I don’t think Jesus enjoyed what’s in this chapter, found in page 111 of the NKJV Bible I have for this four-translation project, page 143 of the NASB Bible (Old Testament, 1995 version), pages 224-225 of my VOICE copy, and pages 228-229 of my Amplified Bible (Classic Edition) copy… verse 11 here testifies of fear-based obedience, which God never wanted. Too bad that was what the Israelites had fallen in love with, though, and so this motif continues throughout the rest of the book. I wish it had a better ending… this is why many people think God’s not worth serving, for His love never invokes fear (1 John 4:18 (VOICE)), but, not understanding the people had loved dead religion (Moses didn’t want that anyway, and neither did God, hence why Moses had said the things in Numbers 11:29), the Lord Jesus gave them up to worthlessness, and now, the U.S. government is trying to enforce worse penalties than what’s in this chapter if they can manage it, and with the idea that Jesus doesn’t forgive any sins 😓😓😓😓😓😓😓😓😓 I’m grateful MAGA was disrupted in many new places here, and indeed, someone mentioned on Threads the U.S. was entering the stage of fascism of “I was just following orders” 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄 (these emojis are for those who think they can… excuse themselves by saying that) — but that doesn’t guarantee any good progress, sadly… if a state in Germany can have Nazism return to power over 80 years after it was overthrown, this is a sign that evil never died out there or here. And if we watched Harry Potter ⚡️ in the beginning of this century and loved it all, I guess the same pattern as Ezekiel 33:30-33 has repeated itself (in that passage, Jerusalem had fallen and people came to Ezekiel to hear from God but with selfish gain) 🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️
God never wanted fear to be the dominant picture. That’s why Jesus died for others (no exceptions) so that we’d live if we so choose. I don’t know how far this post will go, though… the words of verses 12-17 in this chapter, the Israelites fulfilled on Benjamin after something REALLY sordid had happened (Judges 20:48). I don’t think I can mention what it was… I’m sorry I even thought to mention its aftermath 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 it’s definitely a graphic scenario, so I don’t want to share anything that led to this. I fear I’ll offend someone looking for hope in Jesus Himself 💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔 thank God this isn’t allowed today, though. Indeed, Moses also knew this would one day no longer be necessary, hence why he brought up Jesus twice in chapter 18 (verses 15 and 18). He also testified of God that He remembered Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when he was at the burning bush (Exodus 3:6, also Matthew 22:32, Mark 12:26, and Luke 20:37), and they had been welcomed into Heaven (see Matthew 8:11), so I’m thrilled He doesn’t forget anyone who loves Him, for to Him all humans are alive (Luke 20:38) 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🩵💙💜🤎🖤🩶🤍🩷❤️🧡💛💚 I’m really emotional just thinking about it… this post doesn’t do it justice for my reaction to this… if I made a video about it, I’d be crying like I am now 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 because I don’t believe God’s interested in forgetting anyone 💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗 He won’t force anyone to follow Jesus, but His heart’s always for others, especially for those who love Him (see Romans 8:31, also Psalm 56:9 for David’s testimony concerning his own standing with God). I hope to see my uncle in Heaven one day, if indeed he had repented and followed Jesus (I didn’t even know he was still around until he died last month — one of my cousins posted about it on Facebook one night and I shared my condolences… I still wish so many of my dad’s relatives hadn’t died by now, most of whom being before I finished middle school).
There’s many other things in the first five books of the Bible no one needs to follow, now, seeing that Jesus came into the picture and replaced the old covenant system with His own sacrifice (Hebrews 8:7-10:18). Indeed, no law can make anything perfect, as Hebrews 7:19 mentions concerning that of Moses… but it would be nice if I can live in an actual safe country 😅😅😅 too bad AI will eventually catch up to me wherever I go, though 😓😓😓😓😓😓 I don’t know what I’m going to do when that happens, but I’ll see you in chapter 14!
In Christ,
Ron Outland
