Teks -- Deuteronomy 4:21-49 (NET)

4:21 But the Lord became angry with me because of you and vowed that I would never cross the Jordan nor enter the good land that he is about to give you. 4:22 So I must die here in this land; I will not cross the Jordan. But you are going over and will possess that good land. 4:23 Be on guard so that you do not forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he has made with you, and that you do not make an image of any kind, just as he has forbidden you. 4:24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God.

Threat and Blessing following Covenant Disobedience

4:25 After you have produced children and grandchildren and have been in the land a long time, if you become corrupt and make an image of any kind and do other evil things before the Lord your God that enrage him, 4:26 I invoke heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will surely and swiftly be removed from the very land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not last long there because you will surely be annihilated. 4:27 Then the Lord will scatter you among the peoples and there will be very few of you among the nations where the Lord will drive you. 4:28 There you will worship gods made by human hands– wood and stone that can neither see, hear, eat, nor smell. 4:29 But if you seek the Lord your God from there, you will find him, if, indeed, you seek him with all your heart and soul. 4:30 In your distress when all these things happen to you in the latter days, if you return to the Lord your God and obey him 4:31 (for he is a merciful God), he will not let you down or destroy you, for he cannot forget the covenant with your ancestors that he confirmed by oath to them.

The Uniqueness of Israel’s God

4:32 Indeed, ask about the distant past, starting from the day God created humankind on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether there has ever been such a great thing as this, or even a rumor of it. 4:33 Have a people ever heard the voice of God speaking from the middle of fire, as you yourselves have, and lived to tell about it? 4:34 Or has God ever before tried to deliver a nation from the middle of another nation, accompanied by judgments, signs, wonders, war, strength, power, and other very terrifying things like the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? 4:35 You have been taught that the Lord alone is God– there is no other besides him. 4:36 From heaven he spoke to you in order to teach you, and on earth he showed you his great fire from which you also heard his words. 4:37 Moreover, because he loved your ancestors, he chose their descendants who followed them and personally brought you out of Egypt with his great power 4:38 to dispossess nations greater and stronger than you and brought you here this day to give you their land as your property. 4:39 Today realize and carefully consider that the Lord is God in heaven above and on earth below– there is no other! 4:40 Keep his statutes and commandments that I am setting forth today so that it may go well with you and your descendants and that you may enjoy longevity in the land that the Lord your God is about to give you as a permanent possession.

The Narrative Concerning Cities of Refuge

4:41 Then Moses selected three cities in the Transjordan, toward the east. 4:42 Anyone who accidentally killed someone without hating him at the time of the accident could flee to one of those cities and be safe. 4:43 These cities are Bezer, in the desert plateau, for the Reubenites; Ramoth in Gilead for the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan for the Manassehites.

The Setting and Introduction of the Covenant

4:44 This is the law that Moses set before the Israelites. 4:45 These are the stipulations, statutes, and ordinances that Moses spoke to the Israelites after he had brought them out of Egypt, 4:46 in the Transjordan, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, in the land of King Sihon of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. (It is he whom Moses and the Israelites attacked after they came out of Egypt. 4:47 They possessed his land and that of King Og of Bashan– both of whom were Amorite kings in the Transjordan, to the east. 4:48 Their territory extended from Aroer at the edge of the Arnon valley as far as Mount Siyon– that is, Hermon– 4:49 including all the Arabah of the Transjordan in the east to the sea of the Arabah, beneath the watershed of Pisgah.)

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

Wesley: Deu 4:24 - A consuming fire

A just and terrible God, who, notwithstanding his special relation to thee, will severely punish thee, if thou provoke him.

Wesley: Deu 4:24 - A jealous God

Who being espoused to thee, will be highly incensed against thee, (if thou follow after other lovers, or commit whoredom with idols) and will bear no rival or partner.

Wesley: Deu 4:28 - Ye shall serve Gods

You shall be compelled by men, and given up by me to idolatry. So that very thing which was your choice, shall be your punishment: it being just and usual for God to punish one sin by giving men up to another.

Wesley: Deu 4:29 - If from thence thou seek the Lord

Whatever place we are in, we may from thence seek him. There is no part of the earth which has a gulf fixt between it and heaven.

Wesley: Deu 4:30 - In the latter days

In succeeding ages.

Wesley: Deu 4:32 - The one side of heaven

That is, of the earth under heaven. Ask all the inhabitants of the world.

Wesley: Deu 4:33 - And live

And was not overwhelmed and consumed by such a glorious appearance.

Wesley: Deu 4:34 - By temptations

Temptations is the general title, which is explained by the following particulars, signs, and wonders, &c. which are called temptations, because they were trials both to the Egyptians and Israelites, whether they would be induced to believe and obey God or no.

Wesley: Deu 4:34 - By terrors

Raised in the minds of the Egyptians, or, by terrible things done among them.

Wesley: Deu 4:37 - In his sight

Keeping his eye fixed upon him, as the father doth on his beloved child.

Wesley: Deu 4:44 - This is the law

More punctually expressed in the following chapter, to which these words are a preface.

JFB: Deu 4:26 - I call heaven and earth to witness against you

This solemn form of adjuration has been common in special circumstances among all people. It is used here figuratively, or as in other parts of Scripture where inanimate objects are called up as witnesses (Deu 32:1; Isa 1:2).

JFB: Deu 4:28 - there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands

The compulsory measures of their tyrannical conquerors would force them into idolatry, so that their choice would become their punishment.

JFB: Deu 4:30 - in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God

Either towards the destined close of their captivities, when they evinced a returning spirit of repentance and faith, or in the age of Messiah, which is commonly called "the latter days," and when the scattered tribes of Israel shall be converted to the Gospel of Christ. The occurrence of this auspicious event will be the most illustrious proof of the truth of the promise made in Deu 4:31.

JFB: Deu 4:41-43 - Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan

(See on Jos 20:7).

JFB: Deu 4:44-49 - this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel

This is a preface to the rehearsal of the law, which, with the addition of various explanatory circumstances, the following chapters contain.

JFB: Deu 4:46 - Beth-peor

That is, "house" or "temple of Peor." It is probable that a temple of this Moabite idol stood in full view of the Hebrew camp, while Moses was urging the exclusive claims of God to their worship, and this allusion would be very significant if it were the temple where so many of the Israelites had grievously offended.

JFB: Deu 4:49 - The springs of Pisgah

More frequently, Ashdoth-pisgah (Deu 3:17; Jos 12:3; Jos 13:20), the roots or foot of the mountains east of the Jordan.

Clarke: Deu 4:21 - The Lord was angry with me

The Lord was angry with me - And if with me, so as to debar me from entering into the promised land, can you think to escape if guilty of greater provocations?

Clarke: Deu 4:24 - Thy God is a consuming fire

Thy God is a consuming fire - They had seen him on the mount as an unconsuming fire, while appearing to Moses, and giving the law; and they had seen him as a consuming fire in the case of Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their company. They had, therefore, every good to expect from his approbation, and every evil to dread from his displeasure.

Clarke: Deu 4:26 - I call heaven and earth to witness against you

I call heaven and earth to witness against you - A most solemn method of adjuration, in use among all nations in the world. So Virgil, Aen., lib. xii., ver. 176, etc

Tum pius Aeneas stricto sic ense precatur

Esto nunc Sol testis et haec mihi terra vocanti -

Fontesque fluviosque voco, quaeque aetheris alt

Relllgio, et quae caeruleo sunt numina ponto, etc

"Then the great Trojan prince unsheathed his sword

And thus, with lifted hands, the gods adored

Thou land for which I wage this war, and tho

Great source of day, be witness to my vow! -

Almighty king of heaven and queen of air

Propitious now and reconciled by prayer, -

Ye springs, ye floods, ye various powers who li

Beneath the deep, or tread the golden sky, -

Hear and Attest!

Pitt

God and man being called upon to bear testimony to the truth of what was spoken, that if there was any flaw or insincerity, it might be detected; and if any crime, it might not go unpunished. Such appeals to God, for such purposes, show at once both the origin and use of oaths. See the note on Deu 6:13.

Clarke: Deu 4:27 - The Lord shall scatter you among the nations

The Lord shall scatter you among the nations - This was amply verified in their different captivities and dispersions.

Clarke: Deu 4:28 - There ye shall serve gods - wood and stone

There ye shall serve gods - wood and stone - This was also true of the Israelites, not only in their captivities, but also in their own land. And it may now be literally the case with the ten tribes who were carried away captive by the Assyrians, and of whose residence no man at present knows any thing with certainty. That they still exist there can be no doubt; but they are now, most probably, so completely incorporated with the idolaters among whom they dwell, as to be no longer distinguish able: yet God can gather them.

