After reading chapter 21:
* We have finally reached the last chapter of Judges! The story of the last two chapters continues: Back at the beginning of chapter 20, when the Israelites gathered at Mizpah, apparently they made a solemn oath to Yahweh that not one of them would ever give a daughter to a Benjamite in marriage. Now, after the battle, they are again at Bethel, where they are bewailing the loss of one of the tribes of Israel. Really? They purposefully conducted a battle in which over 65,000 armed men, and whole towns full of people,plus their animals, were killed, and now they are grieving for the lost tribe of Benjamin? They ask why this should have happened! Good question. A little too late, though.
*The next day they built an altar (Isn't that a no-no? Or does this story take place before that restriction?) and presented burnt offerings to Yahweh. Then they asked who wasn't present in the roll call of the tribes of Israel at Mizpah. (As if they didn't know.) Those people "deserved" to be put to death. Show up or die. Well, in chapter 20 we saw that the Benjamite tribe wasn't there, so I guess the implication is that they deserved to die. In spite of that, the Israelites are now worried about how the remaining Benjamites will get wives, since they vowed not to give them their daughters as wives. Not to mention, all the Benjamite women have been killed...by the Israelites. The mind boggles.
*Somehow, the Israelites realized that no one from Jabesh Gilead had been represented at the assembly in Mizpah either. (Maybe they didn't get the memo.) So, the Israelites sent 12,000 armed men to Jabesh Gilead. Guess what they did. They slaughtered every living human, men, women, and children......except the virgin young women. They took them to the camp at Shiloh. (Wait a minute, I thought they were assembled at Mizpah. Or was it Bethel?) Why? To give them to the remaining Benjamites as wives! Problem solved. Well, almost.
*Next, the assembly sent a message of peace to the remaining Benjamites who were in hiding. The Benjamites returned and were given the young women of Jabesh Gilead as a consolation prize. How nice. (???) There was a problem, though. There were not enough young women to go around. Awkward. Everyone was sad for the Benjamites. The Benjamites needed heirs so that a tribe of Israel would not be wiped out. (And whose fault was that?) That pesky oath was preventing the Israelites from giving the Benjamites wives. They didn't want to be cursed for breaking the oath. That would not be good.
*Not to worry, they had a solution. They instructed the Benjamites who were still single to go to the annual festival of the Lord in Shiloh. While there, they were to hide in the vinyards, waiting and watching for the girls of Shiloh to come out and join the dancing. Then, they were to rush out and seize a wife and take her back to the land of Benjamin. (Where have I heard a story like this before? ) When the fathers and brothers complained, they were asked to be kind and help out the Benjamites, because they didn't have wives after the war. Plus, technically, the oath was not broken, because they didn't give away the girls, they were taken. Then the Benjamites rebuilt their towns, and everyone else went home. The end.
Showing posts with label biblical brutality. Show all posts
Showing posts with label biblical brutality. Show all posts
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Judges chapter 20, part 2
*On the third day, Yahweh told the Israelites to battle with the Benjamites for the third time. This time he would give them the victory. The Israelites set up an ambush around Gibeah. The rest of the troops took up battle stations as before. The Benjamite army went out to meet them in battle. The army had set up 10,000 of its best fighting men to meet the Benjamites in a full frontal attack. The Israelites won the battle that day, killing 25,100 Benjamites. This was practically the whole Benjamite army. (Verse 15)
*Next follows a more detailed account: During the battle, the Benjamites killed about thirty Israelites, giving the Benjamites the impression they could win again. The Israelites pretended to retreat, drawing the Benjamites away from the city. Meanwhile, the men of the ambush went into Gibeah by a prearranged plan, killed all the inhabitants, and sent up a smoke signal. When the smoke began to rise from the city, the Benjamites saw it and were frightened. At this sign, the Israelites turned back on them. The Benjamites ran in the direction of the desert but could not escape. The Israelites that had been in the town came out and easily overran them. 18,000 Benjamites were killed. The remainder turned and fled in another direction, but 5,000 were cut down by the Israelites along the roads. 2,000 more were chased as far as Gidom and killed. This is the only place Gidom is ever mentioned, in the Bible or anywhere else.
*Six hundred Benjamites managed to escape and hide in the desert for four months. Meanwhile, the Israelites put every single Benjamite town to the sword, including the animals. Then they set all the towns on fire. All that carnage to avenge the death of one person.
*Next follows a more detailed account: During the battle, the Benjamites killed about thirty Israelites, giving the Benjamites the impression they could win again. The Israelites pretended to retreat, drawing the Benjamites away from the city. Meanwhile, the men of the ambush went into Gibeah by a prearranged plan, killed all the inhabitants, and sent up a smoke signal. When the smoke began to rise from the city, the Benjamites saw it and were frightened. At this sign, the Israelites turned back on them. The Benjamites ran in the direction of the desert but could not escape. The Israelites that had been in the town came out and easily overran them. 18,000 Benjamites were killed. The remainder turned and fled in another direction, but 5,000 were cut down by the Israelites along the roads. 2,000 more were chased as far as Gidom and killed. This is the only place Gidom is ever mentioned, in the Bible or anywhere else.
*Six hundred Benjamites managed to escape and hide in the desert for four months. Meanwhile, the Israelites put every single Benjamite town to the sword, including the animals. Then they set all the towns on fire. All that carnage to avenge the death of one person.
Saturday, June 25, 2016
Judges 19
After reading chapter 19:
*Here we have another odd story beginning with the assertion that in those days there was no king. A Levite from the hill country of Ephraim had a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. She ran away from him back to her father's house. The Levite went to Judah with a servant and two donkeys to get her back. The woman's father got the Levite to stay there for three days by plying him with food and drink. He wanted to leave but was convinced to stay another day with more eating and drinking. The father tried the same tactics again the fifth day, but the Levite finally left late in the day with his concubine and servant. They travelled toward Jebus where the Jebusites lived, supposedly another name for Jerusalem. However, there appears to be plenty of doubt that the Jebusites ever existed outside the pages of the Bible.
*The Levite's servant wanted to stay in Jebus, but the Levite didn't want to stay among non- Israelites. Instead, they went to Gibeah in Benjamin. When they got there, they sat in the city square waiting to be offered hospitality for the night but none of the Benjaminites invited them home. That evening an old Ephraimite who lived in Gibeah saw them and offered them room and board for the night.
*While they were eating and drinking, some wicked men of the city surrounded the house, pounded on the door, and demanded that the visitor be brought out so they could have sex with him. Sound familiar? Just as in the story of Lot, two women are offered to the men instead, the homeowner's virgin daughter and the Levite's concubine. Why didn't the homeowner sacrifice his own body to save his guest from the unwanted attention? It seems obvious that the women were considered less valuable and more expendable. The men would not listen to the homeowner, so the Levite sent his concubine out to the wolves. She has no Angels to save her. This story makes me so angry. It continues with the concubine being raped and abused all night. At daybreak she makes her way back to the house and falls down dead on the threshold. The next morning, as the Levite is leaving, he sees his concubine laying there and orders her to get up because it is time to go. How cold can you get? Even though it is a story, I wish she could get up, so she could spit in his face and vomit all over him.
*The Levite loads his dead concubine on a donkey and heads home. When he gets there, he cuts up his concubine into twelve pieces and sends the pieces to the twelve tribes of Israel. This event was the subject of much consternation, with people exclaiming that something must be done, people must speak up. What I wonder is which part or parts were they upset about? Was it the Levite's behavior, or the behavior of the men of Gibeah? Is this supposed to prove a king was needed in the land?
*Here we have another odd story beginning with the assertion that in those days there was no king. A Levite from the hill country of Ephraim had a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. She ran away from him back to her father's house. The Levite went to Judah with a servant and two donkeys to get her back. The woman's father got the Levite to stay there for three days by plying him with food and drink. He wanted to leave but was convinced to stay another day with more eating and drinking. The father tried the same tactics again the fifth day, but the Levite finally left late in the day with his concubine and servant. They travelled toward Jebus where the Jebusites lived, supposedly another name for Jerusalem. However, there appears to be plenty of doubt that the Jebusites ever existed outside the pages of the Bible.
*The Levite's servant wanted to stay in Jebus, but the Levite didn't want to stay among non- Israelites. Instead, they went to Gibeah in Benjamin. When they got there, they sat in the city square waiting to be offered hospitality for the night but none of the Benjaminites invited them home. That evening an old Ephraimite who lived in Gibeah saw them and offered them room and board for the night.
