Deuteronomy 17:15

"When you have come to the land which the LORD your God gives you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, “I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,”"

Key Reflection

In Deuteronomy 17:15, Moses instructs the Israelites on their future governance once they have settled in the Promised Land. The verse highlights a significant shift from the nomadic lifestyle to a more structured society with a king, paralleling the practices of neighboring nations. This cultural adaptation was meant to help them maintain unity and stability while avoiding the potential pitfalls of idolatry and moral decline that often accompanied monarchy among other peoples.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

The king, like the judges and officers (compareDeuteronomy 16:18), is to be chosen by the people; but their choice is to be in accordance with the will of God, and to be made from among “their brethren.” Compare1 Samuel 9:15;1Sa 10:24;1 Samuel 16:1;1 Kings 19:16. Thou mayest not set a stranger over thee -The Jews extended this prohibition to all offices whatsoever (compareJeremiah 30:21); and naturally attached the greatest importance to it: from where the significance of the question proposed to our Lord, “Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar?”Matthew 22:17.

Related Verses

More from Deuteronomy 17

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