Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

Here God uses marriage language, not just covenant language. What’s the difference? Intimacy. Any two people can be covenanted together. But only a male and a female can be married to each other in covenant (Genesis 2:24). Moses was not speaking these words of loving affection to the children who had not seen anything of God, but to those who as children had witnessed the mighty works of Yahweh and then grown up seeing His provision daily (in the form of manna), His leadership daily (the cloudy and the fiery pillars which guided them), and His presence daily (the tabernacle and the pillars which rested over it). These were not people who could claim ignorance of the fact that God existed and He was Yahweh. They had seen things no one else had ever seen.

They saw His hand in Egypt. They saw Him defeat Pharaoh. He gave them quail and manna in the desert. They had such good nutrition that they didn’t get weary from marching or get any sicknesses/diseases. He gave them water where there was no water. He kept their clothes from wearing out. They witnessed Him dealing with outright rebellion. They saw Him cut it out like a cancer – but in the most miraculous and supernatural of ways. They had seen His might and experienced His love.

Moses entreated them to therefore keep the commandments of God. Both now, in the wilderness, and also when they crossed over into the land. It wasn’t a land that had to be sustained by their labour, but a land which God watered and cared for through nature. God cared for this land and called it precious. If they followed Him with all their hearts and all they had, He would bless it and them with abundance and fruitfulness in all ways and arenas. They were to keep His commandments.

There are 248 positive commandments (you shall do this) and 365 negative commandments (don’t do that). Obeying them could bring blessing. Disobeying them would bring on them a curse. When they got into the land, they were to go to Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal. They were to pronounce the blessings from Mount Gerizim and the curses from Mount Ebal. Mount Gerizim was where Abram first came to the land and God visited with him there, so he built an altar (Genesis 12:6-7). Go to Israel today and you will find trees, gardens, and grass on Mount Gerizim. Mount Ebal? Scrub and rocks. It is a very visual reminder they could easily see, remember, and adjust their behaviour accordingly.

“All of the things that I am commanding you, you must diligently observe; you shall not add to it, and you shall not take away from it.” (Deuteronomy 12:32)

God, through Moses, was preparing the Israelites to inhabit the land. To live in it harmoniously. God wants relationship with His children, and so He encourages them to obedience and repentance, which leads to a mindset that naturally produces righteous deeds (James 2:18). God warns them not to worship just anywhere, but together where He says. The tabernacle first stayed in Shiloh (Joshua 18:1, 1 Samuel 1:3), but then the Temple was built in Jerusalem. Here God is preparing them for worship in Jerusalem. He mentions it as the place where He has placed His name six times and exhorts them to ONLY offer sacrifice where He has placed His name (again, first wherever the tabernacle was and THEN in the Temple once it was built – essentially wherever the Holy Place was located). This also foreshadowed Jesus’ sacrifice for us in Jerusalem.

The message is REJOICE! Obey and keep the commandments of Yahweh. Rejoicing is an action and they are exhorted to it. It is VERY hard to forget the Lord when you are rejoicing before Him. A lot was required of them, true; but look what they had been given! If they obeyed and kept God’s commands by paying attention to them, it would go well with them. They were not to get trapped into following idol worshippers. They were not to do things as those people did them. The blessings come from hearing and doing. The curses come from not hearing and not doing. Cause and effect. No strong arming. Pure choice of free will. When we go to where He is, we get under the canopy of His blessing. Not to do what seems right to us, but what God has shown (and does show) us to be right. Cause and effect – just like in Romans 6:23. We choose what side to be on, and when we choose God’s we need to do it HIS way because HE is the Life, the Truth, and the Way to do it (John 14:6). The Law showed that no human can do it alone in their own strength and will. We NEED a Saviour. We need to be connected to Jesus to succeed (John 15:5).

They were to make sure to tithe, giving honour to God who was the Source of all their needs, blessing, and riches. They were NOT to eat blood. They were NOT to forsake the Levites, who had no inheritance in the land. If they did not do these things, it would go well for them in the land. Again, they were to observe and obey all these words (commands) and teach them to their children. Stay away from idols, and cling to their One True Love: Yahweh. They weren’t to ADD to His words OR to take AWAY from His words. They were to be careful to preserve them and follow them AS IS.

Summary

Key Players: God, Moses

Key Themes: Loving Obedience, Marriage, Worship, Blessing and Cursing

Key Verse(s): Deuteronomy 11:1, 16, 26-28; 12:2-3, 5-7, 32