, and write all the words of this law on the stones. I would hate to be in charge of all that writing on plaster covered stones.
Chapter 28-The Lord will bless you richly if you fully obey his commands.
Chapter 29- The Israelites enter into the covenant that the Lord will seal with an oath, made for his people, so that He will be their God.
When I went to my study Bible to review the laws, this is what I found that helps explain the breakdown.
There were 16 major ethical concerns in the Covenant
1. Personhood- everyone’s person is to be secure
2. False Accusation-everyone is to be secure against slander and false accusation
3. Woman-No woman is to be taken advantage of within her subordinate status in society
4. Punishment-punishment for wrongdoing shall not be excessive so that the culprit is dehumanized
5. Dignity-every Israelite’s dignity and right to be God’s freedman and servant are to be honored and safeguarded
6. Inheritance-every Israelite’s inheritance in the promised land is to be secure
7. Property-everyone’s property is to be secure
8. Fruit of Labor-everyoned is to receive the fruit of his labors
9. Fruit of the Ground-everyone is to share the fruit of the ground
10. Rest on Sabbath-everyone, down to the humblest servant and the resident alien, is to share in the weekly rest of God’s sabbath
11. Marriage-the marriage relationship is to be kept inviolate
12. Exploitation-no one, however disabled, impoverishe or powerless, is to be oppressed or exploited
13. Fair Trial- everyone is to have free access to the courts and is to be afforded a fair trial
14. Social Order-every person’s God-given place in the social order is to be honored
15. Law-no one shall be above the law, not evne the king
16. Animals-Concern for the welfare of other creatures is to be extended to the animal world.
That came from my Zondervan study bible.
Tomorrow is a short reading of Deuteronomy 30-34. Any questions?
