 |
|
| |
|
OceanSide church of Christ
Read devotionals for April 2024
May 1, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:17 – There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel.
Thought: We live in a society that embraces all forms of sexual perversion. Many have accepted the LGBTQ agenda. Others are tolerant of its practices. Prostitution and homosexuality were not tolerated under the Law of Moses. Marriage between a husband and wife was the only acceptable relationship wherein sexual acts were to be practiced. They involved an intimate expression of love between the two individuals. Marriage was holy.
1 Corinthians 6:9
May 2, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:18 – Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore, or the price of a dog, into the house of the Lord thy God for any vow: for even both of these things are an abomination unto the Lord thy God.
Thought: Money was collected by the temple in various ways. One of the ways involved payment for a vow. If a person were a male or female prostitute, the money raised through these “professions” could not be used to pay the vow. The professions were not honorable. In fact, the professions were sinful in nature. God did not want polluted money to be involved in His house of worship. His house was to remain sanctified in every way.
Psalm 5:4-5
May 3, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:19 – Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother; usury of money, usury of victuals, usury of any things that is lent upon usury.
Thought: The word “usury” is defined as “interest.” When a Jew was dealing with his brother, he was not to charge interest on anything provided to him. Those who level interest on others can eventually bring them into bondage with high interest rates. The cost of paying back the loan is greater than the loan itself. It becomes a form of “legal theft.” Jews were brothers. They needed to look out for one another’s best interest. “Love one another.”
Nehemiah 5:1-7
May 4, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:20 – Unto stranger thou mayest lend upon usury; but unto thy brother thou shalt not lend usury: that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all that thou settest thine hand to do in the land whither thou goest to possess it.
Thought: The Jews shared a different relationship with one another than they did with those in the world. They were both children of God. They were both in a covenant relationship with God. They were both part of God’s family. This was not the case with those who were strangers. Their relationship enjoyed privileges that were not shared with others. One of these involved charging interest. They could charge the stranger, but not another Israelite.
Deuteronomy 15:2-3
May 5, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:21, 22 – When thou shalt vow a vow unto the Lord thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the Lord thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be a sin in thee. But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.
Thought: Vows were very important in the Old Testament. When a person made a vow to God, God took that vow very seriously. If a vow were made, God expected the individual to pay the vow. If it was not paid, the person was involved in a sin. Vows, however, were not required to be made. If a person did not make a vow, he would not be charged with a sin. A vow involves the character of the individual who makes it. Pay your vows!
Ecclesiastes 5:4-5
May 6, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:23 – That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the Lord thy God, which thou hast promised with my mouth.
Thought: A person’s willingness to fulfill his promises reveals a lot about his character. When a person makes a vow, he must be willing to fulfill his obligations. Truth demands it. Honesty demands it. Righteousness demands it. Men might be willing to overlook an unfulfilled vow, but God does not. God is always true to His word, and He expects men to follow suit. Remember, it is better not to promise than to promise and not fulfill the promise.
Numbers 30:2
May 7, 2024
Deuteronomy 23:24, 25 – When thou comest into thy neighbor’s vineyard, then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel. When thou comest into the standing corn of thy neighbor, then thou mayest pluck the ears of thine hand; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy neighbor’s standing corn.
Thought: If a Jew were walking by a vineyard or a field of corn and was hungry, he could eat a few grapes to satisfy his hunger. However, it was against the law to actually reap the harvest of the neighbor. The neighbor was required to show his love toward his fellow man, but he was not required to support the individual by his hard work. One said: “The old English proverb, Eat thy fill but pocket none, seems to have been founded on this law.”
Matthew 12:1
May 8, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:1 – When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favor in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.
Thought: This verse caused two schools of thought to develop around it within Judaism. One school taught that “some uncleanness” could involve small, insignificant problems that displeased a wife’s husband. This led to divorce for every cause. The other school of thought taught that “some uncleanness” referred to the sin of fornication. Under the New Testament, this controversy has been cleared up by Jesus. Fornication is the only cause for divorce.
