Deuteronomy 6:13
13 The Lord your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name alone you shall swear.
Exodus 23:25
25 You shall worship the Lord your God, and I will bless your bread and your water; and I will take sickness away from among you.
Deuteronomy 10:20
20 You shall fear the Lord your God; him alone you shall worship; to him you shall hold fast, and by his name you shall swear.
Deuteronomy 28:9
9 The Lord will establish you as his holy people, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways.
Leviticus 22:32
32 You shall not profane my holy name, that I may be sanctified among the people of Israel: I am the Lord; I sanctify you,
Deuteronomy 6:7
7 Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise.
Deuteronomy 6:8
8 Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem[ on your forehead
Hosea 2:19-20
19 I will betroth you to me
forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love
and compassion.
20 I will
betroth you in faithfulness, and
you will acknowledge the Lord
Numbers 15:38
38 Speak to the Israelites, and tell them to make fringes on the corners of their garments throughout their generations and to put a blue cord on the fringe at each corner.
Deuteronomy 6:9
9 and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Deuteronomy 31:19
19 Now therefore write this song, and teach it to the Israelites; put it in their mouths, in order that this song may be a witness for me against the Israelites.
Deuteronomy 17:18
18 When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests.
Reflections - as you study these verses, reflect on these questions.
1. What does it mean to believe in God, and why is it important?
2. What does it mean that God is our Redeemer?
3. What does it mean that God is One, and why is that significant?
4. What does love of God entail?
5. How are we to be in awe of God? Does this include fear in any way?
6. How do we serve God?
7. How do we cleave to God?
8. How do we walk in God’s ways?
9. How can we sanctify God’s Name?
10. Why would we only swear by God’s name when we must swear under oath?
11. What must we do to teach these words to our children, and why is this teaching important?
12. What meaning is there in the rituals involving wrappings of the hand, arm, and forehead?
13. What value is there in putting words of the Bible on the doorposts of the house?
14. Why would God want the king to write a scroll of the Torah himself?
15. Overall, what’s the reasoning behind these mitzvot that seek to habituate us to love of God and life with God?