Schoolmaster to Christ
DEUTERONOMY CHAPTER 21
Schoolmaster to Christ
DEUTERONOMY CHAPTER 21
Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 21 (KJV)
"If one be found slain in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath slain him; then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth, and they shall measure unto the cities that are round about him that is slain; and it shall be, that the city which is next unto the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take an heifer, which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawn in the yoke; and the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a rough valley which is neither eared nor sown and shall strike off the heifer's neck there in the valley. And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them the Lord thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the Lord, and by their word shall every controversy and every stroke be tried. And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley; and they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it. Be merciful, O Lord, unto thy people Israel whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood to thy people of Israel's charge. And the blood shall be forgiven them. So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the Lord" (vv. 1-9).
A most interesting passage of Holy Scripture now lies open before us and claims our attention. A sin is committed, a man is found slain in the land; but no one knows anything about it, no one can tell whether it is murder or manslaughter, or who committed the deed. It lies beyond the range of human knowledge. And yet, there it is, an undeniable fact. Sin has been committed and it lies as a stain on the Lord's land, and man is incompetent to deal with it.
What then is to be done? The glory of God and the purity of His land must be maintained. Jehovah knows all about it, and He alone can deal with it; and truly His mode of dealing with it is full of precious teaching.
First of all, the elders and judges appear on the scene. The claims of truth and righteousness must be duly attended to; justice and judgment must be maintained. This is a cardinal truth running throughout the Word of God. Sin must be judged before sins can be forgiven or the sinner justified. Before the heavenly voice of mercy can be heard, justice must be satisfied, the throne of God vindicated, and His Name glorified. Grace must reign through righteousness. Blessed be God that it is so. What a glorious truth for all who have taken their true place as sinners. God has been glorified regarding the question of sin, and therefore in perfect righteousness He can pardon and justify the sinner.
However, out attention will be confined to the passage now before us. In it we find the great foundation truth of atonement presented, with special reference to Israel. The death of Christ is seen here in its two grand aspects: the expression of Man's guilt, and the display of God's grace, the former we have in the man found slain in the field; the latter in the heifer slain in the rough valley. The elders and judges find out the city nearest to the slain man; and nothing can avail for that city save the blood of a spotless victim – the blood of the One who was slain at the guilty city of Jerusalem.
The student will note that the moment the claims of justice were met by the death of the victim, a new element is introduced into the scene. "The priests the sons of Levi shall come near." This is grace acting on the blessed ground of righteousness. The priests are the channels of grace, as the judges are the guardians of righteousness. How perfect, how beautiful is Scripture in every page, every paragraph, and every sentence. It was not until the blood was shed that the ministers of grace could present themselves. The heifer beheaded in the valley changed the aspect of things completely. "The priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them the Lord thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the Lord; and by their word [blessed fact for Israel; blessed fact for every true believer] shall every controversy and every stroke be tried" (emphasis added). All is to be settled on the glorious and eternal principle of grace reigning through righteousness.
We must not attempt to interfere with the primary application of all those striking institutions that come under our notice in this profound and marvelous book of Deuteronomy. No doubt, there are precious lessons for us; but we may rest assured that the true way in which to understand and appreciate those lessons is to see their true and proper bearing. For instance, how precious, how full of consolation, the fact that it is by the Word of the minister of grace that every controversy and every stroke is to be tried, for repentant Israel then, and for every repentant soul now. Do we lose any of the deep blessedness of this by seeing and understanding the proper application of the Scripture? No, far from it, the true secret of profiting by any special passage of the Word of God is to understand its true scope and bearing.
"And all the elders of that city that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley."1 "I will wash my hands in innocency; and so will I compass thine altar." The true place to wash the hands is where the blood of atonement has forever expiated our guilt.
"And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it. Be merciful, O Lord, unto thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge. and the blood shall be forgiven them."
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." "Unto you, first, God having raised up his Son Jesus sent him to bless you, by turning away every one of you from his iniquities."
In a special way, verses 10-17 bear on Israel's relationship to Jehovah. We will not dwell on it here. Throughout the pages of the prophets, the student will find numerous references to this subject in which the Holy Spirit makes touching appeals to the conscience of the nation – appeals grounded on the marvelous fact of the relationship into which He had brought them to Himself, but in which they had so signally and grievously failed. Israel has proved an unfaithful wife, and, in consequence thereof, has been set aside.
Verses 18-21 of chapter 21, record the case of "a stubborn and rebellious son." Here again we have Israel viewed from another standpoint. It is the apostate generation for which there is no forgiveness.
"If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them; then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; and they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard. And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die; so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear and fear."
The student may be interested in contrasting the solemn action of law and government in the case of the rebellious son, with the lovely and familiar parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. We will not dwell on it here, much as we would delight to do so. It is marvelous to think that it is the same God Who speaks and acts in Deuteronomy 21 and in Luke 15. But how different the action and style. Under the law, the father is called on to lay hold of his son, bringing him forth to be stoned. Under grace, the father runs to meet the returning son; falls on his neck and kisses him; clothes him in the best robe, puts a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet; has the fatted calf killed for him; seats him at the table with himself, and makes the house ring with the joy that fills his own heart at getting back the wandering spendthrift.
What a striking contrast. In Deuteronomy we see the hand of God in righteous government, executing judgment on the rebellious. In Luke 15 we see the heart of God pouring itself out in soul-subduing tenderness on the repentant one, giving him sweet assurance that it is His own deep joy to get back His lost one. The persistent rebel meets the stone of judgment; the returning penitent meets the kiss of love.
But we close this lesson by calling attention to the last verse of the 21st chapter. It is referred to in a remarkable way by the inspired apostle, in Galatians 3, "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree."
This reference is full of interest and value, not only because it presents the precious grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in making Himself a curse for us in order that the blessing of Abraham might come on sinful Gentiles; but also because it furnishes a striking illustration of the way in which the Holy Spirit puts His seal on the writings of Moses in general, and on Deuteronomy in particular. All Scripture hangs together so perfectly that if one part be touched we mar the integrity of the whole. The same Spirit breathes in the writings of Moses, in the pages of the prophets, in the four evangelists, in the Acts, in the apostolic epistles general and particular, and in that most profound and precious section that closes God's Volume. We deem it our sacred duty and high privilege to press this weighty fact on all with whom we come in contact. Therefore, we earnestly entreat the student to give it serious attention, to hold it fast and bear a steady testimony to it, in this day of carnal laxity, cold indifference and hostility.
