Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Now therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples. Indeed, the whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the Israelites.”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, October 9, 2022
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: The Ten Commandments are a covenant between God and God’s people, given in love by a God who wants what’s best for God’s people.
Too often we read the Ten Commandments as a rulebook, a set of laws God pronounced upon God’s people to tame us and keep us in line. But this is a limited perspective, and it fails to honor the entirety of God’s gift here.
These are not just commands. This entire exchange is a covenant between God and God’s people. It begins with an account of what God has already done to earn the people’s trust and respect. God freed the people from centuries of enslavement. In return, God asks that the people respect God and reject the gods of Egypt. Loyalty is a small ask from a God who has shown utmost loyalty to Israel.
The following commandments are also pleas to act and behave in ways that honor God and respect God’s people. Even the scary first commandment, “I… am a jealous God, punishing children… to the third and the fourth generation,” comes with an even greater return on investment, “but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation.” (God’s “punishment” is a description, not a prescription. Anyone who’s suffered abuse at the hands of a parent knows that the scars do last for generations. God’s promise is that God’s blessings can last a thousand generations when people choose faith over fear, and selflessness over selfishness.)
God’s commandments continue to build a community that is just and sustainable. Even the slaves, livestock, and land were given reprieve from work. An overtaxed society could not sustain justice, peace, or equity.
God’s commandments were for the benefit of God’s people and a solidification of God’s covenant with God’s people. This was a two-way street. The people would behave for the better of society and of God, and God would continue to act in the people’s best interests. God’s commandments were a gift to a weary, lost people, who needed assurance from a God who had their back.
