Deuteronomy 24 Devotional
by Pastor Mark Hudson

This first section, vs. 1-4, is not about divorce and remarriage per se, but about a specific circumstance that either came up or was anticipated.  Reflect that already divorce and remarriage was a topic of legislation and part of life before they set foot in Canaan.  Here the topic is one specific aspect of what could happen.  What is prohibited is, after a man divorces his wife and she remarries, she may not marry her first husband if the second husband dies or divorces her.  Why?  She has been defiled and to marry her first husband would be an abomination before the Lord.  We are not told how she became defiled in this instance.

Remember that this is a time when Moses is reminding them of important laws as they enter the land.  One of our challenges is to understand why these sins are wrong and how to apply them.  We strive to get behind the laws so to speak.  If I know why a law was enacted, when circumstances change, I will know how to either apply the law or replace the law.

The next verse, reminds us of the importance of the first year of marriage, adjusting to what changes occur when a couple first lives together. There might be an economic angle to this as well. The wife would be a widow if her husband dies in battle.  There is both a concern for the wife and an appreciation of what society can do to strengthen marriages.  They needed and deserved time to be together.

Verse 6 shows compassion of the poor and attempts to compensate the poor who must borrow money.  The lender could not take any millstone used for everyday baking.  If the millstone or upper millstone was used as collateral, this would prevent the family from making bread, something they needed to sustain themselves.

The next verse gives the death penalty for selling a fellow Israelite into slavery to a foreign nation.  This was so serious, the evil had to be purged “from your midst.”   The next section on leprosy is a call to follow the instructions from the priests.  There is not teaching on leprosy but rather an exhortation to obey what the priests say to do when one contacts leprosy.  Miriam in Numbers 12:9-16 is referenced.

In verses 10 – 13, these verses attempt to maintain dignity and respect for the someone who must borrow money. If a person borrowed money but had to put down collateral, the person who loaned the money had to wait outside the home of the person collecting his own collateral, i.e., something of value.   This preserved the dignity of the man who would decide what to give up until he paid the money back.  If a person was so poor that a person’s coat was given, the coat which was also used as covers at night, had to be returned at night.

In verses 14-15, both fellow Israelites and sojourners were to be treated the same.  No one would be oppressed just because they were poor.  The poor were to be paid that day since they needed the money that day or the next to presumably buy food.  God listens to the poor.  We and they do not want the poor to cry against us and “be guilty of sin.”  Verse 16 is a theme that is repeated often in the Bible.  People are guilty for their own sins not their parents or children’s sins.

Verses 17- 22 has been fascinating for me.  We see God’s heart in these verses.  Notice the repetition of the phrase “the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow in vs. 17, 19, 20, and 21.  They were reminded they were slaves in Egypt in v. 18 and 22.  This was a command in v. 18 and 22.  They were to think about these sojourners, orphans, and widows in their daily lives and do what they could to help them.  The Israelites were 40 years removed from slavery where few people showed them any kindness.   Their time in Egypt should have made them more compassionate.

What were they commanded?  First, justice must be blind dealing with these three groups.  God cares about them and watches over them.  The people of Israel were warned that if they treated the sojourner, orphans, or widows unjustly God will hear their cry.

God expected Israel to allow the sojourner, orphan, and widow to work to get grain, olives, and grapes that were left over from the reapers.  I would imagine the godly landowners were conscientious about their duty to the poor.  Maybe others were not that way.  But this compassion was commanded and built into the way they farmed and lived.  They were always looking out for the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow.

Remembering they were slaves in Egypt should have produced good fruit.  Maybe this group standing before Moses did not experience hunger and deprivation, but their parents did.  They came from slavery which is not flattering but useful in terms of developing compassion toward others, understanding toward the forgotten, and reminded them of God’s concern for them when they were enslaved (Ex 2:23-25). This God cared about the neglected, those without wealth or acceptance in society.  God looked after and listened to the complaints of the poor.  Justice was commanded and demanded.

Lord, You are such a powerful yet compassionate God.  That combination is not seen in people or the “gods” that unbelievers worship.  You demand of us compassion for those who live on the fringes of society.  We have not done too well in that regard.  We look down on people who speak a different language, eat strange foods, have darker skin that we do, or share a different cultural and religious background.  Soften our hearts to help the poor.  Help us to promote justice by drawing closer to the God of justice.  Most of all, help us to see how we have received grace, not justice, in the gospel.  We were the ones pitied by God and He forgave us through Jesus’ life, death, burial, and resurrection.  In Christ’s name that gives us grace and mercy not justice.  Amen.