17:17 The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate large amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.
God's word is true. It always proves itself as true. And the above verse is pretty much a recap of what happened to Solomon. The Bible says his many wives led him astray.
Over and over in God's word we see where we are to daily be in His word. Here it is again, and this time He is saying it is important for the king. If it is important for the king, it is also important for us.
17:18 “When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. 19 He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees. 20 This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way. And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.
Here are the other verses that 'hit me' in today's reading:
13:1 “Suppose there are prophets among you or those who dream dreams about the future, and they promise you signs or miracles, 2 and the predicted signs or miracles occur. If they then say, ‘Come, let us worship other gods’—gods you have not known before—3 do not listen to them. The Lord your God is testing you to see if you truly love him with all your heart and soul. 4 Serve only the Lord your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.
13:18 “The Lord your God will be merciful only if you listen to his voice and keep all his commands that I am giving you today, doing what pleases him.
14:22 “You must set aside a tithe of your crops—one-tenth of all the crops you harvest each year. 23 Bring this tithe to the designated place of worship—the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored. Doing this will teach you always to fear the Lord your God.
God requires of us that we are tempted. He won't tempt us beyond what we can handle, but he will tempt us to see if we will choose him or in this case choose other gods. I want to choose him over the god of money, T.V. and the other wastes of this world.
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