In this daily Bible reading is the description of King David’s governmental structure. Israel was very organized under King David with specific assignments of duties for the various tribes. For example, David assigned gatekeepers for Jerusalem’s many gates. This was a very important assignment. Interestingly, gatekeepers were assigned by ‘casting lots.’
Throughout the Bible we see the casting of lots to determine who should be chosen or assigned to various tasks. This was puzzling to me until I realized that God speaks to us in various ways. Casting of lots was one of those ways.
Casting lots was probably like rolling dice. When I read that a person like David who was dedicated to God used casting lots for decisions, I conclude that it was a legitimate process.
I don’t think I would ‘cast lots’ today for my decision-making because I have the Bible to guide me. I have also learned not to trust my own desires to make decisions. My natural desires do not always align with what the Bible tells me to do or not to do. The bottom line is that today we need to test all things according to the Bible’s instructions. We must not make decisions that are contrary to what the Bible teaches.
