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The First Commandment: Statues and Precepts (32)
Leviticus 19.23-25
3 “‘When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as uncircumcised. Three years it shall be as uncircumcised to you. It shall not be eaten. 24 But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, a praise to the Lord. 25 And in the fifth year you may eat its fruit, that it may yield to you its increase: I am the LORD your God.
Here is another “everyday reminder,” this one intended to reinforce the idea that Israel was totally dependent on the Lord for all her needs.
Upon planting a new tree, an Israelite must resist the temptation, for four years, to consume the fruit of the tree upon himself. The tree must be allowed three years to take root and flourish. Then, in the fourth year, the entire crop of the tree was devoted to the Lord – a “firstfruits” offering of praise to God for His faithfulness in providing all their needs. Then, in the fifth year – only after four years of specific self-denial and obedience – was the new tree’s fruit available to be eaten.
We can imagine that, with many orchards and many new trees, Israelites would have been faced with this reminder nearly every day of their lives. God uses His creation to keep us mindful of Him, but we have to look to His Law and Word to teach us how to learn the lessons creation is telling.
It’s also possible that refraining from eating the fruit of these trees for a period of time may have had another benefit: It may have reminded the people of Israel that it was through disobedience in this specific area that transgression first entered human life and creation (Gen. 3.1-6). Thus, this prohibition served as a reminder of God’s original call to obey Him, and, at the same time, offered the promise which obedience to God’s Law always brings.
T. M. Moore
The Law of God is the soil which, fertilized by the rest of God’s Word and watered by His Spirit, brings forth the fruit of Christian life. If you’d like to understand this process better, and how to make best use of the Law in your walk with and work for the Lord, order the book, The Ground for Christian Ethics, from our online store.
Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.