I just finished reading Deuteronomy in my own personal devotion, and when I finished I said to myself, "Man, I love this book." It's not the first time I read it, but it's been a while since I read it in its entirety and I really think it is just so underrated among Christians, who today seem to as a whole have a bit too much contempt for lists of laws. While our culture has certainly shifted and we need not have congress enact these laws or follow the punishments for failing to follow them (after all, we are free from the Law's wrath when we are in Christ), we would do well to cultivate a greater love for these laws. The spirit of these laws are still very important for our world today.
So for a little enjoyment and engagement, I thought I would share 5 laws I particularly found relevant and how I see them as worth our talking about today (please note I'm not implying this is all we should care about from Deuteronomy, but more like a sampler platter to perk up your appetite):
- Faith over Filial Loyalty: If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you embrace, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, 'Let us go and worship other gods' - which neither you nor your fathers have known, any of the gods of the peoples around you, near you or far from you, from one end of the earth to the other - you must not yield to him or listen to him. -Deut 13.6-8
The passage understands the great temptation we face particularly when those closest to us are leading us into it. These are people we love, trust, and want to please and therefore are particularly susceptible to being led astray by them. Deuteronomy reminds us what it truly is to love God with your whole heart (the greatest commandment, according to Jesus, which by the way, is also from Deuteronomy). It means not choosing even those people who matter most to us over God.
In a culture that is increasingly indifferent if not hostile towards faithful Christian worship (to say nothing of faithful Christian living), this law becomes extremely important. Just because our spouse, child, or parent is unconcerned with God does not mean we ought to be. Jesus himself said he will set father against son and son against father (Luke 12.53) and whoever does not hate father and mother cannot be his disciple (Luke 14.26). In short, your relationship with God can negatively impact your relationship with even family when they want to lead you away from it. This law tells us to not yield to the greatest pressure and temptation: to let your love for them impact your love for God. - Against ungodly Grief: You are sons of the LORD your God; do not cut yourselves or make a bald spot on your head on behalf of the dead, for you are a holy people belonging to the LORD your God. The LORD has chosen you to be His own possession out of all the peoples on the face of the earth. -Deut 14.1-2Now for a little background, this law comes as a response to practices of religions of the region they were going to possess. So part of this goes to the practice of idolatry. But it has in it an important element for us; self-inflicted wounds is not how we grieve. Even if we aren't exposed to ritualistic wounding, such as they were with rituals that involved cutting or tearing out the hair, the prohibition makes clear that such actions just is not how God wants you to grieve.
This is especially important for young people, but not exclusive to them. Those new to grief, deeply saddened and impacted by it can fall into the temptation of self-mutilation or even simply the intentional act of not taking care of oneself. How often does death lead to physical harm, even to the point of suicide, especially when some form of guilt is involved or we don't know how to tell the world we're hurting? How often do people seek to feel pain so they feel something? We need to teach clearly that this should not be part of our grieving process.
Most interesting is that the demand is tied to the fact that we are not to see ourselves apart from our relationship as God's people. You are God's own possession, chosen to be holy. That means your body and what happens to it matters to God, and therefore he makes it clear that such unhealthy, damaging practices should not be a part of how we deal with death. In New Testament language: our body is a temple to the Lord (1 Cor 6.19-20) and therefore that impacts what we do with it. Your life is as precious as the life lost. - Look after your neighbor's stuff: If you see your brother's ox or sheep straying, you must not ignore it; make sure you return it to your brother. If your brother does not live near you or you do not know him, you are to bring the animal to your home to remain with you until your brother comes looking for it; then you can return it to him. Do the same for his donkey, his garment, or anything your brother has lost and you have found. You must not ignore it. -Deut 22.1-3
You are accountable for your neighbor's things. Contrary to our common understanding of "finders keepers" we having "finders returners". That is, you have a duty to return what you find to its owner and when you don't know who the owner is or can't yet, you should not consider it your own, but under your care until you do find that person. This command makes me think of Luther's catechism regarding the command to not steal, namely its last part that states we are to "help [our neighbor] to improve and protect their property and income."
Think about stray animals. Think about lost coats. Think about lost money. One of the questions raised to me as a child when people start trying to teach you "moral dilemmas" is 'What should you do if you found a wallet (or if they were really grandiose a suitcase of money!)?' The answer, according to Deuteronomy is to see it safely back to its owner, and most importantly, not being able to do that immediately does not change the expectation.
