Deuteronomy 34: The LORD buries Moses

Finally, the last chapter of the book of Deuteronomy. Moses was a great leader because he trusted his great God.

Obedient to the point of death

After Moses blessed the sons of Israel by each tribe, he obeyed the command of the LORD by immediately going up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo. At the end of Chapter 32, God commanded Moses to die on the mountain where he ascended, and Moses followed the command of the LORD fully and swiftly. Literally, Moses was obedient to the point of death – at least some resemblance to our LORD Jesus Christ, who was also obedient to the point of death, the death on the cross.

The LORD shows Moses the land

Why did the LORD show all the land to Moses? Perhaps, to fulfill Moses’ curiosity. It is possible to imagine that the LORD acted as Moses’ personal tour guide in His mercy and compassion. Although the LORD prohibited Moses from leading the Israelites to conquer the land of Canaan, He still accommodated Moses’ longing as much as possible.

Were the lands and the part of Mediterranean Sea visible from the top of Mount Nebo? Yes, based on our google map and search, in a clear day, 50 kilometers (about 30 mile) can be seen without special help of binoculars. So yes, Moses was able to see all of them without a supernatural help from the LORD.

What do you think was going through Moses’ heart and mind as he gazed on the land of Canaan? Jot down some of your thoughts as if you were Moses.

The LORD ultimately leads

Moses was a great leader. He led approximately 2 million grumbling people (estimated based on 600,000 adult males) into the wilderness for 40 years with an infinite amount of patience, including multiple crucial intercessory prayers to save them from the wrath of the LORD. However great Moses was, the ultimate leader had always been the LORD, their God. The LORD reminded Moses that this was the land that the LORD swore to their ancestors (Deut. 34:4). The LORD was, is, and will forever continue to be the ultimate leader.

The role that Moses played was clearly articulated in the book of Hebrews. Hebrews 3:5 states that Moses was faithful in all His [God’s] house as a servant. Moses, although greatly venerated by the Jews, was still only a servant. The glory, honor, and praise belong to our God, and the LORD Jesus Christ.

The LORD buries Moses

Let’s recollect the process of Moses’ death chronologically. The LORD commanded Moses to go up to the mountain. Moses went up and the LORD showed all the land. Moses died on the mountain – presumably at the top of the mountain. The LORD carried Moses down and buried him in the valley, at the lower ground, in the land of Moab. No man knew the burial place.

Amazing is the intimate, special treatment by the LORD on Moses. Duet 34:6 indicates that the LORD Himself buried Moses. Moses was the only person to be buried directly by the LORD God. Unfathomable.

The LORD commences

This was not it. The LORD raised up a new leader for the new conquest. Joshua was filled with the spirit (34:9) and the sons of the Israelites listened to him.

The LORD honors Moses

Although it was ultimately about the LORD, He made sure that Moses was honored. Moses was described as a man of God (Deut. 33:1) and the only person in history whom the LORD knew face to face (Exodus 33:11). The close, intimate relation between the LORD and Moses was manifested through the mighty power and all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.

Deuteronomy 33: Meaning of Blessings

Before You die…

In the end of Chapter 32, God gave a strange command to Moses. Moses was to go up to the mountain, look at the land of Canaan, and die and be gathered to His people (Deut. 32:49-50).

Most people would panic at the command to die. Yet, Moses listened attentively and took the last word of the LORD to his mind and heart and transform it to the blessings for the people of God by each tribe.

God showed the land of Canaan to Moses before his death. Why did God show Moses the land which he would not enter? Although the exact reason will never be known, we could think of a few possibilities. Because God so loved Moses, God was giving Moses the last opportunity, a clear view to gaze on the land. Or, God was providing a time for Moses to pray for the Israelites because their path forward would be far from easy. Or perhaps, God wanted to have a very personal discussion time with Moses on the content of the blessings.

Whatever the content of the prayer or of the one-on-one time between God and Moses, Moses brought the messages down and declared before the presence of the entire assemble of the Israelites.

The Content and the Structure of the Blessings: Starts with God

After introducing a “strange” song with “strange” lyrics, Moses pronounced indeed his last words to the each tribe of the Israelites. To them, Moses pronounced his blessings to the people of the LORD from verse 2 until the end of the chapter.

