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Lesson#4IntroducingTorah
(4:44–5:33)
1IntroducingTorah
InLesson#3weconcludedMoses’1stDiscourse(1:1–4:43)asMoses
emphasizedthesacrednessofGod’scovenantandthemutualobligaEons
containedwithinit.Assovereign,GodpromisesIsraelland—realestatein
thelandofCanaan—aswellasarich,fulllifeinacovenantrelaEonshipwith
him;conversely,Israelistopromiseto“fear”theLordandtoobeyhis
commands,commandsthatgoverneveryaspectofhumanlife,fromthe
foodtheIsraeliteseat,tothelandtheyfarm,totherelaEonshipstheyhave
withoneanotherandwithoutsiders.
Mostimportantly,theIsraelitesaretoworshipYHWHexclusively,anineffable,transcendentGod,onewhoisbeyond“seeing,”aGodwho
stunninglyinvitestheIsraelitesintoaninEmate,spousalrelaEonship.
IftheIsraeliteobeythetermsofthecovenant,Godwillblessthem
abundantlyandtheywilllivelongintheland;iftheydonot,Godwillcurse
themandtheywilllosetheland—andtheirlives.
2IntroducingTorah
Moses’2ndDiscoursesprawlsacrossDeuteronomy4:44–29:1,
aexpansivebodyofteachingthatformsthecoreof
Deuteronomy.TheTorahisnotsimplythePentateuch,orthe
fivebooksofMoses,butratherGod’scomprehensive,
foundaEonalteaching,ateachingthat—iffollowed—enables
God’scovenantpeopletolivelifefullyinthePromisedLand,a
lifeblessedandabundant.
Likealightshininginthedarkness,God’scovenantpeoplewill
bea“lighttothenaEons,”amodeloffulfilledhumanpotenEal,
humanityfullyformed.
InLesson#4weexaminetheveryheartofTorah,theDecalogue
ortheTenCommandments.
3IntroducingTorah
AsDeuteronomy1:1-4introduced
Moses’1stDiscourse,so
Deuteronomy4:44-49introduces
his2ndDiscourse.
Itconsistsoftwoparts:
1. 4:44-49,whichcreatesexpectaEon
andgravitas;and
2. 5:1-5,whichpushesthecovenant
forwardtothepresentEmeonthe
plainsofMoabandinfusesitwith
deeplypersonalrelevance.
4IntroducingTorah
5IntroducingTorah
“This is the law which Moses set before the Israelites. These are the decrees, and the statutes and ordinances which Moses proclaimed to the Israelites after they came out of Egypt, beyond the Jordan in the valley opposite Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses and the Israelites defeated after they came out of Egypt. They took possession of his land and the land of Og, king of Bashan, as well—the land of these two kings of the Amorites in the region beyond the Jordan to the east: from Aroer on the edge of the Wadi Arnon to Mount Sion (that is, Hermon) and all the Arabah beyond the Jordan to the east, as far as the Arabah Sea under the slopes of Pisgah.”
(Deuteronomy 4: 44-49)
“This is the law which Moses set before the Israelites. These are the decrees, and the statutes and ordinances . . .
IntroducingMoses’2ndDiscoursewithaflurryof
legalvocabularyemphasizesthestrictruleoflife
andrigorousstructurethatGoddemandsofthe
IsraelitesiftheyaretofulfilltheirdesEnyas
God’scovenantpeople.
Theword“law”istorahinHebrew,butaswenoteditrefersnotsimplytoasetofrulesand
regulaEons,buttoGod’scomprehensive
teaching.
Around250B.C.,however,Jewishscholarsin
Alexandria,EgypttranslatedtheHebrew
ScripturesintoGreek.Theytranslatedthe
Hebrew“torah”asnovmoß,theusualGreekwordfor“law,”andsoittypicallyappearsinEnglish
translaEons.
6IntroducingTorah
7IntroducingTorah
“This is the law which Moses set before the Israelites. These are the decrees, and the statutes and ordinances which Moses proclaimed to the Israelites after they came out of Egypt, beyond the Jordan in the valley opposite Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses and the Israelites defeated after they came out of Egypt. They took possession of his land and the land of Og, king of Bashan, as well—the land of these two kings of the Amorites in the region beyond the Jordan to the east: from Aroer on the edge of the Wadi Arnon to Mount Sion (that is, Hermon) and all the Arabah beyond the Jordan to the east, as far as the Arabah Sea under the slopes of Pisgah.”
