Well, you can turn to Deuteronomy chapter 15 as we continue in the largest exhortation in the book, which takes up chapters 5 to chapter 28. And basically what you have is an emphasis on loyalty to God's law. foundational to that is the Ten Commandments in Deuteronomy chapter 5, and so the recurring emphasis is to be obedient unto the Lord, and then there are various pieces of legislation along the way, and tonight in chapter 15 we have laws concerning debt, slaves, and firstborn. So I'll read beginning in chapter 15 at verse 1.

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 15

At the end of every seven years, you shall grant a release of debts. And this is the form of the release. Every creditor who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it. He shall not require it of his neighbor or of his brother, because it is called the Lord's release.

Of a foreigner, you may require it, but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother, except when there may be no poor among you. For the Lord will greatly bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, only if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord your God to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today. For the Lord your God will bless you just as he promised you. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow.

You shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you. If there is among you a poor man of your brethren within any of the gates in your land, which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs. Beware lest there be a wicked thought in your heart saying, the seventh year, the year of release is at hand. And your eye be evil against your poor brother, and you give him nothing.

And he cry out to the Lord against you, and it becomes sin among you. You shall surely give to him, and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him. Because for this thing, the Lord your God will bless you in all your works, and in all to which you put your hand. For the poor will never cease from the land.

Therefore I command you saying, you shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy in your land. "'If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, "'is sold to you and serves you six years, "'then in the seventh year, "'you shall let him go free from you. "'And when you send him away free from you, "'you shall not let him go away empty-handed. "'You shall supply him liberally from your flock, "'from your threshing floor, and from your winepress.

"'From what the Lord your God has blessed you with, "'you shall give to him. "'You shall remember that you were a slave "'in the land of Egypt, "'and the Lord your God redeemed you. "'Therefore I command you this thing today. "'And if it happens that he says to you, "'I will not go away from you "'because he loves you and your house, "'since he prospers with you, "'then you shall take an awl "'and thrust it through his ear to the door, "'and he shall be your servant forever.' Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.

It shall not seem hard to you when you send him away free from you, for he has been worth a double-hired servant in serving you six years. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all that you do. All the firstborn males that come from your herd and your flock, you shall sanctify to the Lord your God. You shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock.

You and your household shall eat it before the Lord your God year by year in the place which the Lord chooses. But if there is a defect in it, if it is lame or blind or has any serious defect, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. You may eat it within your gates. The unclean and the clean person alike may eat it as if it were a gazelle or a deer.

Only you shall not eat its blood. You shall pour it on the ground like water. Amen. Well,

Introduction

as we come to this particular passage, we see, as I said, laws concerning debt, specifically in verses 1 to 11. In verses 1 to 6, we see the emphasis on the sabbatical year. And then 7 to 11, it's not almsgiving that's in view, but loans that are to be paid back. So laws concerning debt in verses 1 to 11, the release of slaves in verses 12 to 18, and then finally the sacrifice of the firstborn in verses 19 to 23.

Legislation which occurs prior to this and in many ways we see a connection between chapters 14 and 15. So in chapter 14 the firstborn of 1423 gives way to the legislation in chapter 15. As well the triennial tithes which bring aid to the poor in chapter 14 leads to this further legislation concerning the poor in Israel. So first we'll look at the law concerning debt in verses 1 to 11.

Law Concerning Debt: Sabbatical Year

Notice in verse 1, at the end of every seven years, this is called the sabbatical year, it's not the jubilee year, that's after seven periods of sevens, or in the 49th year. And so this was a requirement imposed by God in Exodus chapter 23, and then you see it as well in Leviticus chapter 25, verses 1 to 7. So the requirement of the land, and we see specifically to benefit the poor in Old Covenant Israel. The poor was a community concern.

It wasn't simply a government program of social welfare. I've got water here, thank you. It wasn't simply imposed from the government, but it was God's inculcation amongst his people of a heart disposition, an internal disposition, wherein they actually cared for the poor among them, and they put their money where their mouths were, and they actually gave to alleviate those particular concerns. So it was a requirement for the land to lie fallow at the end of every seven years, and then it was a time for generosity to the poor.

Specifically in Exodus 23, 11 it says, but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow that the poor of your people may eat, and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. And so notice specifically it's a release of debts here. Verse 1, at the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of debts. And this was in fact permanent.

It wasn't a temporary release of debts. It was rather a permanent thing. I think parallel in terms of Sabbath. Sabbath was a permanent blessing. for the children of Israel.

The year of Jubilee, when all debts were released and lands were returned to people, it wasn't just temporary, but it was rather permanent. And then as well, notice the temptation in verse 9, the possibility that some might conclude, well, the end of the seventh year is coming, and I'm not going to loan money to that particular individual. Well, if it was temporary, that wouldn't be a concern. Rather, this is a permanent release of debts. just like the permanent release of slaves in verses 12 to 18.

Some speculate that it was a temporary release. I think the text is pretty obvious that it was a permanent release. Now, in terms of a general overview, notice in verses two to six, it was the law for the covenant community. It benefited those that were Israelites.

It benefited those that were identified as brethren and as neighbors. The debtors were a part of the covenant community. Notice his brother, his neighbor, and then verse 3 is a specific exception for the foreigner that was in fact among them. In Leviticus chapter 27 at verse 30, the tithe is called the Lord's, and here it's called the Lord's release.

