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Scripture Reading: Deut. 20:1-20; 21:10-17
In this message we will consider three matters: the children of Israel going forth to battle against their enemies (20:1-20), the marrying of a beautiful woman among the captives (21:10-14), and the right of the firstborn son (21:15-17).
Deuteronomy 20:1-20 is concerned with the children of Israel going forth into battle against their enemies. Today we are also in a war. In this war we are fighting for Christ and we are fighting to remain in Christ. The good land is a type of Christ. If we would live in Christ as our land, we need to fight.
When the children of Israel saw horses, chariots, and a people more numerous than they, they were not to fear them, for Jehovah their God was with them (v. 1). They could be assured that as along as God was with them, they would be victorious.
When God's people drew near to the battle, the priest was to approach and speak to them. He was to say these words: "Hear, O Israel! You are drawing near to the battle against your enemies today. Do not let your heart fail; do not be afraid nor alarmed nor terrified of them. For it is Jehovah your God who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to save you" (vv. 3-4). Since the mighty One was fighting with them, they could be at peace.
In verses 5 through 7 we have the first speaking of the officers to the people. This speaking indicates that God did not force the Israelites to go to war. If any man had built a new house and had not dedicated it, he could return to his house, "lest he dies in the battle and another man dedicates it" (v. 5). If any man had planted a vineyard and had not partaken of it, he could return to his house, "lest he dies in the battle and another man partakes of it" (v. 6). If any man had gotten engaged to a woman and had not taken her to himself, he could return to his house, "lest he dies in the battle and another man takes her to himself" (v. 7). All those who had a new house or vineyard or were engaged could return home to enjoy life.
According to verse 8, the officers were to speak further to the people, saying, "Is there any man who is afraid and whose heart fails? Let him go and return to his house, so that his brothers' heart does not melt like his heart." If such a one had remained, he would have affected others, causing them to be afraid. The army would have been stronger and the morale would have been higher without him. The formation of Gideon's army is an illustration of this (Judg. 7:3).
After the officers had finished speaking to the people, the officers were to appoint commanders of the army (Deut. 20:9). This indicates that everything was done in a good order and in a good sequence.
When the people drew near to the city to fight against it, they were to proclaim peace to it (v. 10). If it responded with peace and opened its gates to the children of Israel, all the people within the city were to become their forced labor and were to serve the children of Israel (v. 11). Otherwise, the children of Israel were to besiege the city (v. 12).
When Jehovah their God delivered the city into the hand of the children of Israel, they were to slay every male in it with the edge of the sword (v. 13). But the women, the little ones, the cattle, and all that was in the city they were to take as their plunder for their enjoyment (v. 14).
Of the cities which Jehovah their God was giving to the children of Israel as an inheritance, they were not to allow anything that breathed to live (v. 16). Rather, the children of Israel had to utterly destroy them, so that they would not teach the children of Israel to do according to all their abominations which they did for their gods (vv. 17-18). The devilish practices were to be terminated by putting to death those who engaged in those practices.
When the children of Israel besieged a city for many days to capture it, they were not to destroy its trees which were good for food (v. 19). Instead, they were to destroy and cut down the trees which were not for food, that they might build up a siegework against the city until it fell (v. 20).
In 21:10-14 we have a word about marrying a beautiful woman among the captives. When an Israelite saw a beautiful woman among the captives and would take her to himself as a wife, he was to bring her within his house (v. 12a). She was to shave her head and trim her nails, and her clothes of captivity were to be taken away from her (vv. 12b-13a). She was to dwell in that Israelite's house and mourn her father and mother for a full month (v. 13b). Afterwards the Israelite was to marry her and be her husband, and she was to be a wife to him (v. 13c). If after a time he did not delight in her, he was to let her go wherever she wished, but he was not to sell her for money nor deal with her as a slave, because he had humbled her (v. 14). God's dealing here is fair and very humane.
Deuteronomy 21:15 speaks of a case of a man who had two wives, one beloved and the other despised, and both the beloved and the despised had born him sons, with the firstborn son being of the despised woman. When the man was giving his inheritance to his sons, he was not to make the son of the beloved woman the firstborn, but he was to acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the despised woman, giving to him a double portion of his inheritance, for this son was the beginning of his strength (vv. 16-17).
Apparently, the matters of fighting in 20:1-20 and the birthright in 21:15-17 have nothing to do with each other. However, spiritually speaking, fighting and the birthright are related, for only by fighting can we preserve our birthright.
