By Mike Peek

Deuteronomy 34 Moses died on Mount Nebo and was buried in the valley of Moab. It is a good thing that no one knows where he was buried, other wise, someone would have likely turned it into a shrine and a place of pilgrimage. This would have contradicted the commandments that Moses gave the sons of Israel. Moses was aloud to see from a distance the land which the Lord swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but he could not set his foot on the land because he sinned against the Lord. When Moses died, the sons of Israel wept for him for thirty days in the plains of Moab; however, the days of morning and weeping came to an end. This indicates that there is a time for mourning and weeping in this world but there is a time to proceed forward from mourning and weeping.  Not only did Moses die and not enter the land of promise but his servant became his successor. Verse 10 was written as a memoriam and was true up to the advent of Jesus Christ but the statement can no longer be said of Moses, ...

Deuteronomy 33 Moses prayed to the Lord a blessing on behalf of the people. He mentioned in prayer one by one each tribe. During this prayer, he used more words on some tribes than other tribes. Rueben, Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali  were given one thought each. I find it interesting that Judah, who would become the most prominent of the twelve tribes, was given one verse, which amounted to two compete thoughts. Levi was given four verses and Joseph five verses. I also find it interesting that Joseph is spoken as one tribe, when most often he is split into two tribes: Ephraim and Manasseh. This prayer is similar to Jesus high priestly prayer before his arrest, trial and crucifixion. However, Moses was praying as a servant and Jesus prayed as a Son.  There was no people like Israel on the earth, saved of the Lord. However, they cannot compare to the church of Jesus Christ. A people from every tribe, tongue and nation on the earth, saved with an eternal salvation. The sons of Israe...

Deuteronomy 32 Moses spoke the song that he had written to the sons of Israel, a song that glorified the Lord in holiness, righteousness and justice. After completing the words of this song, Moses said, “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. 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.” Then the Lord spoke to Moses and commanded him to the peak of Mount Nebo and see the land of Canaan, from the land of Moab and die on the mountain peak. The Lord told Moses to die and be gathered to his people as his brother Aaron died and was gathered to his people. Moses died and did not enter the land of Canaan because he broke faith with the Lord in the midst of the sons of Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin. He did not treat the Lo...

Deuteronomy 31 The Lord is salvation and he is the one who goes ahead of the sons of Israel to defeat the enemy; therefore, do not fear, for the Lord will not fail you or forsake you. Moses then spoke to his successor, וֹשׁוּעַ Yehoshua, translated Joshua, which means “The Lord is Salvation.” The Law that Moses spoke to the people was put into a book (this book) and he gave copies to the priests, the sons of Levi who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord and all of the elders; he commanded that they read the words of this law to all the people when they gather every seven years for the remission of debts. Moses and Joshua went to the tent of meeting and the Lord said to Moses, “The people will forsake the Lord and break the his covenant and the Lord will hide his face because of the evil which they will do.” Moses wrote a song that day, as the Lord commanded him and he taught the song to the sons of Israel. The Lord commissioned Joshua the son of Nun to be strong and courageous a...

Deuteronomy 30 There is forgiveness of sins and the promise of restoration for those who repent. If you return to the Lord your God, he will rejoice over you and bless you. The word is set before you, to observe and is not to difficult for you. Loving the Lord and obeying his voice is life and prosperity but turning your heart away to worship other gods and serve them is death and adversity. Moses saw the Lord God at Horeb, when all of his goodness passed before him, the Lord declared to him: “The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” (Ex 34:6-7)  True biblical theology teaches us that the Lord God is compassionate and gracious; therefore, he forgives those who sin aga...

Deuteronomy 29 All that Moses spoke to this point in Deuteronomy are the words of the covenant that the Lord made with the sons of Israel. The Lord God took care of them for forty years in the wilderness. The God who swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob desired to establish the sons of Israel as his own people. The covenant goes beyond those who were standing before Moses. When they break the covenant, the Lord God promises to send plagues, disease and afflict the land; that men may know that the Lord has done this, because they broke his covenant. When they break the covenant, the Lord will uproot them from the land and cast them into another land. We cannot know all the things of the Lord our God but the things revealed belong to us. This covenant was given to the sons of Israel, their children and their grandchildren for as many generations as they keep the covenant. Like the sons of Israel were given a covenant, the Lord has given a new covenant for all people, nations and tribes in ...

Deuteronomy 28 Blessings at Gerizim “Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the LORD your God:” (Dt 28:1, 2) Consequences of Disobedience “But it shall come about, if you do not obey the LORD your God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes with which I charge you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you.” (Dt 28:15) This is the longest chapter in Deuteronomy. Moses spends less than 1/4 of the chapter describing the blessings and more than 3/4 of the chapter describing the curses. The blessing are wonderful but the curses are horrible and grow in strength as the description continues. This is the promised blessing and curse for the sons of Israel as they come into the land that was promised to their fathers: Abraham, Isaac...