Clarke: Deu 4:29 - But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord

But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord - God is longsuffering, and of tender mercy; and waits, ever ready, to receive a backsliding soul when it returns to him. Is not this promise left on record for the encouragement and salvation of lost Israel?

Clarke: Deu 4:30 - When thou art in tribulation in the latter days

When thou art in tribulation in the latter days - Are not these the times spoken of? And is there not still hope for Israel? Could we see them become zealous for their own law and religious observances - could we see them humble themselves before the God of Jacob - could we see them conduct their public worship with any tolerable decency and decorum - could we see them zealous to avoid every moral evil, inquiring the road to Zion, with their faces thitherward; then might we hope that the redemption of Israel was at hand: but alas! there is not the most distant evidence of any thing of the kind, except in a very few solitary instances. They are, perhaps, in the present day, more lost to every sacred principle of their own institutions than they have ever been since their return from the Babylonish captivity. By whom shall Jacob arise? for in this sense he is small - deeply fallen, and greatly degraded.

Clarke: Deu 4:33 - Did ever people hear the voice of God

Did ever people hear the voice of God - It seems to have been a general belief that if God appeared to men, it was for the purpose of destroying them; and indeed most of the extraordinary manifestations of God were in the way of judgment; but here it was different; God did appear in a sovereign and extraordinary manner; but it was for the deliverance and support of the people

1.    They heard his voice speaking with them in a distinct, articulate manner

2.    They saw the fire, the symbol of his presence, the appearances of which demonstrated it to be supernatural

3.    Notwithstanding God appeared so terrible, yet no person was destroyed, for he came, not to destroy, but to save.

Clarke: Deu 4:34 - From the midst of another nation

From the midst of another nation - This was a most extraordinary thing, that a whole people, consisting of upwards of 600,000 effective men, besides women and children, should, without striking a blow, be brought out of the midst of a very powerful nation, to the political welfare of which their services were so essential; that they should be brought out in so open and public a manner; that the sea itself should be supernaturally divided to afford this mighty host a passage; and that, in a desert utterly unfriendly to human life, they should be sustained for forty years. These were such instances of the almighty power and goodness of God as never could be forgotten

In this verse Moses enumerates seven different means used by the Almighty in effecting Israel’ s deliverance

1.    Temptations, מסת massoth , from נשה nasah , to try or prove; the miracles which God wrought to try the faith and prove the obedience of the children of Israel

2.    Signs, אתת othoth , from אתה athah , to come near; such signs as God gave them of his continual presence and especial providence, particularly the pillar of cloud and pillar of fire, keeping near to them night and day, and always directing their journeys, showing them when and where to pitch their tents, etc., etc

3.    Wonders, מופתים mophethim , from יפת yaphath , to persuade; persuasive facts and events, says Parkhurst, whether strictly miraculous, and exceeding the powers of nature, as Exo 7:9; Exo 11:9, Exo 11:10; or not, as Isa 20:3; Eze 12:6, Eze 12:11. It probably means typical representations: in this signification the word is used, Zec 3:8. Joshua, the high priest, and his companions were אנשי מופת anshey mopheth , typical men, raised up by God as types of Christ, and proofs that God would bring his servant The Branch. All the dealings of God with this people, and even the people themselves, were types - present significators of distant facts and future occurrences

4.    War, מלחמה milchamah , hostile engagements; such as those with the Amalekites, the Amorites, and the Bashanites, in which the hand of God was seen rather than the hand of man

5.    A Mighty Hand, יד חזקה yad chazakah ; one that is strong to deal its blows, irresistible in its operations, and grasps its enemies hard, so that they cannot escape, and protects its friends so powerfully that they cannot be injured. Neither stratagem nor policy was used in this business, but the openly displayed power of God

6.    A Stretched-Out Arm, זרוע נטויה ,mrA zeroa netuyah ; a series of almighty operations, following each other in quick astonishing succession. Let it be noted that in the Scriptures

    1. The finger of God denotes any manifestation of the Divine power, where effects are produced beyond the power of art or nature

    2. The hand of God signifies the same power, but put forth in a more signal manner

    3. The arm of God, the Divine omnipotence manifested in the most stupendous miracles

    4. The arm of God stretched out, this same omnipotence exerted in a continuation of stupendous miracles, both in the way of judgment and mercy. In this latter sense it appears to be taken in the text: the judgments were poured out on the Egyptians; the mercies wrought in favor of the Israelites

7.    Great Terrors, מוראים גדלים moraim gedolim ; such terror, dismay, and consternation as were produced by the ten plagues, to which probably the inspired penman here alludes: or, as the Septuagint has it, εν ὁραμασιν μεγαλοις, with great or portentous sights; such as that when God looked out of the cloud upon the Egyptians, and their chariot wheels were taken off, Exo 14:24, Exo 14:25. More awful displays of God’ s judgments, power, and might, were never witnessed by man.

Clarke: Deu 4:41 - Then Moses severed three cities

Then Moses severed three cities - See the law relative to the cities of refuge explained, Num 35:11 (note), etc.

Clarke: Deu 4:43 - Bezer in the wilderness

Bezer in the wilderness - As the cities of refuge are generally understood to be types of the salvation provided by Christ for sinners; so their names have been thought to express some attribute of the Redeemer of mankind. See them explained Jos 20:7-8 (note)

I Suppose the last nine verses of this chapter to have been added by either Joshua or Ezra.

Calvin: Deu 4:21 - Furthermore, the Lord was angry with me

21.Furthermore, the Lord was angry with me He again records that it arose from the transgression of the people that he was not permitted to enter the land, not by way of expostulation, and much less in order to accuse God of cruelty, as if he had been improperly and unjustly substituted as a criminal in the place of others, but rather to magnify the goodness of God towards those whom He had treated with so much indulgence. For we must observe the comparison, that, whilst they were to enjoy the land, he was to be prevented from entering it. “I must die (he says) in this land” of Moab, whilst to you it is given to enjoy the promised inheritance. We perceive, therefore, that they are upbraided with their guilt in such a way that all the bitterness of the reproof is sweetened by the sense of God’s mercy; nay, that by this sweetness they may be ravished into admiration, when they understand how mercifully that pardon is extended to them, which was denied to Moses.

The sense of the expression which I have rendered “for your words,” ²⁴¹ might be “for your things,” inasmuch as the Hebrews call men’s affairs ( negotia), דברים , debarim. Assuredly, although he had been impelled to sin by their rebellious clamors, he simply states that he was now punished on their account. If any should inquire why he lays the blame on them, whereas the actual offenders were most of them dead, the reply is obvious, that many of them were still surviving, and that it is no novelty that the children should be included with the fathers, when the whole body of a people has sinned.

Calvin: Deu 4:23 - Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget

23.Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget There is no contradiction in the sense, that he should first of all altogether forbid that idols should be made; and, secondly, speak only of worshipping and adoring them; for it is already in itself a wicked error to attribute any image to God; and another superstition always accompanies it, that God is always improperly worshipped in this visible symbol. There is a strong confirmation here of what I have previously stated, that whatever holds down and confines our senses to the earth, is contrary to the covenant of God; in which, inviting us to Himself, He permits us to think of nothing but what is spiritual, and therefore sets His voice against all the imaginations, whereby heathen nations have always been deceived; because they have been deprived of the light of that doctrine which would direct them to the heavenly greatness of God Himself. But those who have been taught by God’s Law, not only that He alone is to be worshipped, but that He may not be represented by any visible effigy, are justly accounted covenant-breakers, if they do not confine themselves within these bounds; for they violate that Second Commandment ( caput) by which they are commanded to worship God spiritually; and consequently are forbidden to make to themselves likenesses, or images, whereby they would deface and pollute His glory. At the end of the verse, which some translate “the likeness, which your God hath forbidden, ” ⁹⁹ the proper rendering is, “hath commanded, or enjoined: ” and hence the relative אור , asher, must be taken, as in many other places, as an adverb of comparison. The meaning of Moses is indeed by no means obscure; viz., that we must simply obey God’s word; and that we must not dispute whether what He has forbidden is lawful or not; and that no other rule of right is to be sought for, except that we should follow what He has prescribed. Let the Papists dispute as they please, that images are not to be removed because they are useful for the people’s instruction; but let this be our wisdom, to acquiesce in what God has chosen to decree in this matter. Although the threat which is subjoined might have been placed amongst the sanctions, which we shall hereafter consider in their proper place, yet I have been unwilling to separate it from the Second Commandment, to which it is annexed. A confirmation is added in Deuteronomy; viz., that God, who has not spared foreign nations, will much less pardon His people; inasnmch as it is a greater crime, and fouler ingratitude to forsake God when once He is known, and to cast aside the teaching of His Law, than to follow errors handed down from our forefathers. I have already explained in what sense He is called a “jealous God;” but in Exo 34:14, Moses has not deemed it sufficient simply to honor God with this title; but, in amplification, he has added that this is His name, in order that we may know that He can no more bear a companion, or a rival, to be compared with Him, than He can cast away His Godhead, or deny Himself. He compares Him to fire, to increase our terror of Him. We know how audaciously the world indulges itself in superstitions; so that, as if in very sport, it metamorphoses God just as fancy leads. Wherefore, in order to incline men’s minds to reverence, he sets before us in this figure God’s fearful vengeance; as though He would instantly consume them, just as fire consumes stubble, if they shall have dared to think of God otherwise than is right.

