Day Fourteen - "When you enter the land . . ."

Deuteronomy 8:1 to Deuteronomy 23:11

Moses continues his final instruction of the people, letting them know that both entering and living in the land that is before them, the land on the other side of the Jordan, will not be easy.  They will face both external and internal challenges.  When they succeed they must remember that it was not on account of their righteousness but solely the act of God working on their behalf.

I have to admit that this recap of laws, commands and warnings can be some tough reading.  There is the repeated admonition that the people must 'purge the evil' from among them, which included children who were rebellious against their parents and women whose virginity could not be proven.  Public stonings?  Really?  Such actions are incomprehensible to those of us who live in an age where a public spanking of one's own children might earn a parent a visit from the police and social services.

There is nothing I can say that can condone or smooth over actions like these, especially those directed by the powerful (in this case the men) against the most vulnerable (the women and children).  In my studies I have certainly been introduced to all of the cultural and religious reasons offered as explanations for the Israelites (God?) acting in this way.  Don't, however, expect me to offer any defense.