Deuteronomy 30:19-20

I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Deuteronomy 18:1-19:14

Deuteronomy 18:1-19:14

The opening verses in Deuteronomy 18 outline a few basic laws on the Levite’s role in Israel. First, they would not receive any portion of the land. Instead, they would be scattered across the land in order to minister to the other tribes. Second, they would be taken care of through the gifts of the other tribes. Israel was expected to provide for their brothers that would be ministering to them. Although they did not have a portion unto themselves, because of their service to God, God promised to provide for them in other ways. His provision would come through the gifts and sacrifices of the other tribes.

The next set of laws is a series of practices that the Israelites were not to be involved in. This dealt with inappropriate sacrifices, talking to the dead, telling the future, and other things like these. God was making Israel a holy nation, and these practices characterized the nations that He was about to drive out of the land. Therefore, He expected Israel to live to a higher standard and not be involved in those practices. By following God’s commands and not the ways of these foreign nations, they would show where their allegiance stood and be an example to the surrounding nations.

The closing verses speak of Moses’ successor. Moses gives Israel a word of encouragement after outlining so many of these laws by telling them that God has a plan for them after Moses is gone. He has already picked out a successor to Moses, and Israel would be in good hands. Therefore, God expected them to treat the new leader as they treated Moses. Like Moses, he would be the one to receive the word from God and deliver it to them. So Moses encouraged them to listen to the one that God had chosen as their leader and to not follow someone who is not from God. Once again, this is a picture of God’s provision. Life is short, and we will all die. Moses was not an exception. At this point, Moses was an old man, and the Israelites had to know that he was not far from death. Many may have been wondering who would lead them once he was gone. The end of this chapter gave Israel assurance that God was still looking out for them, providing for them, and helping them as they continued on their journey into the Promised Land.

The book transitions back into another set of laws in Deuteronomy 19. The first set of laws deals with unintentional killing. God commanded the Israelites to set up cities of refuge so that if there ever was an instance in which someone accidentally killed another man, they had a safe place to flee to in case someone tried to seek revenge. God understood that accidents happen, and once again, this was His way of protecting those innocent lives. This did not however give someone the right to kill whoever they wanted while thinking that they had a safe place to go. Intentional killing was still forbidden, and anyone who killed intentionally could still be sought out for revenge.

In the discussion about the cities of refuge, God also made a note about a possibility of adding three more cities to the original three. He intended for Israel to remain obedient in their conquest so that they might conquer and posses all of the land. We will later find out whether or not this actually happened. If they did end up gaining all the land, these three extra cities would be needed. Furthermore, God stressed the importance of boundaries. Once boundaries were set, whether around these cities of refuge or around a tribe’s personal territory, they were not to be moved. They were commanded to respect each other’s boundaries, as they would have each received according to what God had chosen to give them. When we receive a blessing from God, such as the Israelites were receiving through the Promised Land, it is quite selfish on our part to ask for more. God is ultimately in control and knows what He is doing, so we must respect His decisions and be thankful for whatever it is that He gives us. We also must remember that it is ultimately not about us either. It is all about Him!

Matt

No comments: