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The name of this week’s Parasha is Ki Teitzei, which means “when you go out.” It covers Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19, and deals with various rules and regulations that God commands the Jewish people to follow.
In chapter 21, Moses instructs the Jewish people on the following situations: how to treat female captives who are captured in war, the disposition of inheritance belonging to the firstborn son, discipline of a disobedient son, and what to do with the dead body of a person convicted and executed for a serious crime.
Even though captive women were subject to the rule of their male captors, they had rights that were to be respected and could not be taken away due to their situation. The firstborn son was to receive his rightful inheritance due to his status as the firstborn, and not based on his father’s preference. Sons were to obey their parents or they would suffer the penalty of death by the community. Finally, a man convicted and put to death for a serious crime was not to be left to rot where he died, but was to be buried on the day of his death so that he would not remain under God’s curse.
In chapter 22, the Jewish people were commanded to return the property of their neighbors when they found it. For example, if a person found an ox wandering off its owner’s property. If they knew who it belonged to, they were to take it to that person. If they did not know who it belonged to, they were to care for it until the person whose property it was came and found it. This covered anything that belonged to someone else, whether it was an animal, a piece of clothing, a tool, etc.
Israel was also commanded to respect the natural order that God had designed for His creation. For example, women dressing in women’s clothing and men dressing in men’s clothing. The God-ordained distinctions between genders is not to be blurred. Sadly, our culture today has forgotten what God has commanded regarding men and women, and even celebrates rebellion against God’s commands in its support of “alternative lifestyles”, like transvestism and “trans-gendered individuals”, or people who believe and act like they are actually the opposite gender. God will hold those who commit and support these wicked actions accountable for their sins.
The Jewish people were also taught that adultery brought serious consequences to both men and women. Those caught in adultery were to be put to death, while a false accusation of adultery by a husband against his wife brought a heavy fine of 100 silver shekels to be paid to his wife’s father. The penalty for unlawful sexual conduct could either lead to death for the man and/or the woman, or a forced marriage between the two.
While it may seem unfair that a woman was forced to marry the man who raped her, we must remember that the victim was required to always stand up for herself by calling out for help in these types of situations. Also, the rapist could never divorce his wife and had to pay her father 50 shekels. Not only did his actions cost the rapist money, he had to live with the shame of his actions and care for a wife that was probably not too fond of him.
Moses then taught the Jewish people about who to exclude from worshipping Adonai in chapter 23. This includes emasculated men, the offspring of an unlawful marriage, and any Ammonite or Moabite and their descendants, because they did not help the Jewish people when they were coming out of Egypt and also tried to get Balaam to curse the Jewish people.
The Jewish people are given other laws regarding camp cleanliness, refuge for runaway slaves, excluding offerings from idolatrous prostitutes, forbidding interest charged against the Jewish people, accountability for keeping vows, and what could be consumed from their neighbors’ grapes and grain.
Adonai gave the Jewish people additional laws to follow in chapter 24. A divorced woman cannot remarry her original husband, and a recently married man was exempt from war for one year to enjoy his marriage. A man’s millstones couldn’t be used as collateral for debt, and the kidnapping and enslaving of a fellow Jewish person was punished by death.
Moses also reminded the Jewish people to follow the Levites’ instructions for treating leprosy, using Miriam’s leprosy from Numbers 12 as an example. He then told them to act righteously in dealing with loans and how they treat the poor, so that God will be pleased with their actions, and that everyone is accountable for their own sin.
Further laws from God are given to the Jewish people in chapter 25. Those convicted of a crime resulting in a penalty of being beaten were given no more than 40 lashes so that they wouldn’t be degraded, and oxen were to be un-muzzled when treading grain.
The importance of continuing a Jewish family’s line of descendants was emphasized through a brother marrying the wife of his dead brother to continue his brother’s lineage through their offspring, which was known as the law of Levirate marriage. If the brother would not agree to this marriage even after encouragement from the town elders, his dead brother’s wife would spit in his face and remove one of his sandals in front of the elders, so that he would also be humiliated along with her humiliation of not having a husband to provide her a family and protection.
The importance of carrying on a Jewish family’s lineage was also shown in the prohibition of a woman harming the reproductive system of a man if she was fighting with her husband; the penalty of her actions was the loss of her hand.
The parasha ends with God’s commandment to show honesty in weights and measurements, along with the command to destroy the Amalekites for their terrible actions of attacking the weaker members of the Jewish people who were in the back of the Israeli nation after it left Egypt. No Amalekite was to be left alive-the very memory of Amalek was to be blotted out.
As we look back on this passage, there are several applications for our lives. First, we obey God’s commands when we respect the possessions and rights of others. By respecting others and their possessions, we show that they have value to us as fellow human beings, especially those who are in difficult situations.
We see an example of this when Boaz obeys the commandment in Deuteronomy chapter 24 of allowing widows to gather the leftover sheaves of wheat by letting Ruth glean grain from his field. As a result of Boaz’s obedience, he and Ruth were eventually married, and their lineage was blessed by the inclusion of Messiah Yeshua as one of their descendants.
And by the inclusion of Ruth in Messiah Yeshua’s lineage, we see that the prohibition of the Moabites worshipping Adonai was lifted for her because of her obedience and loyalty to the 3-in-1 God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, which is seen in her declaration that Naomi’s people would be her people, and Adonai would be her God. Our obedience can have long-term benefits for us and those we help, so let’s obey God by helping others!
Finally, sinful actions always come with a price. From this passage, we see that sin can lead to financial suffering, the loss of respect from others, physical pain and even death, as well as being spiritually separated from fellowship with Adonai. When we sin, we must take responsibility for what we have done, and our sin can’t be atoned for by our families, friends, or any other sinful human being.
However, we have a sinless Savior who has made the ultimate and final atonement for our sins-Messiah Yeshua! For those who follow Him, He has removed sin’s curse by taking on sin’s curse when He died on the cross to provide complete and eternal redemption from sin.
The Pharisees and Torah teachers attempted to trap Yeshua when they brought a woman caught in adultery to Him and asked what should happen to her, since the penalty for adultery was death. But what they left out was that the man who committed adultery with her must die as well.
Yeshua responded by saying that if any of them was without sin, they should throw the first stone. He showed grace by forgiving the woman when her accusers realized that they all had sin in their lives and left without throwing a stone. He showed her mercy and grace by telling her to abandon her sinful life.
Let’s remember only Yeshua can save us from sin’s curse of spiritual death, and let’s be reconciled to Adonai by turning from our sins that separate us from Him, and living our lives to loyally follow Yeshua as our Lord and Savior!