First, notice the high-level structure. Although the most of the content comprises blessings for each tribe of Israel, the beginning and the ending of the blessing was all about the LORD God. Before pronouncing blessings to each tribe, Moses started with the LORD , the only true God – a bright, dynamic light from Mount Sinai to Seir to Paran. Does this beginning resonate with God in Genesis when the LORD first created light. The description provided by Moses points out a full dynamic nature of God, who moved from place to place swiftly to guide the path of the Israelites in the wilderness with the fire and cloud, with rod and staff. Because He loved His people so much, God appointed Moses inherit the life-giving Law to the Israelites. Here’s a simple, important reminder for us. The followers of Christ must acknowledge first the source of the blessings, our awesome God, before the blessings themselves.

Then, Moses transitioned to pronounce blessings to each tribe of Israel. In order to fully appreciate the “blessing” by Moses to the sons of Israel, we may need to reevaluate the our traditional understanding of the meaning of blessing in light of the text in Deuteronomy 33.

As was in the case with Jacob’s prophecy (Genesis 49), the blessing started with Reuben. The blessings did not sound much like blessing. In fact, they sounded more like a plea for them to live, survive, and not perish with few in numbers.

For Judah, an incredible prophecy was made by Jacob in Genesis that a scepter would becoming from this tribe. Moses’ blessing to Judah confirmed that this tribe was a frontier as it contended against their enemies.

Joseph was beautifully described in Jacob’s prophecy. Joseph received the double portion, as an effective first-born, with the blessings for each of his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Moses blessing to Joseph was also full of praise, rich, and honor.

For other tribes, Moses’ blessings mostly remained positive and instill some courage. Asher was hailed as the most blessed of all. Gad will provide justice to his people. Nephthali would expand its territory in the south and east areas. Benjamin was the beloved of God. A collective blessings to Zebulun and Issachar was that they would be reaping the benefits of seas.

A few notable changes
Although the prophecies and blessings between Jacob and Moses remained similar for many tribes, a few notables changes are seen. The table highlights a major difference between the two.

	Jacob’s prophecy (Gen 49:5-7)	Moses’s blessings (Deut. 33)
Simeon	“Simeon and Levi are brothers;Their swords are implements of violence…“Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel. I will disperse them in Jacob, And scatter them in Israel.	Missing
Levi	Same as Simeon	“Let Your Thummim and Your Urim belong to Your godly man,Whom You proved at Massah,With whom You contended at the waters of Meribah…¹⁰“They shall teach Your ordinances to Jacob, And Your law to Israel. They shall put incensebefore You, and whole burnt offerings on Your altar. ¹¹“O Lord, bless his substance, And accept the work of his hands; Shatter the loins of those who rise up against him, And those who hate him, so that they will not rise again.”

Missing was Simeon tribe in Moses’ blessings. Why was Simeon omitted? Although the true reason is unknown, we could cautiously formulate a hypothesis related to the event when Israeliete collectively sinned by joining themselves and bowing to Baal of Peor at Shittim (Numbers 25). The anger of the LORD burned and Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, took a spear in his hand and killed the man of Israel and the Midian woman. The man who played harlot with Baal of Poer (and perhaps with the Midian woman) was Zimri, a leader of a father’s household among the Simeonites. This shameful act and subsequent punishment took place right before the completion of the second census of the second generation Israelites. What the leader of Simeon tribe was seen intolerable, not only in the sight of the LORD, but also in the sight of the other tribes. Perhaps, for this reason, the tribe of Simeonites was singularly excluded from the blessing of Moses. In fact, Jacob’s prophecy 400 years ago was also ominous and Simeonites let themselves succumb to this negative prophecy.

In contrast, a notable turn around was seen in the blessing of Levi between Jacob and Moses. Levi, along with Simeon, received the same prophecy from Jacob. “Cursed be their anger…. scatter them in Israel (Gen 49:7)” was a tone of prophecy by Jacob on both Simeon and Levi. However, the blessings of Moses took a dramatic turn for Levi. The Levites were praised as godly. Also, ironically, the action of slaying their brothers earned the praise of God. In Genesis 34, Simeon and Levi deceived Shechem and his people by enticing them to have circumcisions then slaughtered them in the most painful state to complete revenge of their sister, Dinah’s defilement. In Exodus, after the golden calf event, the Levites stood with Moses to slaughter those who were opposing God (Exodus 32). Although they were both slaughtering events, the former earned the curse, and the latter earned the special praise by God.