Deuteronomy 27 The sons of Israel were instructed by Moses to make a structure of stones. They were to coat the stones with lime and write on them the words of the law that he spoke to them, the law recorded in this book. This structure was to be an altar to the Lord for making sacrifices. The structure was to be built on Mount Ebal. “Gerizim and Ebal are the mountains that flank the town of Shechem in the central hill country, Gerizim (elevation 2,849 feet) to the south, Ebal (3,077 feet) to the north.” (IVP BBC OT) Schechem is often mentioned in Genesis. In this area, the Lord God made a covenant with Abraham. The structure made of whole stones and coated with lime were to be written the words of the law given by Moses, the law recorded in Deuteronomy. The sons of Israel were charged with keeping all of these commandments. One-half of the tribes were to stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people. For the curse, one-half of the tribes were to stand on Mount Ebal. It should be noted th...

Deuteronomy 26 The final two commandments are given, followed by a reminder to keep all of the Lord’s commandments. When the sons of Israel come into the land and possess the land that the Lord is giving them; when they harvest from the land, they shall take some of the produce and put it in a basket. They shall bring the basket of produce to the place that the Lord has designated and give it to the priest. The priest will set it before the altar and the person who brought the fruit to the altar is to pray to the Lord the history of his people, worship the Lord and rejoice with others in all the good that the Lord has given his household. In the third year he is to give the tithe to the Levite, to the stranger, to the orphan and to the widow that they may eat in the town near to his land. Then he is to pray to the Lord, the Lord’s commandments and ask for the Lord’s blessing on his people and the land on which they live.  This taught the sons of Israel to pray, give, worship and re...

Deuteronomy 25 A guilty man shall not be beaten more than forty times. An ox should not be kept from eating while working. A man should give his brothers widow a son, but if any man is not willing to build up his brothers house, he is a disgrace in Israel. If two men are fighting and the wife of the one reaches out and grabs the genitals of the other man, her hand shall be cut off without mercy. All business transactions are to be honest. The sons of Israel were commanded to blot out the memory of Amalek, a son of Esau, who attacked the rear stragglers when they were faint and weary because he did not fear God.  There are six laws recorded  in this chapter. They are various laws because they do not seem to be connected to one another. Honestly, I find most of them very strange when viewing them as a Christian and from my cultural back ground, 20th and 21st century America. I do not understand beating a man as punishment. I do not understand going into your deceased brothers wi...

Deuteronomy 24 There are eleven laws given in this passage, the first of which is the law of divorce. If a man decides that he does not like her, after marrying her, and writes her a certificate of divorce, if she marries another man, the first husband is not permitted to take her back. The certificate of divorce was give, so that the woman and her new husband could prove that she was divorced; therefore, not falling under the law for adultery; for the penalty was death for both the man and woman caught in the act of adultery.  Jesus said:  “It was said, ‘WHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY, LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE’; but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. (Mt 5:31)  So, did Jesus change the law of divorce? I say to you no, Jesus did not change the law, he magnified the law. When answering the question asked: “Why then did Moses co...

Deuteronomy 23 The Lord God is holy; therefore, his people whom he walks among shall be holy. There are eleven commandments given in this chapter: The first commandment specifies whom to exclude from the assembly of the Lord: No emasculated male, no one of illegitimate birth, and no ammonite or Moabite because they did not give them food and water when the sons of Israel came from Egypt. However, they are not to exclude an Edomite because he is a brother, nor an Egyptian because they were aliens in Egypt. The sons of Israel are to keep from every evil thing when camping together. If a man has a nocturnal emission, then he must leave the camp, wash with water, and not return until sundown. There shall be a place outside of camp to dig and cover up their excrement. If a slave escapes from his master and comes to the land of Israel, they are not to hand him over, but he shall live among the sons of Israel. The sons and daughters of Israel shall not be prostitutes, and money received from ...

Deuteronomy 22 Fifteen laws are given in this text. The translators divided these into eight sundry laws and seven moral laws. Sundry simply means, various kinds. However, I do not believe that these are various kinds, but are derived from one principle, The law of Christ, (Gal 6:2) “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.” (Rom 13:8, NASB ) All the laws in this text are about treating people right and not acting like what you are not. Not only were the sons of Israel to always to do right by their neighbor but they were to do right by the created things as well. When building a house, they were commanded to put a protective wall on the edge of the roof to keep people from falling off.  Men are not women and women are not men. They were commanded to not sow their vineyards with two kinds of seeds, or plow with two kinds of animals yoked together, or wear a garment of mixed fabrics.  The Lord God made us different,...

