Day #71

Sermon - Audio
Deut 3-4 - Audio
Deut 3-4 - Daily Reading

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Deuteronomy 3

In quick summary Moses tells about the last battles before the people cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan. What is worth noting is that the enemies that are defeated are the very ones their fathers were so afraid of.

• 3.6: The idea that every city is destroyed may mean something a bit different that we first think. Notice that when Moses speaks of every city being destroyed he defines that as the killing of its inhabitants. It is possible that cities were left (remember God’s promise that the people would possess cities they did not build) while the people in them were killed.
• 3.5-7: These words reflect the words of chapter 2 where the great and powerful are defeated by those God has given the land to. As the people get ready to enter the promised land God’s past power should give them confidence for the future.
• 3.11: “bed” may be “sarcophagus” The ancients didn’t really care about their beds all that much but they were very concerned about their tombs. This large of a sarcophagus would have meant there was a lot of room for items to placed in it for the journey to afterlife.
• 3.12: Moses tells about the first division of the land. Land in Israel matters because it is God’s inheritance given to his people to steward. Land is not simply a commodity; it is connected to one’s life with God.
• 3.17: Chinnereth ESV, Kinnereth NIV is another name for the Sea of Galilee.
• 3.18: None of the tribes were to rest until the work of conquest was completed. This was a community undertaking and no part of the community could shirk its duty.
• 3.22: Again, the call to look back to have confidence for the future. God is seen as the one who is leading a holy war in which his people cannot fail—if they remain faithful to the covenant.
• 3.28: Moses is called upon to encourage and strengthen Joshua for his new task. The book of Deuteronomy with all its wisdom is just the kind of encouragement that Joshua needs.

Deuteronomy 4

• 4.1: “hear” is the word “shema” To hear in Hebrew implies not merely hearing, but also doing. Jesus points out that the difference between a wise man and a foolish one is that one hears and does, while the other simply hears.
• 4.1 “teach you” Moses’ greatest title in Hebrew thought is “Moses our Teacher”. Being the teacher of the people meant he showed them the way to covenant living and life.
• 4.2: Do not subtract… These words are echoed in Revelation 22 where we are warned not to add or take away from the words of the book.
• 4.3: At Baal Peor the people were involved in the worship of a pagan god. But it was also more than worship. The word “followed” is literally “walked after” which is an idiom for giving your allegiance to someone. So to walk after a king was to give your allegiance to that king. At Baal Peor people gave their allegiance to another god and 24,000 people paid for this with their lives.
• 4.4: “held fast” is the same word used in Genesis 2.24 when a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife. As a husband and wife are to cling to each other, so we are to cling to God.
• 4.6: God’s law is seen as the way of living wisely. This wise living will impress the other nations. One wonders if people ever say of Christ followers, “Surely this is a wise and understanding people.”
• 4.9: The home is the first line of teaching of children in the Bible. It is also important to see that God does not tell parents to let their children discover truth on their own, but rather calls them to teach their children the truth.
• 4.19: Don’t mistake the created for the creator.
  
• 4.20: “iron smelting furnace” may refer to both the gravity of the slavery the people of Israel experienced in Egypt and also some of the kind of work they had to do.
• 4.22: Moses will mention the role the people played in his not entering Canaan a few times in Deuteronomy. We catch a glimpse of the human side of Moses here and the pain he feels that after leading for 40 years, he can’t enter the promised land. It is fun to see that in The New Testament that Moses does get to enter the promised land when he sits with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mark 9).
• 4.24: The picture of a God who is a consuming fire is not only held to in the Old Testament. In the book of Hebrews (12.29) this passage is quoted.
• 4.28: Part of the punishment for worshipping idols is to worship idols (who are powerless and useless). We see a similar punishment in Romans 1 where God gives people over to the very things they wanted. Such giving over is punishment because these people lose both God and his wisdom—the two “things” that give us a life for which it is worth taking up space on earth.
• 4.29: These words are reflected in the time of the exile in Babylon in Jeremiah 29.10 This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."
• 4.32-40: Moses shows the people the greatness of God and insists that the God of Israel is the one and only God.
• 4.44-49 provide an introduction to the Ten Commandments. One of the main things to note is the mention of the victories of Israel. These victories are brought about by God the great King. In response to these victories and his many other gifts the people of Israel are now called to covenant faithfulness.