*While they were eating and drinking, some wicked men of the city surrounded the house, pounded on the door, and demanded that the visitor be brought out so they could have sex with him. Sound familiar? Just as in the story of Lot, two women are offered to the men instead, the homeowner's virgin daughter and the Levite's concubine. Why didn't the homeowner sacrifice his own body to save his guest from the unwanted attention? It seems obvious that the women were considered less valuable and more expendable. The men would not listen to the homeowner, so the Levite sent his concubine out to the wolves. She has no Angels to save her. This story makes me so angry. It continues with the concubine being raped and abused all night. At daybreak she makes her way back to the house and falls down dead on the threshold. The next morning, as the Levite is leaving, he sees his concubine laying there and orders her to get up because it is time to go. How cold can you get? Even though it is a story, I wish she could get up, so she could spit in his face and vomit all over him.
*The Levite loads his dead concubine on a donkey and heads home. When he gets there, he cuts up his concubine into twelve pieces and sends the pieces to the twelve tribes of Israel. This event was the subject of much consternation, with people exclaiming that something must be done, people must speak up. What I wonder is which part or parts were they upset about? Was it the Levite's behavior, or the behavior of the men of Gibeah? Is this supposed to prove a king was needed in the land?
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Religiously Motivated Violence
I'm sure you had your fill of the news lately, and your fill of the opinion of the events in Orlando by everyone and their brother. When I see the usual social media response to tragedy by the use of memes and heartfelt posts, mostly by christians, I avoid commenting or responding in any way. I do not make any public statements myself. Because of religious fundamentalism, I don't have the world's permission to be open and authentic and feel secure. Plus, personally, those types social media sermons always feel a little self serving. They are designed to either make the poster feel good about themselves or to try to convince the general public that the poster is one of the good guys. Not like those other people who don't know how to "hate the sin and love the sinner." But, as others have said, no one's thoughts, prayers, or lengthy treatises are going to help anyone. My own feelings of sorrow and my opinion of these events won't change anything.
Why? Because certain books written by mere mortals are still revered as being of divine origin. Because too many people still believe in supernatural beings with power to influence events and grant wishes. Because too many people are burdened with unnecessary guilt for breaking the irrational rules of invisible despots and fear of divine justice meted out through eternal torture. Because too many people still believe that invisible supernatural beings can give their followers messages through their holy books or visions, dreams, signs, and portents. Because too many people subscribe to the gruesome, barbaric, violent, and inhumane concept of blood sacrifice as necessary for atonement of sins and as a means of reconciliation with their supreme master.
Why are people surprised and shocked at religiously motivated violence? Religion is where these ideas were born, out of a misunderstanding of how the natural world works and the percieved need to appease gods who supposedly make all the rules and who can give or take life on a whim. If someone actually believes that his/her god needs appeasing, they are potentially capable of any number of horrific acts. What is surprising to me is that it doesn't happen more often. I would like to think it is because deep down inside most people can't really swallow all the claims of their holy books and their preachers.
Saturday, June 4, 2016
Joshua chapter 15
After reading chapter 15:
*Later, at the time of the wheat harvest, Samson decided to go visit his wife again. Her father would not let him see her. He told Samson that he had given Samson's wife to his friend because he thought Samson hated her. This time Samson was really mad (As opposed to the time he killed 30 men for their clothes.)and decided to get even. He caught 300 foxes (All by himself? I wonder how long that took?) tied them together in pairs by their tails, tied a torch to every pair of tails, and let the foxes loose on the Philistines grain fields. All their fields, trees, and vinyards were burned. Upon investigating, the Philistines discovered Samson did it because his wife had been given away. So, they burnt up the wife and her father. That made Samson even madder. He took revenge by slaughtering many of them. Then he went and stayed (hid)in a cave.
*The Philistines went to the land of Judah to try to find, capture, and kill Samson. Three thousand men of Judah went to the cave (How did they know where to find him?) and chastised Samson for being rude to their Philistine rulers. He said he had only done what they did to him. Yeah but who started the whole mess? The men of Judah intended to take him back and hand him over. Samson made them swear not to kill him themselves. They tied him up with two new ropes and led him away. When the Philistines saw him coming, they shouted. That amazing Spirit of the Lord came upon him again and gave him the strength to break the ropes. After that, he picked up the jawbone of a donkey and killed a thousand men. Then he made a cute little poem about how he had made donkeys of them all.
*After all that hard work, Samson was very thirsty and cried out to Yahweh who caused a spring of water to come out of the ground. Samson drank and was revived. He then led the Israelites for twenty years. Apparently Yahweh was okay with All these events.
*Later, at the time of the wheat harvest, Samson decided to go visit his wife again. Her father would not let him see her. He told Samson that he had given Samson's wife to his friend because he thought Samson hated her. This time Samson was really mad (As opposed to the time he killed 30 men for their clothes.)and decided to get even. He caught 300 foxes (All by himself? I wonder how long that took?) tied them together in pairs by their tails, tied a torch to every pair of tails, and let the foxes loose on the Philistines grain fields. All their fields, trees, and vinyards were burned. Upon investigating, the Philistines discovered Samson did it because his wife had been given away. So, they burnt up the wife and her father. That made Samson even madder. He took revenge by slaughtering many of them. Then he went and stayed (hid)in a cave.
*The Philistines went to the land of Judah to try to find, capture, and kill Samson. Three thousand men of Judah went to the cave (How did they know where to find him?) and chastised Samson for being rude to their Philistine rulers. He said he had only done what they did to him. Yeah but who started the whole mess? The men of Judah intended to take him back and hand him over. Samson made them swear not to kill him themselves. They tied him up with two new ropes and led him away. When the Philistines saw him coming, they shouted. That amazing Spirit of the Lord came upon him again and gave him the strength to break the ropes. After that, he picked up the jawbone of a donkey and killed a thousand men. Then he made a cute little poem about how he had made donkeys of them all.
*After all that hard work, Samson was very thirsty and cried out to Yahweh who caused a spring of water to come out of the ground. Samson drank and was revived. He then led the Israelites for twenty years. Apparently Yahweh was okay with All these events.
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
Judges chapter 9 part 2
* Abimelech governed Israel for three years but he was not well liked by the citizens of Shechem. Yahweh is said to have caused animosity between them on purpose as a punishment for the slaughter of Gideon's 70 other sons. The men of Shechem terrorized anyone who passed through their land. The people of Shechem began to put their confidence in a newcomer by the name of Gaal.
*At a festival celebrating the grape harvest, Gaal, probably in an alcoholic haze, declared that he would get rid of Abimelech and serve an ancestor of the city's founder if he were them. Zebul, the governor of the city, and Abimelech's deputy, reported this to Abimelech. He advised that Abimelech's men should conduct a surprise attack on Gaal in the morning. When Gaal went out to the city gate in the morning he saw people coming from different directions in attack. Zebul mocked him and said, "Where is your big talk now."
*Gaal led men of Shechem against Abimelech's army. Gaal was defeated and driven out of the city. The next day Abimelech ambushed men of Shechem who came out to work in the fields. Abimelech's men killed all the people of Shechem, destroyed the city and sprinkled salt over it.
*Apparently there were still some of Shechem's people left in a religious stronghold of their temple on mount Zalmon. Abimelech and his men cut branches, laid them against the walls of the stronghold and set fire to it, burning all the people inside alive. About a thousand died. Next, Abimelech captured the city of Thebez. All the people of the city fled and locked themselves into a strong tower . Abimelech stormed the tower and was going to set it on fire. However, a woman in the tower dropped a millstone down on his head and broke his skull. Abimelech begged his servant to kill him with his sword so that no one could say he had been killed by a woman. It was done as he asked. The Israelites were without a leader, so they went home.
*This was supposed to prove that Yahweh had paid back Abimelech and the Shechemites for their slaughter of Gideon's sons, plus the curse of Jotham had come true.
*I still want to know what happened to the supposed city of refuge and the Levites who were supposed to be living in Shechem. Also, why did Abimelech attack Thebez? Wikipedia says it is because they were revolting against Abimelech, along with Shechem. But the Bible doesn't actually say that. This serves as a reminder that Wikipedia can be wrong. If you have questions about the validity of an article that I link, or anything I post, please do some personal research. Wikipedia is merely a convenience for general info.
*At a festival celebrating the grape harvest, Gaal, probably in an alcoholic haze, declared that he would get rid of Abimelech and serve an ancestor of the city's founder if he were them. Zebul, the governor of the city, and Abimelech's deputy, reported this to Abimelech. He advised that Abimelech's men should conduct a surprise attack on Gaal in the morning. When Gaal went out to the city gate in the morning he saw people coming from different directions in attack. Zebul mocked him and said, "Where is your big talk now."
