Deuteronomy 15

Deuteronomy 15:1 “At the end of every seven years you must revoke[1] debts.

Deuteronomy 15:2 This is how to revoke debt: Every creditor is to revoke[2] what he has lent his neighbor. He is not to collect anything from his neighbor or brother because Yahveh’s release of debts has been proclaimed.

Deuteronomy 15:3 You may collect something from a foreigner, but you must revoke whatever your brother owes you.

Deuteronomy 15:4 “There will be no poor among you, however, because Yahveh is sure to empower you in the land Yahveh your God is giving you to take possession of as an inheritance –

Deuteronomy 15:5 if only you obey Yahveh your God and are be careful to follow every one of these commands I am commanding you today.

Deuteronomy 15:6 When Yahveh your God empowers you as he has promised you, you will lend to many nations but not borrow; you will have control over[3] many nations, but they will not have control over you.

Deuteronomy 15:7 “If there is a poor person among you, one of your brothers within any of your city gates in the land Yahveh your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother.

Deuteronomy 15:8 Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him enough for whatever need he has.

Deuteronomy 15:9 Be careful or else there will be this wicked thought in your heart, and this is what you say: ‘The seventh year, the year of revoking debts, is near,’ and you are stingy toward your poor brother and give him nothing. He will cry out to Yahveh against you, and you will be guilty of failure.[4]

Deuteronomy 15:10 Give to him, and don’t be stingy when you give. Because of this, Yahveh, your God, will empower you in all your work and in everything you do.

Deuteronomy 15:11 For there will never cease to be poor people in the land; that is why I am commanding you, and this is what I say: ‘Open your hand willingly to your poor and needy brother in your land.’

Deuteronomy 15:12 “If your fellow Hebrew, a man or woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, you must set him free in the seventh year.

Deuteronomy 15:13 When you set him free, do not send him away empty-handed.

Deuteronomy 15:14 Give generously to him from your flock, your threshing floor, and your wine press. You are to give him whatever Yahveh your God has empowered you with.

Deuteronomy 15:15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Yahveh, your God, redeemed you; that is why I am giving you this command today.

Deuteronomy 15:16 But if your slave says to you, ‘I don’t want to leave you,’ because he cares about you and your family, and is well off with you,

Deuteronomy 15:17 take an awl and pierce through his ear into the door, and he will become your slave permanently. Also, treat your female slave the same way.

Deuteronomy 15:18 Do not regard it as a hardship when you set him free because he worked for you six years—worth twice the wages of a hired worker. Then Yahveh, your God, will empower you in everything you do.

Deuteronomy 15:19 “Commit to Yahveh your God every firstborn male produced by your herd and flock. You are not to put the firstborn of your oxen to work or shear the firstborn of your flock.

Deuteronomy 15:20 Each year, you and your family are to eat it before Yahveh, your God, in the place Yahveh chooses.

Deuteronomy 15:21 But if there is a defect in the animal, if it is lame or blind or has any serious defect, you may not sacrifice it to Yahveh, your God.

Deuteronomy 15:22 Eat it within your city gates; both the contaminated person and the pure may eat it, as though it were a gazelle or deer.

Deuteronomy 15:23 But you must not eat its blood; pour it on the land like water.

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[1]שְׁמִטָּה

[2]שׁמט

[3]מָשַׁל

[4]חֵטְא  = failure. Deuteronomy 15:9; 19:15; 21:22; 22:26; 23:21, 22; 24:15, 16.

Deuteronomy 15 quotes:

“Tlie morning and evening lamb, as we know, pointed ever to “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world;” the Sabbalh was the lovely type of the rest that remainelh to the people of God ; the new moon beautifully prefigured the time when restored Israel shall reflect back the beams of the Sun of Righteousness upon the nations ; the passover was the standing memorial of the nation’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage ; the year of tithing set forth the fact of Jehovali’s proprietorship of the land, as also the lovely way in which His rents were to be expended in meeting the need of His workmen and of His poor ; the sabbatic jear gave promise of a bright time when all debts would be canceled, all loans disposed of, all burdens removed ; and finally, the jubilee was the magnificent type of the times of the restitution of all things, when the captive shall be set free, when the exile shall return to his long-lost home and inheritance, and when the land of Israel and the whole earth shall rejoice beneath the beneficent government of the Son ol David.”

Mackintosh Charles Henry. Notes on the Book of Deuteronomy. Loizeaux Bros 1880. p. 205.

