Deuteronomy 30:15
See, I have set before you today life and goodness, as well as death and disaster.
See
The Hebrew word for "see" is "רְאֵה" (re'eh), which is an imperative form, urging the listener to pay attention and perceive with understanding. This call to "see" is not merely about physical sight but about spiritual insight and discernment. It is a divine invitation to recognize the gravity of the choices presented. In the biblical context, this word often precedes significant revelations or decisions, emphasizing the importance of awareness and mindfulness in the spiritual journey.

I have set before you
This phrase underscores God's sovereign initiative in presenting choices to His people. The Hebrew verb "נָתַן" (natan) means "to give" or "to place," indicating that God is actively placing these options in front of the Israelites. It reflects the covenant relationship where God, as the sovereign Lord, provides guidance and direction. Historically, this setting before the people is reminiscent of ancient Near Eastern treaties where stipulations and consequences were clearly laid out for the vassals.

today
The word "today" (הַיּוֹם, hayom) emphasizes the immediacy and urgency of the decision. It is a call to action in the present moment, highlighting that the choices and their consequences are not distant or abstract but immediate and relevant. This reflects the biblical theme of "today" as the day of decision and action, urging believers to respond to God's call without delay.

life and prosperity
In Hebrew, "life" is "חַיִּים" (chayim) and "prosperity" is "טוֹב" (tov), which can also mean "good." Together, they represent the blessings of obedience to God's commandments. "Life" in the biblical sense is not just biological existence but a quality of life characterized by peace, fulfillment, and alignment with God's will. "Prosperity" or "good" encompasses material blessings, well-being, and moral goodness. This pairing reflects the holistic nature of God's blessings, encompassing both spiritual and material dimensions.

death and adversity
The Hebrew words for "death" (מָוֶת, mavet) and "adversity" (רָע, ra) present the stark contrast to life and prosperity. "Death" signifies not only physical demise but also spiritual separation from God. "Adversity" or "evil" refers to the hardships and calamities that result from disobedience. This dichotomy is a recurring biblical theme, illustrating the consequences of turning away from God's commandments. It serves as a solemn warning of the inherent dangers in choosing a path contrary to God's will.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Moses
The leader of the Israelites who delivers God's message to the people. He is the central human figure in the Book of Deuteronomy, acting as a mediator between God and Israel.

2. Israelites
The chosen people of God, who are on the brink of entering the Promised Land. They are the recipients of the covenant and the laws given by God through Moses.

3. Promised Land
The land of Canaan, which God promised to Abraham and his descendants. It represents a place of blessing and fulfillment of God's promises.

4. Covenant Renewal
The event where Moses reiterates the laws and the covenant to the new generation of Israelites before they enter the Promised Land.

5. Mount Nebo
The location from which Moses delivers his final speeches, including the message in Deuteronomy 30:15, before his death.
Teaching Points
The Power of Choice
God grants us the freedom to choose between life and prosperity or death and disaster. Our choices have significant spiritual and practical consequences.

Obedience and Blessing
Obedience to God's commandments leads to life and prosperity. This principle is timeless and applies to our daily walk with God.

Covenant Relationship
The choice presented is within the context of a covenant relationship with God. Understanding our covenant with God through Christ is crucial for making the right choices.

Consequences of Disobedience
Just as the Israelites faced consequences for disobedience, we too must be aware of the spiritual and practical repercussions of turning away from God's path.

Renewal and Commitment
Regularly renewing our commitment to God and His ways is essential for maintaining a vibrant and prosperous spiritual life.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the choice between life and prosperity or death and disaster in Deuteronomy 30:15 apply to your daily decisions?

2. In what ways can you see the theme of choice and consequence reflected in your own life, and how does this align with the teachings of Genesis 2:16-17?

3. How does understanding the covenant relationship with God influence your decision-making process, especially in light of Joshua 24:15?

4. Reflect on a time when obedience to God's commandments led to a positive outcome in your life. How does this reinforce the message of Deuteronomy 30:15?

5. How can you actively renew your commitment to God and His commandments, drawing inspiration from the teachings of Romans 6:23 and John 14:6?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Genesis 2:16-17
The choice between life and death is reminiscent of the choice given to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, highlighting the theme of obedience and its consequences.

Joshua 24:15
Joshua's call to choose whom to serve echoes the choice presented in Deuteronomy, emphasizing the importance of decision-making in faith.

John 14:6
Jesus' declaration as the way, the truth, and the life connects to the choice of life and prosperity, pointing to the ultimate fulfillment in Christ.

