|
|
Deuteronomy Chapter 2
Moses is refreshing their memory and
rehearsing their journey probably to remind them of the goodness of
God and His deliverance but also the severity of God when they
showed rebellion and disobedience. The law has to be given because
most of human beings will not live by the law of love which would be
preferable. So the law is given because of the lawless and
disobedient.
- 1Timothy 1:8 But we
know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully;
- 9 Knowing this,
that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the
lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for
unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of
mothers, for manslayers,
- 10 For
whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be
any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine;
- 11 According to
the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to
my trust.
We see from Paul's words to Timothy
that we need the law because of transgressors. We have to have law
and order. Once Israel was brought to the wilderness and led out of
Egypt, they had to have law or the strong would take advantage of
the weak, the rich would rule the poor, and the cruel would
oppressor the weak.
- Deuteronomy 2:2 And the LORD spake
unto me, saying,
- 3 Ye have compassed
this mountain long enough: turn you northward.
- 4 And command thou
the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the coast of your
brethren the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they
shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves
therefore:
- 5 Meddle not with
them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as
a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a
possession.
We see here also that God only gave
Israel the land that was inhabited by evil people who had gotten to
the point of no return. They were beyond repentance and change but
years ago he gave mount Seir to Esau's descendants and they were
forbidden take over the land belonging to Jacob's brother.
There comes a time when God gives people
up to their own passions and lusts. He then lets them go so far
until He has to destroy them. This happens over and over in history.
It is dangerous to reject God and trample on His mercy. The more we
resist God the harder our heart gets. One day we may go too far. Be
thankful when the Holy Spirit is still able to tug at the door of
our conscience and woo us back to fellowship with our heavenly
Father.
We sometimes want people to feel good
about themselves and we try to blame guilt on the devil. I realize
that he can keep bringing up the past to try to condemn us wrongly
but many times it could be that we need to make things right with
God and be reconciled to a those we wronged. We must never desire to feel
good in our sin and go about our business without correction.
They were not allowed to occupy the
land God gave to Esau and his descendants. That was not theirs. They
could buy from them, not take from them. They were only allowed to
destroy nations appointed for destruction by the word of God.
In chapter 1, I listed some of the sins
the occupants of the land of Canaan did. Offering innocent children
alive by fire to please an idol god was only one of the abominations
of the Canaanites. When a nation gets so evil that little
children are harmed (Listen up Pedophiles, pro-abortion supporters,
and modern day abusers of children), God sees all these things and
no one will get by with harming innocent children. The day of
harming children whether spiritually or physically will come to
judgment.
The children of Esau though was not at
that point of no return. They were not perfect and far from
righteous but they had not yet sinned past redemption at least not
all of them were apparently.
- Deuteronomy 2:6 Ye shall buy meat
of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water
of them for money, that ye may drink.
- 7 For the LORD thy
God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth
thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the
LORD thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.
- 8 And when we passed
by from our brethren the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir,
through the way of the plain from Elath, and from Eziongaber, we
turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab.
- 9 And the LORD said
unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in
battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession;
because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a
possession.
God provided land for the children of
Lot as well as Esau and they too were exempt from being taken over
by Israel. They too had not passed the point of no return and were
not under God's judgment.
When God promised the land of Canaan to
Abraham, he first told Abraham that Israel would be in bondage to
Egypt. After four generations they would be brought out and they
would be given the land promised to Abraham at that time. Here is
the reason they could not occupy that land ahead of time. The sins
or iniquity of the people in Canaan was not yet full or had not come
to the point where they could not change.
Here are those words from the Lord to
Abraham:
God is a holy God but He is also a just God
who gives freely His salvation to those that desire to learn of Him
and walk in His ways.
- Deuteronomy 2:10 The Emims dwelt
therein in times past, a people great, and many, and tall, as
the Anakims;
- 11 Which also were
accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabites call them
Emims.
- 12 The Horims also
dwelt in Seir beforetime; but the children of Esau succeeded
them, when they had destroyed them from before them, and dwelt
in their stead; as Israel did unto the land of his possession,
which the LORD gave unto them.
Moab and Esau had to defeat the giants
in the land they occupied years before. These lands were occupied by
very large people who were evil in all their works.
- Deuteronomy 2:13 Now rise up, said
I, and get you over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook
Zered.
- 14 And the space in
which we came from Kadeshbarnea, until we were come over the
brook Zered, was thirty and eight years; until all the
generation of the men of war were wasted out from among the
host, as the LORD sware unto them.
- 15 For indeed the
hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from among
the host, until they were consumed.
- 16 So it came to
pass, when all the men of war were consumed and dead from among
the people,
- 17 That the LORD spake unto me, saying,
- 18 Thou art to pass
over through Ar, the coast of Moab, this day:
- 19 And when thou comest nigh over against the children of Ammon, distress them
not, nor meddle with them: for I will not give thee of the land
of the children of Ammon any possession; because I have given it
unto the children of Lot for a possession.
Ammon was the other descendant of Lot
and their land was off limits to Israel. They too occupied land once
taken from giants.
- Deuteronomy 2:20 (That also was
accounted a land of giants: giants dwelt therein in old time;
and the Ammonites call them Zamzummims;
- 21 A people great,
and many, and tall, as the Anakims; but the LORD destroyed them
before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead:
- 22 As he did to the
children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, when he destroyed the
Horims from before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in
their stead even unto this day:
- 23 And the Avims
which dwelt in Hazerim, even unto Azzah, the Caphtorims, which
came forth out of Caphtor, destroyed them, and dwelt in their
stead.)
