Teks -- Deuteronomy 29:1-29 (NET)

Narrative Interlude

29:1 These are the words of the covenant that the Lord commanded Moses to make with the people of Israel in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Horeb.

The Exodus, Wandering, and Conquest Reviewed

29:2 Moses proclaimed to all Israel as follows: “You have seen all that the Lord did in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, all his servants, and his land. 29:3 Your eyes have seen the great judgments, those signs and mighty wonders. 29:4 But to this very day the Lord has not given you an understanding mind, perceptive eyes, or discerning ears! 29:5 I have led you through the desert for forty years. Your clothing has not worn out nor have your sandals deteriorated. 29:6 You have eaten no bread and drunk no wine or beer– all so that you might know that I am the Lord your God! 29:7 When you came to this place King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan came out to make war and we defeated them. 29:8 Then we took their land and gave it as an inheritance to Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

The Present Covenant Setting

29:9 “Therefore, keep the terms of this covenant and obey them so that you may be successful in everything you do. 29:10 You are standing today, all of you, before the Lord your God– the heads of your tribes, your elders, your officials, every Israelite man, 29:11 your infants, your wives, and the foreigners living in your encampment, those who chop wood and those who carry water– 29:12 so that you may enter by oath into the covenant the Lord your God is making with you today. 29:13 Today he will affirm that you are his people and that he is your God, just as he promised you and as he swore by oath to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 29:14 It is not with you alone that I am making this covenant by oath, 29:15 but with whoever stands with us here today before the Lord our God as well as those not with us here today.

The Results of Disobedience

29:16 “(For you know how we lived in the land of Egypt and how we crossed through the nations as we traveled. 29:17 You have seen their detestable things and idols of wood, stone, silver, and gold.) 29:18 Beware that the heart of no man, woman, clan, or tribe among you turns away from the Lord our God today to pursue and serve the gods of those nations; beware that there is among you no root producing poisonous and bitter fruit. 29:19 When such a person hears the words of this oath he secretly blesses himself and says, “I will have peace though I continue to walk with a stubborn spirit.” This will destroy the watered ground with the parched. 29:20 The Lord will be unwilling unwilling to forgive him, and his intense anger will rage against that man; all the curses written in this scroll will fall upon him and the Lord will obliterate his name from memory. 29:21 The Lord will single him out for judgment from all the tribes of Israel according to all the curses of the covenant written in this scroll of the law. 29:22 The generation to come– your descendants who will rise up after you, as well as the foreigner who will come from distant places– will see the afflictions of that land and the illnesses that the Lord has brought on it. 29:23 The whole land will be covered with brimstone, salt, and burning debris; it will not be planted nor will it sprout or produce grass. It will resemble the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord destroyed in his intense anger. 29:24 Then all the nations will ask, “Why has the Lord done all this to this land? What is this fierce, heated display of anger all about?” 29:25 Then people will say, “Because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. 29:26 They went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods they did not know and that he did not permit them to worship. 29:27 That is why the Lord’s anger erupted against this land, bringing on it all the curses written in this scroll. 29:28 So the Lord has uprooted them from their land in anger, wrath, and great rage and has deported them to another land, as is clear today.” 29:29 Secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those that are revealed belong to us and our descendants forever, so that we might obey all the words of this law.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per frasa)

Wesley: Deu 29:1

These are the terms or conditions upon which God hath made, that is renewed his covenant with you. The covenant was but one in substance, but various in the time and manner of its dispensation.

Wesley: Deu 29:4 - Yet the Lord

That is, you have perceived and seen them with the eyes of your body, but not with your minds and hearts; you have not yet learned rightly to understand the word and works of God, so as to know them for your good, and to make a right use of them, and to comply with them: which he expresseth thus, the Lord hath not given you, &c. not to excuse their wickedness, but to direct them to whom they must have recourse for a good understanding of God's works; and to intimate that although the hearing ear, and the seeing eye, be the workmanship of God, yet their want of his grace was their own fault, and the just punishment of their former sins; their present case being like theirs in Isaiah's time, who first shut their own eyes and ears that they might not see and hear, and would not understand, and then by the righteous judgment of God, had their eyes and ears closed that they should not see and hear, and understand. God's readiness to do us good in other things, is a plain evidence, that if we have not grace, that best of gifts, 'tis our own fault and not his: he would have gathered us, and we would not.

Wesley: Deu 29:6 - Ye have not eaten bread

Common bread purchased by your own money, or made by your own hands, but heavenly and angelical bread.

Wesley: Deu 29:6 - Neither drank wine

But only water out of the rock.

Wesley: Deu 29:6 - The Lord

Omnipotent and all - sufficient for your provision without the help of any creatures, and your God in covenant with you who hath a true affection to you, and fatherly care of you.

Wesley: Deu 29:11 - Thy stranger

Such strangers as had embraced their religion: all sorts of persons, yea, even the meanest of them.

Wesley: Deu 29:12 - Into covenant and into his oath

Into covenant, confirmed by a solemn oath.

Wesley: Deu 29:13 - That he may establish thee

Here is the summary of that covenant whereof Moses was the mediator, and in the covenant relation between God and them, all the precepts and promises of the covenant are included. That they should be established for a people to him, to fear, love, obey, and be devoted to him, and that he should be to them a God, to make them holy and happy; and a due sense of the relation we stand in to God as our God, and the obligation we are under to him as his people, is enough to bring us to all the duties, and all the comforts of the covenant. And does this covenant include nothing spiritual? nothing that refers to eternity?

Wesley: Deu 29:15 - So also

With your posterity. For so the covenant was made at first with Abraham and his seed, by which as God engaged himself to continue the blessing of Abraham upon his posterity, so he also engaged them to the same duties which were required of Abraham. So it is even among men, where a king confers an estate upon a subject and his heirs for ever, upon some certain conditions, all his heirs who enjoy that benefit, are obliged to the same conditions. It may likewise include those who were then constrained to be absent, by sickness, or any necessary occasion. Nay one of the Chaldee pharaphrasts reads it, all the generations that have been from the first days of the world, and all that shall arise to the end of the whole world, stand with us here this day. And so taking this covenant as a typical dispensation of the covenant of grace, 'tis a noble testimony to the Mediator of that covenant, who is the same yesterday, to day, and for ever.

Wesley: Deu 29:16 - Egypt

Where you have seen their idolatries, and learned too much of them, as the golden calf shewed, and therefore have need to renew your covenant with God; where also we were in dreadful bondage whence God alone hath delivered us, to whom therefore we are deeply obliged, and have all reason to renew our covenant with him.

Wesley: Deu 29:16 - Through the nations

With what hazard, if God had not appeared for us!

Wesley: Deu 29:18 - A root

An evil heart inclining you to such cursed idolatry, and bringing forth bitter fruits.

Wesley: Deu 29:19 - Of this curse

Of that oath where - in he swore he would keep covenant with God, and that with a curse pronounced against himself if he did not perform it.

Wesley: Deu 29:19 - Bless himself

Flatter himself in his own eyes, with vain hopes, as if God did not mind such things, and either could not, or would not punish them.

Wesley: Deu 29:19 - Peace

Safety and prosperity.

Wesley: Deu 29:19 - My own heart

Though I do not follow God's command, but my own devices.

Wesley: Deu 29:19 - To add drunkenness to thirst

The words may be rendered, to add thirst to drunkenness, and so the sense may be, that when he hath multiplied his sins, and made himself as it were drunk with them, yet he is not satisfied therewith, but still whets his appetite, and provokes his thirst after more, as drunkards often use means to make themselves thirst after more drink.

Wesley: Deu 29:20 - Shall smoke

Shall burn and break forth with flame and smoke as it were from a furnace.

Wesley: Deu 29:21 - Unto evil

Unto some peculiar and exemplary plague; he will make him a monument of his displeasure to the whole land.

Wesley: Deu 29:23 - Salt and burning

Is burnt up and made barren, as with brimstone and salt.

Wesley: Deu 29:26 - Whom God had not given to them

For their worship, but hath divided them unto all nations, for their use and service. So he speaks here of the sun and moon and stars, which were the principal gods worshipped by the neighbouring nations.

Wesley: Deu 29:29 - The secret things

Having mentioned the amazing judgments of God upon the whole land and people of Israel, and foreseeing the utter extirpation which would come upon them for their wickedness, he breaks out into this pathetic exclamation, either to bridle their curiosity, who would be apt to enquire into the time and manner of so great an event; or to quiet his own mind, and satisfy the scruples of others, who perceiving God to deal so severely with his own people, when in the meantime he suffered those nations which were guilty of grosser atheism and idolatry, might thence take occasion to deny his providence or question the equity of his proceedings. To this he answers, that the ways and judgments of God, tho' never unjust, are often times hidden from us, unsearchable by our shallow capacities, and matter for our admiration, not our enquiry. But the things which are revealed by God and his word, are the proper object of our enquiries, that thereby we may know our duty, and be kept from such terrible calamities as these now mentioned.

JFB: Deu 29:1 - These are the words of the covenant

The discourse of Moses is continued, and the subject of that discourse was Israel's covenant with God, the privileges it conferred, and the obligations it imposed.

JFB: Deu 29:1 - beside the covenant which he made with them in Horeb

It was substantially the same; but it was renewed now, in different circumstances. They had violated its conditions. Moses rehearses these, that they might have a better knowledge of its conditions and be more disposed to comply with them.

JFB: Deu 29:2 - Moses called unto all Israel, . . . Ye have seen all that the Lord did, &c.

This appeal to the experience of the people, though made generally, was applicable only to that portion of them who had been very young at the period of the Exodus, and who remembered the marvellous transactions that preceded and followed that era. Yet, alas! those wonderful events made no good impression upon them (Deu 29:4). They were strangers to that grace of wisdom which is liberally given to all who ask it; and their insensibility was all the more inexcusable that so many miracles had been performed which might have led to a certain conviction of the presence and the power of God with them. The preservation of their clothes and shoes, the supply of daily food and fresh water--these continued without interruption or diminution during so many years' sojourn in the desert. They were miracles which unmistakably proclaimed the immediate hand of God and were performed for the express purpose of training them to a practical knowledge of, and habitual confidence in, Him. Their experience of this extraordinary goodness and care, together with their remembrance of the brilliant successes by which, with little exertion or loss on their part, God enabled them to acquire the valuable territory on which they stood, is mentioned again to enforce a faithful adherence to the covenant, as the direct and sure means of obtaining its promised blessings.|| 05690||1||20||0||@Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God==--The whole congregation of Israel, of all ages and conditions, all--young as well as old; menials as well as masters; native Israelites as well as naturalized strangers--all were assembled before the tabernacle to renew the Sinaitic covenant. None of them were allowed to consider themselves as exempt from the terms of that national compact, lest any lapsing into idolatry might prove a root of bitterness, spreading its noxious seed and corrupt influence all around (compare Heb 12:15). It was of the greatest consequence thus to reach the heart and conscience of everyone, for some might delude themselves with the vain idea that by taking the oath (Deu 29:12) by which they engaged themselves in covenant with God, they would surely secure its blessings. Then, even though they would not rigidly adhere to His worship and commands, but would follow the devices and inclinations of their own hearts, yet they would think that He would wink at such liberties and not punish them. It was of the greatest consequence to impress all with the strong and abiding conviction, that while the covenant of grace had special blessings belonging to it, it at the same time had curses in reserve for transgressors, the infliction of which would be as certain, as lasting and severe. This was the advantage contemplated in the law being rehearsed a second time. The picture of a once rich and flourishing region, blasted and doomed in consequence of the sins of its inhabitants, is very striking, and calculated to awaken awe in every reflecting mind. Such is, and long has been, the desolate state of Palestine; and, in looking at its ruined cities, its blasted coast, its naked mountains, its sterile and parched soil--all the sad and unmistakable evidences of a land lying under a curse--numbers of travellers from Europe, America, and the Indies ("strangers from a far country," Deu 29:22) in the present day see that the Lord has executed His threatening. Who can resist the conclusion that it has been inflicted "because the inhabitants had forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers. . . . and the anger of the Lord was kindled against this land, to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book"?

JFB: Deu 29:29 - The secret things belong unto the Lord

This verse has no apparent connection with the thread of discourse. It is thought to have been said in answer to the looks of astonishment or the words of inquiry as to whether they would be ever so wicked as to deserve such punishments. The recorded history of God's providential dealings towards Israel presents a wonderful combination of "goodness and severity." There is much of it involved in mystery too profound for our limited capacities to fathom; but, from the comprehensive wisdom displayed in those parts which have been made known to us, we are prepared to enter into the full spirit of the apostle's exclamation, "How unsearchable are his judgments" (Rom 11:33).|| 05710||1||10||0||@@GREAT MERCIES PROMISED UNTO THE PENITENT.==== (Deu 30:1-10)

JFB: Deu 29:29 - when all these things are come upon thee, . . . and thou shalt return . . . then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity

The hopes of the Hebrew people are ardently directed to this promise, and they confidently expect that God, commiserating their forlorn and fallen condition, will yet rescue them from all the evils of their long dispersion. They do not consider the promise as fulfilled by their restoration from the captivity in Babylon, for Israel was not then scattered in the manner here described--"among all the nations," "unto the utmost parts of heaven" (Deu 30:4). When God recalled them from that bondage, all the Israelites were not brought back. They were not multiplied above their fathers (Deu 30:5), nor were their hearts and those of their children circumcised to love the Lord (Deu 30:6). It is not, therefore, of the Babylonish captivity that Moses was speaking in this passage; it must be of the dispersed state to which they have been doomed for eighteen hundred years. This prediction may have been partially accomplished on the return of the Israelites from Babylon; for, according to the structure and design of Scripture prophecy, it may have pointed to several similar eras in their national history; and this view is sanctioned by the prayer of Nehemiah (Neh 1:8-9). But undoubtedly it will receive its full and complete accomplishment in the conversion of the Jews to the Gospel of Christ. At the restoration from the Babylonish captivity, that people were changed in many respects for the better. They were completely weaned from idolatry; and this outward reformation was a prelude to the higher attainments they are destined to reach in the age of Messiah, "when the Lord God will circumcise their hearts and the hearts of their seed to love the Lord." The course pointed out seems clearly to be this: that the hearts of the Hebrew people shall be circumcised (Col 2:2); in other words, by the combined influences of the Word and spirit of God, their hearts will be touched and purified from all their superstition and unbelief. They will be converted to the faith of Jesus Christ as their Messiah--a spiritual deliverer, and the effect of their conversion will be that they will return and obey the voice (the Gospel, the evangelical law) of the Lord. The words may be interpreted either wholly in a spiritual sense (Joh 11:51-52), or, as many think, in a literal sense also (Rom. 11:1-36). They will be recalled from all places of the dispersion to their own land and enjoy the highest prosperity. The mercies and favors of a bountiful Providence will not then be abused as formerly (Deu 31:20; Deu 32:15). They will be received in a better spirit and employed to nobler purposes. They will be happy, "for the Lord will again rejoice over them for good, as He rejoiced over their fathers."

Clarke: Deu 29:1 - These are the words of the covenant

These are the words of the covenant - This verse seems properly to belong to the preceding chapter, as a widely different subject is taken up at Deu 29:2 of this; and it is distinguished as the 69th verse in some of the most correct copies of the Hebrew Bible

Clarke: Deu 29:1 - Commanded Moses to make

Commanded Moses to make - לכרת lichroth , to cut, alluding to the covenant sacrifice which was offered on the occasion and divided, as is explained, Gen 15:18 (note)

Clarke: Deu 29:1 - Beside the covenant which he made - in Horeb

Beside the covenant which he made - in Horeb - What is mentioned here is an additional institution to the ten words given on Horeb; and the curses denounced here are different from those denounced against the transgressors of the decalogue.

Clarke: Deu 29:4 - The Lord hath not given you a heart, etc.

The Lord hath not given you a heart, etc. - Some critics read this verse interrogatively: And hath not God given you a heart, etc.? because they suppose that God could not reprehend them for the non-performance of a duty, when he had neither given them a mind to perceive the obligation of it, nor strength to perform it, had that obligation been known. Though this is strictly just, yet there is no need for the interrogation, as the words only imply that they had not such a heart, etc., not because God had not given them all the means of knowledge, and helps of his grace and Spirit, which were necessary; but they had not made a faithful use of their advantages, and therefore they had not that wise, loving, and obedient heart which they otherwise might have had. If they had had such a heart, it would have been God’ s gift, for he is the author of all good; and that they had not such a heart was a proof that they had grieved his Spirit, and abused the grace which he had afforded them to produce that gracious change, the want of which is here deplored. Hence God himself is represented as grieved because they were unchanged and disobedient: "O that there were such a heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them and with their children for ever!"See Deu 5:29 (note), and the note there.

Clarke: Deu 29:5 - Your clothes are not waxen old

Your clothes are not waxen old - See on Deu 8:4 (note).

Clarke: Deu 29:6 - Ye have not eaten bread, etc.

Ye have not eaten bread, etc. - That is, ye have not been supported in an ordinary providential way; I have been continually working miracles for you, that ye might know that I am the Lord. Thus we find that God had furnished them with all the means of this knowledge, and that the means were ineffectual, not because they were not properly calculated to answer God’ s gracious purpose, but because the people were not workers with God; consequently they received the grace of God in vain. See 2Co 6:1.

Clarke: Deu 29:10 - Ye stand - all of you before the Lord

Ye stand - all of you before the Lord - They were about to enter into a covenant with God; and as a covenant implies two parties contracting, God is represented as being present, and they and all their families, old and young, come before him.

Clarke: Deu 29:12 - That thou shouldest enter

That thou shouldest enter - לעבר leaber , to pass through, that is, between the separated parts of the covenant sacrifice. See Gen 15:18 (note)

Clarke: Deu 29:12 - And into his oath

And into his oath - Thus we find that in a covenant were these seven particulars

1.    The parties about to contract were considered as being hitherto separated

2.    They now agree to enter into a state of close and permanent amity

3.    They meet together in a solemn manner for this purpose

4.    A sacrifice is offered to God on the occasion, for the whole is a religious act

5.    The victim is separated exactly into two equal parts, the separation being in the direction of the spine; and those parts are laid opposite to each other, sufficient room being allowed for the contracting parties to pass between them

6.    The contracting parties meet in the victim, and the conditions of the covenant by which they are to be mutually bound are recited

7.    An oath is taken by these parties that they shall punctually and faithfully perform their respective conditions, and thus the covenant is made and ratified. See Jer 34:18, Jer 34:19, and the notes on Gen 6:18 (note); Gen 15:18 (note); Exo 29:45 (note); Leviticus 26 (note).

Clarke: Deu 29:15 - Him that standeth here

Him that standeth here - The present generation. Him that is not here - all future generations of this people.

Clarke: Deu 29:18 - A root that beareth gall and wormwood

A root that beareth gall and wormwood - That is, as the apostle expresses it, Heb 3:12, An evil heart of unbelief departing from the living God; for to this place he evidently refers. It may also signify false doctrines, or idolatrous persons among themselves.

Clarke: Deu 29:19 - To add drunkenness to thirst

To add drunkenness to thirst - A proverbial expression denoting the utmost indulgence in all sensual gratifications.

Clarke: Deu 29:26 - Gods - whom he had not given unto them

Gods - whom he had not given unto them - This is an unhappy translation. Houbigant renders the original words ולו חלק להם velo chalak lahem , et quibuscum nulla eis societas , "And with whom they had no society;"and falls unmercifully on Le Clerc because he had translated it, From whom they had received no benefits. I must differ from both these great men, because I think they differ from the text. חלק chalak signifies a portion, lot, inheritance, and God is frequently represented in Scripture as the portion or inheritance of his people. Here, therefore, I think the original should be rendered, And there was no portion to them, that is, the gods they served could neither supply their wants nor save their souls - they were no portion.

Clarke: Deu 29:29 - The secret things belong unto the Lord, etc.

The secret things belong unto the Lord, etc. - This verse has been variously translated. Houbigant renders it thus: Quae apud Dominum nostrum abscondita sunt, nobis ea filiisque nostris palam facta sunt ad multas aetates , "The things which were hidden with the Lord our God, are made manifest to us and our children for many generations."I am not satisfied with this interpretation, and find that the passage was not so understood by any of the ancient versions. The simple general meaning seems to be this: "What God has thought proper to reveal, he has revealed; what he has revealed is essential to the well-being of man, and this revelation is intended not for the present time merely, nor for one people, but for all succeeding generations. The things which he has not revealed concern not man but God alone, and are therefore not to be inquired after."Thus, then, the things that are hidden belong unto the Lord, those that are revealed belong unto us and our children. But possibly the words here refer to the subjects of these chapters, as if he had said, "Apostasy from God and his truth is possible. When a national apostasy among us may take place, is known only to God; but he has revealed himself to us and our children that we may do all the words of this law, and so prevent the dreadful evils that shall fall on the disobedient.

The Jews have always considered these verses as containing subjects of the highest importance to them, and have affixed marks to the original לנו ולבנינו lanu ulebaneynu , "to Us and to our Children,"in order to fix the attention of the reader on truths which affect them individually, and not them only, but the whole of their posterity.

Calvin: Deu 29:2 - And Moses called unto all Israel

2.And Moses called unto all Israel This passage also may be fitly referred to the preface of the Law, since its tendency is to recommend it, and to instruct and prepare the people’s minds to be teachable. It takes its commencement from the divine blessings, which they had experienced as well in their exodus as in their forty years’ wanderings; for it would have been the height of baseness and ingratitude not to devote themselves to a Deliverer who had dealt so graciously with them. And surely it was an inestimable sign of His paternal love towards them, that He should have arrayed Himself against so very powerful a king for His servants’ sake. Finally, lest there should be any question as to their deliverance, he enlarges upon the power which God displayed therein, in magnificent terms of praise according with its dignity.

Calvin: Deu 29:4 - Yet the Lord hath not given

4.Yet the Lord hath not given By reproaching them with their past stupidity, he stirs up their desire for a better understanding, as if he had said, that they had been too long indifferent to so many miracles, and therefore they should no longer delay to rouse themselves, etc., to give greater heed to God; not because they had been so senseless that His acts had altogether escaped their notice, but because all acknowledgment of them had immediately come to an end. For, just as the drunken man, or one suffering from lethargy, when he hears a cry, raises his head for a moment, and opens his eyes, and then relapses into a state of torpor, so the people had never seriously applied their minds to consider God’s works; and when they had been aroused by some miracle, had immediately sunk back into forgetfulness, wherefore there is good cause why Moses should seek to awaken them from their dulness and stupidity by various methods. But he does not merely condemn their senselessness, and blindness, and deafness, but declares that they were thus senseless, and blind, and deaf, because they were not inspired with grace from above to profit duly by so many lessons. Thence we learn that a clear and powerful understanding is a special gift of the Spirit, since men are ever blind even in the brightest light, until they have been enlightened by God. What Moses relates of the Israelites, is unquestionably common to us all. He declares, then, that they were not induced by the conspicuous glory of God to fear and worship Him, because He had not given them either mind, or eyes, or ears. It is true that at man’s creation He had naturally bestowed upon him a mind, and ears, and eyes; but Moses means, that whatever innate light we have, is either hidden or lost, so that, as far as regards the highest point of wisdom, all our senses lie useless. True that in nature’s corruption, the light still shineth in darkness, but it is light which is soon obscured; therefore, the entire understanding and faculty of reason, in which men glory and pique themselves, is nought but smoke and darkness. Well then may David ask that his eyes may be opened to behold the secrets of the Law. ²⁵⁹ (Psa 119:18.) Still this defect by no means frees us from blame; because (as we are told) none have wisdom, but those to whom it is given by the Father of lights; for we are ignorant ²⁶⁰ through our own fault. Besides, every one is sufficiently, and more than sufficiently convicted by his own conscience, that his ignorance is closely connected with pride and indolence, and is therefore voluntary. The word heart is not here used for the seat of the affections, but for the mind itself, which is the intellectual faculty of the soul.

