Investigating Deuteronomy “Now choose life…. Love the Lord your God, listen to his voice…For the Lord is your life….” Deuteronomy 30:19,20 Here is a Book, a portion of the Scriptures, that is foundational for a people with whom God has established a relationship. The Covenant relationship with Jehovah explained through the teaching contained in Deuteronomy is to be expressed in the life of Israel and is to be the basis upon which each subsequent generation will experience life as God intended. The eternal purposes of God through Israel and the Church have their roots in the story of a nation that must not be ignored but should be investigated.

Relationship with responsibility

Walking with God

“The Lord said to Abram…’Go to the land I will show you I will make you a great nation and I will bless you….and all peoples will be blessed through you.’” Genesis 12:1-3 “See I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore he would give to your fathers.” Deuteronomy 1:8 “Because he loved your forefathers and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt…and to bring you into their land and give it to you as an inheritance.” Deuteronomy 4:37-38 “Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.” Deuteronomy 4:1 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord your God is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your strength. These commandments are to be upon your heart.” Deuteronomy 6:4-6 “And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:39-40

“These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfilment of the ages has come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11

Relationship with responsibility God’s revelation through Moses in the first five books of Scripture is foundational to the rest of the Old Testament and the message that it proclaims, built on through the prophets, blossoms and matures in the wonder of Christ’s coming for He is the greater than Moses and the fulfilment of all that God has to say. The Book of Deuteronomy records the messages of God through Moses to His people on the very edge of a new life in Canaan. They are a people He loves and with whom He has established a relationship through His Covenant with them. What a privilege they enjoy, a potential they represent and what a future they can have! A relationship with Jehovah says it all. Samuel J Schultz in the “Gospel of Moses” captures the situation in these words. “Man’s relationship with God, Moses asserted, consisted of genuine love expressed in obedience. The older generation that died in the wilderness had failed to obey. They had rebelled against God (9:19:11). In spite of the disobedience and rebellion, Moses assured the people before him they would occupy the land of Canaan. They would not inherit the land because of their righteousness or merit through their obedience, but simply on the basis that God was true to His promise made to the patriarchs (9:4-6). It was through God’s goodness and love manifested towards them they would be enabled to occupy the land of Canaan. Never should they think they accomplished this through their own goodness or righteousness. Obedience issues out of love. Moses did not emphasize a legalistic approach in meticulously conforming to minute details in ritual observances, sacrificial offerings, festive occasions and ceremonies. Religious activity motivated by love expresses a wholehearted devotion and commitment to a vital relationship with God. Consequently Moses was genuinely concerned that mutual love should prevail continually as the essence of this relationship between the Israelite and his God.”

The exclusive relationship that God wants with man arises out of what the Creator knows is best for the created and also one that is not based upon coercion because love cannot be legislated. Man’s love for God must be a response to God’s love for man. This love, found as the expression of God’s character, was to govern all the affections of His people so that their whole life style and culture would have its source in God Himself. The Lord Jesus Christ did not reject this revelation of the Old Testament, so making redundant what Moses recorded. In fact He not only agreed, taught and applied these truths of old but, as expressed in His own words, lived them out to perfection. “ Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.” Matthew 5:17 Jesus was tested frequently by the religious leaders of the day and on one occasion when asked to state which was the greatest commandment of the Old Testament quoted from Deuteronomy 6:5. “Love the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” He draws their attention to the second by quoting from Leviticus 19:18. “Love your neighbour as yourself.” His final words should make us hungry for the Old Testament. “All the Law and the prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40 His love for God was expressed in the “greater love” that enabled him to lay down his life for you and me. John 15:13 Abolish the Law and the Prophets? He filled them full to over flowing!

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A.