*Gaal led men of Shechem against Abimelech's army. Gaal was defeated and driven out of the city. The next day Abimelech ambushed men of Shechem who came out to work in the fields. Abimelech's men killed all the people of Shechem, destroyed the city and sprinkled salt over it.
*Apparently there were still some of Shechem's people left in a religious stronghold of their temple on mount Zalmon. Abimelech and his men cut branches, laid them against the walls of the stronghold and set fire to it, burning all the people inside alive. About a thousand died. Next, Abimelech captured the city of Thebez. All the people of the city fled and locked themselves into a strong tower . Abimelech stormed the tower and was going to set it on fire. However, a woman in the tower dropped a millstone down on his head and broke his skull. Abimelech begged his servant to kill him with his sword so that no one could say he had been killed by a woman. It was done as he asked. The Israelites were without a leader, so they went home.
*This was supposed to prove that Yahweh had paid back Abimelech and the Shechemites for their slaughter of Gideon's sons, plus the curse of Jotham had come true.
*I still want to know what happened to the supposed city of refuge and the Levites who were supposed to be living in Shechem. Also, why did Abimelech attack Thebez? Wikipedia says it is because they were revolting against Abimelech, along with Shechem. But the Bible doesn't actually say that. This serves as a reminder that Wikipedia can be wrong. If you have questions about the validity of an article that I link, or anything I post, please do some personal research. Wikipedia is merely a convenience for general info.
Thursday, May 19, 2016
Judges chapter 9 part 1
After reading chapter 9:
*Now Gideon had a son named Abimelech by a concubine from Shechem. Abimelech went to Shechem and spoke to his uncles and the rest of his mother's clan. He asked them if they were more inclined to have Gideon's 70 other sons rule over them, or him, one man of their own flesh and blood.
When put like that, they were in favor of Abimelech. They gave him silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and he used it to hire some mercenaries. Abimelech went to Gideon's home in Orphah and murdered his seventy brothers except one who hid, Jotham the youngest.
*Then the citizens of Shechem gathered at their great tree to crown Abimelech King. During the ceremony, Jothan yelled at them from the top of Mount Gerizim. He told them a story in which an olive tree, a fig tree, and a vine, were each asked to be king. They each turned down the honor, stating that they already had good jobs. When a thorn bush (representing Abimelech) was asked to be king, it said the people must take refuge in its shade or fire would come out of it and consume the cedars of Lebanon, presumably meaning "if you make your bed, you must lie in it." Next, Jotham said that if they have acted honorably toward Gideon's family, may Abimilech be their joy. (I think he was being facetious.) If they have not acted honorably, may fire come out of Abimelech and consume them all. In other words, he cursed them. Then Jotham fled to hide from Abimelech.
*A bit of review about Shechem: The great tree there is where Abraham had built an altar, sacrificed to Yahweh, and recieved confirmation of the covenant. (Genesis 12) Shechem is where Joseph's bones were buried after the exodus, on a piece of land that had been previously purchased by Jacob. (Genesis 33- 34) There Jacob had also built an altar and sacrificed to Yahweh. That is also where Jacob's sons, Dinah's brothers, had massacred the inhabitants after demanding their circumcision. In Joshua 20, Shechem was in the territory of Ephraim and designated as one of the cities of refuge. It was given to the Kohathite Levites in Joshua 21. There Joshua renewed Israel's covenant with Yahweh. He took a large stone and set it up under the oak, near the holy place of Yahweh. ( Joshua 24) Now, combine that with the mention that the god Baal-Berith, which means "Lord of the covenant" was worshipped in Shechem. (Judges 8) My study bible calls this ironic and says that the covenant probably referred to a treaty between Canaanite cities. I'm more inclined to think it was an example of religious syncretism. Does anyone else wonder what happened to the Levites?
*Now Gideon had a son named Abimelech by a concubine from Shechem. Abimelech went to Shechem and spoke to his uncles and the rest of his mother's clan. He asked them if they were more inclined to have Gideon's 70 other sons rule over them, or him, one man of their own flesh and blood.
When put like that, they were in favor of Abimelech. They gave him silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and he used it to hire some mercenaries. Abimelech went to Gideon's home in Orphah and murdered his seventy brothers except one who hid, Jotham the youngest.
*Then the citizens of Shechem gathered at their great tree to crown Abimelech King. During the ceremony, Jothan yelled at them from the top of Mount Gerizim. He told them a story in which an olive tree, a fig tree, and a vine, were each asked to be king. They each turned down the honor, stating that they already had good jobs. When a thorn bush (representing Abimelech) was asked to be king, it said the people must take refuge in its shade or fire would come out of it and consume the cedars of Lebanon, presumably meaning "if you make your bed, you must lie in it." Next, Jotham said that if they have acted honorably toward Gideon's family, may Abimilech be their joy. (I think he was being facetious.) If they have not acted honorably, may fire come out of Abimelech and consume them all. In other words, he cursed them. Then Jotham fled to hide from Abimelech.
*A bit of review about Shechem: The great tree there is where Abraham had built an altar, sacrificed to Yahweh, and recieved confirmation of the covenant. (Genesis 12) Shechem is where Joseph's bones were buried after the exodus, on a piece of land that had been previously purchased by Jacob. (Genesis 33- 34) There Jacob had also built an altar and sacrificed to Yahweh. That is also where Jacob's sons, Dinah's brothers, had massacred the inhabitants after demanding their circumcision. In Joshua 20, Shechem was in the territory of Ephraim and designated as one of the cities of refuge. It was given to the Kohathite Levites in Joshua 21. There Joshua renewed Israel's covenant with Yahweh. He took a large stone and set it up under the oak, near the holy place of Yahweh. ( Joshua 24) Now, combine that with the mention that the god Baal-Berith, which means "Lord of the covenant" was worshipped in Shechem. (Judges 8) My study bible calls this ironic and says that the covenant probably referred to a treaty between Canaanite cities. I'm more inclined to think it was an example of religious syncretism. Does anyone else wonder what happened to the Levites?
Friday, April 29, 2016
Judges chapter 3
After reading chapter 3:
*The last chapter told us that Yahweh left some Canaanite nations unconquered to test the Israelites ability to follow his ways as their forefathers did, even though it is clear their forefathers clearly weren't that great at it. However, in this chapter, a parenthetical statement says that Yahweh's purpose for this test was only to teach the the Israelite descendants who were inexperienced in battle, a kind of on-the-job training. In the very next sentence, we are again told Yahweh was testing their obedience to Yahweh's commands given through Moses. Then we are given the names of some people groups who the Israelites fought and/or comingled with. It is a little confusing. Did they fight with the Canaanites and Hivites, or did they live with them and form family alliances?
*Apparently, in spite of the constant admonitions of obedience to Yahweh given to their ancestors, the Israelites completely forgot about Yahweh and served other gods. Yahweh became angry and "sold" them as subjects to the king of Aram Naharaim for 8 years. They cried out to Yahweh (I thought they had forgot him?) and he raised up Othniel, Caleb's younger brother. The spirit of Yahweh, which had last been manifested in Joshua, inhabited Othniel. So, this isn't even one whole generation later? Wow! They forgot Yahweh very quickly. Othniel went to war, which apparently is Yahweh's forte, and overpowered the king of Aram. Then the Israelites lived in peace for 40 years, that magical number, until Othniel died.
* Once again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. Then the King of Moab attacked Israel and made them his subjects for 18 years. The Israelites cried out to Yahweh and he made Ehud, the left handed man, their deliverer. Ehud had made a special sword and concealed it under his clothes. He went to deliver tribute to the king of Moab and told the king he had a secret message. The king sent everyone from the room and Ehud plunged his sword into the king's hugely fat belly. It went in so deep that even the handle was covered by the fat. After Ehud was gone, the servants found the room locked and thought the king was having a private bathroom moment. They waited a long time, then finally opened the door to find the king dead. Ehud escaped, gathered some Israelites, blocked the crossing of the Jordan, killed ten thousand Moabites, and made Moab subject to them. After that, there was peace for 80 years. (2x40)
*After Ehud came Shamgar, who killed 600 Philistines with an ox goad.
