Chapters 26-28

 

LITV

Deu 26:1  And it shall be, when you have come into the land which Jehovah your God is giving to you as an inheritance, and you have possessed it, and live in it; 

Deu 26:2  then you shall take of the first of all the fruit of the ground which you shall bring in from your land which Jehovah your God is giving to you, and shall put it in a basket, and shall go to the place which Jehovah your God shall choose to cause His name to dwell there. 

Deu 26:3  And you shall come to the priest who is in those days, and shall say to him, I declare today to Jehovah your God that I have come into the land which Jehovah has sworn to our fathers to give to us. 

Deu 26:4  And the priest shall take the basket out of your hand and place it before the altar of Jehovah your God. 

Deu 26:5  And you shall speak and say before Jehovah your God, My father was a perishing Aramean! And he went down to Egypt with few men, and lived there, and became a nation there, great, mighty and many. 

Deu 26:6  And the Egyptians dealt ill with us, and afflicted us, and put hard labor on us. 

Deu 26:7  And we cried to Jehovah, the God of our fathers, and Jehovah heard our voice, and saw our affliction, and our labor, and our oppression. 

Deu 26:8  And Jehovah brought us out from Egypt by a mighty hand, and by an arm stretched out, and by great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders. 

Deu 26:9  And He has brought us to this place, and has given to us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 

Deu 26:10  And now, behold, I have brought in the first of the fruits of the ground which You have given me, O Jehovah. And you shall place it before Jehovah your God, and bow yourself before Jehovah your God, 

Deu 26:11  and rejoice in all the good which Jehovah your God has given to you, and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the alien who is in your midst. 

Deu 26:12  When you have made an end of tithing all the tithes of your increase the third year, the year of tithing, and have given it to the Levite, the alien, the orphan, and the widow, that they may eat inside your gates, and be filled, 

Deu 26:13  then you shall say before Jehovah your God, I have consumed the devoted things from the house, and also have given them to the Levite, and to the alien, to the orphan, and to the widow, according to all Your command which You have commanded me. I have not transgressed Your commands, and I have not forgotten. 

Deu 26:14  I have not eaten of it in my mourning; nor have I put any of it away for uncleanness; nor have I given of it for the dead. I have listened to the voice of Jehovah my God. I have done according to all that You have commanded me. 

Deu 26:15  Look down from Your holy habitation, from Heaven, and bless Your people Israel, and the land which You have given to us, as You swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey. 

Deu 26:16  Today Jehovah your God commands you to do these statutes and ordinances. You shall take heed to do them with all your heart, and with all your soul. 

Deu 26:17  You have today declared Jehovah to be your God, and to walk in His ways, and to keep His statutes and His commands, and His judgments, and to pay attention to His voice. 

Deu 26:18  And Jehovah has declared you today to be His people, a special treasure as He has spoken to you, and to keep all His commands. 

Deu 26:19  And He will make you high above all nations that He has made, in praise, and in name, and in glory; and that you may be a holy people to Jehovah your God, as He has spoken. 

Deu 27:1  And Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commands which I am commanding you today, 

Deu 27:2  and it shall be in the day you cross over the Jordan to the land which Jehovah your God is giving to you, that you shall raise up for yourself great stones, and plaster them with plaster. 

Deu 27:3  And you shall write on them all the Words of this Law when you have crossed over, so that you may go into the land which Jehovah your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as Jehovah the God of your fathers has promised you. 

Deu 27:4  And it shall be when you have crossed over the Jordan, that you shall raise up these stones as to which I am commanding you today, in Mount Ebal, and you shall plaster them with plaster. 

Deu 27:5  And you shall build an altar there to Jehovah your God, an altar of stones. You shall not wield any iron tool on them. 

Deu 27:6  You shall build the altar of Jehovah your God of uncut stones. And you shall offer burnt offerings on it to Jehovah your God. 

Deu 27:7  And you shall offer peace offerings, and shall eat there. And you shall rejoice before Jehovah your God. 

Deu 27:8  And you shall write on the stones all the Words of the Law very plainly. 

Deu 27:9  And Moses and the priests, the Levites, spoke to all Israel, saying, Keep silence, and hear, O Israel: Today you have become the people of Jehovah your God. 

Deu 27:10  Therefore you shall obey the voice of Jehovah your God and do His commandments and His statutes which I command you today. 

Deu 27:11  And Moses charged the people the same day, saying, 

Deu 27:12  These shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people when you have crossed over the Jordan: Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin. 

Deu 27:13  And these shall stand on Mount Ebal to curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. 

Deu 27:14  And the Levites shall answer, and shall say to all the men of Israel with a loud voice: 

Deu 27:15  Cursed is the man who makes a carved and molten image, an abomination to Jehovah, the work of a craftsman's hands, and who sets it up in a secret place! And all the people shall answer and say, Amen! 

