Feb.26 - Deuteronomy 19 - 21

Moses continues to give GREAT ADVICE!

In chapter 19, he recommends 3 "cities of refuge" for any individual who "kills another person unintentionally, without previous hostility (vs.4)". The whole purpose of this type of arrangement was to protect the person who accidentally killed someone from "an enraged avenger" who might "chase down and kill the person who caused the death (vs.6)". God did not want the Promised Land polluted by murder! These cities of refuge were to be temporary restraints from a person being preliminarily put to death before a fair trial. Not a bad idea!

In chapter 20, God offers "rules of war!" Here they are:
- Don't be afraid of an army GREATER THAN YOU!
- The priest is to offer the troops a motivational charge before the battle and remind them that God will fight for them!
- The army officers are to eliminate troops who
1) Have built a new house without living in it yet
2) Have planted a vineyard who has eaten from it
3) Has just become engaged to be married
4) Is afraid!
I bet this eliminated A LOT OF GUYS!!!
- Offer a peace treaty to distant towns people.
- Kill every living thing in all the towns within the Promised Land!

This last rule of killing every living thing may be hard to understand. But remember, earlier in Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy God told Israel that the only reason He was giving them the Promised Land was because the people of the land were extremely wicked! They had rejected God, worshipped demons, practiced witchcraft, sacrificed their children to other gods, engaged in homosexuality, and the horrible list goes on and on! God's patience had run out on the inhabitants of Canaan. That's why God said to wipe them out completely! He did not want Israel to run the risk of allowing them to live and spread their wickedness among the Israelites. God is jealous over His own. He will do anything and everything to protect us from being spiritually diseased through our prolonged association with wicked people.

In chapter 21, God once again shows how important it is to have the land cleansed of the guilt of murder! Look at the ritual God is requesting of them when a person is found murdered and there is no one to blame! They are to take a young cow and break its neck, and then allow the elders of the city to wash their hands over the cow and pray for God's mercy so that God won't punish the people of the land for the murderous bloodshed that took place. God says this "will cleanse the guilt of murder from the community (vs.9)."

There are 2 other VERY POWERFUL POINTS:
1) God demands a death sentence to rebellious children! Look at 21:18-21! If any parents could not control their children from a rebellious and disobedient attitude, God demanded that the elders of the city stone them with stones that they die! Wow! God is serious about children obeying parents! This is why it is the 5th commandment of the 10 commandments, and it is the ONLY commandment with a promise - the promise of a long life!

2) Jesus was cursed in God's sight! Did you read 21:23? It says, "for anyone who is hung is cursed in the sight of God." Jesus became sin for us! He was willing to become "cursed" in the sight of His Heavenly Father out of His love for us and His Father! How tough this must have been for Jesus! How humiliating! All Jews knew this verse! That's why many of them "wagged their heads at him" at the foot of the cross. Isn't Jesus amazing!

Have a Spirit-filled day!