Today's Devotion: He [the Lord] said, “If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.” (The Holy Bible : New International Version. electronic ed. Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 1996, 1984, S. Ex 15:26) In this verse, God promises to the Israelites good health and deliverence in exchange for their obedience.

Today's Comments: The concept in force here is called lex talionis and is defined, according to the Ontario Consultants of Religious Tolerance as follows:

Lex talionis: Latin for "law of retaliation." The Hebrew Scriptures state that Injury was to be repaid with a similar injury: "an eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth." In the Bible, we learn that what we reap is what we sow. In modern language, we would say, "what goes around, comes around."

As we know from our studies in the Bible, Israel did not obey God, and as a result, they were forced to wander for forty years in the wilderness before even seeing the promised land. But, worse that that, they crucified the savior that God sent to them. As a result, they lost their homeland, until it was restored to them by the United Nations in November of 1947.

As a result of the New Testament and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are not only promised good health and deliverance. We are promised eternal life for our belief in Jesus Christ. That, however, does not mean that our nation is promised deliverance and good health. I believe that the concept of lex talionis is still a force to reckon with when it comes to the relationships between God and His nations. The nation which keeps God in its heart will be rewarded, but the nation that rallies against God will be destroyed. The process of secularization has begun in this country. Once it has been completed, we may, in fact, begin to reap what we have sown.