I counted seven promises the Lord gave to the nation of Israel should they choose to take Him at His word and keep covenant with Him....SEVEN! Guarantees of plenty, peace, victory, increase, favor, presence, and covenant grace are some weighty promises backed up by a God who has shown Himself more than capable. Certainly this would be enough incentive to chase after God and never look back? However, the listing of consequences should Israel (as a nation) decide not to hold up their end of the covenant leaves me with a sick feeling.....kinda reminds me of studying "foreshadowing" in high school English classes! God promises that if they reject the covenant promise, the He will turn against them bringing terrible sickness and fear among them. If that doesn't work, He promised to wither crops and allow wild animals to steal precious possessions, even children! If they still don't listen and continue to defy Him, He promises to punish Israel seven times over with plagues in their homes where they huddle in fear! And then, if none of THAT works, the most frightening promise to me is that He would turn against them and bring their cities to rubble, hold His nose at their offerings, and not hear their cries when the enemy takes their land!!! The other things listed in the latter verses are disturbing to even think of! The pain of lost relationship with their God would leave them with nothing short of terror in their spirits, and desperation in their minds.
What kind of a God would say such things to a people He loves, let alone DO these things? I'll tell you what kind, a God of immeasurable LOVE! A holy and righteous, just God! You've heard it said that a friend loves you where you're at? May I propose that God loves you too much to leave you where you're at! He had something HUGE for them! He wanted to shower them with blessings beyond their wildest dreams, if only they would let Him.
On the other hand....if Israel wakes up and confesses the sin among them, God promised to "remember" the promise made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Be assured that for God to remember, doesn't mean that He ever forgot...it means that He takes action! In spite of their behavior, God will not destroy them but will honor the covenant with their ancestors. Have you noticed how God keeps reminding them that He "brought them out of Egypt" over and over again??? How important this event, or series of events must be to Him! He's proving something here.....for generations to come. The final chapter of Leviticus discusses vows, dedications and redemptions. The final verse simply states, "These are the commandments that God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai for the people of Israel."......do you hear a "to be continued...." in that???
