Deuteronomy 18
18:1 a The term Levitical priests described the entire tribe of Levi. Technically, however, only Aaron’s descendants were priests. The non-priestly Levites were their assistants (see 12:12 b).18:2 c The Lord himself is their special possession: The allotment of the Levites was spiritual, not territorial or material. They possessed the Lord by giving their whole lives to his service. This idea is a remarkable inverse of the idea that Israel was the Lord’s possession (see 7:6 d).
18:3 e In the dietary fare of ancient Israel, the shoulder, the cheeks, and the stomach of oxen and sheep were the choice cuts. God’s priestly servants were to be honored by receiving the very best (see Lev 7:28-34 f).
18:8 g support from his family: Although Levites were in full-time ministry at the Tabernacle and (later) the Temple, they could still hold material assets of their own (see Num 35:1-8 h). The Levites were to be supported by the regular offerings designated for that purpose without having to forfeit any of their own assets.
18:10 i never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering: Some Canaanite religions included child sacrifice to appease their gods. Israel was strictly warned never to engage in this practice (Exod 34:15-16 j; Lev 18:21 k; 20:2-5 l). When they did, it aroused God’s judgment (2 Kgs 17:16-17 m; 21:6 n; Ezek 23:37 o).
• fortune-telling: Throughout the ancient Near East, diviners were considered experts at reading and interpreting omens. Divination was commonly done through extispicy, the examination of livers, kidneys, and other internal organs of various animals.
• sorcery: Sorcerers conjured up the spirits of the dead.
• Divining cups were often used to interpret omens (see Gen 44:5 p). Drops of oil would be placed in containers of water, and the spread of the oil communicated some message to the expert. A parallel would be reading tea leaves.
• The practice of witchcraft included performing unusual acts or signs (Exod 7:11 q) to mislead people (Mal 3:5 r).
18:11 s cast spells: These incantations wereto destroy or injure others by invoking curses on them. The false prophet Balaam was hired for this purpose against Israel (Num 22:2-6 t).
• Mediums and psychics were especially adept at conjuring up and communicating with the spirits of the dead (see 1 Sam 28:3-25 u).
18:15 v A prophet like me would be beyond the ordinary because Moses was without peer among the prophets (see 34:10-11 w). This prophet would be from among your fellow Israelites (literally from among your brothers), and Israel was required to listen to him (18:19 x). The prophets of Old Testament Israel would partially fulfill the function of God’s spokesman to whom Israel must listen. Later, Judaism looked for this prophet as a major messianic figure (see John 1:21 y; 6:14 z; 7:40 aa); the New Testament identifies Jesus as this prophet (Acts 3:18-26 ab).
18:18 ac The prophet (18:15 ad) would be the Lord’s spokesman, as Moses was (see 4:10-17 ae; Exod 7:1 af).
18:19 ag Not to listen to the Lord’s spokesman is not to listen to the Lord.
18:22 ah Any prophet whose prediction fails must be branded as false, even if he claims to speak for God. The mere claim is insufficient if it goes unfulfilled.
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