“Because they met not the children of Israel with bread and with water, but hired Balaam against them, that he should curse them: howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessing.”
The reference to the Ammonites and Moabites hiring Balaam against Israel and the divine transformation of curse to blessing invokes ancient history establishing God's opposition to Israel's enemies and protection of the covenant people. The assertion that the Ammonites and Moabites had not met Israel with bread and water indicates their hostility to the community and their failure to observe basic hospitality obligations, suggesting grounds for excluding them from the covenant community. The connection between ancient opposition and current exclusion establishes that the Law's provisions regarding separation from Ammonites and Moabites reflect God's historical judgment against these peoples. This verse provides theological justification for implementing the Law's requirements regarding separation from these foreigners.
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
Publish a note on this verse
0/2000
No notes on this verse yet. Be the first to write one!