191 'When Jehovah thy God doth cut off the nations, whose land Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, and thou hast succeeded them, and dwelt in their cities, and in their houses, 2 three cities thou dost separate for thee in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it. 3 Thou dost prepare for thee the way, and hast divided into three parts the border of thy land which Jehovah thy God doth cause thee to inherit, and it hath been for the fleeing thither of every man-slayer. 4 'And this 'is' the matter of the man-slayer who fleeth thither, and hath lived: He who smiteth his neighbour unknowingly, and is not hating him heretofore, 5 even he who cometh in with his neighbour into a forest to hew wood, and his hand hath driven with an axe to cut the tree, and the iron hath slipped from the wood, and hath met his neighbour, and he hath died—he doth flee unto one of these cities, and hath lived, 6 lest the redeemer of blood pursue after the man-slayer when his heart is hot, and hath overtaken him (because the way is great), and hath smitten him—the life, and he hath no sentence of death, for he is not hating him heretofore; 7 therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Three cities thou dost separate to thee. 8 'And if Jehovah thy God doth enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn to thy fathers, and hath given to thee all the land which He hath spoken to give to thy fathers— 9 when thou keepest all this command to do it, which I am commanding thee to-day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk in His ways all the days—then thou hast added to thee yet three cities to these three; 10 and innocent blood is not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee—an inheritance, and there hath been upon thee blood. 11 'And when a man is hating his neighbour, and hath lain in wait for him, and risen against him, and smitten him—the life, and he hath died, and he hath fled unto one of these cities, 12 then the elders of his city have sent and taken him from thence, and given him into the hand of the redeemer of blood, and he hath died; 13 thine eye hath no pity on him, and thou hast put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with thee.
14 'Thou dost not remove a border of thy neighbour, which they of former times have made, in thine inheritance, which thou dost inherit in the land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.
15 'One witness doth not rise against a man for any iniquity, and for any sin, in any sin which he sinneth; by the mouth of two witnesses, or by the mouth of three witnesses, is a thing established. 16 'When a violent witness doth rise against a man, to testify against him apostacy, 17 then have both the men who have the strife stood before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges who are in those days, 18 and the judges have searched diligently, and lo, the witness 'is' a false witness, a falsehood he hath testified against his brother: 19 'Then ye have done to him as he devised to do to his brother, and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst, 20 and those who are left do hear and fear, and add not to do any more according to this evil thing in thy midst; 21 and thine eye doth not pity—life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
201 'When thou goest out to battle against thine enemy, and hast seen horse and chariot—a people more numerous than thou—thou art not afraid of them, for Jehovah thy God 'is' with thee, who is bringing thee up out of the land of Egypt; 2 and it hath been, in your drawing near unto the battle, that the priest hath come nigh, and spoken unto the people, 3 and said unto them, Hear, Israel, ye are drawing near to-day to battle against your enemies, let not your hearts be tender, fear not, nor make haste, nor be terrified at their presence, 4 for Jehovah your God 'is' He who is going with you, to fight for you with your enemies—to save you. 5 'And the authorities have spoken unto the people, saying, Who 'is' the man that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it?—let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man dedicate it. 6 'And who 'is' the man that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not made it common?—let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man make it common. 7 'And who 'is' the man that hath betrothed a woman, and hath not taken her?—let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man take her. 8 'And the authorities have added to speak unto the people, and said, Who 'is' the man that is afraid and tender of heart?—let him go and turn back to his house, and the heart of his brethren doth not melt like his heart; 9 and it hath come to pass as the authorities finish to speak unto the people, that they have appointed princes of the hosts at the head of the people.
10 'When thou drawest near unto a city to fight against it, then thou hast called unto it for Peace, 11 and it hath been, if Peace it answer thee, and hath opened to thee, then it hath come to pass—all the people who are found in it are to thee for tributaries, and have served thee. 12 'And if it doth not make peace with thee, and hath made with thee war, then thou hast laid siege against it, 13 and Jehovah thy God hath given it into thy hand, and thou hast smitten every male of it by the mouth of the sword. 14 Only, the women, and the infants, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, thou dost seize for thyself, and thou hast eaten the spoil of thine enemies which Jehovah thy God hath given to thee. 15 So thou dost do to all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations. 16 'Only, of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee 'for' an inheritance, thou dost not keep alive any breathing; 17 for thou dost certainly devote the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee, 18 so that they teach you not to do according to all their abominations which they have done to their gods, and ye have sinned against Jehovah your God. 19 'When thou layest siege unto a city many days, to fight against it, to capture it, thou dost not destroy its trees to force an axe against them, for of them thou dost eat, and them thou dost not cut down—for man's 'is' the tree of the field—to go in at thy presence in the siege. 20 Only, the tree, which thou knowest that it 'is' not a fruit-tree, it thou dost destroy, and hast cut down, and hast built a bulwark against the city which is making with thee war till thou hast subdued it.
211 'When one is found slain on the ground which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it—fallen in a field—it is not known who hath smitten him, 2 then have thine elders and thy judges gone out and measured unto the cities which 'are' round about the slain one, 3 and it hath been, the city which 'is' near unto the slain one, even the elders of that city have taken a heifer of the herd, which hath not been wrought with, which hath not drawn in the yoke, 4 and the elders of that city have brought down the heifer unto a hard valley, which is not tilled nor sown, and have beheaded there the heifer in the valley. 5 'And the priests, sons of Levi, have come nigh—for on them hath Jehovah thy God fixed to serve Him, and to bless in the name of Jehovah, and by their mouth is every strife, and every stroke— 6 and all the elders of that city, who are near unto the slain one, do wash their hands over the heifer which is beheaded in the valley, 7 and they have answered and said, Our hands have not shed this blood, and our eyes have not seen— 8 receive atonement for Thy people Israel, whom Thou hast ransomed, O Jehovah, and suffer not innocent blood in the midst of Thy people Israel; and the blood hath been pardoned to them, 9 and thou dost put away the innocent blood out of thy midst, for thou dost that which 'is' right in the eyes of Jehovah.
