Deuteronomy 1-5

   Each of us is on our own spiritual journey. In this life on earth we are usually in one of four places:

1. In Egypt, still in slavery to sin, and you need to be saved.


2. In the wilderness, redeemed, but going nowhere other than in circles - not much closer to God than the day you were saved.


3. In Canaan, excited, growing, having the joy of the Lord. They’re not a wilderness wanderer, but a giant conqueror! You struggle with enemies, with the flesh, but you are in the Word, living your life and home in Jesus Christ.


4. East of the Jordan. Saved, but in the world, living for the flesh.

Moses' Two Speeches

• In Chapter 1, Moses recounts the sending out of spies, to spy out the Promised Land, before the Israelites went in to take possession of it. (This is referring to the story which originally happened in Numbers 13.)


• Moses traces Israel’s experience with the Lord from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea, through their wilderness wandering and up to their taking of the land from Beth-peor so that they will remember the character of the Lord and obey Him as they prepare to enter the Land (1:6-4:43)


• The events of Deuteronomy cover only 1-2 weeks in the 11th month of the 40th year plus 1 month of mourning for Moses after his death.

These are the words that Moses spoke to all the people of Israel while they were in the wilderness east of the Jordan River. They were camped in the Jordan Valley ... (It takes eleven days to go from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea by the Mount Seir road.) In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the LORD had commanded him concerning them. ...

East of the Jordan in the territory of Moab, Moses began to expound this law, saying: The LORD our God said to us at Horeb, "You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Break camp and advance into the hill country of the Amorites ... to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates. See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore he would give to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—and to their descendants after them."

...

Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful desert that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea.

Then I said to you, "You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. 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. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to." The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe. They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and explored it. Taking with them some of the fruit of the land, they brought it down to us and reported, "It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us."

• By putting together the two accounts, from Numbers and Deuteronomy, we learn that the Israelites came to Moses and asked him to send in spies.

But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. You grumbled in your tents and said, "The LORD hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made us lose heart. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites there.'" Then I said to you, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place." In spite of this, you did not trust in the LORD your God, who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go.

When the LORD heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore: "Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers, except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly."

Because of you the LORD became angry with me also and said, "You shall not enter it, either. But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it. And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad—they will enter the land. I will give it to them and they will take possession of it. But as for you, turn around and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea."

...

“Then we turned around and headed back across the wilderness toward the Red Sea, just as the Lord had instructed me, and we wandered around in the region of Mount Seir for a long time.

“Then at last the Lord said to me, ‘You have been wandering around in this hill country long enough; turn to the north.

...

Moses continued, “Then the Lord said to us, ‘Get moving. Cross the Zered Brook.’ So we crossed the brook. “Thirty-eight years passed from the time we first left Kadesh-barnea until we finally crossed the Zered Brook! By then, all the men old enough to fight in battle had died in the wilderness, as the Lord had vowed would happen. The Lord struck them down until they had all been eliminated from the community ...

Moses continued, “Then the Lord said, ‘Now get moving! Cross the Arnon Gorge. ... Beginning today I will make people throughout the earth terrified because of you. When they hear reports about you, they will tremble with dread and fear.’”

...

“Next we turned and headed for the land of Bashan, where King Og and his entire army attacked us at Edrei. ... “So the Lord our God handed King Og and all his people over to us, and we killed them all.

...

“So we took the land of the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River ... We had now conquered all the cities on the plateau and all Gilead and Bashan, as far as the towns of Salecah and Edrei, which were part of Og’s kingdom in Bashan. (King Og of Bashan was the last survivor of the giant Rephaites. His bed was made of iron and was more than thirteen feet long and six feet wide. It can still be seen in the Ammonite city of Rabbah.)



“When we took possession of this land, I gave to the tribes of Reuben and Gad the territory beyond Aroer along the Arnon Gorge, plus half of the hill country of Gilead with its towns. Then I gave the rest of Gilead and all of Bashan—Og’s former kingdom—to the half-tribe of Manasseh. ... They also received the Jordan Valley, all the way from the Sea of Galilee down to the Dead Sea, with the Jordan River serving as the western boundary.

...