The meaning of Blessings

The change in the content of the blessings for Levi from Jacob to Moses provide us with a few lessons and points to ponder on the meaning of the blessings. Most may consider blessings as “good” elements – material wealth, spiritual up, and all the associated “positive changes.” However, from this short lesson, the purpose of the blessing may be broader than our conventional thought – this may contain a strong element of discipline to teach, instruct, and eventually compel people to live holy lives ( 2 Tim 3:16) so that they would not perish. The Father discipline their sons, not to punish but turn them around that they can truly live.

Blessings expansion and ending with the LORD

After the blessings for each tribe, the content shifted back to God again from verse 26 to the end of the chapter. Moses reminded the sons of Israel of God’s essential characters and attributes. 1) He alone is God; 2) God is our dwelling place and are help (very humbling statement); 3) He provides shelter to the Israelites and their descendents; 4) God is powerful and his enemies will cringe before him.

I want to point out the element of a warriorhood in God in verse 27. The blessings almost conclude with the statement that God’s enemies will cringe before God and the Israelites. In the context to the imminent conquest before Cannaaites, this would be an immense morale booster. Also, this means that God Himself will give victory to the Israelites. In the context for all of us, this reflects the coming of Messiah Jesus Christ, who crused the head of the enemy and defeated death.

Remember. Blessings are given to remind us of God and His awesomeness and greatness. Blessings are not given for our complacency, but motivation for us to spur to be holy people of God. Let’s praise Him!

Deuteronomy 32: Gospel in the Song of Moses

Moses commissioned Joshua in chapter 31. This chapter introduces the song of Moses – indeed, a strange song it is. However strange it may be, the Word of God is powerful and it gives life.

Imagine the Scene

One of the methods to mediate on the Word of God is to imagining yourself as one of persons in the Bible. The setting of this chapter is simple, comprising only two players, the speaker and the listeners. Moses was speaking, teaching the song, and the Israelites were listening, learning the lyrics and melody of the song. Have you ever had a music lesson? Then, you can imagine yourself as one of the the Israelites. With the exception of Joshua and Caleb, every Israelite was younger than 60. Among the listeners were some non-Israelites who joined the great Exodus and spent the past 40 years of journey with the Israelites.

Moses completed this song and presented this to 600,000 people. What was the melody like? How did the audience, composed of diverse background, life stage, and the knowledge level of God, took this message? The content of the song itself was far from cheerful or exciting. Then, what was the message and purpose of the song? Was this ever played and sung collectively by the assembly of the Israelites after Moses died?

The overall content of the song

First, notice the level of confidence that Moses displayed in the content of the song itself. The first verse shows his confidence very clear as the song started with “Give ear, O heavens, and let me speak; And let the earth hear the words of my mouth [bold emphasis added] (Deut 32:1).” He was very confident that the content was worth the attention from both the heavens (perhaps, even all the angelic beings) and the earth (all men and creation).

Well, then let’s examine the content of the song to find out what made Moses extremely confident.

After the initial claim, Moses continued the song with further proclamation of the goodness and faithfulness of God. Then, soon, the rebuke kicked in against the Isrealites. The corruption of the Israelites was highlighted. The lyrics were too heavy and grievous to be a song. Yet, this was the last public message by Moses to the entire Israelites.

V1-4: The introduction and the proclamation of the goodness and faithfulness of God
V5-7: Reminder of their rebellion and sins of the Israelites.
V8-14: Reminder of the goodness of God to their forefather Jacob and how the LORD led and nurtured him.
V15-18: How Israelites became arrogant, forsaking and despising the LORD and turning to idols.
V18-25: How the LORD responded in anger

The proclamation of the goodness of God was followed by the depravity of mankind, represented by the Israelites from their rebellious hearts and actions throughout their 40 years of wilderness.