Getting a perspective on the Old Testament

Do you have a personal value system? A personal value system is a set of principles or ideals that drive and/or guide a person’s life and conduct. What would you say is the source of your value system? Individual conviction Communal conclusion Governmental imposition Transcendental revelation

“Self” “Society” “The system” “Greater than Self Society or System”

If it is from the God as revealed in Scripture/the Bible, then He must be the source of your value system. As Christians our faith and practice relates to Jesus Christ of the New Testament. On what did the Christ of the New Testament base His faith and practice? He based all He said and did on the God the Old Testament reveals. Therefore what we believe has its roots in the Old Testament. The old Testament focuses on the nation of Israel established by the God the Bible reveals. Which characters of the Old Testament seemed to have the most importance in the New Testament, particularly at the time of Christ? Abraham Moses

He gave them their ‘generation’ John 8:31-59 He gave them their ‘revelation’ Matt 22:24-3, Mk 10:1-10, John 5:45-46 John 7: 16-24, 8:5

What is the revelation that Moses gave to Israel called? THE TORAH 1. Written Torah Five Books of Moses Prophets Writings 2. Oral Torah 3. Explanations of the Torah originally passed down verbally from generation to generation. Written down in the 2nd century AD to form the Mishna, discussed to form the Gemara. They were combined to form the Talmud in the 4th century AD. Who taught and interpreted the teaching of the Torah throughout the length of the Old Testament? Priests, Scribes and Prophets 2 Chronicles 34:14-18; Nehemiah 8:1-18 Who were the interpreters of the Old Testament during the time of Christ on earth? Matt 12:1-4 Pharisees

Saducees

Essenes

Zealots

Jesus

A conflict of interpretation

Matt 5-7, 22, 23 Matt 12:1-13, 22:23-39; John 8:1-11, 5:36-40

An important observation

Matt 5:17-20

A vital Conclusion

Matt 22:34-40, Mark 12:28-34

A serious confrontation

Matt 23:1-36, 26:1-5

What should our attitude be to the Old Testament? The attitude of the Lord Jesus Christ! Luke 24:27,44

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Whose interpretation of the Old Testament should we accept? The interpretation of the Lord Jesus Christ! Matt 5:21,22, 27, 28 How do we apply the teaching of the Old Testament? The way the Lord Jesus Christ applied it! Matt 4:1-11, 5:17-20 How did he apply the teaching of the Old Testament? By the means of the Holy Spirit – God Himself Luke 4:14-30 Anyone come to mind who accepted the interpretation and application that Jesus gave for the Old Testament? Peter – Stephen –

Acts 3:17-26 Acts 7:1-60 note 38-39

What Old Testament book do they quote? Deuteronomy 18:15,18,19 Who were people of the New Testament expecting? John 1:21, 6:14, 7:40 What reasons can we find for studying the Old Testament from what the New Testament points out? 1. It provides an account of the nation of Israel from Abraham to Christ. Matt 1:1-17 2. It is the powerful and authoritative word of the only true God who alone is to be worshipped and served. Matt 4:4,7,10 3. It expresses the need and explains the means of salvation. 2 Tim 3:15 4. It presents the mystery of Christ prior to His coming Luke 24:26, 44-46, Acts 13:32-41, 26:22,23 1 Peter 1:10-12 5. It provides warnings and examples for subsequent generations o God’s people. I Corinthians 10:1-13 6. It was written to teach us, producing endurance, encouragement and providing hope. Rom 15:4 7. It is a means for instructing the man of God to live a righteous life and be equipped for service 2 Tim 3:16,17 How should we read the Old Testament? 1. 2. 3. 4.

Historical context God given perspective Associated application Progressive understanding

5. Real for the shadow

B.

