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Deuteronomy 25:7-10, However, if a man does not want to marry his brother’s wife, she shall go to the elders at the town gate and say, “My husband’s brother refuses to carry on his brother’s name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me.” Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, “I do not want to marry her,” his brother’s widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face and say, “This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother’s family line.” That man’s line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.

This passage refers to what is called levirate law.  When a man dies childless, his next oldest brother is supposed to marry the dead man’s wife in order to produce a child.  If a child is conceived, it is considered the dead brother’s child.  This provides protection for the widow in a highly patriarchal society.  A woman at that time, in that culture, needed a husband or male heir to care for her, provide basic resources, and offer protection.  Without this, the widow would be destitute.

Today’s focus verses are instructions for what to do if the brother of the deceased man refused to marry the widow.  The brother was to be publicly shamed in front of the town elders, the widow was to spit in his face and take off one of his sandals.  The sandal represented the fact that the derelict brother forfeited any claims to the dead brother’s estate.  The spitting represented disgust.  While levirate law might seem strange to us, it was an essential part of protecting the most vulnerable in Israelite society.

Think about the safety nets we have for the most vulnerable in our society.  It’s obvious, even as we read these Old Testament Scriptures, that God cares for those who can’t care for themselves, those who are oppressed, and those who are vulnerable.  How do you help care for the least of these in our community?  How can we better care for the needy and vulnerable as Jesus’ church at New Hope?

Let’s pray…Lord Jesus, Break our heart for what breaks yours.  Guide us to help those who need it most.  Give us wisdom and discernment as individuals and a church.  More of you, Jesus, and less of me.  In Your Name, Amen.