On Wednesdays, in 2024, on this blog I will be posting a series of surveys of O.T. books and answers to questions about the O.T.
The Title and Purpose of the Book of Deuteronomy
At last, after almost forty years of wandering around in the wilderness, the people were finally ready to enter the Promised Land that was promised about five centuries before to Abraham.
The name Deuteronomy comes from a Hebrew word meaning “these are the words” (vs. 1). Another title it is given at times is Mishneh haTorah, which means “2nd law” or “repeated law” (17:18). While some laws are repeated, this is a different generation of Israel and a different time.
The book of Deuteronomy is quoted in seventeen N.T. books with over eighty direct quotations and about 100 other references. The book is comprised of sermons Moses gives to Israel before his death and before Israel enters the Promised Land.
The purpose for the Book of Deuteronomy is a simple one: to restate the Law to the next generation of Hebrews and encourage them to learn from the mistakes of their forefathers. Moses is the one preaching, and this is his last series of sermons to the people before he dies and they enter the Promised Land. In short, this may be the longest farewell speech in the Bible and maybe in all of history.
The Author and Date of the Book of Deuteronomy
During his demanding of Pharaoh to let the Hebrews go, Yahweh sent ten plagues (Exod 7-12) as judgment ending with the death of the firstborn of Egypt, which finally led Pharaoh to let them leave Egypt. 430 years after they were taken into Egyptian captivity, the Hebrews left (with possibly 2.5 million). They were immediately met by one of the greatest miracles in mankind when Yahweh parted the waters of the Red Sea for them to cross, even though He didn’t allow the armies of Egypt to follow them killing them all. From there, they made their way into the wilderness where they would spend the next thirty-nine years.
Dating the events of Deuteronomy is simple. I Kings 6:1 tells us Solomon’s Temple was completed in his 4th year (967/966 B.C.) The Exodus was 480 years before this, which puts the Exodus at 1446 B.C. Moses and the Israelites took 40 years to arrive at the Jordan River. So, the book would be taking place in 1405 B.C.
Surveying the Book of Deuteronomy
The 1st Sermon: What God Has Done (1:1-4:43)
When the people encamped at Kadesh-Barnea, they didn’t expect that after they sent spies into the Promised Land to investigate what they were up against that those spies would return with the report that the men in the Land were too mighty and powerful for them. This sermon Moses began preaching to them about that lack of faith challenged their distrust of God who promised to give them this land and would fight with them.
Moses then recounted for them the consequences of their discontentment with God’s plans and how that led them to wander around the wilderness for almost four decades. And regardless of their wandering, they eventually would begin to have their faith tested when they had to face off against kings like Sihon and Og.
Moses then recounts his own punishment by God regarding his inability to lead them into the Promised Land (Deut 3:23-29). God allowed him to consider the land but not go into the land. Obedience to God was the fundamental commitment that the Hebrews had to hold high as they were months from meeting up with the people in Jericho.
The 2nd Sermon: What God Expects (4:44-26:19)
The sermon regarding what God expects begins with a reviewing of the Law, and that begins with the Ten Commandments (Deut 5:1-21), the commandment of loving your neighbor (Deut 6), the recitation of the famous Jewish creed, the shema (Deut 6:5-9), the special love that God has shown His people (Deut 7), and their need to remember who has been on their side the whole time (Deut 8:1-9:12), etc.
Moses takes the opportunity to remind them of the idolatrous episode regarding a golden calf and their need to learn from the sinful decisions of their fathers by keeping idols far from their hearts (Deut 9:13-29). The need to love and serve God with their whole being, which is the essence of the first three Commandments, was the application of Moses’ sermon in this section (Deut 10-11).
What then follows is a series of reminders on the different kinds of laws given to them – ceremonial, civil, and social (Deut 12:1-26:19).
One other feature in this section of preaching by Moses has to do with the Messiah. The Messiah, we are told, would be like the prophet Moses – “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen” (Deut 18:15). This prophet is none other than Jesus Christ; Peter refers to this passage of Scripture when identifying Jesus as the One they crucified (Acts 3:22-23). Later, as Jesus is calling the disciples, Philip drew the conclusion that this Man was the one Moses was referring to in Deuteronomy 18 – “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph’” (John 1:45).
The 3rd Sermon: What God Will Do (27-34)
This covenant to be established with the Hebrew was modeled after a treaty called a suzerain-vassal treaty. A suzerain-vassal treaty is usually made between two parties, where the stronger ruler (the suzerain) gives military and economic protection to a smaller ruler or people (the vassal) and his people in exchange for a promised loyalty to the stronger ruler. The suzerain (the powerful ruler) would impose certain conditions or regulations upon the vassal. It is somewhat of a political covenant.
The final governmental transition to make was of leadership. Moses, who would die very soon, needed to publicly acknowledge Joshua as his successor (Deut 31), and he did so by installing him with a message about remembering God and His Word as he led the people into the Promised Land. Quite appropriately, Moses records for us a song to be sung by his people in Deuteronomy 32. It is the first record of poetry we have in the Bible and it is not the only poem Moses recorded (Ps 90). He followed this song with one last charge to the Hebrew people; each tribe was addressed and blessed by him (Deut 33).
Then we arrive at the last chapter of Deuteronomy – Chapter 34 – where Moses’ death is recorded. Now, up to this point in the O.T., Moses has written everything – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. He could have written this last chapter prophetically about his death, his funeral and burial, but that would seem odd. It is more likely that his successor, Joshua, would have recorded this event.
Final Thoughts About the Book of Deuteronomy
If you wanted to summarize the book of Deuteronomy, you could say these two things about it. First, the Book is about God choosing these people (Deut 4:37-38; 7:6-8; 9:4-6). Who is this God making that choice? Why did He choose the Hebrews and not another nation? What did the Hebrews get as a result of being chosen?
And, second, the Book is about these people choosing God (Deut 4:1-2. 29-31; 30:15-20). How do we demonstrate that we have chosen God? What kind of choice are we making when we choose God? What are the implications of our choice to serve God?
Worldly Saints 