August 30, 2017
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Reading along with us in Deuteronomy? Here’s today’s reading:
Deuteronomy 7 (ESV)
“When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and mightier than you, 2 and when the Lord your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. 3 You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, 4 for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. 5 But thus shall you deal with them: you shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and chop down their Asherim and burn their carved images with fire… Continue Reading
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“You shall not be in dread of them, for the LORD your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God.”
9Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, 10and repays to their face those who hate him, by destroying them.
What incredible, INCREDIBLE promises God makes to His people here, should they worship Him alone, and obey all that He has commanded them so they will continue to be set apart to Him. (I see why, in the New Testament, people would judge someone who was sick or disabled in some way as being disobedient to God!)
And here we see God’s abhorrence of the worship of any other “gods,” including wealth: “The carved images of their gods you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the LORD your God.” Deuteronomy 7:25
“Lest you be ensnared by it.” Now there’s a fair warning.
And what really stands out to me here is God is reminding Israel that HE has chosen THEM. Nothing they’ve done or said has earned them this remarkable relationship with the One True God. Nothing. Nada. But to keep this relationship and enjoy all the blessings He has promised, here are the terms.
A huge warning for the unmarried: “You shall not intermarry with [those who worship other gods], giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly.” (Deuteronomy 7:3)
Question: What is God talking about in Deuteronomy 7:26? “And you shall not bring an abominable thing into your house and become devoted to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest and abhor it, for it is devoted to destruction.”
The carved images ( idols ) that were covered in silver. God is warning to destroy all of them but not to keep the silver that covered them. ❤️
Thank you, Melanie!! 😊❤️
7 people groups more numerous and mighty than you
So many lessons in this chapter. Oh that the Israelites obeyed God when He warns them against intermarrying because the very thing He warns them against and predicts will happen happens time and time again in their history. God certainly knows what He is doing when He commands us and warns us and is always looking for our ultimate best. We must be careful of a world that seeks to draw us away.
And how wonderful to know that we, like the Israelites, are not chosen because of who we are but because of who God is. How different that is from a worldly standard based on talent, intelligence, beauty, etc.
And what benefits that will come if the Israelites obey. God does bless us with earthly things at times and there is a place to enjoy them under the praise and recognition of Who has provided them. We just make pleasing God our end and then leave the way He will bless and provide up to Him.
And isn’t it neat that God reminds them of His past faithfulness when it came to overcoming Egypt as a reference point for them trusting Him to help them defeat the Canaanites? He does the same for us in many ways and often asks us to believe and trust Him for things that He has already showed a willingness and a capacity to provide, either in our lives or the lives of others. Thereby we can walk into His will with confidence knowing He will provide for those things He leads us into.
And yes, do not covet the things the world has..and the detestable things in verse 26 are the same detestable things mentioned in v25.