And so it's specifically targeted or directed to the covenant children of God Almighty in Old Covenant Israel. As I said, the exclusion of the foreigner, notice in verse 3, of a foreigner, you may require it, but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother. So the specific scope is the brothers and the sisters and the neighbors within Old Covenant Israel. And then note the exception with reference to God's blessing.

I think there's a bit of idealism and realism going on in chapter 15. And I don't mean in their strict philosophical definition, but idealistically, if the children of Israel obey the Lord, then there won't be poor in the land. That's what we see in verses four and five. In other words, if there are no poor, well, then there is no requirement for this release of debts in this sabbatical year.

But verse 11 reminds us the poor will never cease from the land. Therefore, I command you saying you shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy in your land. Of course, Jesus invokes this particular passage in his gospel ministry. The poor will never cease from the land.

So God promises blessing upon Old Covenant Israel, but it is in fact conditional upon their obedience. Again, notice in verse four, except when there may be no poor among you, for the Lord will greatly bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, only if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord your God to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today. We know that they don't obey. We know that they are promised curses for disobedience in Deuteronomy chapter 28.

And subsequent to that we see precisely disobedience when you enter into the book of Joshua and Judges and then the rest of the former prophets up until the time of the major prophets and the minor prophets. You see that Israel did not fulfill her covenantal responsibilities. So there would, in fact, be poor within the land of promise that God had given them. And the promise of verse 6, again, is conditional upon their obedience in verse 5.

For the Lord your God will bless you, just as He promised you. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. You shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you. Of course, we see that they don't do that.

We see that they end up subject to Assyria, the northern kingdoms, or the northern tribes rather, and then subject to Babylon with reference to the southern tribes, and then ultimately subject to the Roman Empire and their ultimate destruction in AD 70. So the great promises of God with reference to blessing in the land, with reference to riches such that the poor will be alleviated from the land, is conditioned upon their obedience. They don't obey, so of course they have miserable tenure in the land and ultimately are cast out of the land. The land vomits out those inhabitants the way that God had promised in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy.

So that's sort of a general overview. in terms of this sabbatical year. But then with reference to the specific details in terms of generosity to the poor. So you got the sabbatical year, verses 1 to 6, and how to alleviate the poor among you, a release of debts. But then this next section deals with generosity to the poor in general.

Generosity to the Poor

The generosity of those blessed So the idea being is that if God prospers you, if God gives you great increase, you're not supposed to be stingy, you're not supposed to be hard-hearted, you're not supposed to be negligent of the genuine needs around you, but rather you're supposed to be benevolent. There's a law of reciprocity built into this section of legislation. God blesses persons so that they in turn will bless others. If they don't in turn bless others, then God will not bless them.

Now I know that the health, wealth, prosperity people take that and turn it on its head and make it a formulaic sort of a thing, but in terms of old covenant Israel, which was in fact a covenant of works, this particularly is applicable. If you disobey, you don't reap the benefits God promises. If you obey, you reap the benefits that God promises. And if you reap the benefits that God promises, then you need to try and alleviate the downtrodden and the poor, which are in the covenant community.

Again, the language of brother, the language of neighbor, the language of those closely associated to you indicates that God has a heart to regulate his civil polity in a manner that reflects his goodness and his kindness. He doesn't prosper people simply for the prosperity of those people, but rather He prospers people in such a way that they will seek to prosper the lives of others. The same principle is obvious in the book of Ephesians, in Ephesians chapter 4. God, through the Apostle Paul, says in verse 28, "...let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need." So not only are you not supposed to steal, you're supposed to work.

And not only are you supposed to work, you're supposed to work in such a way that you amass some degree of wealth, and with that degree of wealth, you're supposed to try and alleviate fellow churchmen who have needs. Same principle in 1 Timothy chapter 6, as Paul tells Timothy, to command the rich in the church in Ephesus. He says in verse 17, command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

So while some contours are a bit different in terms of a covenant of works, do this or you'll be cut off versus the covenant of grace. Christ did this was cut off for you. And now you have life everlasting in his name. But in terms of that blessed gospel reality, live in such a way as to express that gratitude with reference to the alleviation of the misery of your fellows within the context of the church.

So notice in chapter 15 at verse 7, it says, So notice where God starts here. It's an internal disposition. You're not supposed to harden your heart. In other words, God wants them and God's going to command them to cough up.

He's going to tell them that they must give or that they must forgive certain loans, if you will. But they need to do so from the heart. They need to manifest an evidence that they are, in fact, covenant children of the living and true God. So the internal disposition precedes the external act, which we find there in verse 8. whatever he needs.

Again, this isn't almsgiving, this isn't throwing a homeless man a buck, this is rather a loan to somebody that is seeking to use that money to better or prosper their particular station and lot in life. So charity is encouraged here. But again, it's not that there's no payback, but rather it's to be open-hearted with reference to loaning this particular man sufficient for his need, whatever he needs. And then the temptation of verse nine, based on the sabbatical year principles in verses one to six, is a real one.

Notice in verse nine, beware lest there be a wicked thought in your heart saying the seventh year, the year of release is at hand and your eye be evil against your poor brother and you give him nothing and he cry out to the Lord against you and it becomes sin among you. You gotta marvel at the wisdom of God here.