Deut 1:1, Acts7:1-50 (Ezekiel 1:1) Luke 24:25-27, Acts 26:22-27 1 Corinthians 10:6-12, Jude 11 Genesis 9:4, Lev 17:14, Deut 12:16, John 6:52-56, Deut 21:23, 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, 19:3-4 Hebrews 8:5, 9:23, 10:1, 15:16, Colossians 2:16:17

Getting to know Deuteronomy 1. The Title of the book a Deuteronomy means “second law” taken from a misunderstanding of the words “copy of this law” (Deut 17:18) when translated into Greek in the 3rd century BC. b “ellah hadd barim” Hebrew meaning “these are the words” Deut 1:1 2. Structure of the book a Speeches or sermons of Moses b Document like a king/vassal treaty of the day c Developed decalogue 3. An overview of the book a Lessons from the past

chs 1-4

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b Love exercised in the relationship c Life dependent upon instruction d Life determined by decisions e Leadership re-assigned by authority

chs 5-11 chs 12-26 chs 27-30 chs 31-34

4. Questions to ask the Lord about the book a) Why do you want your people to enter into the land of Canaan? -

I keep my promises and want my people to enter into the blessing of them Deut 1:8 I love my people and want them to experience the faithfulness of who I am Deut 7:7,8 I am committed to the nations of the world and declare salvation to them through those who are mine. Genesis 12;1-3, Deut 4:5-8 I am righteous and just and have no option but to bring judgement on sin and wickedness. Deut 7:1-6 I want to provide a timeless illustration of salvation and the life that is available in Christ for now and for all eternity. Hebrew 4

“It is a feature of the Old Testament’s portrayal of Yaweh that easily grates on the modern person because of the infectious pluralism that disapproves such exclusivity. But it is also, of course, fundamentally reassuring. The covenant relationship between God and God’s people really means something only if God is totally committed to it” “A God who is not jealous for the reciprocal commitment of God’s people would be as contemptible as a husband who didn’t care whether or not his wife was faithful to him.” Chris Wright b) What do your people need to enjoy you and the promised land? - They need to know who “I am” Exodus 3, 6:6-8, 10:1-11, Deut 1:18-45 - They need to understand my Word Deut 4:10 & 36, 11:18 - They need to follow my ways Deut 1:33, 5:33 - They need to learn to walk with me Deut 5:33, 10-22

C. Getting started in Deuteronomy Why a relationship with responsibility? Two strategic events 1. The redemption by Jehovah through the Red Sea 4:34,35 - establishing the relationship 2. The revelation of Jehovah on Mount Sinai - outlining the responsibility

4:1-24,32,33,35-38

Read: Deuteronomy 1-12 Several other helpful chapters to read: Numbers 20-26, Nehemiah 9,10, Palms 105,106, 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, Hebrews 3:7-13

D Examining the Relationship 1. Lessons learned from the past a. Introduction b. God’s people reject the right way c. God’s people disciplined in their rejection of the right way d. God’s people restored to the right way

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1-4 1:1-5 1:6-46 1:34-46 2:1-3:29

e. God’s restatement of the right way f. Moses prepares God’s people for the renewal of the covenant

4:1-49 4:41-49

2. Love exercised in the relationship a. A personal relationship with a divine signature b. A personal relationship with a divine purpose c. A personal relationship with mutual fidelity d. A personal relationship proved through circumstances e. A personal relationship that experiences God’s grace f. A personal relationship that reciprocates love

5-11 5 6 7 8 9 10-11

3.

Life Dependent upon a Response to Instructions

12:1-26:19

a

12:1-26:19

Response to God in Worship i)

ii)

Separation in worship

12:1-14:21

a) b) c) d) e)

12:1-3 12:4,11,14,18 12: 12:29-32, 13:1-13 14:1-21

Giving in Worship a) b)

c) iii)

Maintains an attitude of gratitude - produces joy - provides for others Maintains an attitude of generosity - towards the debtor - towards the poor - towards the servant Maintains an attitude of dedication

Feasts in worship a) b) c)

b

Preparation for worship Place of God’s choice Importance of blood Precautions against idol worship Purity in worship

Passover Weeks Tabernacles

15:1-3 15:4, 7-11 15:12-18 16:1-17

Feast of Remembrance Feast of Rejoicing Feast of Recollection

Regulations for Justice/Civil Affairs

16:18-21:23

i)

