Deuteronomy 21-26 (The Daily Walk Bible).

I know, brutal right? Some of the penalties seem a little extreme to our ears and for our society. What can they teach us? Perhaps if we truly had a glimpse of God’s holiness and how offensive sin is to Him we might better understand. At the very least it should give us pause. God is not our big brother. He is awesome and holy and righteous and good. And we are not. At least not in and of ourselves. But we can be seen that way because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. God sees us as righteous and good because of Jesus, and as a result we have an eternal home with God in heaven. Beyond that, His Spirit now lives in us so that we can attempt to be good and holy and righteous in this life.

In addition to the brutal nature of some of our passage, how about the caring and compassionate sections? God cares for the poor, the orphans, and the widows, and he demands that His people care for them as well.