The Temptation to Withhold

God knows our hearts better than we know our hearts. Right? I mean, if it were me, I might think, hey, wait a minute, so-and-so needs money, but we're just on the edge of the seventh year here. And if I loan this fellow money, and then the end of the sabbatical period comes, that debt is released, and I'm going to be out the money that I loaned him.

And so again, the emphasis is certainly on the external manifestation of the prosperity that God had prospered them with in giving to alleviate the downtrodden and the poor amongst them, but it was to be driven by a heart that was right with the Most High God. It wasn't just a bare external compliance with the written law, but it was a compliance with the written law from the heart. And if this temptation wells up in the heart, this failure to loan money because of the fear of not getting paid back, what God says is you need to mortify that. You need to put that propensity to death, and you need to be gracious, and you need to give to your brother.

He says, and your eye be evil against your poor brother, and you give him nothing, and he cry out to the Lord against you, and it becomes sin among you. So this propensity, this temptation, if acted upon, would in fact be sin. And so God is basically, as it were, heading off at the past, the prosperous amongst the Israelites, to make sure that the benevolence and the charity and the prosperity flowed downwards to those who stood in need, with reference to alone, that was sufficient for their needs, whatever they needed, so that they could indeed have a body politic that functioned accordingly. And then notice in verse 10, you shall surely give to him and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing, the Lord your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand.

Again, that law of reciprocity. God's going to prosper you and you don't give it up. Well, then you're probably not going to continue to get prosperity. And again, I get where the health, wealth, prosperity teachers get this, and they turn it into a formula, and they bind God's people, and they manipulate so that they give in order to get.

Nevertheless, that's the principle stated here specifically. But notice that it focuses upon the heart. Do not be grieved to give to Him. Do not be grieved to part with your money for the benefit of those less fortunate, because for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand.

And then the presence of those in need, as I've already said, the realistic view, for the poor will never cease from the land. It's a bit of foreshadowing. If verses 4 and 5 tell us what ideally should take place in Old Covenant Israel, It is conditioned upon obedience, verse 5, but God as it were is basically announcing, you're not going to obey and therefore there will always be poor among you even up until the time of our Lord Jesus Christ when He invokes this very thing in Matthew 26 and verse 11. the foreshadowing of their disobedience but then the demonstration of a lack of community consciousness notice in verse 11 for the poor will never cease from the land therefore i command you saying you shall open your hand wide to your brother to your poor and your needy in your land So if they don't act upon these principles, notice how the text is specific. You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor, and your needy.

Again, this isn't government-imposed communism or socialism. It is a theocratic nation directly under God, and God is telling them this is the way of benevolence within the body politic. There's going to be some amongst you that are more prosperous than others. That doesn't mean that the others are to be marginalized.

It doesn't mean that they're to be forgotten. It doesn't mean that they're to be written off, but rather they are your brother, they are your poor, and they are your needy, and they occupy space in your land. Christopher Wright says, getting at that very specifically. And then when we compare those New Testament texts, we see that the principle remains in terms of a benevolence and a generosity on the part of those who have a lot with reference to those who don't have as much.

Now, of course, we want to encourage those who do not have as much to diligence and work and good saving principles and all the things that go along with that, there are times when the brethren just need some help, and according to Deuteronomy 15, it is right under God to give the brethren help. In 2 Corinthians 9, 7, the apostle Paul says, so let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. So there's undergirding principles, it's a heart disposition that manifests itself in terms of actually coughing up, actually giving from our own supply to help alleviate the needs of others.

Israel as Model Nation

It's a blessed reality that if Old Covenant Israel had functioned properly and accordingly, it would have been model. In fact, go back to Deuteronomy chapter 4, that was one of the purposes, that was one of the intentions. Notice in Deuteronomy 4, 5, surely I have taught you statutes and judgments, just as the Lord my God commanded me that you should act according to them in the land which you go to possess. Therefore, be careful to observe them, for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

For what great nation is there that has God so near to it as the Lord our God is to us? For whatever reason, we may call upon Him. And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day? You see, they were to be a model.

They were to be a city on a hill shining the light of God's glory to the other nations. But verse 9 follows, only take heed to yourself and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren. especially concerning the day you stood before the Lord your God in Horeb, when the Lord said to me, Gather the people to me, and I will let them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children." So the children of Israel were supposed to mediate the blessings of Yahweh to the nations around them. Of course, they failed and they faltered.

And so Christ, the true Israel of God, mediates the blessings of Yahweh to the nations of the earth in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. But had the body politic functioned according to this legislation, had their hearts been right before God and their wallets been open toward their brethren, it would have been a whole different story in terms of their history. Now then,

Release of Slaves

moving on, notice the release of slaves in verses 12 to 18. The slaves of verses 12 to 18. Again, this focuses upon the covenant community. Verse 12 makes that very clear.

If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. Excuse me. So it's obvious that we're dealing with Israelites here. And if we ask the question, why would an Israelite be a slave to another Israelite?

Well, the Bible answers that. In the case of theft,

Indentured Servitude and Restitution

if somebody committed theft and they didn't have the money to pay it back, they would then be put into indentured servitude in order to pay back the family that they stole from. You can go back to Exodus chapter 22. Exodus chapter 22, we call this concept indentured servitude. And I know at the first glance, people say, well, this sounds horrible.