I think what is quite important about this law too is it teaches us sacrifice. To hold onto something of someone else's for an uncertain period of time actually expects something of you for more than a moment. To not lose someone's coat, hat, or something perhaps larger takes up space in our homes and efforts to make sure its owner finds it and it is preserved until then. To care for lost animals means feeding it, possibly cleaning it and taking it to the vet or at the very least supporting the shelters we rely on to do these things.
Also really big here is the explicit statement "Do not ignore it." Because not only can we sometimes do finders keepers, or take little effort to find the owner, sometimes we take none. Much more often we pay little attention to the protection of that which is not ours, especially if we judge it as insignificant ("it's only a glove") with no care of what value it may have to that person. - Don't Take Dirty Money as an Offering: No Israelite woman is to be a cult prostitute, and no Israelite man is to be a cult prostitute. Do not bring a female prostitute's wages or a male prostitute's earnings into the house of the LORD your God to fulfill any vow, because both are detestable to the LORD your God. -Deut 23.17-18
Again we have a law that is rooted in a practice in the surrounding culture we don't necessarily have, namely cult prostitution (often a religious practice done to appeal to a god, especially associated with asking the Canaanite god Baal to bring rain upon the fields). But part of the spirit of the law is not just forbidding a practice done by another religion, but in using money earned in such ways to practice worship of YHWH. In short, if you aren't earning the wage in a godly manner, don't try to use it to absolve yourself or practice godly worship.
This is especially important for churches to hear. As many churches are shrinking, they become increasingly pressured to raise enough money to stay open. But this law ought teach us that faithfulness is more important than offerings. That is, just because someone is ritualistically faithful, such as making contributions is not all we ought care about with stewardship. Not even how they use the rest of their earnings is enough when we talk about stewardship. Part of our stewardship needs to be about caring about how those wages are earned in the first place, and being willing to back that belief up enough to not accept that which is earned by dishonest or unfaithful means.
I think of a scene in the Sopranos when Carmela goes to see a shrink. Once she admits that her husband is a mobster, the psychiatrist, who happened to be a Jewish man, told her he would not charge her that session because he would not accept blood money and encouraged her to do the same and to leave Tony rather than accept his evil way of life simply because she and her children benefit financially from it. - Fair Wages For All: Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether one of your brothers or one of the foreigners residing within a town in your land. You are to pay him his wages each day before the sun sets, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be held guilty. -Deut 24.14-15
There are several interesting elements of this passage. The first is to make sure we are paying the poor enough to get by. How topical is this in our country where minimum wage is a major topic of discussion right now? Whatever our political leanings, or the concerns we have of the greater economic impact, we need to be especially mindful of the poorest among us and what they can earn. A full read of Deuteronomy will show just how much this book is concerned with laws to protect the most vulnerable and to make sure the community makes efforts and sacrifices to support them.
The next hot button piece here, is it especially notes the foreigner. This again is very relevant in America, where we currently what to show greater care for Americans. One thing my reading of scripture has done this last summer is thoroughly changed my stance regarding illegal immigrants in America. While I'm not sure I know all the answers, I find because of scripture my heart has been opened to them and their needs/concerns more than it was this time last year. If anyone is especially susceptible to abuse of unjust wages it is those who are getting paid under the table and therefore outside the realm of regulation. The "they took our jobs" argument in part is because they work for less money, but that is in part because they have little choice. Companies that can hire illegal immigrants often do so, and they do so because they know they don't have to pay as much. They exploit the foreigner to benefit their own business, and that in turn impacts the economy of those who don't do that because they then cannot charge as little for a job.
Also interesting is the concern for daily wage. I think how big this law would be for those who run paycheck to paycheck. We can certainly sometimes be critical of those who are in such binds because of poor choices, but we are to be mindful of those who need their money sooner than every 2 weeks. What this law says is we ought be mindful of how we can help support people in those times between paychecks, and perhaps for companies to be more open to the idea of advances on checks (or at least paying up the hours they have already put in) when needed. No matter what the practice is, the spirit of the law is to put a priority on human need over personal profit at their expense.
Lastly is a good reminder. A lot of the laws and lessons of Deuteronomy you find are rooted in the peoples' history and these words about the poor crying out against you are no different. The Israelites are reminded that in Egypt when they were exploited and oppressed they cried out to God against Pharaoh, and God heard them and came to their aid. Being the oppressor may lead to God raising up your own downfall (or your company's downfall or nation's downfall). I am reminded of Luther's large catechism on the Lord's Prayer petition "Give us this day our daily bread" when he says that much of the world's problems are on account of "those who wantonly oppress the poor and deprive them of their daily bread" and he warns all to "beware lest this petition in the Lord's prayer be against them".
So there are 5 laws to ruminate on as a Christian. What Deuteronomic law do you want people to talk about?
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