Moses, “the man of God,” passes along cryptic blessings to each tribe of Israel — well, almost all of them. These blessings reach down through time to be still in our future and not possible to be fulfilled without all the tribes united, including Yehudah (Judah, a.k.a. the Jews).
Moshe (Moses) predicts Israel’s idolatry and apostasy. He also writes a song to remind Israel of what the LORD has done for them, what they did against Him, what happened to them as a result and how the LORD will reconcile them back to Himself.
The Law of the LORD, or Torah, is as difficult to follow and indecipherable as we make it — simply, choose the lifestyle that leads to life. The LORD over time aligns our emotions, desires and reason in that direction.
The account of Gideon’s son Avimelech (Abimelech) in this chapter is a good illustration of what the oft-misinterpreted Torah phrase, “eye for eye, tooth for tooth,” really means. What Avimelech sowed in grasping for power came down on him like a millstone.
This chapter points out that the “New Covenant,” or “New Testament,” isn’t so new and doesn’t replace deals cut between God and Adam, Noach (Noah), Abraham, Moshe (Moses), David, etc. The LORD intended the Torah from the very beginning to be “written” on the hearts (emotions) and minds (reason) of His people.
In this passage, Moshe (Moses) reminds the people of Israel that God will bless them if they follow His Torah but he will have to curse them if they do not. He also reminds the people they have the duty to enforce God’s Torah in the land as well. It really is a Tale of Two Mountains.
Honesty in business dealings and setting aside for the LORD the first and a 10th of what He has blessed us with seem like straightforward teachings from these two chapters for modern times. However, what do we do with teachings in this passage about men temporarily marrying their sisters-in-law to perpetuate the name of her dead husband and amputation as punishment for women who “fight dirty” seem way out of step with modern culture? Richard Agee explores what God is trying to show us about Himself with these teachings.