Deuteronomy 34

It was a short reading today, and simple: Moses died at the ripe old age of 120, though he himself was still strong. Joshua followed him in the role of leading the Israelites, and we'll hear more of his activities in the next book (which bears his name).

I did find it interesting that the oldest manuscripts of this chapter indicate that God Himself buried Moses, such that the Israelites did not know the exact location of his tomb or grave. That man truly had a close relationship with the Lord.

Deuteronomy 33

This chapter I suspect contains some of the last words we hear from Moses - blessings on Israel, both as a whole and each tribe. Some tribes get quite a short mention, and a couple are even lumped together; yet others get several verses to themselves. All of the blessings were quite positive, though, so it looks like Moses will be leaving his people on a good note.

Deuteronomy 32

The vast majority of the chapter today is a song that God gave to the Israelites to help them remember the results of breaking His covenant in a form that could easily be passed from generation to generation. The lyrics, at least as they came across in the translation I read today (NET), contained many vivid images. The basic idea was that the Israelites would eventually fall away from God, that they would be punished, but then that God would remember them and punish their captors in turn - showing His superiority and power. It stands out as being pretty unique among the first few books of the Bible.

Deuteronomy 31

Further narrative today, as this book and Moses' life both draw to a close. What stood out to me here, and was noticable in the preceeding couple chapters as well, was that God didn't so much warn the Israelites of what could happen if they disobeyed as foretell that they would. Here He is even more clear about it, coming out directly to Moses and saying that they would disobey after his death (verses 16, 20, 27). Obviously God knew what would come to pass, but it is interesting how blatantly He told about this and warned the Israelites. Hopefully His words stuck with them for at least a few generations.

Also, I thought the tradition implemented in this chapter of retelling these stories and the warnings to follow God's covenant every seven years is pretty cool. I'm not much of one for formalities and such, but I think that something once every seven years I could handle.

Deuteronomy 30

More discourse today about the covenant God gave the Israelites - both the life it would bring if they obeyed, and the death if they turned aside. There is also a description of how God would gather the Israelites again if they fell away and then turned to follow the Lord again. Given that the Israelites have been dispossed from the promised land and then eventually returned multiple times I can only assume that they have been through this cycle more than once.

Deuteronomy 29

This book is starting to draw to a close, and we have a recap today of the covenant and the brief history of the Exodus. It looks like the covenant is expanded a bit as well, and futher warnings are given against straying and worshiping other gods. There isn't much to say beyond that.

Deuteronomy 28

Wow. That is all I can say after reading this chapter. The first paragraph's blessings, which the Israelites will enjoy if they obey God's commands, are very pleasant to read - but then it turns to horror. The rest of the section, which is quite long, contains vivid and terrifying descriptions of what would happen if they turned from God and His laws. I suspect, from my memory of later Israelite history, that some of these predictions came true. I will be on the lookout for fulfillment of them later in the Old Testament, and I may even go do some reading up on that now.

Deuteronomy 27

We are indeed back into more of a narrative here, though not a lot is happening (just Moses giving more instructions for when the Israelites will cross into the promised land). The idea of half the Israelites standing to represent the blessings God put on them, and the other half standing to represent the curses that would fall on those who broke His laws seems a bit odd to me. The idea of writing the laws and commandments on stones atop a mountain is pretty cool, though; I wonder how long those stood. Are they perhaps still there somewhere?

Deuteronomy 26

This book is now starting to trend away from laws and back toward rules concerning offerings and tithes. We have a reiteration here of the command to bring the firstfruits of all the produce and livestock raised in the promised land to the Lord, as well as a reminder that the third year (of each seven year sequence, if I remember correctly) was to be donated to the poor and the Levites.

The chapter ends with a call to remember the Lord, and what He has commanded the Israelites. I suspect this marks a transition back to historical narrative, but we'll have to see tomorrow.

Deuteronomy 25

Same story as yesterday, and probably the day before that. The particular laws that stand out in this chapter are as follows:

- The law that a childless widow must marry her dead husband's brother and bear an heir for the deceased man. I think in the time of the Israelites family lines were more important than they are today, or at least more important than they are in my mind.


- The command to wipe out the Amalekites as retribution for their attacks on the Israelites during the Exodus. I don't actually remember the initial story of this happening, but I'll have to be on the lookout for its fulfillment.

*NOTE* - Somehow it looks like I forgot to hit "post" on this last night; I realized it when I looked today and saw that though I was read chapter 26 the last post was about 24. I'm posting it now, an appologize for any confusion!

Deuteronomy 24

It looks like this section of Deuteronomy is full of laws, and this chapter is no exception. The particular instructions that stand out to me here are as follows:

- Laws concerning divorce and remarriage; apparently divorce was allowed for some limited reasons, and remarriage to another person as well, but not marrying the person you were divorced from again

- The separation of a child and parent in terms of responsibility for sins; while God would punish or bless descendants for their ancestors' sins the Israelites were not to

- The concept that one should not be too thorough in harvesting; the leftovers were to be left for the poor in the community

Deuteronomy 23

More laws again today, focusing on purity in various aspects of Israelite life. The thing most interesting to me here was the laws concerning heritage: you couldn't partake in services at the tabernacle if you were within ten generations of someone born out of wedlock, or three generations of an Egyptian or Edomite. It seems odd to my modern sensibility to be punished for something done by ones ancestors, and in particular for the nationality of those people - but the only restriction for them seems to be this religious service; it isn't a just cause for discrimination in other areas of life.