Deu 27:16  Cursed is he who dishonors his father or his mother! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:17  Cursed is he who removes his neighbor's landmark! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:18  Cursed is he who makes the blind to wander out of the way! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:19  Cursed is he who perverts the judgment of the alien, the fatherless, and widow! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:20  Cursed is he who lies with his father's wife, because he uncovers his father's skirt! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:21  Cursed is he who lies with any kind of animal! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:22  Cursed is he who lies with his sister, his father's daughter, or his mother's daughter! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:23  Cursed is he who lies with his mother-in-law! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:24  Cursed is he who strikes his neighbor secretly! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:25  Cursed is he who takes a bribe to strike a life, to shed innocent blood! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 27:26  Cursed is he who does not rise to all the Words of this Law, to do them! And all the people shall say, Amen! 

Deu 28:1  And it shall be if listening you will listen to the voice of Jehovah your God, taking heed to do all His commandments which I command you this day, Jehovah your God shall give you to be on high above all nations of the earth. 

Deu 28:2  And all these blessings shall come on you and overtake you if you will listen to the voice of Jehovah your God. 

Deu 28:3  You shall be blessed in the city, and you shall be blessed in the field. 

Deu 28:4  The fruit of your body shall be blessed, and the fruit of your ground, and the fruit of your livestock, the offspring of your oxen, and the young ones of your flock. 

Deu 28:5  Your basket and your kneadingtrough shall be blessed. 

Deu 28:6  You shall be blessed when you come in, and you shall be blessed when you go out. 

Deu 28:7  Jehovah shall cause your enemies that rise up against you to be stricken before your face. They shall come out against you one way, and flee before you seven ways. 

Deu 28:8  Jehovah shall command the blessing on you in your storehouses and all that you set your hand to. And He shall bless you in the land which Jehovah your God is giving to you. 

Deu 28:9  Jehovah shall establish you a holy people to Himself, as He has sworn to you, if you shall keep the commands of Jehovah your God and welcome His ways. 

Deu 28:10  And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of Jehovah, and they shall fear you. 

Deu 28:11  And Jehovah shall prosper you in goods, and in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground in the land which Jehovah swore to your fathers to give it to you. 

Deu 28:12  Jehovah shall open to you His good treasure, the heavens to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 

Deu 28:13  And Jehovah shall make you the head, and not the tail. And you shall be only above, and you shall not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of Jehovah your God, which I am commanding you today, to be careful to do them. 

Deu 28:14  And you shall not turn away from all the Words which I am commanding you today, right or left, to go after other gods, to serve them. 

Deu 28:15  And it shall be, if you will not heed the voice of your God, to take heed to do all His commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today, even all these curses shall come on you and overtake you: 

Deu 28:16  You shall be cursed in the city, and you shall be cursed in the field. 

Deu 28:17  Your basket and your kneading-trough shall be cursed. 

Deu 28:18  The fruit of your body shall be cursed, and the fruit of your land, the offspring of your oxen, and the young ones of your sheep. 

Deu 28:19  You shall be cursed when you come in, and you shall be cursed when you go out. 

Deu 28:20  Jehovah shall send cursing on you, trouble and rebuke in all that you set your hand, all which you will do, until you are destroyed, or until you quickly perish, because of the badness of your doings by which you have forsaken Me. 

Deu 28:21  Jehovah shall make the plague cling to you until He has consumed you from off the land where you are going, to possess it. 

Deu 28:22  Jehovah shall strike you with lung disease and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting and mildew. And they shall pursue you until you perish. 

Deu 28:23  And your heavens over your head shall become bronze, and the earth under you iron. 

Deu 28:24  Jehovah shall make the rain of your land be dust and ashes. It shall come down on you from the heavens until you are destroyed. 

Deu 28:25  Jehovah shall cause you to be stricken before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them, and shall flee seven ways before them. And you shall be a trembling to all the kingdoms of the earth. 

Deu 28:26  And your body shall be food to all the birds of the heavens, and to the beasts of the earth; and there shall be none to cause them to tremble. 

Deu 28:27  Jehovah shall strike you with the boil of Egypt, and with hemorrhoids, and with the scab, and with itch, of which you cannot be healed. 

Deu 28:28  Jehovah shall strike you with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart. 

Deu 28:29  And you shall grope at noonday as the blind grope in darkness. And you shall not prosper in your ways. And you shall be always oppressed and plundered all the days; and there will be no one to save. 

Deu 28:30  You shall betroth a wife, and another shall lie with her. You shall build a house, and you shall not live in it. You shall plant a vineyard, and shall not use its fruit. 

Deu 28:31  Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, and you shall not eat of it. Your ass shall be violently taken away from before you, and it will not be given back. Your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have no deliverer. 

Deu 28:32  Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people; and your eyes shall look and fail for them all the day. And no power shall be in your hand. 