“Having had the free service of a slave for six years, there would be those who, for reasons of dependence or greed, would find it very difficult to release the slave. They were to free the slave willingly, however, for his six years of service were equivalent to17 the wages of a hired man—that is, the slave had worked for no pay, and the wages that would have been paid to an employee for the same labor were to be considered as full repayment for the debt that had caused the slavery in the first instance.”

Craigie, Peter C.. The Book of Deuteronomy (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament) (p. 239). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition.

Deuteronomy 15 links:

don’t dread the seventh
hard hearts and tight fists
in retrospect- remembering
in retrospect- seeking freedom
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Wednesday, June 5, 2019
reflecting the first blesser
set apart as a symbol
seven year debt cycle
when they want to stay

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The DEUTERONOMY shelf in Jeff’s library.

Deuteronomy 14

Deuteronomy 14:1 “You are sons of Yahveh your God; do not cut yourselves or place a bald spot on your head on behalf of the dead,

Deuteronomy 14:2 because you are a sacred people to Yahveh your God. Yahveh has chosen you to be his possession out of all the peoples on the face of the land.

Deuteronomy 14:3 “You must not eat any repulsive thing.

Deuteronomy 14:4 These are the animals you may eat: oxen, sheep, goats,

Deuteronomy 14:5 deer, gazelles, roe deer, wild goats, ibexes, antelopes, and mountain sheep.

Deuteronomy 14:6 You may eat any animal that has hooves divided in two and chews the cud.

Deuteronomy 14:7 Among the ones that chew the cud or have divided hooves, you are certainly not to eat these: camels, hares, and hyraxes, though they chew the cud, they do not have hooves– they are contaminated for you;

Deuteronomy 14:8 and pigs, though they have hooves, they do not chew the cud — they are contaminated for you. Do not eat their meat or touch their carcasses.

Deuteronomy 14:9 “You may eat everything from the water that has fins and scales,

Deuteronomy 14:10 but you may not eat anything that does not have fins and scales – it is contaminated for you.

Deuteronomy 14:11 “You may eat every pure bird,

Deuteronomy 14:12 but these are the ones you may not eat: eagles, bearded vultures, black vultures,

Deuteronomy 14:13 the kites, any kind of falcon,

Deuteronomy 14:14 every kind of raven,

Deuteronomy 14:15 ostriches, short-eared owls, gulls, any hawk,

Deuteronomy 14:16 little owls, long-eared owls, barn owls,

Deuteronomy 14:17 eagle owls, ospreys, cormorants,

Deuteronomy 14:18 storks, any heron, hoopoes, and bats.

Deuteronomy 14:19 All winged insects are contaminated for you; they may not be eaten.

Deuteronomy 14:20 But you may eat every pure flying creature.

Deuteronomy 14:21 “You are not to eat any carcass; you may give it to a guest within your city gates, and he may eat it, or you may sell it to a foreigner, for you are a sacred people to Yahveh, your God. Do not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Deuteronomy 14:22 “Each year you are to set aside a tenth of all the produce grown in your fields.

Deuteronomy 14:23 You are to eat a tenth of your grain, new wine, and fresh oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, in the presence of Yahveh your God at the place where he chooses to have his name dwell so that you will always learn to fear Yahveh your God.

Deuteronomy 14:24 But if the distance is too great for you to carry it since the place where Yahveh your God chooses to place his name is too far away from you and since Yahveh your God has empowered you,

Deuteronomy 14:25 then exchange it for silver, take the silver in your hand, and go to the place Yahveh your God chooses.

Deuteronomy 14:26 You may spend the silver on anything you want: cattle, sheep, goats, wine, beer, or anything your throat desires. You are to feast there in the presence of Yahveh, your God, and enjoy it with your family.

Deuteronomy 14:27 Do not neglect the Levite within your city gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you.

Deuteronomy 14:28 “At the end of every three years, bring a tenth of all your produce for that year and store it within your city gates.

Deuteronomy 14:29 Then the Levite, who has no portion or inheritance among you, the guest, the fatherless, and the widow within your city gates, may come, eat, and be satisfied. And Yahveh, your God, will empower you in all the work of your hands that you do.

Deuteronomy 14 quotes:

“The opening clause of this chapter sets before us the basis of all the privileges and responsibilities of the Isiacl <if God. It is a familiar thought amongst us that we must be in a relationship before we can know the alfections or discharge the duties which belong to it. This is a plain and undeniable truth. If a man were not a father, no amount of argument or explanation could make him understand the feelings or affections of a father’s heart ; but the very moment he enters upon the relationship, he knows all about them.”

Mackintosh Charles Henry. Notes on the Book of Deuteronomy. Loizeaux Bros 1880. p. 175.