I would suggest this sounds absolutely positively wonderful. The Bible is pro-victim. If you get ripped off by somebody, God has purposes that you get paid back by that somebody, even including that somebody being an indentured servant in terms of your household. Notice in Exodus 22.1, which I would argue is much better than going to prison.

If I were caught thieving and I had the option to go to prison and be, you know, I don't want to say what might happen in prison, bad things. I mean, as far as I understand, it's not a walk in the park to go to prison. Or do I want to live with this family and work hard and learn a skill set and learn something of true religion and pay back the debt that I owe them? Give me the latter every time.

I think the modern prison system is actually what is barbaric, but this principle of indentured servitude, at least in terms of theft, would be a very helpful corrective to a very widespread problem. Exodus 22, 1, if a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he shall restore five oxen, four an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. If the thief is found breaking in and he is struck so that he dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed." The idea being that if somebody enters your home in the hours of darkness, we're going to see that provision in verse 3. But if it's the hours of darkness and you have no ability to ascertain as to why he's there and you kill him, in that exchange, there is no guilt upon you as the homeowner.

That's just simple self-defense. The Bible authorizes it. The Bible legitimizes it. I would argue that natural law authorizes it.

It legitimizes it. It is basic and inherent to every being that they defend themselves. And so if somebody is in your kitchen, you come down the stairs, you hear a rumbling, you don't know what his intention is there. He may be there to rape your wife.

He may be there to steal. He may be there to cut your throat. You don't know. So, of course, you're going to try to rebuff him and you're going to probably exchange blows.

And if in that exchange he dies, there's no guilt for his bloodshed. Now, notice, however, verse 3, if the sun has risen on him, the idea being now that you can ascertain why he's there. You can determine his purpose for being there. You can use force necessary to subdue him and keep him from doing anything that is not righteous, but you don't have the law on your side in this regard that you didn't know.

So if the sun has risen on him, there shall be guilt for his bloodshed. The idea being also that your neighbors are awake, you could yell, you could get some assistance to help deal with this threat. If the sun has risen on him, there shall be guilt for his bloodshed. He should make full restitution.

Again, the idea isn't go to prison and pay your debt to society. He didn't steal from society, he stole from you. He should steal, or not steal more from you, that would be him in prison, but he should pay you back. It's just, to me, it's such a simple principle that if you steal from somebody, you pay them back.

If we find somebody who broke the church's windows, they should be made to pay for that. We actually had that one time, remember? A guy left 20 bucks. Somebody broke a window and left a 20 spot.

It didn't pay for the window, but it was a whole lot better than the many other times that we had windows broken. I mean, at least there was some pang of conscience that, hey, I'm gonna leave these guys 20 bucks. I mean, I want at least the thought, the thought counted at least in that particular instance. But he should make full restitution if he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft, sold as a servant into that family to pay off the debt.

And then as well, poor people in general could sell themselves into a life of indentured servitude. Again, it's better than living under a bridge eating dog food. In Leviticus 25, 39, and if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave. As a hired servant and a sojourner, he shall be with you and shall serve you until the year of Jubilee.

So Craigie comments, if your brother is sold to you, in the context of verses 1 to 11, the reason for the sale would be default in the repayment of a debt. And a period of servitude would be a substitute for that repayment. Again, it makes perfect sense. Robert Alter on the case law in Exodus 21.

He says, what is clearly involved is not shadow slavery, but what amounts to a kind of indentured servitude. The Bible does not question this institution, but sets certain limits on it. And as one can see in the subsequent laws, the slave retains basic human rights. It's actually more dignified to treat people the way that Deuteronomy 15 says than the way they're doing it nowadays.

So at the end of the sabbatical year, that sabbatical period, he will be free, he will be released. And then

Provision at Release

notice in terms of the release itself in verses 13 and 14, when you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed. Excuse me, you shall Supply him liberally from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your winepress. From what the Lord your God has blessed you with, you shall give to him. Again, God prospers certain persons so that they can in turn help prosper other persons.

And if you don't give him all of these things, if he goes out of your house as poor as he was coming into your house, he's most likely gonna end up somebody else's servant. He's gonna end up in a similar position. The idea being is that if he spent six years in the house of decent people, having decent food, having a decent routine, learning covenant religion, and knowing the discipline of hard work, He's gonna have a skill set now wherein he can go out and hopefully forge his own living, being blessed by the one who was his master for that period of six years. Again, I think it's very, very humane and very dignified and very much something that we ought to consider.

The slave has paid his debt, and when you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed. He's paid his debt, six years of labor, He paid off whatever it was that he had either stolen or that he had agreed upon to work with reference to this servitude. The master provides for the slave and the Lord provides for the master. So God directly provides to the master and indirectly through the master provides for the slave.

Again, there's a reciprocity going on. God blesses some persons beyond other persons, and the idea being is that those persons are closely related in terms of brotherhood, in terms of neighborship. The one that's prospered has a heart for those less fortunate, those less prosperous, and so God in His grace and in His mercy conveys blessings so that they ultimately roll downhill. And then in terms of the rationale,

Theological Rationale: Egypt and Redemption

notice the theological rationale in verse 15. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you. Therefore, I command you this thing today. So theologically, they had been a community of slaves in Egypt, and God Most High redeemed them from Egypt, and then God Most High conveyed upon them great wealth and great prosperity.