Deuteronomy 22

More laws today - covering purity in (and out) of marriage, as well as responsibility for the property of neighbors. The laws about sexual relations all seem to make sense to me, and seem quite appropriate given God's strict views on intimacy and physical relationships. What was more interesting I thought was the idea that if someone else's belongings - whether a living animal, or an item of clothing - is lost that the Israelites were not simply ignore it, or intervene if they felt like it; instead they were commanded to help.

There were also a couple of other miscellaneous rules, including a provision forbidding cross-dressing. I wonder how to take that today: pants, for example, have become standard clothing for both men and women - though once they were just a man's realm. My suspicion is that it changes over time, and that the idea here isn't that a certain specific article of clothing is forbidden from either gender but rather that one is not to make oneself look like the opposite sex. If that is correct, then it could be taken a step further to imply a taboo against gender-changing operations.

I do wonder, though, what constituted mens' vs womens' clothes in the time of the ancient Israelites...

Deuteronomy 21

Just some miscellaneous laws today, covering unsolved murders, taking wives from conquered people, and children. What stood out to me were mostly the things relating to marriage: the idea that multiple wives were still accepted, which just seems wrong to me, and even stranger that one could take a wife from among peoples you conquer in war. I'm sure that from the man's perspective that is cool, but it seems odd to me that a women could love a man who participated in destroying her people. I suppose that back then the woman's desire wasn't really taken into account much, since as we saw in the last chapter the people taken in war were to be slaves.

Deuteronomy 20

As soon as I read the title of this chapter I knew I would enjoy reading it. War and combat happen to be specialties of mine: I have studied them most of my life, and I very nearly joined the Navy when I was in college.

You could almost look at this chapter as 'rules of engagement' for the Israelites. They were to offer terms to any city outside of the promised land that they might go to war against, and if it accepted peace then the inhabitants would survive (as slaves). If they did not, and fought against the Israelites, then all adult males would be executed upon taking the city. If that was well known, I imagine cities might tend to surrender rather than resist.

If the city was in the promised land, though - the land God sent them to take - then no terms were offered and every living thing inside would be killed. This is known as total war, and while looked down upon today one cannot deny its effectiveness. Since it was God who commanded it here, it had to be done.

The other interesting thing in this section is the exceptions from service in the army. If one had newly built a home, planted a vineyard, or gotten engaged then they were not to participate in combat. Furthermore, those who were weak of heart were not allowed since their fear and doubt could spread to other troops. I think those instructions make a lot of sense, and I must assume that enough men were still left to fight - but that would matter little anyways, as God himself would fight for the Israelites. How cool is that!

Deuteronomy 19

The reading today reiterates the laws about murder and accidental killings, along with the cities of refuge. One thing that I know has been mentioned before, but which struck me as I read, is that a single witness was not enough to convict a wrongdoer - apparently of any crime. That must have made judging a bit easier, but at the same time the punishment for a false witness was harsh to prevent people from making up accusations: they would be dealt with as the person who was on trial. Imagine if false witnesses in murder trials today were put to death; I should think that would make others think twice before lying under oath, which appears to have been the goal of the law that God put in place here.

Deuteronomy 18

Nothing too special in the reading today - further emphasis that the Levites would not have a part in the inheritance of the Promised Land itself, but that other tribes are to provide for them, and more warnings against imitating the practices of those whom the Israelites would drive out of the land. The most noteworthy thing here is the promise that more prophets of the Lord would arise, like Moses, to speak to the people. This came with a warning to heed their words, and a test to ensure that they spoke what God wished: any predictions that truly came from God would come true, so if anything was said that did come to pass it would give away a false prophet.

Deuteronomy 17

This portion of scripture covers some additional regulations for worship and legal recourse, plus a mention of how a future king over the Israelites should act. I find that particularly interesting, because my understanding before tonight was that the idea of a king didn't come up until the Israelites started to beg for one a few hundred years later (after the time of the judges). Perhaps I am getting my ancient history mixed up, or maybe this was just a prediction of the demand for a ruler that the people would make in the distant future. Either way, I really like the limits placed on a king: no personal accumulation of massive wealth, wives, or armies.

Deuteronomy 16

Today's reading reiterates the three yearly festivals that the Israelites were to have, with the added stipulation that they be celebrated 'in the place where the Lord chooses to locate His name' (verses 2, 11, and 16). This concept was introduced by Moses earlier in Deuteronomy, and is somewhat interesting. It seems that God was going to select locations in the Promised Land where festivals and sacrifices were to be carried out; temples, effectively, though perhaps without the fancy buildings and such. I wonder if we will get an account later of where those ended up being; furthermore, I wonder if any are still in use today.

The last paragraph is also cool - it instructs the people to select judges in each town, and indicates that they are to carry out their duties without showing favor or taking bribes. I'm sure that is pretty obvious, given the commandments that have come before it, but it is neat to see God's provision for taking care of day-to-day legal administration.

Deuteronomy 15

This chapter focuses on the ideas of generosity. God commanded that the Israelites cancel any remaining debts to each other every seven years, and that slaves should be freed after six years (at the beginning of what would be the seventh). This seems pretty cool, because it would effectively prevent folks getting so deep in debt that they ruin their lives. The option for a slave who enjoys his position to stay permanent is also cool, though I don't think I could go through with the required ceremony: having your each pierced with an awl (not just a little piercing, but a very large one which could well leave a hole in the ear for good).