“Dead creatures. Eating the meat of an animal that has died a natural death is prohibited. While it is possible that the meat was prohibited because of the likelihood of contamination, which would occur quickly in a hot climate, it is more likely prohibited because the animal had not been killed in the proper fashion and the blood drained out (see 12:16). For this reason, the animal could be eaten by a resident alien or sold to a foreigner, neither of which would have been possible if the meat was already bad. The Israelites were not to eat such meat, which would be ritually unclean, because they were a holy people to the Lord.”

Craigie, Peter C.. The Book of Deuteronomy (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament) (p. 232). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition.

Deuteronomy 14 links:

a tithe for others
a unique people
carcasses and goat milk
in retrospect- a Father’s right
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, June 7, 2021
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Wednesday, June 7, 2023
the terrible tithe
uniquely his

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The DEUTERONOMY shelf in Jeff’s library.

Deuteronomy 13

Deuteronomy 13:1 “If a prophet or someone who has dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you,

Deuteronomy 13:2 and that sign or wonder he has promised you comes about, but he speaks to you, and this is what he says: ‘Let us follow other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us worship them,’

Deuteronomy 13:3 do not listen to that prophet’s words or to that dreamer. You see, Yahveh, your God, is testing you to know whether you care about Yahveh, your God, with all your heart and all your throat.

Deuteronomy 13:4 You must follow Yahveh, your God, and fear him. You must watch his commands and listen to him; you must worship him and remain faithful to him.

Deuteronomy 13:5 That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he has urged rebellion against Yahveh your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the place of slavery, to turn you from the way Yahveh your God has commanded you to walk. You must purge the evil from you.

Deuteronomy 13:6 “If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you embrace, or your friend like your throat secretly entices you, and this is what he says: ‘Let us go and worship other gods’ – which neither you nor your fathers have known,

Deuteronomy 13:7 any of the gods of the peoples around you, near you or far from you, from one end of the land to the other –

Deuteronomy 13:8 do not yield to him or listen to him. Show him no pity, and do not spare him or shield him.

Deuteronomy 13:9 Instead, you must kill him. Your hand is to be the first against him to put him to death, and then the hands of all the people.

Deuteronomy 13:10 Stone him to death for trying to turn you away from Yahveh, your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.

Deuteronomy 13:11 All Israel will hear and be afraid, and they will not do anything evil like this among you again.

Deuteronomy 13:12 “If you hear it said about one of your cities Yahveh your God is giving you to stay in, and this is what they say:

Deuteronomy 13:13 that wicked men have sprung up among you and led the inhabitants of their city astray, and this is what they said: ‘Let us go and worship other gods,’ which you have not known,

Deuteronomy 13:14 you are to inquire, investigate, and interrogate thoroughly. Notice if the report turns out to be true that this repulsive act has been done among you,

Deuteronomy 13:15 you must strike down the inhabitants of that city with the sword. Destroy everyone in it as well as its livestock with the sword.

Deuteronomy 13:16 You are to gather all its spoil in the middle of the city square and completely burn the city and all its spoil for Yahveh your God. The town is to remain a mound of ruins permanently; it is not to be rebuilt.

Deuteronomy 13:17 Nothing set apart for destruction is to remain in your hand so that Yahveh will turn from his burning anger and grant you mercy, show you compassion, and multiply you as he swore to your fathers.

Deuteronomy 13:18 This will occur if you obey Yahveh, your God, following all his commands I am giving you today and doing what is right in the sight of Yahveh, your God.

Deuteronomy 13 quotes:

“Here we have divine provision made for all eases of false teaching and false religious influence. “We all know how easily the poor human heart is led astray b}^ any thing in the shape of a sign or a wonder, and especially- when such things stand connected with religion. This is not confined to the nation of Israel ; we see it every where and at all times. An}- thing supernatural, any thing involving &S infringement of what are called the ordinary laws of nature, is almost sure to act powerfully on the human mind. A prophet rising up in the midst of the people and confirming his teaching by miracles, signs, and wonders, would be almost sure to get a healing and obtain an influence.

In this way, Satan has worked in all ages, and he will work yet more powerfully, at the end of this present age, in order to deceive and lead to their everlasting destruction those who will not hearken to the precious truth of the gospel. “The mastery of iniquity,” which has been working in the professing church for eighteen centuries, will be headed up in the person of ‘that Wicked wliom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming ; even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan, with a\l power a.nd signs and lying v:o7iders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish ; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.”

Mackintosh Charles Henry. Notes on the Book of Deuteronomy. Loizeaux Bros 1880. pp. 139-140.