Remember the Egyptians loaded them up. before they left Egypt. And then God promises to load them up when they come into the land of promise that flows with milk and honey. So theologically, they need to remember this. Again, Craigie says, the call to remember was not simply in order to evoke pity or sympathy for the slave, which would lead to generosity.

Rather, they were to remember that when they had been slaves, God had loved them. freed them and made ample provision for them. As sons of God, they should do no less to the manumitted slaves in the seventh year. And then I would suggest the economic rationale in verse 18. It shall not seem hard to you when you send him away free from you, for he has been worth a double hired servant and serving you six years.

Then the Lord your God will bless you in all that you do. Again, if you're not treating people rightly, In terms of this covenant and this arrangement, if you're not treating people rightly, God's not going to continue to bless you profusely. You see that at the corporate level, Old Covenant Israel is supposed to go into the land, they're supposed to mediate the blessings, the glory of Yahweh to the nations around them. They don't do that.

So, they forfeit their prosperity, they forfeit their tenure in the land, they forfeit by breaking this covenant of works, and they end up in Assyria, they end up in Babylon, and then they ultimately end up destroyed in AD 70 by the Roman armies. And then notice an exception. It might be the case, according to verses 16 and 17, that your slave doesn't want to leave. Again, this isn't chattel.

This isn't, you know, getting the whip every day. This isn't, you know, abuse and brutalization. This is, you know, affection. The indentured servant, after six years, is like, wait a minute, I got it really good here.

I don't want to leave. I want to be part of this house. I want to be part of this family. Notice in verse 16.

But most of you, or half of you, are wearing earrings. It wasn't brutal when you got earrings. It probably wasn't any more brutal when they had the awl in the ear up against the door. It was probably the earlobe and some sort of identifying mark between that indentured servant and that master.

In fact, Stuart, explaining the Exodus text, he says, the boss bore a hole in the servant's ear, probably in the earlobe, which became a visible sign of permanent commitment to service. This prevented a servant from sneaking away from his boss, relocating elsewhere, and entering into a service contract with someone else. It also provided a permanent reminder to a boss that he had an obligation to employ the servant for life and could not renege on that obligation. It's not brutality.

It's just the symbol or the sign that this person is now in this particular relationship. And again, we have all kinds of similarities in the modern world. Military service. If that isn't a form of indentured servitude, I don't know what is.

You don't get the earring, but you've got the contract. You've got the stipulation. You can't just wander off a base and wander into some other job. No, you're duty bound.

You've signed a contract, you've signed away your life for a period of time. So at first glance, people read these passages and they're just horrified. When you start to think through it, you see the logic involved and the rationale given, it makes perfect sense. You're going to do a body politic in a way where people benefit and prosper?

Or are you going to have a body politic where persons are in prison paying their debt to society, paying their debt to the state? It's better to pay back the persons you stole from. It's better to work for the person that you stole from. And if you're broke, and if you're down on your luck, so to speak, it's better to go live with a covenant family and learn good skills for a period of six years. then live under a bridge.

These are good things in terms of the body politic. And then in terms of that final exhortation in verse 18, it shall not seem hard to you when you do send him away free from you, for he has been worth a double hired servant and serving you six years. The idea might be that the hired servant typically was a three year contract, but this one has served for six years, so he's a double hired servant. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all that you do.

Notice even in this, the heart is checked. Even in this, the internal disposition is looked after. Even in this, it's not just external compliance with the Bear Law as it is given. No, your heart needs to be right.

Your heart needs to be engaged. You ought not to be grieved when you see that man who served you well for those six years go off on his own and forge his own way in the world. Don't be upset about that. You benefited.

You had six years out of this fellow. Your debt was certainly paid back. You passed on some valuable skills. Now this guy can go out and he can live hopefully happily ever after.

And then

Sacrifice of the Firstborn

the final legislation deals with the sacrifice of the firstborn again. This is repetitive through the Old Testament, through the Pentateuchal legislation. The command is simple. Verse 19, all the firstborn males that come from your herd and your flock, you shall sanctify to the Lord your God.

You shall sacrifice them to the Lord your God. You and your family shall eat those blessed gifts from God. as a reminder that the Lord owns everything, the Lord has provided you with these blessings, and the Lord calls you to celebrate these particular blessings. The next chapter deals with the feasts of Old Covenant Israel. So it's not the case that these laws imposed upon a people would inevitably lead to just morosity and a sullenness and a downcastedness.

It would on the part of sinners. It would on the part of those covetous people. It would on the part of those who don't want to part with their prosperity. But in terms of the genuine remnant, the people that actually believe the promises of God, there was lots of celebration on Israel's calendar.

There was lots of festivity. There was lots of joy. Remember back in Deuteronomy chapter 14, take tithe money and buy what you want, enjoy. We're gonna have a party as it were.

It wasn't this group of people that looked like they only ever sucked on lemons and we're all sitting around pondering whether they should eat their guns or not. That is simply not the case. It was a blessed experiment Because of the hardness of heart, it didn't go according to the way God had said it would, had they obeyed. But they were to sacrifice the firstborn, but there was prohibition relative to the firstborn.

You shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock. In other words, Make sure that it's really set apart or sanctified for the Lord your God. Again, a time of joy, a time of celebration, a time of recognition that God and His goodness made good on his promise to bring us to this land that flows with milk and honey, that is flowing and rich with water source, that is beneficial for agriculture and beneficial for herds and flocks and all manner of animals. And so God says, I want the firstborn of your flocks, I want the firstborn of your herds, I want it as a sacrifice set apart specifically for me, and you get to eat it in the place that I choose, the central sanctuary, Deuteronomy chapter 12, and they would rejoice.

Notice in verse 21, if the animal has a defect, if there is a defect in it, if it is lame or blind or has any serious defect, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. That's the principle, bring the best to God. This is what Malachi denounces in his prophecy with reference to sacrifice. They brought the lame.

They brought the maimed. They brought the mangy. They brought the worst of the flock. And God says, try to pay that to your governor in terms of taxation.

Try to give that to the Turshatha in Persia and see how he responds to you bringing the worst of your flock. No, you bring the best of the flock. But even in this, notice, it's not that you take the lame, you take the blind, you take the defect, cut its throat and throw it in a ditch. No, you can eat it, but you have to eat it within the prescribed limits in which God had instituted.

So verse 22, you may eat it within your gates. The unclean and the clean person alike may eat it as if it were a gazelle or a deer. In other words, you can go ahead and eat the defective one, but you can't give that up to God. In other words, God demands perfection.

God calls you to give the best. The other prohibition, verse 23, you see that through the legislation in Deuteronomy, and certainly in Leviticus chapter 17, only you shall not eat its blood, you shall pour it on the ground like water. So most of these things have already been said in the legislation prior to the book of Deuteronomy. But on the plains of Moab, through a series of exhortations, Moses is readying the people to enter into the promised land.

It's the second generation. The second generation was to be taught by the first generation. But as poorly as the first generation performed their obedience to God, we might conclude they didn't pass on everything to this second generation. So it became necessary for Moses in this exhortation to remind them of these things that happen every seventh year, that happen after a series of seven years, the 49th year, and then to remind them on how they're to deal with the poor in their midst, with the slaves in their midst, and with this law concerning the firstborn.

So, in conclusion, I would suggest the divine concern for the poor. The divine concern for the poor. God does obviously have a heart for the downtrodden and the poor. And it would be good for us as well to imitate him in that and to share our prosperity with others in need.

We're not under this specific legislation as it's written here in terms of a theocratic nation governed specifically by God through judges and monarchs, but the principles we see are consistent with what we have in the New Testament as well. We're to give, not grudgingly. We're to give, not with, you know, a stinginess. We're to give with a cheerful heart to try to alleviate the suffering of others.

Here, the divine concern for the poor is seen in the release of debts, the internal disposition emphasized, and ultimately the outward act necessary. The outward act is commanded. You got to give it up, but give it up from a good heart and certainly don't try to figure out ways around the giving of it up. Secondly, the divine protection for the victim.

Again, we don't see it spelled out, but the fact that there was indentured servitude argues, based on what we see previously, that the victim mattered in Old Covenant Israel. Well, you know, the guy broke in. He stole everything you had. That's just the way it goes.

If we catch him, we'll put him in a jail and he can pay his his fine to the state. Well, wait a minute. What about my my loss? The Old Testament legislation is concerned about the loss of the victim. and has built in features to alleviate the loss of the victim.

We don't do ourselves any favor by only ever siding with criminals. We don't do ourselves any favors by only ever punishing the law abiding. Again, think about somebody gets caught, they go to prison, they're not paying you back, and you're paying the taxes to support them in prison. It's sort of a double jeopardy on the victim himself. which is completely unjust and completely unlawful, but for some reason we think this scene is humanitarian and this is antiquated and barbarian.

And then the divine command for the firstborn, the recognition, obviously that God owned everything. You can't look out at your flocks and your herds and see the best of the lot and then begrudgingly say, well, God gets that one. Okay, he gave you these flocks and these herds, and he calls you to give the best, and you're gonna have a problem with that? Do you see a problem with that?

I mean, God's blessed you abundantly, and what he asks in terms of covenantal obedience here is that you take one that you haven't used, you take one that doesn't have a missing eye, you take one that isn't missing a leg, and you give it up to God. And in this giving up to God, you actually get to eat it with your family. You see what I'm saying? This is a good reminder that God owns everything.

As well, it's a good reminder that God has provided ultimately what we have, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, Psalm 24, anything that we have, it has been given to us by God Almighty. As well, this expresses devotion to God in terms of worship. When we read of first-born animals being sacrificed and then being eaten in the presence of God, what is that but divine worship? What is that but the acknowledgment that God Most High has redeemed us, God Most High has given us this land, and God Most High has given us these animals?

This is a time to express our worship and praise. But ultimately, I think

Typological Fulfillment in Christ

this firstborn legislation does point forward to the firstborn son of God, to that one who had no defect, that one who had no, you know, lameness or maimness, that Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. God Most High makes good on this legislation in His own example in the provision of His Son. He sends the Son of His love who, as the book of Hebrews says, is holy, harmless, and undefiled, separate from sinners. He assumes our humanity.

