Blessings and Curses, Part 3 of Leviticus 26: the God who Remembers

Part 3.

Leviticus 26:40-45 If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me; And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity: Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land. The land also shall be left of them, and shall enjoy her sabbaths, while she lieth desolate without them: and they shall accept of the punishment of their iniquity: because, even because they despised my judgments, and because their soul abhorred my statutes. And yet for all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my covenant with them: for I am the LORD their God. But I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the heathen, that I might be their God: I am the LORD.

       The word for “iniquity” is Nwe `avon. No, not the cosmetic company. It means perversity, depravity, iniquity, guilt or the consequence or punishment for iniquity. It is also translated as “fault” and “mischief” and “sin.” It comes from a root word meaning to be bent, twisted, distorted, to do perversely.

       A theme you will see throughout scripture is the concept of confessing both one’s iniquity and the iniquity of one’s forefathers. I don’t know why, exactly, except that God says this in Exodus 20:5b

         … for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.…

and in Exodus 34:7

            Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

       If iniquity’s punishment continues to 3 and 4 generations, it does seem like a good idea to spiritually clean the gene pool. How? Through repentance.

       In part 1, I asked whether the “if…then” is a contractual agreement. For myself, I conclude it is rather a covenant, a matter of the heart and devotion to the Giver of the Law, not just the Law.

       Here in the third part of Leviticus 26, we again see “if…then.” If we confess walking contrary to God and meet the other parts of this repentance, then God will remember his covenants with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Not only that, God will remember the land.

       Remember is rkz zakar, which means to remember. I believe God is saying that not only will He remember, but He’ll also do something about it. If we look at the 233 times this word appears in the Old Testament, when it refers to God remembering, God also does something:

Genesis 9:15 (Noah), Judges 16 (Samson), II Kings 20 (Hezekiah); Jeremiah (all over), and so forth.

       Even in the cases of an unrepentant nation of Israel, God says in Leviticus 26:44-45
         And yet for all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my covenant with them: for I am the LORD their God. But I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the heathen, that I might be their God: I am the LORD.

       I just can’t say it enough: what a compassionate, kind God we have!

Shalom,

exodus15