Ok, then what was so special about the song that Moses called both the heavens and earth to hear the word of his mouth? The next two sections will unfold some of the mystery.

Purpose of the song

The initial purpose of the song was to testify the future evils and troubles that the Israelites would commit as indicated in Deuteronomy 31:19-21. The LORD already knew that the sons of Israelite would fall away in the new land and break the covenant with God.

Duet 31:19- 21: 19 “Now therefore, write this song for yourselves, and teach it to the sons of Israel; put it on their lips, so that this song may be a witness for Me against the sons of Israel. 20 For when I bring them into the land flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and are satisfied and become prosperous, then they will turn to other gods and serve them, and spurn Me and break My covenant. 21 Then it shall come about, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify before them as a witness (for it shall not be forgotten from the lips of their descendants); for I know their intent which they are developing today, before I have brought them into the land which I swore. [Underline emphasis added]”

However, the ultimate purpose of the song was to warn ahead so that the Israelites would be careful to observe all the words of the Law, which was their life. The ultimate purpose of the song was to have the Israelites repent and come back to the LORD to have LIFE.

Deut 32:46-47: “Take to your heart all the words with which I am warning you today, which you shall command your sons to observe carefully, even all the words of this law. 47 For it is not an idle word for you; indeed it is your life. And by this word you will prolong your days in the land, which you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. [bold emphasis added]”

So, this is a song?

The lyric of the song is very atypical – actually, they are eccentric. The proclamation of the LORD is great. Yet, the rebuke and the anger of the LORD may elicit a variety of responses. Especially from verses 19 to 25, some of the vivid description of the anger of the LORD and how He may respond to the Israelites are scary and shocking. For some, this can be an excellent reminder of their sins, leading them further into repentance. For others, this song may repel them and make their hearts even harden. Remember the good soil parable of Jesus? Good soil listens to the word of God and rejoices. Hard soil simply rejects and remains hardened (refer to Jesus’ parables in Matt 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, and Luke 8:4-15). The Gospel does not convey just cheerful, ear-pleasing messages. It also starkly reminds of us of depravity of our sins.

Then what were the purposes of these harsh rebukes and warnings in the song that Moses wrote? The message contained truth – it was a vivid description of the heart of the Israelites and their rebellious and stiff-necked responses to the LORD. Perhaps, one of the function of the song was to weed out the “true” followers from the “fake” ones. The song itself was the testing of the hearts and minds of the Israelites.

Can you imagine playing worship songs that reveal all the past, current and even future sins of the congregation? Even if that worship song ends with the promise and the goodness of God, it is hard to imagine any church community would do it.

Read this until the end: Gospel, sinfulness and faithfulness

Although the majority of content is composed of rebuke of the Israelites and just punishment of the LORD, the latter part of the song accentuates the LORD’s grace. He will not let go of His people to the path of a complete failure. God promises to defeat their enemies and restore them.

This seems to be the pattern throughout the history: Faithfully sinful mankind, and faithfully loving God. Whenever the good news of the Gospel is introduced in the Bible, it is usually accompanied with the rebellious and sinful heart of mankind.

The table below provides a comparison of the song of Moses to other well-known accounts of the introduction of the Gospel.

Event and reference	Sinful mankind	Faithfully loving God
Adam and Eve received judgment and gospel (Gen 3:14-19)	Adam and Eve trespassed God’s command in the garden of Eden by eating the forbidden fruit (Gen 3:6)	Although God punished them, God promised the restoration and presented the first gospel – the son of woman would crush trespassed God’s command (Gen 3:15)
Nicodemus visits Jesus (John 3)	The first generation Israelites’ outright rebellious attitude resulted in God’s immediate punishment with the release of fiery serpents in the wilderness (John 3:15).	Then, an immediate redemption was promised. Jesus stated that “for God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).”
Paul’s letter to the Romans (Romans 3)	For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:16)	[but] all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus (Romans 3:25)
Song of Moses (Deuteronomy 32)	The Israelites had sinned in the wilderness all throughout 40 years and the Israelites in the future would continue to be disobedient to the LORD (Deut 32:15-18)	But, the LORD will vindicate them and bring them back (Deut 32:34-43)

Perhaps, the reason for Moses’ confidence in the content of the song was that the song itself was an epitome of the Gospel. The song, by highlighting the depravity of mankind, however unpleasant, and accentuating the lovinkindness of the LORD and His promise of vindication, presents the core message of the Gospel, even without necessarily and explicitly mentioning Christ Jesus.

