JUL 20

Deuteronomy 31:1-9
Memorise Deuteronomy 31:8
“he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee”

Oftentimes when we read the book of Deuteronomy, we feel like it is just a rehash of the previous three books, and tend to just skim through it and gloss over the finer details. We do not really stop to think and question why God would inspire Moses to seemingly record the law a second time, and rearrange the order of things. In essence, that is what the book of Deuteronomy is all about – the second giving of the law. The name itself, ‘Deuteronomy’ is derived from two Greek words: ‘deuteros’ which means second, and ‘nomos’ which means law.

The timeframe of the book is right at the end of the 40 years of wilderness wandering, just before Moses’ death and Israel’s entry into the Promised Land. They had already conquered the land East of Jordan and were encamped there waiting to cross the river and enter into Canaan. Here they paused for about a month as Moses delivered a final few addresses to them before he died. His purpose was to exhort this new generation of Israelites – most of them were born in the previous 40 years in the wilderness, and might not have personally witnessed God’s miraculous deliverance from Egypt. Moses’ fear was that they would again balk at the thought of entering the Promised Land, failing to trust God and obey Him. Thus his exhortation was centred round pleas and encouragements to trust in the Lord and remember His promises. We see this clearly in Moses’ closing address in Deuteronomy 31. Although Moses knew that he would not be allowed to enter, yet he cared greatly for the people, and repeatedly exhorted them to be strong and of a good courage, to remember that God’s presence would certainly be with them. They were encouraged to be strong and courageous in the face of their enemies. Just as God had helped them to victories in the past, He would certainly help them in the battles ahead.

Indeed, Moses had a true shepherd’s heart. His mission from the Lord was to lead His people into the Promised Land, and he did not rest until he did all that was possible in his power to see his mission through. That was the purpose of the book of Deuteronomy – to make sure there would not be a repeat of the debacle at Kardeshbarnea, but that Israel would indeed march triumphantly into the Promised Land, and declare the glory of God to the nations round about.

Thought: God is always faithful, even when we are not.
Prayer: Lord, help me never to doubt Your faithful presence with us, but to always seek to trust and obey.