Righteous judgement A means of: a) Declaring wrong b) Deciding justly c) Deterring evil

16:18-17:13

ii)

Responsible leadership a) Kings b) Priests c) Prophets

17:14-18:22

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iii) Refuge for the manslayer a) Protection b) Property c) False witness iv)

19:1-21

Rules for warfare a) Depend upon God b) Principles of recruitment c) Peace, judgement, preservation v) Relevant decisions

20:1-20

21:1-23

c

Responsibility in Domestic and Social Relations

22:1-25:17

d

Response to God in Possession of the Land

26:1-19

i) ii) iii) 4.

Declaration of dependence Declaration of obedience Declaration of commitment

:3,5 :13 :17

Joy Blessing Humility

Life Determined By Decisions

27-30

a

The Covenant to be Commissioned in Canaan

27:1-26

i) ii)

:1-10 :11-26

b

The Covenant Proposals to be Carefully Considered i) ii)

c

Presented on stones Proclaimed on mountains

The blessings of obedience The curses of disobedience

The Covenant to be Appropriated by Choice i) ii) iii)

Reflect upon the past 29:2 Receive your God 29:12,13 Respond to God in faith a) By submission of the heart b) By love for the Lord c) By choosing LIFE 30:19-20

31:1-34:12

God’s Directions Through Moses i) ii) iii) iv) v)

29:1-30:20

30:1 30:16

5. Leadership Re-Assigned by Authority a

28:1-68

31:1-32:47

Instruction Revelation Confirmation Documentation Recitation

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b

God’s Directions to Moses 32:48-34:12 i) ii)

Last words Last way

from God with God

iii)

Last walk

to God

Understanding God’s Judgement of the Canaanites Deuteronomy 7:1,2 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations – the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorite, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger that you – and when the Lord you God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy.” This is a command of God, who is revealed in the Scriptures as completely just, to Israel as they enter into the promise that God gave to Abraham in Genesis 15. 1. 2. 3. 4.

The Canaanites were to be destroyed There was to be no treaty with them There was to be no intermarriage with them The places and forms of worship were to be destroyed

In fact no mercy was to be shown according to God’s instructions in 7:2. Mercy is not getting what is deserved so we can only conclude that according to God’s judgement they were to receive what they deserved. It has been said that “mercy precedes judgement’”. According to Genesis 15:16, the Lord was merciful and relented until a further 400 years had passed. Other examples: Noah and the flood Sodom and Gomorrah Generation of Israelites Ninevah

Genesis 6:1-8 Genesis 18,19 Numbers 14:26-31 Jonah 3:10

The conclusion is that the destruction of the Canaanites was divine judgement upon a godless culture that had relinquished any possibility of God’s mercy by their rejection of God’s patient offer. The testimony of Abraham’s altars to the true God, the witness of Melichizedek, the judgement of Egypt and the news of Israel’s deliverance by Jehovah brought no response from peoples of Canaan. The nations had been warned and given a further 40 years when the Israelites came under Jehovah’s discipline in the wilderness. Samuel Shutltz in his book “The Gospel of Moses” declares that God’s judgment on the Canaanite inhabitants was “punitive” and also “preventative”. Permitting them to continue in their extremes of godlessness would tempt the Israelites to break their covenant with God by worshipping other gods. Participation in that culture and the likely intermarriage would also bring upon them the judgement of God as they fell prey to godlessness. In fact it would be an act of mercy that ended such a culture that was becoming increasingly sinful as generation gave way to generation.

