God’s Sudoku Can Be Solved!

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Opening Prayer

Lord, nothing is too hard for You. Help me to see Your hand in every circumstance of my life.

Read Deuteronomy 2:1-37

^[1] Then we turned back and set out toward the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea, as the LORD had directed me. For a long time we made our way around the hill country of Seir. ^[2] Then the LORD said to me, ^[3] “You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north. ^[4] Give the people these orders: ‘You are about to pass through the territory of your relatives the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, but be very careful. ^[5] Do not provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, not even enough to put your foot on. I have given Esau the hill country of Seir as his own. ^[6] You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.'” ^[7] The LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything. ^[8] So we went on past our relatives the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion Geber, and traveled along the desert road of Moab. ^[9] Then the LORD said to me, “Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any part of their land. I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.” ^[10] (The Emites used to live there-a people strong and numerous, and as tall as the Anakites. ^[11] Like the Anakites, they too were considered Rephaites, but the Moabites called them Emites. ^[12] Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land the LORD gave them as their possession.) ^[13] And the LORD said, “Now get up and cross the Zered Valley.” So we crossed the valley. ^[14] Thirty-eight years passed from the time we left Kadesh Barnea until we crossed the Zered Valley. By then, that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them. ^[15] The LORD’s hand was against them until he had completely eliminated them from the camp. ^[16] Now when the last of these fighting men among the people had died, ^[17] the LORD said to me, ^[18] “Today you are to pass by the region of Moab at Ar. ^[19] When you come to the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them to war, for I will not give you possession of any land belonging to the Ammonites. I have given it as a possession to the descendants of Lot.” ^[20] (That too was considered a land of the Rephaites, who used to live there; but the Ammonites called them Zamzummites. ^[21] They were a people strong and numerous, and as tall as the Anakites. The LORD destroyed them from before the Ammonites, who drove them out and settled in their place. ^[22] The LORD had done the same for the descendants of Esau, who lived in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites from before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day. ^[23] And as for the Avvites who lived in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorites coming out from Caphtor destroyed them and settled in their place.) ^[24] “Set out now and cross the Arnon Gorge. See, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his country. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle. ^[25] This very day I will begin to put the terror and fear of you on all the nations under heaven. They will hear reports of you and will tremble and be in anguish because of you.” ^[26] From the Desert of Kedemoth I sent messengers to Sihon king of Heshbon offering peace and saying, ^[27] “Let us pass through your country. We will stay on the main road; we will not turn aside to the right or to the left. ^[28] Sell us food to eat and water to drink for their price in silver. Only let us pass through on foot- ^[29] as the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir, and the Moabites, who live in Ar, did for us-until we cross the Jordan into the land the LORD our God is giving us.” ^[30] But Sihon king of Heshbon refused to let us pass through. For the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate in order to give him into your hands, as he has now done. ^[31] The LORD said to me, “See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his country over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land.” ^[32] When Sihon and all his army came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz, ^[33] the LORD our God delivered him over to us and we struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army. ^[34] At that time we took all his towns and completely destroyed them-men, women and children. We left no survivors. ^[35] But the livestock and the plunder from the towns we had captured we carried off for ourselves. ^[36] From Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge, and from the town in the gorge, even as far as Gilead, not one town was too strong for us. The LORD our God gave us all of them. ^[37] But in accordance with the command of the LORD our God, you did not encroach on any of the land of the Ammonites, neither the land along the course of the Jabbok nor that around the towns in the hills.

Meditate

Our lives can often seem a random series of incidents. How do you see your life in the light of God’s plans and purposes?

Think Further

This chapter’s series of episodes stress two key points: God is sovereign, and the people are back on the path of faith. After the debacle of disobedience just recalled, Israel is now heading in the right direction, both geographically and spiritually. As they set their sights on the Promised Land, they must make arrangements with the peoples they encounter on the way. We see God’s hand, as Lord of the nations, allocating territory to other peoples and defining their relationship to Israel, whether one of fear and hostility or of treaty and co-existence.

In accordance with his good plan, God moves the people through the regions on the way to their eventual homeland. The Edomites (1-8), named after the reddish complexion of their rocks and their red-faced ancestor Esau, refuse to help the Israelites, though they are distant cousins. Later the deep-seated hatred would flare up into warfare, but the Israelites are here granted safe passage. The Moabites (9-18) and Ammonites (19-23), descendants of Abraham’s nephew Lot, have also been allotted their lands by God. Although there will later be warfare with them, here they are not to be disturbed.

Each group is worthy of further study. We see God in control of the details of world history, and he is using events among the nations as an example of how Israel will fulfill its destiny. Acts of possession, dispossession and destruction among the nations are similar to those Israel will engage in (12). This does not sanctify violence or give Israel any special rights, but rather affirms God’s sovereign role in giving all the nations their allotted territories and histories. If Israel will but obey, she will receive her promised inheritance, despite any opposition.

Apply

Reflect on world tensions today, and the hostilities between nations. How do you see that God is still at work? How does this bring you renewed faith in a sovereign God?

Closing prayer

Father God, increase my faith in Your complete sovereignty over all peoples and nations. Help me spread Your love to a confused and sinful world.

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