It would seem that the Lord fought for
others besides Israel. Esau was a descendant of Abraham and Lot was
Abraham's nephew. God helped them because of faithful Abraham and
because the iniquity of the occupants of their land was full.
- Deuteronomy 2:24 Rise ye up, take
your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have
given into thine hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and
his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.
- 25 This day will I
begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the
nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report
of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.
It should be more fearful of having
enemies that God was helping rather than having an enemy with the
greatest armies, navies and weapons that God was not helping.
- Deuteronomy 2:26 And I sent
messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth unto Sihon king of
Heshbon with words of peace, saying,
- 27 Let me pass
through thy land: I will go along by the high way, I will
neither turn unto the right hand nor to the left.
- 28 Thou shalt sell
me meat for money, that I may eat; and give me water for money,
that I may drink: only I will pass through on my feet;
- 29 (As the children
of Esau which dwell in Seir, and the Moabites which dwell in Ar,
did unto me;) until I shall pass over Jordan into the land which
the LORD our God giveth us.
- 30 But Sihon king of
Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the LORD thy God
hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might
deliver him into thy hand, as appeareth this day.
- 31 And the LORD said
unto me, Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land before
thee: begin to possess, that thou mayest inherit his land.
We see that at first any land of Esau
was off limits but because this king hardened his heart, they lost
their portion to Israel. It could be that this particular branch of
Esau was evil and were totally against God so God allowed this king
to harden his heart and even helped him to do so.
This shows us something. It is not that
God wants to destroy and harden hearts so that he is justified in
the destruction. It is because previously like in the case of
Pharaoh, they resisted the truth so many times that God gives them
over to their evil.
Here is Paul's words on this subject:
- Romans 1:18 For the
wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
- 19 Because that
which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
- 20 For the
invisible things of him from the creation of the world are
clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even
his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
- 21 Because that,
when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were
thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their
foolish heart was darkened.
- 22 Professing
themselves to be wise, they became fools,
- 23 And changed
the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to
corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and
creeping things.
- 24 Wherefore God
also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own
hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
- 25 Who changed
the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the
creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
- 26 For this
cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their
women did change the natural use into that which is against
nature:
- 27 And likewise
also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in
their lust one toward another; men with men working that which
is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of
their error which was meet.
- 28 And even as
they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave
them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not
convenient;
- 29 Being filled
with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness,
maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity;
whisperers,
- 30 Backbiters,
haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil
things, disobedient to parents,
- 31 Without
understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection,
implacable, unmerciful:
- 32 Who knowing
the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are
worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them
that do them.
When we do not want to retain God in
our knowledge, eventually we will be turned over to a reprobate
mindset. This is what happened to the Canaanites, to Pharaoh, and to
this king. It will happen also in the future time of the great
tribulation when many will follow the antichrist instead of the
true Christ.
- 2Thessalonians 2:7 For
the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now
letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
- 8 And then shall
that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the
spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of
his coming:
- 9 Even him,
whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and
signs and lying wonders,
- 10 And with all
deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because
they received not the love of the truth, that they might be
saved.
- 11 And for this
cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should
believe a lie:
- 12 That they all
might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness.
See how dangerous it is to prefer to
believe lies, have teachers that tickle the ears and follow after
those that promise good things rather than hear the truth that will
deliver our souls from evil. We are given up and allowed to be
deceived.
- Deuteronomy 2:32 Then Sihon came
out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz.
- 33 And the LORD our
God delivered him before us; and we smote him, and his sons, and
all his people.
- 34 And we took all
his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the
women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to
remain:
This is where some get confused. There
are times when God spares the women and children but there are times
when He doesn't. There are other times when He will not even spare
the cattle. We can only trust that God knows what He is doing.
Perhaps the evil had spread so much in the genetic makeup of these
people that He had to destroy all of them like in the flood of
Noah's day.
In some instances they weren't allowed
to partake of spoils. Perhaps the spoils were used in gross idolatry
and perhaps the beasts also were defiled. Who knows? God knows
though and that is what we have to consider.
- Deuteronomy 2:35 Only the cattle
we took for a prey unto ourselves, and the spoil of the cities
which we took.
- 36 From Aroer, which
is by the brink of the river of Arnon, and from the city that is
by the river, even unto Gilead, there was not one city too
strong for us: the LORD our God delivered all unto us:
- 37 Only unto the
land of the children of Ammon thou camest not, nor unto any
place of the river Jabbok, nor unto the cities in the mountains,
nor unto whatsoever the LORD our God forbad us.
These people could have profited from
Israel because Israel was commanded to pay for food and water but it
was not to be. In this they did unwisely but it looks as if this
branch of Esau was to the place they could not repent and bore the
judgment of God.
God gives people every chance to
change. In the case of Nineveh, he sent Jonah first to warn them of
God's judgment. In the case of Noah's flood, he preached for years
before the final curtain fell upon the whole world.
Now preachers of truth are getting
smaller in number but there are still many warning against the
onslaught of evil that is prevailing in the world today. I believe
the United States is in great danger of God's judgment. We have lost
the fear of God in this country. The words of Jesus though are still
true, "Repent, the kingdom of Heaven is at hand."
DC
Deuteronomy
3
|
|