(Deuteronomy 4: 44-49)
HereMosesshibsfocusfromalegal
vocabularytogeography,locaEngtheveryplacewheretheIsraelitesstand,
theverysoilonwhichMosesplantshis
feetashedelivershisdiscourse.
8IntroducingTorah
“Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses and the Israelites defeated after they came out of Egypt. They took possession of his land and the land of Og, king of Bashan, as well—the land of these two kings of the Amorites . . .”
NowMosesillustrateshowtheIsraelitesgotto
thisspecificpieceofland.Againstalloddsthey
conqueredthetwomightykingsoftheAmorites,
SihonandOg.Thesonsoftheveryslaveswho
fledEgypt,whotrembledinfearatthereportof
thespieswhomMosessentintoCanaan,who
complainedabouteveryinconveniencethey
experiencedontheirwildernessjourney,these
verysonsdefeatedtwolarger-thanlifekings!
OnlywithGod’saidandstrongrightarmcould
theIsraeliteshaveaccomplishedsuchavictory.
9IntroducingTorah
10IntroducingTorah
KINGDOMOFOG
JordanRiver!
JabbokRiver
YarmukRiver
Notme.
IntroducingTorah
Ifitwereme,I’dsekle
forwhatIhave.Abird
inthehandisworth
twointhebush!
ThelandtakenfromSihon
andOgontheeastsideofthe
JordanRiverisroughlythe
samesizeasthelandof
Canaanonthewestside.
11
12IntroducingTorah
That’strue,andthat’sexactly
whatthetribesofRuben,Gad
andhalfofManassehwanted
todo.Recallthebargainthey
strikewithMosesinNumbers
32:1-5—
13IntroducingTorah
14IntroducingTorah
“Now the Reubenites and Gadites had a very large number of livestock. Noticing that the land of Jazer and of Gilead was a place suited to livestock, the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses and Eleazar the priest and to the leaders of the community and said, ‘The region of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Baal-meon—the land which the Lord has laid low before the community of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.’ They continued, ‘If we find favor with you, let this land be given to your servants as their possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan.’”
(32: 1-5)
15IntroducingTorah
JordanRiver!
YarmukRiver
"JabbokRiver
"ArnonRiver
GAD
REUBEN
SeaofGalilee!
DeadSea!
MANESSAH
ButjustwhentheIsraelitesfeel
secureintheirvictories,God
shakesthemfromtheir
complacency.Theirvictories
overSihonandOgarebuta
preludeofthingstocome.
Theyarenottostayeastofthe
JordanRiver;theirdesEnylies
onthewest.
16IntroducingTorah
Godhasawayofdoingthat.
Justwhenwestartfeeling
comfortable,hepullstherug
outfromunderus!
17IntroducingTorah
18IntroducingTorah
Nowwemovetopart2ofthe
introducEon:
1. 4:44-49,whichcreatesexpectaEon
andgravitas;and
2. 5:1-5,whichpushesthecovenant
forwardtothepresentEmeonthe
plainsofMoabandinfusesitwith
deeplypersonalrelevance.
19IntroducingTorah
20IntroducingTorah
“Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances which I proclaim in your hearing this day, that you may learn them and take care to observe them. The Lord, our God, made a covenant with us at Horeb; not with our ancestors did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, all of us who are alive here this day. Face to face, the Lord spoke with you on the mountain from the midst of the fire, while I was standing between the Lord and you at that time, to announce to you these words of the Lord, since you were afraid of the fire and would not go up the mountain.”
(5: 1-5)
“Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances which I proclaim in your hearing this day . . .”
AsthecommunityassembledatMt.
SinaitoreceiveGod’storah,sodoesthenewgeneraEonassemblenowonthe
plainsofMoabtohearitagain.“Thisday”stressestheimmediacyofthe
event:“MosessummonedallIsrael”[righthere,rightnow]!”
21IntroducingTorah
“The Lord, our God, made a covenant with us at Horeb; not with our ancestors did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, all of us who are alive here this day . . .”
AsweobservedinLesson#2,God’storahtranscendsEmeandplace,andhereMoses’
strikingrhetoricmakeswhathappenedatMt.
Sinaifortyyearsearlierimmediatelyapplicable
tothenewgeneraEon.
