Hear now, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live and may enter and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. Now, O IsraelThe address "O Israel" is a direct call to the nation as a collective entity, emphasizing the unity and identity of the people as God's chosen nation. The Hebrew word for Israel, "Yisra'el," means "God contends" or "one who struggles with God," reflecting the nation's history and relationship with God. This opening phrase sets the tone for a solemn and urgent message, reminding the Israelites of their covenantal relationship with God and their identity as His people. listen to the statutes and the judgments
The Hebrew word for "listen," "shama," implies not just hearing but obeying and internalizing the message. "Statutes" (Hebrew: "chukim") and "judgments" (Hebrew: "mishpatim") refer to the laws and decrees given by God. Statutes often denote decrees that may not be immediately understandable but are to be followed out of trust in God's wisdom. Judgments are decisions or ordinances that guide social justice and moral conduct. Together, they encompass the comprehensive legal and moral framework that God provides for His people. I am teaching you to follow
The phrase underscores the role of Moses as a teacher and mediator of God's law. The Hebrew root "lamad" for "teaching" conveys the idea of learning through instruction and practice. This highlights the importance of discipleship and the transmission of divine wisdom from one generation to the next. The emphasis on "to follow" indicates that the purpose of teaching is not merely intellectual but practical, leading to a life of obedience and faithfulness. so that you may live
This phrase connects obedience to God's laws with life itself. The Hebrew word "chayah" for "live" suggests not just physical survival but a flourishing, abundant life. In the biblical context, life is seen as a gift from God, and living according to His commandments is portrayed as the path to true fulfillment and blessing. This reflects the biblical principle that obedience to God leads to life, while disobedience leads to death. and may enter and take possession of the land
The promise of entering and possessing the land is central to the covenantal relationship between God and Israel. The land represents not only a physical territory but also the fulfillment of God's promises to the patriarchs. The Hebrew word "yarash" for "take possession" implies an inheritance, a gift from God that requires active participation and faithfulness from the people. This phrase underscores the conditional nature of the promise, dependent on Israel's obedience. that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you
This closing phrase reaffirms the divine source of the promise. "The LORD" (Hebrew: "YHWH") is the covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal and unchanging nature. "The God of your fathers" connects the present generation to the patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—highlighting the continuity of God's promises and faithfulness across generations. The verb "is giving" (Hebrew: "natan") indicates that the land is a gift, underscoring God's grace and generosity. This phrase serves as a reminder of God's sovereignty and the ongoing relationship between God and His people. Persons / Places / Events 1. MosesThe leader of the Israelites, delivering God's commandments and statutes to the people. 2. IsraelThe nation chosen by God, consisting of the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who are about to enter the Promised Land. 3. The Promised LandThe land of Canaan, which God promised to the forefathers of Israel as an inheritance. 4. The LORD (Yahweh)The covenant-keeping God of Israel, who is giving the land to His people. 5. Statutes and OrdinancesThe laws and commandments given by God through Moses for the people to follow. Teaching Points The Importance of ListeningThe Hebrew word for "listen" (shama) implies not just hearing but obeying. As believers, we are called to actively listen to God's Word and apply it in our lives. Obedience Leads to LifeThe promise of life and possession of the land is contingent upon obedience. This principle remains true for Christians today, as obedience to God's Word leads to spiritual life and blessings. God's FaithfulnessThe passage reminds us of God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promises. Just as He promised the land to Israel, He is faithful to His promises to us. The Role of God's LawThe statutes and ordinances are not burdensome but are given for the well-being of God's people. They guide us in living a life that honors God. Preparation for InheritanceJust as Israel was preparing to enter the Promised Land, believers are called to prepare for their eternal inheritance by living according to God's Word. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the call to "listen" in Deuteronomy 4:1 challenge your current approach to reading and applying Scripture in your life? 2. In what ways can you see the connection between obedience to God's Word and experiencing His blessings in your life? 3. Reflect on a time when you experienced God's faithfulness in fulfilling a promise. How does this encourage you to trust Him more? 4. How can you incorporate the principles of God's law into your daily routine to ensure you are living a life that honors Him? 5. What steps can you take to prepare for the "inheritance" God has promised, both in this life and in eternity? Consider connections to other scriptures that speak of our eternal hope. Connections to Other Scriptures Exodus 19:5-6This passage emphasizes the covenant relationship between God and Israel, highlighting the importance of obedience to God's commandments. Joshua 1:7-8Joshua is instructed to be strong and courageous, meditating on the law day and night, which parallels the call to obedience in Deuteronomy 4:1. Psalm 119:1-2The psalmist speaks of the blessings of walking in the law of the LORD, echoing the promise of life and prosperity through obedience. James 1:22-25The New Testament reiterates the importance of not just hearing the word, but doing it, aligning with the call to action in Deuteronomy 4:1. People Amorites, Baalpeor, Bezer, Gadites, Israelites, Manasseh, Manassites, Moses, Og, Reubenites, SihonPlaces Arabah, Aroer, Bashan, Beth-baal-peor, Bezer, Egypt, Gilead, Golan, Hermon, Heshbon, Horeb, Jordan River, Mount Sion, Peor, Pisgah, Ramoth, Sea of the Arabah, Valley of the ArnonTopics Decisions, Decrees, Ear, Fathers, Follow, Gives, Giveth, Giving, Hearken, Heed, Judgments, Laws, Listen, O, Ordinances, Perform, Possess, Possessed, Possession, Statutes, Teach, Teaching, Yours, YourselvesDictionary of Bible Themes Deuteronomy 4:1 5031 knowledge, of sin
5159 hearing
8244 ethics, and grace Deuteronomy 4:1-2 1615 Scripture, sufficiency
5036 mind, of God
7263 theocracy
8404 commands, in OT Library February the Sixteenth Crowding Out God
"Lest thou forget." --DEUTERONOMY iv. 5-13. That is surely the worst affront we can put upon anybody. We may oppose a man and hinder him in his work, or we may directly injure him, or we may ignore him, and treat him as nothing. Or we may forget him! Opposition, injury, contempt, neglect, forgetfulness! Surely this is a descending scale, and the last is the worst. And yet we can forget the Lord God. We can forget all His benefits. We can easily put Him out of mind. We can live as though He were …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling YearDeuteronomy
(Third Sunday after Easter.) Deut. iv. 39, 40. Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else. Thou shall keep therefore his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever. Learned men have argued much of late as to who wrote …
Charles Kingsley—The Gospel of the Pentateuch Political and Religious Life of the Jewish Dispersion in the West - their Union in the Great Hope of the Coming Deliverer.
It was not only in the capital of the Empire that the Jews enjoyed the rights of Roman citizenship. Many in Asia Minor could boast of the same privilege. [327] The Seleucidic rulers of Syria had previously bestowed kindred privileges on the Jews in many places. Thus, they possessed in some cities twofold rights: the status of Roman and the privileges of Asiatic, citizenship. Those who enjoyed the former were entitled to a civil government of their own, under archons of their choosing, quite independent …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Of the Cities of Refuge.
Hebron, the most eminent among them, excites us to remember the rest. "The Rabbins deliver this; Moses separated three cities of refuge beyond Jordan, [Deut 4:41-43;] and, against them, Joshua separated three cities in the land of Canaan, [Josh 20:7,8]. And these were placed by one another, just as two ranks of vines are in a vineyard: Hebron in Judea against Bezer in the wilderness: Shechem in mount Ephraim against Ramoth in Gilead: Kedesh in mount Napthali against Golan in Basan. And these three …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica That the Devout Soul Ought with the Whole Heart to Yearn after Union with Christ in the Sacrament
The Voice of the Disciple Who shall grant unto me, O Lord, that I may find Thee alone, and open all my heart unto Thee, and enjoy Thee as much as my soul desireth; and that no man may henceforth look upon me, nor any creature move me or have respect unto me, but Thou alone speak unto me and I unto Thee, even as beloved is wont to speak unto beloved, and friend to feast with friend? For this do I pray, this do I long for, that I may be wholly united unto Thee, and may withdraw my heart from all created …
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ The First Covenant
"Now therefore, if ye will obey My voice, and keep My covenant, ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me."--EX. xix. 5. "He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even ten commandments."--DEUT. iv. 13.i "If ye keep these judgments, the Lord thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant,"--DEUT. vii. 12. "I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, which My covenant they brake."--JER. xxxi. 31, 32. WE have …
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants The Unity of God
Q-5: ARE THERE MORE GODS THAN ONE? A: There is but one only, the living and true God. That there is a God has been proved; and those that will not believe the verity of his essence, shall feel the severity of his wrath. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.' Deut 6:6. He is the only God.' Deut 4:49. Know therefore this day, and consider it in thy heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath, there is none else.' A just God and a Saviour; there is none beside …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity The Northern Coasts of Galilee. Amanah. The Mountain of Snow.
