Now we come to chp. 25. This chapter contains more very practical applications of the law of God. The first section would be vv. 1-3. We have already looked at the requirements concerning the judge being a godly man, so we will move on.

1. What is required in v. 1? _________________________________________________________

2. What is required in vv. 2, 3? There would be a key phrase (according to his faults) which sums up this requirement in v. 2. __________________________________________________________

3. V. 4. Paul uses this principle in the NT. Of course, this principle deals with, "Thou shalt not steal." How does Paul apply this to our day, I Cor. 9:9-13; I Tim. 5:17-18?
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VV. 5-10 gives us another family law. Incest was absolutely forbidden, being against the family. Marriage even between in-laws was considered incest except in this case before us. This was known as the Levirate marriage, (ISBE, 1915, Vol. III, pg. 1997).

4. What was permitted, in fact required here, v. 5? ______________________________

This was a requirement long before Moses. This also confirms that all law, as given to Moses, was not new. It was in effect from the beginning. Moses only wrote it down so man could more easily understand it.

a. What happened in Gen. 38:7-11 when a son of Judah refused to do this?
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b. There is a book which refers to this law. Can you recognize Deut. 25:9 and where it is acted out?
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5. The Levirate marriage was also referred to by our Lord in Matt. 22:23-33 where the Pharisees sought to trick Him. Did our Lord do away with this law there? ___________________________

The Levirate has been followed down through the ages, even into recent times.

What is the purpose of this law? Josephus gives us a good insight here (Josephus in Four Volumes, B.B.H., Book IV, chp. VII, pg. 273). "If a woman's husband die, and leave her without children, let his brother marry her; and let him call the son that is born to him by his brother's name, and educate him as the heir to his inheritance; for this procedure will be for the benefit of the public, because thereby, families will not foil and the estate will continue among the kindred; and this will be for the solace of wives under their affliction, that they are to be married to the next relation of their former husbands;--" In this last part, "next relation," Josephus is wrong for the text quite clearly states "her husband's brother," although with Ruth the application was the next qualified relative. One of the usages through the ages has been this brother had to be single. This was the indication with Judah's boys as well as with Ruth and Boaz.

Josephus here gives us several reasons for this requirement. First, the son is to be the heir of the dead brother. The family is the most important unit in scripture and this permitted the inheritance to remain within a godly family. One of the strengths of the family is private property ownership. Second, it was for the benefit of the public, for it strengthened the godly family which is the strength of a godly society. Third, it benefited the widow. She would have "solace in her affliction" as we

ll as security in her old age. Here we see one more aspect of God's welfare program.
The humanistic laws of our day (the state is god and will supply all our needs according to it's riches, or, should we say, according to its debt. We find this law hard to understand because the state now claims all of the property rights of the heir. If you don't believe this, just refuse to pay property tax.) have replaced these requirements by our God, yet, these alone will work for a society to remain healthy and strong.

We see how the childless widow had a claim upon her late husband's next of kin. "But in order that the great independence which is here accorded to a childless widow in relation to her brother-in-law might not be interpreted as a false freedom granted to the female sex, this law is added immediately (Keil, Fifth Book of Moses, pg. 424)." This law we are going to look at now.

We have two principles presented here in vv. 11, 12. One principle we have already mentioned, and the other we have not. Let's examine the new one first with a quote from the "Institutes", pg. 189. "--no woman, in defending her husband who is fighting with another man, can attempt to aid her husband by mutilating the other man's sexuality. Such an offense was a particularly fearful one. It is the only instance in Biblical law where mutilation is the punishment, and its sig­nificance is of central importance. A wife is under God to be a help-meet to her husband, but only and always under God's law. In a quarrel between two men, she could not take unfair ad­vantage of her husband's assailant. Faith requires staying within the law of God, and a woman can never help her husband lawlessly. If such were permitted, then a man could step aside and let his wife break the law for him with impunity. A lawless love is under the sentence of the law. Joab loved David as none save Jonathan did, and Joab was often right where David was wrong, but Joab's love was often a lawless love, and he only earned the hatred of his kinsman David, and final judgment. In the case of the lawless wife, the fact of mutilation was a grim public warning: a lawless hand or help-meet was no hand or help at all. Her mutilated arm was a grim reminder to all of the prohibition of lawless love. She was not to be pitied, for pity must also move in terms of law, or it becomes the condonation of evil. Whether a wife, husband, or son be involved, pity must never become lawless."

6. Not only is this action by the wife forbidden with the penalty of mutilation, but we also see that pity is forbidden. There are at least four other actions in which pity is forbidden. What are they?

