CHAPTER 6 THE LAWS OF GOD

The Word of God
God’s contract with his people: obey every command
Refuse to work on the Sabbath Day and keep it separate, special and holy
A tithe – a tenth part of one’s income
Be fair and honest; love truth and peace
God’s blessings are for Gentiles too
God hates divorce and cruel men
Understanding God’s Will

The Word of God
JEREMIAH 6:10
The Word of God has calmed me and I desire it completely.

God’s contract with his people: obey every command
JEREMIAH 11:1-7
Then the Lord spoke to Jeremiah once again and said:
Remind the men of Judah and all the people of Jerusalem that I made a contract with their fathers – and cursed (sent to destruction or punishment) is the man who does not heed it! For I told them at the time I brought them out of slavery in Egypt that if they would obey me and do whatever I commanded them, then they and all their children would be mine and I would be their God. And now, Israel, obey me, says the Lord, so that I can do for you the wonderful things I swore I would if you obeyed. I want to give you a land that “flows with milk and honey,” as it is today. Then I replied, “So be it, Lord!”
Then the Lord said: Broadcast this message in Jerusalem’s streets – go from city to city throughout the land and say, Remember this agreement that your fathers made with God, and do all the things they promised him they would. For I solemnly said to your fathers when I brought them out of Egypt – and have kept on saying it over and over again until this day: Obey my every command.
MALACHI 4:4
Remember to obey the laws I gave all Israel through Moses my servant on Mount Horeb.
EZEKIEL 11:20
…so that you can obey my laws and be my people, and I will be your God.
JEREMIAH 7:23
God says, “Obey me and I will be your God and you shall be my people; only do as I say and all shall be well!
MALACHI 2:5-6
“The purpose of these laws was to give him (Levi) life and peace, to be a means of showing his respect and awe for me, by keeping them. He passed on to the people all the truth he got from me. He did not lie or cheat; he walked with me, living a good and righteous life, and turned many from their lives of sin (when they were found to be disobeying God’s Laws).” (Note: Levi was a son of Jacob. Descendants of Levi were called Levites, priests and ministers who looked after the sanctuary of the chosen people, Israel.)

Refuse to work on the Sabbath Day and keep it separate, special and holy
JEREMIAH 17:21-27
The Lord says: Take warning and live; do no unnecessary work on the Sabbath day but make it a holy day (dedicated to God with moral purity and behavior). I gave this commandment to your fathers, but they didn’t listen or obey. They stubbornly (willfully) refused to pay attention and be taught.
But if you obey me, says the Lord, and refuse to work on the Sabbath day and keep it separate, special and holy, then this nation shall continue forever. There shall always be descendants of David sitting on the throne here in Jerusalem; there shall always be kings and princes riding in pomp and splendor among the people, and this city shall remain forever. And from all around Jerusalem and from the cities of Judah and Benjamin, and from the Negeb, and from the lowlands west of Judah, the people shall come with their burnt offerings and grain offerings and incense, bringing their sacrifices to praise the Lord in his Temple.
But if you will not listen to me, if you refuse to keep the Sabbath holy, if on the Sabbath you bring in loads of merchandise through these gates of Jerusalem, just as on other days, then I will set fire to these gates. The fire shall spread to the palaces and utterly destroy them, and no one shall be able to put out the raging flames.
ISAIAH 58:13-14
(adapted)
I keep the Sabbath holy, by not having my own fun and business on that day. I enjoy the Sabbath and speak of it with delight as the Lord’s holy day, and honoring the Lord in what I do, not following my own desires and pleasure, nor talking idly. The Lord is my delight. The Lord sees to it that I ride high, and get my full share of the blessings.

A tithe – a tenth part of one’s income
MALACHI 3:10
Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so that there will be food enough in my Temple; if you do, I will open up the windows of heaven for you and pour out a blessing so great you won’t have room enough to take it in!
“Try it! Let me prove it to you!

Be fair and honest; love truth and peace
ZECHARIAH 8:16-17
“Tell the truth. Be fair. Live at peace with everyone. Don’t plot harm to others; don’t swear that something is true when it isn’t! How I hate all that sort of thing!” says the Lord.
ZECHARIAH 8:19
“…love truth and peace.”
EZEKIEL 45:9
“Always be fair and honest.”