Calvin: Deu 4:29 - But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord

29.But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord. In this passage also he exhorts and encourages them in the confidence of obtaining pardon, and thus anticipates them, so that they might not be overwhelmed with sorrow when smitten by God’s hand; for despair awakens such rage in the wretched that they cannot submit themselves to God. He sets before them, then, another object in their punishments, that they may not cease to taste of God’s goodness in the midst of their afflictions, whereby He invites them to repentance. For the sinner will never set about seeking God, unless he deems Him to be accessible to prayer. Moreover, he warns them to return truly and sincerely to a sound mind, because they will gain nothing by false profession. We know that nothing is more common than to make complaint to God whenever we are oppressed with troubles, but, when they are at all intermitted, immediately to return to our natural state. Sincere conversion is, therefore, prescribed; for “all the heart” is precisely equivalent to an upright heart, ( integrum,) which is contrasted with a double or feigned one; and this must be noted, ²⁶⁰ lest a sense of our infirmity should disturb us; for, since it is not possible for men to give themselves wholly to God, the knowledge of their own inability is apt to induce listlessness; whereas, provided we do not deal deceitfully, it is declared that our penitence is approved by God.

Calvin: Deu 4:30 - When thou art in tribulation

30.When thou art in tribulation. He here shews the advantage of punishments, on the ground of their usefulness and profit; for what the Apostle says is confirmed by experience, that

“no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous; nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them that are exercised thereby.”
(Heb 12:11.)

Lest, therefore, they should be provoked to wrath by God’s stripes, he reminds them of their usefulness to them, because they would never turn to God unless aided by this remedy. He tells them that, after they shall have been afflicted by the curses of God, if they sought after Him, they should find Him: and further, he gives them grounds for hope both in God’s nature and in His covenant. He assures them that God will be willing to be appeased, because He is by nature merciful; but he adds another confirmation of this, which is more certain and familiar, viz., because God had adopted them by a perpetual covenant.

Calvin: Deu 4:32 - For ask now

32.For ask now Moses here more forcibly extols and pronounces magnificent praises upon the miracles which he had before more simply related to have taken place at the promulgation of the Law, his object being to produce a fuller conviction of its dignity. He magnifies, too, by comparison, the testimonies whereby its authority had been ratified, viz., because nothing like it had ever occurred; for if any such instance had previously taken place, some portion of its preciousness or honor would have been taken from it. But since from the beginning of the world only one such illustrious manifestation of His power had been given by God, it afforded the greater sanction to the Law. He adds, too, that if they were to search over the whole world they would nowhere find anything similar. For I do not approve of the more refined exposition which some give of this clause, as if he said that all creatures above and below were witnesses that God’s might had never been manifested by so many and such illustrious miracles; as also the sense appears too restricted which others give, understanding “the days that are past” to mean annals or chronicles; for I make no question that Moses simply desires them to inquire and to examine whether from the creation of the world, or in any most remote region, any such thing had come to pass.

Calvin: Deu 4:33 - Did ever people hear?

33.Did ever people hear? He points out more openly the greatness and extraordinary transcendency of the matter which he has just mentioned, viz., that they heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire. It is true, indeed, that the superstitions of the Gentiles had been confirmed of old by many apparitions, yet amongst the portents which wretched men have imagined for their willing self-deception, there is nothing approaching to this miracle. Many have individually lied, and their false and foolish tales have been rashly believed; but here we have not to do with unfounded and scattered rumors, nor with the dreams of some single person, but Moses produces more than 700,000 witnesses, to whom God’s glory had clearly and certainly appeared; he subjoins, therefore, that God had never assayed to do the same, but had afforded this solitary instance to render His Law illustrious in all ages. ²²⁸ Yet in this verse he not only alludes to the promulgation of the Law, but to the whole course of their deliverance, since he names in general His “temptations and signs.” He says that God “took him a nation from the midst of another nation,” for by His incomparable power He rescued the descendants of Abraham, who, though dispersed through Egypt, and, as it were, enclosed in its bowels, were yet an obscure and ignoble part of a most famous nation; whereof no similar example is to be found. ²²⁹

Calvin: Deu 4:35 - Unto thee it was shewed

35.Unto thee it was shewed He first says that God had so proved His divinity by miracles and prodigies, that the Israelites might know certainly that He was God. Whence, too, he concludes that He is the only God; for although God’s holy name be torn in pieces by various opinions, whilst each one manufactures his own gods for himself, yet is it still sure that the power and dominion of God cannot be withdrawn from Him, but reside in a single subject, as the logicians say. Therefore the essence of the one God overthrows and annihilates all the other deities which we foolishly invent for ourselves. And this we must carefully remark, for this has been the common error of all ages, to seek for a mixture of many gods, whereas all these imaginations should vanish before the brightness of the true God. In the following verse he confirms this declaration, because God instructed His people out of heaven, and in the fire. Is it, however, asked how these two points accord which seem to be opposed to each other, that God’s voice was heard from heaven and from the midst of the fire? I reply, that Moses simply means that the voice which flowed out of the fire into the people’s ears was distinguished by plain indications which proved it to be heavenly.

Calvin: Deu 4:37 - And because he loved

37.And because he loved These words admit of two meanings; for the copulative conjunction stands at the beginning of the verse, — “ And because he loved thy fathers,” and also before the next clause, “and he chose their seed;” the reasons here assigned might, therefore, be taken in connection with the previous sentence, viz., that so many miracles were wrought because God had chosen Abraham and his seed. Others understand it differently, that this people was honored with so many blessings by God because He loved their fathers. In this case they omit the copula in the middle of the verse, as must be often done. In the main, there is little discrepancy; for Moses desires to shew that whatever good things God has conferred upon His people are gratuitous, by which circumstance he commends God’s grace the more. He had said that by unusual favor this nation was taken from the midst of another; and he now adds that this was done on no other account but because God had embraced Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob with His love, and persevered in the same love towards their posterity. But we must remark that by the word “love” is expressed that favor which springs of mere generosity, so as to exclude all worthiness in the person beloved, as may be more clearly gathered from other passages, viz., Deu 7:8, and Psa 78:68, and as is pretty plain from the context here, wherein he attributes the election of the people to the love with which God had honored their fathers. If any object that God’s election is eternal, the objection is readily solved, for the seed of Abraham was separated from all nations, because God had gratuitously adopted their father. We now understand the meaning of Moses, that the deliverance of the people was only to be ascribed to God’s goodness. He thus amplifies this blessing by another circumstance, viz., that God had preferred to great and mighty nations this ignoble people, whose own proper worthiness could not have acquired His favor.

Calvin: Deu 4:39 - Know therefore this day

39.Know therefore this day He again inculcates what we have lately spoken of, that the glory of the one true God was proved by the miracles, but he does so by way of exhortation. For he desires them carefully and attentively to consider what God had shewn them, because in so plain a matter there would be no excuse for error or ignorance. He therefore infers from what had gone before, that the people must beware of shutting their eyes against the clear revelation of God’s power, and therefore urges them to keep it in memory, because man’s ingratitude is but too prone to forgetfulness. He afterwards reminds them wherefore God would be known, viz., that they might keep His Law and obey His statutes. The sum is, that they would be inexcusable if they did not obediently receive the Law, which they knew to have come from God; for they must needs be worse than stupid if the majesty of God, known and understood by so many proofs, did not awaken them to reverence. And lest they should undervalue the doctrine as proceeding from a mortal man, he expressly confesses, indeed, that he is the minister, and yet that he had set before them nothing which he had not received from God.

Calvin: Deu 4:41 - NO PHRASE

God had destined, as we have before seen, ²²¹ six cities for refuge, in case any one had killed a man, provided he could prove his innocence before the judges. As to the three which He had appointed on the other side of Jordan, Moses records that he had faithfully performed what God had commanded. Hence it appears that, although he could not immediately comply with God’s command to its full extent, still he did not wait until the three other cities could be added; but that, as far as circumstances permitted, he discharged his duty. Hence let us learn that, even when we cannot at once entirely carry out what God commands us to do, we are still to be by no means idle. For nothing but sheer laziness stands in our way, unless we speedily commence at God’s command what it is His will to finish and accomplish by the hands of others.