1) Deut. 7:16 ________________________________________________________________________
2) Deut. 13:6-9 ______________________________________________________________________
3) Deut. 19:11-13 ____________________________________________________________________
4) Deut. 19:16-21 ____________________________________________________________________
5) This forbidding of pity is implied toward who, Deut. 21:18-21? ____________________

In this we see that God forbids feelings to interfere with the fulfilling of His law. His law reflects "pity" for the victim, not for the offender. Humanistic law turns this upside down as we see great outpourings of pity toward the lawbreaker, even at the expense of the victim.

7. VV. 13-16. The marginal reading for "divers weights" is "a stone and a stone." This law is also found in Lev. 19:35-37. What is forbidden here? _________________________________

Notice, this law follows the "mutilation" law. As with all law, the punishment established by God weighs evenly with the crime. These all reflect, "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth", or a just equal punishment which fits the crime (The biblicalexaminer.org-- "Consistency").

a. What would the lawless use the "stone and a stone" or two stones for?
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We need to keep in mind there was no coinage at this time. Money was weighed out, Gen. 23:16; I Chron. 21:25. Therefore, this law prevented the debasing of the money. It prevented inflation because it was by weight and that weight always remained the same in gold or silver.

This law is foundational to a sound economic structure of any society. Disregard of this law will lead to what we have seen many times over in history as well as what we see now, inflation. Inflation is theft. There is no way around it (biblicalexaminer.org -- "Inflation").

(1988 prices below.)

At one time this nation minted a "Double Eagle"; one oz. $20.00 gold piece. $10,000 would have bought 500 of these one oz. gold pieces. Today, $10,000 will only buy 20 gold pieces at $500.00 ea. That is a total loss of $240,000.00 from the time they quit minting the double eagle, and we probably have not seen the end of the rise in gold prices.

Inflation such as this (if not worse) is the natural result of laying aside this law of Deut. 25:13-16. Would you like to guess who lost this money? An honest society will protect its monetary supply. This theft is from the people especially from those who have laid aside money for the future. 50 years isn't long ago, and just in this amount of time we have seen gold go from $35.00 an oz. to $450-500.00 an oz. Even I can easily remember the silver backing of our money. That same silver from before '66 now costs 4 to 5 times as much

2017, gold $1300, sliver $17, and the prices are very volatile. Moreover, the prices are bing manipulated, held down, in order the keep the $ strong.

8. Also in this is the condemnation of our fractional reserve banking, unbacked paper money, in flation by debt and credit. What does God say the result will be of a false weight or measure, Deut. 25:15? ________________________________________________________________________

Included in this law of Lev. 19:35-37 and Deut. 25:13-16 is the protection of liquid and linear measurements. This would be like going to the cloth store and paying for 5 yds. of bolt cloth, yet only getting 4 1/2 yds. of goods. Or paying for one acre of land and only getting 9/10 of an acre. What would we do if this were done to us?

9. What are God's people required to do as they see the violation of Lev. 19:35-37; Deut. 25:13- 16? See Ps. 50:18. ___________________________________________________________________

a. God's Word goes even further. What are we doing if we do not do what is required, Ps. 50:18? (See past lesson in chp. 19). _________________________________________________

The law concerning the bystander definitely goes in here.

10. Why are we to still obey this law, Lev. 19:36, 37? _______________________________

11. The last part of Deut. 25 deals with Amalek. What was to be done with him, (this nation) vv. 17-19?
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Here is a picture we need to examine. Amalek is a type of the flesh, which attacks the people of God immediately after redemption, Ex. 17:8. There are many things given by Moses as he ex­plains and applies God's laws. Here in the midst of his review of the law of God he tells them what to do with Amalek. This seems to have nothing to do with the Ten Commandments, or does it?

No doubt God shows us here that His laws go against the desires of the flesh (Amalek) and the flesh must be dealt with before we can please God with these laws, Rom. 12:1, 2.

These requirements, seemingly, are insignificant and the flesh will war against our keeping of them. The flesh must be dealt with at the foot of the Cross of Christ. We must put away Amalek and walk after the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit is not some "spooky" feeling but action. Doing what is right according to His Word and His Grace and leave the results up to Him.

Also, let us remember how the flesh has warred against obedience to God. It will be a con­tinual battle until the day we die, Ex. 17:16. The flesh will make its offer to walk apart from God's law-word. He must be dealt with, left behind and no provision made for him, Rom. 13:10-14.