“The Israelites were forbidden outright to listen to the words of that prophet or to that dreamer of dreams (v. 4); whatever claims to validity he might appear to have on the basis of his performance of a sign or a wonder, they were not to listen to him (i.e., “obey” him). Because the Lord your God is testing you (v. 4)—the words emphasize God’s sovereignty and permission.4 The temptation would test the true disposition of the hearts of the Israelites, and while the temptation was genuinely dangerous, the overcoming of that temptation would strengthen the people in their love of God and obedience to his commandments. The sovereignty of God is also seen in another manner: the performance of a sign or wonder did not mean that the gods advocated by a false prophet or dreamer had any real power, but only that the true God would permit certain things to happen in order to test and thereby strengthen his people. Moses then stresses once again God’s basic requirements of his people: with v. 5, compare 10:12–13 and commentary.”

Craigie, Peter C.. The Book of Deuteronomy (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament) (p. 223). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition.

“The temptation to worship other gods need not be culturally driven from the ‘outside’. Chapter 13 warns us that the most sinister enemy can lie ‘within’, beginning with Israel’s religious leadership (in this case the prophet), family members and close friends, and finally a whole town. Each must be resisted and shown no pity, the penalty being death itself. This only served to reveal the radical seriousness of the sin of idolatry as a total breach of covenant loyalty and love towards the Lord, who alone had saved Israel from the slavery of Egypt.”

Woods, Edward J.. Deuteronomy: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries Book 5) . InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.

Deuteronomy 13 links:

ACST 45- The Tempters
do not yield, do not shield
FOLLOW LOYALLY
in retrospect- denouncing pragmatism
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, March 11, 2024
mutual defection
set apart for destruction
The infection of defection
the penalty of permanent destruction

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The DEUTERONOMY shelf in Jeff’s library.

Deuteronomy 12

Deuteronomy 12:1 “Be careful to watch these prescriptions and rules in the land that Yahveh, the God of your fathers, has given you to take possession of all the days you live on the land.

Deuteronomy 12:2 Destroy completely all the places where the nations that you are taking possession of worship their gods — on the high mountains, on the hills, and under every green tree.

Deuteronomy 12:3 Tear down their altars, smash their standing stones, burn their Asherah poles, cut down the carved images of their gods, and destroy their names from every place.

Deuteronomy 12:4 Don’t worship Yahveh your God this way.

Deuteronomy 12:5 Instead, turn to the place Yahveh your God chooses from all your tribes to place his name for his dwelling and go there.

Deuteronomy 12:6 You are to bring there your ascending offerings[1] and sacrifices, your tenths, and personal contributions, your solemn pledge[2] offerings and spontaneous voluntary[3] offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.

Deuteronomy 12:7 You will eat there in the presence of Yahveh your God and enjoy[4] everything you do with your household because Yahveh, your God, has empowered you.

Deuteronomy 12:8 “You are not to do as we are doing here today; everyone is doing whatever seems right in his own sight.

Deuteronomy 12:9 You see, you have not yet come into the resting place and the inheritance Yahveh your God is giving you.

Deuteronomy 12:10 When you cross the Jordan and live in the land Yahveh your God is giving you to inherit, and he gives you rest from all the enemies around you, and you live in security,

Deuteronomy 12:11 then Yahveh, your God will choose the place to have his name dwell. Bring there everything I command you: your ascending offerings, sacrifices, offerings of the tenth, personal contributions, and all your best offerings you solemnly pledge to Yahveh.

Deuteronomy 12:12 You will enjoy the face of Yahveh, your God – you, your sons and daughters, your male and female slaves, and the Levite who is within your city gates since he has no portion or inheritance among you.

Deuteronomy 12:13 Be careful or else you will offer your ascending offerings in all the sacred places you see.

Deuteronomy 12:14 You must offer your ascending offerings only in the place Yahveh chooses in one of your tribes, and there you must do everything I command you.

Deuteronomy 12:15 “But whenever you want, you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your city gates, according to the empowerment Yahveh your God has given you. Those who are contaminated[5] or pure[6] may eat it, as they would a gazelle or deer,

Deuteronomy 12:16 but you must not eat the blood; pour it on the land like water.

Deuteronomy 12:17 Within your city gates you may not eat the tenth of your grain, new wine, or fresh oil; the firstborn of your herd or flock; any of your solemn pledge offerings that you pledge; your spontaneous voluntary offerings; or your personal contributions.

Deuteronomy 12:18 You are to eat them in the presence of Yahveh your God at the place Yahveh your God chooses – you, your son and daughter, your male and female slave, and the Levite who is within your city gates. Enjoy the face of Yahveh your God in everything you do,

Deuteronomy 12:19 and be careful or else you will neglect the Levite, as long as you live in your land.