Deu 28:33  The fruit of your ground, and all your labor, shall be eaten up by a nation which you do not know. And you shall always be oppressed and crushed. 

Deu 28:34  And you shall be maddened because of that which you shall see with the sight of your eyes. 

Deu 28:35  Jehovah shall strike you with an evil ulcer on the knees, and on the legs, of which you cannot be healed from the sole of your foot even to your crown. 

Deu 28:36  Jehovah shall cause you and your king whom you shall raise up over you, to go to a nation which you have not known, you and your fathers. And you shall serve other gods there, wood and stone. 

Deu 28:37  And you shall be an astonishment, a proverb and a byword among all the peoples where Jehovah shall lead you. 

Deu 28:38  You shall carry much seed out to the field, and you shall gather in little; for the locusts will devour it. 

Deu 28:39  You shall plant vineyards, and shall labor, and you shall not gather, nor drink wine; for the worm will devour it. 

Deu 28:40  You shall have olive trees in all your border, and you shall not anoint with oil; for your olive shall fall off. 

Deu 28:41  You shall father sons and daughters, and they shall not be with you; for they shall go into captivity. 

Deu 28:42  The locust shall possess all your trees and the fruit of your ground. 

Deu 28:43  The alien in your midst shall go above you, higher and higher; and you shall come down, lower and lower. 

Deu 28:44  He shall lend to you, and you shall not lend to him. He shall be the head, and you shall be the tail. 

Deu 28:45  And all these curses shall come on you and shall pursue you and overtake you, until you are destroyed; for you did not heed the voice of Jehovah your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which He commanded you. 

Deu 28:46  And they shall be on you for a sign and for a wonder, and on your seed forever, 

Deu 28:47  because you did not serve Jehovah your God with joyfulness and with gladness of heart for the abundance of all things, 

Deu 28:48  and you shall serve your enemies whom Jehovah shall send on you, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in lack of all things. And He shall put an iron yoke on your neck until He has destroyed you. 

Deu 28:49  Jehovah shall raise a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flies; a nation whose tongue you will not understand, 

Deu 28:50  a nation fierce of face, who will not regard the person of the aged, nor show favor to the young. 

Deu 28:51  And he shall eat the fruit of your livestock, and the fruit of your land, until you are destroyed. He shall not leave to you grain, new wine, and oil, offspring of your oxen, or young ones of your flock, until he has destroyed you. 

Deu 28:52  And he shall distress you in all your gates, until your high and fortified walls in which you are trusting come down, in all your land; yea, he shall distress you in all your gates, in all your land which Jehovah your God has given to you. 

Deu 28:53  And you shall eat the fruit of your body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom Jehovah your God has given to you, in the siege, and in the anguish with which your enemies shall distress you. 

Deu 28:54  The man who is tender and very delicate among you, his eye shall be evil against his brother, and against the wife of his bosom, and against the remnant of his sons which he leaves, 

Deu 28:55  so that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his sons that he shall eat, because he has nothing left to him in the siege, and in the anguish with which your enemies shall distress you in all your gates. 

Deu 28:56  The soft and delicate woman among you, who would not have ventured to set the sole of her foot on the ground for delicateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil against the husband of her bosom, and against her son, and against her daughter; 

Deu 28:57  and against her fetus which comes out from between her feet, even against her sons whom she shall bear. For she shall eat them in secret, for the lack of everything in the siege and in the anguish with which the enemy shall distress you within your gates. 

Deu 28:58  If you will not take heed to do all the Words of this Law written in this book, to fear this glorious and fearful Name, Jehovah your God, 

Deu 28:59  then Jehovah will make your plagues remarkable, and the plagues of your children shall be great and persistent plagues with evil and long lasting sicknesses. 

Deu 28:60  He shall also bring on you all the diseases of Egypt, of which you were afraid; and they shall cling to you. 

Deu 28:61  Also every sickness and every plague which is not written in the book of this Law, Jehovah shall cause them to come on you until you are destroyed. 

Deu 28:62  And you shall be left few in number, whereas you were as the stars of the heavens for multitude, because you would not obey the voice of Jehovah your God. 

Deu 28:63  And it shall be, as Jehovah rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you, so Jehovah shall rejoice over you to destroy you, and to lay you waste. And you shall be plucked from the land you are going to possess. 

Deu 28:64  And Jehovah shall scatter you among all people, from one end of the earth even to the other, and you shall serve other gods there, wood and stone, which you have not known, nor your fathers. 

Deu 28:65  And among these nations you shall find no ease, nor shall the sole of your foot have rest. But Jehovah shall give you there a trembling heart and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind. 

Deu 28:66  And your life shall hang in doubt before you, and you shall fear day and night, and shall have no assurance of your life. 

Deu 28:67  In the morning you shall say, Oh that it were evening! And in the evening you shall say, Oh that it were morning! For the fear of your heart with which you fear, and for the sight of your eyes which you shall see. 