Thecovenantisnotfortheirancestorsalone,but
forallthosewhoarepresentontheplainsof
Moab,aswellasforallthosewhowillcomein
futuregeneraEons.
22IntroducingTorah
“The Lord, our God, made a covenant with us at Horeb; not with our ancestors did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, all of us who are alive here this day . . .”
God’storahappliestoall,cumngacross
linesofstatus,genderandethnicity.It
applieseventothoseof“mixedancestry”(Exodus12:38),to“men,womenandchildren,aswellasresidentalienswholiveinyourcommuniHes”(Deuteronomy31:12).
Theinclusivenessoftorahisstunning!
23IntroducingTorah
AndGod’storahgoesbeyondstatus,genderandethnicity:it
spansEme,aswell.
StevenL.Cookinvokesanapt
metaphor.Hewrites:
“ForDeuteronomy,Israel’ssolidarityisthatofahugebranchingtree,plantedonthepromisedland.AllgeneraHons—eventhosethathavepassedon—areasone.”
MosesinsiststhatallgeneraEonsformonelargebranching
community,whoselifespansEme,
aswellasplace.11ReadingDeuteronomy,aLiteraryandTheologicalCommentary(Macon,Georgia:Smyth&HelwysPublishers,
Inc.,2015),p.60.
24IntroducingTorah
Psalm1expressesthisquite
well:
25IntroducingTorah
“David&Christ,Psalm1,”LaHnGlossedPsalter(illuminatedMsAdd.18859,fol39r),c.1150.
BriEshLibrary,London.
26IntroducingTorah
Psalm 1 Blessed, indeed, is the man who walks not in the counsel of the godless, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scorners, but his delight is in the law [torah] of the Lord, and on his law [torah] he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by flowing water that yields its fruit in due season, and its leaf does not wither, and in all that he does he prospers.
27IntroducingTorah
Not so are the godless, not so; they are like winnowed chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore, the godless will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the just.
For the Lord knows the way of the just, but the way of the godless will perish.
Wenowmoveontotheveryheart
oftorah,theDecalogueorthe“TenCommandments.”
Aswenotedinourstudyof
Exodus,the“TenCommandments”
aretenprinciplesbywhicha
covenantpeopleistolivewithGod
andoneanother.
28IntroducingTorah
Everysociety,ancientormodern,
musthaveasetoflawsgoverning
moralandethicalbehavior,ifthat
societyistosurvive.
• Inancientpre-literatesocieEes,suchlawsmaybeembodiedinlong-
establishedculturalnormspassedon
orallyfromgeneraEontogeneraEon,
obeninstoriesdesignedtoteach
suchculturalnormsandbehavioral
expectaEons.
• Inmorecomplex,literatesocieEes,
suchlawsmaybecodifiedandwriken
down,accompaniedbyajudicial
systemtoensurecompliance.
29IntroducingTorah
TheancientNearEastproducednumerous
examplesofsuchwrikenlaws,manyof
whichpredatetheExodusstory.
• TheCodeofUr-Nammu,kingofUr
(Abraham’shometown),theoldest
knownlawcode,wrikeninMesopotamia
ontabletsintheSumerianlanguage,c.
2100-2050B.C.,theEmeofAbraham.
• TheLawsofEshnunna(aseklement
northofUrontheTigrisRiver),two
cuneiformtabletswerediscoveredatTel
AbūHarmaiinBagdad,Iraq,daEngfrom
c.1930B.C.
• TheCodeofHammurabi,theBabylonian
lawcodeofancientMesopotamia,daEng
toc.1772B.C.,themostwell-knownof
theancientlawcodes.
30IntroducingTorah
InscribedintheAkkadian
languageincuneiformscript,
thecodeofHammurabi
consistsof282laws:
• Nearly1/2oftheCodeaddressescontractuallaw;
• About1/3oftheCodeaddresseshouseholdand
familyrelaEonships,including
sexualbehavior;and
• Therestaddressesjudicialandmilitaryissues.
TheCodeofHammurabi(dioritestele),c.1772B.C.LouvreMuseum,Paris.
[Close-upofinscripEons:GekyImages.]
31IntroducingTorah
Suchancientlegal
codesaretypically
theendresultof
codifiedcultural
normshandeddown
byapoliEcalruler,
usuallyaking,
wrikenonclayor
stonetablets.
