Deuteronomy 21-22, John 20
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. – John 20:30-31 ESV
Much of what we find written in the Scriptures is difficult to understand. When we isolate particular passages and remove them from the more global context of the entire written Word of God, we run into problems. Some of the commands found in chapters 21 and 22 of Deuteronomy can appear to be arbitrary and even unfair. But we must constantly go back to the giving of the Ten Commandments and see these more specific laws simply as practical, everyday applications of God's original commands. It is essential that we read Scripture as the revelation of God, rather than as a guide book for life. Too often, we want to view the Bible as a self-help manual that provides tips and techniques for living life in this world. We see it as some kind of spiritual encyclopedia containing isolated and somewhat disconnected advice for life. For many of us, our study of Scripture becomes little more than looking up key words in the concordance found in the back of our Bible. If you are struggling with peace, you look up the word “peace” and see what God says. If you are wrestling with faith, you seek out those passages that will give you insight into faith. While this technique is not necessarily wrong, it is not how the Bible was intended to be used. It can lead to dangerous misinterpretations of Scripture by taking verses out of their context. It can also lead to some seriously wrong conclusions. For instance, let's say you are looking for biblical insight into how to handle a rebellious child. A word search in the concordance may lead you to Deuteronomy 21:18-21: “If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they discipline him, will not listen to them, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, and they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’ Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel shall hear, and fear.” Correct application of the Scriptures requires careful study of the Scriptures – in their entirety. It is essential that we understand the context surrounding various passages. We must familiarize ourselves with the circumstances and the audience. We must always study Scripture with a view toward knowing more about God, not just gaining insight for living life.
What does this passage reveal about God?
The various commands found in chapters 21 and 22 of Deuteronomy were extensions of God's original ten commands. They were intended to be practical, everyday applications of those laws that further illustrated God's desire for His people to live set-apart, holy lives. God even gave them laws to regulate behavior when the people lived outside of His preferred will. God knew that His people would fail to live up to His holy standard. He knew that they would be driven by their sinful passions and constantly tempted to live according to their base desires, so He provided them with rules to regulate their behavior in those cases. God never intended for a man to have more than one wife, but He knew it was going to happen, so He gave rules to handle this inevitable situation (Deuteronomy 21:15-17). God took the separation of His people seriously and so He gave practical, everyday examples of separation to drive him His point. He wouldn't allow His people to plant two kinds of seeds in the same vineyard. They were not allowed to mix wool and linen in the same garment. He restricted them from plowing a field using an ox and donkey in the same yoke. While there are certainly practical reasons for these restrictions, we will miss the point if we don't view them in light of God's overarching desire that His people live their lives “unmixed” with the world. These laws applied to them alone. God was not requiring them of the other nations. They were intended to set His people apart from the rest of mankind. These rules and regulations would have seemed ridiculous to those outside of the nation of Israel. God's moral laws would have come across as onerous and heavy handed to a non-Israelite. But they were intended to teach God's people that He was a holy God who took sin seriously and who demanded a high standard from His people.
What does this passage reveal about man?
Mankind has always had a hard time understanding God. The human race is prone to misinterpretation of God's intentions. He can either come across as a kind of harsh and overly judgmental dictator or simply as some kind of senile, sentimental grandfather figure in the sky. What we know about God is directly tied to what He has revealed about Himself in creation and through His Word. Those whose only interaction with God is through His creation, usually end up with a distorted and impartial view of God. They can easily end up making more of the creation than they do the Creator. The Bible was intended to reveal a more comprehensive and complete image of the Almighty to man. It provides us with a grand narrative that takes us from the literal “beginning” to the end of the story. It reveals the character of God and the condition of man. It answers the questions of how we got here and why evil exists. It provides us with a clear explanation of sin and a simply solution as to what we can do about it. Ultimately, the Bible is about Jesus. He is and always has been God's solution to man's sin problem. The Old Testament provides a glimpse into the future, driving home the sinfulness of man, the holiness of God, and the desperate need for a means to reconcile the two. The Old Testament is incomplete without the coming of Christ. The New Testament makes no sense without the foundation set by the Old Testament. The grace provided by God through Christ will be unappreciated and misunderstood if not seen through the Law found in the Old Testament. The sin of man, so vividly displayed in the books of the Old Testament, provide a stark backdrop against which the Light of the world shines more brightly. And yet, even the disciples of Jesus didn't know what to do when His death ended their hopes and shattered their dreams. They had seen Him as their long-awaited Messiah, predicted by the Old Testament prophets. But when His life was cut short by His death on the cross, they found themselves disillusioned, defeated and in hiding. Even after Jesus rose from the dead and appeared in their sight, they had a hard time believing, “for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead” (John 20:9 ESV). They knew the Scriptures. They just didn't understand them.
How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?
That is the problem most of us face today. We may know the Scriptures. We may even study and read the Scriptures, but we lack understanding of the Scriptures. Our knowledge tends to be incomplete and disconnected. We find ourselves gravitating to passages we prefer. We avoid the difficult sections of Scripture and too often fail to see the Word of God as one book written by one Author telling a single story. Ultimately, the Scriptures are the revelation of God to man. They are intended to teach us to believe in God. They tell us how He created all that exists. They give us a comprehensive history of His interaction with mankind over the centuries. They reveal the problem of sin as well as God's gracious solution. To a certain degree, the Bible is an unbelievable book. It tells an unbelievable story. But it is intended to help us believe in God. The Scriptures point toward the coming of Christ as the Savior of the world and the solution to man's sin problem. John reminds us, “but these things are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31 ESV). That we may believe. That's the point of the Bible. It is less about regulating behavior or providing lessons for living than it is about providing us with the key to eternal life. Yes, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17), but it is ultimately about belief in God and in His Son whom He sent to provide salvation from sin and death.
Father, I sometimes find Your Word hard to believe. But as I learn to believe what it says, I find myself believing the One who said it. I grow in my understanding of who You are and what You have said You are going to do. Keep increasing my desire for Your Word so that I might grow in my knowledge and understanding of You. Don't let me treat Your Word as just another book or some kind of self-help manual for life. Show me more of You. That I might grow in my belief. Amen