Your Personal Bible Why you need it. What it will do for you. What your benefits will be. How long you should keep it.

Introduction When it came time for Israel to have a king... He was to have his own copy of the Law... To read every day, learning to fear God and observe His Word... Keeping him humble, faithful, and prolonging his reign... Christians are no different today as we are also kings in a sense. If the kings of Israel were to have their own personal copies of the Law, certainly the kings of Christ ought to have (and read) their own personal Bibles!

Deuteronomy 17:18-20 (speaking of the King)...Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. 19 "And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, 20 "that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel.

when he sits on the throne When the king is positioned by inheritance or selection. He is given a great responsibility. Not only the physical protection of his people, But also their spiritual guidance as well. This can also mean as he sits in the position of authority on a continual basis.

he shall write for himself Implied that he should be literate. He could not go down to Books-a-million and buy a copy. There is much to be learned by writing it down yourself. You learn as you go and in a sense you put your mind into the mind of the person writing the scripture.

a copy of this law The law is what is to be copied. The reasons is so that the king will be very familiar with the law so as to execute justice and lead the people in the ways of God.

in a book Something that would be handy to carry and keep around them. We are so blessed to have all of our scriptures in a book. We should respect that book and treat it as a treasured possession.

from the one before the priests, the Levites This indicates that the kings understanding of God and His law is the same as what the priests and Levites had. His interpretation should be on the same page as the others. So we should all be on the same page in what God has taught us. That does not happen in our world today.

And it shall be with him Keeping it near and dear to his heart is what God wanted. Being familiar with the text and message. So we should study it always.

and he shall read it Not only was he to copy it, he had to read it. Over and over and over again. The same way we should read, read and read our personal bibles. Reading for understanding (Ephesians 3:4).

all the days of his life As long as he lives. We also should read and study God’s word for as long as we are able. There may come a time when we can no longer do so, and we should fear that day. Reminds us of “be faithful until death” (Revelation 2:10).

that he may learn to fear the LORD his God Remember that fear means reverence. To honor and respect God for who He is. To make the effort to do what He commands. Fear God and keep His commandments, for this applies to every person (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

and be careful to observe Careful—take every measure to do it correctly. Observe—do what is said. Not just looking. This phrase used all the time in Deuteronomy when God spoke through Moses in the giving of His law.

all the words of this law and these statutes Great significance in the word “all”. We do not get to pick and choose which parts we will hold to. We have to learn and obey it all to the very best of our ability. The more we do, the more we need to learn and continue growing in grace and knowledge (2 Peter 3:18).

that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren To keep him humble. We also need to humble ourselves before our brethren and treat them as better than ourselves (Philippians 2:3-4). Pride goes before every fall (Proverbs 16:18).

that he may not turn aside from the commandment God was serious when He gave the commands, and He expects us to comply with His will. By knowing the law, he would make correct decisions. He would also lead the people in the right ways of God.

to the right hand or to the left Any path other than the straight and narrow (Matthew 7:13-14) is the wrong path. Staying in God’s word and doing exactly what God says is the right way. Do not go beyond what is written (1 Corinthians 4:6) Do not depart from it in either direction.

that he may prolong his days in his kingdom God would be pleased with a king that did what He wanted done. The first king (Saul) had only just begun, but God was displeased with him and he was told that God has removed you from your kingdom (1 Samuel 15). This is similar to the blessings of Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26.

he and his children in the midst of Israel The directive from Deuteronomy 6:7 tells parents that they are to teach their children these laws. All of these were to be done in the sight of all the people. The children also had a responsibility to follow God’s laws.

Conclusion These rules and instructions were the same ones given to all of Israel in Deuteronomy 5:32 - 6:9. The only difference is that the King had to have his own personal copy. Do you treat your bible as your own personal copy of God’s instructions to you?