Thinking on Scripture with Dr. Steven R. Cook

In this pericope, Moses explains why he was not permitted to enter the land of Canaan (Deut 3:23-27), and how Joshua was selected by God as Israel’s new theocratic administrator (Deut 3:28-29).

In this pericope, Moses recounts the historical defeat of Og (Deut 3:1-3), reveals the territory obtained by their victory (Deut 3:4-11), and explains how the land east of the Jordan was allotted to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh (Deut 3:12-22).

The Central Idea of the Text is that Jephthah and the Gileadites fought against the Ephraimites and killed 42,000 men.  Subsequent to Jephthah, God raised Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon as judges in Israel.

The Central Idea of the Text is that God empowered Jephthah to defeat the Ammonites; however, before the battle, Jephthah made an unnecessary and thoughtless vow which his daughter had to fulfill.

Jephthah was a great warrior, but he was born the son of a prostitute (Judg. 11:1), and was rejected by his brothers for something he could not control (Judg. 11:2).  Jephthah’s destiny as a leader in Israel was partly shaped by the abuse of his brothers.  Like David (1 Sam. 22:2), Jephthah became the leader of social outcasts like himself (Judg. 11:3). When Israel was attacked by the Ammonites, they needed a great warrior, so they called for Jephthah (Judg. 11:4-6).  Jephthah accepted the offer to be leader in Gilead and to fight and save the people who originally rejected him (Judg. 11:7-11), displaying himself as more righteous than those who called him.  After accepting Israel’s offer to be the leader in Gilead, Jephthah sought a peaceful solution to the problem through diplomacy (Judg. 11:12, 14).  Jephthah was a man of faith (Heb. 11:32), and the moral authority of his diplomacy rested upon the acts of God as revealed in Scripture (Judg. 11: 9, 21, 23–24).  However, the Ammonites rejected Jephthah’s diplomacy (Judg. 11:28), and the biblical basis for his authority, and chose war (Judg. 11:32-33).  The king of Ammon did not care about truth or justice, because it did not serve his agenda.

Though the idea of holy war can be difficult for us to digest (which in this context includes putting children to death), several things should be considered. First, the command was from the Lord Himself (Deut 2:34; 7:1-2; 20:17). Because God is omniscient (Psa 139:1-6), He knew the situation completely. Because the Lord is perfectly righteous (Gen 18:25; Psa 7:11), His command was just and fair. And, because God is gracious and patient (Psa 103:8), His command to execute the Canaanites was not reckless. Divine judgment meant God had determined the Canaanite culture was not reformable.

The main point of this pericope is that God began to deliver Israel’s enemies into their hands to defeat them as they advanced toward the Promised Land.

The main point of this pericope details Israel’s departure from Kadesh-barnea and the journey through the Transjordan which they conquered and partly settled. After the rebellion and defeat of the Israelites (Deut 1:1-46), the nation “circled Mount Seir for many days” (Deu 2:1b). This included the thirty-eight years of wilderness wandering which was God’s judgment upon the exodus generation of Israelites who rebelled against the Lord. God then ordered His people to “turn north” and begin to head toward the land of Canaan (Deut 2:3).

Both Tola and Jair were judges in Israel, and it appears their leadership produced stability and blessing for 45 years (Judg. 10:1-5).  During the time of peace, Israel failed to grow spiritually, and eventually turned away from the Lord and served the Baals and Ashtaroth, which were the pagan deities of Aram, Sidon, Moab, the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines (Judg. 10:6).  God punished Israel for their idolatry (Judg. 10:7-9).  But Israel cried out to the Lord for deliverance (Judg. 10:10; 15), and though He initially answered them with a rebuke, citing many past deliverances (Judg. 10:11-14), eventually their misery moved Him to act (Judg. 10:16).

The main point of this pericope is that the exodus generation of Israelites failed to obey God’s command to take possession of the land, and because of their unbelief, God withheld the blessing. However, though they failed to live by faith, God's logistical grace was still in operation as He provided for all their needs (food, water, clothing, etc.). God was faithful to His word, even though the exodus generation was not. Moses' history lesson was intended to show the second generation of Israelites the failure of their parents and set the stage for the instruction to follow. Moses wanted his readers to live by faith and pursue righteousness, and if they did, God would would bless them as they moved forward and took the land of Canaan.