Calvin: Deu 29:5 - And I have led you

5.And I have led you He descends to the blessings with which He had continually visited His people during the course of forty years. Yet he does not recount them all, but contents himself with a few of the most remarkable instances, viz., that their clothes had not been worn out by age, and that they had been fed from heaven, when no sustenance was to be obtained from the fruits of the earth. He reminds them that God’s glory had been manifested by these testimonies, in order that they might submit themselves to His rule.

Calvin: Deu 29:7 - And when ye came unto this place

7.And when ye came unto this place This, a third instance (of God’s goodness), because He had smitten the first enemies, who encountered them to impede their passage, and thus had already begun to bring them into a place of rest. For inasmuch as the two tribes and a half had here chosen their home, they might behold as in a mirror that the possession of the promised land awaited them. Hence, then, Moses concludes that they were under obligation to keep the law, and exhorts them to shew their gratitude by faithful and sincere obedience. The object, therefore, of the recital is, to procure reverent attention to his doctrine; since the word שכל , ²⁶¹ shakal, in Hiphil, means to act successfully as well as prudently. I have set down both readings, since they are alike suitable to the sense. For we have seen in chapter 4, that this was the people’s only wisdom to obey God’s statutes; nor was their prosperity to be expected from any other source except God’s blessing, which is everywhere promised to the Israelites, if they keep the law.

Calvin: Deu 29:10 - Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God

10.Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God. Again does Moses, as God’s appointed ²⁶¹ representative, sanction the doctrine proclaimed by him by a solemn adjuration. With this design he says that the Israelites stood there not only to hear the voice of God, but to enter into covenant with Him, in order that they might apply themselves seriously, and with becoming reverence, to perform the promise they had given. Nor does he only address their chiefs, but, after having begun with the officers, the elders, and men, ²⁶² he descends to the little children and the wives, in order that they might understand that their whole race, from the least to the greatest, were bound to keep the Law: nay, he adds all the strangers, who had devoted themselves to the service of the God of Israel, and states particularly that the very porters and lacqueys ²⁶³ were included in the covenant, in order that the minds of those, who derive their origin from the holy Patriarchs, should be more solemnly impressed. Moreover, in order that they may accept the covenant with greater reverence, he says that it was established with an oath. Now, if perjury between man and man is detestable, much less pardonable is it to belie that which you have promised God by his sacred name. Finally, he requires that the covenant should be reverenced, both on account of its advantages and its antiquity. Nothing was more advantageous for the Israelites than that they should be adopted by God as His people; this incomparable advantage, therefore, ought deservedly to render the covenant gratifying; and, besides the exceeding greatness of this blessing, God had prevented them by His grace many ages ²⁶⁴ before they were born.

It would have been, therefore, very disgraceful not to embrace eagerly and ardently so signal a pledge of his love. Nevertheless, the question here arises, how the little children could have passed into covenant, when they were not yet of a proper age to learn (its contents; ²⁶⁵) the reply is easy, that, although they did not receive by faith the promised salvation, nor, on the other hand, renounce the flesh so as to dedicate themselves to God, still they were bound to God by the same obligations under which their parents laid themselves; for, since the grace was common to all, it was fitting that their consent to testify their gratitude should also be universal; so that when the children had come to age, they should more cheerfully endeavor after holiness, when they remembered that they had been already dedicated to God. For circumcision was a sign of their adoption from their mother’s womb; and therefore, although they were not yet possessed of faith or understanding, God had a paternal power over them, because He had conferred upon them so great an honor. Thus, now-a-days, infants are initiated into the service of God, ²⁶⁶ whom they do not yet know, by baptism; because He marks them out as His own peculiar people, and claims them as His children when He ingrafts them into the body of Christ. Moses goes further, stating that their descendants were bound by the same covenant, as if already enthralled to God; and surely, since slavery passes on by inheritance, it ought not to appear absurd that the same right should be assigned to God which mortal men claim for themselves. What he says, then, is tantamount to reminding the Israelites that they covenanted with God in the name of their offspring, so as to devote both themselves and those belonging to them to His service.

Calvin: Deu 29:16 - For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt

16.For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt. We know how greatly men’s minds are tickled by novelty; and this might occur to the Israelites when, upon entering the land of Canaan, they would see many forms of idolatry hitherto unknown, which would be so many snares to entangle them. Although, therefore, they were not as yet accustomed to such corruptions, he exhorts them to beware by former instances; for they were not ignorant that God had held in abomination the superstitions of Egypt, and also of other nations, which He had punished in terrible ways. Consequently Moses reminds them that there was no reason why the people should be carried away to imitate the rites of the Gentiles with which they were unacquainted, since they knew by extraordinary proofs that whatever imaginations had been invented by heathen nations were hateful to God. This argument, then, is drawn from experience, whereby the Israelites had been abundantly admonished, that they should hereafter beware of all delusions. But, when he passes from individual men and women to families and tribes, he indicates that those who are associated with others in sin, seek to excuse themselves in vain by their numbers; since a whole nation is as much to be condemned as a single person.

The conclusion of verse 18, “ lest there should be among you a root, ” etc., seems to be tamely explained by some, ²⁶⁷ lest there should be venomous men, who should bring forth bitter fruits to God; for by the word root I rather under stand the hidden principles of sins, which, unless they be prevented in good time, spring up with collected vigor and lift themselves on high; for indulgence in sin increases by concealment and connivance. And to this the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews seems to allude when he exhorts believers lest, through their negligence, “any root of bitterness, springing up, trouble them, and thereby many be defiled.” (Heb 12:15.) As soon, therefore, as any one should endeavor to excite his brethren to worship false gods, God commands him to be plucked up, lest the poison should burst forth, and the bitter root should produce its natural fruits in the corruption of others. Wormwood ²⁶⁸ ( absinthium) is here used, as often elsewhere, in a bad sense, on account of its unpleasant savour; unless perhaps it is some other herb, as is more probable.

Calvin: Deu 29:19 - And it come to pass when he heareth the words

19.And it come to pass when he heareth the words. He shews that it is not without reason that he has used so solemn and severe an adjuration; since nothing is more common than for men to flatter themselves, and by levity to evade the decision of God. He therefore repeats, that they are standing before God, who neither deceives, nor is deceived, nor even allows Himself to be thought lightly of; in order that they may tremble at His threats. Let the majesty of God, he says, be dreaded by you; so that none who despises Him, and wantons in his own lusts, should promise himself impunity. “To bless himself in his heart,” is to hope in his secret imaginations that all will go well; as the hypocrites do, who, in their foolish self-adulation, applaud themselves deceitfully, lest they should hear God thundering. ²⁶⁹

From this passage, therefore, let us learn that nothing is worse than to hope for peace, whilst we wage war with God; and to promise ourselves that He will let us alone, when we provoke Him by the impetuosity of our lusts.

The conclusion of the verse, “to add the drunken to the thirsty,” is variously explained on account of its ambiguity. ²⁷⁰ I am ashamed to repeat the silly triflings of the Hebrew interpreters. To me it seems unquestionable that Moses, by a proverbial figure of speech, forbids us to excite the appetites of the flesh, already sufficiently heated, by new stimulants. As, therefore, they are said to add oil to the grate, who add more flames to a fire already lighted, ²⁷¹ so they are said to add the drunken to the thirsty who seek provocatives of their audacity, in order to sin more freely; for lust in a man is like an insatiable dropsy; and if any one indulges in such intemperance, he adds the drunken to the thirsty, i e. , the madness of his own folly to unrestrained desire. רויה , ravah, however, is, in my opinion, used actively, as elsewhere. In Psa 23:5, it is said, “My cup רויה , revayah, runneth over;” and, in like manner, in Psa 66:12, a well-watered land ²⁷² is expressed by the same word, because it abundantly moistens the corn and grass. It is very appropriate that the desires of the flesh, that we burn with, should be compared to thirst; and the licentious impetuosity, which carries us away without reflection, to drunkenness; because the sinner stupifies himself into forgetfulness of the distinction between good and evil. And thence Paul calls those who are plunged in brutal forgetfulness of God and themselves, ἀπηλγηκότες (past feeling.) ( Eph 4:19.)

Calvin: Deu 29:20 - The Lord will not spare him

20.The Lord will not spare him. Moses here teaches us that the obstinacy in which the wicked are willfully hardened, shuts against them the door of hope, so that they will find that God is not to be appeased. And assuredly it is the climax of all sins that a wretched man, who is abandoned to vice, should extinguish the light of his own reason, and destroy the image of God within him, so as to degenerate into a beast: and not only so, but also that he should dethrone God, as if He were not the Judge of the world. And this is the insult which they put upon Him who abandon themselves to sin in the confident expectation of impunity. ²⁷³ Thus, by Isaiah, God swears that this was an inexpiable crime, that, when He called them to baldness and to mourning, the Israelites encouraged each other to gladness; and, whilst feasting luxuriously, said in ridicule, “Tomorrow we shall die.” ( Isa 22:12.) By the word, אבה , ahab, Moses altogether shuts out the grace of God. ²⁷⁴ Meanwhile he contrasts God’s fixed purpose, — that He will not be willing to pardon, — with the depraved pleasures of those who take too much delight in their sins. Behold, then, what poor sinners gain by their proud contempt when they endeavor to cast off God’s judgment together with His fear!

Further, in order the better to express that God will be irreconcilable to such great perversity, he declares that He will exterminate from the earth those who have so wantonly exulted in iniquity; and finally adds, that He will give them up to be accursed ( in anathemata,) so that they shall no longer hold a place among the people of Israel. Now, it is a much more grievous thing to be cut off from the elect people, and to be set apart unto evil, as it is here said, than to be deprived of natural life.

Calvin: Deu 29:22 - So that the generation to come of your children

22.So that the generation to come of your children. God enforces what we have already seen, that the punishments which He would inflict would be no ordinary ones, or such as should fall into contempt from their common use; but like portents, which should awaken astonishment among their posterity. For the question which is here put is such as refers to something extraordinary, and what is not easily comprehended. It is not, however, confined to the preceding clause, but refers to the whole list of curses; not as if each of them by itself had awakened such horror, but because, when heaped one upon another, they compelled all men to wonder, both on account of their number and their severity and duration, and thus were for a sign and a prodigy. For it everywhere occurs that men are afflicted with diseases, and barrenness for a single season is a common evil; but that sicknesses should cleave as it were to the marrow of a whole people, and that the earth should be dried up as if it were burnt with sulphur, this is an awful spectacle, in which God’s vengeance, which else would be incredible, manifestly appears; and therefore the cases of Sodom and Gomorrah are adduced, in whose destruction it might be seen what end awaits all the reprobate. ²⁷⁵ (Jud 1:7.) Now the Israelites always had their desolation before their eyes, from the time that they entered the land, in order that they might be warned by so terrible a judgment, and might tremble at it. It is also worthy of notice, that strangers are introduced making inquiry; in which words Moses signifies that this vengeance would be terrible even to heathen nations; and with this corresponds what we read in Jeremiah; “many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbor, Wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this great city? Then they shall answer, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.” (Jer 22:8.) A similar divine menace is recorded in 1Kg 9:8; “And at this house,” referring to the Temple brought to desolation, “every one that passeth by it shall be astonished and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the Lord done thus to this house? And they shall answer, Because they forsook the Lord their God, and have taken hold upon other gods,” etc. What we find further on is still more fearful; “Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle.” (2Kg 21:12.)

Moses amplifies the crime of their rebellion, when he says, that forsaking the God of their fathers, God their deliverer, God who had made a covenant with them, they had gone and served strange and unknown gods, from ²⁷⁶ whom they had received no benefits to induce them. For God had bound them to Himself for ever, both by His instruction ²⁷⁷ and the incomparable manifestation of His power; there could therefore be no pretense of ignorance, or mistake to excuse their defection from Him, and their prostitution of themselves to unknown idols.

In the meantime, let us learn from this passage anxiously to inquire who is the true God, and what is His will; because there is no true religion without knowledge; and again, if He convicted His ancient people of wicked ingratitude on account of their deliverance, that we also are now much more inexcusable, unless we constantly abide in the faith of our eternal Redeemer.

Calvin: Deu 29:29 - The secret things belong

29.The secret things belong The conciseness and brevity of this passage has rendered its meaning ambiguous; still there is no necessity for discussing the various expositions of it. I will only shortly touch upon those most generally accepted, lest they should lead to error. The meaning is forced which some of the Hebrews ²⁷³ give it, viz., that God is the sole avenger of hidden crimes, whilst those transgressions, which come to the knowledge of men, should be punished by earthly judges; for here the execution of punishment is not the subject in discussion, but Moses is simply commending the use of the doctrine of the Law. The opinion of those who conceive that the excellency of the Law is maintained, because God has manifested by it His secret things, would be more probable, if the rules of grammar did not oppose it; for the words are not to be read connectedly.” The secret things of God are revealed unto us,” since the ה , or demonstrative pronoun, ²⁷⁴ which is adjoined to both, does not permit this any more than the copula which stands between them. To me there appears no doubt that, by antithesis, there is a comparison here made between the doctrine openly set forth in the Law, and the hidden and incomprehensible counsel of God, concerning which it is not lawful to inquire. In my opinion, therefore, the copula is used for the adversative particle; as though it were said, “God indeed retains to Himself secret things, which it neither concerns nor profits us to know, and which surpass our comprehension; but these things, which He has declared to us, belong to us and to our children.” It is a remarkable passage, and especially deserving of our observation, for by it audacity and excessive curiosity are condemned, whilst pious minds are aroused to be zealous in seeking instruction. We know how anxious men are to understand things, the knowledge of which is altogether unprofitable, and even the investigation of them injurious. All of them would desire to be God’s counsellors, and to penetrate into the deepest recesses of heaven, nay, they would search into its very cabinets. Hence a heathen poet truly says, —

“Nil mortalibus arduum est:
Coelum ipsum petimus stultitia.” — Hor. Od. 1: 3-37.

“Nought for mortals is too high;
Our folly reaches to the sky.”

On the other hand, what God plainly sets before us, and would have familiarly known, is either neglected, or turned from in disgust, or put far away from us, as if it were too obscure. In the first clause, then, Moses briefly reproves and restrains that temerity which leaps beyond the bounds imposed by God; and in the latter, exhorts us to embrace the doctrine of the Law, in which God’s will is declared to us, as if He were openly speaking to us; and thus he encounters the folly of those who fly from the light presented to them, and wrongfully accuse of obscurity that doctrine, wherein God has let Himself down to the measure of our understanding. In sum, he declares that God is the best master to all who come to Him as disciples, because He faithfully and clearly explains to them all that it is useful for them to knew. The perpetuity of the doctrine is also asserted, and that it never is to be let go, or to become obsolete by the lapse of ages. How far the Law is perpetual I have more fully discussed in the Second Book of the Institutes, chap. 11. The rule of just and pious living even now retains its force, although we are delivered from the yoke of bondage and from the curse; but the coming of Christ has put an end to its ceremonies in such a way as to prove more certainly that they were not mere vain and empty shadows. Lastly, Moses requires obedience of the people, and reminds them that the Law was not only given that the Israelites might know what was right, but that they might do all that God taught. True is it indeed that all His precepts cannot be fully obeyed; but the perfection which is required, compels those to ask for pardon who otherwise feel themselves to be exposed to God’s judgment, as will be hereafter explained. Besides, we must observe that the doctrine that we must keep the whole Law has this object, that men should not separate one commandment from the others, and think that they have done their duty by performing only a part of it; since God admits no such divorce, having forbidden us to steal no less than to kill (Jas 2:11.)

Defender: Deu 29:29 - secret things

The apparently out-of-context insertion of this declaration into God's "covenant" (Deu 29:1) with the children of Israel was probably to encourage them to "do all the words of this law" in view of God's ability to "reveal" things to come. In any case, it expresses a vital principle. Everything revealed in the Bible is forever certain for our understanding and application. On the other hand, we should not be exercised about the "secret things." These will be made known in ages to come; it is presumptuous for people today to seek hidden information through occult practices or through esoteric and far-fetched Bible interpretations."

TSK: Deu 29:1 - the words // beside the

the words : Deu 29:12, Deu 29:21, Deu 29:25; Lev 26:44, Lev 26:45; 2Ki 23:3; Jer 11:2, Jer 11:6, Jer 34:18; Act 3:25

beside the : Deu 4:10, Deu 4:13, Deu 4:23, Deu 5:2, Deu 5:3; Exo 19:3-5, Exo 24:2-8; Jer 31:32; Heb 8:9

TSK: Deu 29:2 - Ye have seen all

Ye have seen all : Exo 8:12, Exo 19:4; Jos 24:5, Jos 24:6; Psa 78:43-51, Psa 105:27-36

TSK: Deu 29:3

Deu 4:32-35, Deu 7:18, Deu 7:19; Neh 9:9-11

TSK: Deu 29:4

Deu 2:30; Pro 20:12; Isa 6:9, Isa 6:10, Isa 63:17; Eze 36:26; Mat 13:11-15; Joh 8:43; Joh 12:38-40; Act 28:26, Act 28:27; Rom 11:7-10; 2Co 3:15; Eph 4:18; 2Th 2:10-12; 2Ti 2:25; Jam 1:13-17

TSK: Deu 29:5 - I have led // your clothes // and thy shoe

I have led : Deu 1:3, Deu 8:2

your clothes : Deu 8:4; Neh 9:21; Mat 6:31, Mat 6:32

and thy shoe : Jos 9:5, Jos 9:13; Mat 10:10

TSK: Deu 29:6 - eaten bread // neither have

eaten bread : Deu 8:3; Exo 16:12, Exo 16:35; Neh 9:15; Psa 78:24, Psa 78:25

neither have : Num 16:14, Num 20:8; 1Co 9:25, 1Co 10:4; Eph 5:18

TSK: Deu 29:7

Deu 2:24-37, 3:1-17; Num 21:21-35, Num 32:33-42; Psa 135:10-12, Psa 136:17-22

TSK: Deu 29:8

Deu 3:12, Deu 3:13; Num 32:33

TSK: Deu 29:9

Deu 29:1, Deu 4:6; Jos 1:7; 1Ki 2:3; Psa 25:10, Psa 103:17, Psa 103:18; Isa 56:1, Isa 56:2, Isa 56:4-7; Jer 50:5; Luk 11:28; Heb 13:20, Heb 13:21

TSK: Deu 29:10

Deu 4:10, Deu 31:12, Deu 31:13; 2Ch 23:16, 2Ch 34:29-32; Neh 8:2, Neh 9:1, Neh 9:2, Neh 9:38, Neh 10:28; Joe 2:16, Joe 2:17; Rev 6:15, Rev 20:12

TSK: Deu 29:11 - stranger // the hewer

stranger : Deu 5:14; Exo 12:38, Exo 12:48, Exo 12:49; Num 11:4

the hewer : Jos 9:21-27; Gal 3:28; Col 3:11

TSK: Deu 29:12 - thou shouldest // enter // into his oath

thou shouldest : Deu 5:2, Deu 5:3; Exo 19:5, Exo 19:6; Jos 24:25; 2Ki 11:17; 2Ch 15:12-15

enter : Heb. pass, This is an allusion to the solemn ceremony used by several ancient nations, when they entered into a covenant with each other. The victims, slain as a sacrifice on this occasion, were divided, and and parts laid asundercaps1 . tcaps0 he contracting parties then passed between them, imprecating, as a curse on those who violated the sacred compact, that they might in like manner be cut asunder (Gen 15:10). St. Cyril, in his work against Julian, shows that passing between the divided parts of a victim was used also among the Chaldeans and other people.

into his oath : Deu 29:14; 2Ch 15:12-15; Neh 10:28, Neh 10:29

TSK: Deu 29:13 - establish // he may be

establish : Deu 7:6, Deu 26:18, Deu 26:19, Deu 28:9

he may be : Gen 17:7, Gen 26:3, Gen 26:4, Gen 28:13-15; Exo 6:7; Jer 31:31-33, Jer 32:38; Heb 11:16

TSK: Deu 29:14

Jer 31:31-34; Heb 8:7-12

TSK: Deu 29:15 - also with him

also with him : Deu 5:3; Jer 32:39, Jer 50:5; Act 2:39; 1Co 7:14

TSK: Deu 29:16 - through the nations

through the nations : Deu 2:4, Deu 2:9, Deu 2:19, Deu 2:24, Deu 3:1, Deu 3:2

TSK: Deu 29:17 - idols

idols : Heb. dungy gods, Deu 29:17

TSK: Deu 29:18 - among you man // among you a root // gall and wormwood

among you man : Deu 11:16, Deu 11:17, Deu 13:1-15, Deu 17:2-7; Heb 3:12

among you a root : Jer 9:15; Hos 10:4; Amo 6:12; Act 8:23; Heb 12:15

gall and wormwood : or, a poisonful herb, Heb. rosh

TSK: Deu 29:19 - this curse // that he bless // though I walk // imagination // to add // drunkenness to thirst

this curse : Deu 29:12; Gen 2:17

that he bless : Deu 17:2; Num 15:30, Num 15:39; Psa 10:4-6, Psa 10:11, Psa 49:18, Psa 94:6, Psa 94:7; Pro 29:1; Jer 5:12, Jer 5:13, Jer 7:3-11, Jer 28:15-17, Jer 44:16, Jer 44:17, Jer 44:27; Eze 13:16, Eze 13:22; Eph 5:6

though I walk : Num 15:30; Ecc 11:9; Rom 1:21; 2Co 10:5; Eph 4:17

imagination : or, stubborness, Jer 3:17, Jer 7:24 *marg.

to add : A very forcible metaphor, denoting the natural progress and increasing avidity of sinful passions and depraved inclinations; which lead men to drink down iniquity as the drunkard does his liquor, without regard to the consequences. Some render, ""to add thirst to drunkenness;""and then it implies the insatiableness of men’ s sinful passions, which hanker for more and more indulgence after the greatest excesses.

drunkenness to thirst : Heb. the drunken to the thirsty

TSK: Deu 29:20 - will not spare // the anger // his jealousy // smoke // all the curses // blot out

will not spare : Psa 78:50; Pro 6:34; Isa 27:11; Jer 13:14; Eze 5:11, Eze 7:4, Eze 7:9, Eze 8:18, Eze 9:10; Eze 14:7, Eze 14:8, Eze 24:14; Rom 8:32, Rom 11:21; 2Pe 2:4, 2Pe 2:5

the anger : Psa 74:1

his jealousy : Exo 20:5, Exo 34:14; Psa 78:58, Psa 79:5; Son 8:6; Eze 8:3, Eze 8:5, Eze 23:25, Eze 36:5; Nah 1:2; Zep 1:18; 1Co 10:22

smoke : Psa 18:8, Psa 74:1; Heb 12:29

all the curses : Deu 27:15-26, 28:15-68

blot out : Deu 9:14, Deu 25:19; Exo 32:32, Exo 32:33; Psa 69:28; Eze 14:7, Eze 14:8; Rev 3:5

TSK: Deu 29:21 - separate // are written

separate : Josh. 7:1-26; Eze 13:9; Mal 3:18; Mat 24:51, Mat 25:32, Mat 25:41, Mat 25:46

are written : Heb. is written

TSK: Deu 29:22 - which the Lord hath laid upon it

which the Lord hath laid upon it : Heb. wherewith the Lord hath made it sick, Deu 29:22

TSK: Deu 29:23 - brimstone // salt // like the

brimstone : Job 18:15; Isa 34:9; Luk 17:29; Rev 19:20

salt : Jdg 9:45; Psa 107:34; Jer 17:6; Eze 47:11; Zep 2:9; Luk 14:34, Luk 14:35

like the : Gen 14:2, Gen 19:24, Gen 19:25; Jer 20:16; Hos 11:8, Hos 11:9; Amo 4:11

TSK: Deu 29:24

1Ki 9:8, 1Ki 9:9; 2Ch 7:21, 2Ch 7:22; Jer 22:8, Jer 22:9; Lam 2:15-17, Lam 4:12; Eze 14:23; Rom 2:5

TSK: Deu 29:25 - Because // they have forsaken

Because : Isa 47:6; Jer 40:2, Jer 40:3, Jer 50:7

they have forsaken : 1Ki 19:10-14; Isa 24:1-6; Jer 22:9, Jer 31:32; Heb 8:9

TSK: Deu 29:26 - they went // gods whom // whom he had

they went : Jdg 2:12, Jdg 2:13, Jdg 5:8; 2Ki 17:7-18; 2Ch 36:12-17; Jer 19:3-13, Jer 44:2-6

gods whom : Deu 28:64

whom he had : etc. or, who had not given to them any portion, given. Heb. divided.