Deu 28:68  And Jehovah shall bring you into Egypt again with ships, by the way of which I said to you, You shall never see it again. And you shall be sold to your enemies there, for male slaves and slave-girls; and there shall be no buyer. 

 

Main points: The tithing ritual established through action and words. Set up at Mt Gerzim to declare blessings, and at Mt Ebal for curses. Blessings, curses are declared.

1.   What repetition is found in 26:1-4 that the Lord wanted the people to remember? Tithing is brought up again to expand on the ceremony. Tithing was not merely a sacrifice to God. It was a ceremony where the Israelites would eat before God (giving Him the glory for the harvest).

2.   What are the people then to do in 26:5-11? This was a unifying ceremony where all participants rejoiced before God. They were to remember and proclaim where they came from and give God glory/praise for what He has done for them. (Note that after one generation, the proclamation would have to become symbolic. People who never saw (lived in) Egypt would still need to identify as one coming out of that slavery).

3.   What then do the people declare 26: 12-15? This was the third year tithing which was also a gift to the less fortunate. The declaration made by the giver suggests they have obeyed God in very specific actions. This would help them remember what those actions were to be. If a person spoke these words untruthfully, they would convict themselves before God.

4.   What do the people promise to do in 26:16-19? What does God promise to do? The people were to be obedient to God and declare Him as their God. For this, Jehovah would make Israel His people and would elevate them above all other nations.

5.   What are the people instructed to do in 27:1-8? What is the purpose? At Mt Ebal: They were to set up a monument with the law written on it, and a sacrificial altar. From there curses would be declared.

6.   Describe the curses listed in 27:9-26. What is the message? Collectively, these sins address idolatry, disrespect, injustice, impurity, deceit. At the end of the pronouncements, the people were to say amen! In other words “we are in agreement.” Remember this is a contract (covenant). Throughout these chapters what is commissioned is what GOD will do, and what the PEOPLE will do.

7.   Look at the curse in 27:26. What must the people do? Look at Gal. 3:10-14. How does Paul use this idea in his message to the Galatians? Those under this covenant were to join themselves to it and DO them (practice them). More importantly, Paul indicates that relying on the law for acceptance before God was futile. God was looking for His people to be faithful (then and now). This points to what the law was to generate within His people…faith. Obedience was necessary, but obedience without faith is useless. The law ultimately will convict. THAT is why we have Jesus today. He removes the conviction of the law for the believer. 

8.   What did God expect of His people (28:1-14)? What does God say he will do? Listen and take heed to what God is saying (concerning these commands). Do that and He will bless every aspect of Israel’s life. (the blessings will overtake you) The body, crops, livestock, everyday life, rains. Power over enemies. The surrounding nations will see a people “called by the name of Jehovah.”
The promise here is an abundant life.

9.   What did God expect the people not to do (28:15-68)? What does God say He will do? Why is this section longer than the blessings section? If they do not listen to God (evidenced by disobedience): Then every aspect of their life will become arduous and unfruitful. Also: Plagues, diseases, defeat at the hands of enemies, God will give them into the hands of idolatrous nations. They will become a cautionary proverb in the land. Eventually, God will prefer them to be destroyed at the same level He sought their protection and abundance. This section is longer to emphasize the destruction with specifics as a warning.

10.                Look at 28:47.  Why would the people be condemned? What does God expect of us? “because you did not serve Jehovah your God with joyfulness and with gladness of heart for the abundance of all things”. Joyfulness: śimchâh sim-khaw' blithesomeness or glee – Gladness: ṭûb toob - good (as a noun), in the widest sense, especially goodness
These emotions are an indication of a broader spectrum of actions and mindset(s) of the people. In order to get to this place, a person need first understand who God is as creator and our place before Him. We are here to serve God, borne out of our understanding of His goodness, mercy and loving kindness. God makes us His children. His biggest warning in this book is not to FORGET His love for us. We do not make our way in this world. He does it for us. Understanding this requires the constant discipline of keeping Him at the forefront of our minds and the things we do.

 

Additional:

Gal 3:10  For as many as are out of works of Law, these are under a curse. For it has been written, "Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all the things having been written in the book of the Law, to do them." Deut. 27:26 

Gal 3:11  And that no one is justified by Law before God is clear because, "The just shall live by faith." Hab. 2:4 

Gal 3:12  But the Law is not of faith, but, "The man doing these things shall live in them." Lev. 18:5 

Gal 3:13  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us; for it has been written, "Cursed is everyone having been hung on a tree;" Deut. 21:23 

Gal 3:14  that the blessing of Abraham might be to the nations in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. 

 

Chapters 22-25

 

LITV

Deu 22:1  You shall not see your brother's ox or his sheep driven away, and hide yourself from them. Turning you shall turn them back to your brother. 