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“If infants are the recipients of God’s everlasting mercy it was providential to exterminate a civilisation that was increasingly guilty of perpetuating snake worship, sacred prostitution, and child sacrifice in their religious rites and ceremonies. Divine judgement prevented future generations from incurring the same condemnation.” Samuel J Schultz Israel then, was the means whereby God exercised his judgement “It is seen not merely as a matter of Israel’s supremacy over the nations but of Yahweh’s supremacy over all other gods and as the exercise of Yahweh’s legitimate moral judgement on human wickedness in the context of God’s overall sovereignty in history.” Wright A valuable summary has been provided in the NIV notes of that particular version: “Joshua is not an epic account of Israel’s heroic generation or the story of Israel’s conquest of Canaan with the aid of her national deity. It is rather the story of how God, to whom the whole world belongs, at one stage in the history of redemption reconquered a portion of the earth from the powers of this world that has claimed it for themselves, defending their claims by force of arms and reliance on their false gods. It tells how God commissioned his people, under his servant Joshua, to take Canaan in his name out of the hands of the idolatrous and dissolute Canaanites (whose measure of sin was now full: See Genesis 15: 16) It tells how he aided them in that enterprise and gave them conditional tenancy in his land of ancient pledge.” It must also be said that there is no difference in the character of God as described in the Old Testament when compared in the New. In both He is a loving and righteous God. The offer of forgiveness and the restoration of life and an inheritance that parallels the Promised Land through Christ and the New Testament is not without the understanding that the Lord Jesus will return to bring judgement, the judgement of God, upon an unrepentant and wicked world. 2 Thessalonians 2:5-10, Revelation 19:11-21 As believers we must take seriously and act ruthlessly upon sin in our own lives for we surely have God’s perspective on it through the revelation of His character in the entire Word of God.

Letting God’s Word Speak For Itself The challenge God gives Deut. 4:40

Live long in the good of “the land the Lord has given you for all time

Deut. 5:33

“Walk in the way the Lord has commanded you.”

Deut. 11:13

“Love the Lord your God and serve Him with all your heart and all your soul”

Deut. 12:5 Deut. 12:30

“Seek the place your God will choose, a place to put His Name there for His dwelling.” “Be careful not to be ensnared.”

Deut. 26:11

“Rejoice in all the Lord has given you.”

Deut. 26:13

Give to the “Levite, alien, fatherless and the widow.”

Deut. 30:29

“Choose Life.”

Deut. 36:6

“Be strong and courageous.”

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The means God provides Deut 1:8

See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore he would give to your fathers – to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob- and to their descendents after them.”

Deut 2:7

“The Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast desert. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you, and you have lacked nothing.”

Deut 4:37

“Because he loved your forefathers and chose their descendents after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength, to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into the land to give you for your inheritance, as it is today.”

Deut 8:2

“Remember how the Lord your God led you these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.”

Deut 11:26

“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse – the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known.”

Deut. 31:8

“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you or forsake you.”

Deut. 33:26

“There is no one like the God Jeshurun.”

Deut. 33:27

“The eternal God is your refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms.”

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Asking 20

QUESTIONS

1. What is the Pentateuch? 2. Who wrote the book of Deuteronomy? 3. Where did it get such a name? 4. What is the English translation of the Jewish title? 5. What three reasons would you give for studying the Old Testament? 6. Where were the children of Israel when they heard the words of this book? 7. What reference did Jesus make to Deuteronomy? 8. What other reference to Deuteronomy can be found in the New Testament? 9. What recurring phrases are found in the book? 10. Whose death is recorded in the last chapter? What did it have to wait for? Who buried him? Why did he not get into Canaan? Where is he next seen according to the Scriptures? 11. What is the covenant that the Lord makes with His people? 12. How does this covenant relate to the New Testament covenant? 13. Why should the Lord seek to destroy the occupants of the land of Canaan and give it to the children of Israel? 14. What part of the New Testament might Deuteronomy parallel? 15. Considering the word “type” who does Moses speak of in the New Testament and why? 16. What was God’s purpose in giving His people the decalogue? 17. What relevance if any do the many laws given in the book have in the church or society today? 18. Do the activities of the Canaanites reflect anything about the world we live in today? 19. What characteristics of God show clearly through the content of the book? 20. Are there any statements in the book that are opened up as vital truths found in the New Testament Epistles?

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