TSK: Deu 29:27 - all the curses

all the curses : Deu 29:20, Deu 29:21, Deu 27:15-26, 28:15-68; Lev. 26:14-46; Dan 9:11-14

TSK: Deu 29:28 - rooted them // as it is this day

rooted them : Deu 28:25, Deu 28:36, Deu 28:64; 1Ki 14:15; 2Ki 17:18, 2Ki 17:23; 2Ch 7:20; Psa 52:5; Pro 2:22; Jer 42:10; Luk 21:23, Luk 21:24

as it is this day : Deu 6:24, Deu 8:18; Ezr 9:7; Dan 9:7

TSK: Deu 29:29 - secret // revealed // and to our

secret : Job 11:6, Job 11:7, Job 28:28; Psa 25:14; Pro 3:32; Jer 23:18; Dan 2:18, Dan 2:19, Dan 2:22; Dan 2:27-30, Dan 4:9; Amo 3:7; Mat 13:35; Joh 15:15, Joh 21:22; Act 1:7; Rom 11:33, Rom 11:34, Rom 16:25, Rom 16:26; 1Co 2:16

revealed : Psa 78:2-7; Isa 8:20; Mat 11:27-30, Mat 13:11; Joh 20:31; Rom 16:26; 2Ti 1:5, 2Ti 3:16

and to our : Deu 6:7, Deu 30:2

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per Ayat)

Poole: Deu 29:1 - These are the words of the covenant // Beside the covenant

These are the words of the covenant these are the term, or conditions upon which God hath made, i.e. renewed covenant with you.

Beside the covenant i.e. that entering into or striking of covenant. The covenant was but one in substance, but various in the time and manner of its dispensation.

Poole: Deu 29:4 - the Lord hath not given you

This verse comes in by way of correction or exception to the foregoing clause in this manner, I said indeed, Ye have seen , &c., Deu 29:2 , and thine eyes have seen , &c., but I must recall my words, for in truth you have not seen them; in seeing you have not seen, and perceiving you have not perceived them: you have perceived and seen them with the eyes of your body, but not with your minds and hearts; you have not seen them to any purpose; you have not yet learned rightly to understand the word and works of God, so as to know them for your good, and to make a right use of them, and to comply with them; which he expresseth thus,

the Lord hath not given you & c., not to excuse their wickedness, but partly to direct them what course to take, and to whom they must have recourse for the amending of their former errors, and for a good understanding and improvement of God’ s works; and partly to aggravate their sin, and to intimate that although the hearing ear, and the seeing eye, and the understanding heart, be the workmanship of God, Pro 20:12 , and the effects of his special grace, Deu 30:6 Jer 31:33 32:39 , &c., yet their want of this grace was their own fault, and the just punishment of their former sins; their present case being like theirs in Isaiah’ s time, who first shut their eyes and ears that they might not see and hear, and would not understand, and then by the tremendous, but righteous judgment of God, had their hearts made fat, and their eyes and ears closed, that they should not be able to see, and hear, and understand, as is manifest from the history of their carriage in the wilderness.

Poole: Deu 29:5

So far that it was necessary for you to throw them away, and to get new ones. See on "Deu 8:4" .

Poole: Deu 29:6 - Not eaten bread // Neither wine or strong drink // The Lord your God

Not eaten bread i.e. common bread purchased by your own money, or made by your own hands, but heavenly and angelical bread, Deu 8:3 Psa 78:24,25 . You have subsisted without bread, the staff of life.

Neither wine or strong drink but only water out of the rock.

The Lord your God the Lord omnipotent and all-sufficient for your provision, without the help of any creatures, and your God in covenant with you, who hath a true affection to you, and fatherly care of you, even when ordinary means fail.

Poole: Deu 29:10 - Before the Lord your God

Before the Lord your God in his presence, who sees your hearts and carriages; and before his tabernacle, where it is probable they were now called together, and assembled for this work. See Deu 29:2 .

Poole: Deu 29:11 - Thy stranger // From the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water

Thy stranger such strangers as had embraced their religion.

From the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water all sorts of persons, yea, even the meanest of them, such as these were, Jos 9:27 , all sorts and ranks of servants.

Poole: Deu 29:12 - Into covenant, and into his oath

Into covenant, and into his oath i.e. into covenant or agreement, confirmed by a solemn oath.

Poole: Deu 29:15

i.e. With your posterity; for so the covenant was made at first with Abraham and his seed, by which, as God engaged himself to continue the blessing of Abraham upon his posterity, so he also engaged them to the same duties and conditions which were required of Abraham. So it is even among men, where a king confers an estate upon a subject and his heirs for ever, upon some certain conditions, all his heirs who enjoy that benefit are obliged to the same conditions. But whatsoever becomes of man’ s right, God the Creator and sovereign Lord of all men and things hath an unquestionable right and power to oblige all persons that are or shall be to such conditions as he pleaseth, and especially to such conditions as are for their own benefit, which is the present case.

Poole: Deu 29:16 - In the land of Egypt // How we came through the nations

In the land of Egypt where you have seen their idolatries, and learned too much of them, as the golden calf showed, and therefore need to renew your covenant with God; where also we were in dreadful bondage, whence God alone hath delivered us, to whom therefore we are deeply obliged, and have all reason to renew our covenant with him.

How we came through the nations i.e. with what hazards, if God had not appeared for us.

Poole: Deu 29:17

What sorry tools they are, what senseless and ridiculous deities; so that you have great reason to value your God, and to cleave to him in covenant, and to take heed of such abominable idolatries.

Poole: Deu 29:18 - Lest there should be // A root // Gall and wormwood

Lest there should be or take heed or beware lest there be ; for it seems to be an ellipsis, or defect of a verb, which is usual in Scripture, and which we have in a case parallel to this. Gen 3:22 . And now we must take care lest he put forth , &c. Or this particle lest may be joined with Deu 29:14,15 , to this purpose, I now renew the covenant with you, and with your posterity, lest any of you or yours should be tempted to depart from God, &c. Whose heart turneth away , i.e. who turneth away from God to idols, not by constraint, but by choice, and the inclination of his own heart. By this phrase he leads them to the spring of their sin and ruin, even their own hearts, which he admonisheth them hereby to look to above all things.

A root either,

1. An evil heart inclining you to such cursed idolatry, and bringing forth bitter fruits. Or rather,

2. Some secret and subtle apostate, who lurks and works like a root under ground, and slyly conveys his poison to the infection of others; for both the foregoing and following words speak of some particular person.

Gall and wormwood i.e. which though for the present it may please your fancy, yet in the end, assure yourselves, will produce bitter fruits, not only distasteful to God, but also poisonful and destructive to yourselves.

Poole: Deu 29:19 - When he // Of this curse // Bless himself in his heart // Peace // Though I walk in the imagination of mine heart // To add drunkenness to thirst // thirst

When he i.e. that root or that man mentioned Deu 29:18 .

Of this curse i.e. of that oath mentioned Deu 29:12 , wherein he swore that he would keep covenant with God, and that with a curse pronounced against himself if he did not perform it. Now if when he reads this again, or hears of it from others.

Bless himself in his heart i.e. flatter himself in his own eyes, as Psa 36:2 , with vain conceits and hopes, as if God did not mind such things, and either could not or would not punish them. Compare Psa 49:18 Jer 2:20 Zec 11:5 .

Peace i.e. safety and prosperity.

Though I walk in the imagination of mine heart though in my practices and worship I do not follow God’ s command, but my own devices, and whatsoever my fancy best liketh, minding nothing but the gratifying of mine own fancy and humour.

To add drunkenness to thirst i.e. not only to satisfy his

thirst i.e. his concupiscence and inclination to wickedness, but even to exceed it, as drunkards take ofttimes more than their appetite desires, and drink out of mere wantonness, or from a desire to be drunk; and as filthy persons commit lewdness with others more than their natural inclinations desire, or their strength can well bear, merely from a wicked mind, and from contempt of God, and because they will do so. The words may be rendered, to add thirst to drunkenness , the particle eth , which is a note of the accusative case, being joined with thirst , and not with drunkenness ; and so the sense may be this, that when he hath multiplied his sins, and made himself as it were drunk with them, yet he is not satisfied therewith, but still whets his appetite, and provokes his thirst after more, as drunkards commonly will use means and temptations to make themselves thirst after more drink, that they may drink more abundantly. Or thus, to add the moist or moistening to the thirsty , i.e. instead of restraining and mortifying, as he ought to do, fully and greedily to satisfy his idolatrous or wicked inclinations, and resolved to give up himself to all the desires of his own heart. Compare Job 34:7 Pro 23:35 Isa 30:1 56:12 Eph 4:19 .

Poole: Deu 29:20 - Shall smoke // Blot out his name from under heaven

Shall smoke i.e. shall burn and break forth with flame and smoke as it were from a furnace. Compare Psa 18:8 .

Blot out his name from under heaven i.e. destroy his person and memory from amongst men.

Poole: Deu 29:21 - Unto evil // According to all the curses of the covenant

Unto evil i.e. unto some peculiar and exemplary plague; he will make him a monument of his displeasure to the whole land.

According to all the curses of the covenant he intimates that the covenant of grace, which God made with them, hath not only blessings belonging to it, as this foolish person imagined, but curses also to the transgressors of it.

Poole: Deu 29:22

The words following, Deu 29:24,25 , &c.

Poole: Deu 29:23 - Is brimstone, and salt, and burning

Is brimstone, and salt, and burning i.e. is burnt up and made barren, as with brimstone and salt. See Jud 9:45 Psa 107:34 Jer 17:6 Eze 47:11 .

Poole: Deu 29:26 - who had not given unto them

i.e. Whom God had not given or divided to them, as their portion, or for their worship, but hath divided them unto all nations , as it is said, Deu 4:19 , not for their worship, but for their use and service. So he speaks here of the sun and moon and stars, which were the principal gods worshipped by the neighbouring nations. Or, to whom none hath given this , i.e. that they should be worshipped, or, to whom no worship belongs. So this is an argument against idolatry. Or,

who had not given unto them to wit, any thing: it is an ellipsis of the accusative, which is very frequent: gods known to them by no benefits received from them, as they had from their God, whom therefore it was the greater folly and ingratitude to forsake.

Poole: Deu 29:29 - Unto us and to our children

Having now mentioned the dreadful and amazing judgments of God upon the whole land and people of Israel, and foreseeing by the Spirit of prophecy the utter extirpation and destruction which would come upon them for their wickedness, he breaks out into this pathetical exclamation, either to bridle their curiosity, who hearing this, would be apt to inquire into the time and manner of so great an event; or to quiet his own mind, and satisfy the scruples of others, who perceiving God to deal so severely with his own people, when in the mean time he suffered those nations which were guilty of grosser atheism, and idolatry, and impiety than the generality of the Jewish people were, to live and prosper in the world, might thence take occasion to deny or reproach his providence, or question the equity of his proceedings. To this he answers, that the ways and judgments of God, though never unjust, are ofttimes secret and hidden from us, and unsearchable by our shallow capacities, and are matter for our admiration, not for our inquiry.

Unto us and to our children: but the things which are revealed by God and his word, these are the proper object of our inquiries and studies, that thereby we may come to the knowledge of our duty, by the practice whereof we may be kept from such terrible punishments and calamities as these now mentioned.

Haydock: Deu 29:1 - Covenant // Horeb

Covenant renewed, and confirmed with an oath, ver. 12. (Menochius) ---

Horeb. Thus the speech of Moses is concluded, (Calmet) and consequently this verse should be at the end of the last chapter, as it is placed in the celebrated editions of Michaelis and Houbigant. The latter observes that, beside that covenant, &c., shews, that the curses here recorded, are not by way of explication of those mentioned in the preceding 27th chapter, "but of a quite different kind. The former are denounced against those who violate the law of the decalogue, which was given at Horeb; neither do they threaten that the chastisements shall be inflicted in this life: the latter maledictions threaten present punishments, and those of a public nature." See chap. xxvii. 26. (Haydock) ---

Josue put in execution in a more solemn manner, what Moses here describes, (Josue viii. 30,) to intimate that Jesus would give the last finishing to the outlines of the old covenant.

Haydock: Deu 29:3 - Seen

Seen. Many who were present had seen the plagues of Egypt, and what the Israelites themselves had suffered in the wilderness. (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 29:4 - Hath not given you

Hath not given you, &c. Through your own fault, and because you resisted his grace. (Challoner) ---

If they had not been guilty, Moses would never have made them this reproach. "But he shews that they could not understand or obey without God's assistance,....and yet if....it be wanting, si adjutorium Dei desit, the vice of man is not on that account, deserving of excuse, since the judgments of God are just, though they be hidden." (St. Augustine, q. 50.) ---

Others explain it thus: Hitherto you have not been able to discern the designs of God in your regard: but now, being on the point of crossing the Jordan, to take possession of the land which God had promised to your fathers, you ought to place an unbounded confidence in him. Others read with an interrogation, which entirely removes the evil interpretation of the wicked, who pretend that God requires impossibilities. "Hath not the Lord?" &c. (Calmet) ---

God sometimes delivers over to a reprobate sense, and to their own will. (Theodoret, q. 37.) (Worthington)

Haydock: Deu 29:6 - Bread // Your God

Bread, &c., as your ordinary food, (Menochius) though they might have both bread and wine on some occasions; as when they adored the calf, &c. (St. Augustine, q. 51.) See chap. viii. 4. (Calmet) ---

Your God, providing a miraculous food for you. (Menochius)

Haydock: Deu 29:9 - Understand

Understand. Hebrew, "succeed in all your undertakings." (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 29:10 - Doctors

Doctors. Hebrew Shoterim. Septuagint Grammateisagogeis, (Calmet) "officers, heralds," &c. Chap. i. 15., and xix. 18., they are translated magistros, "masters of magistrates." (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 29:11 - Besides

Besides, ( exceptis ,) which may signify all were present; or rather that the strangers of Egypt, &c., who were employed in servile offices, were alone excluded, as having no part in the covenant made with the Israelites. (Calmet) ---

St. Jerome seems to have rendered min, præter, in the latter sense; but the Chaldean, Septuagint, &c., take it in the former, as if none at all were absent, from the highest to the lowest. (Menochius)

Haydock: Deu 29:12 - Pass // Oath

Pass; alluding to the custom of people who pass between the victims, when they engage in a solemn covenant, as Abraham did, Genesis xv. 10. ---

Oath. Septuagint, "imprecations," specified in the preceding chapters, ver. 14. (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 29:15 - Absent

Absent. Hebrew, "with him that standeth here this day before the Lord, and with him that is not here with us this day." If all were present, (ver. 11,) the absent must here denote the posterity of the Israelites yet unborn. (Haydock) ---

God made the covenant with Abraham and with his seed, before he had any children in the world.

Haydock: Deu 29:17 - Idols

Idols. Hebrew, "you have seen their abominations and their filth, (or idols,) wood," &c. Septuagint, "their abominations and their idols."

Haydock: Deu 29:18 - Bitterness

Bitterness; an Israelite, who cherishes now in his heart any idol, (Haydock) and who may draw God's judgments upon the people, (Calmet) or induce them to follow his wicked example. (Haydock) ---

Let all watch over their children, lest they fall off. Chaldean, "Let there be none among you now whose heart may be filled with the sin of pride." See Acts viii. 13., and Hebrew xii. 15., where this text is cited. The Hebrew seems to allude to some very bitter herbs. Rass is mentioned as growing in the ground, and the juice of it is often alluded to, Osee x. 4., Jeremias viii. 13., and Psalm lxviii. 22. Lane is generally joined with the former term, and God threatens to make the faithless Israelites eat of it, Jeremias ix. 15., and Proverbs v. 4. It may denote a poisonous bitter herb, as well as rass, which signifies "the head, gall, wormwood, aconite," &c. (Calmet) ---

The root designates a mind secretly infected with idolatry, and the appetite, being once drunken with pleasures, thirsteth still more. (Worthington)

Haydock: Deu 29:19 - The drunken

The drunken, &c.: absumat ebria sitientem. It is a proverbial expression, which may either be understood as spoken by the sinner, blessing, that is, flattering himself in his sins with the imagination of peace, and so great an abundance as may satisfy, and as it were, consume all thirst and want, or it may be referred to the root of bitterness, spoken of before, which being drunken with sin may attract, and by that means consume such as thirst after the like evils. (Challoner) ---

St. Jerome seems to have translated sephoth by assumat, as the manuscripts and interpreters read, before the correction of Sixtus V, who adopted the other signification of the Hebrew absumat. (Calmet) ---

The sense however seems to be the same, as evil communications corrupt good manners, the wicked draw on those who before were dry, or thirsty, and superior to the allurements of pleasure, but not quite so sincere and constant as to shut out from their hearts the desire of tasting, what the man of the world so highly extols, and thus the just give way to the temptation, and become the companion of the libertine and of the idolater, and of course share in his destruction. The feasts of the idols were generally celebrated with the most dissolute mirth, which seemed more congenial to the depraved heart of man, than the sober feasts, which the Lord allowed his people. The drunken revellings in honour of Bacchus, who was worshipped in Arabia, &c., were a disgrace to human nature. Yet it is well known with what eagerness the deluded pagans joined in these religious sports. How prone to such excesses the Israelites also were, sacred history too plainly shews, so that they might well be described as thirsty, and willing to imitate those who were already drunk with dissolute pleasures; and this proverbial warning was not unnecessary to remind them what they had to expect from such conduct, at least if the people should become generally addicted to the service of idols. The most terrible chastisements mentioned below, (ver. 20, &c., and in the preceding chapters, and still greater, chap. xxviii. 61,) hung over their guilty heads. But the man who should give occasion to such a defection from the Lord, and , like Jeroboam, cause Israel to sin, must remember that he will have to suffer for the sins of all those whom he has perverted. Hence this cutting remark almost always accompanies the mention of Jeroboam's name, He made Israel to sin. Such a one walked in the way, or imitated the sins of the house of Jeroboam, &c. A similar infamy and destruction attend arch-heretics and impostors. (Haydock) ---

Chaldean translates, "Let him not say.....lest he should add sins of ignorance to sins of pride." (Calmet) ---

Septuagint, "lest the innocent be involved in the destruction of the sinner." Cornelius a Lapide would leave out the negation, and translate, "that the innocent may be," &c. (Menochius) ---

Bonfrere believes that the earth is to be understood; "and the earth drunken or deluged with rain, may take away its former dryness, yet so as to be rendered unfit for cultivation." The proverb affects those who wish for things which will prove destructive to them: so the man who expects to derive great pleasure and advantage from the practice of idolatry, will be miserably deceived, and will only bring on his own ruin; or, if his passions be gratified for a moment, he must, if he die in that state, endure eternal torments in destruction from the face of the Lord. Homer (Odyssey) says, "Crimes prosper not; the low outstrips the quick." Festina lente. Hasten slowly, is an old and useful admonition. Ebria, a drunken woman, is a very indifferent partner for one that is sober at a dance. (Haydock) ---

The flesh being indulged, presently perverts the understanding. (Du Hamel)

Haydock: Deu 29:20 - Enkindled

Enkindled, ( fumet .) Literally, "smoke." (Haydock) ---

Hebrew, "the anger (literally, nose)....smoke." The Greeks and Romans adopt similar expressions, to denote the wrath and eagerness with which a person is actuated. "Fierce anger always sits upon his nose." (Theocrit.) So Persius says, Disce, sed ira cadat naso, rugosaque sanna.