Deu 22:2  And if your brother is not near you, and you do not know him, then you shall surely bring it home to your house; and it shall be with you until your brother inquires of it; and you shall restore it to him. 

Deu 22:3  And so you shall do with his ass, and so you will do with his clothing, and so you shall do with everything lost of your brother's, which he has lost and you have found; you may not hide it. 

Deu 22:4  You shall not see your brother's ass or his ox fallen down in the highway, and hide yourself from them. Lifting you shall help him lift it up. 

Deu 22:5  There shall not be the thing of a man on a woman, nor shall a man put on a woman's garment. For whoever does these things is an abomination to Jehovah your God. 

Deu 22:6  If a bird's nest happens to be before you in the way in any tree, or on the ground, with young ones, or eggs; and the mother is sitting on the young, or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young. 

Deu 22:7  But in every case you shall let the mother go, and take the young for yourself, so that it may be well with you, and you may prolong your days. 

Deu 22:8  When you build a new house, then you shall make a guard rail for your roof, so that you do not put blood on your house if someone falls from it. 

Deu 22:9  You shall not sow your vineyard with different kinds of seeds, that the fruit of your seed which you have sown and the fruit of your vineyard not be defiled. 

Deu 22:10  You shall not plow with an ox and an ass together. 

Deu 22:11  You shall not wear a garment of different kinds, of wool and linen together. 

Deu 22:12  You shall make for yourself tassels on the four corners of your cloak with which you cover. 

Deu 22:13  If any man takes a wife, and goes in to her, and hates her, 

Deu 22:14  then sets shameful words to charge her, and brings up an evil name on her, and says, I took this woman, and when I came near her, I did not find in her the tokens of virginity. 

Deu 22:15  Then the girl's father and her mother shall take and bring the girl's tokens of virginity to the elders of the city in the gate. 

Deu 22:16  And the girl's father shall say to the elders, I have given my daughter to this man for a wife, and he hates her. 

Deu 22:17  And, behold, he has laid shameful charges, saying, I have not found in your daughter the tokens of virginity. And yet see these tokens of my daughter's virginity. And they shall spread the garment before the elders of the city. 

Deu 22:18  And the elders of that city shall take that man and punish him. 

Deu 22:19  And they shall fine him a hundred pieces of silver, and give them to the girl's father, because he has brought an evil name on a virgin of Israel. And she shall be his wife; he may not put her away all his days. 

Deu 22:20  But if this thing is true that tokens of virginity have not been found for the girl, 

Deu 22:21  then they shall bring out the girl to the door of her father's house. And the men of her city shall stone her with stones, and she shall die; for she has done folly in Israel, to commit fornication in her father's house. And you shall put away the evil from among you. 

Deu 22:22  If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then they shall both of them die, the man that lay with the woman, and the woman. And you shall put away the evil from Israel. 

Deu 22:23  If there is a girl that is a virgin, betrothed to a man, and a man finds her in the city, and lies with her, 

Deu 22:24  then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city. And you shall stone them with stones so that they die, the girl because she did not cry out, being in the city; and the man, because he has humbled his neighbor's wife. And you shall put away the evil from among you. 

Deu 22:25  But if a man finds a betrothed girl in the field, and the man seizes her and lies with her; then only the man that lay with her shall die. 

Deu 22:26  And you shall do nothing to the girl; the girl has no sin worthy of death; for as when a man rises against his neighbor and murders him, even so is this matter. 

Deu 22:27  For he found her in the field, and the betrothed girl cried out, but no one saved her. 

Deu 22:28  If a man finds a virgin girl, not being betrothed, and seizes her and lies with her, and they be found; 

Deu 22:29  then the man lying with her shall give to the girl's father fifty pieces of silver, and she shall be his wife, because he has humbled her. He may not put her away all his days. 

Deu 22:30  A man shall not take his father's wife, and shall not uncover his father's skirt. 

Deu 23:1  He being wounded, crushed, or cut in his male member shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah. 

Deu 23:2  An illegitimate child shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah, even to the tenth generation none of his shall enter into the assembly of Jehovah. 

Deu 23:3  An Ammonite or a Moabite shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah; even to the tenth generation shall none of them enter into the assembly of Jehovah, perpetually; 

Deu 23:4  because they did not meet you with bread and with water in the way when you came out of Egypt; and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor, from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. 

Deu 23:5  But Jehovah your God would not listen to Balaam, and Jehovah your God turned the curse into a blessing to you, because Jehovah your God loved you. 

Deu 23:6  You shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity all your days, perpetually. 

Deu 23:7  You shall not despise an Edomite, for he is your brother. You shall not despise an Egyptian, for you were an alien in his land; 

Deu 23:8  sons of the third generation that are born to them may enter into the assembly of Jehovah. 

Deu 23:9  When you go forth into camp against your enemies, then keep yourself from every evil thing. 