The LORD vindicates us despite our continual sinfulness (with Christ). The LORD continues to chase us to provide us with an opportunity to come back to Him. To those who respond to a persistent love of God will be vindicated by the LORD.

God is good all the time. All the time, God is good.

Deuteronomy 31: Division of Labor

Friday April 19, 2019

Good Friday. Many followers of Christ commemorated His crucifixion. Some members of the Korean Bible Study group attended the Good Friday service at their respective home church to honor Christ. For those who did not have home church assembled to press on to finish the last portion of Deuteronomy in the University of Maryland College Park campus. Praise the LORD for the great weather again – a mild temperature in the mid 60s with occasional breeze.

Deuteronomy 31

Let’s make sure, first, we are reminded of the author’s background: Moses. Although he was 120 years old, his eye was not dim, nor his vigor abated (Deut. 34:7), and he knew his death was imminent. A man of 120 years old, who knew God face to face and was still full of vigor, must have had many godly wisdoms to impart to the younger generation. In a situation like this, he would declare the most important messages and wisdoms that he accumulated over his entire 120 years of life, especially from the last 40 years, during which he had led the Israelites from Egypt to the east of Jordan River. Therefore, even for the readers in the 21st century of the Deuteronomy 31 have a strong reason to heed the last words of Moses.

This chapter presented many diverse instructions specific to each group or person. Therefore, I divided the instructions by categorizing them into distinct speaker-listener combinations. They are summarized in the table below.

Category – Speaker/Listener	Moses to All Israelites (v.1-8)	Moses to Joshua (v. 7-8)	Moses to the Levitical Priests(v. 9-13)	The LORD to Moses (v.14-22, 24)	The LORD to Joshua (v. 23)	Moses to the Levites(v. 23-29)
Old Leadership	Moses won’t be able to lead you any longer.			Moses will die soon (repeated twice)
New Leadership	The LORD your God and Joshua will lead you.	Be strong and courageous because Joshua will lead them to land.		Call Joshua that the LORD may commission him.	Be strong and courageous and you (Joshua) will bring the Israelites into the land I promised
“Steadfastness” of the Israelites				Israelites will fall away and the LORD’s anger will be kindled.		The Israelites will fall away.
Steadfast and Inclusive God	Be strong and courageous for the LORD will not fail you nor forsake you.	THe LORD will not fail you, nor forsake you.	Assemble everyone in Israel, including all the aliens, and teach the word to them to hear, learn and fear the LORD. Educate the next generation. Moses wrote this law and gave it to the priest	To Moses, write a song and teach it to the Israelites that show faithfulness of God and unfaithfulness of Israelites		Take this book of the law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD God.

Overall observation of the chapter

The Wealth of the Nations, written by Adam Smith and published in 1776, starts with an interesting topic. The book’s very first chapter is about the division of labor. After making a series of keen observations of pin manufacturing processes, Adam Smith was awed by a significant increase in productivity in pin production when the division of labor was appropriately implemented. Somewhat – although a distant “somewhat” – Deuteronomy 31 reminded me of the division of labor instructed by the LORD to each stakeholder group within the Israelites. Some messages were given directly from the LORD to Moses and Joshua. Others were from Moses to all the Israelites and Moses to the Levitical priests. These messages, although distinct, have some common elements.

Old leadership and the remaining task

One of the major questions that came up when I was reading this chapter was why the LORD God decided to have a major change in the leadership at such a crucial juncture of the Israelites. Normally, this abrupt change in leadership before a major conquest war can be extremely risky. When the question was brought up to the bible study group, we started to brainstorm.

One potential reason that the LORD decided to change the leadership was because Moses was old, the LORD wanted to relieve him from this straining duty and burden (Imagine yourself having led 600,000 people for 40 years in the wilderness!) Yet, this reasoning may be weak because Deuteronomy 34:7 states that Moses was still full of vigor. Despite his advanced age of 120, Moses was very healthy. Note that not every person of God was healthy at the end of his/her life. King David, man after God’s heart, was frail when he was old and advanced in age (1 Kings 1).