Haydock: Deu 29:23 - Of salt

Of salt. This salt was of a bituminous or sulphureous nature, which would burn like oil, and was sometimes used in lamps. (Herodotus, ii. 62; Pliny, [Natural History?] ii. 104.) It dried up the moisture of the earth, and rendered it barren. For which reason, it was scattered upon such places as were no longer to be cultivated, or inhabited. Abimelech sowed some on the ruins of Sichem, Judges ix. 45. It seems that Palestine now feels the effects of this curse; as, for the most part, it is uncultivated, and a desert, though once so flourishing. (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 29:26 - Knew not // Assigned

Knew not, as their gods. (Menochius) ---

Indeed the gods of the heathens, were for the most part more recent than the days of Abraham, or of Moses, and only newly come up; (chap. xxxii. 17,) which was a sufficient proof that they were not gods. (Haydock) ---

Assigned. It seems, as if God had in a manner abandoned other nations to the dominion of idols, while he chose Israel for his peculiar people. Hence, if they followed another god, they were to be treated as rebels. Hebrew may have another sense, "and from whom they have received nothing," Chaldean and Syriac. (Calmet) ---

Septuagint, "gods to whom they were not faithful, ( or whom they did not believe) and whom I did not appoint for them." Even while the people pretended to follow the worship of idols, they could surely place no confidence in them, knowing that they were either mere creatures, or even the work of their own hands. (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 29:29 - Secret things

Secret things, &c. As much as to say, secret things belong to, and are known to God alone: our business must be to observe what he has revealed and manifested to us, and to direct our lives accordingly. (Challoner) ---

The nations full of surprise, at the miseries, which were inflicted upon the Jews, and upon their country, could not comprehend what might have brought on so severe a chastisement, as they little suspected that it was their worshipping those gods, which they themselves adored, ver. 2. But those who had been converted, and had been able to penetrate the secrets of God, by means of his gracious revelation, answered, (ver. 25, &c.,) that idolatry had been the chief cause of such inconceivable distress, and a crime of no less enormity, the refusing to acknowledge the true God, in the person of the Messias, and the putting him even to a disgraceful death, when he came unto his own, (John i.,) had served to complete their misery. (Haydock) ---

Moses resumes his discourse, and says that these chastisements had been reserved in the treasury of God's wrath, and he had not denounced them to their fathers; but now, since he had told them so plainly, what they had to expect, they would be inexcusable if they ran into the danger. Hebrew may signify, "The secrets of the Lord....are manifest to us." He has shewn us this favour, in preference to other nations, Psalm cxlvi. 20. (Vatable) ---

Secret things are known to God, while those only which are manifest can be discerned by men. (Theodoret, q. 38.) (Worthington) ---

Amama wonders at the negligence of B. Luther's version; and observes, that his commentators illustrate "the word of Luther, not of God," in this place, p. 378. (Haydock)

Gill: Deu 29:1 - These are the words of the covenant // which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab // besides the covenant which he made with them at Horeb

These are the words of the covenant,.... Not what go before, but follow after, in the next chapters, to the end of the book; in which are various promises of grace, and promises of good things, both with respect to Jews and Gentiles, intermixed with other things:

which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab; or to declare unto them, and acquaint them with, they being now in the plains of Moab, ready to enter into the land of, Canaan:

besides the covenant which he made with them at Horeb: or Sinai; which Jarchi interprets, besides the curses in Leviticus, delivered on Sinai; he seems to have respect to Lev 26:14. This covenant was different from that at Sinai, spoken of Exo 24:8; being made not only at a different time, at near forty years' distance, and at a different place, nor Sinai; but when Israel were come nearer Mount Sion, and were actually possessed of part of their inheritance, the land of promise, that part of the land of Moab which the two kings of the Amorites had seized and dwelt in, whom Israel had dispossessed; and with different persons, that generation being dead, excepting a very few, which were at Sinai: but it was different as to the substance and matter of it, it not only including that, and being a renewal of it, as is generally thought, but containing such declarations of grace which had not been made before, not only respecting the repenting and returning Israelites, but the Gentiles also; for this covenant was made with the stranger, as well as with Israel, Deu 29:11; and relates to the times of the Messiah, the call of the Gentiles, the conversion of the Jews, and their return to their own land in the latter day.

Gill: Deu 29:2 - Moses called unto all Israel // and said unto them // ye have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt // unto Pharaoh and unto all his servants, and unto all his land

Moses called unto all Israel,.... He had been speaking before to the heads of them, and delivered at different times what is before recorded; but now he summoned the whole body of the people together, a solemn covenant being to be made between God and them; or such things being to be made known unto them as were of universal concernment:

and said unto them; what is in this chapter; which is only a preparation or introduction to what he had to declare unto them in the following:

ye have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt; the Targum of Jonathan is,"what the Word of the Lord did;''for all the wonderful things there done in Egypt were done by the essential Word of God, Christ, the Son of God; who appeared to Moses in the bush, and sent him to Egypt, and by him and Aaron wrought the miracles there; which many now present had seen, and were then old enough to take notice of, and could remember, though their fathers then in being were now dead:

unto Pharaoh and unto all his servants, and unto all his land; the plagues he inflicted on the person of Pharaoh, and on all his courtiers, and on all the people in Egypt, for they reached the whole land.

Gill: Deu 29:3 - The great temptations which thine eyes have seen // the signs and those great miracles

The great temptations which thine eyes have seen,.... Or trials, the ten plagues which tried the Egyptians, whether they would let Israel go; and tried the Israelites, whether they would believe in the Lord, and trust in his almighty power to deliver them:

the signs and those great miracles: as the said plagues were such as were beyond the power of nature to produce, and which only Omnipotence could really effect.

Gill: Deu 29:4 - Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive // and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day

Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive,.... They had some of them seen the above miracles with their bodily eyes, but had not discerned with the eyes of their understanding the power of God displayed in them, the goodness of God to them on whose behalf they were wrought, in order to obtain their deliverance, and the vengeance of God on the Egyptians for detaining them; so Jarchi interprets it of an heart to know the mercies of the Lord, and to cleave unto him:

and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day; to see and observe the gracious dealings of God with them, and to hearken to his voice and obey it: so the understanding heart, the seeing eye, and hearing ear, in things spiritual, are from the Lord, are special gifts of his grace, which he bestows on some, and not on others; see Pro 20:12. The Targum of Jonathan is,"the Word of the Lord did not give you an heart, &c.''

Gill: Deu 29:5 - And I have led you forty years in the wilderness // your clothes are not waxen old upon you // and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot

And I have led you forty years in the wilderness,.... From the time of their coming out of Egypt unto that day, which though not quite complete, is given as a round number. Eupolemus ^d, an Heathen writer, confirms this date of the ministry of Moses among the Israelites; he says, Moses performed the office of a prophet forty years:

your clothes are not waxen old upon you: were not worn out; all those forty years they had been in the wilderness, they had never wanted clothes fitting for them, according to their age and stature, and which decayed not; See Gill on Deu 8:4,

and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot; which were necessary to wear in travelling, and especially in a rugged wilderness; and yet, thought they had been always in use during so long a time, were not worn out, which was really miraculous; See Gill on Deu 8:4.

Gill: Deu 29:6 - Ye have not eaten bread // neither have you drank wine, nor strong drink // that ye might know that I am the Lord your God

Ye have not eaten bread,.... Bread made of corn, common bread, of their own preparing, made by the labour of their own hands; but manna, the food of angelS, the bread of heaven:

neither have you drank wine, nor strong drink; only water out of the rock, at least chiefly, and for constancy; though it may be, when they were on the borders of other countries, as of the Edomites, they might obtain some wine for their money:

that ye might know that I am the Lord your God; who was both able and willing to provide food, drink, and raiment for them, and supply them with all good things, and support them without the use of the common necessaries of life; which were abundant proofs of his power and goodness.

Gill: Deu 29:7 - And when ye came unto this place // Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, came out against us unto battle // and we smote them

And when ye came unto this place,.... The borders of Moab, the wilderness before it, to which joined the plains they were now in; see Num 21:13,

Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, came out against us unto battle; not together, but one after the other, and that very quickly; as soon almost as they had fought with the one, and conquered him, the other came out against them:

and we smote them; killed them and their armies, and the inhabitants of their countries; the history of which see in Num 21:23.

Gill: Deu 29:8 - And we took their land // and gave it for an inheritances unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half tribe of Manasseh

And we took their land,.... Which belonged to the two kings, the lands of Jazer, Gilead, and Bashan, fine countries for pasturage:

and gave it for an inheritances unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half tribe of Manasseh; who requested it, and to whom it was granted on certain conditions, and they were now in possession of it; see Num 32:1.

Gill: Deu 29:9 - Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them // that ye may prosper in all that ye do

Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them,.... To do which they were laid under great obligations, through the goodness of God to them, in giving them victory over the two kings, and delivering their countries into their hands, as well as by all the favours bestowed on them in the wilderness, where they were sufficiently supplied with food, drink, and raiment; all which is made use of as a motive and argument to engage them to observe and keep the covenant the Lord made with them:

that ye may prosper in all that ye do: in all their occupations and businesses of life, in their manufactures and commerce, in the culture of their fields and vineyards, and in whatsoever they were employed in a lawful way; the word used has sometimes, the signification of acting wisely and prudently, as in Isa 52:13; hence the Septuagint version is, "that ye may understand all that ye do"; and so the Jerusalem Targum.

Gill: Deu 29:10 - Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God // your captains of your tribes // your elders and your officers, with all the men of Israel

Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God,.... Being gathered together at the door of the tabernacle, at the summons of Moses. Aben Ezra interprets it round about the ark, which was the symbol of the divine Presence:

your captains of your tribes; the heads and rulers of them:

your elders and your officers, with all the men of Israel; not the seventy elders only, but their elders in their several tribes, cities, and families, men of gravity and prudence, as well as of age, and who were in some place of power and authority or another: and the "officers" may design such who attended the judges, and executed their orders; see Deu 16:18; and with them were the common people, the males, who were grown persons. Aben Ezra thinks they stood in the order in which they here are mentioned, which is not improbable; next to Moses the princes, then the elders, and after them the officers, and next every man of Israel, the males; and then the little ones with the males; after them the women, and last of all the proselytes.

Gill: Deu 29:11 - Your little ones, your wives // and thy stranger that is in thy camp // from the hewer of thy wood to the drawer of thy water

Your little ones, your wives,.... Who are scarce ever mentioned in any special law or solemn transaction:

and thy stranger that is in thy camp; not only the proselyte of righteousness, who embraced the Jewish religion entirely, but the proselyte of the gate, who was admitted to dwell among them, having renounced idolatry. These standing with the Israelites, when this covenant was made, has respect to the Gentiles, who as well as the Jews have an interest in the covenant of grace made with Christ; in whom there is, neither Jew nor Gentile, any difference between them:

from the hewer of thy wood to the drawer of thy water; that hewed wood for firing and other uses, and drew water for the camp; who were generally mean persons, and perhaps some that came out of Egypt with them are here intended; however, mean and abject persons are meant, and signifies that none should be excluded from a concern in this solemn affair on account of their meanness.

Gill: Deu 29:12 - That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the Lord thy God // and into his oath // which the Lord thy God maketh with thee this day

That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the Lord thy God,.... That is, they were all to appear and stand in this order before the Lord, that they might solemnly avouch him to be their God, and hear him declaring them to be his people, and the many promises and prophecies of good things he should deliver to them, as well as threatenings of wrath and vengeance in case of disobedience to him: or "that thou shouldest pass" ^e: which some think is an allusion to the manner of making covenants, by slaying a creature, and cutting it in pieces, and passing between them, as in Jer 34:18; so Jarchi and Aben Ezra:

and into his oath; annexed to his covenant and promise, to show the immutability and certain fulfilment of it on his part; and may signify not only the oath he swore that they should be his people, but the oath he gave them, and they took, that he should be their God:

which the Lord thy God maketh with thee this day; which refers both to the covenant and the oath, or the covenant confirmed by an oath, even the covenant now made in the plains of Moab, distinct from that at Horeb or Sinai.

Gill: Deu 29:13 - That be may establish thee this day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God // as he hath said unto thee, and as he had sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob

That be may establish thee this day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God,.... Which contains the sum and substance of the covenant; see Jer 32:38,

as he hath said unto thee, and as he had sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; Deu 26:17.

Gill: Deu 29:14 - Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath.

Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath. That is, Moses; for he was ordered to make this covenant with them in the name of the Lord; what promises of good things, or declarations of his mind and will, God would make, Moses was to deliver to them; and what was required of them he would inform them of. Aben Ezra interprets it, not only you, but those that will come after you, your sons and your sons' sons.

Gill: Deu 29:15 - But with him that standeth here with us this day before the Lord our God // and so with him that is not here with us this day

But with him that standeth here with us this day before the Lord our God,.... Who are before specified according to their dignity, age, sex, and station of life; or rather, "but as with him that standeth", &c.

and so with him that is not here with us this day; detained at home by illness and indisposition of body, or by one providence or another; so that they could not come out of their tents, and make their appearance before the tabernacle; though Jarchi interprets this of the people of future generations.

Gill: Deu 29:16 - For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt // and how we came through the nations which ye passed by

For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt,.... How long they and their fathers had dwelt there, the number of years they had been in the land, as the Targum of Jonathan, which was upwards of two hundred years; and being a country the inhabitants of which were much given to idolatry, they had seen many of their idols, and much of their idolatrous worship; and their hearts had been apt to be ensnared by it, and the minds of some tinctured with it, and the remembrance thereof might make ill impressions on them; to remove or prevent which this covenant was made:

and how we came through the nations which ye passed by; as the Edomites, Ammonites, Moabites, and Midianites, as Aben Ezra observes, through whose borders they came, as they passed by their countries in their journeys in the wilderness.

Gill: Deu 29:17 - And ye have seen their abominations and their idols // wood and stone, silver and gold // which were among them

And ye have seen their abominations and their idols,.... Or, "their abominations, even their idols"; for the same are meant by both: it is common in Scripture to call the idols of the Gentiles abominations, without any other explanation of them; see 1Ki 11:5; because they are abominable to God, and ought to be so to men: the word for idols has the signification of dung, and may be rendered dunghill gods, either referring to such that were bred and lived in dung, as the beetle, worshipped by the Egyptians, as Bishop Patrick observes; or which were as much to be loathed and abhorred as the dung of any creature:

wood and stone, silver and gold; these are the materials of which the idols they had seen in the several countries they had been in, or passed through, were made of; some of wood, others of stone cut out of these, and carved; others more rich and costly were made of massive gold and silver, and were molten ones; or the images of wood were glided with gold and silver:

which were among them; now these being seen by them in as they passed along, they might run in their minds, or be called to remembrance by them, and so they be in danger of being drawn aside to make the like, and worship them.

Gill: Deu 29:18 - Lest there should be among you man or woman, or family, or tribe // whose heart turneth away this day from the Lord our God, to go and serve the gods of those nations // lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood

Lest there should be among you man or woman, or family, or tribe,.... These words stand in connection with Deu 29:15, with Deu 29:16 being in a parenthesis, as may be observed, and show the design of this solemn appearance of the people, and their entering afresh into covenant; which was to prevent their falling into idolatry, and preserve them from it, whether a single person of either sex, or a whole family, or even a tribe, which might be in danger of being infected with it, and so all the people:

whose heart turneth away this day from the Lord our God, to go and serve the gods of those nations; whose heart is enticed and drawn aside at the remembrance of the idols he has seen worshipped by others; and is looking off from the Lord God, his faith in him being weakened, his fear of him removed, and his affections for him lessened; and is looking towards the idols of the nations, with a hankering mind to serve and worship them:

lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood: the word "rosh", which we render "gall", signifies, according to Jarchi, a bitter herb, which better suits with a root than gall, and is elsewhere by us rendered "hemlock", Hos 10:4; and is by him very rightly interpreted of a wicked man among them; for not a principle of immorality, or heresy, rooted in the mind, productive of bitter fruits, or evil actions, is meant; but a bad man, particularly an idolater, who is rooted in idolatry, and is guilty of and commits abominable actions; the issue of which will be bitterness and death, if not recovered; which agrees with what the apostle says, Heb 12:15; who manifestly alludes to this passage; see the Apocrypha:"In those days went there out of Israel wicked men, who persuaded many, saying, Let us go and make a covenant with the heathen that are round about us: for since we departed from them we have had much sorrow.'' (1 Maccabees 1:11)and is confirmed by what follows.

Gill: Deu 29:19 - And it cometh to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse // that he bless himself in his heart // saying, I shall have peace // though I walk in the imagination of my heart // to add drunkenness to thirst

And it cometh to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse,.... That is, the man before compared to a root bearing bitter herbs, when he should hear the curses pronounced by the law against such persons as himself:

that he bless himself in his heart; inwardly pronounce himself blessed, thinking himself secure from the curse of the law, and flattering himself it will never reach him nor come upon him:

saying, I shall have peace; all happiness and prosperity, in soul, body, and estate; inward peace of mind now, and eternal peace hereafter:

though I walk in the imagination of my heart; in worshipping idols which he vainly and wickedly imagined to be gods; to the worship of which his wicked heart prompted him, and he was resolutely and stubbornly bent upon, and in which he continued:

to add drunkenness to thirst; as a thirsty man to quench his thirst drinks, and adds to that, or drinks yet more and more until he is drunken; so a man inclined to idolatry, that has a secret desire after it, thirsts after such stolen or forbidden waters, and drinks of them, adds thereunto, drinks again and again until he is drunk with the wine of fornication, or idolatry, as it is called Rev 17:2; so the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan understand the words of adding sin to sin, particularly of adding sins of ignorance to pride, or to presumptuous ones. Wicked men, deceivers and deceived, always grow worse and worse, increasing to more ungodliness, and yet promise themselves peace and impunity, 1Th 5:3.

Gill: Deu 29:20 - Then the Lord will not spare him // but then the anger of the Lord, and his jealousy, shall smoke against that man // and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him // and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven

Then the Lord will not spare him,.... Have no mercy upon him, nor forgive him, being an hardhearted, impenitent, stubborn, and obstinate sinner, as well as guilty of the grossest and most provoking sin, as idolatry is:

but then the anger of the Lord, and his jealousy, shall smoke against that man; or, "the nose of the Lord shall smoke" ^f; alluding to an angry, wrathful, furious man, whose brain being heated, and his passions inflamed, his breath steams through his nostrils like smoke; it denotes the vehement anger, the greatness of God's wrath and indignation against such a person, and his burning zeal or jealousy for his own honour and glory injured by the idolater:

and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him: for as he that offends in one point is guilty of all, and especially in such a principal point as this, which concerns the being and worship of God; so he makes himself liable to all the curses of the law, which shall not only come upon him, but abide on him; and there is no person clear of them but by redemption through Christ, who, by being made a curse for his people, has redeemed them from the curse of the law:

and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven; he shall have no name in Israel, not in the church, and among the people of God, from whom he is to be excommunicated; shall have no name and place in the earth, being cut off from the land of the living; and shall have no name or fame after his death, his memory shall rot and perish; and he shall appear to have no name in the book of life; see Psa 69:28.

Gill: Deu 29:21 - And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel // according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law

And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel,.... Unto the evil of punishment, devote and consign him to it, and make him a visible and distinguished mark of his displeasure and vengeance. So some men are righteously separated from others, and preordained unto condemnation, being wicked and ungodly men; for such God has made or appointed for the day of evil; see Pro 16:4,

according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law; the evil of punishment he shall be separated unto shall be according to them, or include them all; the sense is, that the wrath of God, and the whole curse of the law due to him for his sin, shall come upon him; see Deu 28:16, &c.

Gill: Deu 29:22 - So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you // and the stranger that shall come from a far land // shall say, when they see the plagues of the land // and the sicknesses which the Lord hath laid upon it

So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you,.... Not the next generation, but in future times, in ages to come, at a great distance, even after the destruction of Judea by the Romans; to which Deu 29:23 seems to refer:

and the stranger that shall come from a far land; on trade and business, or for the sake of travelling, his road either lying through it, or his curiosity leading him to see it:

shall say, when they see the plagues of the land; cities and towns in ruins, fields lie uncultivated, and the whole land depopulated, and all become a barren wilderness, which was once a fruitful country, a land flowing with milk and honey:

and the sicknesses which the Lord hath laid upon it; upon the inhabitants of it, as the pestilence and other diseases, which shall have swept the land of them; see Deu 28:22. This case supposes a general departure from the worship of God to the service of idols; otherwise single individuals are punished in their own persons, as in the Deu 29:21.

Gill: Deu 29:23 - And that the whole land thereof is brimstone and salt // and burning // that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein // like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Admah and Zeboim

And that the whole land thereof is brimstone and salt,

and burning,.... That is, is become exceeding barren, as all such land is where there are sulphureous mines, or salt pits, or burning mountains; not that this would be, or has been the case of the land of Judea in a strict literal sense; only these are expressions made use of to show the barrenness of it, which is its case at this day, not through the nature of its soil being changed, but through the slothfulness of the inhabitants of it; to which time it better agrees than to the time of its falling into the hands of the Chaldeans, who left men in it for husbandmen and vinedressers. Aben Ezra understands this as a prayer to God, that the land might be burnt up; that is, for the sins of the people:

that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein; not being sown, it would bear and produce no corn for men; and not being manured, no grass would spring up for the cattle: and so would be

like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Admah and Zeboim; which indeed are, strictly speaking, become a sulphurous and bituminous lake, called the salt sea, and the lake Asphaltites, and where no green grass or corn, or any kind of fruit grow: which the Lord overthrew in his anger and in his wrath the Targum of Jonathan is,"which the Word of the Lord overthrew;''and it was Jehovah, the Word, or Son of God, who rained, from Jehovah the Father, out of heaven, fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah, and the rest of the cities; See Gill on Gen 19:24, in which chapter is the history of this fatal overthrow.

Gill: Deu 29:24 - Even all nations shall say // wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this land // what meaneth the heat of this great anger

Even all nations shall say,.... For the destruction of this land, and the people of it, would be, as it has been, so very great and awful, and so very remarkable and surprising, that the fame of it would be heard among all the nations of the world, as it has been; who, upon hearing the sad report of it, would ask the following questions:

wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this land? so distinguished from all others for the fruitfulness and pleasantness of it; the people, the inhabitants of which, he chose, above all others, to be a special and peculiar people; and where he had a temple built for him, and where he had his residence, and worship used to be given unto him:

what meaneth the heat of this great anger? what is the reason of his stirring up his fierce wrath, and causing it to burn in so furious a manner? surely it must be something very horrible and provoking indeed!

Gill: Deu 29:25 - Then men shall say // because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers // which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt

Then men shall say,.... The answer that will be returned to the above questions will be this

because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers: breakers of covenants with men are always reckoned among the worst of men, see Rom 1:31; and especially breakers of covenant with God, and with such a God as the God of Israel was, so good, so kind, and gracious; and of such a covenant he made with them, in which so many good things were promised unto them, on condition of their obedience; as the continuance in, such a land they dwelt in, with an abundance of privileges, civil and religious: and this covenant God of theirs was the God of their fathers also; and it was always reckoned an heinous sin among the Heathens to forsake the gods of their ancestors; see Jer 2:11,

which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt; which is another aggravation of their breach of the covenant the Lord made with them; it being made with them by that God, and at that time, when he in so wonderful a manner, with such mighty power, and a outstretched arm, and in great kindness and tenderness to them, brought then, out of hard bondage and most wretched slavery in Egypt.

Gill: Deu 29:26 - For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them // gods whom they knew not // and whom he hath not given unto them

For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them,.... As did all Israel, in the times of Solomon, and the ten tribes under Jeroboam, and other succeeding kings of Israel; and the two tribes in the times of Ahaz, and especially of Manasseh, when they worshipped all the host of heaven; see 1Ki 11:33,

gods whom they knew not; to whom they, as well as their fathers before them, were strangers and approved not of them; and of whose power and goodness they had no experience, and of which there never were any instances; yet such was their stupidity, as to leave their God, the only true God, of whom they had many proofs in both respects, and worship these idols, which had never been profitable and serviceable to them on any account:

and whom he hath not given unto them; which version seems not to afford a good sense; for to what people soever has God, the true God, given other gods to worship, which this seems to imply, though he had not given or allowed any to them? Onkelos paraphrases it, "did not do them good"; which Jarchi explains, the gods they chose them did not impart to them any inheritance, or any portion; for the word used signifies to divide, or part a portion or inheritance; now the Lord God did divide to Israel the land of Canaan for an inheritance, but these idols had never divided anything to them, and had been in no instance profitable or advantageous to them; and therefore it was madness and folly in them to worship them, as well as great ingratitude to the Lord their God, who had done such great and good things for them; for so the words may be rendered, "and did not impart" or "divide to them" ^g anything; that is, not anyone of them did; for the verb is singular.