*The last chapter told us that Yahweh left some Canaanite nations unconquered to test the Israelites ability to follow his ways as their forefathers did, even though it is clear their forefathers clearly weren't that great at it. However, in this chapter, a parenthetical statement says that Yahweh's purpose for this test was only to teach the the Israelite descendants who were inexperienced in battle, a kind of on-the-job training. In the very next sentence, we are again told Yahweh was testing their obedience to Yahweh's commands given through Moses. Then we are given the names of some people groups who the Israelites fought and/or comingled with. It is a little confusing. Did they fight with the Canaanites and Hivites, or did they live with them and form family alliances?
*Apparently, in spite of the constant admonitions of obedience to Yahweh given to their ancestors, the Israelites completely forgot about Yahweh and served other gods. Yahweh became angry and "sold" them as subjects to the king of Aram Naharaim for 8 years. They cried out to Yahweh (I thought they had forgot him?) and he raised up Othniel, Caleb's younger brother. The spirit of Yahweh, which had last been manifested in Joshua, inhabited Othniel. So, this isn't even one whole generation later? Wow! They forgot Yahweh very quickly. Othniel went to war, which apparently is Yahweh's forte, and overpowered the king of Aram. Then the Israelites lived in peace for 40 years, that magical number, until Othniel died.
* Once again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. Then the King of Moab attacked Israel and made them his subjects for 18 years. The Israelites cried out to Yahweh and he made Ehud, the left handed man, their deliverer. Ehud had made a special sword and concealed it under his clothes. He went to deliver tribute to the king of Moab and told the king he had a secret message. The king sent everyone from the room and Ehud plunged his sword into the king's hugely fat belly. It went in so deep that even the handle was covered by the fat. After Ehud was gone, the servants found the room locked and thought the king was having a private bathroom moment. They waited a long time, then finally opened the door to find the king dead. Ehud escaped, gathered some Israelites, blocked the crossing of the Jordan, killed ten thousand Moabites, and made Moab subject to them. After that, there was peace for 80 years. (2x40)
*After Ehud came Shamgar, who killed 600 Philistines with an ox goad.
Friday, April 22, 2016
Judges chapter 1
After reading chapter 1:
*After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked Yahweh which tribe should continue the fighting. Yahweh chose the tribe of Judah. Who was Yahweh speaking through now? We are not told, but presumably it was the current high priest, Phineas. The men of Judah invited the Simeonites to accompany them. Together they killed ten thousand men. They captured the king of Bezek and cut off his thumbs and big toes. The king viewed this as a kind of divine Karma, because he had done the same thing to 70 other kings.
*Next, they attacked Jerusalem, slaughtered its inhabitants, and burned the city to the ground. Then we are told they attacked Canaanites living in Hebron and Debir, which had already been totally conquered in Joshua chapter 10! We are also retold the story of Caleb's daughter marrying Othniel, the conqueror of Debir. We are also retold the story of her asking for land with springs of water from Joshua chapter 15. Only this time it all happens after the death of Joshua, not before!
*The Judahites and Simeonites, with the help of Yahweh, went on conquering Canaanites and took Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron. (History says these Canaanite cities were actually conquered by the Philistines or the sea people.) They also took possession of the hill country, which appears redundant because Joshua is said to have done the same thing in Joshua chapter 11. Again, we are told they could not conquer the people of the plains because they had iron chariots. Foiled again, Yahweh!
*Caleb was given Hebron and drove three sons of Anak from it.The sons of Anak, or Anakim, are interesting fellows. They are considered to be Giants. Also, Numbers 13 says they are descendants of the Nephilim, introduced in Genesis 6. The big question is how did they survive the flood?
*The Benjaminites could not drive out the Jebusites. Manasseh could not drive out four tribes that were determined to live in that land. Ephraim could not completely drive out Canaanites living in Gezer. Zebulon could not drive out Canaanites living in Kitron nor Nahalol. Asher could not drive out 7 tribes of Canaanites living in "his" land, so he just had to live with them. Naphtali could not drive out two tribes. The Amorites confined the tribe of Dan to the hill country and wouldn't let them come down into the plain. Sounds like Yahweh's powers either waned or experienced limitations. It is quite clear that the Israelites did not completely control the land of Cannan, no matter how you look at it. Nevertheless, this chapter insists that the Israelite tribes grew stronger and eventually subjected these pesky leftover Canaanites to forced labor. Yeah, right.
*After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked Yahweh which tribe should continue the fighting. Yahweh chose the tribe of Judah. Who was Yahweh speaking through now? We are not told, but presumably it was the current high priest, Phineas. The men of Judah invited the Simeonites to accompany them. Together they killed ten thousand men. They captured the king of Bezek and cut off his thumbs and big toes. The king viewed this as a kind of divine Karma, because he had done the same thing to 70 other kings.
*Next, they attacked Jerusalem, slaughtered its inhabitants, and burned the city to the ground. Then we are told they attacked Canaanites living in Hebron and Debir, which had already been totally conquered in Joshua chapter 10! We are also retold the story of Caleb's daughter marrying Othniel, the conqueror of Debir. We are also retold the story of her asking for land with springs of water from Joshua chapter 15. Only this time it all happens after the death of Joshua, not before!
*The Judahites and Simeonites, with the help of Yahweh, went on conquering Canaanites and took Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron. (History says these Canaanite cities were actually conquered by the Philistines or the sea people.) They also took possession of the hill country, which appears redundant because Joshua is said to have done the same thing in Joshua chapter 11. Again, we are told they could not conquer the people of the plains because they had iron chariots. Foiled again, Yahweh!
*Caleb was given Hebron and drove three sons of Anak from it.The sons of Anak, or Anakim, are interesting fellows. They are considered to be Giants. Also, Numbers 13 says they are descendants of the Nephilim, introduced in Genesis 6. The big question is how did they survive the flood?
*The Benjaminites could not drive out the Jebusites. Manasseh could not drive out four tribes that were determined to live in that land. Ephraim could not completely drive out Canaanites living in Gezer. Zebulon could not drive out Canaanites living in Kitron nor Nahalol. Asher could not drive out 7 tribes of Canaanites living in "his" land, so he just had to live with them. Naphtali could not drive out two tribes. The Amorites confined the tribe of Dan to the hill country and wouldn't let them come down into the plain. Sounds like Yahweh's powers either waned or experienced limitations. It is quite clear that the Israelites did not completely control the land of Cannan, no matter how you look at it. Nevertheless, this chapter insists that the Israelite tribes grew stronger and eventually subjected these pesky leftover Canaanites to forced labor. Yeah, right.
Friday, April 1, 2016
Joshua chapters 11 and 12
After reading chapter 11:
*The fighting is not done. Other Kings and armies came to fight the Israelites and joined forces. They had a massive number of troops, plus chariots and horses. Yahweh told Joshua not to worry. The Israelites would slay the armies, hamstring the horses, and burn the chariots. (Aside: what purpose is served by torturing horses? Why don't they just kill them outright?) So, the Israelites went to battle and supposedly did what Yahweh said they would do.
*Joshua turned back and also decimated the city of Hazor and its King, which had been the head of the coalition of armies. In fact he totally destroyed the inhabitants of all the royal cities, but the only one burnt was Hazor. They also carried off plunder, because now it seems to be okay to do that, in spite of the previous command to never plunder, which is why Achan was killed in chapter 7.
*Joshua took the entire land and did battle for a long time. Everyone in "Israelite territory" was destroyed except for the people of Gibeon. According to verse 20, Yahweh was responsible for hardening the hearts of the various tribes so they would go to war and the Israelites could "exterminate them without mercy." It had nothing to do with them protecting or defending their personal property from a hostile takeover. And all this happened because Yahweh had promised the land would be an inheritance to Israel. After these things were accomplished, the land had rest from war.
After reading chapter 12:
*This chapter is a list of the Kings that were conquered by Moses, Joshua, and the Israelites. There were 31 in all.
*The fighting is not done. Other Kings and armies came to fight the Israelites and joined forces. They had a massive number of troops, plus chariots and horses. Yahweh told Joshua not to worry. The Israelites would slay the armies, hamstring the horses, and burn the chariots. (Aside: what purpose is served by torturing horses? Why don't they just kill them outright?) So, the Israelites went to battle and supposedly did what Yahweh said they would do.
*Joshua turned back and also decimated the city of Hazor and its King, which had been the head of the coalition of armies. In fact he totally destroyed the inhabitants of all the royal cities, but the only one burnt was Hazor. They also carried off plunder, because now it seems to be okay to do that, in spite of the previous command to never plunder, which is why Achan was killed in chapter 7.
