If
a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the
voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they
have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: Then shall his father
and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of
his city, and unto the gate of his place; and they shall say unto the
elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will
not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. And all the men
of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou
put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.
Deuteronomy, Chapter 21, verses 18-21.
I
don’t want people to get the wrong impression of God because He is
both loving and forgiving. I think that God is referring to extreme
situations that are similar today. Situations where someone’s
grown children are addicted to drugs or alcohol and they don’t work
and are defiant. Some make choices that threaten the lives of
others. Some beat their parents, some steal and some abuse or
neglect their own children.
I
know it would be difficult for any parent to consider this extreme of
a consequence-no matter how many faults their adult child had. This
passage makes me think about how it would be so much easier for
parents to address their children’s behavior by setting limitations
and having logical consequences while they are still young, so they
never get to this point of unruliness.
It
seems that some parents are lax about disciplining their children on
a consistent basis. I always thought that it was better to make sure
that my children grew up respecting laws and were a productive part
of society than to have them thrown into prison for stealing to get
their next fix. (In this example, the defiant, unproductive adult
isn’t stoned to death but is dealt with by society through the
penal system.) Who wants that for their children?
I
know it takes a lot more effort when parents are already tired after
a long day at work. Parents may not want to deal with a child who
argues with them when they follow through on consequences. Isn’t
it better to deal with that than to see your child have a miserable
life later on, dealing with the law or maybe running from it? They
are our children and they’re worth the extra effort!!!!
Because this is an example of how I’ve applied this Bible passage to my life, it doesn't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the passage.
This is a connection I've made from this Bible passage. Please share your connections.
Please click on comments below to share your suggestions. Thanks! Debbie
