RECONCILING DIVINE KINGSHIP WITH SECULAR POLITY IN DEUTERONOMY 17:14-20 AND CONTEMPORARY POLITICAL QUESTIONS

Abstract

The biblical portrait of Israel’s political life is mostly coloured by the conflict between the religious establishment and the secular leadership. The text of Deut 17:14-20, regarded as the law of the king, attempts to establish a template for the relationship. The problem is that Israel by its nature is ruled by YHWH as a form of theocratic state, but historical exigencies constrained Israel to adopt the secular system of governance in the form of monarchy. The relationship between the two systems is riddled with many irreconcilable problems, which combine to explain many complex issues in the biblical account of Israel’s political history. This paper examines the logic of the text of Deut 17:14-20 and its function within the larger context of the political system in Israel. The study also uses the biblical perspective as a springboard for exposition of the complex issues in the relationship between religious bodies and secular political systems in both the wider world and the Nigerian context. The analytical approach is both synchronic and diachronic as both explain the meaning of the actual text and its motivations.