Contemplative Bible Reading

Deuteronomy 22:1-3 (New International Version)

¹ If you see your brother’s ox or sheep straying, do not ignore it but be sure to take it back to him. ² If the brother does not live near you or if you do not know who he is, take it home with you and keep it until he comes looking for it. Then give it back to him. ³ Do the same if you find your brother’s donkey or his cloak or anything he loses. Do not ignore it.

I don’t know how many times I have heard, “Finders keepers, loser weepers.” Well, it ins’t biblical. I know this is in the old law, but I don’t think it was ever repealed in the New Testament. I find it to be a good principle of a loving person.

If you find something belonging to your neighbor, take it back to him.

Also note another suggestion here: do not ignore it.

Oooo, turning away and pretending that I didn’t see it, that isn’t what God asks us to do. The “do not ignore it” is repeated. I guess that means it is pretty darn important.

Deuteronomy 6:20-25 (New International Version)

²⁰ In the future, when your son asks you, “What is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the LORD our God has commanded you?” ²¹ tell him: “We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. ²² Before our eyes the LORD sent miraculous signs and wonders—great and terrible—upon Egypt and Pharaoh and his whole household. ²³ But he brought us out from there to bring us in and give us the land that he promised on oath to our forefathers. ²⁴ The LORD commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear the LORD our God, so that we might always prosper and be kept alive, as is the case today. ²⁵ And if we are careful to obey all this law before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us, that will be our righteousness.”

In these verses, the people were preparing to enter the promised land. Moses was addressing them for the last time before he died. Moses anticipated the day when children would ask their parents a simple question that children ask their parents daily:

Why?

Why obey all these laws? Why do this? What is the meaning?

The simple answer comes in verse 24 in two parts:

1. Prosperity
2. Life

These people were slaves for most of 400 years in Egypt. Now they were free. What were they do to? How were they to live? God’s laws in the Old Testament taught them how to treat mildew and open sores, how to rest the farm lands, and how to loan and borrow funds. God also taught them about loving one another, being faithful to your spouse, and avoiding incest. God  taught the people these and many other things that led to prosperity and life.

Let’s consider the exhortations we find in the New Testament. Love your neighbor, treat your spouse as you would treat yourself, raise your children in the Lord, and forgive. We could live hateful and mean lives, but who wants to do that? We could live dependent on drugs and gambling and other vices, but who wants to do that? Have you ever met someone who was physically dependent on a thing and happy? Have you ever met someone who happily divorced his wife and happily lost the right to hug his child? Sigh.

Prosperity and life. God still shows us the way to them. Thank you God.

Numbers 33:55 (New International Version)

⁵⁵ ” ‘But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live.

God is talking to His people just before they enter the land He promised them. God wants them to drive out the people who live there now. He warns them not to tolerate living with these people as they will be

barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides

One example of a “barb” is that hook pointing in the opposite direction of the main point on a fish hook. The barb is what “hooks” the fish.

I cannot imagine how it would feel to have one of these barbs hooked in my eye. The Contemporary English Version gives a little different, though just as painful, description:

⁵⁵If you don’t force out all the people there, they will be like pointed sticks in your eyes and thorns in your back.

Good grief, how would a person not do everything they could to avoid such? Well, first they would have to disbelieve that God would do what he told them. These people must have disbelieved because they didn’t drive out all the people. They left some of the people, and yes, God met his promise – they were barbs in their eyes.

Okay, that is the Old Testament history. What about today? Are we to “drive out” people from our lives so they won’t be barbs in our eyes? I think not as that would leave us with no one to show Jesus to. Actually, I may be the person driven out of the lives of others as I am not perfect either. Hmmm, let’s reconsider.

I know people who are times like thorns in my back and sides. I wish I could drive them out of my life, but that wouldn’t be charitable. I think a good path would be to stop allowing them to be thorns in my life. I may do this by living in a way that thorns don’t stick me. I won’t wear emotional clothes that are prone to tear from thorns. I can let things pass me without sticking. This is called grace and forgiveness, and if I don’t know how to live this way I can look to the life of Jesus for a good example.

Numbers 14:5-10 (New International Version)

⁵ Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there. ⁶ Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes ⁷ and said to the entire Israelite assembly, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. ⁸ If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. ⁹ Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”

¹⁰ But the whole assembly talked about stoning them.

The twelve spies had visited the land that God promised his people. The spies agreed that the land was bountiful. Ten of the twelve, however, were afraid of the people who lived in the land as “they were giants.” The people’s leaders, Moses and Aaron, and the two spies, Joshua and Caleb, spoke to the people. They concluded with:

…the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.

The people

…talked about stoning them.

I’d say that means they were unconvinced.

It seems that it is much easier to convince people of bad things than it is to convince them of God’s guiding hands. These people had seen amazing things done by God while and since leaving Egypt. Remember all those plagues? Remember the parting of the sea? These people experienced those events.

Still, a majority report of gloom and doom prevailed.

Fear of man and forgetting God are powerful forces.

Numbers 22:21-31 (New International Version)

²¹ Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab. ²² But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the LORD stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. ²³ When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, she turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat her to get her back on the road.

²⁴ Then the angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path between two vineyards, with walls on both sides. ²⁵ When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat her again.

²⁶ Then the angel of the LORD moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left. ²⁷ When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat her with his staff. ²⁸ Then the LORD opened the donkey’s mouth, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”

²⁹ Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.”

³⁰ The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?”
“No,” he said.

³¹ Then the LORD opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.

This is one of my favorite histories from the Old Testament – Balaam, his donkey, and the angel of the Lord.