The second possible reason could be that the LORD God knew that a new, younger leadership would be more suitable to lead the second generation Israelites. This reason seems plausible. To the most second generation Israelites, Moses was a reverent, fearful leader. Their parents disobeyed the LORD and Moses, and everyone of them, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, fell dead in the wilderness. Moses was the one who received godly revelation of the Law and Ten Commandments. To them, Moses was an epitome of a vertical leadership with charisma. On the other hand, Joshua could been considered a comrade and collaborate leader, which can be more appropriate to the new generation. If Moses had continued to lead, then the Israelites community would have been robbed of the opportunity to nurture the growth of new leadership. In addition, there could have been a danger of idolizing human leader over God.

The third possible reason that the LORD God decided to change the leadership was that He loved Moses too much. Although the nominal reason that Moses was not allowed to enter the land of Canaan was his disobedience to the LORD by hitting the rock with his staff instead of speaking to it (Numbers 20), the heart of the LORD may not have been entirely in anger. It was possible that the LORD detected the frailty in Moses and decided to relieve him from the duty. Instead of implementing punishment, the LORD’s decision to have Moses step down from the leadership before the conquest of Canaan could be an ultimate sign of the LORD’s deep affection for Moses. The LORD wanted Moses to come back to Him.

Moses knew when to let go and obeyed God. In April 2018, Omar al-Bashir, the ignominious leader of Sudan for nearly four decades, was forced to step down by the military. It is incredibly difficult to step down especially after many decades of having the top position. Moses did an excellent job of leading the grumbling, stiff-necked Israelites for 40 years in the wilderness. He taught the Law, the life-giving Law, to God’s people. He oversaw the building of the tabernacle. He completed his mission assigned by the LORD God. It was the time for him to step down – and that was good in the sight of the LORD.

New Leadership and Be strong and Courageous

God was grooming Joshua to be the leader. About 40 years ago, Joshua was the general that led the Israelites to fight the army of Amalek while Aaron and Hur helped Moses to hold his hand up until the sun set (Exodus 17). Not only was he capable of leading armies, he also had the discernment – only Caleb and he were able to see the land of Canaan with God’s perspective and power. The LORD made it clear – Moses would pass away, and Joshua would lead the people.

“Faithfully” sinful human

So far so good. However, Moses knew that the Israelites would continue to be unfaithful and rebellious (Deut. 31:27). Moses warned this to the Israelites, and soon they confirmed it. The book of Judges confirmed their rebellious attitudes and unfaithfulness. Many prophets in the kingdom of Judah and Israel rebuked their unfaithfulness. Our lives continue to reflect our sinful shortcomings.

Faithfully good God

God knew that the Israelites would lead themselves astray to serve other gods and idols of other nations. Despite fully knowing their stiff-necked attitudes, God still led them through the wilderness under Moses and still promised to lead them into the land of Canaan under Joshua. God continues to abide by His faithfulness.

Good Friday

That brings us back to Good Friday. Despite knowing that we would fall short, Jesus died on the cross. Deuteronomy 31 continues to remind us of God’s faithfulness. Good Friday reminds us of faithful Christ.

Deuteronomy 30: Commandments are not difficult to keep?

Friday: Night of Inductive Bible Study on April, 12, 2019

It was a beautiful weather in Maryland with a mild temperature between 60 and 65 although slightly wet due to early afternoon rain. Around 8 p.m., five of us gathered in one of the buildings at the University of Maryland College Park campus to collectively meditate on and discuss the word of God – from the book of Deuteronomy. Chapter 30 of the book records the final portion of Moses’ sermon to the Israelites in the wilderness.

