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Social Media Theology | Deuteronomy 28:43 | TJ Torgerson 

Facebook theology is inadequate at best and flat-out wrong at its worst. I usually ignore such posts, roll my eyes, and continue scrolling. However, something about this particular post (as seen in the picture) made me want to respond. Perhaps it was the perceived attitude behind it that I didn’t like. Perhaps it was because the post was being widely shared—when I first saw it, the post had 17k shares, a few days later it was up to 51k, and the next day it was at 59k. Or perhaps it was the comment section, with people saying things like, “So true!” or “Exactly, they are patient. They wait a few generations, but in time… will win.”

Bum bum Buuuuuuum!

Maybe it’s simply because I’ve neglected to write a blog post for two weeks and needed something to talk about.

But what exactly is wrong with that post? I mean, isn’t it just a Bible verse? What could be wrong with sharing a Bible verse? Well, here’s the thing: yes, it is just a Bible verse—a Bible verse with no commentary, explanation, or context. When someone stumbles upon this, they are left to figure it out on their own. Unfortunately, based on the comment section, people are making the wrong assumptions about the verse. They are viewing it as a prophecy from God to America, or something like that.

The Problem with Out-of-Context Verses

That post is problematic because it is a single verse posted without explanation or context. This leads, of course, to false ideas. I wonder how many pastors are sharing this without thought and inadvertently misleading their people? But I digress.

It may seem odd to claim that a lack of explanation or commentary on this verse is problematic. However, the reason this is a problem is that if there is no clear claim, point, or application asserted, it makes it difficult for others to interact with it. Since there is not a clear point being made, anything good or bad said about it can be met with the defense of, “I never said that!”—which is true because the post doesn’t say anything at all (though it claims, "The Bibble said it all")

More concerning than the lack of explanation or clear point is the fact that there is no context given. It’s amusing to me that the post says, “The Bible says it all!” Sure, the Bible does “say it all,” but this one verse doesn’t say it all. In fact, it doesn’t even say what most people are assuming it says.

The most important thing to consider if you want to understand the Bible is context. That’s why Bible teachers are so fond of saying things like, “context is king!” or “a text without context is a pretext.” Some verses may do an okay job of standing on their own, but most verses do a very poor job when isolated. Since the best an isolated verse can give you is an “okay” or inadequate understanding, and the worst an isolated verse can give you is an incorrect and harmful understanding, isn’t it best to always consider context? Bible verses, much like Christians, are better together.

This is what I think most people are assuming the verse is communicating. Let me know if you agree.

It seems like this is a verse where God is warning His people about foreigners. “You had better watch out for the outsiders—they’re going to come and take your jobs and take over! Watch out, be warned, be guarded. Don’t trust the outsiders! If you’re not careful, they will rule over you! Make sure you hold on to power—you are God’s people, after all.” Is that what people are concluding? Is that what you concluded?

Understanding the Bigger Picture

But that is not what this verse is about. Let’s zoom out and look at the bigger story.

You might remember that God had chosen the descendants of Abraham. He promised to make them into a great nation. God Promised that Abraham’s descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the shore. The problem was instead of becoming a great nation they ended up in bondage in Egypt. So God in his faithfulness to his promise and by his powerful and gracious hand freed  them. Now in the book of Deuteronomy they found themselves wandering in the desert, headed to the land and fulfillment of God’s promise (Deut 1-4). While in the wilderness, God made a covenant with Israel, giving them the law and other instructions (Deut 5-26). After God gave various instructions, He explained the results of obedience and disobedience (Deut 27-28).

In chapters 5-26, there are all kinds of instructions, like the 10 Commandments, instructions about offerings, marriage, feasts and festivals, idolatry— and more. After these commands are given, God says if you obey these things, you will prosper! You will have many children, your crops and livestock will increase, your enemies will fall, you will be great, and all the people of the earth will know you belong to God. The blessings for obedience were essentially a reiteration, a solidification of what God had promised Abraham all those years before—that his descendants would be numerous, and all the nations would be blessed through them.

However, what if they instead disobey the commands and instructions in Deuteronomy 5-26? If they disobey, then they will be cursed. They will face disease, and their livestock, crops, and the fruit of their womb will suffer. This is a deterioration and reversal of the promise from before. Instead of multiplying, they will dwindle, and their enemies will overtake them. The foreigners that reside among them will rise as they sink. Read teh passage and notice that the text in Deuteronomy 28 has two separate categories: one for enemies and another for foreigners residing among them. A difficulty I have with the sole Bible verse post is that most people are deciding, based on the single verse, that the foreigner is an enemy to be wary of. However, the passage doesn't list them as enemies, but as foreigners residing among them, or in other words, neighbors.

What God Really Wants from Us

Deuteronomy 28:43 is indeed a warning; however, it is not a warning against foreigners. It is a warning regarding disobedience to God. Others prospering while God’s people are not, in this passage, is a result of disobedience. It is a symptom of a larger problem.  If we take that single verse as a warning against foreigners taking what is ours, we might conclude that the solution is to expel the foreigner. However, if we see it as a consequence of our rebellion against God, we would see that the solution is to expel the sin within us. To go back and obey what God has told us to do—not to retaliate against or blame others for our misfortune. So, what did God command them to do? Well, as I said before, there are a lot of commands leading up to the blessings and curses of Deuteronomy 28. But I’ll pick one instruction that is fitting for this discussion.

Deuteronomy 10:18-19 says:

“He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt.”

What if that one verse, Deuteronomy 28:43, taken out of context is leading people to neglect the actual command of God found in Deuteronomy 10?

We are called to love the outsider, not fear them (1 John 4:18). Moreover, within the body of Christ, there is no category of "foreigner." We are one in Christ; the dividing walls have been torn down, and the things that once separated us no longer do. The only two categories (theologically speaking) are those who are in Christ and those who are not.

Imagine if you shared that post with the veiled yet clear insinuation of fear, distrust, and dislike toward the foreigner, and a brother or sister in Christ who is here legally as an asylum seeker sees it. Do you think the message they would hear is, “We are one in Christ,” or “I wish you would go away; you are not welcome here!” That is something we would never say to them if they walked into the church building on Sunday morning, but we communicate it through our Facebook feed.

Some might read all of this and think I’m trying to promote a particular political agenda (I mean, it is election season), but I’m not. While I do have my own opinions about border security and every nation's rights and responsibilities regarding borders and security, that is not what this post is about. My only aim is to encourage careful, thoughtful engagement with Scripture. The Bible is a powerful tool, but like any tool, it must be used correctly. If we are not diligent in seeking context and understanding, we risk spreading harmful ideas that hurt people and the body of Christ.

So, I challenge you to dig deeper. The next time you come across a stand-alone Bible verse that strikes you, take a moment to explore the context, discover what it really says, and understand how it fits within the larger story of Scripture. The next time you encounter a pithy, deep, or inspiring piece of social media theology, don’t just give it a heart or thumbs up; don’t quickly share it. Instead, dig a little deeper to find out if it is true.

Let’s move beyond surface-level interpretations and commit to a more profound and faithful engagement with God’s Word. After all, as Christians, we are called to be people of the Word—all of it—not people of isolated, out-of-context verses that feed into our presuppositions and political ideologies.