Since we preserve our birthright by fighting, if we do not fight, we will lose our birthright, even as Esau lost his birthright (Heb. 12:16-17). Those who do not fight because they are concerned about their house, vineyard, or spouse or because they are fearful will not share in the victory. There will be no spoil, no plunder, for them to enjoy. Because they do not fight, they will lose their birthright.
In fighting to preserve our birthright, we must learn to trust in God. In ourselves we do not have the strength or the capacity to fight. If we trust in ourselves, we will not have any assurance that we will be victorious in the warfare. As we are fighting, we need to realize that we are fighting for what God has given us. The good land has been given to us by God, but we still need to fight against the enemies. We should not only pray but also fight. Actually, we are not the ones fighting, for God goes with us and fights for us. Once the enemies have been defeated, the land will be cleared for our inheritance.
The principle with this fighting is the same principle that is found throughout the book of Deuteronomy. This principle is that God wants us to do certain things, but He does not want us to do these things by ourselves. It is our duty to fight, but we cannot fulfill this duty by ourselves. We can fulfill our duty to fight only by faith in the Lord. We need to believe that the Lord has ordained us to fight and that He will fight for us. We should simply take His word and obey Him, knowing that the outcome depends on Him. If we fulfill our duty in this way, the Lord will be pleased.
Whenever the Lord asks us to do something for Him, He does not intend that we do that thing by ourselves. We are not able in ourselves to do anything that the Lord asks us to do. Trying to keep His commandment by our energy is an insult to God; it is abominable in His sight. If we try to do this, the Lord might say, "I do not ask you to do something for Me by your strength or ability, for you do not have the strength or the ability. What I ask you to do for Me, I want you to do by Me. Learn to have faith in Me, to trust in Me. I will do everything for you. I simply want you to participate in My operation. I want to do something in man and with man. For this, I need to have man cooperate with Me. If you cooperate with Me, I will be able to do what I desire to do." To do something for the Lord not by ourselves but by the Lord — this is pleasing to Him.
Deep within us there is an evil thing. This evil thing, which may appear to be very good, is our desire to do the will of God and to carry out the will of God by ourselves. In God's view, this desire, despite its nice appearance, is actually abominable. We should never think that by ourselves we are able to do something for God. It is impossible for us to do anything for God by ourselves. We need another life — the divine life, the life of God. In order to have this life, we must be reborn, regenerated; that is, we need to be born of God. With our created life we cannot observe what God demands; we do not have the capacity to do God's will. Even if our mind is clear, our love is balanced, and our will is strong, we still do not have the capacity to keep God's commandment or to do His will.
God wants us to express Him. But are we, in ourselves and by ourselves, able to express God? Certainly not! Just as a dog cannot express a bird, so we with our created life cannot express God. In order to express God, we must have the life of God. This life is the divine life, the eternal life. Actually, this life is the Triune God embodied in Christ, who is realized as the life-giving Spirit.
Although we have received the divine life, we are not accustomed to living by this life. We may never have had the thought of living by the divine life. Instead, we continue to trust in our old life. We may even pray for the improvement of the old life. In our prayer we may say, "Lord, You know how weak I am." The Lord may answer, "There is no need for you to tell Me that you are weak. I know that you are weak. You are not merely weak — you are dead. This is the reason I have given you another life. Why would you not live by this new life which I have given you?"
I do not have the confidence that anyone among us, including myself, knows how to live by the divine life. If we are not on the alert, we will pray in a nonsensical, abominable way concerning the improvement of our old life, asking for the Lord's help to adjust ourselves. We may be clear that the book of Deuteronomy manifests God, exposes us, and unveils Christ as our life, our life supply, and our everything, but we may not put this knowledge into practice. Instead of living by the divine life, we may turn to the old life and ask the Lord Jesus to help us to improve ourselves.
I appreciate the points covered in this message, especially the word regarding fighting. Those who were concerned about their house, their vineyard, or their wife and those who were afraid, were not required to join the army and go out to fight. The principle is the same with us today. The whole church is an army, but not everyone has to join in the fighting. Whether or not we can participate in the fighting depends on our situation. Only those who do not have any kind of entanglement can join in the fighting. As they are fighting, they should have the assurance to say, "I am not the one fighting. The One who is fighting is the Lord in whom I trust."
In fulfilling God's requirements, we should not have any trust in ourselves. We need to learn to take the Lord's desire as our desire and say, "Lord, I desire what You desire. In carrying out Your desire, I do not have any trust in myself, for I am not able to do Your will. Lord, because I have no trust in myself and because I have no capacity to fulfill Your desire, I take You as my life and life supply."