“At that time I gave this command to the tribes that would live east of the Jordan: ‘Although the Lord your God has given you this land as your property, all your fighting men must cross the Jordan ahead of your Israelite relatives, armed and ready to assist them. Your wives, children, and numerous livestock, however, may stay behind in the towns I have given you. When the Lord has given security to the rest of the Israelites, as he has to you, and when they occupy the land the Lord your God is giving them across the Jordan River, then you may all return here to the land I have given you.’

• At the end of the conquest, Joshua released the two and a half tribes to return home on the other side of Jordan (Joshua 22:4).

“At that time I gave Joshua this charge: ‘You have seen for yourself everything the Lord your God has done to these two kings. He will do the same to all the kingdoms on the west side of the Jordan. Do not be afraid of the nations there, for the Lord your God will fight for you.’

“At that time I pleaded with the Lord and said, ‘O Sovereign Lord, you have only begun to show your greatness and the strength of your hand to me, your servant. Is there any god in heaven or on earth who can perform such great and mighty deeds as you do? Please let me cross the Jordan to see the wonderful land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon mountains.’

“But the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he would not listen to me. ‘That’s enough!’ he declared. ‘Speak of it no more. But go up to Pisgah Peak, and look over the land in every direction. Take a good look, but you may not cross the Jordan River. Instead, commission Joshua and encourage and strengthen him, for he will lead the people across the Jordan. He will give them all the land you now see before you as their possession.’ So we stayed in the valley near Beth-peor.

“And now, Israel, listen carefully to these decrees and regulations that I am about to teach you. Obey them so that you may live, so you may enter and occupy the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you.

...

“Look, I now teach you these decrees and regulations just as the Lord my God commanded me, so that you may obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy. Obey them completely, and you will display your wisdom and intelligence among the surrounding nations. When they hear all these decrees, they will exclaim, ‘How wise and prudent are the people of this great nation!’ For what great nation has a god as near to them as the Lord our God is near to us whenever we call on him? And what great nation has decrees and regulations as righteous and fair as this body of instructions that I am giving you today?

“But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren. Never forget the day when you stood before the Lord your God at Mount Sinai ...

“You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while flames from the mountain shot into the sky. The mountain was shrouded in black clouds and deep darkness. And the Lord spoke to you from the heart of the fire. You heard the sound of his words but didn’t see his form; there was only a voice. He proclaimed his covenant—the Ten Commandments—which he commanded you to keep, and which he wrote on two stone tablets. It was at that time that the Lord commanded me to teach you his decrees and regulations so you would obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy.

...

do not corrupt yourselves by making an idol in any form ... Remember that the Lord rescued you from the iron-smelting furnace of Egypt in order to make you his very own people and his special possession, which is what you are today.

“But the Lord was angry with me because of you. He vowed that I would not cross the Jordan River into the good land the Lord your God is giving you as your special possession. You will cross the Jordan to occupy the land, but I will not. Instead, I will die here on the east side of the river

...

“Today I call on heaven and earth as witnesses against you. If you break my covenant, you will quickly disappear from the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. You will live there only a short time; then you will be utterly destroyed. For the Lord will scatter you among the nations, where only a few of you will survive. There, in a foreign land, you will worship idols made from wood and stone—gods that neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell. But from there you will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.

“In the distant future, when you are suffering all these things, you will finally return to the Lord your God and listen to what he tells you. For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the solemn covenant he made with your ancestors.

• Moses is certain that future generations of Hebrews will fall into idolatry and subsequently fall as a nation. Moses accurately conveys what will happen to Israel in their future. In fact, that did happen, and the Northern Kingdom of Israel fell for just that reason in 721 B.C. (2 Kings 17) and the Southern Kingdom in 586 B.C. (2 Kings 24).

“Now search all of history, from the time God created people on the earth until now, and search from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything as great as this ever been seen or heard before? Has any nation ever heard the voice of God speaking from fire—as you did—and survived? Has any other god dared to take a nation for himself out of another nation by means of trials, miraculous signs, wonders, war, a strong hand, a powerful arm, and terrifying acts? Yet that is what the Lord your God did for you in Egypt, right before your eyes.