*Joshua took the entire land and did battle for a long time. Everyone in "Israelite territory" was destroyed except for the people of Gibeon. According to verse 20, Yahweh was responsible for hardening the hearts of the various tribes so they would go to war and the Israelites could "exterminate them without mercy." It had nothing to do with them protecting or defending their personal property from a hostile takeover. And all this happened because Yahweh had promised the land would be an inheritance to Israel. After these things were accomplished, the land had rest from war.
After reading chapter 12:
*This chapter is a list of the Kings that were conquered by Moses, Joshua, and the Israelites. There were 31 in all.
Thursday, March 31, 2016
Joshua chapter 10, part 2
*The five kings from the beginning of the chapter ran away and hid in a cave at Mekkedah. Joshua ordered the mouth of the cave to be blocked and guarded while the kings' armies were being chased down. The Israelites destroyed almost every member of the Kings' armies, except for a few. Seemingly, no Israelites were harmed, and the whole army returned to the camp by the cave where the Kings were being held. Joshua ordered the Kings to be brought out of the cave. The army commanders were told to put their feet on the Kings' necks, presumably to hold them down while Joshua personally killed them. Then the bodies were hung on trees till evening, when they were taken down and thrown back into the cave. The cave was then blocked up with rocks. As a bonus, they also conquered the nearby city of Mekkedah, totally destroyed its inhabitants, and did the same thing to its King that they did to the previously mentioned Kings.
*Next, they conquered Libnah and left no survivors. Then came the cities of Lachish and Eglon, plus the King and the army of Gezer, no survivors. Then they utterly destroyed Hebron and its King, which is odd because its King was one of the five Kings that had been held in the cave, unless it had a new King in the meantime. The same was done to Debir. So, according to this account, Joshua and the Israelite army decimated the whole region from Kadesh Barnea to Gaza and from Goshen to Gibeon, in one campaign, with no Israelite losses. All because Yahweh fought on their side. If Yahweh was so powerful, why couldn't he have done the dirty work himself? Funny how murdering is forbidden in the Ten Commandments, but when God authorizes it, it becomes okay.
* The Israelites returned to the camp at Gilgal.
*Next, they conquered Libnah and left no survivors. Then came the cities of Lachish and Eglon, plus the King and the army of Gezer, no survivors. Then they utterly destroyed Hebron and its King, which is odd because its King was one of the five Kings that had been held in the cave, unless it had a new King in the meantime. The same was done to Debir. So, according to this account, Joshua and the Israelite army decimated the whole region from Kadesh Barnea to Gaza and from Goshen to Gibeon, in one campaign, with no Israelite losses. All because Yahweh fought on their side. If Yahweh was so powerful, why couldn't he have done the dirty work himself? Funny how murdering is forbidden in the Ten Commandments, but when God authorizes it, it becomes okay.
* The Israelites returned to the camp at Gilgal.
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Joshua chapter 7
After reading chapter 7:
*Here we have an interesting and instructive side story, meant to show that when Yahweh says he wants all the valuable objects for himself, he means it. They are called "devoted things" because they were to be devoted to Yahweh's treasury, of which the priests were in charge. After the storming of Jericho, there was a pile of plunder, which contained gold, silver, and a beautiful Babylonian robe. One wonders what a robe was doing in the plunder, it wasn't made of valuable metals and Yahweh couldn't wear it. One also wonders how a travelling nomadic herdsman is up on Babylonian fashion. Apparently, Achan, from the tribe of Judah, coveted that robe, along with some gold and silver. So, he took them and hid them under the ground in his tent. This was a big no-no. In the last chapter the people had been told trouble and destruction would come to them if they took any of the devoted things for themselves.
*Meanwhile, another battle was at hand. Joshua sent some men to spy out the lay of the land at a place called Ai, which according to archaeological evidence, may not have even been occupied at the time. When the spies came back, they were supremely confident and said there was no need to send everyone, the place had very few men. So, only 3,000 men went to take Ai. Wonder of wonders, Ai fought back and thirty six Israelites were killed. The Israelites hearts "melted like water" after this event. Awww. Joshua and the elders of Israel were devastated. They tore their clothes, fell on the ground, and sprinkled dust on their heads. That was to prove how upset they were. Then Joshua complained to Yahweh and told him Yahweh's reputation among the Canaanites would suffer because of this and the Israelites would be wiped out.
*Yahweh told Joshua to stand up then informed him that there was a thief and a liar among the Israelites. That was why they lost the battle with Ai. Joshua was to tell the people that they would not be able to stand against their enemies unless they removed the devoted objects from the camp. The perpetrator and all his possessions were to be burned. The next morning each tribe was called forth and examined. Joshua managed to separate out Achan. Joshua called Achan "my son" and told him not to hide what he had done. Joshua knew what the punishment was going to be, Achan didn't. Achan confessed; the objects were found and spread out before the lord. Achan, his children, his livestock, and the loot, were taken to the valley of Achor. There, all the living beings that belonged to Achan were stoned and then burned. Afterward, a bunch of rocks was piled on the site, which "remains to this day." In reality no one is certain where the site would have been.
*Why did Yahweh require the children and livestock to be stoned and burned (tortured) for what one man had done? What happened to the valuable objects?
*Here we have an interesting and instructive side story, meant to show that when Yahweh says he wants all the valuable objects for himself, he means it. They are called "devoted things" because they were to be devoted to Yahweh's treasury, of which the priests were in charge. After the storming of Jericho, there was a pile of plunder, which contained gold, silver, and a beautiful Babylonian robe. One wonders what a robe was doing in the plunder, it wasn't made of valuable metals and Yahweh couldn't wear it. One also wonders how a travelling nomadic herdsman is up on Babylonian fashion. Apparently, Achan, from the tribe of Judah, coveted that robe, along with some gold and silver. So, he took them and hid them under the ground in his tent. This was a big no-no. In the last chapter the people had been told trouble and destruction would come to them if they took any of the devoted things for themselves.
*Meanwhile, another battle was at hand. Joshua sent some men to spy out the lay of the land at a place called Ai, which according to archaeological evidence, may not have even been occupied at the time. When the spies came back, they were supremely confident and said there was no need to send everyone, the place had very few men. So, only 3,000 men went to take Ai. Wonder of wonders, Ai fought back and thirty six Israelites were killed. The Israelites hearts "melted like water" after this event. Awww. Joshua and the elders of Israel were devastated. They tore their clothes, fell on the ground, and sprinkled dust on their heads. That was to prove how upset they were. Then Joshua complained to Yahweh and told him Yahweh's reputation among the Canaanites would suffer because of this and the Israelites would be wiped out.
*Yahweh told Joshua to stand up then informed him that there was a thief and a liar among the Israelites. That was why they lost the battle with Ai. Joshua was to tell the people that they would not be able to stand against their enemies unless they removed the devoted objects from the camp. The perpetrator and all his possessions were to be burned. The next morning each tribe was called forth and examined. Joshua managed to separate out Achan. Joshua called Achan "my son" and told him not to hide what he had done. Joshua knew what the punishment was going to be, Achan didn't. Achan confessed; the objects were found and spread out before the lord. Achan, his children, his livestock, and the loot, were taken to the valley of Achor. There, all the living beings that belonged to Achan were stoned and then burned. Afterward, a bunch of rocks was piled on the site, which "remains to this day." In reality no one is certain where the site would have been.
*Why did Yahweh require the children and livestock to be stoned and burned (tortured) for what one man had done? What happened to the valuable objects?
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Deuteronomy 28
After reading chapter 28:
*First we have a reiteration of the necessity for obedience, then a list of blessings and cursings. If the Israelites obey Yahweh, they will recieve blessings in the form of abundant wealth, food, children, and defeat of enemies. They will become the top dogs in the land and the benefactors of other nations.
*If they do not obey, they will be cursed in every way, including lack of wealth, food, and children. They will contract many different diseases and health problems. There will be drought and famine. The Israelite's enemies will defeat them. They will go mad, be unsuccessful in every endeavor, and end up oppressed and robbed. Their brides to be will be violated before they can marry them. They will labor and build in vain. They will be ridiculed and become the lowest of the low.
*The cursings go on for some length and are very poetically detailed. At one point there is a quite gory description of the Israelite's descent into the depths of cannabalism. Not only cannabalism, but selfishly refusing to share the flesh of their children. How sorry can you get.
*Then, after all these horrendous cursings, the Israelites will be scattered among the nations and worship other gods. They will have sunk so low that they will be sent back to Egypt on ships and no one will even want to buy them as slaves. That's low.
