When he takes the throne of his kingdom,
he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law,
taken from that of the Levitical priests.It is to be with him,
and he is to read it all the days of his life
so that
he may learn to revere the LORD his God and
follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees …
Deuteronomy 17:18-19
Long before Israel had a king, God provided the requirements for one. It should surprise no one that God’s law figured prominently into those requirements. Not only was Israel’s king to have his own copy of the law, it was to be written out in his own hand. Yes, even though a plethora of scribes and servants were surely at his disposal, the king was to write it out for himself. He was to keep it with him, and he was to “read it all the days of his life.”
The passage above was the inspiration for our monthly Write the WORD series.
If writing out God’s Word was important for the King of Israel, I think it is important for us, as well — we serve the King of Kings.
Why would the king be expected to not only read the word, but to write it out with his own hand? Two possibilities come to mind:
- We tend to remember what we write. What better way, then, to hide God’s Word in our hearts than to write it out?
- It slows us down. It takes longer to write, of course, than to read. As we write out the words of Scripture, the Holy Spirit may draw our hearts and minds to home in a specific phrase — even single word — in the passage. Words that may be overlooked as we read are savored in the writing.
This passage also includes one of my favorite phrases in Scripture: so that.
Oh, how I love it when God gives us a reason — a “so that!” He is God Almighty, and He certainly does not owe us an explanation, but it is a great blessing when we get one. Here in Deuteronomy, He reveals the reasons why it was (and still is) important to write, keep, and read the Bible every day:
*So that we learn to revere the Lord
*So that we walk in obedience
To “revere” means to honor or respect. As we revere God, we glorify Him – make much of Him. It’s the reason for our existence! God’s Word teaches us more about Him, and the more we learn of Him, the better equipped we are to revere Him. The word “learn” suggests it is an ever-increasing, iterative process. As faithful students of His Word, we revere Him more today than five years ago – and if we continue to study the scriptures, in five years from now we will revere Him even more than today.
A woman who follows God is on a journey to know Him more so that she can revere Him more.
The second reason for daily time in the Bible centers on obedience. As we study God’s Word, our hearts are stirred to follow in obedience.
This not legalism; it is joyful obedience. The motivation is love, not fear. Joy, not pride.
As we read and write the Word each day, I pray we are doing so with a heart and mind intent on learning to revere the Lord and walk in obedience to Him.
This week our guest speaker, Emily Brannon of Cross Church, takes a look at Deuteronomy 5:1. After the Israelites were delivered from bondage in Egypt, God kindly and lovingly presented His laws and decrees to guide them in living in freedom.
Won’t you join us as we read, write, and study God’s Word this month?
Visit our Downloads page, where you’ll find the free bookmarks
for this month’s Write The WORD: LEARN.
We also offer printable S.O.A.P. study guide pages
to help you organize your thoughts & observations
as you study God’s Word, as well as other helpful resources.
