“If you see your fellow Israelite’s ox or sheep straying, do not ignore it but be sure to take it back to its owner. 2 If they do not live near you or if you do not know who owns it, take it home with you and keep it until they come looking for it. Then give it back. 3 Do the same if you find their donkey or cloak or anything else they have lost. Do not ignore it.” -Deuteronomy 22:1-3... Read more

“22 If someone guilty of a capital offense is put to death and their body is exposed on a pole, 23 you must not leave the body hanging on the pole overnight. Be sure to bury it that same day, because anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse.” -Deuteronomy 21:22-24 One of the many laws given in Deuteronomy 21 is to not leave a body on a pole or tree overnight. Why? It would desecrate the land. The... Read more

“When the Lord your God has destroyed the nations whose land he is giving you, and when you have driven them out and settled in their towns and houses, 2 then set aside for yourselves three cities in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess. 3 Determine the distances involved and divide into three parts the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that a person who kills someone may flee for refuge... Read more

“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there.” -Deuteronomy 18:9 In our day, plagiarism is a bad word. To copy someone’s work, whether in film, writing, science, or otherwise, presents an ethical problem that receives serious consequences when a person is caught. When it comes to worship, God offers similar advice: don’t copy. The nations surrounding Israel worshiped other gods, practiced spellcasting, spoke with... Read more

“18 When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. 19 It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees 20 and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and... Read more

“19 Do 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 innocent. 20 Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.” -Deuteronomy 16:19-20 Our world speaks much of justice. Justice for the poor, the oppressed, the marginalized, the hungry–the list runs on and on. But what is God’s view of justice? In... Read more

“7 If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them. 8 Rather, be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need.” -Deuteronomy 15:7-8 God cares for the poor. He also cares how we treat those who are poor. When we are blessed, it is to bless others. When we live in plenty, it is to help those in need. When... Read more

“28 At the end of every three years, bring all the tithes of that year’s produce and store it in your towns, 29 so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.” -Deuteronomy 14:28-29 Long before modern government, God set in... Read more

If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder, 2 and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place, and the prophet says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” 3 you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and... Read more