Gill: Deu 29:27 - And the anger of the Lord was kindled against this land // to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book

And the anger of the Lord was kindled against this land,.... For this their idolatry and base ingratitude:

to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book; in this book of Deuteronomy, and particularly Deu 28:16; see Dan 9:11.

Gill: Deu 29:28 - And the Lord rooted them out of the land // in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation // and cast them another land, as it is this day

And the Lord rooted them out of the land,.... Which was true both at the Babylonish captivity by Nebuchadnezzar, and at their present one by the Romans; and especially the latter, by whom they have been so rooted out, as that they have not been able to return to it these 1700 years, nor to have any inheritance or possession in it; whereas, at the end of seventy years, they returned from the Babylonish captivity to their land again: and which was done

in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation; which were most abundantly shown in the utter destruction of their land, city, and temple, by the Romans:

and cast them another land, as it is this day; the ten tribes were cast into Assyria, and from thence into the cities of the Medes, the two tribes into the land of Chaldea, and now into all lands; and none their own, but another, a strange and foreign country. The word "cast" denotes the vehemence of the divine displeasure at them, expressed by the removal of them out of their own land into another. In the Hebrew word for "cast", a middle letter in it is greater than usual; the reason of which perhaps is, that this dealing of God with them might be observed and taken notice of as very remarkable; and Ainsworth thinks it is to observe the greatness of the punishment; and the Jews understand this of the casting away of the ten tribes: and they gather from hence that the ten tribes shall not return, though about it they are divided; for so they say in the Misnah ^h,"the ten tribes shall not return, as it is said, and cast them into another land, as this day; as the day goes and does not return, so they go and return not; these are the words of R. Akiba. R. Eliezer says, as the day brings on darkness and light, so the ten tribes who are now dark shall be enlightened.''

Gill: Deu 29:29 - The secret things belong unto the Lord our God // but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children for ever // that we may do all the words of this law

The secret things belong unto the Lord our God,.... Respecting the people of Israel, and the providential dealings of God with them, and especially the final rejection of them; with respect to which, the apostle's exclamation agrees with this, Rom 11:33; and though the Lord had revealed many things which should befall them, there were others still secret with him, and the reasons of others; and particularly the times and seasons of their accomplishment, which he retains in his own power, Act 1:6. There are many secret things in nature, which cannot be found out and accounted for by men, which the Lord only knows; and there are many things in Providence, which are unsearchable, and past finding out by finite minds, especially the true causes and reasons of them; and there are many things relating to God himself, which remain secret with him; notwithstanding the revelation he has made of himself; for not only some of his perfections, as eternity, immensity, &c. are beyond our comprehension; but the mode of subsistence of the three divine Persons in the Godhead, the paternity of the one, the generation of the other, and the procession of the Spirit from them both; the union of the two natures, divine and human, in the person of Christ; the thoughts, purposes, and decrees of God within himself, until brought into execution; and so there are many things relating to his creatures, as the particular persons predestinated unto eternal life, what becomes of such who die in infancy, what will befall us in life, when we shall die, where and in what manner, and also the day and hour of the last judgment. The Jews generally interpret this and what follows of the sins of men, and punishment for them, and, particularly, idolatry; take Aben Ezra's sense instead of many,"he that commits idolatry secretly, his punishment is by the hand of heaven (from God immediately); he that commits it openly, it lies upon us and upon our children to do as is written in the law:"

but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children for ever; the things of nature and Providence, which are plain and manifest, are for our use and instruction; and especially the word and ordinances of God, which are the revelation of his will, the doctrines and promises contained in the Scriptures, each of the duties of religion, and the commandments of God, such as are of eternal obligation, which may be chiefly designed, because it follows:

that we may do all the words of this law: for the end of this revelation is practice; hearing and reading the word will be of no avail, unless what is heard and read is practised. Some render the words ⁱ,"the secret things of the Lord our God are revealed to us and to our children;''but neither the construction of the words in the original, nor the Hebrew accents, will admit of such a version; otherwise it would furnish out a very great truth: for the secrets of God's love, of his council and covenant, are revealed unto his people, as well as many of his providences, and the mysteries of his grace; see Psa 25:14. There are some extraordinary pricks in the Hebrew text on the words "to us and to our children": which are designed to point out the remarkable and wonderful condescension and goodness of God, in making a revelation of his mind and will, both with respect to doctrine and duty, to the sons of men.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Ayat / Catatan Kaki

NET Notes: Deu 29:1

¹ sn Beginning with 29:1, the verse numbers through 29:29 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 29:1 ET = 28:69 HT, 29:2 ET = 29:1 HT, 29:3 ET = 29:2 HT, etc., through 29:29 ET = 29:28 HT. With 30:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.

² sn Horeb is another name for Mount Sinai (which some English versions substitute here for clarity, cf. NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).

NET Notes: Deu 29:2

¹ tn The Hebrew text includes “to your eyes,” but this is redundant in English style (cf. the preceding “you have seen”) and is omitted in the translation.

NET Notes: Deu 29:3

¹ tn Heb “testings.” This is a reference to the plagues; see note at 4:34.

NET Notes: Deu 29:4

¹ tn Heb “a heart to know, eyes to see and ears to hear” (NASB similar); NAB, NRSV “a mind to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:5

¹ tn The Hebrew text includes “on you.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

² tn The Hebrew text includes “from on your feet.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:6

¹ tc The LXX reads “that he is the Lord your God.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:9

¹ tn Heb “words.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:10

¹ tc Heb “your heads, your tribes.” The Syriac presupposes either “heads of your tribes” or “your heads, your judges,” etc. (reading שֹׁפְטֵכֶם [shofÿtekhem] for שִׁבְטֵיכֶם [shivtekhem]). Its comparative difficulty favors the originality of the MT reading. Cf. KJV “your captains of your tribes”; NRSV “the leaders of your tribes”; NLT “your tribal leaders.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:11

¹ tn Heb “your.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:12

¹ tn Heb “for you to pass on into the covenant of the Lord your God and into his oath, which the Lord your God is cutting with you today.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:13

¹ tn Heb “in order to establish you today to him for a people and he will be to you for God.” Verses 10-13 are one long sentence in Hebrew. The translation divides this into two sentences for stylistic reasons.

² tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 25).

NET Notes: Deu 29:15

¹ tn This is interpreted by some English versions as a reference to generations not yet born (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT).

NET Notes: Deu 29:17

¹ tn The Hebrew term שִׁקּוּץ (shiquts) refers to anything out of keeping with the nature and character of Yahweh and therefore to be avoided by his people Israel. It is commonly used with or as a synonym for תּוֹעֵבָה (to’evah, “detestable, abhorrent”; 2 Kgs 23:13; Jer 16:18; Ezek 5:11; 7:20; 11:18, 21; see note on the term “abhorrent” in Deut 7:25). See M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 4:243-46.

² tn The Hebrew text includes “which were with them.” Verses 16-17 constitute a parenthetical comment.

NET Notes: Deu 29:18

¹ tn Heb “yielding fruit poisonous and wormwood.” The Hebrew noun לַעֲנָה (la’anah) literally means “wormwood” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB), but is used figuratively for anything extremely bitter, thus here “fruit poisonous and bitter.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:19

¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the subject of the warning in v. 18) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn Heb “in his heart.”

³ tn Or “invokes a blessing on himself.” A formalized word of blessing is in view, the content of which appears later in the verse.

⁴ tn Heb “heart.”

⁵ tn Heb “thus destroying.” For stylistic reasons the translation begins a new sentence here.

⁶ tn Heb “the watered with the parched.” The word “ground” is implied. The exact meaning of the phrase is uncertain although it appears to be figurative. This appears to be a proverbial observation employing a figure of speech (a merism) suggesting totality. That is, the Israelite who violates the letter and even spirit of the covenant will harm not only himself but everything he touches – “the watered and the parched.” Cf. CEV “you will cause the rest of Israel to be punished along with you.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:20

¹ tn Heb “the wrath of the Lord and his zeal.” The expression is a hendiadys, a figure in which the second noun becomes adjectival to the first.

² tn Heb “smoke,” or “smolder.”

³ tn Heb “the entire oath.”

⁴ tn Or “will lie in wait against him.”

⁵ tn Heb “blot out his name from under the sky.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:21

¹ tn Heb “set him apart.”

² tn Heb “for evil”; NAB “for doom”; NASB “for adversity”; NIV “for disaster”; NRSV “for calamity.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:22

¹ tn Heb “will say and see.” One expects a quotation to appear, but it seems to be omitted. To avoid confusion in the translation, the verb “will say” is omitted.

NET Notes: Deu 29:23

¹ tn Heb “the anger and the wrath.” This construction is a hendiadys intended to intensify the emotion.

NET Notes: Deu 29:24

¹ tn Heb “this great burning of anger”; KJV “the heat of this great anger.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:26

¹ tn Heb “did not assign to them”; NASB, NRSV “had not allotted to them.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:27

¹ tn Heb “the entire curse.”

NET Notes: Deu 29:29

¹ tn Heb “sons” (so NASB); KJV, ASV, NIV, NRSV “children.”

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:1

These [are] the ^{( a )} words of the covenant, which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, beside the covenant which he made with them in ^{( b )} Horeb.

^{( a )} That is, the articles, or conditions.

^{( b )} At the first giving of the law, which was forty years earlier.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:3

The ^{( c )} great temptations which thine eyes have seen, the signs, and those great miracles:

^{( c )} The proofs of my power.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:4

Yet the LORD hath not ^{( d )} given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

^{( d )} He shows that it is not in man's power to understand the mysteries of God if it is not given to him from above.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:6

Ye have not eaten ^{( e )} bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink: that ye might know that I [am] the LORD your God.

^{( e )} Made by man's art, but manna, which is called the bread of angels.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:10

Ye stand this day all of you before the LORD your ^{( f )} God; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, [with] all the men of Israel,

^{( f )} Who knows your hearts, and therefore you may not think to conceal from him.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:12

That thou shouldest ^{( g )} enter into covenant with the LORD thy God, and into his oath, which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day:

^{( g )} Alluding to them, that when they made a sure covenant, divided a beast in two, and past between the parts divided, (Gen 15:10).

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:15

But with [him] that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with [him] ^{( h )} that [is] not here with us this day:

^{( h )} Meaning, their posterity.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:18

Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the LORD our God, to go [and] serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you ^{( i )} a root that beareth gall and wormwood;

^{( i )} Such sin, as the bitter fruit of it might choke and destroy you.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:19

And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add ^{( k )} drunkenness to thirst:

^{( k )} For as he that is thirsty desires to drink much so he that follows his appetites seeks by all means and yet cannot be satisfied.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:22

So that the ^{( l )} generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses which the LORD hath laid upon it;

^{( l )} God's plagues on those who rebel against him will be so strong, that all ages will be astonished.

Geneva Bible: Deu 29:29

The ^{( m )} secret [things belong] unto the LORD our God: but those [things which are] revealed [belong] unto us and to our children for ever, that [we] may do all the words of this law.

^{( m )} Moses by this proves their curiosity, who seek those things that are only known to God: and their negligence who do not regard that which God has revealed to them, as the law.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Rentang Ayat

MHCC: Deu 29:1-9

Both former mercies, and fresh mercies, should be thought on by us as motives to obedience. The hearing ear, and seeing eye, and the understanding heart, are the gift of God. All that have them, have them from him. God gives not only food and raiment, but wealth and large possessions, to many to whom he does not give grace. Many enjoy the gifts, who have not hearts to perceive the Giver, nor the true design and use of the gifts. We are bound, in gratitude and interest, as well as in duty and faithfulness, to keep the words of the covenant.

MHCC: Deu 29:10-21

The national covenant made with Israel, not only typified the covenant of grace made with true believers, but also represented the outward dispensation of the gospel. Those who have been enabled to consent to the Lord's new covenant of mercy and grace in Jesus Christ, and to give up themselves to be his people, should embrace every opportunity of renewing their open profession of relation to him, and their obligation to him, as the God of salvation, walking according thereto. The sinner is described as one whose heart turns away from his God; there the mischief begins, in the evil heart of unbelief, which inclines men to depart from the living God to dead idols. Even to this sin men are now tempted, when drawn aside by their own lusts and fancies. Such men are roots that bear gall and wormwood. They are weeds which, if let alone, overspread the whole field. Satan may for a time disguise this bitter morsel, so that thou shalt not have the natural taste of it, but at the last day, if not before, the true taste shall be discerned. Notice the sinner's security in sin. Though he hears the words of the curse, yet even then he thinks himself safe from the wrath of God. There is scarcely a threatening in all the book of God more dreadful than this. Oh that presumptuous sinners would read it, and tremble! for it is a real declaration of the wrath of God, against ungodliness and unrighteousness of man.

MHCC: Deu 29:22-28

Idolatry would be the ruin of their nation. It is no new thing for God to bring desolating judgments on a people near to him in profession. He never does this without good reason. It concerns us to seek for the reason, that we may give glory to God, and take warning to ourselves. Thus the law of Moses leaves sinners under the curse, and rooted out of the Lord's land; but the grace of Christ toward penitent, believing sinners, plants them again in their land; and they shall no more be pulled up, being kept by the power of God.

MHCC: Deu 29:29

Moses ends his prophecy of the Jews' rejection, just as St. Paul ends his discourse on the same subject, when it began to be fulfilled, Rom 11:33. We are forbidden curiously to inquire into the secret counsels of God, and to determine concerning them. But we are directed and encouraged, diligently to seek into that which God has made known. He has kept back nothing that is profitable for us, but only that of which it is good for us to be ignorant. The end of all Divine revelation is, not to furnish curious subjects of speculation and discourse, but that we may do all the words of this law, and be blessed in our deed. This, the Bible plainly reveals; further than this, man cannot profitably go. By this light he may live and die comfortably, and be happy for ever.

Matthew Henry: Deu 29:1-9

Now that Moses had largely repeated the commands which the people were to observe as their part of the covenant, and the promises and threatenings which God would make good (according as they behaved themselves) as part of the covenant, the whole is here summed up in a federal transaction. The covenant formerly made is here renewed, and Moses, who was before, is still, the mediator of it (Deu 29:1): The Lord commanded Moses to make it. Moses himself, though king in Jeshurun, could not make the covenant any otherwise than as God gave him instructions. It does not lie in the power of ministers to fix the terms of the covenant; they are only to dispense the seals of it. This is said to be besides the covenant made in Horeb; for, though the covenant was the same, yet it was a new promulgation and ratification of it. It is probable that some now living, though not of age to be mustered, were of age to consent for themselves to the covenant made at Horeb, and yet it is here renewed. Note, Those that have solemnly covenanted with God should take all opportunities to do it again, as those that like their choice too well to change. But the far greater part were a new generation, and therefore the covenant must be made afresh with them, for it is fit that the covenant should be renewed to the children of the covenant.

I. It is usual for indentures to begin with a recital; this does so, with a rehearsal of the great things God had done for them, 1. As an encouragement to them to believe that God would indeed be to them a God, for he would not have done so much for them if he had not designed more, to which all he had hitherto done was but a preface (as it were) or introduction; nay, he had shown himself a God in what he had hitherto done for them, which might raise their expectations of something great and answering the vast extent and compass of that pregnant promise, that God would be to them a God. 2. As an engagement upon them to be to him an obedient people, in consideration of what he had done for them.

II. For the proof of what he here advances he appeals to their own eyes (Deu 29:2): You have seen all that the Lord did. Their own senses were incontestable evidence of the matter of fact, that God had done great things for them; and then their own reason was a no less competent judge of the equity of his inference from it: Keep therefore the words of this covenant, Deu 29:9.

III. These things he specifies, to show the power and goodness of God in his appearances for them. 1. Their deliverance out of Egypt, Deu 29:2, Deu 29:3. The amazing signs and miracles by which Pharaoh was plagued and compelled to dismiss them, and Israel was tried (for they are called temptations ) whether they would trust God to secure them from, and save them by, those plagues. 2. Their conduct through the wilderness for forty years, Deu 29:5, Deu 29:6. There they were led, and clad, and fed, by miracles; though the paths of the wilderness were not only unknown but untrodden, yet God kept them from being lost there; and (as bishop Patrick observes) those very shoes which by the appointment of God they put on in Egypt, at the passover, when the were ready to march (Exo 12:11), never wore out, but served them to Canaan: and though they lived not upon bread which strengthens the heart, and wine which rejoices it, but upon manna and rock-water, yet they were men of strength and courage, mighty men, and able to go forth to war. By these miracles they were made to know that the Lord was God, and by these mercies that he was their God. 3. The victory they had lately obtained of Sihon and Og, and that good land which they had taken possession of, Deu 29:7, Deu 29:8. Both former mercies and fresh mercies should be improved by us as inducements to obedience.

IV. By way of inference from these memoirs,

1. Moses laments their stupidity: Yet the Lord has not given you a heart to perceive, Deu 29:4. This does not lay the blame of their senselessness, and sottishness, and unbelief, upon God, as if they had stood ready to receive his grace and had begged for it, but he had denied them; no, but it fastens the guilt upon themselves. "The Lord, who is the Father of spirits, a God in covenant with you, and who had always been so rich in mercy to you, no doubt would have crowned all his other gifts with this, he would have given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see if you had not by your own frowardness and perverseness frustrated his kind intentions, and received his grace in vain."Note, (1.) The hearing ear, the seeing eye, and the understanding heart, are the gift of God. All that have them have them from him. (2.) God gives not only food and raiment, but wealth and large possessions, to many to whom he does not give grace. Many enjoy the gifts who have not hearts to perceive the giver, nor the true intention and use of the gifts. (3.) God's readiness to do us good in other things is a plain evidence that if we have not grace, that best of gifts, it is our own fault and not his; he would have gathered us and we would not.

2. Moses charges them to be obedient: Keep therefore, and do, Deu 29:9. Note, We are bound in gratitude and interest, as well as duty and faithfulness, to keep the words of the covenant.

Matthew Henry: Deu 29:10-29

It appears by the length of the sentences here, and by the copiousness and pungency of the expressions, that Moses, now that he was drawing near to the close of his discourse, was very warm and zealous, and very desirous to impress what he said upon the minds of this unthinking people. To bind them the faster to God and duty, he here, with great solemnity of expression (to make up the want of the external ceremony that was used Exo 24:4 etc.), concludes a bargain (as it were) between them and God, an everlasting covenant, which God would not forget and they must not. He requires not their explicit consent, but lays the matter plainly before them, and then leaves it between God and their own consciences. Observe,

I. The parties to this covenant. 1. It is the Lord their God they are to covenant with, Deu 29:12. To him they must give up themselves, to him they must join themselves. "It is his oath; he has drawn up the covenant and settled it; he requires your consent to it; he has sworn to you and to him you must be sworn."This requires us to be sincere and serious, humble and reverent, in our covenant-transactions with God, remembering how great a God he is with whom we are covenanting, who has a perfect knowledge of us and an absolute dominion over us. 2. They are all to be taken into covenant with him. They were all summoned to attend (Deu 29:2), and did accordingly, and are told (Deu 29:10) what was the design of their appearing before God now in a body - they were to enter into covenant with him. (1.) Even their great men, the captains of their tribes, their elders and officers, must not think it any disparagement to their honour, or any diminution of their power, to put their necks under the yoke of this covenant, and to draw in it. They must rather enter into the covenant first, to set a good example to their inferiors. (2.) Not the men only, but their wives and children, must come into this covenant; though they were not numbered and mustered, yet they must be joined to the Lord, Deu 29:11. Observe, Even little ones are capable of being taken into covenant with God, and are to be admitted with their parents. Little children, so little as to be carried in arms, must be brought to Christ, and shall be blessed by him, for of such was and is the kingdom of God. (3.) Not the men of Israel only, but the stranger that was in their camp, provided he was so far proselyted to their religion as to renounce all false gods, was taken into this covenant with the God of Israel, forasmuch as he also, though a stranger, was to be looked upon in this matter as a son of Abraham, Luk 19:9. This was an early indication of favour to the Gentiles, and of the kindness God had in store for them. (4.) Not the freemen only, but the hewers of wood and drawers of water, the meanest drudge they had among them. Note, As none are too great to come under the bonds of the covenant, so none are too mean to inherit the blessings of the covenant. In Christ no difference is made between bond and free, Col 3:11. Art thou called being a servant? Care not for it, 1Co 7:21. (5.) Not only those that were now present before God in this solemn assembly, but those also that were not here with them were taken into covenant (Deu 29:15): As with him that standeth here with us (so bishop Patrick thinks it should be rendered) so also with him, that is not here with us this day; that is, [1.] Those that tarried at home were included; though detained either by sickness or necessary business, they must not therefore think themselves disengaged; no, every Israelite shares in the common blessings. Those that tarry at home divide the spoil, and therefore every Israelite must own himself bound by the consent of the representative body. Those who cannot go up to the house of the Lord must keep up a spiritual communion with those that do, and be present in spirit when they are absent in body. [2.] The generations to come are included. Nay, one of the Chaldee paraphrasts reads it, All the generations that have been from the first days of the world, and all that shall arise to the end of the whole world, stand with us here this day. And so, taking this covenant as a typical dispensation of the covenant of grace, it is a noble testimony to the Mediator of that covenant, who is the same yesterday, today, and for ever.

II. The summary of this covenant. All the precepts and all the promises of the covenant are included in the covenant-relation between God and them, Deu 29:13. That they should be appointed, raised up, established, for a people to him, to observe and obey him, to be devoted to him and dependent on him, and that he should be to them a God, according to the tenour of the covenant made with their fathers, to make them holy, high, and happy Their fathers are here named, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as examples of piety, which those were to set themselves to imitate who expected any benefit from the covenant made with them. Note, A due consideration of the relation we stand in to God as our God, and of the obligation we lie under as a people to him, is enough to bring us to all the duties and all the comforts of the covenant.

III. The principal design of the renewing of this covenant at this time was to fortify them against temptations to idolatry. Though other sins will be the sinner's ruin, yet this was the sin that was likely to be their ruin. Now concerning this he shows,

1. The danger they were in of being tempted to it (Deu 29:16, Deu 29:17): " You know we have dwelt in the land of Egypt, a country addicted to idolatry; and it were well if there were not among you some remains of the infection of that idolatry; we have passed by other nations, the Edomites, Moabites, etc. and have seen their abominations and their idols, and some among you, it may be, have liked them too well, and still hanker after them, and would rather worship a wooden god that they can see than an infinite Spirit whom they never saw."It is to be hoped that there were those among them who, the more they saw of these abominations and idols, the more they hated them; but there were those that were smitten with the sight of them, saw the accursed things and coveted them.