Deu 23:10  If there is among you any man who is not clean because of a discharge at night, then he shall go to the outside of the camp; he shall not come in to the middle of the camp. 

Deu 23:11  And it shall be, as evening is turning, he shall bathe with water, and as the sun is going, he shall come into the middle of the camp. 

Deu 23:12  Also you shall have a place outside the camp, and you shall go out there. 

Deu 23:13  And you shall have a tool on your staff. And it shall be, as you sit outside, you shall dig with it, and shall turn back, and shall cover that which comes from you. 

Deu 23:14  For Jehovah your God walks in the middle of your camp to deliver you and to give up your enemies before you; therefore your camp shall be holy, so that He may see no unclean thing in you, and turn away from you. 

Deu 23:15  You shall not hand over to his master a slave that has escaped from his master to you. 

Deu 23:16  He shall live with you, among you, in the place which he chooses inside one of your gates, wherever it is good to him. You shall not oppress him. 

Deu 23:17  There shall be no prostitute among the daughters of Israel, nor shall there be a homosexual among the sons of Israel. 

Deu 23:18  You shall not bring the hire of a prostitute, or the price of a dog, into the house of Jehovah your God for any vow; for even both of these are an abomination to Jehovah your God. 

Deu 23:19  You shall not lend at interest to your brother; interest of silver, interest of food, interest of anything loaned at interest. 

Deu 23:20  To a stranger you may lend at interest, but you shall not lend at interest to your brother, so that Jehovah your God may bless you in all that you put your hand to, in the land where you go to possess it. 

Deu 23:21  When you shall vow a vow to Jehovah your God, you shall not delay to perform it; for Jehovah your God will certainly require it of you, and it shall be sin to you. 

Deu 23:22  But if you shall forebear to vow, it shall be no sin to you. 

Deu 23:23  That which has gone out of your lips, you shall keep, and shall do it. According as you have vowed as a freewill offering to Jehovah your God, do even that which you have spoken with your mouth. 

Deu 23:24  When you come into your neighbor's vineyard, then you may eat grapes to your fill, at your pleasure. But you shall not put any in your vessel. 

Deu 23:25  When you come into your neighbor's standing grain, then you may pluck heads with your hand; but you shall not move a sickle into your neighbor's standing grain. 

 

Deu 24:1  When a man has taken a wife and married her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found a thing of uncleanness in her, and he writes her a bill of divorce and puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house; 

Deu 24:2  and if she goes out from his house and goes and becomes another man's wife, 

Deu 24:3  and the latter husband hates her, and writes her a bill of divorce, and puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house or if the latter husband who took her to be his wife dies; 

Deu 24:4  her former husband who sent her away is not to take her again to be his wife, after she is defiled. For it is a hateful thing before Jehovah, and you shall not cause the land to sin which Jehovah your God is giving to you as an inheritance. 

Deu 24:5  When a man has taken a new wife, he shall not go out to war, and he shall not be given any thing to do. He shall be free at his own house for one year, and shall gladden his wife whom he has taken. 

Deu 24:6  No one shall take in pledge the lower and upper millstone, for he is taking a man's life to pledge. 

Deu 24:7  If a man is found stealing a person of his brothers of the sons of Israel, and has dealt with him as a slave, and sold him, then that thief shall die. And you shall put away the evil from among you. 

Deu 24:8  Be on guard in the plague of leprosy, that you watch closely and do according to all that the Levitical priests shall teach you. As I commanded them, so you shall be careful to do. 

Deu 24:9  Remember that which Jehovah your God did to Miriam in the way, as you came out of Egypt. 

Deu 24:10  When you lend your neighbor any kind of loan, you shall not go into his house to get his pledge. 

Deu 24:11  You shall stand outside, and the man to whom you lend shall bring the security outside to you. 

Deu 24:12  And if the man is poor, you shall not sleep with his pledge. 

Deu 24:13  You shall certainly give back the pledge to him as goes the sun; and he shall lie down in his own clothing, and shall bless you. And it shall be righteousness to you before Jehovah your God. 

Deu 24:14  You shall not oppress a poor and needy hired servant, of your brothers or of your aliens who are in your land, within your gates. 

Deu 24:15  In the same day you shall give him his hire; do not let the sun go down on it. For he is poor, and has lifted up his heart on it; that he not cry against you to Jehovah, and it be sin against you. 

Deu 24:16  The fathers shall not die for sons, and sons shall not die for fathers; they each shall die for his own sin. 

Deu 24:17  You shall not pervert judgment of an alien, or of an orphan; and you shall not take a widow's garment as pledge. 

Deu 24:18  But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and Jehovah your God redeemed you from there. For that reason I command you to do this thing. 

Deu 24:19  When you cut down your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not turn back to take it. It shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow; so that Jehovah your God shall bless you in all the work of your hand. 