Calvin: Deu 4:44 - And this is the Law

44.And this is the Law This last passage refers to the same thing, viz., that the Law was promulgated anew when the people had now reached the threshold of the promised land, in order that they might be more disposed to obedience, especially when the two tribes and a half had now, by the conquest of the Amorites, obtained a resting-place and a home; for this is the reason why their habitation is mentioned, because the taste of the favor already received ought to stir up their zeal to proceed more cheerfully. We shall elsewhere remark on the country and names of places. It is sufficient here to recollect, that the memory of the Law was renewed, after their inheritance without the promised land had been obtained by the sons of Reuben and Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, and when their assured possession was before the eyes of the rest. But Moses shews that, although he might explain the Law at fuller length, still nothing had been added to that summary which was originally promulgated; but he rather indicates, that whatever he had taught them during the forty years, had had no other object than that they might more faithfully and exactly keep the Law of God.

Defender: Deu 4:28 - ye shall serve gods

This is a prophecy remarkably fulfilled in later ages. Not only were the Israelites scattered among the nations of the world, but great multitudes of these apostates abandoned the faith of their fathers in favor of many forms - ancient and modern - of evolutionary pantheism. Modern Reform Judaism, for example, is little more than evolutionary humanism."

Defender: Deu 4:30 - tribulation

This prophecy, given by Moses as Israel prepared to enter the promised land, apparently looks into the distant future, 3500 years or more, to "the latter days" when Israel will be in the "great tribulation" (Rev 7:14). At that "time of trouble ... thy people shall be delivered," (Dan 12:1), and "immediately after the tribulation of those days...He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other" (Mat 24:29, Mat 24:31)."

Defender: Deu 4:32 - God created man

"The days that are past," to which Moses referred, "since the day that God created man upon the earth," had been some 2500 years (assuming no gaps in the received chronological genealogies of Genesis 5 and 11). That was a long time, of course, but was at least a reasonable point of reference to which the people could relate - nothing like the eternal evolutionary ages postulated by the Egyptians, Canaanites and other ancient pagan nations."

Defender: Deu 4:37 - he loved thy fathers

Israel was not God's chosen people because it deserved to be, but "because He loved thy fathers." God had made an unconditional promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob because of their faithfulness, not that of their "seed after them.""

TSK: Deu 4:21

Deu 1:37, Deu 3:26, Deu 31:2; Num 20:12; Psa 106:32, Psa 106:33

TSK: Deu 4:22

Deu 3:25, Deu 3:27; 1Ki 13:21, 1Ki 13:22; Amo 3:2; Heb 12:6-10; 2Pe 1:13-15

TSK: Deu 4:23 - heed // lest ye forget // make you

heed : Deu 4:9, Deu 4:15, Deu 4:16, Deu 27:9; Jos 23:11; Mat 24:4; Luk 12:15, Luk 21:8; Heb 3:12

lest ye forget : Deu 6:12, Deu 29:25, Deu 31:20; Jos 23:16; 1Ch 16:15; Isa 24:5; Jer 31:22; Eze 16:59

make you : Deu 4:16; Exo 20:4, Exo 20:5

TSK: Deu 4:24 - thy God // a jealous God

thy God : Deu 9:3, Deu 32:22; Exo 24:17; Psa 21:9; Isa 30:33, Isa 33:14; Jer 21:12-14; Nah 1:6; Zep 1:18; Heb 12:29

a jealous God : Deu 6:15, Deu 29:20, Deu 32:16, Deu 32:21; Exo 20:5, Exo 34:14; Psa 78:58; Isa 42:8; Nah 1:2; Zep 3:8; 1Co 10:22

TSK: Deu 4:25 - beget // corrupt // do evil

beget : Deu 31:16-18; Jdg 2:8-15

corrupt : Deu 4:16, Deu 31:29; Exo 32:7; Hos 9:9

do evil : 2Ki 17:17-19, 2Ki 21:2, 2Ki 21:14-16; 2Ch 36:12-16; 1Co 10:22

TSK: Deu 4:26 - I call heaven // ye shall

I call heaven : A most solemn method of adjuration, in use among all the nations in the world; God and man being called upon to bear testimony to the truth of what was spoken, that if there was any flaw or insincerity it might be detected, and if any crime, it might not go unpunished. Such appeals to God shew at once the origin and use of oaths. Deu 30:18, Deu 30:19, Deu 31:28, Deu 32:1; Isa 1:2; Jer 2:12, Jer 6:19, Jer 22:29; Eze 36:4; Mic 1:2, Mic 6:2

ye shall : Deu 29:28; Lev 18:28, Lev 26:31-35; Jos 23:16; Isa 6:11, Isa 24:1-3; Jer 44:22; Eze 33:28; Luk 21:24

TSK: Deu 4:27

Deu 28:62-64; Neh 1:3, Neh 1:8, Neh 1:9; Eze 12:15, Eze 32:26

TSK: Deu 4:28 - ye shall // neither see

ye shall : Deu 28:36, Deu 28:64; 1Sa 26:19; Jer 16:13; Eze 20:32, Eze 20:39; Act 7:42

neither see : Psa 115:4-7, Psa 135:15, Psa 135:16; Isa 44:9, Isa 45:20, Isa 46:7; Jer 10:3, Jer 10:9

TSK: Deu 4:29 - But if // with all

But if : Deu 30:10; Lev 26:39-42; 2Ch 15:4, 2Ch 15:15; Neh 1:9; Isa 55:6, Isa 55:7; Jer 3:12-14; Jer 29:12-14

with all : Deu 30:1-3; 1Ki 8:47, 1Ki 8:48; 2Ki 10:31, 2Ki 23:3; 2Ch 15:12, 2Ch 31:21; Psa 119:2, Psa 119:10; Psa 119:58,Psa 119:145; Jer 3:10; Joe 2:12

TSK: Deu 4:30 - all these // are come upon thee // in the latter // if thou // obedient

all these : 1Ki 8:46-53; 2Ch 6:36-39; Dan 9:11-19

are come upon thee : Heb. have found thee, Deu 31:17; Exo 18:8 *marg.

in the latter : Deu 31:29; Gen 49:1; Num 24:20; Jer 23:20; Dan 10:14; Hos 3:5; Heb 1:2

if thou : Deu 30:10; Lam 3:40; Hos 14:2, Hos 14:3; Joe 2:12, Joe 2:13; Act 3:19, Act 26:20

obedient : Isa 1:19; Jer 7:23; Zec 6:15; Heb 5:9

TSK: Deu 4:31 - the Lord // forget

the Lord : Exo 34:6, Exo 34:7; Num 14:18; 2Ch 30:9; Neh 1:5, Neh 9:31; Psa 86:5, Psa 86:15, Psa 116:5; Psa 145:8, Psa 145:9; Jon 4:2; Mic 7:18

forget : Lev 26:42, Lev 26:45; Psa 105:8, Psa 111:5, Psa 111:9; Jer 14:21; Luk 1:72

TSK: Deu 4:32 - ask now // from the one

ask now : Job 8:8; Psa 44:1; Joe 1:2

from the one : Deu 30:4; Mat 24:31; Mar 13:27

TSK: Deu 4:33

Deu 4:24-26, Deu 9:10; Exo 19:18, Exo 19:19, Exo 20:18, Exo 20:19, Exo 24:11, Exo 33:20; Jdg 6:22

TSK: Deu 4:34 - take him // temptations // by signs // by a mighty // and by great

take him : Exo 1:9, Exo 3:10, Exo 3:17-20

temptations : Deu 7:19, Deu 29:3; Exo 9:20, Exo 9:21, Exo 10:7

by signs : Exo 7:3; Psa 78:12, Psa 78:48-53

by a mighty : Deu 5:15, Deu 6:21, Deu 7:8, Deu 7:9; Exo 6:6, Exo 13:3; 1Pe 5:6

and by great : Deu 26:8, Deu 34:12; Exo 12:30-33

TSK: Deu 4:35 - know // none else

know : 1Sa 17:45-47; 1Ki 18:36, 1Ki 18:37; 2Ki 19:19; Psa 58:11, Psa 83:18

none else : Deu 32:23; Exo 15:11; 1Sa 2:2; Isa 44:6, Isa 44:8, Isa 45:5, Isa 45:18, Isa 45:22; Mar 12:29, Mar 12:32; 1Jo 5:20, 1Jo 5:21

TSK: Deu 4:36

Deu 4:33; Exo 19:9, Exo 19:19, Exo 20:18-22, Exo 24:16; Neh 9:13; Heb 12:18, Heb 12:25