2. The danger they were in if they yielded to the temptation. He gives them fair warning: it was at their peril if they forsook God to serve idols. If they would not be bound and held by the precepts of the covenant, they would find that the curses of the covenant would be strong enough to bind and hold them.

(1.) Idolatry would be the ruin of particular persons and their families, Deu 29:18-21, where observe,

[1.] The sinner described, Deu 29:18. First, He is one whose heart turns away from his God; there the mischief begins, in the evil heart of unbelief, which inclines men to depart from the living God to dead idols. Even to this sin men are tempted when they are drawn aside by their own lusts and fancies. Those that begin to turn from God, by neglecting their duty to him, are easily drawn to other gods: and those that serve other gods do certainly turn away from the true God; for he will admit of no rivals: he will be all or nothing. Secondly, He is a root that bears gall and wormwood; that is, he is a dangerous man, who, being himself poisoned with bad principles and inclinations, with a secret contempt of the God of Israel and his institutions and a veneration for the gods of the nations, endeavours, by all arts possible, to corrupt and poison others and draw them to idolatry: this is a man whose fruit is hemlock (so the word is translated, Hos 10:4) and wormwood; it is very displeasing to God, and will be, to all that are seduced by him, bitterness in the latter end. This is referred to by the apostle, Heb 12:15, where he is in like manner cautioning us to take heed of those that would seduce us from the Christian faith; they are the weeds or tares in a field, which, if let alone, will overspread the whole field. A little of this leaven will be in danger of infecting the whole lump.

[2.] His security in the sun. He promises himself impunity, though he persists in his impiety, Deu 29:19. Though he hears the words of the curse, so that he cannot plead ignorance of the danger, as other idolaters, yet even then he blesses himself in his own heart, thinks himself safe from the wrath of the God of Israel, under the protection of his idol-gods, and therefore says, " I shall have peace, though I be governed in my religion, not by God's institution, but by my own imagination, to add drunkenness to thirst, one act of wickedness to another."Idolaters were like drunkards, violently set upon their idols themselves and industrious to draw others in with them. Revellings commonly accompanied their idolatries (1Pe 4:3), so that this speaks a woe to drunkards (especially the drunkards of Ephraim), who, when they are awake, being thirsty, seek it yet again, Pro 23:35. And those that made themselves drunk in honour of their idols were the worst of drunkards. Note, First, There are many who are under the curse of God and yet bless themselves; but it will soon be found that in blessing themselves they do but deceive themselves. Secondly, Those are ripe for ruin, and there is little hope of their repentance, who have made themselves believe that they shall have peace though they go on in a sinful way. Thirdly, Drunkenness is a sin that hardens the heart, and debauches the conscience, as much as any other, a sin to which men are strangely tempted themselves even when they have lately felt the mischiefs of it, and to which they are strangely fond of drawing others, Hab 2:15. And such an ensnaring sin is idolatry.

[3.] God's just severity against him for the sin, and for the impious affront he put upon God in saying he should have peace though he went on, so giving the lie to eternal truth, Gen 3:4. There is scarcely a threatening in all the book of God that sounds more dreadful than this. O that presumptuous sinners would read it and tremble! For it is not a bug-bear to frighten children and fools, but a real declaration of the wrath of God against the ungodliness and the unrighteousness of men, Deu 29:20, Deu 29:21. First, The Lord shall not spare him. The days of his reprieve, which he abuses, will be shortened, and no mercy remembered in the midst of judgment. Secondly, The anger of the Lord, and his jealousy, which is the fiercest anger, shall smoke against him, like the smoke of a furnace. Thirdly, The curses written shall lie upon him, not only light upon him to terrify him, but abide upon him, to sink him to the lowest hell, Joh 3:36. Fourthly, His name shall be blotted out, that is, he himself shall be cut off, and his memory shall rot and perish with him. Fifthly, He shall be separated unto evil, which is the most proper notion of a curse; he shall be cut off from all happiness and all hope of it, and marked out for misery without remedy. And ( lastly ) All this according to the curses of the covenant, which are the most fearful curses, being the just revenges of abused grace.

(2.) Idolatry would be the ruin of their nation; it would bring plagues upon the land that connived at this root of bitterness and received the infection; as far as the sin spread, the judgment should spread likewise.

[1.] The ruin is described. It begins with plagues and sicknesses (Deu 29:22), to try if they will be reclaimed by less judgments; but, if not, it ends in a total overthrow, like that of Sodom, Deu 29:23. As that valley, which had been like the garden of the Lord for fruitfulness, was turned into a lake of salt and sulphur, so should the land of Canaan be made desolate and barren, as it has been ever since the last destruction of it by the Romans. The lake of Sodom bordered closely upon the land of Israel, that by it they might be warned against the iniquity of Sodom; but, not taking the warning, they were made as like to Sodom in ruin as they had been in sin.

[2.] The reason of it is enquired into, and assigned. First, It would be enquired into by the generations to come (v. 22), who would find the state of their nation in all respects the reverse of what it had been, and, when they read both the history and the promise, would be astonished at the change. The stranger likewise, and the nations about them, as well as particular persons, would ask, Wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this land? v. 24. Great desolations are thus represented elsewhere as striking the spectators with amazement, 1Ki 9:8, 1Ki 9:9; Jer 22:8, Jer 22:9. It was time for the neighbours to tremble when judgment thus began at the house of God, 1Pe 4:17. The emphasis of the question is to be laid upon this land, the land of Canaan, this good land, the glory of all lands, this land flowing with milk and honey. A thousand pities that such a good land as this should be made desolate, but this is not all; it is this holy land, the land of Israel, a people in covenant with God; it is Immanuel's land, a land where God was known and worshipped, and yet thus wasted. Note, 1. It is no new thing for God to bring desolating judgments upon a people that in profession are near to him, Amo 3:2. 2. He never does this without a good reason. 3. It concerns us to enquire into the reason, that we may give glory to God and take warning to ourselves. Secondly, The reason is here assigned, in answer to that enquiry. The matter would be so plain that all men would say, It was because they forsook the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers, Deu 29:25. Note, God never forsakes any till they first forsake him. But those that desert the God of their fathers are justly cast out of the inheritance of their fathers. They went and served other gods (Deu 29:26), gods that they had no acquaintance with, nor lay under any obligation to either in duty of gratitude; for God has not given the creatures to be served by us, but to serve us; nor have they done any good to us (as some read it), more than what God has enabled them to do; to the Creator therefore we are debtors, and not to the creatures. It was for this that God was angry with them (Deu 29:27), and rooted them out in anger, Deu 29:28. So that, how dreadful soever the desolation was, the Lord was righteous in it, which is acknowledged, Dan 9:11-14. "Thus"(says Mr. Ainsworth) "the law of Moses leaves sinners under the curse, and rooted out of the Lord's land; but the grace of Christ towards penitent believing sinners plants them again upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up, being kept by the power of God,"Amo 9:15.

[3.] He concludes his prophecy of the Jews' rejection just as St. Paul concludes his discourse on the same subject, when it began to be fulfilled (Rom 11:33), How unsearchable are God's judgments, and his ways past finding out! So here (Deu 29:29), Secret things belong to the Lord our God. Some make it to be one sentence, The secret things of the Lord our God are revealed to us and to our children, as far as we are concerned to know them, and he hath not dealt so with other nations: but we make it two sentences, by which, First, We are forbidden curiously to enquire into the secret counsels of God and to determine concerning them. A full answer is given to that question, Wherefore has the Lord done thus to this land? sufficient to justify God and admonish us. But if any ask further why God would be at such a vast expense of miracles to form such a people, whose apostasy and ruin he plainly foresaw, why he did not by his almighty grace prevent it, or what he intends yet to do with them, let such know that these are questions which cannot be answered, and therefore are not fit to be asked. It is presumption in us to pry into the Arcana imperii - the mysteries of government, and to enquire into the reasons of state which it is not for us to know. See Act 1:7; Joh 21:22; Col 2:18. Secondly, We are directed and encouraged diligently to enquire into that which God has made known: things revealed belong to us and to our children. Note, 1. Though God has kept much of his counsel secret, yet there is enough revealed to satisfy and save us. He has kept back nothing that is profitable for us, but that only which it is good for us to be ignorant of. 2. We ought to acquaint ourselves, and our children too, with the things of God that are revealed. We are not only allowed to search into them, but are concerned to do so. They are things which we and ours are nearly interested in. They are the rules we are to live by, the grants we are to live upon; and therefore we are to learn them diligently ourselves, and to teach them diligently to our children. 3. All our knowledge must be in order to practice, for this is the end of all divine revelation, not to furnish us with curious subjects of speculation and discourse, with which to entertain ourselves and our friends, but that we may do all the words of this law, and be blessed in our deed.

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:1

Is not the close of the address in ch. 5-28, as Schultz , Knobel , and others suppose; but the heading to ch. 29-30, which relate to the making of the covenant mentioned in this verse (vid., Deu 29:12, Deu 29:14).

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:2-4

The introduction in Deu 29:2 resembles that in Deu 5:1. " All Israel "is the nation in all its members (see Deu 29:10, Deu 29:11). - Israel had no doubt seen the mighty acts of the Lord in Egypt ( Deu 29:2 and Deu 29:3; cf. Deu 4:34; Deu 7:19), but Jehovah had not given them a heart, i.e., understanding, to perceive, eyes to see, and ears to hear, until this day. With this complaint, Moses does not intend to excuse the previous want of susceptibility on the part of the nation to the manifestations of grace on the part of the Lord, but simply to explain the necessity for the repeated allusion to the gracious acts of God, and to urge the people to lay them truly to heart. "By reproving the dulness of the past, he would stimulate them to a desire to understand: just as if he had said, that for a long time they had been insensible to so many miracles, and therefore they ought not to delay any longer, but to arouse themselves to hearken better unto God"( Calvin ). The Lord had not yet given the people an understanding heart, because the people had not yet asked for it, simply because the need of it was not felt (cf. Deu 4:26).

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:5-8

With the appeal to the gracious guidance of Israel by God through the desert, the address of Moses passes imperceptibly into an address from the Lord, just as in Deu 11:14. (On Deu 29:5, Deu 29:6, vid., Deu 8:3-4; on Deu 29:7, vid., Deu 2:26., and Deu 3:1. and Deu 3:12.).

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:9

These benefits from the Lord demanded obedience and fidelity. "Keep the words of this covenant," etc. (cf. Deu 8:18). השׂכּיל , to act wisely (as in Deu 32:29), bearing in mind, however, that Jehovah Himself is the wisdom of Israel (Deu 4:6), and the search for this wisdom brings prosperity and salvation (cf. Jos 1:7-8).

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:10-15

Summons to enter into the covenant of the Lord, namely, to enter inwardly, to make the covenant an affair of the heart and life.

Deu 29:10

"To-day," when the covenant-law and covenant-right were laid before them, the whole nation stood before the Lord without a single exception - the heads and the tribes, the elders and the officers, all the men of Israel. The two members are parallel. The heads of the people are the elders and officers, and the tribes consist of all the men. The rendering given by the lxx and Syriac (also in the English version: Tr.), " heads (captains) of your tribes ,"is at variance with the language.

Deu 29:11

The covenant of the Lord embraced, however, not only the men of Israel, but also the wives and children, and the stranger who had attached himself to Israel, such as the Egyptians who came out with Israel (Exo 12:38; Num 11:4), and the Midianites who joined the Israelites with Hobab (Num 10:29), down to the very lowest servant, " from thy hewer of wood to thy drawer of water "(cf. Jos 9:21, Jos 9:27).

Deu 29:12

"That thou shouldest enter into the covenant of the Lord thy God, and the engagement on oath, which the Lord thy God concludeth with thee to-day." עבר with בּ , as in Job 33:28, "to enter into,"expresses entire entrance, which goes completely through the territory entered, and is more emphatic than בברית בּוא (2Ch 15:12). "Into the oath:"the covenant confirmed with an oath, covenants being always accompanied with oaths (vid., Gen 26:28).

Deu 29:13

" That He may set thee up (exalt thee) to-day into a people for Himself, and that He may be (become) unto thee a God "(vid., Deu 28:9; Deu 27:9; Exo 19:5-6).

Deu 29:14-15

This covenant Moses made not only with those who are present, but with all whether present or not; for it was to embrace not only those who were living then, but their descendants also, to become a covenant of blessing for all nations (cf. Act 2:39, and the intercession of Christ in Joh 17:20).

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:16-17

The summons to enter into the covenant of the Lord is explained by Moses first of all by an exposition of the evil results which would follow from apostasy from the Lord, or the breach of His covenant. This exposition he introduces with an allusion to the experience of the people with reference to the worthlessness of idols, both in Egypt itself, and upon their march through the nations, whose territory they passed through (Deu 29:16, Deu 29:17). The words, " for ye have learned how we dwelt in Egypt, and passed through the nations...and have seen their abominations and their idols "( gillulim : lit., clods, see Lev 26:30), have this signification: In our abode in Egypt, and upon our march through different lands, ye have become acquainted with the idols of these nations, that they are not gods, but only wood and stone (see at Deu 4:28), silver and gold. את־אשׁר , as in Deu 9:7, literally "ye know that which we dwelt,' i.e., know what our dwelling there showed, what experience we gained there of the nature of heathen idols.

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:18-19

"That there may not be among you," etc.: this sentence may be easily explained by introducing a thought which may be easily supplied, such as"consider this,"or "do not forget what ye have seen, that no one, either man or woman, family or tribe, may turn away from Jehovah our God."- "That there may not be a root among you which bears poison and wormwood as fruit." A striking image of the destructive fruit borne by idolatry (cf. Heb 12:15). Rosh stands for a plant of a very bitter taste, as we may see from the frequency with which it is combined with לענה , wormwood: it is not, strictly speaking, a poisonous plant, although the word is used in Job 20:16 to denote the poison of serpents, because, in the estimation of a Hebrew, bitterness and poison were kindred terms. There is no other passage in which it can be shown to have the meaning"poison."The sense of the figure is given in plain terms in Deu 29:19, "that no one when he hears the words of this oath may bless himself in his heart, saying, I will prosper with me, for I walk in the firmness of my heart." To bless himself in his heart is to congratulate himself. שׁרירוּת , firmness, a vox media ; in Syriac, firmness, in a good sense, equivalent to truth; in Hebrew, generally in a bad sense, denoting hardness of heart; and this is the sense in which Moses uses it here. - " To sweep away that which is saturated with the thirsty: "a proverbial expression, of which very different interpretations have been given (see Rosenmüller ad h. l. ), taken no doubt from the land and transferred to persons or souls; so that we might supply Nephesh in this sense, "to destroy all, both those who have drunk its poison, and those also who are still thirsting for it"( Knobel ). But even if we were to supply ארץ (the land), we should not have to think of the land itself, but simply of its inhabitants, so that the thought would still remain the same.

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:20-21

"For the Lord will not forgive him (who thinks or speaks in this way); but then will His anger smoke (break forth in fire; vid., (Psa 74:1), and His jealousy against that man, and the whole curse of the law will lie upon him, that his name may be blotted out under heaven (vid., Deu 25:19; Exo 17:14). " The Lord will separate him unto evil from all the tribes , - so that he will be shut out from the covenant nation, and from its salvation, and be exposed to destruction - according to all the curses of the covenant ."Although the pronominal suffix refers primarily to the man, it also applies, according to Deu 29:18, to the woman, the family, and the tribe. "That is written,"etc., as in Deu 28:58, Deu 28:61.

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:22-23

How thoroughly Moses was filled with the thought, that not only individuals, but whole families, and in fact the greater portion of the nation, would fall into idolatry, is evident from the further expansion of the threat which follows, and in which he foresees in the Spirit, and foretells, the extermination of whole families, and the devastation of the land by distant nations; as in Lev 26:31-32. Future generations of Israel, and the stranger from a distant land, when they saw the strokes of the Lord which burst upon the land, and the utter desolation of the land, would ask whence this devastation, and receive the reply, The Lord had smitten the land thus in His anger, because its inhabitants (the Israelites) had forsaken His covenant. With regard to the construction, observe that ואמר , in Deu 29:22, is resumed in ואמרוּ , in Deu 29:24, the subject of Deu 29:22 being expanded into the general notion, "all nations"(Deu 29:24). With וראוּ , in Deu 29:22 , a parenthetical clause is inserted, giving the reason for the main thought, in the form of a circumstantial clause; and to this there is attached, by a loose apposition in Deu 29:23, a still further picture of the divine strokes according to their effect upon the land. The nouns in Deu 29:23, "brimstone and salt burning," are in apposition to the strokes (plagues), and so far depend upon "they see."The description is borrowed from the character of the Dead Sea and its vicinity, to which there is an express allusion in the words, "like the overthrow of Sodom," etc., i.e., of the towns of the vale of Siddim (see at Gen 14:2), which resembled paradise, the garden of Jehovah, before their destruction (vid., Gen 13:10 and Gen 19:24.).

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:24-25

" What is this great burning of wrath? "i.e., what does it mean - whence does it come? The reply to such a question would be (Deu 29:25-29): The inhabitants of the land have forsaken the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers; therefore has the wrath of the Lord burned over the land.

Keil-Delitzsch: Deu 29:26-29

" Gods which God had not assigned them "(vid., Deu 4:19). "All the curses,"etc., are the curses contained in Deut 28:15-68; Lev 26:14-38. - Those who give the answer close their address in Deu 29:29 with an expression of pious submission and solemn admonition. " That which is hidden belongs to the Lord our God (is His affair), and that which is revealed belongs to us and our children for ever, to do (that we may do) all the words of this law ."That which is revealed includes the law with its promises and threats; consequently that which is hidden can only refer to the mode in which God will carry out in the future His counsel and will, which He has revealed in the law, and complete His work of salvation notwithstanding the apostasy of the people.

(Note: What the puncta extraordinaria above ( ע ) ד וּלבנינוּ לנוּmean, is uncertain. Hiller's conjecture is the most probable, "that they are intended to indicate a various reading, formed by the omission of eleven consonants, and the transposition of the rest עולם והנגדלות ( at magnalia saeculi sunt );"whereas there is no foundation for Lightfoot's notion, that "they served as a warning, that we should not wish to pry with curiosity into the secret things of God, but should be content with His revealed will,"- a notion which rests upon the supposition that the points are inspired.)

Constable: Deu 27:1--29:2

V. PREPARATIONS FOR RENEWING THE COVENANT 27:1--29:1

Moses now gave the new generation its instructions concerning fresh commitment to the covenant when Israel would enter the land.

"The ratification of the new covenant which Moses was making with the second generation was to unfold in two stages. That was customary procedure in securing the throne succession to the appointed royal heir. When death was imminent, the suzerain required his vassals to pledge obedience to his son; then, soon after the son's accession, the vassals' commitment was repeated. Similarly, Moses and Joshua formed a dynasty of mediatorial representatives of the Lord's suzerainty over Israel. Hence the succession of Joshua, which symbolized the continuing lordship of Israel's God, was ensured by the oath elicited from Israel before Moses died, and again later by a ratification ceremony after Joshua's accession. The pronouncing of curses and blessings is prominent in each of these ratification rituals."²⁹¹

Constable: Deu 29:1

E. Narrative interlude 29:1

Chapter 29 verse 1 is the last verse of chapter 28 in the Hebrew Bible. Moses probably intended it to be a summary statement of what precedes rather than an introduction to what follows. The renewed Mosaic covenant to which Moses now called on his hearers to commit themselves contrasts with the original Mosaic covenant to which the Israelites committed themselves at Mt. Sinai.

". . . the verse forms an inclusio with the preamble section of Deut 1:1-5. Both passages begin with the phrase these are the words . . . which Moses,' both locate the setting in Moab, and both make reference to Horeb and the earlier covenant. Thus the covenant text proper may be said to have been brought to a conclusion in 29:1. . . .

"It seems quite clear, then, that a major break occurs between 29:1 and 29:2, with the former bringing all the previous material to a close and the latter introducing at least the epilogic historical review."³¹⁰

Constable: Deu 29:2--31:1

VI. MOSES' THIRD MAJOR ADDRESS: AN EXHORTATION TO OBEDIENCE 29:2--30:20

"The rest of chapter 29 contains many reminiscences of the Near Eastern treaty pattern. It is not presented in a systematic manner but in narrative form. However, elements of the pattern are clearly discernible, making it extremely likely that some kind of covenant ceremony underlies the events here reported."³¹¹

The form of this section argues for its being a covenant renewal. There is a historical prologue (29:2-9), reference to the parties covenanting (29:10-15), and basic stipulations (29:16-19). Then follow the curse (29:20-28), Moses' preaching of repentance and restoration (29:29-30:14), and the covenantal decision (30:15-20). The last section has three parts: the choice (30:15-18), the witnesses (30:19a), and the call for decision (30:19b-20).³¹²

"There is general consensus that chaps. 29 and 30 of Deuteronomy (as well as 31:1-8) are not strictly part of the covenant document as such documents were ordinarily crafted.³¹³ This does not mean, of course, that this section does not serve a covenant function in Moses' own unique creation of the book as a covenant instrument.³¹⁴ But even if it doesn't, it is very much at home here as a parenesis that looks to the past, present, and future of the elect nation. It provides a summation of God's past dealings with Israel, restates the present occasion of covenant offer and acceptance, and addresses the options of covenant disobedience and obedience respectively. Finally, it exhorts the assembled throng to covenant commitment. It is most fitting that these summaries and exhortations follow the body of the covenant text and precede the formalizing of the agreement by the Lord and his chosen vassal."³¹⁵

Constable: Deu 29:2-8

1. Historical review 29:2-8

The emphasis in this section is on God's faithfulness in bringing Israel to its present position (cf. 1:6-4:40). To do this God had provided for the people in the wilderness and had given them victory over some of their enemies (e.g., Sihon and Og). He had also given them some of the land He had promised them.

Constable: Deu 29:9-15

2. The purpose of the assembly 29:9-15

In view of God's past faithfulness the Israelites should keep "this covenant" (v. 9), the Mosaic Covenant, so that they might prosper in the future. Moses assembled the people to commit themselves anew to their covenant with God. God had made the Mosaic Covenant with all the Israelites, not just the generation that stood before Moses (vv. 14-15).

Constable: Deu 29:16-29

3. The consequences of disobedience 29:16-29

This generation needed to obey the laws of the Mosaic Covenant (v. 21) under which the nation already lived to experience the maximum benefits of this covenant. The maximum benefits included not only ownership of the land but also the use of it. The rebellious Israelite would suffer physical death (v. 20). Disobedience to the Mosaic Covenant (v. 25) would result in the Israelites being driven out of the Promised Land. In verse 29 the "secret things" refer to those things God knows but has not revealed (cf. Isa. 55:8-9). In the context this refers specifically to how Israel would respond to the covenant in the future. The "things revealed" refer to what God has revealed so that humankind may enjoy God's blessings. In the context this refers to the Mosaic Covenant.

Guzik: Deu 29:1-29 - Renewal of the Covenant

Deuteronomy 29 - Renewal of the Covenant

A. God's mighty works for Israel.

1. (1) The covenant in the land of Moab.

