Deuteronomy 29-31

What I Noticed Today (Deuteronomy 29-31)

Deuteronomy 29

Deuteronomy 29 and 30 are the fourth restatement of the Mosaic covenant.

In verses 2-8, one noteworthy difference is the inclusion of the statement that until now the Lord had not given them the heart to understand, eyes to see, or ears to hear all that God had done for them.

In verses 9-15, this covenant was binding on the entire nation; those standing before God as well as those not present that day (v. 15).

In verses 16-29, Moses reminds the Israelites of the curses that will come if they break the covenant with God:

• The Israelites were familiar with idolatry from their time in Egypt. One idolatrous person could poison a whole nation.
• The idolatrous person may think he is safe, but the Lord will not forgive him. He will be cursed, and his name blotted out.
• God’s judgment will come not only to the person who introduced the idolatry but to the entire nation who followed him in his idolatry.
• The devastation that comes from God’s judgment will be so complete that people will ask what happened, and the answer will be that they abandoned their covenant with God (the Mosaic covenant).

Deuteronomy 30

Deuteronomy 30 predicts the pattern of the nation receiving God’s blessings, then turning away from God, then finally turning back to God with all their heart and soul. When they turn back to God with all their heart and soul, God promises to return to them and bless them once again.

In verses 1-10, God promises to bless the Israelites after they repent:

• God predicted the people would turn away from Him and be driven out of the Promised Land. When they realized they had done wrong and repented of their sin in turning away from Him, He would restore them to the land and bless them.
• Then God will put curses upon their enemies.
• They will once again obey and follow the commands of God, and He would prosper them.

In verses 11-20, God gave the people a choice between life and good, and death and evil. If they chose God by obeying and doing his commandments, they would enjoy life and goodness.

• God said His commands were not too difficult or beyond their reach.
• They were to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commands, statutes, and ordinances. If they do, they will live long and be blessed by God. But if they turn away from God, they will perish and not live long in the Promised Land.

Deuteronomy 31-34

These four chapters describe the leadership transition between Moses and Joshua.

Deuteronomy 31

As Moses comes to the end of his life, he encouraged the people, telling them that God would go before them and that they should remain strong and courageous.

In verses 7-23, then Moses encouraged Joshua telling him to be strong and courageous, reminding him that the Lord would be with him always!

• Moses encouraged the Levites, reminding them to teach all the people including the children about God.
• Moses then commissioned Joshua to lead the people into the Promised Land. Moses and Joshua enter the tent of meeting, and God spoke to Moses telling them that the people would indeed turn away from God, and do evil so that His anger would burn against them.
• The Lord then commissioned Joshua telling him to be strong and courageous, to lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land and promised that He would be with him.
• God even told them when the people would turn away; after God brought them into the Promised Land and they got comfortable they would rebel, turn to other gods and serve them.

In verses 24-30, Moses wrote down every word of the Law from God and commanded the Levites to place it beside the Ark of the Covenant as a witness against the people.

• Moses accused the people of being rebellious and stubborn because they had rebelled against the Lord while he was still alive so he was sure they would rebel more after he was dead.
• He called for all the tribal leaders to be assembled so he could speak the Word of the Lord directly to them.

Some thoughts for further consideration:

• Like the Israelites we need a spiritual renewal that gives us a heart to understand, eyes to see, and ears to hear all that God has done for us!
• We will see the drama of God’s prediction of the Israelite’s rebellion come to fruition, not once, but several times as we continue in our study of the Scripture.
• What amazes me, is that we see the very same thing happening today, and, for the most part, people don’t seem to understand how much we have rebelled against God, and how far from Him we are!
• As a society of believers, we need to pray God would give all of us a spiritual awakening so that the world would have the heart to understand, the eyes to see, and the ears to hear what God has done for us!

What did you notice in your study today? Feel free to visit the website and leave a question or a comment.

Tomorrow: Deuteronomy 32-34