Bob Feather May 13th, 2008

War, wickedness, wives and wayward children

1. The pre-battle encouragement to faith (20:1-4)
2. Draft exemptions (20:5-9)
3. Peace or destruction (20:10-18)
4. Save the trees (20:19-20)
5. Unsolved murders (21:1-9)
6. To take a wife - literally (21:10-14)
7. Polygamy and the estate (21:15-17)
8. An incorrigible son (21:18-21)
9. The curse of hanging (21:22-23)

Meditation Points:

1. Fear not, for the Lord your God is with you (20:1).
2. The soldier cannot be thinking about his new home, his new business or his new wife when he’s facing the enemy.
3. Distant enemies should be avoided if possible; but near enemies cannot be tolerated. Pick your battles.
4. Food trees had more future value than lumber trees.
5. Society is held accountable for wrongful deaths.
6. The foreign bride must be treated with respect.
7. Is it ever possible for man to love two people equally?
8. Parents must not deny the obvious recalcitrance of their children.
9. The Romans might leave a man hanging and suffering on a cross for days; but Jesus, once dead, was taken down from the cross.

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Bob Feather May 12th, 2008

Bible study guide for use in preparation for English language discussions held by Trinity International Baptist Church in Athens, Greece. These informal meetings are an integral part of our three-year, through-the-Bible reading and learning program.

1. Levites (18:1-8)
2. Occult Practices (18:9-14)
3. THE Prophet (18:15-22)
4. Cities of Refuge (19:1-13)
5. Witnesses (19:14-21)

Meditation Points:

1. They who serve God should be cared for by those who are benefited by the service.
2. God did not steal the land of Canaan from its rightful inhabitants; those nations were living on God’s land yet serving false gods and evil spirits. As unfaithful stewards of God’s goodness, they deserved to lose possession.
3. Jesus is the prophet promised to Israel.
4. The refuge cities did not provide unqualified sanctuary for the guilty.
5. Ancient landmarks and modern witnesses–all testify to the truth. Only liars and thieves would attempt to remove them.

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Bob Feather May 11th, 2008

Three Feasts (16:1-17)

• Passover (1-8)
• Weeks (9-12)
• Tabernacles (13-15)
• Annual obligations to worship (16-17)

Judicial corruption forbidden (18-20)

Polluted worship (16:21-17:7)

• pagan idols not to be near the worship of Jehovah (21-22)
• blemished sacrifices are an abomination to the Lord (17:1)
• men and women are responsible to obey God (2, 5)
• paganism and astrology have a lot in common–God detests them both (3-5)
• capital punishment was society’s obligation (6-7)

Judges (17:8-13)

• would not be necessary if men could live in peace with one another (8)
• the sentence of the judge is to be accepted as the final word on the matter (9-11)
• nobody should presume to know more than God’s appointed priest or judge (12-13)

Kings (17:14-20)

• only the king of God’s choosing will suffice (14-15)
• the king shall have no need of, nor interest in, a large standing army (16)
• the king shall have no need of, nor interest in, a plurality of wives (17a)
• the king shall have no need of, nor interest in, the acquisition of earthly wealth (17b)
• the king shall be intimately familiar with the word of God (18-19)
• the king shall be bound by the same laws as his fellow man (20)

Meditation Points:

1. At least three times a year, the people of God would unite with other people of God for a large gathering of worshipers.
2. Contrast these blessed reunions with the man-made rituals that give honor to God’s creation rather than to God.
3. If the presumptuous man who refused to submit to the earthly priest or judge was killed, what do you think will happen to those who presume to violate the commandments of Christ our high priest and judge?
4. Read again about God’s will for His king. Do you not see that Christ is the only and complete fulfillment of God’s will for a king?

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Bob Feather May 11th, 2008

• May 2008 Audio
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