Deuteronomy 32:11-21

11 As an eagle stirring his birds to fly, and flying above them, he spreaded forth his wings, and took them into his protection, and he bare them in his shoulders. (Like an eagle stirring his young to fly, and flying above them, he spread out his wings, and took them up, and he carried them upon his shoulders.)

12 The Lord alone was his leader, and none alien god was with him. (The Lord alone was their leader, and no other god was with him.)

13 The Lord ordained him on an high land, that he should eat the fruits of fields, that he should suck honey of a stone, and oil of the hardest rock; (The Lord ordained them upon the highlands, and they ate the fruits of the fields, and sucked honey out of the stones, and oil out of the hardest rock,)

14 butter of the drove, and milk of sheep, with the fatness of lambs, and of rams, of the sons of Bashan; and that he should eat kids with [the] marrow, or tried flour, of wheat, and he should drink the clearest blood, or wine, of the grape. (and they ate butter from the herds, and milk from the sheep, and the fatness of lambs, and rams from the sons of Bashan, and goats, and the marrow, or the fine flour, of wheat; and they drank the clearest blood, that is, the purest wine, of the grapes.)

15 The beloved people was made fat, and (they) kicked against (God); made fat withoutforth, made fat within, and alarged; he forsook God his maker, and went away from God his health/from God his saviour. (And Jeshurun was made fat, and rebellious; made fat withoutforth, made fat within, yea enlarged; and they forsook God their Maker, and went away from God their salvation/from God their Saviour.)

16 They stirred God to wrath in alien gods that they praised, they stirred him to wrathfulness in their abominations, that is, their own findings. (They provoked God to anger with foreign, or other, gods that they praised, and they stirred him to rage with their abominable doings.)

17 They offered to fiends, or devils, and not to God, to gods which they knew not, (to) new gods, and fresh(ly) came up by their findings, which their fathers worshipped not. (They offered to fiends, or to devils, and not to God, to gods which they knew not, to new gods which they discovered in their searching, that their fathers did not worship.)

18 Thou hast forsaken God that begat thee, and thou hast forgotten thy Lord creator/the Lord thy maker. (Thou hast forsaken the God who begat thee, and thou hast forgotten the Lord thy Creator/the Lord thy Maker.)

19 The Lord saw that, and he was stirred to wrathfulness; for his sons, and daughters stirred him to vengeance. (The Lord saw this, and he was stirred to rage; yea, his sons and his daughters, stirred him to vengeance.)

20 And the Lord said, I shall hide my face from them, and I shall behold their last things; for this is a wayward generation, and unfaithful sons they be. (And the Lord said, I shall hide my face from them, and then I shall see what will happen to them; for this is a wayward generation, they be unfaithful children.)

21 They have stirred me to wrath in worshipping him that was not God, and they have moved me to vengeance in their vain idols; and I shall stir them (to wrath) in him, that is not a people, and I shall stir them to ire in a fond folk. (They have stirred me to jealousy by worshipping what was not God, and they have moved me to vengeance with their vain idols; and so I shall stir them to jealousy, with those who be not a people, and I shall stir them to anger, with a nation of fools.)

Deuteronomy 32:11-21 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 32

This chapter contains the song mentioned and referred to in the former, the preface to it, De 32:1-3; the character of the divine and illustrious Person it chiefly respects, De 32:4; the ingratitude of the people of the Jews to him, who were a crooked and perverse generation, aggravated by his having bought, made, and established them, De 32:5,6; and which is further aggravated by various instances of divine goodness to them, first in providing and reserving a suitable country for them, at the time of the division of the earth to the sons of men, with the reason of it, De 32:7-9; then by what the Lord did for them in the wilderness, De 32:10-12; after that in the land of Canaan, where they enjoyed plenty of all good things, and in the possession of which they were, when the illustrious Person described appeared among them, De 32:13,14; and then the sin of ingratitude to him, before hinted at, is fully expressed, namely, lightly esteeming the rock of salvation, the Messiah, De 32:15; nor could they stop here, but proceed to more ungodliness, setting up other messiahs and saviours, which were an abomination to the Lord, De 32:16; continuing sacrifices when they should not, which were therefore reckoned no other than sacrifices to demons, and especially the setting up of their new idol, their own righteousness, was highly provoking; and by all this they clearly showed they had forgot the rock, the Saviour, De 32:17,18; wherefore, for the rejection of the Messiah and the, persecution of his followers, they would be abhorred of God, De 32:19; who would show his resentment by the rejection of them, by the calling of the Gentiles, and by bringing the nation of the Romans upon them, De 32:20,21; whereby utter ruin and destruction in all its shapes would be brought upon them, De 32:22-25; and, were it not for the insolence of their adversaries, would be entirely destroyed, being such a foolish and unwise people, which appears by not observing what the enemies of the Messiah themselves allow, that there is no rock like him, whom they despised, De 32:26-31; which enemies are described, and the vengeance reserved for them pointed out, De 32:32-35; and the song closed with promises of grace and mercy to the Lord's people, and wrath and ruin to his and their enemies, on which account all are called upon to rejoice in the latter day, De 32:36-43; and this song being delivered by Moses, the people of Israel are exhorted seriously to attend to it, it being of the utmost importance to them, De 32:44-47; and the chapter is concluded with a relation of Moses being ordered to go up to Mount Nebo and die, with the reason of it, De 32:48-52.