Matthew 19:7-9
May 9, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:2 – And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man’s wife.
Thought: This is part of the legislation from yesterday. If a husband found “some uncleanness” in his wife, “then let him write a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.” If this happened to the wife, the Law of Moses allowed her to depart and become another man’s wife. This freedom is what causes some to believe that fornication was not the definition of “some uncleanness.” Would God reward an adulteress?
Matthew 5:31-32
May 10, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:3, 4 – And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and giveth it in her hand, and sendeth her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife; her former husband, which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before the Lord: and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
Thought: If a man had sent away his wife, and she married another after him, he was not free to remarry her if the second marriage came to an end. Moses reveals that this relationship would be an “abomination before the Lord.” God saw this as involving something that was defiled and unholy. He viewed it as causing the land to sin. He longed for the land of Israel to be holy. It was a precious inheritance that was not to be defiled.
Jeremiah 3:1
May 11, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:5 – When a man hath taken a new wife, he shall not go out to war, neither shall he be charged with any business: but he shall be free at home one year, and shall cheer up his wife which he hath taken.
Thought: God gave man the institution of marriage. Apparently, he understood the difficulty of the transition from being under the authority of parents to becoming a spouse. Therefore, He legislated that a man who had taken a new wife was not to go out to war or be charged with any business for a year. He was free to focus his attention and energy on becoming a good husband to his wife. She, too, needed this time to adjust to being a wife.
Ephesians 5:28-29
May 12, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:7 – If a man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh merchandise of him, or selleth him; then that thief shall die; and thou shalt put evil away from among you.
Thought: There are some individuals who will stoop to extremely evil measures in order to obtain a monetary reward. Some are willing to steal human beings and sell them to others in order to obtain cash money. God looked harshly upon such persons in the days of Judaism. The man was labeled a thief. The sentence of death was to be carried out upon these wicked individuals. It was an evil practice, and God wanted the evil destroyed.
Exodus 21:16
May 13, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:8 – Take heed in the plague of leprosy, that thou observe diligently, and do according to all the priests the Levites shall teach you: as I commanded them, so ye shall observe to do.
Thought: The plague of leprosy was extremely dangerous and deadly. It was also very painful and very contagious. It began with a change in the color of a person’s skin and hair on a spot on the body. It developed into boils from the top of the head to the bottom of one’s feet. The boils would burst. The skin would rot. The extremities of the body would die. A leper was a walking dead man. There was no cure. Thus, the command in this verse.
Leviticus 14:54-57
May 14, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:9 – Remember what the Lord thy God did unto Miriam by the way, after that ye were come forth out of Egypt.
Thought: Having mentioned leprosy in the previous verse, the Lord reminds them about Miriam, the sister of Moses. The Lord smote her with leprosy “by the way, after that ye were come forth out of Egypt.” She, along with her brother Aaron, questioned the authority of Moses. They believed that they, too, deserved to have positions of power among the people. Apparently, Miriam instigated this rebellion. Thus, God smote her with the leprosy.
Numbers 12:10-15
May 15, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:10, 11 – When thou dost lend thy brother any thing, thou shalt not go into his house to fetch his pledge. Thou shalt stand abroad, and the man to whom thou dost lend shall bring out the pledge abroad to thee.
Thought: When a Jew was asked to provide a loan to another Jew, often a pledge of some sort was required. The pledge was a promise to repay the money that had been loaned. It would have been tempting to the person who loaned the money to enter into the home of the borrower and take a pledge that was extremely valuable, meaningful, or indispensable. This could not be done. It was left to the borrower to provide the pledge to the one giving the loan.
Deuteronomy 15:8
May 16, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:12, 13 – And if a man be poor, thou shalt not sleep with his pledge: in any case thou shalt deliver him the pledge again when the sun goeth down, that he may sleep in his own raiment, and bless thee: and it shall be righteousness unto thee before the Lord thy God.