He has all the essential properties, all the common infirmities, and yet without sin, and He only ever goes about doing good. He only ever goes about doing that which is pleasing to the Father, and is that one that is the provision by the Father, for the Father, in terms of the propitiation of the sins of all that the father had given him. So this firstborn legislation should remind us concerning the firstborn son of God, as Paul refers to him in Colossians, that would indeed be that holy, harmless, undefiled sacrifice for guilty sinners. So lots of good stuff, hopefully, in our minds in Deuteronomy 15 in terms of God's concern for the poor, his concern for the victim, and his blessed promise of his firstborn son.

Well, let us pray.

Closing Prayer

Our

Opening Prayer

Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you for this book of Deuteronomy and for the wisdom that is so obviously on display here. We pray again for our government. We pray for our body politic.

We know there is great great injustice and lawlessness and all manner of wickedness. And we pray that you would be merciful to this land. We pray that you would raise people up that could serve and govern it in a way that is at least decent. And we pray that you would just have mercy upon the church and upon image bearers as image bearers, God.

No one deserves to suffer under fools and tyrants. So we pray, be merciful. And we ask in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.

Questions and Answers

Well, any questions or comments? Yes. One question I have is like this one with the seven-year debt emancipation, it sounds like it all lines up on the same day, kind of right there, right? But how about like the fields that have to rest over seven years?

Would that also be like that? Because what seems odd would be like everyone, all the farmers are just suddenly not working sort of idea and it's like all the produce goes to the poor. Or is it kind of like staggered? Yeah, that's a great question.

And in light of that question, I should have included a quote dealing with that very principle. So in the book of Exodus, I taught through Exodus. So sometimes when I have sort of similar passages, I look at those notes. And Stuart, a commentator, deals with that in terms of the ground lying fallow.

And he suggests, and as I remember it in a compelling way, that there was or there did seem to be liberty amongst farmers in terms of staggering principles. So it wouldn't be that. Every field, every seven years, shut down at the same. No, I don't think it was like that.

If you email me or text me, I can try and find, well, I can find that quote and send it to you. But I thought it was a, A good principle. So no, I don't think it was, you know, everything just stopped. And remember, it's the seventh year.

And yeah, you know, within the day in terms of release, but field and operations and things like that would require a bit of a different approach. Yeah, flocks and herds. Yeah, you don't. Yeah, I don't know.

That's a good question. I don't have a quote from Stuart on that one, so. But yeah, there's a lot of things that you do kind of wonder about. And, you know, it might be a good thing to chat GPT.

When did the chickens start being, you know, herded or flocked? And see if, I mean, it's pretty good. Yeah. Did old covenant Israel keep chickens?

Yeah. Well, we can't. Well, you know, don't ask me that. We fire everybody that's in government and we start all over.

Our confession, I think, is a very good statement in terms of the main emphases of government, the maintenance of justice and peace. Neither of those concepts have anything to do with modern politics. at all. That's the least thought in their minds. They don't, I mean, I've seen it here.

You know, COVID, the cops were here right away. Somebody doesn't have a mask or they're meeting for worship. We've had vandalism. I've had a guy living out here all day, you know, drugged out, threatened me.

I thought I was going to get into a fight. That's one way we could throw down. But, but, you know, when I call them, you know, maybe hours later they show up. So, You know, that's a great question.

If somebody broke into my house, I'd invoke Exodus 22. If it was dark and I had an exchange and I killed him, there's an old saying, I'd rather be tried by 12 than carried by six. Get restitution? You can't.

It's a fool's errand. They don't care. You think the cops come and say, wow, these guys broke your windows. We're going to go catch them and make them pay back.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Total revolution in terms of government. Oh, yeah.

That's right. And there's fraud built into that all over the place. Yeah, you wouldn't need insurance if there was principles of restitution. Somebody, obviously somebody could break your window and not get caught, but lots of times they do get caught and nothing happens.

Yeah. Well, and I think if it was in an operated system wherein, you know, this wasn't, they weren't all mavericks and marauders living out in huts. There does seem to be a community-oriented mindset. Ideally, there would be accountability.

There were judges, there were courts, there were ways to adjudicate certain things. I mean, if you caught the guy, I would imagine there would be some sort of a contract in indentured servitude. And you know, what's the contrary for the criminal? Yeah, if you had laws that were enforced, it would great that we never remember that very basic principle.

Hey, if I do this, I might get this. There's no I might get this now. And as Solomon says in Ecclesiastes 8-11, when men know that, their hearts are fully given to do evil. When they know there's no punishment, there's no repercussions, they're given vent to do whatever it is they want.

I do have a question about gender osmosis for the poor. Because we as a church, we have many women's to be maybe due diligence as well. And another CBA suggestion of due diligence here, which is the poor, the needy, beginner. Is it just assumed that, well, of course you Yeah, I would assume that that's an assumption.

The guy that's sucking his jug of wine all the time and, hey, buddy, can you loan me $1,000 because I'm going to start a new business? There's other principles at play. You don't want to prosper a moron. OK, let's say there's situations that we've dealt with in the church. as you translated the confession.

It just seemed that they wanted, they were poor. I don't doubt that, but they wanted more and more. So is it appropriate for us to do indulgence? I mean, they're poor.