Hammurabi,6thruleroftheAmoritedynastyofBabylon,c.1750.LouvreMuseum,Paris.
32IntroducingTorah
The“TenCommandments”are
excepEonal,inthat
Deuteronomytellsustheyare
nottheresultofcodified
culturalnormshandeddownby
apoliEcalruler;rather,theyare
givendirectlybyGod.Moses
saysinDeuteronomy:
Rembrandt.MosesSmashingtheTabletsoftheLaw(oiloncanvas),1659.Gemäldegalerie,Berlin.
“TheLordgavemethetwostonetabletsinscribed,byGod’sownfinger,withacopyofallthewordsthattheLordspoketoyouonthemountainfromthemidstofthefireonthedayoftheassembly.”
(9:10)
33IntroducingTorah
Notme.
IntroducingTorah
Thosetabletsresideinside
theArkoftheCovenantin
theHolyofholies.Youcan’t
getmoreimportantthan
that!
Withthe“TenCommandments”God
becomesthemoralandethicalarbiter
ofhumanbehavior.Inscribedby
“God’sownfinger”andspokenaloud
fromthesmokeandfireofSinai,they
carryahighermoralauthoritythan
anythingelseinScripture.
34
And,yet,aberreceivingthe“Ten
Commandments”atMt.Sinaiin1446B.C.,
theIsraelitesgoontoblatantlydisobey
them!
Hoseaworksasaprophetduringtheearly
yearsofIsaiah,beforethereformsofKing
Hezekiah(740-686B.C.),andhewrites:
“HearthewordoftheLord,Israelites,fortheLordhasadisputewiththeinhabitantsoftheland:thereisnofidelity,noloyalty,noknowledgeofGodintheland.Swearing,lying,murder,stealingandadulterybreakout;bloodshedfollowsbloodshed...”
(4:1-2)
TheIsraelitescompletelyignorethe6th,7th,8th,and9thcommandments.
35IntroducingTorah
Halfacenturylater,duringtheEmeof
KingJosiah(640-609B.C.),whenHilkiah
thepriestfindsthebookofthelawinthe
Temple,thingswereevenworse:
“ThussaystheLord:Iamabouttobringeviluponthisplaceanduponitsinhabitants—allthewordsofthebookwhichthekingofJudah[Josiah]hasread.Becausetheyhaveabandonedmeandhaveburnedincensetoothergods,provokingmebyalltheworksoftheirhands,myrageisablazeagainstthisplaceanditcannotbeexHnguished.”
(2Kings22:16-17)
TheIsraelitesalsoblatantlybreakthe1st
and2ndcommandments.
36IntroducingTorah
ByEzekiel’sday(593-573B.C.),theIsraelites
hitrockbokom:
“Inthesixthyearonthefiahdayofthesixthmonth[September5,592B.C.]...[theLord]saidtome:Sonofman,liaupyoureyestothenorth!Ilookedtothenorthandthereintheentrynorthofthealtargatewasthisstatueofjealousy.Heasked:Sonofman,doyouseewhattheyaredoing?DoyouseethegreatabominaHonsthatthehouseofIsraelispracHcinghere.sothatImustdepartfrommysanctuary?...Iwentinandlooked—figuresofallkindsofcreepingthingsandloathsomebeasts,alltheidolsofthehouseofIsrael,picturedaroundthewall.BeforethemstoodseventyoftheeldersofthehouseofIsrael...eachwithacenserinhand,acloudofincensedriaedupward...”
(8:1-11)
37IntroducingTorah
Notme.
IntroducingTorah
Godcarriesoutthepunishment
hepromised.1Chronicles9:1
says,“JudahhadbeenexiledtoBabylonbecauseofits
treachery.”
HowlowcantheIsraelitespossiblysink?
Thisisthelaststraw.Babylonlayssiegeto
Jerusalemfouryearslaterin588B.C.,and
abera2-yearsiege,Jerusalemfallsto
BabylononAugust14,586B.C.;the
Templeisdestroyed;thecitysacked;and
thesurvivorsdeportedtoBabylon.
38
ThetrajectoryofIsraelitehistorypoints
steeplydownward:Godknowsit,and
Mosesknowsit.