Deuteronomy 21 In this chapter are  five laws: The expiation of murder done in a community without a witness. Taking a daughter of an enemy as wife. The law regarding who the first born is when there is more than one wife. The law regarding a rebellious son. The law regarding a man put to death, by hanging him on a tree.  Someone would be murdered without witnesses, so how can the community be holy in the sight of the Lord? Men delight in women, so how can a man take an enemies daughter as wife? Men just as quickly become disenchanted, so how should she be released? A man might take more than one wife, so whose son should be given the rights of the first born? A father and mother may have a rebellious son, who left unchecked, may bring condemnation upon them, so how should this be dealt with? Men will be put to death for crimes, but should the body be dishonored?  All of these laws were given with the expectation of sin. Psalms 14:1-3 says: The fool has said in his heart,...

Deuteronomy 20 There are three main laws about warfare, an each law has caveats. The first law is to not be afraid of your enemies. The second law gives stipulations on what to do when besieging a city. The third law commands the sons of Israel to not destroying the fruit trees. The sons of Israel are about to enter the land of Canaan. The people in the land are in greater number than they; therefore, the natural response is to be afraid. Therefore, the commandment is to not be afraid and trust that the Lord is with you. The Christian is not going into physical war against a physical enemy. Our war is spiritual and we fight spiritual battles, and we use spiritual weapons. (Eph 6:10-17) However, like the Israelites, who were going into battle against the Hittites, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; we are facing an enemy that is more numerous than we are, but we should not be fainthearted, or afraid, or panic, or tremble before them, for the Lord ou...

Deuteronomy 19 There are three laws given in this text: The law regarding the cities of refuge. The law regarding boundary markers. The law regarding witnesses. These three are connected. Cain was the first man to kill another man and men continued to kill men until God destroyed the earth with a worldwide flood. During the time of Noah, God commanded: Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man. (Genesis 9:6) Human life is superior to that of the animals because we were created in the image of God. Murder is defined as malice of forethought. It is an intended act. In our society, some may disagree with the concept of life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot justice until it happens to them or someone that they love. When it does, they want vengeance.  The law regarding the cities of refuge were put in place to protect the innocent. We live in a dangerous world, were accidents happen and people lose...

Deuteronomy 18 In this chapter, there are three laws: The law concerning the Levites portion, the law forbidding spiritism and the promise of a prophet like Moses.  The Lord God created a situation in which there was a class of people dependent on the giving of others to live. If the sons of Israel did what they ought, then this class had all that they needed, but if not, this class would suffer or turn from serving the Lord. The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, was to have no portion in Israel; however, they were to eat what was offered to the Lord. They were to be the Lord’s physical representatives in the nation of Israel. They were not the Lord, but were the Lord’s servants, and being the Lord’s servants, they ate from the Lord’s table. The people in the land of Canaan, before the sons of Israel, practiced divination, witchcraft, sorcery and spiritism. Today, these are thought of as entertainment. Both children and adult television programs and movies are filled with...

Deuteronomy 17:1-20 It is a detestable thing to sacrifice to the Lord oxen and sheep with defects. Judgments must come after a thorough investigation. No man or woman is to be put to death if he or she is accused by a single person, but their must be at least two witnesses and three witnesses are better.  However, the sons of Israel were not to put up with a man or woman among them, who worships other gods ,and or the created things in the universe. The town judges shall hear most cases, but the Levitical priest, or the judge whom the Lord has risen up will hear the difficult cases; the sons of Israel are to observe their decisions. When the sons of Israel desire a human king, he must not be a foreigner, but one of their own countrymen, a man whom the Lord choses among them. This king shall not serve himself and multiply his riches! This law, this sermon called Deuteronomy, is to be copied by the king, he shall have it with him, and read it all the days of his life. This will cause...

Deuteronomy 16:1-22 Three times a year, all the men of Israel, are commanded to meet as one congregation before the Lord their God in the place which he chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths. No man shall come empty-handed, but every man shall give in accordance to the blessing that the Lord God has given him. Their culture was agrarian; therefore, their meeting together centered around feasts.  The first feast, the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread was in the month of Abib, the first month in the Jewish calendar. This commemorated the Exodus from Egypt. They were to sacrifice the Passover Lamb, in the evening, at the place that the Lord God designated among them, then eat unleavened bread for severn days. The seventh day of this feast was to be a solemn assembly to the Lord their God. So, the first feast commemorates the Lord’s Passover of their first born in Egypt, and their Exodus from Egypt, but the next two feasts h...

Deuteronomy 15:1-23 Every seven years the sons of Israel were to grant a remission of debts , not exacting what is owed from his neighbor and his brother because the Lord has given them remission. The sons of Israel were to freely give to the poor and needy without regard to the nearness of the seventh year, the year of remission, for the Lord promises a blessing if they give but considers it sin if they do not. The Lord allows poor to be in the land as a test. All Hebrew slaves are to be released from service in the seventh year and are to be provided well at their release; however, they may stay, not by coercion, but if it is their desire and an awl shall pierce their ear into the door and they shall serve that household forever. They shall not think it difficult to set a Hebrew slave free. Once a year, all the first born of the herd and flock were to be eaten before the Lord their God in the place that he chooses; however, if it has a defect, it shall not be sacrificed to the Lord b...