Deuteronomy 30:19

19 I call the heavens and the earth to witness today 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,

Deuteronomy 30:19 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 30:19

I call heaven and earth to record this day against you
Either, literally understood, the heavens above him, and the earth on which he stood, those inanimate bodies, which are frequently called upon as witnesses to matters of moment and importance; see ( Deuteronomy 4:26 ) ( 32:1 ) ( Isaiah 1:2 ) ; or figuratively, the inhabitants of both, angels and men:

[that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing;
had plainly told them in express words what would be the consequence of obedience and disobedience to the law of God; long life, and the blessings of it in the land of Canaan, to those that obey it; death, by various means, and dreadful curses, to those that disobey it; of which see at large ( Deuteronomy 28:16-68 ) ;

therefore choose life, that thou and thy seed may live;
that is, prefer obedience to the law, and choose to perform that, the consequence of which is life; that they and their posterity might live comfortably and happily, quietly and safely, and constantly, even to the latest ages, in the land of Canaan.

Deuteronomy 30:19 In-Context

17 But if thine heart turns away so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away and worship other gods and serve them,

18 I declare unto you this day that ye shall surely perish and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, to go unto which thou passest the Jordan to inherit it.

19 I call the heavens and the earth to witness today 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,

20 that thou may love the LORD thy God and that thou may hear his voice and that thou may cleave unto him; for he is thy life and the length of thy days that thou may dwell in the land which the LORD swore unto thy fathers, to Abraham to Isaac and to Jacob, to give them.