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This is a map of the state of Israel.
This is a map of the boundaries for the Promised Land in the reading today. There is some correspondence. But the modern day one seems more North-South pointy than the biblical one. "North-South pointy" is a technical term I just made up. The pictures on the right is from this website. The picture on the left is from this website. It is interesting to me to see what God promised them in the Bible compared to what the Israeli state possesses now. I know that the land that is now within the state of Israel was essentially taken from the Arabs living there in 1948, and I also know that since then, there has been nothing but conflict for those in Israel. It is still interesting to me to see these two maps.
There is mention of an "avenger of blood" in chapter 35. It seems that whenever a murder happened, there would be a person called the avenger of blood who would hunt down the guilty person. I do not know if this was a privately hired hit by the family of the deceased or a government issued thing. It is certainly the first time I have ever read about it, so I have a feeling this was a cultural development rather than a position ordained by God. The only way to escape the revenge of the avenger, was to seek out a city of refuge, which were predesignated towns within the territory of Israel. When the pursued got there, he was given a trial by assembly. The assembly was to hear the testimony of witnesses and decide the fate of the accused. If there was only one testimony, he was not killed, but if they were convinced by more than one testimony, then he was executed. It seems that God used this process and in a way commandeered the avenger of blood as a sort of precursor to the judge in Judges. In Numbers 35:1 it says, "The LORD said to Moses..." and then in verse 21, it says, "The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when he meets him." So, it seems that God condoned the practice.
Then I learned that it women and girls possibly owned land, because of Zelophod's daughters' case before Moses, and approved by God. In Numbers 36:8, it says, "Every daughter who inherits land in any Israelite tribe must marry someone in her father's tribal clan, so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of his fathers." So, they could own land. Cool. Hooray for the development of women's rights!
Today began the reading of Deuteronomy, which is quite literally the famous last words of Moses to his people, where he summarizes their theological journey and law. I know that I have mentioned the theme of fear many times before. The fear of the LORD, the terror of God have been themes that have repeated themselves over and over. God's power is such that when we come face to face with it, dread sets in.
Deuteronomy is the first book so far that has many phrases like, "Do not be afraid..." "Do not be afraid of any man, for judgment belongs to God" (Deut. 1:17). "See, the LORD your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged" (Deut. 1:21). "Then I said to you, 'Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The LORD you gGod, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did fo ryou in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the desert" (Deut. 1:29-30). So many times before, God told them to fear him. Now, though, God shows them that, when any nation is faced with the sheer power and presence of God, any nation will be brought to its knees. God is to be feared and terrified, yes, but when he is fighting and watching out for you, who else should they fear and love? The very one who terrifies us, loves us. If he is for us, who or what could be against us?
This reminds me of Romans 8:38-39, when Paul writes, "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Amen to that.
1702 pages to go!
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