The Lord set out clearly delineated boundaries for the land that the Israelites would have. It is a general principle that God sets boundaries for our lives. We have tremendous freedom (and responsibility) within those boundaries, but enter danger when if we move outside those boundaries.
The land was then assigned to the various tribes by lot. This may seem strange in some ways, but there come a point beyond which no guidance is received from the Lord. So in one sense we then free to make that decision in any way we chose. Sometimes one way is not better than another, and casting lots is as good a way as any.
The Levites were to be given towns to live in from the general inheritance.
In addition six cities of refuge were set aside. These were to act as a refuge for people who accidentally killed someone. This applied to both Israelites and to foreigners.
Deliberate killing was to be given the death penalty.However, accidental death was treated differently. The law recognized that sometimes things go terribly wrong. In such cases the wronged person may well still be overcome by emotion and not act rationally, so the cities of refuge provided protection. However, the person was only protected if they stayed with in the city limits. There were limits to the protection that could be afforded.
Bloodshed was dealt with very seriously.
The book closes with a return to Zelophehad's daughters. Earlier that had come to Moses saying it wasn't right that they would not get an inheritance, so Moses agreed, after receiving wisdom from the Lord, that they should indeed get an inheritance. Moreover, this was to apply more generally to any family where there were no male heirs.
Now we get a further development, we also see the reason why there was this "preferential" treatment of male heirs. The concern was that the inheritance might move out of the tribe if the daughters married outside the tribe. So the concern was that the inheritance should remain within the original tribe.
An interesting point is why didn't God give all these regulations to Moses in the first place on Mount Sinai, instead of waiting for Moses to raise the matter? Maybe we can take this as a warning against attitudes that view all church practices as static and unchangeable. There are fundamental truths that do remain unchangeable, but there are other areas where we develop and adapt.
The book closes with a return to Zelophehad's daughters. Earlier that had come to Moses saying it wasn't right that they would not get an inheritance, so Moses agreed, after receiving wisdom from the Lord, that they should indeed get an inheritance. Moreover, this was to apply more generally to any family where there were no male heirs.
Now we get a further development, we also see the reason why there was this "preferential" treatment of male heirs. The concern was that the inheritance might move out of the tribe if the daughters married outside the tribe. So the concern was that the inheritance should remain within the original tribe.
An interesting point is why didn't God give all these regulations to Moses in the first place on Mount Sinai, instead of waiting for Moses to raise the matter? Maybe we can take this as a warning against attitudes that view all church practices as static and unchangeable. There are fundamental truths that do remain unchangeable, but there are other areas where we develop and adapt.
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