Deuteronomy) 16:18 - 17:13 18Appoint judges and officials for each of your tribes in every town the Lord your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly.19Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.20Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.21Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole beside the altar you build to the Lord your God,22and do not erect a sacred stone, for these the Lord your God hates.1Do not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep that has any defect or flaw in it, for that would be detestable to him.2If a man or woman living among you in one of the towns the Lord gives you is found doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God in violation of his covenant,3and contrary to my command has worshiped other gods, bowing down to them or to the sun or the moon or the stars of the sky,4and this has been brought to your attention, then you must investigate it thoroughly. If it is true and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done in Israel,5take the man or woman who has done this evil deed to your city gate and stone that person to death.6On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but no one shall be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.7The hands of the witnesses must be the first in putting him to death, and then the hands of all the people. You must purge the evil from among you.8If cases come before your courts that are too difficult for you to judge-whether bloodshed, lawsuits or assaults-take them to the place the Lord your God will choose.9Go to the priests, who are Levites, and to the judge who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict.10You must act according to the decisions they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they direct you to do.11Act according to the law they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left.12The man who shows contempt for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering there to the Lord your God must be put to death. You must purge the evil from Israel.13All the people will hear and be afraid, and will not be contemptuous again. Thinking & UnderstandingGod commanded to appoint judges and leaders at every city. They had to judge with the righteousness in the standard of God’s Words, and more importantly, they had to teach the people of God so that they would serve God (16:18-17:7).Problems which judges of outer town found difficult to judge would be brought to the judges and priests of the place God chooses, where they will have the authority of final judgment. This authority was given by God, therefore if anyone defied their judgment, they would be executed (17:8-13). Who is God?16:18-20 Righteous God wants His people to be righteous too in their lives. So God created fair and just judgment system and judicial administration. God wanted people to live a beautiful life in the beautiful land He gave. What lesson is God teaching me?17:2-7 If a person had broken the covenant with God and committed a sin, there had to be two or three witnesses to confirm the sin before execution so that they would not be falsely accused. Let’s be careful not to judge our brothers or sisters just from rumors of their sin before knowing whether it is true or not. PrayerLet there be righteousness of God within the lives of our community, a place where Your people gather.
Posted on: Wed, 02 Oct 2013 09:20:36 +0000
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