And the rest shall hear and fear, and shall never again commit any such evil among you. Deuteronomy 19:20 – Such a verse has come up a few times in our study of Deuteronomy so far. Where God lays out a severe punishment in connection with some sort of sin, and the point of the severity was so that the people would witness the first time this punishment was given. After seeing the punishment, and knowing they didn’t want that in their life, it would turn them from committing whatever sin took place. Such as in our passage, God outlined that if someone falsely accused his brother of a crime and was pushing some sort of punishment, but it was found out that he was lying, then whatever punishment they were trying to push on the other person would be instead given to them. This is where the idea of an “eye for eye and tooth for tooth” came from. Whatever punishment they hoped the other person would get they would equally get instead. I believe that this same idea about God giving severe punishments to dissuade people from doing that same sin again is how He chose to handle Hell. Hell is the most severe punishment, a punishment designed for the rebellious demons that chose to turn from God. It was never meant for man, but is man’s eternal home if they reject God. While God doesn’t find joy in any person going to Hell, He will allow man to go there if they reject Him. Yet I believe God is desiring people today to see that truth and turn from that same sin of rejection. God wants us to see where sin has led those before us so we don’t choose the same path as they did and have to experience what they did. See then where sin has led others, see the struggle they faced because of it, and see the eternal punishment many have faced because of sin. See all this…and turn to Jesus. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3458
Question To Ponder: What is a crime you’ve been tempted to do but chose not to because of the punishment attached?
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