I study the Torah every year using the teaching tools of Scripture. (Why?)
Today is the 45th Sabbath of the annual Torah cycle. The Torah reading (parashah) is Shoftim (judges), Deu 16:18-21:9.
The paragraph divisions for Shoftim are as follows:
Deu 16:18-20 {s} Injustice is detestable to YHVH
Deu 16:21-22 {s} Idolatrous groves and pillars are detestable to YHVH
Deu 17:1 {s} Blemished sacrifices are detestable to YHVH
Deu 17:2-7 {p} Idolaters are detestable to YHVH
Deu 17:8-13 {s} Authority of the priest and judge
Deu 17:14-20 {s} Authority of the king
Deu 18:1-2 {s} Authority of the Levites
Deu 18:3-5 {s} What is due the Levites
Deu 18:6-8 {s} Equal shares for Levites
Deu 18:9-22 {s} Authority of the prophet
Deu 19:1-10 {p} Three cities of refuge (manslaughter is not murder)
Deu 19:11-13 {s} The murderer shall not find refuge
Deu 19:14 {s} Do not remove or change boundaries (cities of refuge)
Deu 19:15-21 {s} Justice in the case of false witnesses (bearing false witness to cause a sentence of death is murder)
Deu 20:1-9 {s} Who shall serve in the army (do not murder by warfare)
Deu 20:10-18 {s} Waging just warfare (waging war unjustly is murder)
Deu 20:19-20 {p} Do not destroy fruit trees in warfare (causing famine is murder)
Deu 21:1-9 {s} Unsolved murder + atonement for bloodshed
I have been saying that instead of Deuteronomy just consisting of a list of random laws, Moses is explaining this Torah (Deu 1:5), and the Torah that he is explaining, is the meaning of keeping the Ten Commandments. The Lord did not give Israel 613 laws. He gave Israel Ten Laws, and then explained what it meant to keep those Ten. Anyone who studies Moses’ speech following the list of the Ten Commandments in Deu 5, can see how the Ten are being expounded upon. These are my notes on the explanations pertaining to Shoftim, based on the Hebrew paragraph divisions given by the Spirit of God:
EXPLANATION OF THE 5th COMMANDMENT: HONOR YHVH’s AUTHORITY (16:18 through 18:22)
Deu 16:18-20 {s} Injustice is detestable to YHVH
Deu 16:21-22 {s} Idolatrous groves and pillars are detestable to YHVH
Deu 17:1 {s} Blemished sacrifices are detestable to YHVH
Deu 17:2-7 {p} Idolaters are detestable to YHVH
(The strong paragraph begins in Deu 16:13) What is holy to YHVH contrasted with what is detestable to YHVH
Deu 17:8-13 {s} Authority of the priest and judge
Deu 17:14-20 {s} Authority of the king
Deu 18:1-2 {s} Authority of the Levites
Deu 18:3-5 {s} What is due the Levites
Deu 18:6-8 {s} Equal shares for Levites
Deu 18:9-22 {s} Authority of the prophet
EXPLANATION OF THE 6th COMMANDMENT: DO NOT MURDER (through 21:9)
Deu 19:1-10 {p} Three cities of refuge (manslaughter is not murder)
(The strong paragraph begins in Deu 17:8) Priest, judge, king, and prophet prophesy of Messiah
Deu 19:11-13 {s} The murderer shall not find refuge
Deu 19:14 {s} Do not remove or change boundaries (cities of refuge)
Deu 19:15-21 {s} Justice in the case of false witnesses (bearing false witness to cause a sentence of death is murder)
Deu 20:1-9 {s} Who shall serve in the army (do not murder by warfare)
Deu 20:10-18 {s} Waging just warfare (waging war unjustly is murder)
Deu 20:19-20 {p} Do not destroy fruit trees in warfare (causing famine is murder)
Definition of murder
Deu 21:1-9 {s} Unsolved murder + atonement for bloodshed
First, the explanation of the fifth commandment. It is, Honor your father and mother. Why? Because the Creator of heaven and earth delegated some of His authority to them, and placed the children under their authority. Father and mother would have no authority were it not given them by God (Rom 13:1). But this section also teaches us, that while father and mother are the foundational human authority of society, other authorities have been appointed by God: priests, judges, kings, Levites, and prophets. These are the men who wield delegated authority from God. Therefore we can infer, that the larger section does not only teach Honor father and mother, but Honor God’s authority.
Fathers and mothers are not mentioned in this section however. The section begins with a reminder of what is detestable to YHVH and what to do about it, and then leaps right into the judges who are to be appointed. I think this tells us several key things: honoring the authority of YHVH, and His right and responsibility to name what is detestable and what is honorable, is the foundation of a right relationship to any and all authority. Parents: teach and train children to respect and honor the authority of YHVH and all else will fall in to place with far less effort.
Second, if parents hope to instill in their children a respect for community authorities such as judges or kings, then do not skip respect for YHVH’s authority or parental authority. They are foundational.
It is interesting that the strong paragraph does not wrap up neatly at the end of the paragraph on the prophet’s authority, but goes into the next section, dealing with the cities of refuge. If you were with us in our Bible study last year, we learned that the three cities of refuge are prophesying of Messiah and are a prophetic picture of grace. So I believe that one of the reasons the Spirit of grace closed the weak paragraphs dealing the authorities delegated by YHVH, with the paragraph on the cities of refuge, is that it is Torah’s way of picturing propheticially that Messiah will wield the authority of judge, priest, king, Levite, and prophet. And conversely, that true authority, godly authority, is seasoned with grace, as the cities of refuge are a provision of mercy.
So much more to say on this … plus the chiastic structures … which I will post tomorrow.
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