*There you have it, the carrot and the stick, heaven and hell on earth, not in any invisible realms.
*First we have a reiteration of the necessity for obedience, then a list of blessings and cursings. If the Israelites obey Yahweh, they will recieve blessings in the form of abundant wealth, food, children, and defeat of enemies. They will become the top dogs in the land and the benefactors of other nations.
*If they do not obey, they will be cursed in every way, including lack of wealth, food, and children. They will contract many different diseases and health problems. There will be drought and famine. The Israelite's enemies will defeat them. They will go mad, be unsuccessful in every endeavor, and end up oppressed and robbed. Their brides to be will be violated before they can marry them. They will labor and build in vain. They will be ridiculed and become the lowest of the low.
*The cursings go on for some length and are very poetically detailed. At one point there is a quite gory description of the Israelite's descent into the depths of cannabalism. Not only cannabalism, but selfishly refusing to share the flesh of their children. How sorry can you get.
*Then, after all these horrendous cursings, the Israelites will be scattered among the nations and worship other gods. They will have sunk so low that they will be sent back to Egypt on ships and no one will even want to buy them as slaves. That's low.
*There you have it, the carrot and the stick, heaven and hell on earth, not in any invisible realms.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
Deuteronomy chapter 22
After reading chapter 22:
*Verses 1-12 are a series of odd laws that seem to have nowhere else to go:
-Give lost animals and personal property back to their rightful owners. No "finders keepers."
-Help a fellow Israelite restore a fallen animal to its feet.
-Noone must wear the clothes of the opposite sex, God detests people who do that. (The obvious inference would be that some people did this at that time.)
-Wild bird eggs can be harvested from nests, but the mother birds must be left alone.
-A railing must be built around the edge of a roof, so that the owner of the house won't be liable if someone falls off the roof.
-Do not plant two kinds of seeds in a vinyard or the vinyard will be defiled.
-Do not yoke an ox and a donkey together.
-Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together.
-Make tassels on the four corners of your cloak
*The rest of the chapter contains some rather barbaric marriage rules. Basically, if a man expects to be marrying a virgin, he better get one. If he doesn't like his wife, he can yell foul after the marriage and the bride's parents have to provide proof of the bride's virginity in the form of a cloth stained with blood from the wedding night. If there is no proof, the woman is to be stoned to death at the door of her father's house by the men of the town. If there is proof of her virginity, it is to be shown to the village elders and the accusing husband is to give his father- in- law 100 silver shekels. Then he can never divorce the woman. Poor woman.
-If a man sleeps with another man's wife, they must both die. No exceptions.
-If a man sleeps with a virgin in town, who was pledged to be married, they must both be stoned to death. 1. Because she belonged to another man. 2. Because she was in town and didn't scream. Um, how do they know this in advance? What if she was threatened with death if she screamed?
-If a man rapes a virgin in the countryside, who was pledged to be married, only the man is to be killed. After all, she screamed bloody murder and no one could hear her. That makes her innocent. Again, how do they know this? She could have been quite willing and no one would know the difference.
-If a man rapes a virgin who is not pledged to be married, he must give her father fifty shekels of silver and marry her. This marriage is for life, no divorce permitted. Poor woman. Unless, the two of them cook up this scheme so that the father could have no choice but to agree to the marriage.
-A man may not sleep with his father's wife. We would say "duh" but if this wasn't an issue, why is it mentioned? Reuben, son of Jacob (Israel), did this very thing in Genesis chapter 35.
Lesson: It's safer for a woman to be raped in the country, especially if she was already pledged to be married. Then she gets to live and won't have to marry her rapist.
*Verses 1-12 are a series of odd laws that seem to have nowhere else to go:
-Give lost animals and personal property back to their rightful owners. No "finders keepers."
-Help a fellow Israelite restore a fallen animal to its feet.
-Noone must wear the clothes of the opposite sex, God detests people who do that. (The obvious inference would be that some people did this at that time.)
-Wild bird eggs can be harvested from nests, but the mother birds must be left alone.
-A railing must be built around the edge of a roof, so that the owner of the house won't be liable if someone falls off the roof.
-Do not plant two kinds of seeds in a vinyard or the vinyard will be defiled.
-Do not yoke an ox and a donkey together.
-Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together.
-Make tassels on the four corners of your cloak
*The rest of the chapter contains some rather barbaric marriage rules. Basically, if a man expects to be marrying a virgin, he better get one. If he doesn't like his wife, he can yell foul after the marriage and the bride's parents have to provide proof of the bride's virginity in the form of a cloth stained with blood from the wedding night. If there is no proof, the woman is to be stoned to death at the door of her father's house by the men of the town. If there is proof of her virginity, it is to be shown to the village elders and the accusing husband is to give his father- in- law 100 silver shekels. Then he can never divorce the woman. Poor woman.
-If a man sleeps with another man's wife, they must both die. No exceptions.
-If a man sleeps with a virgin in town, who was pledged to be married, they must both be stoned to death. 1. Because she belonged to another man. 2. Because she was in town and didn't scream. Um, how do they know this in advance? What if she was threatened with death if she screamed?
-If a man rapes a virgin in the countryside, who was pledged to be married, only the man is to be killed. After all, she screamed bloody murder and no one could hear her. That makes her innocent. Again, how do they know this? She could have been quite willing and no one would know the difference.
-If a man rapes a virgin who is not pledged to be married, he must give her father fifty shekels of silver and marry her. This marriage is for life, no divorce permitted. Poor woman. Unless, the two of them cook up this scheme so that the father could have no choice but to agree to the marriage.
-A man may not sleep with his father's wife. We would say "duh" but if this wasn't an issue, why is it mentioned? Reuben, son of Jacob (Israel), did this very thing in Genesis chapter 35.
Lesson: It's safer for a woman to be raped in the country, especially if she was already pledged to be married. Then she gets to live and won't have to marry her rapist.
Saturday, February 6, 2016
Deuteronomy 21
After reading chapter 21:
*The first 9 verses are the rules for atoning for an unsolved murder with no eye witnesses. The elders of the nearest town take a heifer that has never been yoked, to a valley that has not been plowed, by a flowing stream. Then they break its neck, wash their hands over it, and declare their innocence. This will supposedly absolve them from the guilt of the shedding of innocent blood that is floating around that area. What a waste of a good heifer. Wait, the priests are there too. I'm sure they will find some use for that young cow carcass. Veal scaloppine.
*Verses 10 -15 are about captive wives acquired through war and conquest. Let's be clear. These were women taken away from their homes by force, and without their consent. If an Israelite is attracted to a beautiful captive, he can just take her for his "wife." First, her head must be shaved, her nails trimmed and her old clothes replaced. She is to be allowed to mourn for her father and mother for a month. How generous, considering they were probably murdered by the Israelites. After that the Israelite man can go to her and be her husband. In other words, he can sexually use her. If he doesn't like her, he can let her go wherever she wishes. In other words, he can abandon her. He can not sell her or treat her as a slave (?!) because he has dishonored did her. So, he can't make any money from her, but he can save money by getting rid of her. How do you think the "dishonored" woman would feel about that? Is there any limit to the number of throw away wives?
*If an Israelite man has two wives and loves one more than the other, he must still give priority of inheritance to his first born son, no matter which wife bore the son. The first born gets a double share.
*If an Israelite man has a rebellious, stubborn, disobedient, drunken son, he will be brought to the elders at the gate by his parents. All the men of the town will stone him to death. This will put fear into the rest of the Israelites. No kidding. I guess stoning dispenses with the need for jails.
*Last, if a guilty person has been hung, his body must not be left up overnight. He is to be buried the same day, because anyone who is hung is under God's curse and the curse can spread. We wouldn't want that to happen.
*The first 9 verses are the rules for atoning for an unsolved murder with no eye witnesses. The elders of the nearest town take a heifer that has never been yoked, to a valley that has not been plowed, by a flowing stream. Then they break its neck, wash their hands over it, and declare their innocence. This will supposedly absolve them from the guilt of the shedding of innocent blood that is floating around that area. What a waste of a good heifer. Wait, the priests are there too. I'm sure they will find some use for that young cow carcass. Veal scaloppine.