TSK: Deu 4:37 - because // and brought // in his sight // with his

because : Deu 7:7-9, Deu 9:5, Deu 10:15; Psa 105:6-10; Isa 41:8, Isa 41:9; Jer 31:1; Mal 1:2; Luk 1:72, Luk 1:73; Rom 9:5

and brought : Exo 13:3, Exo 13:9, Exo 13:14

in his sight : 2Ch 16:9; Psa 32:8, Psa 34:15

with his : Deu 4:34; Psa 114:1-6, Psa 136:10-15; Isa 51:9-11, Isa 63:11, Isa 63:12

TSK: Deu 4:38 - drive // as

drive : Deu 7:1, Deu 9:1-5, Deu 11:23; Exo 23:27, Exo 23:28; Jos 3:10; Psa 44:2, Psa 44:3

as : Deu 2:31-37, 3:1-16, Deu 8:18

TSK: Deu 4:39 - and consider // the Lord

and consider : Deu 32:29; 1Ch 28:9; Isa 1:3, Isa 5:12; Hos 7:2

the Lord : Deu 4:35; Jos 2:11; 1Ch 29:11; 2Ch 20:6; Psa 115:3, Psa 135:6; Dan 4:35

TSK: Deu 4:40 - keep // it may go

keep : Deu 4:1, Deu 4:6, Deu 28:1-14; Lev 22:31, Lev 26:1-13; Jer 11:4; Joh 14:15, Joh 14:21-24

it may go : Deu 5:16, Deu 6:3, Deu 6:18, Deu 12:25, Deu 12:28, Deu 22:7; Eph 6:3; 1Ti 4:8

TSK: Deu 4:41

Num 35:6, Num 35:14, Num 35:15; Jos 20:2-9

TSK: Deu 4:42

Deu 19:1-10; Num 35:6, Num 35:11, Num 35:12, Num 35:15-28; Heb 6:18

TSK: Deu 4:43 - Bezer // Ramoth // Golan

Bezer : Bezer is the same as Bozra, formerly a royal city of Edom. See note on Gen 36:33. Jos 20:8

Ramoth : Ramoth was a celebrated city in the mountains of Gilead, placed by Eusebius fifteen miles east from Philadelphia or Ammon, and by Jerome in the neighbourhood of Jabbok, and consequently north of Philadelphia. Jos 21:38; 1Ki 4:13, 1Ki 22:3, 1Ki 22:4; 1Ch 6:80

Golan : This city gave name to the district of Gaulonitis, now called Djolan, which comprises the plain to south of Djedour or Iturea, and to the west of Haourancaps1 . icaps0 ts southern frontier is the Nahar Aweired, by which it is separated from the district of Erbad, and the Sheriat el Mandhour, which separates it from the district of El Kefaratcaps1 . ocaps0 n the west it is limited by the territory of Feik, and on the north-west by Djebel Heish, or mount Hermon. Jos 21:27; 1Ch 6:71

TSK: Deu 4:44

This is evidently an introduction to the discourse of the subsequent chapters. Moses having practically improved some particulars in the history of Israel, proceeded to repeat and enforce the laws which he had delivered before, with additions and explanations, beginning with the ten commandments.

Deu 1:5, Deu 17:18, Deu 17:19, Deu 27:3, Deu 27:8, Deu 27:26, Deu 33:4; Lev 27:34; Num 36:13; Mal 4:4; Joh 1:17

TSK: Deu 4:45 - These // statutes // judgments

These : Deu 6:17, Deu 6:20; 1Ki 2:3; Psa 119:2, Psa 119:14, Psa 119:22, Psa 119:24, Psa 119:111

statutes : Deu 4:1; Psa 119:5

judgments : Psa 119:7

TSK: Deu 4:46 - On this side // over // Bethpeor // Moses

On this side : Deu 4:47, Deu 1:5, Deu 3:29; Num 32:19

over : Deu 3:29

Bethpeor : Beth-peor was a city which was situated, according to Eusebius, opposite Jericho, and six miles above Livias. As the name signifies ""the house of Peor,""it is probable that there was a temple to Peor, situated in this place, full in view of the people, while Moses was pressing upon them the worship of Jehovah alone; and perhaps the very temple where so many had sinned to their own destruction.

Moses : Deu 1:4, Deu 2:30-36, Deu 3:8; Num 21:21-32

TSK: Deu 4:47

Deu 3:1-14, Deu 29:7, Deu 29:8; Num 21:33-35

TSK: Deu 4:48 - Aroer // even unto // Sion

Aroer : Deu 2:36, Deu 3:12; Jos 13:24-33

even unto : The Samaritan interpreter has, ""unto the mountain of snow, which is Hermon.""See note on Deu 3:9.

Sion : Deu 3:9; Psa 133:3

TSK: Deu 4:49 - under the springs

under the springs : Deu 3:17, Deu 34:1; Jos 13:20

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

Poole: Deu 4:21

God hath granted you the favour which he denied to me, which greatly increaseth your obligation to God.

Poole: Deu 4:23

Or, commanded thee , to wit, not to do, which is easily understood by comparing this place with Exo 20:4,5 , and with Gen 3:11 , where this phrase is fully expressed. See more on Lev 4:2 Deu 2:37 .

Poole: Deu 4:24 - A consuming fire // A jealous God

A consuming fire a just and terrible God, who, notwithstanding his special relation to thee, will severely punish and destroy thee if thou provokest him by idolatry, or other ways.

A jealous God who being espoused to thee, will be highly incensed against thee, (if thou followest after other lovers, or committest whoredom with idols,) and will bear no rival or partner.

Poole: Deu 4:25 - In the sight of the Lord

In the sight of the Lord: these words are here added, either,

1. As a caution. Your idolatry, though possibly secretly and cunningly managed, will not be hid from him; he sees it, and he will punish it. Or,

2. To aggravate their spiritual whoredom, as being committed in the sight and presence of their Lord and Husband, whose eye is alone peculiarly upon them in all their ways, than it is upon other people. Or,

3. By way of opposition unto men’ s judgment. Idolatry ofttimes seems good, and reasonable, and religious in the eyes of men, but, saith he, it is evil in the eyes of the Lord, whose judgment is most considerable.

Poole: Deu 4:26 - Heaven and earth

Heaven and earth ; either,

1. Figuratively, i.e. God, and angels, and men. Or rather,

2. Properly; it being usual in Scripture to call in the senseless creatures as witnesses in such cases, as Deu 32:1 Isa 1:2 Jer 2:12 .

Poole: Deu 4:28

i.e. Idols. You shall be compelled by men, and given up by me to idolatry. So that very thing which was your choice shall be your punishment; it being just and usual for God to punish one sin by giving them up to another, as is manifest from Rom 1:24,25 .

Poole: Deu 4:29 - If thou seek him // With all thy heart

If thou seek him if thou desirest his help and favour. See Deu 30:2 Isa 45:6 .

With all thy heart i.e. sincerely and fervently.

Poole: Deu 4:30 - In the latter days // the latter

In the latter days either in general, in succeeding ages and generations; or particularly, in the days of the Messias, which are commonly called in Scripture

the latter or last days , as Isa 2:2 Hos 3:5 Mic 4:1 Dan 2:44 Heb 1:2 9:26 . And so this may respect the conversion and redemption of the Jewish nation even in those times when their case seems most desperate, when they have forsaken their God and rejected their Messias for many ages, to wit, towards the end of the world.

Poole: Deu 4:31

i.e. Made with thy fathers, including their posterity, as Gen 17:7 .

Poole: Deu 4:32 - From the one side of heaven

From the one side of heaven i.e. of the earth under heaven. Ask all the inhabitants of the world. Compare Mat 24:31 , with Mar 13:27 .

Poole: Deu 4:33

i.e. And was not overwhelmed and consumed by such a glorious appearance. See Exo 24:11 33:20

Poole: Deu 4:34 - By temptations // Great terrors

By temptations by tribulations and persecutions, which are commonly called temptations , which are here fitly mentioned as one great occasion first of their cries unto God, and then of God’ s coming for their rescue. Or, temptations is the general title, which is explained by the following particulars,

signs and wonders & c., which are called temptations, because they were trials both to the Egyptians and Israelites, whether thereby they would be induced to believe and obey God or no.

Great terrors raised in the minds of the Egyptians, as the history showeth; compare Deu 2:25 34:12 ; or by terrible things done among them.

Poole: Deu 4:36 - Out of heaven

Out of heaven i.e. out of the air, above Mount Sinai. See Exo 19:9 20:18,22 . Upon earth; at the top of Mount Sinai.

Poole: Deu 4:37 - In his sight

In his sight keeping his eye fixed upon him, as the father doth on his beloved child. Or, with his presence , i.e. he did not send them forth by Moses, but he himself was present with them, and as it were marched along with them, in the pillar of cloud and fire.