10 'When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and Jehovah thy God hath given them into thy hand, and thou hast taken captive its captivity, 11 and hast seen in the captivity a woman of fair form, and hast delighted in her, and hast taken to thee for a wife, 12 then thou hast brought her in unto the midst of thy household, and she hath shaved her head, and prepared her nails, 13 and turned aside the raiment of her captivity from off her, and hath dwelt in thy house, and bewailed her father and her mother a month of days, and afterwards thou dost go in unto her and hast married her, and she hath been to thee for a wife: 14 'And it hath been—if thou hast not delighted in her, that thou hast sent her away at her desire, and thou dost not at all sell her for money; thou dost not tyrannize over her, because that thou hast humbled her.
15 'When a man hath two wives, the one loved and the other hated, and they have borne to him sons (the loved one and the hated one), and the first-born son hath been to the hated one; 16 then it hath been, in the day of his causing his sons to inherit that which he hath, he is not able to declare first-born the son of the loved one, in the face of the son of the hated one—the first-born. 17 But the first-born, son of the hated one, he doth acknowledge, to give to him a double portion of all that is found with him, for he 'is' the beginning of his strength; to him 'is' the right of the first-born.
18 'When a man hath a son apostatizing and rebellious—he is not hearkening to the voice of his father, and to the voice of his mother, and they have chastised him, and he doth not hearken unto them— 19 then laid hold on him have his father and his mother, and they have brought him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place, 20 and have said unto the elders of his city, Our son—this one—is apostatizing and rebellious; he is not hearkening to our voice—a glutton and drunkard; 21 and all the men of his city have stoned him with stones, and he hath died, and thou hast put away the evil out of thy midst, and all Israel do hear and fear. 22 'And when there is in a man a sin—a cause of death, and he hath been put to death, and thou hast hanged him on a tree, 23 his corpse doth not remain on the tree, for thou dost certainly bury him in that day—for a thing lightly esteemed of God 'is' the hanged one—and thou dost not defile thy ground which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee—an inheritance.
21 'And then, if any may say to you, Lo, here 'is' the Christ, or, Lo, there, ye may not believe; 22 for there shall rise false Christs and false prophets, and they shall give signs and wonders, to seduce, if possible, also the chosen; 23 and ye, take heed; lo, I have foretold you all things.
24 'But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, 25 and the stars of the heaven shall be falling, and the powers that are in the heavens shall be shaken. 26 'And then they shall see the Son of Man coming in clouds with much power and glory, 27 and then he shall send his messengers, and gather together his chosen from the four winds, from the end of the earth unto the end of heaven.
28 'And from the fig-tree learn ye the simile: when the branch may already become tender, and may put forth the leaves, ye know that nigh is the summer; 29 so ye, also, when these ye may see coming to pass, ye know that it is nigh, at the doors. 30 Verily I say to you, that this generation may not pass away till all these things may come to pass; 31 the heaven and the earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 32 'And concerning that day and the hour no one hath known—not even the messengers who are in the heaven, not even the Son—except the Father. 33 Take heed, watch and pray, for ye have not known when the time is; 34 as a man who is gone abroad, having left his house, and given to his servants the authority, and to each one his work, did command also the porter that he may watch; 35 watch ye, therefore, for ye have not known when the lord of the house doth come, at even, or at midnight, or at cock-crowing, or at the morning; 36 lest, having come suddenly, he may find you sleeping; 37 and what I say to you, I say to all, Watch.'
(Read Mark 13:14-23)
The Jews in rebelling against the Romans, and in persecuting the Christians, hastened their own ruin apace. Here we have a prediction of that ruin which came upon them within less than forty years after this. Such destruction and desolation, that the like cannot be found in any history. Promises of power to persevere, and cautions against falling away, well agree with each other. But the more we consider these things, the more we shall see abundant cause to flee without delay for refuge to Christ, and to renounce every earthly object, for the salvation of our souls.
(Read Mark 13:24-27)
The disciples had confounded the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world. This mistake Christ set right, and showed that the day of Christ's coming, and the day of judgment, shall be after that tribulation. Here he foretells the final dissolution of the present frame and fabric of the world. Also, the visible appearance of the Lord Jesus coming in the clouds, and the gathering together of all the elect to him.
(Read Mark 13:28-37)
We have the application of this prophetic sermon. As to the destruction of Jerusalem, expect it to come very shortly. As to the end of the world, do not inquire when it will come, for of that day and that hour knoweth no man. Christ, as God, could not be ignorant of anything; but the Divine wisdom which dwelt in our Saviour, communicated itself to his human soul according to the Divine pleasure. As to both, our duty is to watch and pray. Our Lord Jesus, when he ascended on high, left something for all his servants to do. We ought to be always upon our watch, in expectation of his return. This applies to Christ's coming to us at our death, as well as to the general judgment. We know not whether our Master will come in the days of youth, or middle age, or old age; but, as soon as we are born, we begin to die, and therefore we must expect death. Our great care must be, that, whenever our Lord comes, he may not find us secure, indulging in ease and sloth, mindless of our work and duty. He says to all, Watch, that you may be found in peace, without spot, and blameless.
