Book of Isaiah 4-6 The Fire Devoureth the Stubble

Isaiah 4-6

Man this stuff is getting REALLY monotonous.  When are we going to get back to some of that good old God smiting and war mongering of his chosen people?

Are God's best days behind him?  Are we going to spend the rest of the OT reading 'back in my day, the LORD didn't put up with this shit!'
And cranky old man lines like;

6:5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.

Ever forward.

Judges 1-3 Something, Something Something, Dark Side

Judges 1-3

Surprise!!! Judges starts out with the Israelites at war with the Canaanites!
We get a new leading man (pun intended) in Judah.

Fair warning.  My comments are going to be fairly snarky.

Adonibezek tries to run but is caught and has his thumbs and big toes cut off.  More twisted violence from God's chosen people.

1:12 is a retelling of Caleb giving his daughter away as a prize for killing .  The original telling is in Joshua 15.

More instances of God not being able to fulfill his covenant with the Israelites.  Apparently, some people are more powerful then God.  Or maybe he was on vacation when the Israelites went to war.

I'm going to argue semantics here but are they saying COULDN'T drive out or DIDN'T drive out.
Why did they allow these people to stay and live?

Chapter 2 acknowledges that God doesn't like the peaceful cohabitation.

Then things take a turn for the worse.

The next generation (I'm unclear on passage of time) turns away from God, which, of course, pisses him off greatly.  He somehow sells them to the enemy (would love to know how that process went down) but then, "raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them."
Who is this Judge? The Holy Spirit?  It says that the judge dies.  So confused 


Chapter 3 is a repeat of chapter 2.  Can the editing of this book be any worse?


My favorite part about these chapters is that there is so much vagary (40 years pass, Israelites screw up again, 18 years pass) and then we get an ULTRA detailed account of an assassination by a zealot!!!


Ehud, the assassin then leads a raid into Moab that kills thousands of hikers.

Sometimes reading the OT gives me a headache.

Deuteronomy 13-15

Deuteronomy 13-15

Deuteronomy 13-15 Skeptics Annotated Bible

We start off (again) with God commanding that any one that follows another god should be put to death.
A sharp contrast from the teachings of Jesus wouldn't you say?
On some level I can understand why God is being so tough on his chosen people.  The forty years in the desert have been like a bootcamp to toughen them up.  But I can't for the life of me reconcile the homicidal jealousy that keeps coming through.  Every time I read this I visualize a violent husband beating and then consoling his battered wife.  Sick stuff.

I maybe getting ahead of the reading, but I wonder if Jesus "went rogue" and was actually working against the God of Abraham.  Perhaps he was the rebellious son of God and started teaching Peace, Love and Understanding to piss off his dad.  ;-)

Chapter 14 gives us a rehash of the Levitican laws but goes into much greater detail.  Evidently Rabbits are unclean because they chew cud.  And bats are birds (I think we can cut God some slack for thinking a bat is a bird, right?).

I found 14:26 interesting in that it allows lusting after things and intoxicating beverages.
 And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth.

Chapter 15 gives us a review of the seventh year forgiveness plan.