Deuteronomy: Land of Promise and Problems The first five books of the Bible are commonly referred to as the Pentateuch, a term indicating a scroll made up of five books. Jewish scholars, however, refer to these books by the Hebrew term Torah The Law. Deuteronomy means the Second Law. It is the fifth and final book of Moses, the last of the Torah, given by Moses, Gods representative and mediator to His Chosen People, to the new generation of Israelites, those who had not sinned in the desert, those who were either not yet born, or who were under twenty years of age when the Hebrew children left Egypt (except, of course, for Caleb and Joshua).
(Miller, 4) It begins with a review of the history of Israel from the first year they left Egyptian slavery to the end of the forty years of wandering in the Wilderness of Sin (the term has nothing to do with Sin, but is the root from which the word Sinai derives).
In the third month (19:1) after the Israelites exodus from Egypt they arrived at Mount Sinai (the Mountain in the Wilderness of Sin).
There they were given the Ten Commandments, the Decalogue (cf.
The file of the same name at www.cin.org/avatar.html….[shameless plug]), and the other laws we have just covered, and where they built the Tabernacle according to the instructions provided them there. A year later they were led to Kadesh-Barnea where they selected 12 spies to survey Canaan, the Land of the Promise, of which ten convinced the people they ought not try to enter the land because the Canaanites had giants living there, and were too powerful to overcome. For that reason the adult generation, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb who had favored entry according to the Lords wishes, died in the wilderness outside the Land of Promise. The new generation itself was not going to be permitted entry into that Land of Promise until they had committed themselves to a personal relationship, a covenantal relationship, with God. With the opening lines of this book These are the words Moses spoke – we find Moses making an address to all Israel as the people of the nation stood poised in the desert east of the Jordan. While their exact location is in dispute, it is apparent that the words Moses spoke to them were uttered in the wilderness in the fortieth year following the exodus from Egypt (1:3).
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In this context, the reference to all Israel is to be understood as including past, present, and future Israelites, thus stressing their covenant solidarity as one nation before God. As will become evident, Moses will address the present generation of Israelites as if they, too, participated in both the blessings and sins of the previous generation.
The words that Moses began to speak, however, were not his own for he proclaimed to the Israelites all that the Lord had commanded him (1:3).
Verse 5 identifies the contents of Moses message as this law. Here law is used in its widest sense to indicate that Moses main goal was to interpret and apply teachings already given [particularly that related to their covenant obligations] and to lead the people to appropriate response (Ackland, 18).
Relationship between the words of Moses and the words of God in Deuteronomy is sometimes so close that they merge imperceptibly, making exegetical separation quite difficult (Wright, Vol. 4, 21).
As the promise of God was literally being realized in the dramatic numerical growth of the people, Moses called out for help how can I bear your problems and your burdens and your disputes all by myself? Here, he recalls for the Israelites how God led him to organize the leadership of the nation so that the differences among brother Israelites could be resolved in a proper manner.
Once again, Gods faithfulness and gracious dealings with the nation are set before the new generation of Israelites as an impetus to obedience and trust. Next, Moses recounts how the former Israelites departed from Sinai and went toward the hill country of the Amorites and ultimately on to Kadesh Barnea. At the point of their arrival Moses once again confirmed the divine word of promise and instruction See, the Lord your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the Lord, the God of your fathers, told you. Here, again, it is obvious that faith and obedience were required of the people of Israel if they were to realize the blessings promised by their covenant God. Verses 22-25 of the 1st chapter recount how the people first desired to spy out the land before attempting to enter it.
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This action, while not unusual among ancient peoples, revealed an apparent weakness of their faith in Gods promises (Clements, 87).
Interestingly, according to this reckoning, Moses himself agreed that the plan made sense The idea seemed good to me” (1:23).
The report of the twelve spies, having returned with some of the lands fruit, confirmed its beauty and productivity It is a good land that the Lord our God is giving us (1:25).
The central message of Deuteronomy is obedience. Some form of the words obey and do occurs an average of five times in each chapter. Except for the larger book of Jeremiah, the word obey occurs more times in this book than in any other book of the Bible.
There was one condition for entering and enjoying the land of promise: obedience. So that you may live meant far more than simply continuing to exist; it meant that the Israelites could enjoy that life, filled with the abundant provisions that flow from Gods generous hands. God chose the Israelites to be His Chosen People, not because of their extraordinary power, intelligence, wisdom, grace or any other quality, but precisely because they were the fewest of all the nomad tribes, the weakest, the most intransigent and belligerent, in short, the most helpless and the most unwilling to be helped. By choosing a nation like them, God lets the world know it is not brilliance, power, or goodness on the part of the chosen that brings them Gods blessings and prosperity. However, the mercy of an Almighty God Who rules the affairs of the universe, and is able to bless those who walk in the way of His commands.(Clements, 17-18) Through Moses, God revealed His own perfect and holy nature, and His great love for His people. He urged them to Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declard to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law.
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(32:46).
Moses spoke of Gods love for the people of Israel in the past, present and future tense – chapters (27-30) cover a prophetic revelation of Israels futures. (Polzin, 18) Deuteronomy ends with the Song of Moses, his final blessing on Israel, and on the death and mysterious burial of Moses, whose burial place remains yet undiscovered, since he was buried by God Himself. Moses final commands to Joshua were You are the one who will lead these people to occupy the land that the Lord promised to their ancestors. Lord (through Jesus) quoted more from Deuteronomy than from any other book in the Bible while He taught His people in His own day. He referred to this book more than 80 times in the New Testament alone.
For that reason alone, if for none other, the book of Deuteronomy deserves more attention than it has been traditionally given. Moses told the new generation that the reason their parents had failed to gain the Land of Promise because they had not believed or trusted in the Lord, their God. The new generation of Israelites faced the very same problems their ancestors had faced a generation earlier. Each generation does, but each generation fancies itself as unique, and faced with challenges none other prior had done. In the near future the Israelites would be crossing the River Jordan, facing the walled cities of the Canaanites (a numerous and powerful people) and walking in unfamiliar territory. (Clements, 84) I prayed to the Lord and said, O Sovereign Lord, do not destroy your people, your own inheritance that you redeemed by your great power and brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Overlook the stubbornness of this people, their wickedness and their sin. (9:26-27) Moses reminded the new generation of the faithlessness of their fathers generation. About 40 years earlier, the Nation of Israel had already sworn obedience and allegiance to God, and vowed to obey His Commands. (Exodus 19:8; 24:3) God would have destroyed them, had it not been for the prayers of Moses, who stood before Him in the breach, to turn away His wrath… Here, too, Moses is a type of Christ, who stands in the breach for us, to turn away His Wrath. (Clements, 112) Moses went beyond simple formality and brief meditations in prayer – unlike many people, who so very often confuse saying prayers with praying.
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Moses laid face downward in the Presence of the Lord, and he pleaded with great earnestness for forty days and forty nights that God would forgive the stubbornness of this people, on the basis of His Own Covenant Promise to Abraham. Moses intercessory prayer revealed that he had only one purpose: to live and please the Father ….