These are the words of the covenant which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which He made with them in Horeb.

a. These are the words of the covenant: Some 40 years before this, at Horeb (Mount Sinai), Israel made a covenant with God: Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, "All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient." And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, "This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you according to all these words." (Exodus 24:7-8)

b. Besides the covenant which He made with them in Horeb: For the most part, the people who had the blood of the covenant sprinkled upon them had died in the wilderness. The generation of unbelief had died, now it was an opportunity for the generation of faith. So, Moses will reconfirm the covenant with the new generation.

2. (2-4) Israel saw wonders, but did not see them.

Now Moses called all Israel and said to them: "You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land; the great trials which your eyes have seen, the signs, and those great wonders. Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day.

a. You have seen all that the LORD before your eyes: Israel saw great wonders from the hand of God since coming from Egypt. They saw the plagues, they saw the death of the firstborn, they saw the Red Sea parted, they saw the Egyptian armies destroyed, they saw victories won by prayer, they ate the manna, they drank the miraculously provided water, and they saw miracle after miracle.

b. Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to perceive: The miracles in and of themselves could not accomplish anything in the heart of Israel. If God did not send His Spirit to change their hearts, then the greatest wonder imaginable would not make a difference.

i. Some people today think the greatest help to evangelism would be to see more miraculous events. After all, who could not believe in the face of such displays of spiritual power? But seeing great wonders accomplishes nothing apart from a supernatural work of God in someone's heart.

3. (5-9) God's great works for Israel in the wilderness.

And I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn out on your feet. You have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or similar drink, that you may know that I am the LORD your God. And when you came to this place, Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan came out against us to battle, and we conquered them. We took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites, to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh. Therefore keep the words of this covenant, and do them, that you may prosper in all that you do.

a. And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: During their forty years in the wilderness, their clothes did not wear our, their sandals did not wear out, and though they had no bread to eat or wine to drink, their needs were provided for. Israel conquered over their enemies, and they took their land.

i. Plainly, these are remarkable miracles. Clothes and sandals simply do not last 40 years of hard marching in the wilderness apart from a miracle. The wilderness does not provide enough food and water to meet the needs of some two million people apart from a miracle. A nation of slaves for 400 years does not conquer standing nations and take their land apart from a miracle.

ii. Each of these great wonders (each proof in themselves of God's power and love for Israel) has a spiritual counterpart in our lives.

· In the wilderness of this world, God provides clothes for us (Revelation 3:18)

· He gives us shoes (Ephesians 6:15)

· He gives us bread and wine to drink (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

· In Him we conquer our enemies (Romans 8:37)

· We can take the land of our spiritual enemies (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)

b. Therefore keep the words of this covenant: Seeing these great works of God, there is one logical response. Knowing the greatness of God's love and power should make Israel more committed than ever to His covenant.

B. Renewing the covenant.

1. (10-15) The parties to the covenant.

All of you stand today before the LORD your God: your leaders and your tribes and your elders and your officers, all the men of Israel, your little ones and your wives; also the stranger who is in your camp, from the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water; that you may enter into covenant with the LORD your God, and into His oath, which the LORD your God makes with you today, that He may establish you today as a people for Himself, and that He may be God to you, just as He has spoken to you, and just as He has sworn to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone, but with him who stands here with us today before the LORD our God, as well as with him who is not here with us today

a. All of you stand today before the LORD your God: This meas that the covenant was made with the entire nation. This included the leaders, the men, the women, the children, and even the servants.

b. That He may establish you today as a people for Himself: All of Israel was included in God's desire to enter into covenant, to be the people for Himself. He wasn't just looking for a few prominent and talented people, or for just one spiritual tribe like the Levites. God wanted the whole nation to be this people for Himself.

c. As well as with him who is not here with us today: But the covenant extended beyond those who stood before the LORD and Moses on that day. It also included him who is not with us here today. The descendants of this nation assembled before the LORD and Moses were also included in the covenant.

i. "The covenant demand is here extended to those who were yet to be born. Future generations were one with that early Israel who took the oath at Sinai." (Thompson)

2. (16-20) The promise of judgment against the covenant-breaker.

(for you know that we dwelt in the land of Egypt and that we came through the nations which you passed by, and you saw their abominations and their idols which were among them; wood and stone and silver and gold); so that there may not be among you man or woman or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations, and that there may not be among you a root bearing bitterness or wormwood; and so it may not happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he blesses himself in his heart, saying, "I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart"; as though the drunkard could be included with the sober. The LORD would not spare him; for then the anger of the LORD and His jealousy would burn against that man, and every curse that is written in this book would settle on him, and the LORD would blot out his name from under heaven.

a. You saw their abominations and their idols which were among them: Israel had seen the abominations and . . . idols of their pagan neighbors. God promised that anyone who turns away from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations, should never presume on a sense of peace in his heart.

b. He blesses himself in his heart, saying "I have peace": Perhaps one who has turned from the LORD and to idols hears the curses against the covenant-breaker, yet thinks he has escaped any penalty. So, he blesses himself in his heart, saying "I have peace." He may have an immediate sense of peace at the moment, but it is the peace of the blind, the peace of the ignorant, who cannot see the peril of coming judgment.

i. A rank sinner may feel confident in his own heart, having a marvelous sense of "peace." But this peace is an illusion. It is the peace of the blind, of the unknowing. If a bomb is on a plane, most everyone on the plane is at peace the moment before the bomb explodes. But their peace is based on their ignorance. In the same way, a sinner may be completely untroubled in his heart. But this is only because he is blind.

ii. As though the drunkard could be included with the sober: The drunkard may be happy when he is drunk, but his happiness is based on a illusion. God warns against including the peace of the righteous with the peace the wicked might seem to have.

c. The LORD would not spare him: This truth is plain "There is no peace," says the LORD, "for the wicked." (Isaiah 48:22) The score may be settled on either side of eternity, but it will be settled. No one can forsake the LORD and escape the consequences.

3. (21-28) The purpose for judgment against the covenant-breaker.

And the LORD would separate him from all the tribes of Israel for adversity, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this Book of the Law, so that the coming generation of your children who rise up after you, and the foreigner who comes from a far land, would say, when they see the plagues of that land and the sicknesses which the LORD has laid on it: "The whole land is brimstone, salt, and burning; it is not sown, nor does it bear, nor does any grass grow there, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the LORD overthrew in His anger and His wrath." All nations would say, "Why has the LORD done so to this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean?" Then people would say: "Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt; for they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they did not know and that He had not given to them. Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against this land, to bring on it every curse that is written in this book. And the LORD uprooted them from their land in anger, in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day."

a. And the LORD would separate him from all the tribes of Israel for adversity: There is an obvious reason to punish the covenant-breaker for his own sake. But God has a purpose beyond the reason of individual covenant.

b. So that the coming generation of your children who rise up after you, and the foreigner who comes from a far land: God's purpose in bringing judgment against a covenant-breaking Israel was also for the sake of the coming generation of your children . . . and the foreigner. When they see the devastation that comes from breaking God's covenant, when they see what happens to the land which the LORD overthrew in His anger and wrath, they will be warned to obedience.

i. We can also learn from the calamity that comes on the lives of others when they break God's covenant. We can learn that the price of disobedience is not worth it. We can learn that the commands of God are good, and protective in our lives.

c. All nations would say: God's purpose in bringing judgment against a covenant-breaking Israel was also for the sake of all nations. When they see what happens to a nation who forsakes the LORD, they will be warned to obedience.

4. (29) God's revelation to Israel.

The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.

a. The secret things belong to the LORD our God: In the midst of this encouragement to obedience, Moses pauses to give a principle of how God speaks to us. First, God never declares everything to man:. There are secrets God has, and will always have. He has the right to have secrets, because He is God.

i. God is bigger and smarter than us and always will be. We must simply accept this. "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8-9)

b. Those things which are revealed: Second, God does reveal some things to man. Since God is there, and He is not silent, we must do all we can to pay close attention to Him.

c. Those things which are revealed belong to us: Third, God's revelation is meant to say something to us. God did not speak just to blow our minds or to amuse us; there is a message which belongs to us. While we cannot perfectly understand God's revelation, it is perfectly understandable.

d. To us and to our children: Fourth, God's revelation is trans-generational. Yes, God had a specific message for Moses' generation, but the message goes beyond its original audience to speak to all generations which follow.

e. To us and our children forever: Fifth, God's revelation is eternal. His word not only lasts forever, it is forever relevant. God's word is more relevant than any new fad or interest which might sweep through the world or the church.

g. That we may do all the words of this law: Finally, God's revelation must matter to us. He has not spoken to us merely to satisfy our curiosity about spiritual things. He has spoken to us to affect the way we live. If we are only hearers of the word, and not doers also, then we have not really received His word.

© 2006 David Guzik - No distribution beyond personal use without permission

Pendahuluan / Garis Besar

JFB: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

DEUTERONOMY, the second law, a title which plainly shows what is the object of this book, namely, a recapitulation of the law. It was given in the form of public addresses to the people; and as Moses spoke in the prospect of his speedy removal, he enforced obedience to it by many forcible appeals to the Israelites, concerning their long and varied experience both of the mercies and the judgments of God. The minute notices of the heathen people with whom they had come in contact, but who afterward disappeared from the pages of history, as well as the accounts of the fertility and products of Canaan, and the counsels respecting the conquest of that country, fix the date of this book and the time of its composition by the hand of Moses. The close, however, must have been added by another; and, indeed, it is supposed by some to have formed the original preface to the Book of Joshua.

JFB: Deuteronomy (Garis Besar)

• MOSES' SPEECH AT THE END OF THE FORTIETH YEAR. (Deu. 1:1-46)
• THE STORY IS CONTINUED. (Deu. 2:1-37)
• CONQUEST OF OG, KING OF BASHAN. (Deu. 3:1-20)
• AN EXHORTATION TO OBEDIENCE. (Deu 4:1-13)
• A PARTICULAR DISSUASIVE AGAINST IDOLATRY. (Deu. 4:14-40)
• A COMMEMORATION OF THE COVENANT IN HOREB. (Deu. 5:1-29)
• MOSES EXHORTS ISRAEL TO HEAR GOD AND TO KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. (Deu. 6:1-25)
• ALL COMMUNION WITH THE NATIONS FORBIDDEN. (Deu. 7:1-26)
• AN EXHORTATION TO OBEDIENCE. (Deu. 8:1-20)
• MOSES DISSUADES THEM FROM THE OPINION OF THEIR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Deu. 9:1-25)
• GOD'S MERCY IN RESTORING THE TWO TABLES. (Deu. 10:1-22)
• AN EXHORTATION TO OBEDIENCE. (Deu. 11:1-32)
• MONUMENTS OF IDOLATRY TO BE DESTROYED. (Deu 12:1-15)
• BLOOD PROHIBITED. (Deu 12:16-25)
• HOLY THINGS TO BE EATEN IN THE HOLY PLACE. (Deu 12:26-32)
• ENTICERS TO IDOLATRY TO BE PUT TO DEATH. (Deu 13:1-5)
• WITHOUT REGARD TO NEARNESS OF RELATION. (Deu 13:6-18)
• GOD'S PEOPLE MUST NOT DISFIGURE THEMSELVES IN MOURNING. (Deu 14:1-2)
• WHAT MAY BE EATEN, AND WHAT NOT. (Deu. 14:3-21)
• OF BEASTS. (Deu 14:4-8)
• THE SEVENTH YEAR, A YEAR OF RELEASE FOR THE POOR. (Deu 15:1-11)
• HEBREW SERVANTS' FREEDOM. (Deu 15:12-19)
• THE FEAST OF THE PASSOVER. (Deu. 16:1-22)
• THINGS SACRIFICED MUST BE SOUND. (Deu 17:1)
• IDOLATERS MUST BE SLAIN. (Deu 17:2-7)
• THE PRIESTS AND JUDGES TO DETERMINE CONTROVERSIES. (Deu 17:8-13)
• THE ELECTION AND DUTY OF A KING. (Deu 17:14-20)
• THE LORD IS THE PRIESTS' AND THE LEVITES' INHERITANCE. (Deu 18:1-8)
• THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE NATIONS ARE TO BE AVOIDED. (Deu 18:9-14)
• CHRIST THE PROPHET IS TO BE HEARD. (Deu 18:15-19)
• OF THE CITIES OF REFUGE. (Deu 19:1-13)
• THE LANDMARK IS NOT TO BE REMOVED. (Deu 19:14)
• TWO WITNESSES REQUIRED. (Deu 19:15)
• PUNISHMENT OF A FALSE WITNESS. (Deu 19:16-21) But if convicted of perjury, it will be sufficient for his own condemnation, and his punishment shall be exactly the same as would have overtaken the object of his malignant prosecution. (See on Exo 21:23; see also Lev 24:20).
• THE PRIESTS' EXHORTATION TO ENCOURAGE THE PEOPLE TO BATTLE. (Deu. 20:1-20)
• EXPIATION OF UNCERTAIN MURDER. (Deu 21:1-9)
• THE TREATMENT OF A CAPTIVE TAKEN TO WIFE. (Deu 21:10-23)
• OF HUMANITY TOWARD BRETHREN. (Deu 22:1-4)
• THE SEX TO BE DISTINGUISHED BY APPAREL. (Deu 22:5-12)
• WHO MAY AND WHO MAY NOT ENTER INTO THE CONGREGATION. (Deu. 23:1-25)
• OF DIVORCES. (Deu. 24:1-22)
• STRIPES MUST NOT EXCEED FORTY. (Deu. 25:1-19)
• THE CONFESSION OF HIM THAT OFFERS THE BASKET OF FIRST FRUITS. (Deu 26:1-15)
• THE PEOPLE ARE TO WRITE THE LAW UPON STONES. (Deu 27:1-10)
• THE TRIBES DIVIDED ON GERIZIM AND EBAL. (Deu 27:11-13)
• THE BLESSINGS FOR OBEDIENCE. (Deu. 28:1-68)
• AN EXHORTATION TO OBEDIENCE. (Deu. 29:1-29)
• THE COMMANDMENT IS MANIFEST. (Deu 30:11-14)
• DEATH AND LIFE ARE SET BEFORE THE ISRAELITES. (Deu 30:15-20)
• MOSES ENCOURAGES THE PEOPLE AND JOSHUA. (Deu 31:1-8)
• HE DELIVERS THE LAW TO THE PRIESTS, TO READ IT EVERY SEVENTH YEAR TO THE PEOPLE. (Deu 31:9-13)
• MOSES' SONG, WHICH SETS FORTH THE PERFECTIONS OF GOD. (Deu. 32:1-43)
• THE MAJESTY OF GOD. (Deu. 33:1-28)
• MOSES FROM MOUNT NEBO VIEWS THE LAND. (Deu 34:1-12)

TSK: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

The book of Deuteronomy marks the end of the Pentateuch, commonly called the Law of Moses; a work every way worthy of God its author, and only less than the New Testament, the Law and Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Its antiquity places it at the head of all the writings in the world; and the various subjects it embraces render it of the utmost importance to every part of the civilized world. Its philosophy, history, geography, and chronology entitle it to the respect of the whole human race; while its system of theology and religion demonstrably proves it to be a revelation from God. The Law of Moses is more properly the Law of Jehovah, יהוה [Strong’s 03068] תורה [Strong’s 08451], torah yehowah , the grand title of the Pentateuch. Could we conceive Moses to have been the author of this system, we must consider him more than mortal - no wisdom of man has ever yet invented such a Code of Laws. His merit, however, has been disputed, and his laws severely criticised, by persons whose interest it was to prove religion a cheat, because they had none themselves. To some, whose mental taste and feeling are strangely perverted, everything in heathenism wears not only the most fascinating aspect, but appears to lay claim to and possess every excellence; and hence they have called up Confucius, Menu, Zoraster, and Mohammed himself, to dispute the palm with Moses! On this subject in general, it may be just necessary to add, that the utmost that can be said of all laws, merely human, is, that they restrain vices, through the terror of punishment. God’s law not only restrains vice, but it infuses virtue. It alone brings man to the footstool of his Maker; and keeps him dependent on the strong for strength, on the wise for wisdom, and on the merciful for grace. It abounds with promises of support, and salvation for the present life, which no false system dared ever to propose. every where, Moses, in the most confident manner, pledges his God for the fulfilment of all the exceeding great and precious promises, with which his laws are so plentifully interspersed; and while they were obedient they could say, " Not one word hath failed us, of all the good things which the Lord our God spake concerning us." Who that dispassionately reads the Pentateuch, that considers it in itself and in its reference to that glorious Gospel which it was intended to introduce, can for a moment deny it the palm of infinite superiority over all the systems ever framed or imagined by man? Well might the Israelitish people triumphantly exclaim, " There is none like the God of Jeshurun!" and with what striking propriety does the glorious legislator add, " Happy art thou, O Israel! who is like unto thee? O people, saved of the Lord!" Finally, the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, which are amassed in these five books, have enriched the whole civilized earth, and, indeed, greatly promoted that very civilization. They have been a kind of text-book to almost every writer on geology, geography, chronology, astronomy, natural history, ethics, jurisprudence, political economy, theology, poetry, and criticism, from the time of Moses to the present day - books to which the choicest writers and philosophers in Pagan antiquity, have been deeply indebted; and which were the text-books to all the prophets - books from which the flimsy writers against Divine Revelation have derived their natural religion, and all their moral excellence - books written in all the energy, and purity, of the incomparable language in which they are composed; and lastly, books, which for importance of matter, variety of information, dignity of sentiment, accuracy of facts, impartiality, simplicity, and sublimity of narration, tending to improve and ennoble the intellect and ameliorate the physical and moral condition of man, have never been equalled, and can only be paralleled by the Gospel of the Son of God! Fountain of endless mercy, justice, truth, and beneficence! How much are thy gifts and bounties neglected by those who do not read this law; and by those who having read it, are not morally improved by it, and made wise unto salvation!

TSK: Deuteronomy 29 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

Overview

Deu 29:1, Moses exhorts them to obedience, by the memory of the works they had seen; Deu 29:10, All are presented before the Lord to enter into his covenant; Deu 29:18, The great wrath on him that flatters himself in his wickedness; Deu 29:29, Secret things belong unto God.

Poole: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

FIFTH BOOK of MOSES, CALLED DEUTERONOMY

THE ARGUMENT

Moses, in the two last months of his life, rehearseth what God had done for them, and their frequent murmurings, rebellions, and constant ingratitude. He begs to enter into the land, but is permitted only to see it. He forbiddeth any communion with the nations for several reasons, De 8 . He gives a short repetition of those sundry laws, moral, ceremonial, judicial, and military, which he had given them, from whence this book is called DEUTERONOMY. Then, after many exhortations, he prophesieth of Christ; afterwards he shows how matters of war are to be managed, and, giving many other particular directions with reference to duties, conditions, and persons of both sexes, he pronounceth blessings on the obedient, and curses on the disobedient: he then gives a charge for laying up and reading of the law at certain times, and every seven years to be solemnly read before all the people; he composeth a song for common use, comprising the wonderful things here mentioned: he prophesieth of Christ’ s coming, and the calling of the Gentiles, seeth the land, and dieth, leaving Joshua, after he had consecrated him, to succeed.

Poole: Deuteronomy 29 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

CHAPTER 29

The manifold works and mercies of God a motive to obedience, Deu 29:1-9 . Moses solemnly engageth them to keep covenant with God, Deu 29:10-17 . Unbelief, careless contempt, and breach of covenant shall be severely punished, Deu 29:18-28 . The end and use of the revealed will of God, Deu 29:29 .

MHCC: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

This book repeats much of the history and of the laws contained in the three foregoing books: Moses delivered it to Israel a little before his death, both by word of mouth, that it might affect, and by writing, that it might abide. The men of that generation to which the law was first given were all dead, and a new generation was sprung up, to whom God would have it repeated by Moses himself, now they were going to possess the land of Canaan. The wonderful love of God to his church is set forth in this book; how he ever preserved his church for his own mercies sake, and would still have his name called upon among them. Such are the general outlines of this book, the whole of which shows Moses' love for Israel, and marks him an eminent type of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us apply the exhortations and persuasions to our own consciences, to excite our minds to a believing, grateful obedience to the commands of God.

MHCC: Deuteronomy 29 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

(Deu 29:1-9) Moses calls Israel's mercies to remembrance.

(Deu 29:10-21) The Divine wrath on those who flatter themselves in their wickedness.

(Deu 29:22-28) The ruin of the Jewish nation.

(Deu 29:29) Secret things belong unto God.

Matthew Henry: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Fifth Book of Moses, Called Deuteronomy

This book is a repetition of very much both of the history and of the laws contained in the three foregoing books, which repetition Moses delivered to Israel (both by word of mouth, that it might affect, and by writing, that it might abide) a little before his death. There is no new history in it but that of the death of Moses in the last chapter, nor any new revelation to Moses, for aught that appears, and therefore the style here is not, as before, The Lord spoke unto Moses, saying. But the former laws are repeated and commented upon, explained and enlarged, and some particular precepts added to them, with copius reasonings for the enforcing of them: in this Moses was divinely inspired and assisted, so that this is as truly the word of the Lord by Moses as that which was spoken to him with an audible voice out of the tabernacle of the congregation , Lev 1:1. The Greek interpreters call it Deuteronomy, which signifies the second law, or a second edition of the law, not with amendments, for there needed none, but with additions, for the further direction of the people in divers cases not mentioned before. Now, I. It was much for the honour of the divine law that it should be thus repeated; how great were the things of that law which was thus inculcated, and how inexcusable would those be by whom they were counted as a strange thing! Hos 8:12. II. There might be a particular reason for the repeating of it now; the men of that generation to which the law was first given were all dead, and a new generation had sprung up, to whom God would have it repeated by Moses himself, that, if possible, it might make a lasting impression upon them. Now that they were just going to take possession of the land of Canaan, Moses must read the articles of agreement to them, that they might know upon what terms and conditions they were to hold and enjoy that land, and might understand that they were upon their good behaviour in it. III. It would be of great use to the people to have those parts of the law thus gathered up and put together which did more immediately concern them and their practice; for the laws which concerned the priests and Levites, and the execution of their offices, are not repeated: it was enough for them that they were once delivered. But, in compassion to the infirmities of the people, the laws of more common concern are delivered a second time. Precept must be upon precept, and line upon line, Isa 28:10. The great and needful truths of the gospel should be often pressed upon people by the ministers of Christ. To write the same things (says Paul, Phi 3:1) to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. What God has spoken once we have need to hear twice, to hear many times, and it is well if, after all, it be duly perceived and regarded. In three ways this book of Deuteronomy was magnified and made honourable: - 1. The king was to write a copy of it with his own hand, and to read therein all the days of his life, ch. 17, 18, 19. 2. It was to be written upon great stones plastered, at their passing over Jordan, Deu 27:2, Deu 27:3. 3. It was to be read publicly every seventh year, at the feast of tabernacles, by the priests, in the audience of all Israel, Deu 31:9, etc. The gospel is a kind of Deuteronomy, a second law, a remedial law, a spiritual law, a law of faith; by it we are under the law of Christ, and it is a law that makes the comers thereunto perfect.

