Daily Bible Reading for March 18, 2020

Today my Bible reading plan covered Deuteronomy 21-23 chapters. In all three chapters, Moses is giving the Israelites laws for various situations. In just reading these chapters, I can see how God is a God of specificity and wisdom. He gives laws and instructions to teach his way of holiness, fairness, and justice.

In Chapter 21, one of the circumstances for which God provides instructions was if they come upon a case where they find a dead body but do not know who killed the person. They are to have the elders kill a heifer, and wash their hands over it confessing that they did not shed the blood of the dead, asking not to be held accountable for it.

This is a perfect symbol of Christ serving to propitiate the wrath of God for his church with his life, and death on the cross to pay for our sins.

“Accept atonement, O LORD, for your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, and do not set the guilt of innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel, so that their blood guilt be atoned for.” Deuteronomy 21:8

In Chapter 22, God provides laws for various circumstances involving finding the lost  property of another, preventing accidental death on one’s property, and laws concerning sexual immorality including rape.

A common theme throughout this book in how they are to treat sin is found again in verse 24b:

“So you shall purge the evil from your midst.”

In Chapter 23, God’s holiness and what is accepted is shown in the laws he provides in the many circumstances the Israelites may find themselves in once they enter the Promised Land.

Two verses capture it:

“When you are encamped against your enemies, then you shall keep yourself from every evil thing. — Because the LORD you God walks in the midst of your camp.” Deuteronomy 23:9, 14

God is a God of purpose. He is holy and no sin can go unpunished. Romans 6:23 states: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Even then, through that heifer, he was pointing to Christ, the final atonement for our sin, our Redeemer. God was demonstrating his character through the laws he provided as guardrails.

Let’s read the Book!