May the mumbling commence!
When Israel had made it into the Promised Land, they were not to think that they had arrived. Possessing the Promised Land did not make Israel children of the promise. They became children of the promise only when they lived in obedience to the commands of the Lord. And obedience meant a show of faith in the Lord their God because the Lord’s commands called Israel to be quite different than the other people of the land – quite different than they might choose to be on their own.
So, the Lord commanded them to do something in Deuteronomy 27 as soon as they crossed the Jordan River and first entered the Promised Land. At the beginning of the chapter, the Lord tells Israel to set up some large stones covered with plaster on Mount Ebal. They were to carve clearly into the plaster the words of the Law. They were also commanded to build an altar of river stones and to sacrifice fellowship offerings to the Lord.
Then the power of the spoken word, DABAR in Hebrew, came forth. Half of the tribes of Israel climbed Mount Gerizim to pronounce blessing while the other half pronounced curses from Mount Ebal. Obedient living in the Promised Land would bring forth the blessings while disobedience would bring forth the curses. And a clear writing of the commands on the plastered stones was not enough because the Levites also spoke of specific things that would bring the curses of God upon Israel.
These things are spoken about in the last half of chapter 27, actually a majority of the chapter. Cursed is the one who carves and image or casts an idol to set it up in secret to worship it. Cursed is the one who dishonors his parents. Cursed is the one who moves a neighbor’s boundary stone. Cursed is the one who leads a blind person astray on the road. Cursed is the one who denies justice for the vulnerable. Cursed is the one who sleeps with his father’s wife. Cursed is the one who sleeps with an animal. Cursed is the one who sleeps with his sister. Cursed is the one who sleeps with his mother-in-law. Cursed is the one who kills a neighbor secretly. Cursed is the one who accepts a bribe to kill an innocent person. Cursed is the one who does not uphold the Law by carrying it out.
Idols, we don’t have any today (fame, fortune, and consumerism). No one dishonors their parents (the teenage condition). We have an equal distribution of land and wealth in our country (yeah, right). We desire to protect the vulnerable (but not at our personal expense). We have a healthy practice of sexuality (adultery, rampant divorce, casual sex, and pornography). We have left murder and murderous thoughts behind us (quickly multiplying hate groups, multiple wars, mass shootings, domestic violence, and gang violence).
Yes, we are in a sorry state of affairs. We are carrying a curse. Through His Law and His love, God offers us another way. If we choose God’s more difficult path, we will receive blessings beyond our imaginings. Here is the list from Deuteronomy 28:3-6:
1. You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
2. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock – the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.
3. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.
4. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
The opposite is true if we choose any other path than the one that the Lord puts before us. Here is the list from verses 16-19:
1. You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country.
2. Your basket and your kneading trough will be cursed.
3. The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.
4. You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out.
Let’s choose wisely.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
No comments:
Post a Comment