Decipher the Author’s heart and mind

The last public message by Moses, which began in chapter 28, took place in the land of Moab where the second-generation Israelites gathered. Although he was 120 years old, he was full of vigor with clear eyesight. Chapter 30 is the last portion of his exhortation to God’s people to obey the LORD. Given that Mose knew that his physical death was imminent, chapter 30 is almost equivalent to Moses’ will. He was pouring out his heart to his spiritual sons and daughters, God’s people, with all his heart, mind, strength, and soul. He might have been dripping blood like sweat knowing that Israelites, despite the warnings and pleadings, would eventually disobey and, subsequently, face curses that the LORD warned (Deut 28) – perhaps, similar to that of Jesus when He prayed for all the believers (John 16 and 17) before His crucifixion, know that He would be temporarily separated from the Father. temporary separation from the Father. Moses’ message might have been similar to Paul’s last letter to his beloved son, Timothy (2 Timothy). At first glance, Deuteronomy may be seen as a dry book of repetition of laws and warnings. However, I beg to differ. This was the painful pouring out of heart of Moses to God’s people because of deep love. Let’s read the following chapters as if we were Moses. Then, each word and phrase becomes dynamic.

Reasons for us to pay attention to the last message of Moses

One tip on meditation is to be one of the actual persons in the passage. Try to be Moses. Try to be one of the Israelites as if you were hearing his last sermon at this moment. Try to imagine even yourself as God when Moses was preaching. What was going through Moses’ mind as he was uttering these words of God? How high or low was his tone of speech? Where was his standing, and was he able to see all the audience of 600,000 Israelites? What was the weather like, the season of the year and time of the day? And so forth.

Here’s the reason for us, the readers in the 20th century, to pay attention to Moses’ last sermon. Imagine a guy, who was 120 years old, full of energy and vigor, yet knowing imminent death, this person surely wanted to impart the most important message. Before the death bed, no one will waste his/her last strengths with something meaningless. This reason alone is sufficient for us to heed the message.

Content

Here’s the content of Chapter 30. In the first part of the chapter, verse 1 to 10, Moses reiterated God’s faithfulness and eventual Israelites’ disobedience and banishment to all nations because of their persistently rebellious disobedience to God. Despite knowing the rebellious heart and deliberate disobedience of the future Israelite, the LORD their God still promised the blessings to His people if they would return to the LORD their God and obey Him with all their heart and souls according to all the commandments.

The second part of the passage, from verse 11 to 14, Moses injected an important attribute of God and His words. He encouraged the Israelites that they could keep those commandments because they are near and within the reach and not too difficult.

This may strike some of us strange given that we were taught that it is impossible to keep all the commandments written in the book of Moses. However, Moses in Deuteronomy argued that “this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you (Deut 30:11).” How can keeping the commandment not too difficult? The key to understanding this verse is to obtain a correct understanding of “keeping the commandments.” Let’s come back to this point.

The third part, from verse 15 to the end of the chapter, Moses provided a few direct commands to the Israelites: Love the LORD your God (v16); and choose life by living the LORD your God (v19).

In summary, Moses pleaded with the Israelites to obey and love the LORD with all their heart, soul, mind and strength – because that is the only way to the true life.

Insightful questions

The biggest benefit of having a bible study with a dedicated and curious group of people is the variety of questions that arise from different perspective, thinking style, and life background. During the Bible study, we threw out many questions. Here are two insightful questions which underpinned the flow of the discussion and sharing on this session.

[Q1] Moses stated that keeping the commandments would not be too difficult for the Israelites (Deut 39:11). This statement is strange especially given some of the references provided in the letters written by apostle Paul. Paul in numerous times told that it was impossible to keep the commandments of the Law and the purpose was to illuminate that we were sinners. How can we better understand the exact meaning of keeping the commandments being to too difficult?

This is a great question. One of the complacency that creeps onto the followers of Christ surrounded by church setting is simply accepting the words at their face value. Faith in God and Jesus does not mean to throw away curiosity and critical thinking. Critical thinking and questioning actually enhance our understanding of God, thus solidifying our faith in Christ.

Then, what does the “keeping the commandment is not too difficult” mean to you? Do you agree? Can you (imagine yourself as one of the Israelites listening to the last sermon by Moses around 2,000 B.C.) possibly keep all the commandments, 600 plus requirements? Probably, not. Then, why did Moses say that keeping the commandment is not too difficult?

Then, that leads to the other more fundamental question. Perhaps, there is a fundamental difference between Moses’ meaning of keeping the commandments and our understanding of “keeping the commandments.” The next question that came up during our bible study again enlighten us more.

