Reflections on the Old Testament

“For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off…but the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.”

--Deuteronomy 30:11, 14 (NKJV)

There is nothing mysterious or distant about the Word of God. That is just a silly excuse invented by man to ignore God’s commandment. “But the word is very near you,” you have but to reach for it! However hard you try to suppress it, it is lurking in your heart, is sleeping on your lips; you have but to call to God and He will waken it, He will “stir the slumb’ring chords again”! God’s commandments are entirely within reach, “that you may do [them].”

Sadly, many modern-day Christians often neglect the Old Testament because they think it is “too mysterious”; because they do not understand it. While it is true that the New Testament is much clearer and applies more directly to our lives, it is also true that a thorough understanding of the Old Testament will lead to a better understanding of the New. This year, I have been making a fairly thorough study of the Old Testament, and God is continually revealing wonderful things to me—things that astound me and have, consequently, made their way onto the humble pages of my journals. Though I could not possibly write down all the wonders, here are some, which I pray you will enjoy and benefit from.

Why would a merciful God…?

The Old Testament has many puzzling sayings that seem to contradict our God’s merciful character. But if we look a little closer, God may just shed some light on the subject. Here are a few examples.

“…as he has done, so shall it be done to him—fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth…”

--Leviticus 24:19-20 (NKJV)

Before Jesus Christ made atonement for the sin of mankind, everyone got what they deserved. If you did something wrong, you paid for it—and oftentimes with your life. There is always a penalty for sin; if not on this earth, in hell. God sent His Son to save as many as follow Him from the ultimate penalty, i.e., hell; but there are still consequences for sin on this earth. There are so many examples of how sin can wreck a life…most of the time God doesn’t even have to punish it! Sin is its own punishment, and its victims will always pay a price, and, unless they are saved, they will be tortured eternally for their sin in hell.

“Your eye shall not pity: life shall be for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”

--Deuteronomy 19:21 (NKJV)

Observe the stark contrast between the Old Testament laws and the mercy of Christ in the New Testament! If God is the same “yesterday, today, and forever,” then why is this so? God is always seeking to cleanse His creation from evil. Before the coming of the Messiah, the way to do this was to set up strict laws concerning sin and the administration of justice. Mercy was unaffordable, because Christ had not died and conquered mankind’s sin at that time; therefore mercy (or pity) accomplished nothing save to allow wicked people to cumber the earth a while longer. If you took a life purposefully, your life would be taken in punishment. Everyone got what they deserved. Now, those who are washed in the blood of the Lamb are spared the judgement they deserve because Christ has paid for our sin and forgiven us. This contrast helps us realize just how marvelous Christ’s love is.

In Deuteronomy chapter 13, God gives what appears to be an exceedingly harsh commandment, saying that if someone entices you to serve other gods, even if that someone is a dear family member or beloved friend, you are to kill him/her for their sin. This seems cruel, especially coming from a loving God, but such is the commandment. Let’s take a closer look: we know that God is good, and that God is love, therefore we must blame any cruelty in this commandment on sin. This world is cursed, and that’s mankind’s fault, not God’s. This world is cruel, and our loving God has to make commandments to keep our sin in check. It may seem harsh, at times, but our way is much harsher in the end. Always remember: we mortals tend to think only in terms of our short lives, but God thinks in the context of eternity. Our loved ones won’t last forever, but God does. We should always put God first, knowing that He is eternal, that He is good; and if, in so doing, we must give up our loved ones, the so it must be. Pray to God that you may escape this anguish, but remember that everything God does is for the greater good and that God is more important than ten thousand families.

In 1 Samuel chapter 2, the LORD caused Eli’s wicked sins to ignore Eli, when he urged them to change their ways, because He (God) “desired to kill them.” Now why would God do that? Because Eli’s sons were beyond saving. It was too late for them, therefore God desired to kill them, lest they turned back to Him and be saved, after all the harm they had done to the LORD’s people.