Deuteronomy 12:20 “When Yahveh your God enlarges your territory as he has promised you, and you say, ‘I want to eat meat’ because you have a strong desire to eat meat, you may eat it whenever you want.

Deuteronomy 12:21 If the place where Yahveh your God chooses to place his name is too far from you, you may slaughter any of your herd or flock he has given you, as I have commanded you, and you may eat it within your city gates whenever you want.

Deuteronomy 12:22 You may certainly[7] eat it as the gazelle and deer are eaten; both the pure and the contaminated may eat it.

Deuteronomy 12:23 Only be strong enough not to eat the blood, since the blood is the personal existence, and you must not eat the life with the meat.

Deuteronomy 12:24 Do not eat blood; pour it on the land like water.

Deuteronomy 12:25 Do not eat it, so that you and your children after you will prosper, because you will be doing what is right in Yahveh’s sight.

Deuteronomy 12:26 “But you are to take the holy offerings you have and your solemn pledge offerings and go to the place Yahveh chooses.

Deuteronomy 12:27 Present the meat and blood of your ascending offerings on the altar of Yahveh your God. The blood of your other sacrifices is to be poured out beside the altar of Yahveh your God, but you may eat the meat.

Deuteronomy 12:28 Be careful to obey all these things I command you, so that you and your children after you may permanently prosper, because you will be doing what is good and right in the sight of Yahveh your God.

Deuteronomy 12:29 “When Yahveh your God eliminates the nations before you, which you are entering to take possession of, and you take possession from them and stay in their land,

Deuteronomy 12:30 be careful or else you will be ensnared by their ways after they have been exterminated before you. Do not inquire about their gods, asking, ‘How did these nations worship their gods? I’ll also do the same.’

Deuteronomy 12:31 You must not do the same to Yahveh your God, because they practice every repulsive act, which Yahveh hates, for their gods. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

Deuteronomy 12:32 Be careful to do everything I command you; do not add anything to it or take anything away from it.

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[1] עֹלָה= ascending offering. Deuteronomy 12:6, 11, 13, 14, 27; 27:6.

[2]נֶדֶר = slemn pledge. Deuteronomy 12:6, 11, 17, 26; 23:18, 21.

[3]נְדָבָה = spontaneous voluntary offering. Deuteronomy 12:6, 17; 16:10; 23:23.

[4]שָׂמַח = enjoy. Deuteronomy 12:7, 12, 18; 14:26; 16:11, 14; 24:5; 26:11; 27:7; 33:18.

[5]טָמֵא = (ritually) contaminated. Deuteronomy 12:15, 22; 14:7, 8, 10, 19; 15:22; 26:14.

[6]טָהוֹר = (ritually) pure. Deuteronomy 12:15, 22; 14:11, 20; 15:22; 23:10.

[7]אַךְ = certainly. Deuteronomy 12:22; 14:7; 16:15; 28:29.

Deuteronomy 12 quotes:

“He felt, to speak after the manner of men, it was of no use entering upon practical details until the grand foundation-principle of all morality was fully established in the very deepest depths of the soul. The principle is this (let us Christians apply our hearts to it) : It is man’s bounden duty to bow implicitly to the authority of the Word of God. It matters not, in the smallest degree, what that Word may enjoin, or whether we can see the reason of this, that, or the other institution. The one grand, all-important, and conclusive point is this : Has God spoken ? If He has, that is quite enough. There is no room, no need, for any further Question.”

Mackintosh Charles Henry. Notes on the Book of Deuteronomy. Loizeaux Bros 1880. p. 122.

“The years preceding, and those which would follow immediately upon the events in Moab, were not to be typical of the Israelites’ religious life in the future. Since the Exodus from Egypt, the people had no permanent resting place, and their itinerant life style meant that of necessity their forms of worship had to be adapted to the immediate situation. The stress given to this point is important, for memory played a significant role in the faith of Israel. When in the future the people remembered the wilderness years and God’s presence and aid, they should also remember that the desert did not provide the paradigm for the settled life in the promised land”

Craigie, Peter C.. The Book of Deuteronomy (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament) (p. 218). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition.

Deuteronomy 12 links:

ACST 45- The Tempters
deceiving evidence
enjoy, but be considerate
enjoying a good steak
foreshadowing the death of Christ
his one way
his promised rest
in retrospect- my way or God’s way
places we revere
what God has to hate
what worship should be

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The DEUTERONOMY shelf in Jeff’s library.