Tues.’s Devo - “In Their Own Eyes”

Read: Judges 21:1-Ruth 1:22; John 4:4-42; Psalm 105:1-15; Proverbs 14:25
I can relate to the way Israel reacted before thinking out the consequences. I have done that many a time. If they had asked God, I bet he would have had a better way to do all of this, but that was not their choice. They killed all of Benjamin’s women leaving hundreds of men without wives and no way for Benjamin to procreate since they had sworn they would not give their wives to them.
They got creative and found out that the people of Jabesh-gilead had not come to fight, so they had not made the vow. They attacked them because they hadn’t come to help. They killed all the men and every woman that was a not a virgin and brought the 400 virgins to the men at Benjamin. I bet that made for some happy marriages!
They needed more women, so they remembered that the people of Shiloh held a festival where all the virgins would perform in dance. So, like Kentucky hill-billy’s they told the wifeless men of Benjamin to go and grabbed a woman right off the dance floor and run. They figured they could bargain for them when their daddies protested.
This says it all: “In those days Israel had no king and all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.”
Next we have the great story of Ruth, the daughter-in-law to Naomi who was married to Elimelech. When famine came to Bethlehem (because everyone was ‘doing what was right in their own eyes’) they went to Egypt to survive. Their two sons met Moabite women and got married. One of the wives was Ruth. All the men died leaving Naomi, Ruth and Orpah. Naomi heard that the famine had lifted and that there was bread in Bethlehem and wanted to go home. Both Ruth and Orpah begged to go with her. Ruth had nothing to offer them and convinced Orphah to stay, but Ruth was determined to go and become a Jew.
They came to Bethlehem at the time of Pentecost.
In John, Jesus met the woman at the well. The two people that Jesus had the longest conversations with, that were recorded, were this woman and Nicodemus. She was a Samaritan and he was a Pharisee. Jesus came to save both the Jew and the Gentile. Both of his conversations with these two were about being born again. What is so interesting about his encounter with the woman was that it wasn’t a miracle that got her attention and the attention of the town, it was what he said. They were so hungry for the Messiah to come that they came out to hear him, not just see a miracle show. They had faith and it brought them salvation.
Lord, help us to grow in our faith and may we speak your words that will change people’s lives for eternity. Help us not to live according to what we think is right in our eyes, but what you think is right in Your eyes.