*Verses 10 -15 are about captive wives acquired through war and conquest. Let's be clear. These were women taken away from their homes by force, and without their consent. If an Israelite is attracted to a beautiful captive, he can just take her for his "wife." First, her head must be shaved, her nails trimmed and her old clothes replaced. She is to be allowed to mourn for her father and mother for a month. How generous, considering they were probably murdered by the Israelites. After that the Israelite man can go to her and be her husband. In other words, he can sexually use her. If he doesn't like her, he can let her go wherever she wishes. In other words, he can abandon her. He can not sell her or treat her as a slave (?!) because he has dishonored did her. So, he can't make any money from her, but he can save money by getting rid of her. How do you think the "dishonored" woman would feel about that? Is there any limit to the number of throw away wives?
*If an Israelite man has two wives and loves one more than the other, he must still give priority of inheritance to his first born son, no matter which wife bore the son. The first born gets a double share.
*If an Israelite man has a rebellious, stubborn, disobedient, drunken son, he will be brought to the elders at the gate by his parents. All the men of the town will stone him to death. This will put fear into the rest of the Israelites. No kidding. I guess stoning dispenses with the need for jails.
*Last, if a guilty person has been hung, his body must not be left up overnight. He is to be buried the same day, because anyone who is hung is under God's curse and the curse can spread. We wouldn't want that to happen.
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Deuteronomy 20
After reading chapter 20:
*This chapter is instructions for when the Israelites go to war, not if, when.
-They are not to be afraid of larger, stronger, or better equipped armies, because Yahweh will be with them.
-The priest will give the army a pep talk before battles.
-The officers will allow exemption from service for the dedication of a new house, a vinyard that hasn't begun to produce yet, plans to marry, and fear of war. Then they will appoint commanders.
-When the army goes to attack a city, they will first offer it peace on condition of the forced labor (slavery) of the inhabitants. If they refuse, the Israelites are to lay siege to the city. When they win, the men are to be slaughtered; the women, children, and valuables are to be taken as plunder. They are free to use the "plunder." God gives it to them. This only applies to cities further away.
-The above does not apply to the cities of the nations God gives the Israelites as an inheritance. Those cities will be completely decimated and "anything that breathes" must not be left alive, otherwise they might be taught to do some of the despicable things those people do. How do innocent children and infants pose a threat? Not to mention animals.
-When the Israelites lay siege to a city, they are not to destroy the fruit bearing trees because they are useful to them for food, besides what did the poor trees do to deserve that? However, it's okay to cut down other types of trees to build siege works.
*This chapter is instructions for when the Israelites go to war, not if, when.
-They are not to be afraid of larger, stronger, or better equipped armies, because Yahweh will be with them.
-The priest will give the army a pep talk before battles.
-The officers will allow exemption from service for the dedication of a new house, a vinyard that hasn't begun to produce yet, plans to marry, and fear of war. Then they will appoint commanders.
-When the army goes to attack a city, they will first offer it peace on condition of the forced labor (slavery) of the inhabitants. If they refuse, the Israelites are to lay siege to the city. When they win, the men are to be slaughtered; the women, children, and valuables are to be taken as plunder. They are free to use the "plunder." God gives it to them. This only applies to cities further away.
-The above does not apply to the cities of the nations God gives the Israelites as an inheritance. Those cities will be completely decimated and "anything that breathes" must not be left alive, otherwise they might be taught to do some of the despicable things those people do. How do innocent children and infants pose a threat? Not to mention animals.
-When the Israelites lay siege to a city, they are not to destroy the fruit bearing trees because they are useful to them for food, besides what did the poor trees do to deserve that? However, it's okay to cut down other types of trees to build siege works.
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Deuteronomy 13
After reading chapter 13:
*This chapter is a stern repetition of the command not to follow other gods, no matter what. No one is to be trusted who would lure them into the worship of other gods. Not prophets or dreamers, even if they can work miracles and accurately forecast events. They must be put to death. Not brothers, sons or daughters, wives or close friends. They must be stoned to death without pity. In fact, the person they tried to entice away from Yahweh must cast the first stone. Then the rest of the Israelites will hear and be afraid. No kidding.
* If they hear about a town that has turned away from Yahweh to other gods, they must investigate. If it is true, they must slaughter the whole town and the livestock.They must gather all the plunder in the center of town and burn it as a sacrifice to the lord. Then it is to remain a ruin forever. This is to be done to turn away the fierce anger of the lord, so he doesn't take his wrath out on them. Then he will show them mercy and compassion. Though after reading this, what his mercy and compassion would look like is a mystery to me.
*Why doesn't Yahweh just tell them those other gods don't even exist? Why does an omnipotent, omniscient God even need to threaten and cajole? Doesn't he already know what will happen and the reasons for it? To what purpose is his anger? Not to mention that anger is an obviously human emotion.
*This chapter is a stern repetition of the command not to follow other gods, no matter what. No one is to be trusted who would lure them into the worship of other gods. Not prophets or dreamers, even if they can work miracles and accurately forecast events. They must be put to death. Not brothers, sons or daughters, wives or close friends. They must be stoned to death without pity. In fact, the person they tried to entice away from Yahweh must cast the first stone. Then the rest of the Israelites will hear and be afraid. No kidding.
* If they hear about a town that has turned away from Yahweh to other gods, they must investigate. If it is true, they must slaughter the whole town and the livestock.They must gather all the plunder in the center of town and burn it as a sacrifice to the lord. Then it is to remain a ruin forever. This is to be done to turn away the fierce anger of the lord, so he doesn't take his wrath out on them. Then he will show them mercy and compassion. Though after reading this, what his mercy and compassion would look like is a mystery to me.
*Why doesn't Yahweh just tell them those other gods don't even exist? Why does an omnipotent, omniscient God even need to threaten and cajole? Doesn't he already know what will happen and the reasons for it? To what purpose is his anger? Not to mention that anger is an obviously human emotion.
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Numbers chapter 31
After reading chapter 31:
*After a brief intermission, laying down some religious and social rules, Yahweh tells Moses to take vengeance on the Midianites, who used to be Moabites, presumably for the crime of inviting them to other god's BBQs and showing the men a good time. So, 12,000 men, 1,000 from each tribe, were sent into battle, along with Phineas, the son of the high priest, the same guy who had run a spear through the Midianite woman and Israeli man. They fought against Midian and killed every man, including Balaam, the guy with the talking donkey.
*The Israelite army burned the Midianite towns and camps, after they plundered them. They took their spoils, including the women and children , back to the Israelite camp. Moses was upset, because it was the Midianite/Moabite women who had enticed the Israelite men. He ordered all the sexually active women killed. The reason given for this was that they were following Balaam's advice on how to turn the Israelites away from Yahweh. This is very strange because chapters 22-24 clearly show Balaam speaking on behalf of Yahweh and the Israelites, and blessing them. There is no mention of him giving any advice for turning the Israelites away from Yahweh.
*Moses also ordered the killing of all the boys, but gives no reason. Then, he says the Israelite army can save all the virgin girls for themselves, we can guess the reason. The fighting men who had killed, and the captive virgins, were to remain outside the camp for seven days, to be "purified." The thought of this makes my blood run cold. All metals, were to be passed through a fire and washed with holy water, for cleansing. Everything that couldn't be passed through a fire was just to be washed with the water of cleansing.
*Next, Yahweh told Moses to count all the people ( the girls) and the animals that were captured and divide up the spoils. Half for the fighting men, half for the rest of the community. From the soldier's share, one out of every 500, of the girls, cattle, sheep, goats, and donkeys was to be given to the priests, um, the lord. From the community share, one out of every 50. We are given the numbers for each of the kinds of animals and the virgins, because this is the book of numbers after all. There were 32,000 females divvied up that day.
*After the distribution of the spoils, the commanders of the army told Moses that not a single fighting man had been lost. Incredible. They also had gold to give to the priests, um, the lord. Of course Moses and the priests accepted the gold on Yahweh's behalf, and the soldiers had some left over for themselves, naturally.
*After a brief intermission, laying down some religious and social rules, Yahweh tells Moses to take vengeance on the Midianites, who used to be Moabites, presumably for the crime of inviting them to other god's BBQs and showing the men a good time. So, 12,000 men, 1,000 from each tribe, were sent into battle, along with Phineas, the son of the high priest, the same guy who had run a spear through the Midianite woman and Israeli man. They fought against Midian and killed every man, including Balaam, the guy with the talking donkey.
*The Israelite army burned the Midianite towns and camps, after they plundered them. They took their spoils, including the women and children , back to the Israelite camp. Moses was upset, because it was the Midianite/Moabite women who had enticed the Israelite men. He ordered all the sexually active women killed. The reason given for this was that they were following Balaam's advice on how to turn the Israelites away from Yahweh. This is very strange because chapters 22-24 clearly show Balaam speaking on behalf of Yahweh and the Israelites, and blessing them. There is no mention of him giving any advice for turning the Israelites away from Yahweh.