God’s blessings are for Gentiles too
ISAIAH 56:1-8
Be just and fair to all, the Lord God says. Do what’s right and good, for I am coming soon to rescue you. Blessed is the man, who refuses to work during my Sabbath days of rest, but honors them; and blessed is the man who checks himself from doing wrong.
And my blessings are for Gentiles, too, when they accept the Lord; don’t let them think that I will make them second-class citizens. And this is for the eunuchs (the bedroom guards) too. They can be as much mine as anyone. For I say this to the eunuchs who keep his Sabbaths holy and choose the things that please him, and come to grips with his laws: I will give them – in my house, within my walls – a name far greater than the honor they would receive from having sons and daughters. For the name that I will give them is an everlasting one; it will never disappear.
As for the Gentiles, the outsiders who join the people of the Lord and serve him and love his name, and are his servants and don’t desecrate (treat with violent disrespect) the Sabbath, and have accepted his covenant and promises, I will bring them also to my holy mountain of Jerusalem, and make them full of joy within my House of Prayer.
I will accept their sacrifices and offerings, for my Temple shall be called “A House of Prayer for All People”! For the Lord God who brings back the outcasts of Israel says, I will bring others too besides my people Israel.
ZECHARIAH 7:8-10
(adapted)
…be honest and fair – and don’t take bribes – and be merciful and kind to everyone. Stop oppressing widows and orphans, foreigners and poor people, and stop plotting evil against each other.
JEREMIAH 22:3-4
The Lord says: Be fair-minded. Do what is right! Help those in need of justice! Leave your evil deeds! Protect the rights of aliens and immigrants, orphans and widows; stop murdering the innocent! …put an end to all these terrible deeds you are doing…
JEREMIAH 22:17
(adapted)
Don’t be full of selfish greed and all dishonesty! Don’t murder the innocent; don’t oppress the poor; don’t reign with ruthlessness.

God hates divorce and cruel men
MALACHI 2:14-16
“Why has God abandoned us?” you cry. I’ll tell you why; it is because the Lord has seen your treachery in divorcing your wives who have been faithful to you through the years, the companions you promised to care for and keep. You were united to your wife by the Lord. In God’s wise plan, when you married, the two of you became one person in his sight. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. Therefore guard your passions! Keep faith with the wife of your youth.
For the Lord, the God of Israel, says he hates divorce and cruel men. Therefore control your passions – let there be no divorcing of your wives.
MALACHI 3:5
(adapted)
(God) will move swiftly against wicked men who trick the innocent, against adulterers, and liars, against all those who cheat their employees, or oppress widows and orphans, or defraud (cheat) strangers, and do not fear (God).
MICAH 6:8
(adapted)
The Lord has told me what he wants, and this is all it is: to be fair and just and merciful, and to walk humbly (and respectfully) with my God.
ISAIAH 1:21-23
(adapted)
The people of the city of Jerusalem should be faithful to the Lord, be known to live in “The City of Fair Play” (“The City of Justice” “The Faithful Town”), be like sterling silver, be so pure, whose leaders are loyal to the Lord, and avoid the company of thieves, and refuse to take bribes, and defend the widows and orphans.

Understanding God’s Will
ISAIAH 50:4-11
The Lord God has given me his words of wisdom so that I may know what I should say to all these weary ones. Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will. The Lord God has spoken to me and I have listened; I do not rebel nor turn away. I give my back to the whip, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard. I do not hide from shame (and humiliation) – they spit in my face.
Because the Lord God helps me, I will not be dismayed; therefore, I have set my face (hard) like flint to do his will, and I know that I will triumph. He who gives me justice is near. Who will dare to fight against me now? Where are my enemies? Let them appear! See, the Lord God is for me! Who shall declare me guilty? All my enemies shall be destroyed like old clothes eaten up by moths!
Who among you fears the Lord and obeys his servant? If such men walk in darkness, without one ray of light, let them trust the Lord, let them rely upon their God. But see here, you who live in your own light, and warm yourselves from your own fires and not from God’s (fires); you will live among sorrows.