Poole: Deu 4:41

As God had commanded him Num 35:6,14

Poole: Deu 4:44

Which hath been generally intimated already, but is more particularly and punctually expressed in the following chapter, to which these words are a preface.

Haydock: Deu 4:21 - Words

Words. The murmurs of the people occasioned the diffidence of Moses, and he often reminds them of it, that they may reflect how severely God will punish them, if they transgress, since he spares not his greatest favourites. (Calmet) ---

Even venial faults must be punished. (Worthington)

Haydock: Deu 4:23 - Made

Made. Hebrew, "and make to thyself a sculpture, the likeness of any thing which the Lord thy God commanded thee." He ordered them to abstain from idolatry. (Du Hamel)

Haydock: Deu 4:24 - Fire

Fire. God often appeared in the midst of fire. All the land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy, Sophonias i. 18., and iii. 8. (Calmet) ---

By these expressions, we are exhorted not to do any thing which would excite the indignation of our true lover, nor ever be unfaithful to him. (Haydock) ---

The pagans thought that fire was the fittest symbol of the divinity. (Porphyrius, de Abstin.)

Haydock: Deu 4:26 - And earth // Destroy you

And earth, or all their rational inhabitants. (St. Jerome and St. Basil in Isa. i. 2.) Moses conjures the Israelites, by all that is most sacred, to continue faithful. He speaks with the greatest earnestness, as he does again, chap. xxxii. 1. (Calmet) ---

He makes use of a sort of oath, by the creatures, in which God shines forth. (Menochius) ---

Destroy you. He will take from you that delightful country, though he will save a remnant of you out of the captivity at Babylon, and in the latter days, ver. 31. The Jews, in the promised land, were almost always prone to idolatry; till God severely chastised them by the hands of the Babylonians. Since that time, few of them have willingly yielded to the worship of idols, though some have fallen by compulsion, as we read, Daniel iii., and 1 Machabees i. 53., and ii. 16. Jeremias (v. 19) foretold that this would be the case. As you have forsaken me and served a strange god in your own land, so shall you serve strangers in a land that is not your own. (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 4:27 - Nations

Nations. This prediction we see verified at the present day. They are despised by all. No one of their numerous masters embraces their religion. No one of their numerous masters embraces their religion. They are so few, as to hardly possess a single town. (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 4:30 - Voice

Voice, after the captivity of Babylon, or rather at the end of the world. The nation at large has not embraced the worship of idols since the former period. But it will not be perfectly converted until the fulness of the Gentiles....come in.---And so all Israel....be saved, Romans xi. 25. (Calmet) ---

St. Paul terms their present state a blindness in part, because, though few have embraced the revelation of God, made to all by his only Son, the far greater part have obstinately shut their eyes, so that, even while they read the clearest prophecies, they seem to have a veil on then. But, after they shall have been the sport of their passions and errors till the latter time, when the man of sin shall be fully revealed, they will see how wretchedly they have been deluded, and, the grace of God touching their hearts, they will remember the covenant, and embrace Christ, the end of all the law. Happy those who do not defer their conversion till that awful period! (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 4:32 - Heaven

Heaven. To our senses the sky seems to rest upon the horizon. So Jesus says, Then he....shall gather....his elect....from the uttermost part of earth, to the uttermost part of heaven, Matthew xxiv. 31. Vatable translates, "from the east to the west." In no age or place did God ever declare his will, as he had done at Sinai. (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 4:33 - And lived

And lived. It was generally supposed that those who had seen a vision of God, or of his angel, would instantly die. See Genesis xvi. 13. (Haydock) (Chap. v. 24.)

Haydock: Deu 4:34 - Temptations // Visions // In Egypt

Temptations. The Chaldean and Arabic understand this of the prodigies which God wrought in favour of his people; though they may also denote the trials to which the Patriarchs and the Hebrews had been exposed, that their virtue might shine more brightly. Many indeed lost courage under these trials, but they were of great service to form a perfect people; and those who continued to lead a virtuous life received the reward of their labours. (Calmet) ---

Visions, during the three days' darkness mentioned, Wisdom xvii. 9, 18, &c., (Menochius) or those terrible appearances on Sinai, ver. 33, 36., and chap. v. 22. (Calmet) Hebrew may be, "by great terrors." ---

In Egypt. God himself fought for his people, when he brought them out of that country. He repeatedly made the king and his people feel the impressions of terror, but as they presently recovered their wonted insolence and pride, he at last miraculously divided the Red Sea, and buried vast multitudes in its waters. (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 4:38 - Day

Day. They had already conquered the mighty kingdoms of Sehon and of Og. (Menochius)

Haydock: Deu 4:39 - Other

Other. The power of the true and only God is not confined to the sea, or to the land, &c., (Calmet) as the pagans believed that of their various idols was. (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 4:41 - Then

Then, &c. This piece of history seems to be placed out of its natural order, by another hand. (Calmet) ---

Yet if we attend to the method of Moses, in his other works, we shall not hastily conclude that it is an interpolation. He frequently repeats what has already been specified. He had received and order from God to appoint these three cities of refuge, (Numbers xxxv. 14,) after he had given the land to the tribes of Ruben, &c., Numbers xxxii. This he executes at the conclusion of this discourse; and hence takes occasion to mention how they had taken possession of this country. (Haydock)

Haydock: Deu 4:42 - Before

Before. The Rabbins say, when two people had refused to speak to one another for three days, it was a sufficient indication of their enmity. (Selden, Jur. iv. 2.)

Haydock: Deu 4:43 - Wilderness // Ramoth // Golon

Wilderness, or plains of Moab, at the mouth of the Jordan. It is sometimes called Besor, and is very different from Bozra of Idumea, (Isaias lxiii. 1,) a very famous city, known to profane authors by the name of Bostra. ---

Ramoth, one of the strongest towns of Galaad, 15 miles west of Philadelphia, (Eusebius) where Achab, king of Israel, received a mortal wound, 3 Kings xxii. 3. ---

Golon, or Gaulan, gave its name to Gaulanitis, a part of Batanea, lying on the southern parts of the division of Gad, though the city belonged to Manasses. The lower Gaulanitis lay towards the lake of Genezareth, and had Gamala for its capital. (Cellarius) (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 4:48 - Sion

Sion begins here with s, being the northern boundary of the tribe of Manasses, east of the Jordan; whereas the famous Sion, on which the temple was built, is written with ts, and lay on the west side of the Jordan, (Haydock) in the tribe of Juda, chap. iii. 8. (Calmet)

Haydock: Deu 4:49 - Wilderness

Wilderness, which Moses commonly calls the salt sea, (on account of the asphalte with which it abounds,) or the sea of Araba, as it lies at the extremity of the plains of Moab, which are sometimes called Araboth, "deserts," because they were more fit for pasturage than for ploughing. (Calmet)

Gill: Deu 4:21 - Furthermore the Lord was angry with me for your sakes // and sware that I should not go over Jordan // and that I should not go in unto that good land // which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance

Furthermore the Lord was angry with me for your sakes,.... See Deu 3:26,

and sware that I should not go over Jordan; this circumstance of swearing is nowhere else expressed:

and that I should not go in unto that good land; the land of Canaan; he might see it, as he did from Pisgah, but not enter into it:

which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance; to them and to their children after them.

Gill: Deu 4:22 - But I must die in this land // I must not go over Jordan // but ye shall go over, and possess that good land

But I must die in this land,.... The land of Moab, in a mountain in it he died, and in a valley there he was buried, Deu 32:50,

I must not go over Jordan; this he repeats, as lying near his heart; he had earnestly solicited to go over, but was denied it:

but ye shall go over, and possess that good land; this he firmly believed and assures them of, relying on the promise and faithfulness of God.

Gill: Deu 4:23 - Take heed unto yourselves // lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God // and make you a graven image, or the likeness of anything which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee

Take heed unto yourselves,.... Since he should not be long with them, to advise, instruct, and caution them:

lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you; what that required of them, and what was promised unto them on the performance of it, and what they must expect should they break it, and particularly be so forgetful of it, and the first articles in it, as follows:

and make you a graven image, or the likeness of anything which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee; a graven image in the likeness of men or women, of any beast on the earth, or fowl in heaven, or fish in the sea.

Gill: Deu 4:24 - For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire // even a jealous God

For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire,.... To his enemies; his wrath is like fire to burn up and destroy all that oppose him and break his commands, and especially idolaters; whose sin of all others is the most provoking to him, since it strikes at his being, his honour and glory; wherefore it follows:

even a jealous God; who is jealous of his honour in matters of worship, and will not suffer his glory to be given to another, nor his praise to graven images, without resenting it or punishing for it.