Deu 24:20  When you beat your olive tree, you shall not search the branch behind you. It shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow. 

Deu 24:21  When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not glean it afterward. It shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow. 

Deu 24:22  And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt. On account of this I am commanding you to do this thing. 

 

Deu 25:1  If there is a contention between men, and they come to judgment, and they have been judged, and the righteous one is declared righteous, and the wrongdoer declared guilty; 

Deu 25:2  then it shall be, if the wrongdoer is a son of stripes, the judge shall cause him to fall down. And one shall strike him before his face, enough for his wickedness, by number. 

Deu 25:3  He may give him forty stripes; he shall not add more, lest, if he should exceed and beat him above these with many stripes, then your brother would be dishonored before your eyes. 

Deu 25:4  You shall not muzzle an ox when he is treading out grain. 

Deu 25:5  If brothers live together, and one of them dies, and has no son, the wife of the dead shall not go outside to a strange man; her brother-in-law shall go in to her, and take her to himself for a wife, and shall perform the duty of the levirate; 

Deu 25:6  and it shall be, the first-born which she bears shall rise up for his dead brother's name, and his name shall not be wiped out of Israel. 

Deu 25:7  And if the man does not desire to take his brother's wife then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate, to the elders, and say, My husband's brother is refusing to raise up a name to his brother in Israel; he has not been willing to perform the duty of my levirate. 

Deu 25:8  And the elders of his city shall call for him and shall speak to him. And he shall stand and say, I have no desire to take her. 

Deu 25:9  Then his brother's wife shall draw near to him before the elders, and shall take his shoe from his foot, and spit in his face, and shall answer and say, So it shall be done to the man who will not build up the house of his brother. 

Deu 25:10  And his name shall be called in Israel, The house of him whose shoe was taken off. 

Deu 25:11  When men fight with one another, and the wife of the one shall come near to deliver her husband from his assailant's hand, and shall put out her hand and lay hold on his genitals, 

Deu 25:12  then you shall cut off her palm; your eye shall not pity. 

Deu 25:13  You shall not have in your bag a stone and a stone weight, a great and a small. 

Deu 25:14  You shall not have in your house an ephah and an ephah, a great and a small. 

Deu 25:15  You shall have a perfect and just weight; you shall have a perfect and just ephah; so that they prolong your days in the land which Jehovah your God is giving to you. 

Deu 25:16  For anyone doing these things is hateful to Jehovah your God, everyone doing unrighteously. 

Deu 25:17  Remember what Amalek did to you by the way as you came forth out of Egypt; 

Deu 25:18  how he met you on the way and attacked your back, all the feeble ones in the rear, when you were faint and weary; and he did not fear God. 

Deu 25:19  And it shall be, when Jehovah your God gives you rest from all your enemies all around in the land which Jehovah your God is giving to you as an inheritance to possess it, you shall blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens; you shall not forget. 

 

Main point(s): Multiple provisions concerning everyday life (as opposed to the previous nationalistic structure building. Being neighborly, the taking of a wife, sexual laws, cleanliness, being just/honest.

 

1.    What does God expect of His people in 22:1-4? The directive is not to turn away from helping your neighbor, but rather help the situation. Even if you don’t know him. If you find something if his, hold onto it until he comes to claim it. If his animal falls “Lifting you shall help him lift it up”. The words lift it up indicates “to rise” “equally with”. The precursor is to NOT hide from the loss your neighbor is suffering. Then equally, be a good neighbor and assist to HELP the situation….do not ignore it. Not only is this a just thing to do, but the overall neighborly health is strengthened. Trust is fostered. This is basically practicing the golden rule.

 

2.    What do we learn about gender distinctions in 22:5? The term “abomination” means loathed/disgusting. This is God’s attitude toward those that practice these things. Note that Jehovah is not making any contingencies. Simply put, it doesn’t matter what they thought about the practice. These laws may be about them and their behavior, but God is not asking how they feel about these situations. We must come to the understanding that these statutes are issued from a source of justice.

 

3.    What pictures of holiness and righteousness do you see in 22:6-12?

(6-7) Find a nesting bird with chicks, take the chicks, leave the mother	There are many written analytical, metaphorical meanings to this concerning compassion etc. In the literal sense the reason given is “that it may be well with you, and you may prolong your days.” It makes pragmatic sense to understand that if the mother is killed for food, she will no longer provide food. Both are true. God was looking for His people to become wise and compassionate concerning what He was entrusting to their care.
(8)Build a house, put a guardrail on the roof	“do not put blood on your house” Blood in this case means “blood (as that which when shed causes death)” – We see that shed blood creates a trigger for justice of some sort. The call here is again pragmatic, but also one of compassion and responsibility for the safety of others.
(9) Do not sow multiple seed types together	Otherwise the resulting fruit will be defiled. (GMO? Grafting?) See also Lev. 19:19. These next three commands cover putting things together that do not belong together (keeping things pure). In this instance, we see the fruit that God made perfect, becoming something other than that perfect fruit. This is interesting to note considering most foods today are hybrids of their origins. (maintain what God has made…respect it)
(10) Do not plow an ox with a donkey	It makes practical sense not to put a much larger/stronger ox with a donkey. These would also be clean/unclean animals. (justice for the weaker animal + keeping animals of their own “kind” see (Lev 19:19)
Do no wear mixed cloth (linen and wool)	Goes along with the keeping things pure theme.
Put tassels on the four corners of your covering (cloak)	See also Num. 15:38. The purpose in Numbers was that the tassel would remind them of God. The words used are different in Numbers and the reason is not given in this text section.