This coast is described by Moses, Numbers 34:7: "From the Great Sea to mount Hor: from mount Hor to the entrance of Hamath," &c. Mount Hor, in the Jewish writers, is Amanah; mention of which occurs, Canticles 4:8, where R. Solomon thus: "Amanah is a mount in the northern coast of the land of Israel, which in the Talmudical language is called, The mountainous plain of Amanon; the same with mount Hor." In the Jerusalem Targum, for mount 'Hor' is the mount Manus: but the Targum of Jonathan renders it …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica Ninth Sunday after Trinity Carnal Security and Its vices.
Text: 1 Corinthians 10, 6-13. 6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. 7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. 8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. 9 Neither let us make trial of the Lord, as some of them made trial, and perished by the serpents. 10 Neither murmur ye, as …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. III Epistle cxxvii. From S. Columbanus to Pope Gregory .
From S. Columbanus to Pope Gregory [89] . To the holy lord, and father in Christ, the Roman [pope], most fair ornament of the Church, a certain most august flower, as it were, of the whole of withering Europe, distinguished speculator, as enjoying a divine contemplation of purity (?) [90] . I, Bargoma [91] , poor dove in Christ, send greeting. Grace to thee and peace from God the Father [and] our [Lord] Jesus Christ. I am pleased to think, O holy pope, that it will seem to thee nothing extravagant …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great The Second Commandment
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am o jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of then that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.' Exod 20: 4-6. I. Thou shalt not …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments "They have Corrupted Themselves; their Spot is not the Spot of his Children; they are a Perverse and Crooked Generation. "
Deut. xxxii. 5.--"They have corrupted themselves; their spot is not the spot of his children; they are a perverse and crooked generation." We doubt this people would take well with such a description of themselves as Moses gives. It might seem strange to us, that God should have chosen such a people out of all the nations of the earth, and they to be so rebellious and perverse, if our own experience did not teach us how free his choice is, and how long-suffering he is, and constant in his choice. …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning A Reformer's Schooling
'The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, 2. That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Second visit to Nazareth - the Mission of the Twelve.
It almost seems, as if the departure of Jesus from Capernaum marked a crisis in the history of that town. From henceforth it ceases to be the center of His activity, and is only occasionally, and in passing, visited. Indeed, the concentration and growing power of Pharisaic opposition, and the proximity of Herod's residence at Tiberias [3013] would have rendered a permanent stay there impossible at this stage in our Lord's history. Henceforth, His Life is, indeed, not purely missionary, but He has …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Covenant Duties.
It is here proposed to show, that every incumbent duty ought, in suitable circumstances, to be engaged to in the exercise of Covenanting. The law and covenant of God are co-extensive; and what is enjoined in the one is confirmed in the other. The proposals of that Covenant include its promises and its duties. The former are made and fulfilled by its glorious Originator; the latter are enjoined and obligatory on man. The duties of that Covenant are God's law; and the demands of the law are all made …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting Subjects of Study. Home Education in Israel; Female Education. Elementary Schools, Schoolmasters, and School Arrangements.
If a faithful picture of society in ancient Greece or Rome were to be presented to view, it is not easy to believe that even they who now most oppose the Bible could wish their aims success. For this, at any rate, may be asserted, without fear of gainsaying, that no other religion than that of the Bible has proved competent to control an advanced, or even an advancing, state of civilisation. Every other bound has been successively passed and submerged by the rising tide; how deep only the student …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life Wisdom and Revelation.
"Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness …
W. H. Griffith Thomas—The Prayers of St. Paul Links Deuteronomy 4:1 NIVDeuteronomy 4:1 NLTDeuteronomy 4:1 ESVDeuteronomy 4:1 NASBDeuteronomy 4:1 KJV
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