“He showed you these things so you would know that the Lord is God and there is no other. He let you hear his voice from heaven so he could instruct you. He let you see his great fire here on earth so he could speak to you from it. Because he loved your ancestors, he chose to bless their descendants, and he personally brought you out of Egypt with a great display of power. He drove out nations far greater than you, so he could bring you in and give you their land as your special possession, as it is today.

“So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The Lord is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other. If you obey all the decrees and commands I am giving you today, all will be well with you and your children. I am giving you these instructions so you will enjoy a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”

...

This is the body of instruction that Moses presented to the Israelites. These are the laws, decrees, and regulations that Moses gave to the people of Israel when they left Egypt, and as they camped in the valley near Beth-peor east of the Jordan River.

...

Moses called all the people of Israel together and said, “Listen carefully, Israel. Hear the decrees and regulations I am giving you today, so you may learn them and obey them!

“The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Mount Sinai. The Lord did not make this covenant with our ancestors, but with all of us who are alive today. At the mountain the Lord spoke to you face to face from the heart of the fire. I stood as an intermediary between you and the Lord, for you were afraid of the fire and did not want to approach the mountain. He spoke to me, and I passed his words on to you.

This is what he said:

“I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.

“You must not have any other god but me.

“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind, or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.

“You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name.

“Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your oxen and donkeys and other livestock, and any foreigners living among you. All your male and female servants must rest as you do. Remember that you were once slaves in Egypt, but the Lord your God brought you out with his strong hand and powerful arm. That is why the Lord your God has commanded you to rest on the Sabbath day.

“Honor your father and mother, as the Lord your God commanded you. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

“You must not murder.

“You must not commit adultery.

“You must not steal.

“You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.

“You must not covet your neighbor’s wife. You must not covet your neighbor’s house or land, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.

• As we discussed when we studied Paul's epistle to the Hebrews, modern Judaism teaches that God gave the Jews 613 commandments, not merely ten. The biblical passage known to most people as the "Ten Commandments" is known to Jews as the "Aseret ha-Dibrot," the Ten Declarations, and is considered to be ten categories of commandments, rather than ten individual commandments. By the way, Roman Catholics render a little different list than non-Catholics. They leave out the non-Catholic number 2 (You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind) and then divide number 10 into 2 separate "covet" commandments to get their 10. Why do you suppose?

“The Lord spoke these words to all of you assembled there at the foot of the mountain. He spoke with a loud voice from the heart of the fire, surrounded by clouds and deep darkness. This was all he said at that time, and he wrote his words on two stone tablets and gave them to me.

“But when you heard the voice from the heart of the darkness, while the mountain was blazing with fire, all your tribal leaders and elders came to me. They said, ‘Look, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice from the heart of the fire. Today we have seen that God can speak to us humans, and yet we live! But now, why should we risk death again? If the Lord our God speaks to us again, we will certainly die and be consumed by this awesome fire. Can any living thing hear the voice of the living God from the heart of the fire as we did and yet survive? Go yourself and listen to what the Lord our God says. Then come and tell us everything he tells you, and we will listen and obey.’

“The Lord heard the request you made to me. And he said, ‘I have heard what the people said to you, and they are right. Oh, that they would always have hearts like this, that they might fear me and obey all my commands! If they did, they and their descendants would prosper forever. Go and tell them, “Return to your tents.” But you stand here with me so I can give you all my commands, decrees, and regulations. You must teach them to the people so they can obey them in the land I am giving them as their possession.’”

So Moses told the people, “You must be careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God, following his instructions in every detail. Stay on the path that the Lord your God has commanded you to follow. Then you will live long and prosperous lives in the land you are about to enter and occupy.

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On-Line Sources:

• An Argument of the Book of Deuteronomy by David Malick: http://bible.org/article/argument-book-deuteronomy


• Back to the Bible 101 - Deuteronomy: www.geocities.com/genebrooks/deuteronomy.html


• Bible Explained - Deuteronomy: www.bibleexplained.com/moses/Deut/Deu.htm


• Bible Track - Deuteronomy: http://www.bibletrack.org/cgi-bin/bible.pl?dy=4&mo=4


• Calvary Chapel - Deuteronomy 1-4 mp3 Download: http://ne.edgecastcdn.net/0007BA/c2000/c2041.mp3


• Chuck Missler - Deuteronomy: www.blueletterbible.org/audio_video/comm_author.cfm?AuthorID=21