Gill: Deu 4:25 - When thou shall beget children, and children's children // and shalt have remained long in the land // and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of anything // and shall do evil in the sight of the Lord thy God, to provoke him to anger

When thou shall beget children, and children's children,.... Children and grandchildren, and several ages and generations have passed:

and shalt have remained long in the land; many years and even ages, or have grown old ^h in it: now they were in their infancy, and as such they were about to enter into it; during the times of the judges, they were in their childhood, or youth; in the times of David and Solomon, they were in their manhood; after that, in their decline; and in the times of Jeconiah and his brethren in their old age, when for their sins they were carried captive:

and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of anything; See Gill on Deu 25:16.

and shall do evil in the sight of the Lord thy God, to provoke him to anger; that sin of idolatry, that God provoking sin, is chiefly intended.

Gill: Deu 4:26 - I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day // that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go over Jordan to possess it

I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day,.... Should they be guilty of such a sin, since they were so strongly and publicly cautioned against it; and even the heaven and the earth were called upon as witnesses of the law being set before them, which so expressly forbids it, Deu 30:19.

that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go over Jordan to possess it; though they were now about to go over Jordan and inherit the land of Canaan, yet they would not enjoy it long, but be taken and carried captive out of it; as the ten tribes were by Shalmaneser king of Assyria, and the two tribes by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and both for their idolatry and other crimes.

Gill: Deu 4:27 - And the Lord shall scatter you among the nations // and ye shall be left few in number among the Heathen, whither the Lord shall lead you

And the Lord shall scatter you among the nations,.... As they were by both captivities; the ten tribes were dispersed among the cities of the Medes, and the two tribes throughout the empire of Babylon:

and ye shall be left few in number among the Heathen, whither the Lord shall lead you; or be "men of number" ⁱ, so few that they might be easily numbered; which intimates that it should be other wise with them than when in Egypt; there they were multiplied and increased the more they were afflicted, but in these captivities they should be greatly diminished.

Gill: Deu 4:28 - And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone // which neither see, nor hear, nor taste, nor smell

And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone,.... Idols made by men, cut out of wood and stone; these they should be enticed into the service of, or compelled to serve; which was still more brutish and stupid than to worship the sun, moon, and stars, which were not the works of men's hand, but the glorious works of the eternal God. But since in their captivities they were not subject to idolatry, but were cured of it thereby, another sense of the words is given by some, as by Onkelos and Jonathan, who paraphrase the words of serving the people, that serve idols; but what follows confirms the first sense:

which neither see, nor hear, nor taste, nor smell; senseless things, which have none of the senses of seeing, hearing, and smelling, nor the faculty of eating, which they need not to support life, of which they are destitute; and therefore it must be monstrous stupidity to worship such lifeless, senseless, objects; see Psa 115:4.

Gill: Deu 4:29 - But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God // thou shalt find him // if they seek him with all their heart and with all their soul

But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God,.... By prayer and supplication, acknowledging and confessing sin, and desiring that God would be gracious and forgive it, and bring them out of their miserable condition; even if out of those depths of affliction and distress, and though scattered about in the world, and in the uttermost parts of it:

thou shalt find him; to be a God hearing and answering prayer, gracious and merciful, ready to help and deliver:

if they seek him with all their heart and with all their soul; sincerely and affectionately.

Gill: Deu 4:30 - When thou art in tribulation // and all these things are come upon thee // even in the latter days // if thou turn to the Lord thy God // and shall be obedient unto his voice

When thou art in tribulation,.... In a strange land, in the power of a foreign enemy, and used ill:

and all these things are come upon thee; captivity, thraldom, hard labour, and want of the necessaries of life:

even in the latter days: in their present captivity for the rejection of the Messiah:

if thou turn to the Lord thy God; as the Jews will when they are converted and brought to a sense of their sin, and of their need of Christ, and seek to him as their Saviour, as they will do in the latter day, Hos 3:5.

and shall be obedient unto his voice; not of the law only, but of the Gospel also, proclaiming peace, pardon, righteousness, and salvation by him whom they have pierced.

Gill: Deu 4:31 - For the Lord thy God is a merciful God // he will not forsake thee // neither destroy thee // nor forget the covenant of thy fathers, which he sware unto them

For the Lord thy God is a merciful God,.... In Christ, in whom he has proclaimed his name as such, of which Moses had a comfortable view, Exo 34:6 and therefore could attest it from his own knowledge and experience:

he will not forsake thee; though in a strange country, but bring them from thence into their own land again, and favour them with his gracious presence in his house and ordinances:

neither destroy thee; from being a people; and in a very wonderful manner are they preserved among the nations of the earth to this day:

nor forget the covenant of thy fathers, which he sware unto them; that a Saviour should come and turn away ungodliness from them, and take away their sins; see Rom 11:26.

Gill: Deu 4:32 - For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee // since the day that God created man upon the earth // and ask from the one side of heaven to the other // whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it

For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee,.... Inquire into and consult the annals of former times, of ages past:

since the day that God created man upon the earth; trace them quite up to the creation of the world, and men in it:

and ask from the one side of heaven to the other; traverse the whole globe, and examine the records of every nation in it in both hemispheres:

whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it? whether they can give any account of anything seen, heard, or done like what follows; suggesting that they cannot furnish out an instance to be mentioned with it.

Gill: Deu 4:33 - Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of fire // as thou hast heard, and live

Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of fire,.... None ever heard the voice of God as they did, much less speaking such words as they heard, and still less out of the midst of fire, which was their case, Deu 4:12.

as thou hast heard, and live? which was stranger still, when they might have expected they should, and doubtless feared they would be, as it was wonderful they were not, consumed by it.

Gill: Deu 4:34 - Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation // by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war // and by a mighty hand and stretched out arm // and by great terrors // according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes

Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation,.... As he now had done, namely, the nation of Israel out of the nation of the Egyptians; this he not only had assayed to do, but had actually done it; whereas no such instance like it could be produced, and especially as done in the manner this was:

by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war; the word "temptations" may be considered as a general word, as Aben Ezra thinks, and may signify the temptations by signs, &c. or the various essays and trials, ways, means, and methods taken by the Lord to bring about the event; by "signs" may be meant those which were required of Moses, and done by him before the people of Israel, and before Pharaoh, as proofs of his mission from the Lord, Exo 4:1 and by "wonders", the ten plagues of Egypt, which were done by a supernatural and miraculous operation, and were amazing things; see Psa 78:11; and by "war", either the slaying of the firstborn, with the destruction of the judges and gods of Egypt, as Aben Ezra; or the Lord's fighting for Israel at the Red sea, as Jarchi; he saved them and destroyed the Egyptians, and showed himself to be a man of war, Exo 14:14.

and by a mighty hand and stretched out arm; phrases frequently used when this affair is spoken of, and are expressive of the mighty power of God in the above instances, and in the issue of them, bringing Israel out of Egypt; though Aben Ezra interprets it of the pillar of fire and cloud in which the Lord went before them:

and by great terrors; which the same writer interprets of the drowning of Pharaoh and his host in the sea, and dividing it for Israel; but may be understood not only of the terrors which possessed him and his people then, but at other times, especially at the time of the thunder and lightning, and when they sat in thick darkness, and particularly when all their firstborn were slain; see Deu 26:8,

according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes; among the men of Egypt, as the above writer, Pharaoh and his courtiers: the above things were done as before them for their terror, so before Israel for their encouragement.

Gill: Deu 4:35 - Unto thee it was showed // that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God, there is none else besides him

Unto thee it was showed,.... What the Lord did in Egypt:

that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God, there is none else besides him; that he is the one only living and true God, and there is no other: this phrase is often used by the Prophet Isaiah, to express the same great article of faith.

Gill: Deu 4:36 - Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee // and upon earth he showed thee his great fire // and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire

Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee,.... Thunder is the voice of God, and by which he instructs men in the greatness of his power, Job 26:14, &c. unless his voice in giving the law, which was for the instruction of Israel, is meant; for that was heard on earth, on Mount Sinai, to which the following refers:

and upon earth he showed thee his great fire; on Mount Sinai, which burned with it:

and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire; the ten commands, and therefore may well be called, a fiery law; see Deu 4:12.