 

4.    What were the laws of sexual immorality in 22:13-30? A. If a man accuses his bride of not being a virgin (an accusation against her family): The father shall go before the elders and present evidence of her virginity (garment). With this evidence, the man will be charged 100 pieces of silver (given to the father). The man CANNOT “put her away” ever. If the woman has defiled the marriage with fornication, she is to be put to death. B. A man caught sexually with a married woman: both are executed. C. When a woman is betrothed and lives in the city: If a man takes her sexually and she complies willingly – They are to be executed. D. If a man takes a betrothed woman sexually in a field (outside the city), the man is to be executed. Since even though she may have cried out, there was no one to help. E. If a man finds an unbetrothed woman and takes her sexually: HE shall give her father fifty pieces of silver, she shall be his wife and he cannot EVER put her away.
WOW! We must remember the times and culture and how God is looking to protect all parties involved.

5.    What is God teaching the people in chapter 23? (1-8) relates to who may enter into the “assembly.” This was an act of preserving purity as well as enacting justice against tribes that rejected Israel in their journey. (9-14) Cleanliness within the camp because “Jehovah your God walks in the middle of your camp….. therefore your camp shall be holy.” (15-16) Escaped slaves will live with whomever finds them (do not return them). (17-18) Rules against sexual sin. (19-20) Rules for lending. (21-23) Make sure to fulfill vows to God, do not delay. (24-25) Eating a neighbor’s crop. All of these deal with purity, justice/righteousness.

6.    What was God teaching in 24:1-4? Read Matt. 19:1-9. What had the Jewish leaders interpreted this law to mean? What does Jesus say about the reason this law was given? The verses are there to prevent a woman who is released from a marriage from ever returning to her former husband if she becomes remarried. It dictates a writ of divorce or a legal cutting of the marriage covenant which frees the woman to marry another. Her former husband has no claims to her. It protects her and the new husband from any legal claims from the former husband.
In Jesus’ day, the leaders focused on “that she finds no favor in his eyes” and ignored “because he has found a thing of uncleanness in her.” Thus “putting away for any reason.” Jesus does not give the reason why this law was given. He uses the example of creation as His basis for argument.

7.    How would you categorize the various laws given in chapters 24-25?

24:1-5 Family/Community/Cultural/Justice/Compassion – Husband wife relationships

24:6-22 Community/Cultural/Justice/Compassion -Pledges (surety), kidnapping, leprosy, do not oppress the poor-wages due, each shall be judged according to their deeds (fathers not punishable for sins of the son), do not exploit the disadvantaged, allow gleaning during harvests.

25:1-3 Cultural/Justice/Compassion How to dispense the punishment of “stripes”

25:4 Cultural/Compassion – How to treat a working animal

25:5-10 Cultural/Community/Justice/Compassion – Instances when a childless widow can expect her brother-in-law to take her to bear a child so his brother’s name will continue. (ramifications if he does not)

25:11-16 Community/Justice/Compassion -  Wives stay out of fights between men, use just measurements (weights)

25:17-19 National/Justice/War – Destroy Amalek for their attacks on Israel while in the wilderness (enemies)

Robin

 

Matt: 19:1-9

Mat 19:1  And it happened when Jesus had finished these words, He moved from Galilee and came into the borders of Judea beyond the Jordan. 

Mat 19:2  And great crowds followed Him, and He healed them there. 

Mat 19:3  And the Pharisees came near to Him, tempting Him, and saying to Him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every reason? 

Mat 19:4  But answering, He said to them, Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning "created them male and female"? Gen. 1:27 

Mat 19:5  And He said, "For this reason a man shall leave father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." Gen. 2:24 

Mat 19:6  So that they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let not man separate. 

Mat 19:7  They said to Him, Why then did Moses command to "give a bill of divorce," "and to put her away"? Deut. 24:1 

Mat 19:8  He said to them, In view of your hardheartedness, Moses allowed you to put away your wives. But from the beginning it was not so. 

Mat 19:9  And I say to you, Whoever shall put away his wife, if not for fornication, and shall marry another, that one commits adultery. And the one who marries her who was put away commits adultery.