Justin Houtz

Judges 3, Acts 7, Jeremiah 16, Mark 2

DateVersionReading Plan
@July 20, 2024ESV (2016)M’Cheyne Plan 2024

Judges 3

Judges 3:15 (ESV) 15 Then the people of Israel cried out to the LORD, and the LORD raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud, the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. The people of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.

It seems interesting to include the detail that Ehud was left-handed, but as the FSB Notes describes, this was done with specific intent: “The name ‘Benjamin’ means “son of the right hand” in Hebrew. The narrative ironically notes Ehud was left-handed, but this detail is crucial to the success of his plan to deliver Israel from Moab. Benjaminites were known for their skill with slings using their left hands (see 20:16), but these warriors were likely ambidextrous (see 1 Chron 12:2).” We see later in v. 21 how Ehud used his left hand to take the sword from his right thigh to thrust it into the belly of Eglon. While this seems tactically inefficient, the NAC provides some additional context: “Evidently Eglon did not expect Ehud to draw his sword with his left hand. He probably did not know he could do so. This was part of Ehud’s strategy.”

Acts 7

Acts 7:51–53 (ESV) 51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

Concluding a speech recounting the Israelite history from the time of Abraham, Stephen compared the persecution instigated by the people to that of their fathers against the prophets of old, calling them stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears. Stephen connects the dots between the Righteous One who was announced beforehand by the persecuted prophets with One whom they had murdered and betrayed, namely Jesus. By this, Stephen redirects the accusation of wrongdoing back to the people, that they had failed to keep the law delivered to them by angels. Stephen’s motive, as the CSB Notes states, was that his “words would either raise the ire of his audience or break their hearts, leading to repentance.” Stephen’s heart in his final address was as it should be for all of us, to speak the gospel that it may foster conviction by the Spirit toward repentance and faith.

Jeremiah 16

Jeremiah 16:8–9 (ESV) 8 You shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink. 9 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will silence in this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.

In this context, God commands Jeremiah that he was no longer to attend funerals, feasts or banquets and that God would silence the voice of mirth and gladness. As I read this, I was reminded of Ecc. 7:2 in which Solomon also speaks of the house of feasting and that it is actually better to go to the house of mourning. I want to be careful not to make an inappropriate connection between the two passages as their contexts are very different, but it is curious how the house of feasting along with mirth and gladness are referenced. It seems Jeremiah’s separation from these social events would be difficult, but it was to be a gesture representing the prophecy that there would be an end to joy and gladness.

Mark 2

Mark 2:25–26 (ESV) 25 And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?”

Jesus confronted the observation of the Pharisees in which they said the disciples were being unlawful on the Sabbath by plucking heads of grain. In His response, Jesus referenced David’s unlawful entry into the house of God and how he ate the bread of the Presence in the time of Abiathar the high priest. Admittedly, it seems odd that Jesus would rebut an accusation of unlawfulness by using another example of unlawfulness, but the BBC provides helpful explanation:

Ordinarily this showbread was forbidden to any but the priests, yet David was not rebuked by God for doing this. Why? Because things were not right in Israel. As long as David was not given his rightful place as king, God allowed him to do what ordinarily would be illegal. This was the case with the Lord Jesus. Though anointed, He was not reigning. The very fact that His disciples had to pick grain as they traveled showed that things were not right in Israel. The Pharisees themselves should have been extending hospitality to Jesus and His disciples instead of criticizing them.

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