They need money. No, I think due diligence is built in. I mean, again, there's other principles in scripture. You don't enable the lazy.

You don't enable the fraudulent. You don't enable, you know, if a guy says, hey, loan me a thousand bucks, I think it's reflexive for us to say, what do you want the money for? And what is your plan? I think God would say, yeah, of course you ask that.

You don't just hand money out to people. Galatians 6, 10, therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. So that doesn't get at all the questions, but there's an especially there. There is a criteria. we should be benevolent to all people, but especially to those in the church.

In other words, we have a first and foremost principle, if I've got an extra 10 bucks, I should give it to a church brother versus the guy at Taco Bell. So there's some discrimination involved at that point. Oh yeah. But I think a broader reading of the old, remember the Old Testament, Old Covenant, it's a community.

There's plenty of exhortations in Proverbs on hard work and not being a wine bibber and a glutton. So it would be odd to me if, God in Deuteronomy 15 says, cough up a grand, even to the winebibbers and the gluttons. No, that's a condemned category. You shouldn't prosper them.

You shouldn't benefit them. Oh, well, in any questions concerning biblical ethics, as I've learned after a few years doing this, it's never easy. You've got principles, and you've got examples, but it's not usually the example that you're dealing with. Do you know what I mean?

And, you know, 1 Timothy chapter 5, I always, and we've talked about this, I mean, some people want to treat the church like it's an ATM, and that's not what we are. You know, people have come over the years, then, you know, with their handout, and how do we deal with that? Well, in 1 Timothy 5, Paul talks about widows being placed on the church's list to get aid. Now, what is Paul's first argument?

Let the family take care of him, right? Let the family look after the widow. If that's the context of 5-8, if anyone does not provide for his own and especially those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. In the context of not his wife and kids, though them too, but his aged mother.

So the family should be first. If there's no family, and she's exhausted all her resources and she's about to starve, let's just throw her on the list, right? Do not let a widow under 60 years old be taken into the number, and not unless she has been the wife of one man, well reported for good works, if she has brought up children, if she has lodged strangers, if she has washed the saint's feet, if she has relieved the afflicted, if she has diligently followed every good work. I'd like to think that if I got to do that with an 80-year-old doll that, you know, we've known for 20 years, if we're going to cough up, some brother wanders in and says, I need a thousand bucks because I got a great plan to start a new business.

We can do some due diligence and ask him some questions. And if it looks like a fool's errand, then no, it's not, it's not wise. And God doesn't say throw away the resources that I'd blessed you with, but rather bless and prosper people. that are on the right path. And it's never foolproof.

People have good plans, good thoughts, good ideas, and they fail. But due diligence, I think, is certainly requisite across the board. But the church in many ways doesn't operate like that. Oh, you need money?

Here's money. And we've made, I think, some principled decisions in the way that we approach this. And I'm sure at times have caused people, well, I've heard it. You guys are a church.

You're supposed to help us out. where does the Bible say that? Within the Church, the community of believers within the context of the Church, but even then we're not supposed to fund lawlessness or rebellion if a Church member is not working, he's not being diligent, he's not getting out of bed, he's not showing up, he's being a pain at his workplace. We don't fund indolence. We don't fund laziness.

We don't fund bad workers, right? So much less the guy wandering it off the street saying, I need, you know, 50 bucks for gas to get to Alberta. Why am I, why are we as the people of God beholden to that? We don't know you from Adam.

And you know, lo and behold, sometimes, not saying you, but sometimes people lie about such things to take advantage and to take money from. We had one guy I know visited us on a couple of occasions with a several year span and in both times, or three times maybe, he told the same story. And it wasn't just us. There was an email that went around all the churches.

Beware of this guy. He weaves this tale about a son and a daughter. And lo and behold, he'd come here. And me and Steve were looking at him like, are you really trying to do this again?

And don't you, you've done this with us like two or three years ago. This whole, you know, and then he just kind of wandered out. So had we just said, oh, man, this guy's got a real sad story. Here's $100.

We've always thought God's people work hard. And God blesses his people well. And as elders and deacons in the church, we can't just throw good money after bad. That's not responsible to God.

And it's certainly not responsible to the hardworking Joes that cough up. You know, we take it seriously that, yeah, we do due diligence and we do ask questions. Have we been taken? Yeah.

Anytime you've ever given anything to anybody, all of us have had that experience. But you get the information, you make the decisions based on the information available, and you pray to God for his blessing and that it all works out. I brutalized your poor girls in many ways, yeah. Yeah, I did.

I gave away, was it Carrie? It probably would have been Carrie. I gave Carrie's sandwich away.

Scripture References

• Exodus 22:1; 22:3; 23; 23:11
• Leviticus 17; 25:1-7; 25:39
• Deuteronomy 4:5; 5; 12; 14; 14:23; 15:1; 15:3; 15:4-5; 15:6; 15:7; 15:8; 15:9; 15:10; 15:11; 15:12; 15:13-14; 15:15; 15:16-17; 15:18; 15:19; 15:21; 15:22; 15:23; 28
• Psalm 24
• Ecclesiastes 8:11
• Matthew 26:11
• 2 Corinthians 9:7
• Galatians 6:10
• Ephesians 4:28
• Colossians 1:15
• 1 Timothy 5; 5:8; 6:17