Immerse: Beginnings Full Volume - Flipbook - Page 298
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IMMERSE
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BEGINNINGS
7:25–8:18
in your power, and you will erase their names from the face of the earth.
No one will be able to stand against you, and you will destroy them all.
“You must burn their idols in fire, and you must not covet the silver or
gold that covers them. You must not take it or it will become a trap to you,
for it is detestable to the Lord your God. Do not bring any detestable
objects into your home, for then you will be destroyed, just like them.
You must utterly detest such things, for they are set apart for destruction.
“Be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today. Then you
will live and multiply, and you will enter and occupy the land the Lord
swore to give your ancestors. Remember how the Lord your God led you
through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you
to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his
commands. Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather,
we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. For all
these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t blister
or swell. Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the Lord your
God disciplines you for your own good.
“So obey the commands of the Lord your God by walking in his ways
and fearing him. For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land
of flowing streams and pools of water, with fountains and springs that gush
out in the valleys and hills. It is a land of wheat and barley; of grapevines,
fig trees, and pomegranates; of olive oil and honey. It is a land where food
is plentiful and nothing is lacking. It is a land where iron is as common as
stone, and copper is abundant in the hills. When you have eaten your fill,
be sure to praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.
“But that is the time to be careful! Beware that in your plenty you do
not forget the Lord your God and disobey his commands, regulations,
and decrees that I am giving you today. For when you have become full
and prosperous and have built fine homes to live in, and when your
flocks and herds have become very large and your silver and gold have
multiplied along with everything else, be careful! Do not become proud
at that time and forget the Lord your God, who rescued you from slavery
in the land of Egypt. Do not forget that he led you through the great and
terrifying wilderness with its poisonous snakes and scorpions, where it
was so hot and dry. He gave you water from the rock! He fed you with
manna in the wilderness, a food unknown to your ancestors. He did this to
humble you and test you for your own good. He did all this so you would
never say to yourself, ‘I have achieved this wealth with my own strength
and energy.’ Remember the Lord your God. He is the one who gives you
