The King
17: 14-20
The King DIG: What do you know about the time, anticipated by Moshe, when Isra’el would ask for a king (First Samuel 8:4-9)? Why should the king be an Israelite? What should he refrain from accumulating, and why? What king did this? Instead, how was the king to live? What should be his inspiration? How was Josiah and Ezra different then Solomon?
REFLECT: Isra’el desired a political king so they could be like other nations. In what area of your life are you tempted to imitate the world instead of trusting in the Lord? In which areas have you stopped imitating the world? What still tempts people in places of leadership? How does power often corrupt? How could this passage help your Messianic congregation or church avoid such corruption? How would application of this passage help prevent corruption? What part will you play in its application this week?
Moses anticipates a time when the people of Isra’el will ask for a king like all the other nations around them; ADONAI did not command a king, but allowed for one.
It may seem strange that this section of leadership in Isra’el (to see link click Df – The Appointment of Kingdom Leaders) comes second, rather at the head of those listed. The reason is that whereas sound judicial administration by impartial judges is at the very heart of Isra’el’s covenant theocracy, monarchy is not. The nation did survive without kings both before and after the centuries of actual rule by different kings, both good and bad. Sometimes a good king could be seen as the human embodiment of YHVH’s Kingship, this is not the point here. In Deuteronomy, the judge stands closer to divine functions in the Tabernacle and later the Temple; and as a result, is a truer successor to Moshe than a king.389
Moses anticipates Isra’el’s thought process once the Israelites became settled in the Land of Promise. He declared: When you have entered the Land ADONAI your God is giving you, have taken possession of it and are living there, you may say, “I want to have a king over me, like all the other nations around me” (17:14).
The qualifications of a king:
First, he must be a man chosen by YHVH: In that event, you must appoint as king the one whom ADONAI your God will choose (17:15a). During the time of the judges, the political and spiritual unity of the twelve tribes deteriorated greatly (Judges 17:6 and 21:25), and Isra’el was in constant danger of invasion by their enemies (First Samuel 9:16 and 12:12). Instead of trusting in God, the people wanted a king who would build an army and lead the nation to victory. Unfortunately, the spiritual leadership in Isra’el had decayed, and Samuel’s sons weren’t following the way of the LORD (First Samuel 8:1-5). But the main cause for Isra’el’s cry for a king was their desire to be like the other nations.390 Later history made it clear that prophets, speaking on God’s behalf, would declare His choice. Samuel supported Ha’Shem’s choice of Sha’ul (First Samuel 9-12), and then David (First Samuel 16). Nathan later supported the LORD’s choice of Solomon (First Kings 1).391
Second, he must be an Israelite: He must be one of your kinsmen, this king you appoint over you – you are forbidden to appoint a foreigner over you who is not your kinsman (17:15b). An Israelite raised from childhood in the traditions and Torah of Isra’el would be a far better choice than a foreigner to protect the purity of their devotion to ADONAI, who would be more likely to introduce idolatry into the Land. This requirement did not mean that non-Hebrews were “second-class” citizens in Isra’el. Numerous passages make it clear that the Israelites are to treat foreigners with tender compassion (1:16 and 10:17).392
Imitating the world instead of trusting in the LORD has always been the great temptation of God’s people, and each time they have surrendered, they have suffered. During their wilderness wanderings, Isra’el compared everything that happened with what they had experienced in Egypt, and at Kadesh-barnea they even wanted to choose a leader and go back to Egypt (14:1-5). But the Church today, made up of Jews and Gentiles, is equally guilty of unbelief. When our spiritual leaders adopt methods and measurements of the world, then the Church has taken a giant step toward becoming like the world and losing its divine distinctiveness. Instead of trusting in the Word of God and prayer (Acts 6:4), we far too often depend on following the world’s wisdom, imitating the world’s methods, and catering to the world’s appetites, giving the people what they want instead of what they need. Believers today need to take to heart God’s reminder to Isra’el, “I am ADONAI your God, who has set you apart from the peoples around you” (Leviticus 20:24).393
Then, Moshe gave three restrictions relating to the behavior of a potential king. Isra’el might admire the kings of other nations, but the king they were to have was to be more unlike the kings of other nations as one could imagine.
Military power: However, he is not to acquire many horses for himself. The principle reason for acquiring horses was related to warfare, specifically chariot warfare. But the Israelite form of warfare lay not in the number or type of troops but in the strength and presence of their God. They had already experienced YHVH’s aid against an enemy equipped with horse-drawn chariots at the Sea of Reeds (see the commentary on Exodus Ci – The Waters Were Divided and the Israelites Went Through the Sea on Dry Land). In the days ahead, there would be similar occasions. For example, in Debra’s war (Judges 4-5), the Israelite forces were at a strong disadvantage in facing the chariot-equipped Canaanite forces, but once again victory was achieved through the intervention of Ha’Shem.394
Or have the people return to Egypt to obtain more horses, inasmuch as ADONAI told you never to go back that way again (17:16a). Since Egypt was the market for horses, Isra’el’s king was warned not to station his buyers there permanently – for permanent settling in Egypt was forbidden – in order to export horses from there to his country and elsewhere. King Solomon disregarded this mitzvah and had buyers living in Egypt who were engaged in exporting horses to various countries.