[Q2] This verse (Deut 30:11) prompted me (the questioner) to compare and contrast the commandments uttered by Moses and commandments kept by Pharisees. I understand that the time gap between the two is about 2,000 years. However, What is the core difference in the meaning of the “obeying the commandments” by Moses and the Pharisees?

Again, great question. On the surface, Moses message in Deuteronomy for the Israelites to keep the commandments (otherwise a set of terrible consequences will ensue) and the Pharisees’ conduct of obeying the commandments of the Law during the time of Jesus may not seem to be very different. Yet, there are a key fundamental differences between Moses’ understanding of keeping the commandments of God and that of the Pharisees.

First, the purpose. Moses urged the Israelites to keep the commandments to live and honor God whereas the Pharisees used the commandments to show off their difference from the rest of the people by explicitly display their acts of righteousness. Moses taught the commandments to give life whereas Pharisees used the commandments outshine themselves and produce guilt trip to others.

Second, more importantly relation. Moses knew God face to face whereas the Pharisees knew the facts about God but did not know Him. One of the key indicators that show the difference is that Moses interceded for the Israelites three times when God was about to destroy them. Moses’ intercession was incredibly notable given that the Israelites in a few occasions wanted to stone Moses to go back to Egypt. Moses understood the heart of God – God’s deep love for the Israelites – and made an appeal to God to relent. In contrast, Pharisees were busy impressing their fellow Israelites and urged them to tithe, let alone intercede for them.

Moses understood the commandments from God by projecting the heart of God, but the Pharisees literally depended on their cognitive understanding of the letter of the words of commandments on the surface. In fact, Moses was already obeying the greatest commandments and the one like it – to Love the LORD and to love your neighbor as yourself.

The Pharisees’ way of keeping the commandment of the Law was different. They focused literally on the words of the LORD. They think that the Scripture itself could lead them to eternal life. They thought they knew God by literally living the written words of the commandments, yet, their actions gave impression to others that “religious” actions were of primacy

Connection with the New Testament: Love the LORD with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.

When Moses urged the Israelites to keep the commandment, the core meaning was to establish relation and love the LORD. Loving the LORD is keeping the commandment, not one of the commandments. The Pharisees’ understanding of the commandment was the literal obedience to all the letters. If that is the case, even Jesus violated the commandment by taking the grain from the field in the Sabbath (Matt 5). Sabbath was made for men to rest and know God.

Then, why did Moses say that keeping the commandment of the LORD is not too difficult? First, it is not the literal deeds that follow all the details of the commands, but loving and depending on the LORD was core crux of the commandment. It was to be viewed as relational. Therefore, it was told that keeping the command was not too difficult. Second, verse 6, it was the LORD moreover who would circumcise the heart of the Israelites. In other words, the LORD enables them to undergo transformation of heart so that they can love the LORD. In the New Testament term, we can interpret as keeping the commandment of the LORD is not too difficult because the followers of Christ are empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Table 1: Comparison between Moses and Pharisees

	Moses	Pharisees
Relation with God	He had a face-to-face personal relationship with God.	They knew about God, but no personal relationship with God.
Posture	Although he knew that he was special (having one-on-one) conversation, he was humble.	Although they possessed tremendous knowledge about God, that led to pride and hubris.
Message	He gave life-giving messages (The LORD is your life).	Their examples were bounded by life-draining regulations.

Moses knew God as he experienced God. Deuteronomy 30, the message, by Moses was life-giving just as Jesus’ message and all his deeds were life-giving.

Pharisees did not know God. Their special status stemming from their ancestor Abraham made them arrogant. Their message to people were life-draining duties and religious acts.

Application

Moses concluded the last part of the sermon by giving a choice to the Israelites. As Moses provided choices to the Israelites, so did God. God never forces His will upon us. However, because He loves us, He urges us to choose life.

In Genesis chapter 3, Adam and Eve sinned and sin entered and we fell under the dominance of sin, whose wage is death. We live under the force of death. Without God (30:19), our choices are limited to only death and curse. Yet, God intervened in this world to provide us with life and blessings – the only way for us to choose life is loving the LORD our God, obeying His voice, and holding fast to Him. “Choose life” is still the message for us in 2019.