I hate to have general conclusions about things, but sometimes I do. It seems that animals can see angels. Look at the verses again.

verse 23: When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD…

verse 25: When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD…

verse 27: When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD…

Maybe this is a one-of-a-kind event. Maybe animals don’t normally see angels of the Lord. I tend to think that animals do see angels. Here is why:

The donkey didn’t speak until the Lord opened its mouth (verse 28).

Balaam didn’t see the angel until the Lord opened his eyes (verse 31).

I don’t see where the Lord did anything to allow the donkey to see the angel. The donkey just saw the angel all the time.

So maybe animals see angels all the time. Maybe animals, like the donkey here, wonder why people don’t see angels all the time. It is something I consider from time to time. God is magnificent, amazing, and a wonder to me. He does things that at times don’t make any sense to me.

Numbers 6:22-27

²² The LORD said to Moses, ²³ “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

²⁴ ” ‘ “The LORD bless you
and keep you;

²⁵ the LORD make his face shine upon you
and be gracious to you;

²⁶ the LORD turn his face toward you
and give you peace.” ‘

²⁷ “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

I struggle to find anything to comment on these verses. I read the blessings over and over and I find great peace in them. I hear the strains of the hymns from these verses. There are several different versions of these verses put to music. Here is one, and here is another.

This is the kind of reading I like to hear in group worship settings.

Job 35:5-6 (New International Version)

⁵ Look up at the heavens and see;
gaze at the clouds so high above you.

⁶ If you sin, how does that affect him?
If your sins are many, what does that do to him?

One of Job’s associates is speaking to Job. Job’s associates meant well, but didn’t do him much good in his situation. Still, they have words of wisdom now and then.

Such is the case here with Elihu. He encourages us all to look at the majesty of God’s creation and see the majesty of God. If I transgress against God, will I change the heavens, the sky, the clouds? Will I hurt God?

I can hurt people I know by doing wrong. I can bring them disappointment and emotional and physical suffering by doing wrong. Sometimes, we mistakenly think that since we can do that to people we can also do it to God.I can hear the buzzer sounding, “incorrect.”

Still “more wrong” is the idea that if I want to hurt others, I should hurt myself. I suppose this is one of the places where we get the old saying, “two wrongs don’t make a right.” That silly old saying isn’t so silly. The foundation of the problem wanting to hurt others. If I lead my life wanting to hurt others, well there isn’t much hope for good to come from anything I do.

Leviticus 12:6-8 (New International Version)

⁶ ” ‘When the days of her purification for a son or daughter are over, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting a year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a dove for a sin offering. ⁷ He shall offer them before the LORD to make atonement for her, and then she will be ceremonially clean from her flow of blood.
” ‘These are the regulations for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl. ⁸ If she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean.’ “

Per the Old Testament law, a woman who gave birth would come to the temple and bring an offering to become pure again. Verse 6 states that the offering would be

a year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a dove for a sin offering.

If, however, the woman and her husband were poor, verse 8 tells us that they could bring

two doves or two young pigeons

instead of a lamb and a bird.

Let’s move forward a few centuries and read about a couple who recently gave birth to a boy. The couple came to Jerusalem…

to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.”

This couple was poor as they offered the pair of birds instead of a lamb and a bird.

What verse is this? Luke 2:24. The couple was Joseph and Mary, and the child was Jesus. You see, Joseph and Mary were poor. They made the offering of the poor. Jesus, their son, was born to a poor yet righteous family. Jesus spent his life with the poor.

Jesus wouldn’t fit in my neighborhood – middle-class America. I don’t know if anyone at my church, again middle-class America,  would notice Jesus if he walked in the door.

Exodus 23:33 (New International Version)

Do not let them live in your land, or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.”

God is speaking to His people as they are freed from Egypt and journeying to the land He promised them. He first tells them that He will drive out the people who now live in the land. Then He tells them the words in this verse. He chides:

Don’t live next to them. Don’t watch them worship their Gods. Their worship will be a snare to you.

One definition of “snare” that I found this morning is:

Something that serves to entangle the unwary.

A couple of points. First, as followers of Christ today, Christians are not encouraged to drive out from among us those who do not yet follow Christ. Where would we live? How would we drive out people? How would we show them the love of Christ if we drove them away? No, we live among people who have yet to commit to following Christ.

Second, as we live among people who don’t yet follow Christ, is their worship still a snare to us? I think it can be. People who don’t yet follow Christ worship things like money, power, sex, drugs, hatred, and the list goes on.

I have seen unwary Christians entangled by a few of these things. I have stepped into the snare too many times myself.

The things that the world worships are all around us. These things are near because the world enjoys them so much, so why not keep them near and easy to grasp? These are still snares to us. I thank God for his assistance in helping me be wary of the snares and avoid them. I also thank God for His grace,  forgiveness, and assistance in extricating myself from the snares when I entangle myself in them.

Exodus 40:12-16 (New International Version)

¹² “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and wash them with water. ¹³ Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest. ¹⁴ Bring his sons and dress them in tunics. ¹⁵ Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue for all generations to come.” ¹⁶ Moses did everything just as the LORD commanded him.

When Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt there were about a million people, maybe two million. Shortly after leaving Egypt, God had Moses anoint the priests to perform the special acts of worship at the tabernacle. As shown above, Aaron was anointed as were two of his sons.

There were three priests for over one million people.

I did the division and lost track of the zeros. Something like three one thousandths of one percent of the people were priests. That is minuscule. Imagine the weight of responsibility. Imagine the possibility of arrogance that comes with being so elite.