A large harem: Likewise, he is not to acquire many wives for himself, so that his heart will not turn away (17:16b). This would hurt the king’s relationship with ADONAI, for surely they would turn his heart away after other [foreign] gods (First Kings 11:1-4). The purpose in the acquisition of many wives would normally be political. A marriage to a foreign princess could add strength to a treaty with a neighboring state. But the danger in such a course of action would be to become unequally yoked (see Ca – Warning Against Idolatry). These political marriages would be at odds with Isra’el’s covenant with, and the king’s relationship with God.
King David violated this mitzvah. He had six sons born to him at Hebron to seven wives. Then he had thirteen sons born to him in Jerusalem, four from Bathsheba and nine from other wives. That’s seventeen wives and nineteen sons besides an unknown number of daughters born to his wives, and an unknown number of sons and daughters born by his concubines in Hebron, and ten known concubines in Jerusalem (who functioned and were protected as wives). Tamar is mentioned in the biblical account only because she was prominent in the story of the disintegration of David’s family. Therefore, could have easily had fifty to sixty children. And as a result: The sword never departed from his house (Second Samuel 12:10).
Great wealth: And he is not to acquire excessive quantities of silver and gold (17:17). The accumulation of great wealth would tend to give the king excessive personal power, so that he would become separated from the people he was supposed to be serving. But even more worrisome, this could become a consuming passion, which would divert his attention away from his relationship with ADONAI, and serving the people under his care. His attention should not be on himself, but on worshiping YHVH and serving the people.
King Solomon violated all three of these restrictions, and it led him and the nation into sin. He married an Egyptian princess (First Kings 3:1), the first of many political alliances he made taking foreign wives (First Kings 11:1-6). He went back to Egypt not only for a wife, but also for horses for his army, and built “chariot cities” in Isra’el where he stabled his horses and chariots (First Kings 10:26, 28-29). As for his wealth, it was fabulous and impossible to calculate (First Kings 10:14-25 and 27).395 In Isra’el, Solomon was the first king to go to such extremes, but others soon followed him. A fact that he recognized too late in life (see the commentary on the Life of Solomon Cb – Finding Joy within the Frustrations of Life).
Clearly, the issue was not merely if Isra’el should have a king or not, but what kind of a king he should be. What matters fundamentally for Deuteronomy is whether or not the covenant people would remain wholly loyal to YHVH their God. The value of a king is judged solely by the extent to which he will help or hinder that loyalty. A king who would not trust God, but instead, trust in his own defenses (3:21-22); his own political alliances (7:3-6), or his own wealth would lead to snares of pride (8:13-18). Such a king would quickly lead his people in the same disastrous directions. Isra’el’s history proved this point with depressing regularity.396
The wisdom of a king: The most important qualification for the king was a personal relationship with ADONAI and knowledge of Deuteronomy. He was to have his own personal copy of Deuteronomy provided by the priests, to read it regularly, and to take it to heart (Joshua 1:7-8). When he has come to occupy the throne of his kingdom, he is to write a copy of Deuteronomy for himself in a scroll, from one of the cohanim. It is to remain with him, and he is to read in it every day, as long as he lives; so that he will learn to fear ADONAI his God and keep all the words of this book and these mitzvot and obey them; so that he will not think he is better than his kinsmen; and so that he will not turn aside either to the right or to the left from the mitzvot. In this way he will prolong his own reign and that of his children in Isra’el (17:18-20). The king’s study of Deuteronomy would help him to rule the people justly, but it would also reveal to him the character of God and encourage him to have the fear of ADONAI, and therefore, love Him more (Proverbs 4). The king’s submission to God and His mitzvot would keep him from getting proud and abusing the authority YHVH had given him. For him to think that he was better than the people he was serving, and privileged to live above God’s mitzvot would indicate that he wasn’t fit to lead the nation.397
Centuries later, in 622 BC, during Josiah’s eighteenth year, the scroll of Deuteronomy was found in the Temple after fifty-seven years of neglect by Manasseh and Amon (see the commentary on Jeremiah Ai – Josiah Ruled For 31 Years from 640 to 609 BC), and it started a revival in Isra’el (Second Kings 23:1-25). Still later in 458 BC, the scroll of Deuteronomy was honored when Ezra read it out loud from first light until midday, in the presence of all the men and women, and others who could understand, and this continued for a week (see the commentary on Ezra-Nehemiah Bm – Ezra Reads the Scroll of Deuteronomy). But when Solomon reigned from 970 to 930 BC, he did not read Deuteronomy every day, and that caused his downfall (First Kings 11:1-6). And the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, for it was his son, Rehoboam, that divided Isra’el (First Kings 12:1-25). Thus, the words of Moses came true.
Dear Heavenly Father, Praise you for being so wonderful! Praise You that You are so loving and always want the best for Your children (John 1:12). Praise You also that You are holy and even when You discipline Your children, it is always done in love. My son, do not take lightly the discipline of ADONAI or lose heart when you are corrected by Him, because ADONAI disciplines the one He loves and punishes every son He accepts (Hebrews 12:5). The goal is to help the child to get back on the right path. Now all discipline seems painful at the moment – not joyful. But later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. (Hebrews 12:11).
Thank You for giving us Your Word which can keep us on the right path as we read and meditate on it. Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law, day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water (Psalms 1:1-3a NIV). In Yeshua’s holy name and power of His resurrection. Amen
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