READ IT! - Introduction to Deuteronomy 11-17

Readings for this week

Monday: Deuteronomy 11

Tuesday: Deuteronomy 12

Wednesday: Deuteronomy 13

Thursday: Deuteronomy 14

Friday: Deuteronomy 15

Saturday: Deuteronomy 16

Sunday: Deuteronomy 17

Introduction to Deuteronomy 11-17

Chapter 11

The words of Moses: You have seen all that the LORD has done. Keep these commands so that you may live long in the land. There is a blessing and a curse.

Chapter 12

The words of Moses: Destroy the high places where the nations worship their gods. You shall bring your offerings at the place that the LORD will choose.

Chapter 13

The words of Moses: If a prophet or anyone else entices you away from the LORD they must be put to death. If a town has turned away it must be destroyed.

Chapter 14

The words of Moses: You may eat animals with cloven hooves that chew the cud. Bring a tithe from your fields to eat before the LORD and for the Levites.

Chapter 15

The words of Moses: Every seven years you shall cancel debts. Hebrew slaves shall go free in the seventh year. Set apart every firstborn male animal.

Chapter 16

The words of Moses: Celebrate the Passover in the month of Abib. Celebrate the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Booths. Appoint judges in all your towns.

Chapter 17

The words of Moses: Anyone who breaks the covenant shall be put to death. Go to the priests with hard decisions. Appoint the king that the LORD chooses.

Deuteronomy places strict rules on the kings of Israel.

The king must not be a foreigner.
The king must not have many horses.
The king must not have many wives.
The king must not have much silver or gold.
The king must carry a copy of the Law with him to read every day.

Why all the rules for Israel’s kings when Israel had no king at the time?

Possibly because by the time the scribes finished putting all these laws together into one unified "Law of Moses," so much time had passed that Israel actually did have kings at that point, so special emphasis may have been placed on these kingly commands because of this.

We see later how Israel's kings pretty much broke all these rules all of the time.