This book of Deuteronomy begins with a brief rehearsal of the most remarkable events that had befallen the Israelites since they came from Mount Sinai. In the fourth chapter we have a most pathetic exhortation to obedience. In the twelfth chapter, and so on to the twenty-seventh, are repeated many particular laws, which are enforced (ch. 27 and 28) with promises and threatenings, blessings and curses, formed into a covenant, ch. 29 and 30. Care is taken to perpetuate the remembrance of these things among them (ch. 31), particularly by a song (ch. 32), and so Moses concludes with a blessing, ch. 33. All this was delivered by Moses to Israel in the last month of his life. The whole book contains the history but of two months; compare Deu 1:3 with Jos 4:19, the latter of which was the thirty days of Israel's mourning for Moses; see how busy that great and good man was to do good when he knew that his time was short, how quick his motion when he drew near his rest. Thus we have more recorded of what our blessed Saviour said and did in the last week of his life than in any other. The last words of eminent persons make or should make deep impressions. Observe, for the honour of this book, that when our Saviour would answer the devil's temptations with, It is written, he fetched all his quotations out of this book, Mat 4:4, Mat 4:7, Mat 4:10.

Matthew Henry: Deuteronomy 29 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

The first words of this chapter are the contents of it, " These are the words of the covenant" (Deu 29:1), that is, these that follow. Here is, I. A recital of God's dealings with them, in order to the bringing of them into this covenant (Deu 29:2-8). II. A solemn charge to them to keep the covenant (Deu 29:9). III. An abstract of the covenant itself (Deu 29:12, Deu 29:13). IV. A specification of the persons taken into the covenant (Deu 29:10, Deu 29:11, Deu 29:14, Deu 29:15). V. An intimation of the great design of this covenant against idolatry, in a parenthesis (Deu 29:16, Deu 29:17). VI. A most solemn and dreadful denunciation of the wrath of God against such persons as promise themselves peace in a sinful way (Deu 29:18-28). VII. The conclusion of this treaty, with a distinction between things secret and things revealed (Deu 29:29).

Constable: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

Introduction

Title

The title of this book in the Hebrew Bible was its first two words, elleh haddebarim, which translate into English as "these are the words" (1:1). Ancient Near Eastern suzerainty treaties began with exactly the same words.¹ So the Jewish title gives a strong clue to the literary character of Deuteronomy.

The English title comes from the Septuagint (Greek) translation. "Deuteronomy" means "second law" in Greek. We might suppose that this title arose from the idea that Deuteronomy records the law as Moses repeated it to the new generation of Israelites who were preparing to enter the land. This is not the case. It came from a mistranslation of a phrase in 17:18. There God commanded Israel's kings to prepare "a copy of this law" for themselves. The Septuagint translators mistakenly rendered this phrase "this second [repeated] law." The Vulgate (Latin) translation, influenced by the Septuagint, translated the phrase "second law" as deuteronomium from which Deuteronomy is a transliteration. Deuteronomy is to some extent, however, a repetition to the new generation of the Law God gave at Mt. Sinai. Thus God overruled the translators' error and gave us a title for the book in English that is appropriate in view of the contents of the book.

Date and Writer

Moses evidently wrote this book on the plains of Moab shortly before his death, which occurred about 1406 B.C.

The Mosaic authorship of this book is quite easy to establish. The book claims to be the words of Moses (1:5, 9; 5:1; 27:1, 8; 29:2; 31:1, 30; 33:1, 29) and his writing (31:9, 22, 24). Other Old Testament books also assert the Mosaic authorship of Deuteronomy (1 Kings 2:3; 8:53; 2 Kings 14:6; 18:6, 12). Jesus Christ believed Moses wrote Deuteronomy (Matt. 19:7-8; Mark 10:3-5; 12:19; John 5:46-47) as did the Apostle Peter (Acts 3:22), Stephen (Acts 7:37-38), Paul (Rom. 10:19; 1 Cor. 9:9), and the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews (Heb. 10:28).

"The authorship of no other book in the Old Testament is so explicitly emphasized."²

The form in which Moses wrote Deuteronomy is very similar to that of ancient Near Eastern suzerainty-vassal treaties dating before and during the Mosaic era. This structural evidence confirms an early date of composition.³

Most conservative commentators prefer to regard the record of Moses' death and a few editorial comments as the work of a later writer or writers. Of course, Moses could have written these verses too.

In spite of such conclusive evidence some scholars prefer a later date for Deuteronomy. The critics favor a post-Mosaic but pre-seventh century date, a seventh century date in King Josiah's era, or a postexilic date.⁴

Scope

Deuteronomy is similar to Leviticus in that both books contain a record of instructions and speeches almost exclusively. Deuteronomy is not so much a book of history, as Genesis, Exodus, and Numbers are, as it is a book of law. In contrast to Leviticus, however, Moses addressed Deuteronomy to all the Israelites more than to the priests and Levites.

The scope of history covered in Deuteronomy is very brief. All the events recorded took place on the plains of Moab probably within a few weeks just before Israel's entrance into Canaan.

"According to the Index locorum of Nestle's Novum Testamentum Graece Deuteronomy is quoted or otherwise cited at least 95 times in the New Testament (compared to 103 for Genesis, 113 for Exodus, 35 for Leviticus, and 20 for Numbers), making it one of the favorite Old Testament books of Jesus and the apostles."⁵

Character

"The book of Deuteronomy is the document prepared by Moses as a witness to the dynastic covenant which the Lord gave to Israel in the plains of Moab (cf. 31:26)."⁶

Theology

"In line with the general correspondence of the form of a thing to its function, it is safe to say that one cannot understand the theology of Deuteronomy without reference to its covenant form and structure . . . It is no exaggeration to maintain that the concept of covenant lies at the very heart of the book and may be said to be the center of its theology.

"Covenant by its very definition demands at least three elements--the two contracting parties and the document that describes and outlines the purpose, nature, and requirements of the relationship. Thus the three major rubrics of the theology of Deuteronomy are (1) Yahweh, the Great King and covenant initiator; (2) Israel, the vassal and covenant recipient; and (3) the book itself, the covenant organ, complete with the essentials of standard treaty documents. This means, moreover, that all the revelation of the book must be seen through the prism of covenant and not abstractly removed from the peculiar historical and ideological context in which it originated."⁷

"The theological values of Deuteronomy can hardly be exaggerated. It stands as the wellspring of biblical historical revelation. It is a prime source for both OT and NT theology. Whether the covenant, the holiness of God, or the concept of the people of God is the unifying factor of OT theology, each finds emphasis and remarkable definition in Deuteronomy."⁸

Message⁹

Let me share with you a couple of quotations that point out the importance of this book.

"Deuteronomy is one of the greatest books of the Old Testament. Its significance on the domestic and personal religion of all ages has not been surpassed by any other book in the Bible. It is quoted over eighty times in the New Testament . . . in all but six books . . . and thus it belongs to a small group of four Old Testaments books (Genesis, Deuteronomy, Psalms, and Isaiah) to which the early Christians made frequent reference."¹⁰

"The book of Deuteronomy is the most important book in the Old Testament from the standpoint of God's revelation to man."¹¹

Deuteronomy is not just a recapitulation of things previously revealed in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. It is a selective digest of matters most important to the average Israelite in his or her relationship with God. Moses spoke as an aged father to his children. These are the parting words of the man who communed with God face to face. His words in Deuteronomy spring from a personal and intimate knowledge of God that had matured over 120 years.

One of the striking features of this book is the frequent references to love that recur throughout it. God's love for the patriarchs and later the whole nation of Israel is obvious in the previous four books of the Pentateuch, but Moses never articulated it directly. In Deuteronomy for the first time Moses revealed that it was God's love for Israel that motivated Him to deal with the Israelites as He had.

One of the great revelations of this book is the motivation of God. God's love for people moved Him to bless. Moses referred to God's love for people as the motivation of His government in three of the book's major sections.

It constitutes the climax of Moses' first address to the people (1:6-4:40) in which he reviewed God's faithfulness to the Israelites. It was because God loved them that He had treated them as He had (4:32-40, esp. v. 37).

In the second address, which is an exposition of the Mosaic Law (chs. 5-26), Moses explained that God's love motivated His laws (7:7-11; 10:12-22, esp. v. 15; 15:16; 23:5; et al.).

In the conclusion of the book, which records Moses' blessing of the nation (ch. 33), he again reminded the people of God's love for them (33:2-5, esp. v. 3a).

Not only does Deuteronomy reveal that God's love is what motivates Him to govern His people as He does. It also emphasizes that man's love for God should be what motivates us to obey God (cf. 1 John 4:19). This theme too recurs throughout the book.

In Moses' review of the law (chs. 5-26) he called on the Israelites to love God (5:9-10; 6:4-5; 7:9; 10:12-13; 11:1, 13-14, 22-23; 13:1-13, esp. vv. 1-3; 19:8-9). The Israelites' obedience to God's laws expressed their love for God. Love is the most proper and adequate motivation for obedience and service.

We hear this theme again in Moses' third address (chs. 29-30) in which Moses exhorted the new generation of Israelites to obey their covenant, the Mosaic Covenant (30:6, 15-20).

The message of the book then is that God's love for man is the motivation of His government, and man's love for God should be the motivation of his obedience.

This emphasis on love appears even more striking in comparison with other ancient Near Eastern suzerain-vassal treaties. The ancient Near Eastern kings delineated clearly the rights of the ruler and the responsibilities of the subjects in these documents. However the motivation was self-interest, the opposite of love. Concern for others was present, but self-interest predominated.

Since Moses set Deuteronomy in the form of a suzerain-vassal treaty we can learn much about how he viewed Israel's relationship to God.

To quote Thompson again, "Both the literary shape of Deuteronomy and its underlying central concept provide an important clue to the basic theology of the book. Yahweh, the God of Israel, appears in a strong covenantal setting. He is the great King, the Lord of the covenant. From this central concept Israel's finest theological ideas derived."¹²

These "ideas" include the fact that Yahweh is the Lord of the covenant and the God of history.

Obedience to God and His covenant brings blessing whereas disobedience incurs curses. Israel was the people of the covenant.

The people were to worship their Lord by loving Him with their hearts and remembering Him and His acts with their minds.

There are perhaps four basic implications of this revelation and these correspond to four major sections of the book.

1. It is important to remember God's past faithfulness to appreciate His love (1:6-4:40). God commanded the Israelites to remember. Forgetfulness was a sin that would lead them to ingratitude and ultimately to apostasy. To forget was to rebel against God. Remembering the past would remind the people of God's love and rekindle their love for Him. Love as well as trust rests on confidence. We can love God only when we have confidence in Him.

2. God's laws are an expression of His love (chs. 5-26). Because man is a sinner he needs divine laws. God's provision of these laws is an expression of His love for mankind. The specific laws in the Mosaic Code expressed God's love because God intended them to result in Israel's blessing and welfare. Often we think laws are undesirable because they curb our freedom. However, God curbs our freedom to keep us from evil, not to keep us from good.

3. Only love for God will adequately motivate a person to be obedient to God's laws (chs. 27-28). These laws in Israel were so severe that the only motive strong enough to produce consistent obedience was love. Moses urged the Israelites to cultivate their love for God as they prepared to renew the covenant. Self-confidence had failed their fathers, and it would fail them too. Obedience to God can be a joyful or a bitter experience depending on one's motivation.

When we know God we love Him, and when we love God we will want to obey Him.

4. Obedience to God demonstrates love for Him (chs. 29-30). While it is possible to obey God with lesser motives, it is impossible to be consistently obedient without love for God. Consistent obedience is not the same as sinless perfection. The measure of one's love for God is the measure of his or her obedience to the revealed will of God (1 John 5:3). The degree of our commitment to do the will of God is the true measure of our love for God. The real test of our love for God is what we do more than how we feel.

Constable: Deuteronomy (Garis Besar)

Outline

I. Introduction: the covenant setting 1:1-5

II. Moses' first major address: a review of God's faithfulness 1:6-4:40

A. God's past dealings with Israel 1:6-3:29

1. God's guidance from Sinai to Kadesh 1:6-46

2. The march from Kadesh to the Amorite frontier 2:1-23

3. The conquest of the kingdom of Sihon 2:24-37

4. The conquest of the kingdom of Og 3:1-11

5. A review of the distribution of the conquered land 3:12-20

6. Moses' anticipation of future blessing 3:21-29

B. An exhortation to observe the law faithfully 4:1-40

1. The appeal to hearken and obey 4:1-8

2. God's appearance at Mt. Horeb 4:9-14

3. The prohibition of idolatry 4:15-24

4. The consequences of idolatry 4:25-31

5. The uniqueness of Yahweh and Israel 4:32-40

III. Historical interlude: preparation for the covenant text 4:41-49

A. The appointment of cities of refuge in Transjordan 4:41-43

B. Introduction to the second address 4:44-49

IV. Moses' second major address: an exposition of the law chs. 5-26

A. The essence of the law and its fulfillment ch. 5-11

1. Exposition of the Decalogue and its promulgation ch. 5

2. Exhortation to love Yahweh ch. 6

3. Examples of the application of the principles chs. 7-11

B. An exposition of selected covenant laws 12-25

1. Laws arising from the first commandment 12:1-31

2. Laws arising from the second commandment 12:32-13:18

3. Laws arising from the third commandment 14:1-21

4. Laws arising from the fourth commandment 14:22-16:17

5. Laws arising from the fifth commandment 16:18-18:22

6. Laws arising from the sixth commandment 19:1-22:8

7. Laws arising from the seventh commandment 22:9-23:18

8. Laws arising from the eighth commandment 23:19-24:7

9. Laws arising from the ninth commandment 24:8-25:4

10. Laws arising from the tenth commandment 25:5-19

C. Covenant celebration, confirmation, and conclusion ch. 26

1. Laws of covenant celebration and confirmation 26:1-15

2. Summary exhortation 26:16-19

V. Preparations for renewing the covenant chs. 27:1-29:1

A. The ceremony at Shechem 27:1-13

B. The curses that follow disobedience to specific stipulations 27:14-26

C. The blessings that follow obedience 28:1-14

D. The curses that follow disobedience to general stipulations 28:15-68

E. Narrative interlude 29:1

VI. Moses' third major address: an exhortation to obedience chs. 29:2-30:20

A. An appeal for faithfulness 29:2-29

1. Historical review 29:2-8

2. The purpose of the assembly 29:9-15

3. The consequences of disobedience 29:16-29

B. A call to decision ch. 30

1. The possibility of restoration 30:1-10

2. The importance of obedience 30:11-20

VII. Moses' last acts chs. 31-34

A. The duties of Israel's future leaders 31:1-29

1. The presentation of Joshua 31:1-8

2. The seventh year covenant renewal ceremony 31:9-13

3. The commissioning of Joshua 31:14-23

4. The preservation of God's words 31:24-29

B. The Song of Moses 31:30-32:44

1. The introduction to the song 31:30

2. The song itself 32:1-43

3. The conclusion to the song 32:44

C. Narrative interlude 32:45-52

1. Moses' exhortation to obedience 32:45-47

2. The announcement of Moses' death 32:48-52

D. Moses' blessing of the tribes ch. 33

E. Moses' death and burial: narrative epilogue ch. 34

You will notice that there is a general alternation between narrative (sections I, III, V, and VII) and didactic (sections II, IV, and VI) material. However there is some mixture of narrative and didactic material in sections V and VII.

We can also divide the revelation in this book according to the general arrangement of the typical form of a suzerain-vassal treaty that was common in the ancient Near East.¹³

I. Preamble: Covenant mediator 1:1-5

II. Historical prologue: Covenant history 1:6-4:49

III. Stipulations: Covenant life chs. 5-26

A. The Great Commandment chs. 5-11

B. Ancillary commandments chs. 12-26

IV. Sanctions: Covenant ratification chs. 27-30

V. Dynastic disposition: Covenant continuity chs. 31-34

Constable: Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

INTRODUCTION.

THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY.

This Book is called Deuteronomy, which signifies a second law , because it repeats and inculcates the ordinances formerly given on Mount Sinai, with other precepts not expressed before. The Hebrews, from the first words in the Book, call it Elle Haddebarim . (Challoner) --- It may be divided into many discourses, which Moses made to the people during the last two months of his life. (Haydock) --- The first was delivered by him on the first day of the eleventh month of the fortieth year, since the deliverance of the Hebrews out of Egypt, and relates various particulars which had occurred to them. In chap. iv. 41, and following, and a supplement from the Book of Numbers is given to this discourse. Chap. v., a fresh exhortation to the people commences, which continues until chap. xxii., where the famous blessings and maledictions, from the mountains of Garizim and Hebal, are related. In the following chapters, Moses exhorts the people, in the most pathetic manner, to be faithful to the Lord, adding the strongest threats and promises to enforce their compliance; and having appointed Josue to succeed him, and repeated that beautiful canticle which God ordered them to write, (chap. xxxi. 19,) he gives the Book of Deuteronomy, to be kept with care, (ver. 9,) blesses the tribes like a good and tender father, and gives up his soul to God on Mount Nebo in the 120th year of his age. (Calmet) --- There can be no doubt but that Moses was the author of this book, as well as of the four preceding ones; though the last chapter may, perhaps, form a part of the Book of Josue, which formerly was written immediately after the works of Moses, without any such marks of distinction as we find at present. The whole Bible seemed to make but one verse. How easily, therefore, might the account of the death of Moses be taken in, as forming a part of the Pentateuch, when the different books came to be distinguished by separate titles! Such an insertion cannot hurt the general claim of Moses to be the author of the Pentateuch; or, if it should be thought to do so, no absolute proof can be brought to shew that he did not write this chapter also, by the spirit of prophecy. All the people spoke to Esdras, the scribe, to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded, to Israel. The whole nation of the Jews has all along maintained, that Moses wrote these books: and he himself repeatedly asserts that he was ordered to leave on record many things of importance. Hence both internal and external evidence concur to establish his title to them; and if we be not disposed to cavil with all other authors, and to deny that Demosthenes, for example, Cæsar, and others, have written the works which bear their names, we must confess that the Pentateuch is to be attributed to the Jewish legislator. Yet if this were a matter of doubt, the things contained in these books could not, on that account, be controverted. How many anonymous works have been published which are of unquestionable authority! Many of the books of Scripture are of this nature. But as we have every reason to believe, that they have come down to us without any material corruption, and were written by people of veracity, by divine inspiration, they deserve to be regarded as authentic records. This is true, whether we speak of the originals or of the versions authorized by the Church; though it should suffice to stop the mouths of infidels, if we can procure an authentic history of the Bible by the collation of the different copies which are extant. Thus, where the Hebrew editions appear to be incorrect, they may receive great light from the Samaritan copy of the Pentateuch, and from the versions of the Septuagint, and of other respectable authors on the whole Bible. The variations, which we may discover, are not of such moment, but that, if the very worst copy were selected, we should find the same great outlines of Scripture history, the same precepts of faith and morality. The laws of Moses, which are scattered through his five books, may be seen all together in their natural order, collected by Cornelius a Lapide and Calmet. But the spirit of God was pleased to intersperse historical facts among them, which both shew the occasion on which they were given, and enable us to read them with greater pleasure and satisfaction. The four preceding books might be compared to the four Gospels; Deuteronomy represents the whole, (Ven. Bede) and may be styled a Diatessaron, as it recalls to our mind the great Creator of all things, who was about to fulfil the promises which he had made to the Patriarchs. Almost all those to whom Moses addresses himself, had been unborn or very young, when their parents received God's commands at Sinai, and wandered in the desert. He therefore gives them an account of what had happened during the last eventful period of forty years. He shews what had brought on so many disasters, and cautions his hearers, that if they imitate the perfidy of their fathers, as he foresees, with sorrow, that they will, (chap. xxxi.) they must expect to be treated with no less severity. This prediction we behold verified, at the present day, in the persons of the scattered remnants of Israel. How sublime! how terrifying are the truths which Moses enforces with so much earnestness! The same threats which he denounces against the perfidious Jews, regard us in some measure. If we feel not their effects at present, in being driven out from our country, we have more reason to fear lest we should be excluded from our heavenly inheritance, if we do not repent. (Haydock)

Gill: Deuteronomy (Pendahuluan Kitab)

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY

This book is sometimes called "Elleh hadebarim", from the words with which it begins; and sometimes by the Jews "Mishneh Torah", the repetition of the law; and so in the Syriac version, with which agrees the Arabic title of it; and when the Greeks, and we after them, call it "Deuteronomy", it is not to be understood of a second, a new, or another law, but of the law formerly delivered, but now repeated, and also more largely explained; to which are likewise added several particular laws, instructions, and directions; all which were necessary, on account of the people of Israel, who were now a new generation, that either were not born, or not at an age to hear and understand the law when given on Mount Sinai; the men that heard it there being all dead, excepting a very few; and these people were also now about to enter into the land of Canaan, which they were to enjoy as long as they kept the law of God, and no longer, and therefore it was proper they should be reminded of it; and besides, Moses was now about to leave them, and having an hearty desire after their welfare, spends the little time he had to be with them, by inculcating into them and impressing on them the laws of God, and in opening and explaining them to them, and enforcing them on them, which were to be the rule of their obedience, and on which their civil happiness depended. And sometimes the Jews call this book "the book of reproofs", because there are in it several sharp reproofs of the people of Israel for their rebellion and disobedience; and so the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem begin it by calling it the words of reproof which Moses spake, &c. That this book was written by Moses there can be no doubt, from Deu 1:1, only the eight last verses, which give an account of his death, and of his character, were wrote by another hand, equally inspired by God, as either Eleazar the priest, as some, or Samuel the prophet, as others; or, as it is the more commonly received opinion of the Jews, Ezra; though it is highly probable they were wrote by Joshua his successor. This book was written and delivered by Moses, at certain times in the last month of his life, and towards the close of the fortieth year of the children of Israel's coming out of Egypt. And that it is of divine authority need not be questioned, when the several quotations out of it are observed, as made by the apostles of Christ, in Act 3:22, Heb 10:30 out of Deu 18:15 and by our Lord himself, Mat 18:16 from Deu 19:15. Yea, it is remarkable, that all the passages of Scripture produced by Christ, to repel the temptations of Satan, are all taken out of this book, Mat 4:7 compared with Deu 8:3, and the voice from heaven, directing the apostles to hearken to him, refers to a prophecy of him in Deu 18:15.

Gill: Deuteronomy 29 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 29

This chapter begins with an intimation of another covenant the Lord was about to make with the people of Israel, Deu 29:1; and, to prepare their minds to an attention to it, various things which the Lord had done for them are recited, Deu 29:2; the persons are particularly mentioned with whom the covenant would now be made, the substance of which is, that they should be his people, and he their God, Deu 29:10; and since they had seen the idols in Egypt and other countries, with which they might have been ensnared, they are cautioned against idolatry and idolaters, as being most provoking to the Lord, Deu 29:16; which would bring destruction not only on particular persons, but upon their whole land, to the amazement of posterity; who, inquiring the reason of it, will be told, it was because they forsook the covenant of God, and particularly were guilty of idolatry, which, whether privately or openly committed, would be always punished, Deu 29:22.