Gill: Deu 4:37 - And because he loved thy fathers // therefore he chose their seed after them // and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt

And because he loved thy fathers,.... Not their immediate fathers, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness, and entered not into the good land because of their unbelief, but their more remote fathers or ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who had some singular testimonies of the love of God to them, Abraham is called their friend of God, and Isaac was the son of promise in whom the seed was called; and Jacob is particularly said to be loved by God, when Esau was hated:

therefore he chose their seed after them; not to eternal life and salvation, but to the enjoyment of external blessings and privileges, to be called by his name, and to set up his name and worship among them, and to be a special people to him above all people on the earth, as to outward favours, both civil and ecclesiastical:

and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt; which was done not only in the sight of the Egyptians openly, they not daring to hinder them, as the wonders wrought to oblige them to let them go out, done in the sight of the Israelites as before observed, but in the sight of God, he going before them in the pillar of cloud and fire, smiling upon them the Israelites, and looking with a frown upon the host of the Egyptians, and conducting the people by the angel of his presence.

Gill: Deu 4:38 - To drive out nations from before thee, greater and mightier than thou art // to bring thee in to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day

To drive out nations from before thee, greater and mightier than thou art,.... The seven nations of the land of Canaan, which were more in number and mightier in power and strength than they, and particularly the Amorites, who were already driven out and dispossessed of their country, even the kingdoms and nations of Sihon and Og:

to bring thee in to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day; referring, as Aben Ezra observes, to the inheritance of the land of the two kings of the Amorites, which the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, were put into the possession of already.

Gill: Deu 4:39 - Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart // that the Lord he is God in heaven above // there is none else

Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart,.... Own and acknowledge it now with thy mouth, and lay it up and consider it in thine heart hereafter, as a truth of the greatest importance to be professed and held fast, and to be thought of and meditated upon continually, and never to be forgotten:

that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath; that he has made both, and is the possessor and Lord of them, and does what he pleases with them; that the one is his throne, his dwelling place, and the other his footstool; and that the inhabitants of both are his creatures, and under his authority and command, and he can dispose of them as he pleases:

there is none else; no God in heaven or in earth beside him.

Gill: Deu 4:40 - Thou shall keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments // which I command thee this day // that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee // and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for ever

Thou shall keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments,.... All his laws, moral, ceremonial, and judicial, partly being under obligation to him for all the great and good things done by him for them before enumerated, and partly and chiefly because he is the Lord God in heaven and in earth, and has a right to command and ought to be obeyed:

which I command thee this day; in the name of the Lord, and which he repeated, opened, and explained, and charged them afresh to observe; otherwise they were such that had been given long ago:

that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee; that they and theirs might enjoy temporal mercies, and continue in the land of Canaan, and partake of all the blessings in it, as follows, and of the sanctuary of the Lord, and the privileges of it:

and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for ever; that is, that they and theirs might live long in the land of Canaan, which the Lord gave for an inheritance for ever, provided they kept his law, and were obedient to his commands; see Deu 6:25, and though they have had several interruptions by their captivities, and especially by their present very long one, yet when they shall return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king, they shall have their land restored to them again, and shall never more be dispossessed of it.

Gill: Deu 4:41 - Then Moses severed three cities // on this side Jordan, toward the rising sun

Then Moses severed three cities,.... To be cities of refuge, according to the command of God, Num 35:14 this he did when he had conquered the two kingdoms of the Amorites, that God had given them for an inheritance to the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, Deu 4:38 though Jarchi says, and so other Jewish writers, that persons were not received into them until the three cities appointed in the land of Canaan were separated for the like use; See Gill on Num 35:14 and these were:

on this side Jordan, toward the rising sun; on that side of the river on which the plains of Moab lay, and the kingdoms of the Amorites, and to the east of Jordan: so Jarchi remarks,"on that side which is on the east of Jordan;''see Jos 20:8.

Gill: Deu 4:42 - That the slayer might flee thither // which should kill his neighbour unawares // and hated him not in times past // and that, fleeing unto one of these cities, he might live

That the slayer might flee thither,.... For refuge; the slayer of a man, but not any slayer, but

which should kill his neighbour unawares; by accident to him, without any design and intention to kill him; ignorantly, as the Septuagint version; and so Onkelos:

and hated him not in times past; it having never appeared that there had been a quarrel between them, and that the slayer had shown any enmity to the man slain any time before the fact, or bore a grudge against him, or spite unto him:

and that, fleeing unto one of these cities, he might live; in peace and safety unto his own death, or unto the death of the high priest, when he was released from his confinement to the city of his refuge, and might return to his tribe, house, family, and possessions.

Gill: Deu 4:43 - Namely, Bezer in the wilderness // plain country of the Reubenites // and Ramoth in Gilead of the Gadites // and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites

Namely, Bezer in the wilderness,.... In Jos 20:8, it is added "upon the plain"; this perhaps was the wilderness of Moab, in the plains of it, the same with Bozrah, see Jer 48:24 and in the Apocrypha:"Hereupon Judas and his host turned suddenly by the way of the wilderness unto Bosora; and when he had won the city, he slew all the males with the edge of the sword, and took all their spoils, and burned the city with fire,'' (1 Maccabees 5:28)it was in the

plain country of the Reubenites, or lay in that part of the country which was allotted to them, and which they gave to the Levites, 1Ch 6:78,

and Ramoth in Gilead of the Gadites; it lay in that part of Mount Gilead, and among the cities of it, which fell to the share of the tribe of Gad, and was by them given to the Levites, 1Ch 6:80, this city is frequently in Scripture called Ramothgilead; see 1Ki 4:13.

and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites, or "Gaulon", as the Septuagint, and from hence the country round about was called Gaulanitis; all Bashan, the kingdom of Og, was given to the half tribe of Manasseh, and out of it this city was given by them to the Levites, 1Ch 6:71, and appointed a city of refuge: now as these cities were typical of Christ, there may be something observed in the names of them as agreeing with him. "Bezer" signifies "a fortified place"; Christ is the fortress, mountain, and place of defence for his people, and strong hold to which the prisoners of hope turn, the strong tower whither the righteous run and are safe. "Ramoth" signifies "exaltations"; which may point both at the exaltation of Christ in human nature at the right hand of God, and the exaltation of his people by him, who are raised by him from a low estate to sit among princes, and to inherit the throne of glory, and by whom he is exalted in his person, office, and grace. "Golan" signifies "revealed" or" manifested": so Christ has been manifest in the flesh, and is revealed to sinners, when they are called by his grace; to whom they flee for refuge, and lay hold on him, the hope set before them.

Gill: Deu 4:44 - And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel.

And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel. Not the law concerning the cities of refuge, but the law of the ten commands repeated in the following chapter; so Jarchi remarks,"this which he should set in order after this section;''as he does in the next chapter, where he repeats in order the ten precepts, and makes observations on the manner of the delivery of them, and urges obedience to them.

Gill: Deu 4:45 - These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments

These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments,.... The laws, moral, ceremonial, and judicial, delivered in the following chapters; which are renewed, repeated, and explained: which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt; in the third month after they came from thence these laws were delivered to him at Mount Sinai, and he declared them to them; and now afresh, near forty years after, repeated them to them in the plains of Moab.

Gill: Deu 4:46 - On this side Jordan, in the valley, over against Bethpeor // in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon // whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they came out of Egypt

On this side Jordan, in the valley, over against Bethpeor,.... Where the Israelites abode some time; see Deu 3:29,

in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon; which was now conquered, and in the hands of the Israelites:

whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they came out of Egypt; not as soon as, or quickly after they came from thence; for it was but a few months ago since this conquest was made, whereas it was near forty years since they came out of Egypt.

Gill: Deu 4:47 - And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan // two kings of the Amorites // which were on this side Jordan, toward the sun rising

And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan,.... Seized upon them, and took them as their own, and divided them for an inheritance among two of their tribes and half another:

two kings of the Amorites; which is more than once observed, that it might be taken notice of that these were of the nations of the Canaanites Israel were to root out, and possess their land:

which were on this side Jordan, toward the sun rising; which lands and kingdoms lay to the east of Jordan, on that side of it on which were the plains of Moab, where Moses and Israel now were.

Gill: Deu 4:48 - From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon // even unto Mount Sion, which is Hermon

From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon,.... A city of Moab, which was situated on the bank of the river Arnon, that was on the border of Moab, Deu 2:36,

even unto Mount Sion, which is Hermon; the meaning is, that the lands of these two kings conquered by Israel reached from the city Aroer on the river Arnon to Mount Hermon, the one being the southern, the other the northern boundary of them. Here Hermon has another name Sion, and is to be carefully distinguished from Mount Zion near Jerusalem; it lying in a different country, and being written with a different letter in the Hebrew language. In the Septuagint version it is called Seon, and by the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem the mount of snow; See Gill on Deu 3:9.

Gill: Deu 4:49 - And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward // even unto the sea of the plain // under the springs of Pisgah

And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward,.... The plains of Moab, on that side of Jordan to the east:

even unto the sea of the plain; the sea of Sodom, the salt sea:

under the springs of Pisgah; that rose from Mount Pisgah, the same with Ashdothpisgah, Deu 3:17.