*Moses also ordered the killing of all the boys, but gives no reason. Then, he says the Israelite army can save all the virgin girls for themselves, we can guess the reason. The fighting men who had killed, and the captive virgins, were to remain outside the camp for seven days, to be "purified." The thought of this makes my blood run cold. All metals, were to be passed through a fire and washed with holy water, for cleansing. Everything that couldn't be passed through a fire was just to be washed with the water of cleansing.
*Next, Yahweh told Moses to count all the people ( the girls) and the animals that were captured and divide up the spoils. Half for the fighting men, half for the rest of the community. From the soldier's share, one out of every 500, of the girls, cattle, sheep, goats, and donkeys was to be given to the priests, um, the lord. From the community share, one out of every 50. We are given the numbers for each of the kinds of animals and the virgins, because this is the book of numbers after all. There were 32,000 females divvied up that day.
*After the distribution of the spoils, the commanders of the army told Moses that not a single fighting man had been lost. Incredible. They also had gold to give to the priests, um, the lord. Of course Moses and the priests accepted the gold on Yahweh's behalf, and the soldiers had some left over for themselves, naturally.
Saturday, December 5, 2015
Numbers chapter 25
After reading chapter 25:
*So, Israel was staying in Shittim (Please, let's not get all junior high here.) Some of the men got invited to BBQs (sacrifices to other gods) by the Moabite women, and they went. Not only that, they also had a very good time with those Moabite women. They ate the BBQ and bowed down to Baal of Peor, who may have been the egyptian sun god Horus. Boy was Yahweh mad! He told Moses to kill all the people who had done this.
*Then an Israelite man had the effrontery to bring home a Midianite woman in front of everyone!
Phineas, the son of Eleazar the high priest, took a spear and drove it through both of them while they were together in the tent. This stopped a plague which had apparently been happening at the time, but not before 24,0000 people died. (A nice round number. )God told Moses that Phineas had appeased his anger, so he made an everlasting covenant with him that his descendants would be an everlasting priesthood, even though he had already been covered under the same promise made to Aaron.
*Is anyone else wondering how we got from Moabites to Midianites one setting? As far as I know they are not the same thing. Now Yahweh tells Moses to treat the Midianites as enemies because their deceit caused the Israelites to worship Peor, which brought the plague.
*So, Israel was staying in Shittim (Please, let's not get all junior high here.) Some of the men got invited to BBQs (sacrifices to other gods) by the Moabite women, and they went. Not only that, they also had a very good time with those Moabite women. They ate the BBQ and bowed down to Baal of Peor, who may have been the egyptian sun god Horus. Boy was Yahweh mad! He told Moses to kill all the people who had done this.
*Then an Israelite man had the effrontery to bring home a Midianite woman in front of everyone!
Phineas, the son of Eleazar the high priest, took a spear and drove it through both of them while they were together in the tent. This stopped a plague which had apparently been happening at the time, but not before 24,0000 people died. (A nice round number. )God told Moses that Phineas had appeased his anger, so he made an everlasting covenant with him that his descendants would be an everlasting priesthood, even though he had already been covered under the same promise made to Aaron.
*Is anyone else wondering how we got from Moabites to Midianites one setting? As far as I know they are not the same thing. Now Yahweh tells Moses to treat the Midianites as enemies because their deceit caused the Israelites to worship Peor, which brought the plague.
Monday, November 16, 2015
Numbers chapter 16
After reading chapter 16:
*Now we read about an uprising in the camp. A Levite, some Reubenites, and 250 community leaders charge Moses with being too big for his britches. Moses tells them they are the ones that have gone too far and God will prove it by making clear who is holy and who isn't. The men complain of being treated like slaves by Moses. Moses wants to know what the Levites have to complain about, don't they get special important work to do? Then Moses got angry and told God not to accept their offering. Like the king of the universe takes orders? Well, apparently he does.
*The dissidents are told to meet in front of the tabernacle the next morning with censers of burning incense. They did, and God told Moses and Aaron to get out of the way because he was going to destroy the 250 mutineers. Moses and Aaron made a token protest then told the people who weren't involved to stay way back.
*Then Moses speechified about how if the men died a natural death, that would mean Yahweh had not sent Moses to take them out of Egypt and Moses was a liar. But, if a weird new phenomenon happened, like the earth splitting open and swallowing the men and their belongings, that would mean God did send Moses. Lo, and behold, guess what happened! The ground split opened and swallowed Korah the Levite, his friends, and all their belongings, alive. The 250 community leaders were then blasted by fire from God.
* According to Yahweh's instructions, the men's censors were salvaged from their charred remains, beaten into sheets, and used to overlay the altar. This was supposed to serve as a reminder to the Israelites that no one except Aaron and his sons should bring incense befor the lord, even though Moses was the one that told those 250 guys to bring the incense in the first place.
*More people became very unhappy with Moses and Aaron because of the deaths. Who can blame them? A group gathered in front of the tabernacle again. God threatened to put an end to these people as well. Moses told Aaron to hurry up and put incense and coals in his censor then go stand in the midst of the people to make atonement for them. Apparently a plague had already begun to hit them. Aaron stood between the living and those who had died from the plague and managed to stop the plague with sheer willpower and incense. Even so, 14,700 people died, another nice round number for the book of Numbers. Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tabernacle.
*So, this chapter makes it very clear that Moses is Yahweh's right hand man and whatever he says goes, or else. I wonder how many nightmares it gave the young children who heard it read for the first time? Did it instill a lifelong determination never to get on Yahweh's bad side by disregarding Moses's words? Also, exactly what was this atonement thing Aaron did to stop the plague? What kind of plague starts and stops that quickly? Did you notice that the digits in 250 add up to seven and the digits in 14,700 add up to twelve? Coincidence? Plus, that weird new phenomenon sounds a lot like an earthquake. I don't know about you, but I'm a little tired of this Yahweh and his heavy handed ways.
*Now we read about an uprising in the camp. A Levite, some Reubenites, and 250 community leaders charge Moses with being too big for his britches. Moses tells them they are the ones that have gone too far and God will prove it by making clear who is holy and who isn't. The men complain of being treated like slaves by Moses. Moses wants to know what the Levites have to complain about, don't they get special important work to do? Then Moses got angry and told God not to accept their offering. Like the king of the universe takes orders? Well, apparently he does.
*The dissidents are told to meet in front of the tabernacle the next morning with censers of burning incense. They did, and God told Moses and Aaron to get out of the way because he was going to destroy the 250 mutineers. Moses and Aaron made a token protest then told the people who weren't involved to stay way back.
*Then Moses speechified about how if the men died a natural death, that would mean Yahweh had not sent Moses to take them out of Egypt and Moses was a liar. But, if a weird new phenomenon happened, like the earth splitting open and swallowing the men and their belongings, that would mean God did send Moses. Lo, and behold, guess what happened! The ground split opened and swallowed Korah the Levite, his friends, and all their belongings, alive. The 250 community leaders were then blasted by fire from God.
* According to Yahweh's instructions, the men's censors were salvaged from their charred remains, beaten into sheets, and used to overlay the altar. This was supposed to serve as a reminder to the Israelites that no one except Aaron and his sons should bring incense befor the lord, even though Moses was the one that told those 250 guys to bring the incense in the first place.
*More people became very unhappy with Moses and Aaron because of the deaths. Who can blame them? A group gathered in front of the tabernacle again. God threatened to put an end to these people as well. Moses told Aaron to hurry up and put incense and coals in his censor then go stand in the midst of the people to make atonement for them. Apparently a plague had already begun to hit them. Aaron stood between the living and those who had died from the plague and managed to stop the plague with sheer willpower and incense. Even so, 14,700 people died, another nice round number for the book of Numbers. Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tabernacle.
*So, this chapter makes it very clear that Moses is Yahweh's right hand man and whatever he says goes, or else. I wonder how many nightmares it gave the young children who heard it read for the first time? Did it instill a lifelong determination never to get on Yahweh's bad side by disregarding Moses's words? Also, exactly what was this atonement thing Aaron did to stop the plague? What kind of plague starts and stops that quickly? Did you notice that the digits in 250 add up to seven and the digits in 14,700 add up to twelve? Coincidence? Plus, that weird new phenomenon sounds a lot like an earthquake. I don't know about you, but I'm a little tired of this Yahweh and his heavy handed ways.
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