Deuteronomy 31:1 - 32:8
Sunday Evening Bible Study
January 24, 1999
Introduction
The name Deuteronomy means "second law". It is Moses’ final address to the people. It covers the last 1 ½ months of Moses’ life. He’s 120 years old. It’s God’s "review" for the people to make sure they understand His ways before they go into the land.
Deuteronomy 31
:4 And the LORD shall do unto them as he did to Sihon and to Og, kings of the Amorites, and unto the land of them, whom he destroyed.
With God’s help, they had conquered the kings of the Amorites and had taken their land. (Deut. 2:26 – 3:11)
Lesson
One victory leads to another.
Over and over God is reminding the Israelites of the things He’s done for them, whether getting them out of Egypt or conquering the Amorites.
In reality, there was probably no greater miracle than their deliverance from Egypt, yet God always would point back to prior victories to encourage them that He was able to give them future victories as well.
Has God given you deliverance from an enemy? Has He given you victory over a particular sin? He can do it again.
:6 Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
This would be a great verse to memorize!
Lesson
The size of your fear is related to the size and closeness of your God.
We have an awesome God. He is very near. We have no need to fear.
(Zep 3:17 KJV) The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.
If you’ve been experiencing fear lately, take time to reacquaint yourself with God’s greatness. Take time to draw near to Him.
:7 And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this people unto the land which the LORD hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it.
Joshua had been the leader of the army.
He had recently received a measure of Moses’ authority. (Num. 27:18-23)
Now he was to take Moses’ place.
:9 And Moses wrote this law, and delivered it unto the priests the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and unto all the elders of Israel.
Moses gives a copy of the Law to the priests. They were to be the keepers and enforcers of God’s law.
:10 And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles,
Once every seven years at the feast of tabernacles, in September-October.
The year of release, every seventh year, you were to set slaves free and not plant your fields. (Deut. 15:1-11)
:16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods …
God knew they would turn their back on Him. He’s not surprised when we sin either.
:19 Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel.
Moses and Joshua were to write a song (the verb is plural, they both wrote the song).
Songs are a great way to teach things, a great way to remember things.
How many of you remember the song, Flintstones, they’re the Flintstones, they’re a (modern stone-age family) …
How did you remember that? Because songs are a great way of getting something into our brain.
How about this … do any of you know the Scripture verse 1John 4:7,8 by heart? Many of us know it because we learned the song.
Lesson
Write songs that teach.
Here’s a challenge to you song writers out there. Your songs don’t have to just be about worship and telling the Lord you love Him. They can also be songs that teach a principle.
One of the greatest things you can teach people is the Word of God. Take God’s Word and put it to music.
:21 that this song shall testify against them as a witness
They’ll have probably forgotten God’s Word, but they won’t forget the song.
:22 Moses therefore wrote this song the same day, and taught it the children of Israel.
The song is the next chapter, Deut. 32
:23 And he gave Joshua the son of Nun a charge
God speaks directly to Joshua.
:26 Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant
The scrolls were to be kept next to the Ark of the Covenant.
Deuteronomy 32
:3 Because I will publish the name of the LORD
publish – proclaim
:5 their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation.
(Deu 32:5 NKJV) … They are not His children, Because of their blemish: A perverse and crooked generation.
:6 Do ye thus requite the LORD
(NIV) Is this the way you repay the LORD
:8 When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance
When God set up the boundaries of the ancient nations. This was done in Genesis 10, the record of the songs of Noah.
(Gen 10:32 KJV) These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.
There were 70 nations.
:8 he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.
When Jacob went down to Egypt, his family consisted of 70 people.
(Gen 46:26-27 NKJV) All the persons who went with Jacob to Egypt, who came from his body, besides Jacob's sons' wives, were sixty-six persons in all. {27} And the sons of Joseph who were born to him in Egypt were two persons. All the persons of the house of Jacob who went to Egypt were seventy.
(Also, Exodus 1:5)This is a bit of a mystery to me, why God divided the earth into 70 nations, the same number as the number of Jacob and his descendants when they went to Egypt. But that’s the way God did it.
The number 70 is kind of interesting in its use. It seems to be tied to the nation of Israel. In fact God says here it’s the "number of the children of Israel".
It was the number of elders in Israel
(Num 11:24 KJV) And Moses went out, and told the people the words of the LORD, and gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them round about the tabernacle.
Gideon had 70 sons (Judg 8:30)
Ahab had 70 sons (2Ki. 10:1)
Israel was kept in Babylon for 70 years
(2 Chr 36:21 NASB) to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths. All the days of its desolation it kept sabbath until seventy years were complete.
They hadn’t kept seventy years’ worth of sabbaths (which would be 70 years times 7 years they were disobedient).
Daniel’s prophecy concerning the Messiah had to do with 70 weeks
(Dan 9:24 NASB) "Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy place.
Jesus’ rule of forgiveness
(Mat 18:21-22 KJV) Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? {22} Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
Where do you suppose that He came up with the "seventy times seven"? Was it just a way of exaggerating Peter’s suggestion? Perhaps it was a way of saying that just as God has been completely forgiving to all of Israel, so we ought to be forgiving to others as well.
Lesson
Forgive as God forgives.
(Eph 4:31-32 KJV) Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: {32} And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.