Romans 6:23
The contrast between the wages of sin (death) and the gift of God (eternal life) parallels the choice between death and life in Deuteronomy.
A Last WordJ. Orr Deuteronomy 30:15-20
An Alternative ChoiceD. Davies Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Choose Death or LifeBonnefon.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Choosing LifeA. Maclaren, D. D.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Choosing Life or DeathC. Babut, B. D.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Death and Life Set Before the PeopleR.M. Edgar Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Freedom of Man's Will; Or, the Great DecisionG. Lorimer, D. D.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
LifeW. Stevens.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Life and Good, Death and EvilManton, ThomasDeuteronomy 30:15-20
Life or DeathH. Linton, M. A.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Blessing and the CurseC. Kingsley, M. A.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Choice of LifeF. K. Freeston.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Decisive ChoiceF. D. Maurice, M. A.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The God of Our LifeMatthew Henry.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Good ChoiceA. K. H. Boyd, D. D.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Law of God Sets Before Us Good and EvilC. Hickman, D. D.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Offer of Life and DeathJ. Burns, D. D.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
The Service of God ChosenC. E. Walters.Deuteronomy 30:15-20
People
Isaac, Jacob, Moses
Places
Jordan River, Moab
Topics
Adversity, Behold, Death, Destruction, Evil, Prosperity, To-day
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Deuteronomy 30:1-16

     5376   law, purpose of

Deuteronomy 30:14-17

     5015   heart, and Holy Spirit

Deuteronomy 30:15-16

     4966   present, the
     5020   human nature
     6663   freedom, of will
     6703   peace, divine OT

Deuteronomy 30:15-17

     8723   doubt, results of

Deuteronomy 30:15-18

     8401   challenges

Deuteronomy 30:15-19

     4937   fate, fatalism
     8702   agnosticism

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

     1335   blessing

Library
June 30. "Therefore, Choose" (Deut. xxx. 19).
"Therefore, choose" (Deut. xxx. 19). Men are choosing every day the spiritual or earthly. And as we choose we are taking our place unconsciously with the friends of Christ, or the world. It is not merely what ye say, it is what we prefer. When Solomon made his great choice at Gibeon, God said to him, "Because this was in thine heart to ask wisdom, therefore will I give it unto thee, and all else besides that thou didst not choose." It was not merely that he said it because it was right to say, and
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

The Spirit of the Law
'For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. 12. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? 13. Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? 14. But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it. 15. See, I have
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Love of God Its Own Reward
DEUT. xxx. 19, 20. I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life that both thou and thy seed may live; that thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that thou mayest cleave unto him, for he is thy life and the length of thy days, that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord God sware unto thy fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give them. I spoke to you last Sunday on this text. But there is something
Charles Kingsley—The Good News of God

The Blessing and the Curse.
Preached on Whit-Sunday. DEUT. XXX. 19, 20. I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: that thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that thou mayest obey His voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto Him: for He is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to
Charles Kingsley—Westminster Sermons

The Jewish World in the Days of Christ - the Jewish Dispersion in the East.
Among the outward means by which the religion of Israel was preserved, one of the most important was the centralisation and localisation of its worship in Jerusalem. If to some the ordinances of the Old Testament may in this respect seem narrow and exclusive, it is at least doubtful, whether without such a provision Monothsiem itself could have continued as a creed or a worship. In view of the state of the ancient world, and of the tendencies of Israel during the earlier stages of their history,
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Distinction Between Exterior and Interior Actions --Those of the Soul in this Condition are Interior, but Habitual, Continued, Direct, Profound, Simple, and Imperceptible --Being a Continual
The actions of men are either exterior or interior. The exterior are those which appear outwardly, and have a sensible object, possessing neither good nor evil qualities, excepting as they receive them from the interior principle in which they originate. It is not of these that I intend to speak, but only of interior actions, which are those actions of the soul by which it applies itself inwardly to some object, or turns away from some other. When, being applied to God, I desire to commit an
Jeanne Marie Bouvières—A Short Method Of Prayer And Spiritual Torrents

The Prophet Amos.
GENERAL PRELIMINARY REMARKS. It will not be necessary to extend our preliminary remarks on the prophet Amos, since on the main point--viz., the circumstances under which he appeared as a prophet--the introduction to the prophecies of Hosea may be regarded as having been written for those of Amos also. For, according to the inscription, they belong to the same period at which Hosea's prophetic ministry began, viz., the latter part of the reign of Jeroboam II., and after Uzziah had ascended the
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

According to which principle or hypothesis all the objections against the universality of Christ's death are easily solved
PROPOSITION VI. According to which principle or hypothesis all the objections against the universality of Christ's death are easily solved; neither is it needful to recur to the ministry of angels, and those other miraculous means which they say God useth to manifest the doctrine and history of Christ's passion unto such, who, living in parts of the world where the outward preaching of the gospel is unknown, have well improved the first and common grace. For as hence it well follows that some of
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity

Entering the Covenant: with all the Heart
"And they entered into the covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart, and all their soul."--2 CHRON. xv. 12 (see xxxiv. 31, and 2 Kings xxiii. 3). "The Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul."--DEUT. xxx. 6. "And I will give them an heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God: for they shall turn to Me with their whole heart."--JER. xxiv. 7 (see xxix. 13).
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants

