Deuteronomy 21
Today’s Passage: Deuteronomy 21
The various laws presented in Deuteronomy 21 reflect God’s heart for justice as He prepares His people for how they will live in the Promised Land.
God is not setting the Israelites up to be comfortable with sinning, but He knows that we will sin. God is graciously providing His people with guidelines to atone for and turn from sin.
Atonement for Unsolved Murders
When it comes to the atonement for unsolved murders, God is reiterating that all sin must be atoned for. The sin of murder leads to the death of a person, but that sin does not go unseen just because the murderer is unknown. All sin must be paid for.
Marrying Female Captives
This law is a foreign concept to our culture, but as Israel conquered the land they would take captives. There was a great opportunity for the abuse of these women, so God creates a system to humble these women, give them space to mourn, and ultimately protect the women from men rushing into these marriages because of beauty alone.
Inheritance Rights of the Firstborn
Throughout the genealogy of Israel, we have seen the sin of favoritism cause division and sin amongst the family again and again. Jacob, Israel, the namesake of this nation was known for favoring one wife over the other and this had led to strife amongst his entire family. God is not condoning polygamy, but He does know that broken relationships will still exist in the Promised Land. God gives these laws in order to protect the inheritance of His people.
A Rebellious Son
This passage is not referencing a moment of disobedience, but a lifelong pattern of rebellion. This sort of disobedience reflects a heart of disobedience to any authority, and a heart of disobedience to earthly authority reflects a heart of disobedience to heavenly authority.
A Man on a Tree is Cursed
To be exposed and put to death in this way was humiliating, shame inducing, and horrifying. This form of death was meant only for those who were found to be cursed. One thing I see in the laws we have read today is that God knew that the Israelites would not be perfect once they entered the Promised Land.
God knew that they, that we, need a better solution. We need a permanent solution to the sin and brokenness in our lives. We are cursed, wicked, because of our sin and we deserve a cursed, wicked death for our sin. But God the Son came on our behalf to take on the cursed death that we deserve.
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’” Galatians 3:13
Written By: Paulette Black
The various laws presented in Deuteronomy 21 reflect God’s heart for justice as He prepares His people for how they will live in the Promised Land.
God is not setting the Israelites up to be comfortable with sinning, but He knows that we will sin. God is graciously providing His people with guidelines to atone for and turn from sin.
Atonement for Unsolved Murders
When it comes to the atonement for unsolved murders, God is reiterating that all sin must be atoned for. The sin of murder leads to the death of a person, but that sin does not go unseen just because the murderer is unknown. All sin must be paid for.
Marrying Female Captives
This law is a foreign concept to our culture, but as Israel conquered the land they would take captives. There was a great opportunity for the abuse of these women, so God creates a system to humble these women, give them space to mourn, and ultimately protect the women from men rushing into these marriages because of beauty alone.
Inheritance Rights of the Firstborn
Throughout the genealogy of Israel, we have seen the sin of favoritism cause division and sin amongst the family again and again. Jacob, Israel, the namesake of this nation was known for favoring one wife over the other and this had led to strife amongst his entire family. God is not condoning polygamy, but He does know that broken relationships will still exist in the Promised Land. God gives these laws in order to protect the inheritance of His people.
A Rebellious Son
This passage is not referencing a moment of disobedience, but a lifelong pattern of rebellion. This sort of disobedience reflects a heart of disobedience to any authority, and a heart of disobedience to earthly authority reflects a heart of disobedience to heavenly authority.
A Man on a Tree is Cursed
To be exposed and put to death in this way was humiliating, shame inducing, and horrifying. This form of death was meant only for those who were found to be cursed. One thing I see in the laws we have read today is that God knew that the Israelites would not be perfect once they entered the Promised Land.
God knew that they, that we, need a better solution. We need a permanent solution to the sin and brokenness in our lives. We are cursed, wicked, because of our sin and we deserve a cursed, wicked death for our sin. But God the Son came on our behalf to take on the cursed death that we deserve.
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’” Galatians 3:13
Written By: Paulette Black
1 Comment
Thanks Paulette! I agree. God cares about the mess of our real-life issues, and He graciously provides solutions for order amongst the chaos.