Thought: Poor individuals have very little to give as a pledge. What they do have to pledge is usually extremely important to their well-being. Thus, if a poor person offered a pledge, that pledge was to be returned to him “when the sun goeth down.” Notice that the loan has not been repaid. Two blessings would come upon the one who did this. First, the poor man would bless him. Second, “it shall be righteousness unto thee before the Lord thy God.”
Deuteronomy 6:25
May 17, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:14 – Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or the thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates.
Thought: For some reason, some who have hired servants mistreat them. They cease seeing them as human beings. They treat them as if they are their property. They speak unkind things to them. They make unrealistic demands of them. They constantly criticize their work. They fail to pay them their wages. In Israel, this type of treatment of hired servants was forbidden. Fellow Jews and strangers were not to be oppressed by their masters.
Proverbs 14:31
May 18, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:15 – At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the Lord, and it be sin unto thee.
Thought: Those who had hired servants were required to pay them on the appointed day. The sun was not supposed to go down before the account was settled. The Lord understood that this poor individual had his heart set upon his income. He needed it for his sustenance, and for his family. He needed it to take care of his debts. If he was not paid, he would cry against the man to the Lord. The Lord classified these actions of the master as sin.
Proverbs 22:16
May 19, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:16 – The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.
Thought: God is a just God. He holds each person responsible for his own actions. “…every man shall be put to death for his own sin.” Yes, others can try to influence another person to do evil, but that choice is up to the one who does the evil. Not even the devil himself can force a person to do something against his will. It is also true that some individuals rebel against godly instruction and discipline. This rebellion is not the fault of the instructor.
Ezekiel 18:20
May 20, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:17, 18 – Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the fatherless; nor take a widow’s raiment to pledge: but thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee thence: therefore I command thee to do this thing.
Thought: God reminds Israel that their past should impact how they live in the future. They were slaves in the land of Egypt. This fact should cause them to treat others with compassion and justice now that they had their liberty. Power, wealth, and freedom often cause some to oppress the downtrodden. The Jews, however, were not to allow these things to pervert judgment. They were once in the shoes of the stranger, fatherless, and widow.
Malachi 3:5
May 21, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:19 – When thou cutest down thine harvest in thy field, and has forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not go again to fetch it: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow: that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hands.
Thought: In the lives of some individuals, it is the little things that truly make a difference. A sheaf in the field could mean life or death for the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow. Thus, if it were left in the field after harvest, the Jew was commanded: “…thou shalt not go again to fetch it.” This meager amount of food would bless the downcast. In turn, God would bless the Jew who allowed it to remain in the field. In blessing others, we are blessed.
Psalm 41:1
May 22, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:20, 21 – When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not go over the boughs again: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. When thou gatherest the grapes of the vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
Thought: Every human being should have regard for other human beings, especially those who are struggling and hurting. God taught the children of Israel to remember all those who were poor and afflicted. Food was to be left for the stranger, the fatherless and the widow in the field, in the olive orchard, and in the vineyard. These acts of benevolence did not bring suffering to the charitable Jew. They did, however, bring relief to those who were suffering.
Leviticus 19:9-10
May 23, 2024
Deuteronomy 24:22 – And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt: therefore I command thee to do this thing.
Thought: God constantly reminds Israel that they were once “a bondman in the land of Egypt.” He doesn’t remind them of this in order to anger them, or cause them to seek reparations. He doesn’t remind them of this so they will seek revenge on their oppressors. He reminds them of this so they will be king to others. Those who have been oppressed should never oppress others. Their past oppression should cause them to be compassionate.
Deuteronomy 24:17-18
May 24, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:1 – If there be a controversy between men, and they come unto judgment, that the judges may judge them; then they shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked.
Thought: In a very concise manner, Moses reveals the true purpose of judges. “They shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked.” The opposite is just as true. They are not to justify the wicked and condemn the righteous. This is a complete perversion of justice. Dear readers, righteousness and wickedness exist in the world. It is possible to determine the difference between them. A wise, experienced judge can, and will, make the distinction.