Sanctification.
I. I will remind you of some points that have been settled in this course of study. 1. The true intent and meaning of the law of God has been, as I trust, ascertained in the lectures on moral government. Let this point if need be, be examined by reference to those lectures. 2. We have also seen, in those lectures, what is not, and what is implied in entire obedience to the moral law. 3. In those lectures, and also in the lectures on justification and repentance, it has been shown that nothing is
Charles Grandison Finney—Systematic Theology

"He is the Rock, his Work is Perfect, for all his Ways are Judgment, a God of Truth, and Without Iniquity, Just and Right is He.
Deut. xxxii. 4, 5.--"He is the Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are judgment, a God of truth, and without iniquity, just and right is he. They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children," &c. There are none can behold their own vileness as it is, but in the sight of God's glorious holiness. Sin is darkness, and neither sees itself, nor any thing else, therefore must his light shine to discover this darkness. If we abide within ourselves, and men like ourselves,
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Disciple, -- Master, what are Heaven and Hell...
The Disciple,--Master, what are heaven and hell, and where are they? The Master,--1. Heaven and hell are the two opposite states in the spiritual realm. They have their origin in the heart of man and it is in this world that their foundations are laid. Since man cannot see his own spirit, so neither can he see these two states of the soul. But he has experience of them within him, just as he feels pain from a blow and perceives sweetness from eating sweetmeats. The wound caused by the blow may increase
Sadhu Sundar Singh—At The Master's Feet

The Everlasting Covenant of the Spirit
"They shall be My people, and l will be their God. And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from Me."--JER. xxxii. 38, 40. "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants

Covenanting Confers Obligation.
As it has been shown that all duty, and that alone, ought to be vowed to God in covenant, it is manifest that what is lawfully engaged to in swearing by the name of God is enjoined in the moral law, and, because of the authority of that law, ought to be performed as a duty. But it is now to be proved that what is promised to God by vow or oath, ought to be performed also because of the act of Covenanting. The performance of that exercise is commanded, and the same law which enjoins that the duties
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

"Now the End of the Commandment is Charity Out of a Pure Heart, and a Good Conscience, and Faith Unfeigned. "
[It is extremely probable that this was one of the probationary discourses which the author delivered before the Presbytery of Glasgow, previous to his ordination. The following is an extract from the Record of that Presbytery: "Dec. 5, 1649. The qlk daye Mr. Hew Binnen made his popular sermon 1 Tim. i. ver. 5 'The end of ye commandment is charity.'--Ordaines Mr. Hew Binnen to handle his controversie this day fifteen dayes, De satisfactione Christi."--Ed.] 1 Tim. ii. 5.--"Now the end of the commandment
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

a survey of the third and closing discourse of the prophet
We shall now, in conclusion, give a survey of the third and closing discourse of the prophet. After an introduction in vi. 1, 2, where the mountains serve only to give greater solemnity to the scene (in the fundamental passages Deut. xxxii. 1, and in Is. 1, 2, "heaven and earth" are mentioned for the same purposes, inasmuch as they are the most venerable parts of creation; "contend with the mountains" by taking them in and applying to [Pg 522] them as hearers), the prophet reminds the people of
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Josiah, a Pattern for the Ignorant.
"Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before Me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place."--2 Kings
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII

The Blessings of Noah Upon Shem and Japheth. (Gen. Ix. 18-27. )
Ver. 20. "And Noah began and became an husbandman, and planted vineyards."--This does not imply that Noah was the first who began to till the ground, and, more especially, to cultivate the vine; for Cain, too, was a tiller of the ground, Gen. iv. 2. The sense rather is, that Noah, after the flood, again took up this calling. Moreover, the remark has not an independent import; it serves only to prepare the way for the communication of the subsequent account of Noah's drunkenness. By this remark,
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

The Right Understanding of the Law
Thou shalt have no other Gods before me.' Exod 20: 3. Before I come to the commandments, I shall answer questions, and lay down rules respecting the moral law. What is the difference between the moral laud and the gospel? (1) The law requires that we worship God as our Creator; the gospel, that we worship him in and through Christ. God in Christ is propitious; out of him we may see God's power, justice, and holiness: in him we see his mercy displayed. (2) The moral law requires obedience, but gives
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Commerce
The remarkable change which we have noticed in the views of Jewish authorities, from contempt to almost affectation of manual labour, could certainly not have been arbitrary. But as we fail to discover here any religious motive, we can only account for it on the score of altered political and social circumstances. So long as the people were, at least nominally, independent, and in possession of their own land, constant engagement in a trade would probably mark an inferior social stage, and imply
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Deuteronomy
Owing to the comparatively loose nature of the connection between consecutive passages in the legislative section, it is difficult to present an adequate summary of the book of Deuteronomy. In the first section, i.-iv. 40, Moses, after reviewing the recent history of the people, and showing how it reveals Jehovah's love for Israel, earnestly urges upon them the duty of keeping His laws, reminding them of His spirituality and absoluteness. Then follows the appointment, iv. 41-43--here irrelevant (cf.
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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