• Clarke's Commentary - Deuteronomy 1: www.godrules.net/library/clarke/clarkedeu1.htm


• Commentary on Deuteronomy by Dr Peter Pett: http://uk.geocities.com/jonpartin/deuteronomy1.html


• Comments On The Book Of Deuteronomy by Leslie M Grant: www.biblecentre.org/commentaries/lmg_05_deuteronomy.htm


• Crosswalk: http://bible.crosswalk.com
  


• David Guzik's Commentary on Deuteronomy: www.enduringword.com/commentaries/05.htm


• Deuteronomy 26 by J. N. Darby: http://www.stempublishing.com/magazines/cf/1883/Deuteronomy-26.html


• Deuteronomy Audio Bible Study Lesson: www.soniclight.com/study_cd/audio_bible_study_lessons/deuteronomy.htm


• Deuteronomy Bible Study Broadcasts: www.khouse.org/6640_cat/biblestudy/deuteronomy/


• Deuteronomy by C. H. Mackintosh: www.stempublishing.com/index/bybook-ot.html#deuteronomy


• Deuteronomy by C. H. Mackintosh: http://www.stempublishing.com/authors/hole/Pent/deuteronomy.html


• Deuteronomy by Robert I Bradshaw: www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/article_deuteronomy.html


• Deuteronomy by William Kelly: http://www.stempublishing.com/authors/kelly/1Oldtest/deutrnmy.html


• Deuteronomy Introduction: Outline, index, Overview: www.foundationsforfreedom.net/References/OT/Pentateuch/Deuteronomy/Deut00_Intro.html


• e-Sword: www.e-sword.net/


• ESV Study Bible Notes - Deuteronomy: www.esvstudybible.org/search?q=Deuteronomy+1


• John Gill Exposition of the Entire Bible - Deuteronomy: http://www.studylight.org/com/geb/view.cgi?book=de&chapter=001


• Messages On Deuteronomy - Peninsula Bible Church: www.pbc.org/books/Deuteronomy


• Net Bible: www.bible.org/netbible/index.htm


• Notes on Deuteronomy: www.soniclight.com/constable/notes/pdf/deuteronomy.pdf


• Scofield Reference Notes on Deuteronomy: (1917 Edition): www.biblestudytools.com/Commentaries/ScofieldReferenceNotes/srn.cgi?book=de


• Selected Bibliography of Deuteronomy: http://bible.org/article/selected-bibliography-deuteronomy


• Sermons on Deuteronomy: www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByScripture/28/


• Sermons on Deuteronomy: http://thegospelcoalition.org/resources/category/sermons/a/scripture/deuteronomy


• Summary of the Book of Deuteronomy: www.bible-infonet.org/bin/outline/bible/old_test/Deuteronomy.htm


• The Book of Deuteronomy by Arend Remmers: www.biblecentre.org/commentaries/ar_05_ot_overview_numbers.htm


• The Book of Deuteronomy - The Annotated Bible by Arno Clement Gaebelein: www.biblecentre.org/commentaries/acg_05_deuteronomy.htm


• The Gospel in Deuteronomy: www.gracegems.org/Law2/Deuteronomy.htm


• Time to Die For We Must Cross the Jordan! http://mudpreacher.podbean.com/2009/05/19/time-to-die-for-we-must-cross-the-jordan/


• Wikipedia - Deuteronomy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deuteronomy

Off-Line Sources:

• "Archaeological Study Bible", NIV Version - Zondervan Publishing House


• "Cruden's Complete Concordance" - Zondervan Publishing House


• "ESV Study Bible" - Crossway Bibles (October 15, 2008)


• "Baxter's Explore the Book" by J. Sidlow Baxter


• "Life Application Study Bible" - New Living Translation version - Tyndale House Publishers


• "The Companion Bible" by E. W. Bullinger - Zondervan Publishing House


• "The
  Defender's Study Bible" -World Bible Publishers


• "The NIV Life Application Commentary - Exodus" – Peter Enns – Zondervan™


• "Unger's Bible Dictionary" - Merrill F. Unger


• "Vine's
  Complete Expository Dictionary" - W. E. Vine - Thomas Nelson Publishers