Romans 13:3-4
May 25, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:2, 3 – And it shall be, if the wicked man be worthy to be beaten, that the judge shall cause him to lie down, and to be beaten before his face, according to his fault, by a certain number. Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed: lest, if he should exceed, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee.
Thought: There were certain crimes that carried the punishment of stripes. The maximum number of stripes that could be given was forty. In the Hebrew Bible, the number forty is often associated with humiliation, affliction, and punishment. The Hebrews were very careful not to go beyond this number. Lest they counted incorrectly, they would only give thirty-nine lashes. More than forty would be considered far to harsh by almost all in other nations.
2 Corinthians 11:24
May 26, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:4 – Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth the corn.
Thought: The ox was a work animal. He was often used to tread the wheat of the Israelites. As he made his rounds, the ox would get hungry and eat some of the grain. The Jew was not to muzzle the ox to keep him from eating. The point was being made that a laborer is worthy of his hire. Being able to eat the grain was the payment for the ox’s work. Later, Paul would take this concept and make it applicable to paying elders who oversee the local congregation.
1 Timothy 5:17-18
May 27, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:5, 6 – If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her huband’s brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of an husband unto her. And it shall be, that the firstborn which she beareth shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Israel.
Thought: Some refer to this text as the law of the Levirate marriage. Others call is the law of the kinsman-redeemer. This law enabled a man who died not having a son to have a way to continue his linage in Israel. His brother would marry his brother’s widow and their firstborn “shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Israel.” This law plays a major part of the book of Ruth and in the Messianic lineage.
Ruth 4:4-6
May 28, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:7 – And if the man like not to take his brother’s wife, then let his brother’s wife go up to the gate unto the elders, and say, My husbands’ brother refuseth to raise up unto his brother a name in Israel, he will not perform the duty of my husband’s brother.
Thought: If a man refused to fulfil. his obligation as a kinsman-redeemer, the widow had a way to address his refusal. She would take the matter to elders of the city who sat at the city gates. This would bring another party into the matter. It would put pressure on the man to fulfill his obligation to both his brother and his brother’s wife. It would stress the importance of this man insuring that his dead brother’s name would not be put out of Israel.
Genesis 38:8-10
May 29, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:8, 9 – Then the elders of this city shall call him, and speak unto him: and if she stand to it, and say, I like not to take her; then shall his brother’s wife come unto him in the presence of the elders, and loose his shoe from off his foot, and spit in his face, and shall answer and say, So shall it be done unto that man that will not build up his brother’s house.
Thought: Lineages, land, and inheritances were very important to the Jews. If they were marred, it was a shame and disgrace to a family. If a brother refused to bear a son for his dead brother who had no children, his sister-in-law had a legal recourse. She would shame the man before the elders of the city. Loosing the shoe lowered him to the position of a slave. Spitting in his face was “a mark of the utmost ignominy” (TSK Cross References, e-sword).
Ruth 4:6-8
May 30, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:10 – And his name shall be called in Israel, The house of him that hath his shoe loosed.
Thought: The deeds we commit sometime lead to titles that we must wear for the rest of our lives. If a man refused to give his deceased brother a child, he was called: “The house of him that hath his shoe loosed.” This was equivalent to the title, “A Miserable Fellow.” The man did not honor God’s law. The man did not have love for his brother. The man did not have a sense of loyalty to heritage. Truly, he was a disgusting individual who deserved this stamp.
Luke 6:16
May 31, 2024
Deuteronomy 25:11, 12 – When men strive together one with another, and the wife of the one draweth near for to deliver her husband out of the hand of him that smiteth him, and putteth forth her hand, and taketh him by the secrets: then thou shalt cut off her hand, thine eye shall not pity her.
Thought: This is a very unique law in Israel. The role distinctions between men and women were much deeper in those days than they are in the United States today. A woman who sought to protect her husband by violating the rules of decency was to be punished. She was not to touch another man’s secret parts. The punishment was severe. “…then thou shalt cut off her hand…” The Lord knew some would pity here. Thus, pity was not permitted.
Deuteronomy 19:13
Read devotionals for June 2024