Hence,intheEmeofKingJosiahthe
augmented“BookoftheLaw,”wrikenin
thedivinely-sancEonedvoiceofMoses,
stressestheurgencyofobediencetothe
lawastheonlypossiblewaytocreatea
“kingdomofpriests,aholynaHon”(Exodus19:6);theonlypossiblewaytobefullyhuman,toliveacovenant
relaEonshipwithGodandwithone
another,blessedanddwellingontheland
Godhasprovided.
39IntroducingTorah
The“TenCommandments”in
Exodus20formheartoftorah,thecoreofthecovenant,and
Deuteronomyrestatesthose
Commandments,mirroring,
augmenEngandrefocusingwhat
theIsraelitesheardatMt.Sinai.
Westudiedeachofthe“Ten
Commandments”indetailin
Exodus;here,we’llfocusontheir
funcEonasawholein
Deuteronomy.
40IntroducingTorah
41IntroducingTorah
Commandment #1
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall not have other gods beside me.”
(5: 6-7)
42IntroducingTorah
Commandment #2
“You shall not make for yourself an idol or a likeness of anything in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath the earth; you shall not bow down before them or serve them. For I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God, bringing punishment for their parents’ wickedness on the children of those who hate me, down to the third and fourth generation, but showing love down the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.”
(5: 8-10)
43IntroducingTorah
Commandment #3
“You shall not invoke the name of the Lord, your God, in vain. For the Lord will not leave unpunished anyone who invokes his name in vain.”
(5: 11)
44IntroducingTorah
Commandment #4
“Observe the Sabbath day—keep it holy, as the Lord, your God, commanded you. Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God. You shall not do any work, either you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your ox or donkey or any work animal, or the resident alien within your gates, so that your male and female slave may rest as you do. Remember that you too were once slaves in the land of Egypt, and the Lord, your God, brought you out from there with a strong hand and outstretched arm. That is why the Lord, your God, has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.”
(5: 12-15)
Notme.
IntroducingTorah
Godcomesfirst.
Ilikethat!
NoEcethatthefirstfour
commandmentsfocusonour
relaEonshipwithGod;thelastsix
willfocusonourrelaEonshipwith
oneanother.
45
46IntroducingTorah
Commandment #5
“Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord, your God, has commanded you, that you may have a long life and that you may prosper in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”
(5: 16)
47IntroducingTorah
Commandments 6-10
6 You shall not kill (5: 17). 7 You shall not commit adultery (5: 18). 8 You shall not steal (5: 19). 9 You shall not bear dishonest witness against your
neighbor (5: 20). 10 You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife (5: 21).
You shall not desire your neighbor’s house or field, his male or female slave, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
(5: 17-21)
Incontrasttothe“Ten
Commandments”inExodus
20,bysheerweightand
augmentaEon,the4th
commandmentto“observe
theSabbathday”becomes
thefocalpointin
Deuteronomy.
48IntroducingTorah
WithHilkiah’sdiscoveryofthe“Bookofthe
Law,”theaugmentedDeuteronomyreflects
KingJosiah’sreformsthatstrivetocreateajust
society,whollyobedienttoGod,asocietythat
embodiesawondrousinEmacywitha
transcendentGod,aninEmacythatblossomsin
thelandandthatmanifestsitselfinallthe
detailsofdailylife:ofworking,eaEng,playing
andevensleeping.
Itisautopianvision.1
Butitispossible,iflivedwithinthecontextof
God’scovenant.
1St.ThomasMorecoinedtheword“utopia”inhis1516
LaEnsaEreofthesamename.“Utopia”isGreek,meaning
“noplace.”
49IntroducingTorah
Atthecenterofthisutopianvisionin
Deuteronomyis“rest.”TheHebrewword
“nuwach”[noo’-akh]hasawiderangeofmeaning,buthereitisrestinthebroadestand
deepestsense,notsimplytheabsenceofwork,
butaposiEvestateofwell-beingand
fulfillment,astateofcompleteness.
Deuteronomyaimstocreateaformof
communallifecenteredinGod,alifeofsacred
inEmacywithhim.ObservingtheSabbath
weekinandweekout,schoolsthepeopleto
“remember”Godandto“remember”whothey
are.TheyarenotlikeothernaEons,theyaretobea“kingdomofpriests,aholynaEon,”andin
rigorouslyobservingtheSabbaththeIsraelites
resistbeingdraggeddownintothemoraland
ethicalsewerofthenaEonsaroundthem.
