Jo’s Place

Regulations for Sexual Purity “Suppose a man marries a woman, but after sleeping with her, he turns against her …and publicly accuses her of shameful conduct, saying,… ‘When I married this woman, I discovered she was not a virgin.’  Then, the woman’s father and mother must bring the proof of her virginity, to the elders, as they hold court, at the town gate.  Her father must say to them,… ‘I gave my daughter to this man, to be his wife, and now he has turned against her.  He has accused her of shameful conduct, saying,… “I discovered that your daughter was not a virgin.”  But here is the proof, of my daughter’s virginity.’  Then, they must spread her bed sheet before the elders.  The elders must then take the man …and punish him.  They must also fine him 100 pieces of silver, which he must pay, to the woman’s father, because he publicly accused a virgin of Israel,    of shameful conduct.  The woman will then remain the man’s wife, …and he may never divorce her.  “But, suppose the man’s

​ Additional Regulations from Moses “If someone has committed a crime, worthy of death, and is executed, and hung on a tree, the body must not remain hanging, from the tree,    overnight.  You must bury the body that same day, for anyone, who is hung, is cursed, in the sight of God.  In this way, you will prevent the defilement, of the land the Lord, your God, is giving you, as your special possession… “If you see your neighbor’s ox, or sheep, or goat wandering away, don’t ignore your responsibility.  Take it back to its owner.  If its owner does not live nearby, or you don’t know who the owner is, take it to your place, and keep it until the owner comes looking for it.    Then you must return it.  Do the same, if you find your neighbor’s donkey, or clothing, or anything else, that your neighbor loses.  Don’t ignore your responsibility.  “If you see that your neighbor’s donkey or ox has collapsed on the road, do not look the other way.  Go and help your neighbor, to get it back on its

The Rights of the Firstborn Son …and Dealing with a Rebellious Son Deuteronomy 21:15–21 (NLT) “Suppose a man has two wives, but he loves one and not the other, and both have given him sons.  And suppose the firstborn son is the son of the wife he does not love.  When the man divides his inheritance, he may not give the larger inheritance to his younger son, the son of the wife he loves, as if he were the firstborn son.  He must recognize the rights of his oldest son, the son of the wife he does not love, by giving him a double portion.  He is the first son of his father’s virility, and the rights of the firstborn belong to him.  Now, “Suppose a man has a stubborn and rebellious son, who will not obey his father or mother, even though they discipline him.  In such a case, the father and mother must take the son to the elders, as they hold court, at the town gate.  The parents must say to the elders, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious …and refuses to obey.  He is a glutton and

Marriage to a Captive Woman In the book of Deuteronomy Chapter 21: verses 10–14, God instructs the Israelites regarding the treatment of women captives. “Suppose you go out to war, against your enemies …and the Lord, your God, hands them over to you, …and you take some of them as captives.  And suppose you see, among the captives, a beautiful woman, and you are attracted to her …and want to marry her.  If this happens, you may take her to your home, where she must shave her head, cut her nails, and change the clothes she was wearing, when she was captured.  She will stay in your home, but let her mourn, for her father and mother, for a full month.  Then you may marry her, and you will be her husband …and she will be your wife.  But if you marry her and she does not please you, you must let her go free.  You may not sell her or treat her as a slave, for you have humiliated her.  ——————————————- Unfortunately, human trafficking, sexual slavery, and many types of bondage and coerced labor

More Laws of    Warfare Sometimes, Moses’ instructions are a bit disjointed… but God always has a purpose. I n Deuteronomy Chapter 20: verses 19-20… Moses talks about trees…. and God is giving us a lesson on the environment. “When you besiege a city for a long time, making war against it, in order to take it, you shall not destroy its tree, by wielding an axe against them.  You may eat from them, but you shall not cut them down.  Are the trees in the field human, that they should be besieged by you?  Only the trees, that you know are  not  trees for food, you may destroy and cut down, that you may build siegeworks, against the city, that makes war with you, until it falls. ——————————————- God has clearly placed humans in a position of responsibility over the earth and its creatures.  Genesis 2:15 says “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden …to work it and take care of it.” So, we recognize that all created things belong to God …and that we are accountable to Him,

Atonement for Unsolved Murders “If, in the land, that the LORD, your God, is giving to you, to possess, someone is found slain, …lying in the open country, and it is not known who killed him, …then your elders and your judges shall come out, …and they shall measure the distance to the surrounding cities.  And the elders, of the city, that is nearest, to the slain man, shall take a heifer, that has never been worked, and that has not pulled in a yoke.  And the elders, of that city, shall bring the heifer down, to a valley with running water, which is neither plowed nor sown, …and they shall break the heifer’s neck, there in the valley.  Then, the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come forward, …for the LORD, your God, has chosen them, to minister to Him …and to bless, in the name of the LORD, …and by their word, every dispute and every assault shall be settled.  And, all the elders of that city, nearest to the slain man, shall wash their hands, over the heifer, whose neck was broken, in

More Laws Concerning Warfare “When you draw near to a city, to fight against it, offer terms of peace to it.   And if it responds to you, peaceably …and it opens to you, then all the people, who are found in it, shall do forced labor, for you …and shall serve you.  But if it makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it.  And when the LORD, your God, gives it into your hand, you shall put all its males to the sword, …but the women and the little ones, the livestock, and everything else in the city, …all its spoil, you shall take as plunder, for yourselves.  And you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the LORD your God has given to you.  Thus, you shall do, to all the cities, that are very far from you, which are not cities of the nations here.  But, in the cities of these peoples, that the LORD, your God, is giving you, for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes, but you shall devote them, to complete destruction, …the Hittit

Laws Concerning Warfare “When you go out to war, against your enemies, and see horses and chariots …and an army, which is larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them, for the LORD, your God, is with you,  (He is the One)  who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.  And when you draw near to the battle, the priest shall come forward and speak to the people …and shall say to them,  ‘Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle, against your enemies: …let not your heart faint.  Do not fear or panic …or be in dread of them, for the LORD, your God, … it is He who goes with you, to fight for you, against your enemies, …to give you the victory.’  Then, the officers shall speak to the people, saying,  ‘Is there any man who has built a new house …and has not dedicated it?  Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man dedicates it.  And is there any man who has planted a vineyard …and has not enjoyed its fruit?  Let him go back to his house, lest h

A Concern for Justice God’s instructions concerning justice continue, in the Book of Deuteronomy Chapter 19: verses 14–21 (in the NLT)… “When you arrive in the land, that the Lord, your God, is giving to you, as your special possession, you must never steal anyone’s land, by moving the boundary markers, that your ancestors set up , o mark their property.  “You must not convict anyone, of a crime, on the testimony of only one witness.  The facts, of the case, must be established, by the testimony, of two or three witnesses.  “If a malicious witness comes forward …and accuses someone of a crime, then both the accuser and accused must appear before the Lord, by coming to the priests and judges, in office at that time.  The judges must investigate the case thoroughly.  If the accuser has brought false charges, against his fellow Israelite, you must impose, on the accuser, the sentence he intended, for the other person.  In this way, you will purge such evil, from among you.  Then the rest