Near the end of 1 Samuel chapter 6, after the ark was returned and the people had made burnt offerings to the LORD and rejoiced, God struck "fifty thousand and seventy men of the people because they had looked into the ark of the LORD.” Now, many people might ask why a merciful God would do this. There is no doubt that God is incredibly merciful—our very existence attests to this—but He is also just. Those fifty thousand and seventy men knew the law, but they looked into the ark anyway. Despite all their sacrifices and praises, they committed outright disobedience to God, a sin punishable by death, in those days. The very sin, in fact, that cursed our world in the first place. The death of those men was not cruel, but deserved and necessary.

Amazing Analogies and Lessons of the Old Testament

“Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks on it, shall live.’”

--Numbers 21:8 (NKJV)

The bronze serpent on the pole is a powerful symbol of Jesus Christ. All who look to Him shall live, though they were bitten and poisoned by sin. Christ Himself makes allusion to this in John 3:14-15, saying: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”  This is only one of the many New Testament analogies found in the Old Testament. The entire Bible is filled with parables and lessons; we have but to look for them.

The Year of Jubilee (see Leviticus 25) is symbolic of Christ’s Resurrection: in the Year of Jubilee, all Israelite slaves were set free, and when Christ arose, mankind, having hitherto been enslaved to sin, was set free; Jesus having paid for their redemption.

“…No man of your descendants in succeeding generations, who has any defect, may approach to offer the bread of his God.”

--Leviticus 21:17 (NKJV)

Who is truly perfect: faultless, without defect? Who can stand, perfect, to offer the Bread of God? This would be, of course, our own High Priest, Jesus Christ. He approached the altar and offered Himself as the Bread of Life…He was (and is and will be) perfect in every way, and He died to make us perfect, to make us sons and daughters of God: “faultless to stand before the throne.”

In Numbers chapter 23 (the story of Balaam), when Balaam repeatedly refuses to go against God’s command to curse Israel, Balak proposes again and again that Balaam move to a new location and see if God will change His mind, which, of course, He never does. How often we, as Christians, test God in this way! He refuses some silly request of ours that is entirely against His nature to indulge, as we should know, but we stubbornly wheedle around, stupidly trying to show Him all the perspectives (as if He Who created the eye cannot see!) and convince Him to change His mind! “Has He said, and will He not do?” Once God has made up His mind about something, there is no revoking it, and it is stupid and belligerent of us weak, little mortals to try.

In Judges 13:18 (NKJV), the Angel of the LORD says: “Why do you ask My name, seeing it is wonderful?” Who are we to ask God’s name, since it is too wonderful for us? Yet we so frequently take that wonderful name-above-all-names in vain, or speak it lightly, without even a hint of reverence! We have the great privilege of knowing God’s many wonderful names, and, rather than taking this for granted as we often do, we should desire to speak them in complete awe and reverence more often, and we should never let them fall from our lips in vain!

“…You shall drive out the Canaanites, though they…are strong.”

--Joshua 17:18 (NKJV)

The Holy Spirit in you will drive out the “Canaanites”—troubles, afflictions, etc.—in your life. Though they are strong, God is stronger.

“Then the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan…”

--Joshua 3:17 (NKJV)

Those who bear God’s covenant, i.e. His seal of salvation, will stand “firm on dry ground” in the midst of a tumultuous Jordan.

“’I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart’—as though the drunkard could be included with the sober.”

--Deuteronomy 29:19 (NKJV)

The idea of obtaining peace while “following the dictates of one’s heart” is as ridiculous as including a drunkard with the sober. “Following your heart” will give you nothing but chaos and tribulation—it can never bring peace. That delusion is absurd, since the hearts of mankind are “fully set to do evil,” and wickedness never brings happiness or peace.

“So [Samson] awoke from his sleep, and said, “I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!” But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him.”

--Judges 16:20 (NKJV)

How often we insist that we can “shake ourselves free” from our sin without God’s help! No, if the LORD is not with us, we will be bound and imprisoned by the forces of evil just as Samson was.