50IntroducingTorah
InDeuteronomy,unlikeExodus,
theLordGodcommandsrigorousobservanceoftheSabbath,and
thatcommandframesthe4th
commandment.
51IntroducingTorah
52IntroducingTorah
Commandment #4
“Observe the Sabbath day—keep it holy, as the Lord, your God, commanded you. Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God. You shall not do any work, either you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your ox or donkey or any work animal, or the resident alien within your gates, so that your male and female slave may rest as you do. Remember that you too were once slaves in the land of Egypt, and the Lord, your God, brought you out from there with a strong hand and outstretched arm. That is why the Lord, your God, has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.”
(5: 12-15)
Deuteronomythen
emphasizesthevivid,
visceralexperienceatMt.
Sinaithatanchorsthe“Ten
Commandments”inthe1st
generaEon’slived
experience,astheyheard
thewordsemergefromthe
verylipsofGod.
53IntroducingTorah
54IntroducingTorah
“These words the Lord spoke with a loud voice to your entire assembly on the mountain from the midst of the fire and the dense black cloud, and added no more. He inscribed them on two stone tablets and gave them to me. But when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was ablaze with fire . . . (5: 1-5)
TheIsraelitesatMt.Sinaicringed
interrorasGodspoke,
awestruckatthewordsthey
heardwiththeirownears.
Theytrembledandfellbackas
God’swordsthunderedfromthe
fierymountain,andtheybegged
Mosestointercedeforthem,to
standinthegapanddeliver
God’swordssecondhand,lest
theyalldie.
55IntroducingTorah
56IntroducingTorah
“But when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was ablaze with fire, you came near to me, all your tribal heads and elders, and said, ‘The Lord, our God, has indeed let us see his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice from the midst of the fire. Today we have found out that God may speak to a mortal and that person [Moses] may still live . . . (5: 1-5)
Mosesconcurswiththepeople’s
request,andheagreestoactas
intermediary,todeliverGod’swordsto
theIsraelitesonGod’sbehalf.Moses
thusbecomestheprophetparexcellence.
InallowingMosestoactas
intermediary,Goddelegatesdivinely-
sancEonedauthoritytowhatMoses
says.Consequently,crabingthefinal
versionofDeuteronomyinthe
ipsissimavox—theveryvoiceofMoses
—elevatesDeuteronomyfaraboveany
otheroftheHebrewScriptures.
57IntroducingTorah
Notme.
IntroducingTorah
I’malways
obedient!
Ihaveafeelingthere’saflyinthe
ointment,though.Weknowhowthis
storywillturnout,andsodoesGod.
TheIsraeliteswillnotobeyGod;theywillnothonorthetermsofthe
covenant.
58
Yea,right!
59IntroducingTorah
“The Lord heard your words as you were speaking to me and said to me, I have heard the words these people have spoken to you, which are all well said. Would that they might always be of such a mind, to fear me and to keep all my commandments! Then they and their descendants would prosper forever. Go, tell them: Return to your tents. Then you stand here near me and I will give you all the commandments, the statutes and the ordinances; you must teach them, that they may observe them in the land I am giving them to possess.”
(5: 28-31)
60ASacredCovenant
GodseemstoletoutaEredsigh.Thepeople
willnotkeepthecovenant;theywillfail.
AndfromaChrisEanperspecEve,that’sthe
point.Thereisnothingwrongwiththelawor
lackingintorah.Butthereissomething
dreadfullywrongwiththepeople.Theysimply
cannotmeetGod’srequirementsthroughtheir
owneffort.AsSt.Paulwrites:
“[Now]therighteousnessofGodhasbeenmanifestedapartfromthelaw,thoughtesHfiedtobythelawandtheprophets,therighteousnessofGodthroughfaithinJesusChristforallwhobelieve.”
(Romans3:21-22)
OnlythroughChristwillpeoplebesaved,only
throughhisshedbloodonthecross.
CreaEonawaitsaMessiah.
1. WhatisGod’storah?
2. WhatfuncEondoesthe“TenCommandments”serve
inGod’storah?
3. WhywouldtheintroducEontothe“Ten
Commandments”beginwithaflurryoflegal
vocabulary?
4. WhyinDeuteronomyisthe4thcommandmentto
“observetheSabbath”soprominent?
5. The“TenCommandments”formtheverycoreof
torah,butaretheyuniquetoScripture?
61IntroducingTorah
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62IntroducingTorah
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