Deuteronomy 32:21-31

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.)
22 Fire is kindled in my strong vengeance, and it shall burn unto the last things of hell; and it shall devour the land with his fruit, and it shall burn the foundaments of hills (and it shall devour the land with its fruit, and it shall burn the very roots, or the foundations, of the mountains).
23 I shall gather evils on them, and I shall [ful]fill mine arrows in them. (I shall gather one evil after another upon them, and I shall send all my arrows against them/and I shall spend all my arrows against them.)
24 They shall be wasted with hunger, and birds shall devour them with most bitter biting; I shall send into them the teeth of beasts, with the strong vengeance of (those) drawing upon (the) earth, and of serpents. (They shall be wasted with hunger, and fever, and terrible sicknesses; I shall send into them the teeth of beasts, and the poisonous bites of serpents which draw themselves upon the ground/through the dust.)
25 Sword withoutforth, and dread within, shall waste them; a young man and a virgin together, a sucking child with an eld man.
26 And I said, Where be they now? I shall make the mind of them to cease of all men (I shall make the memory of them to vanish, or to cease, from all people).
27 But I delayed, or tarried, for the wrath of (their) enemies, lest peradventure their enemies should be proud, and say, Our high hand, and not the Lord('s), did all these things.
28 It is a folk without counsel, and without prudence, or wariness; (They be a nation without counsel, and without wisdom, or without caution;)
29 I would that they savoured, and understood, and purveyed the last things. (O that they considered, and understood this, and gave some thought to their end.)
30 How pursued one of (their) enemies a thousand of Jews, and twain drove away ten thousand? Whether not therefore for their God had sold them, forsaking them, and the Lord had enclosed them altogether in their enemies? hands? (How could just one of their enemies pursue a thousand Jews, and two drive away ten thousand? Was it not because their God had forsaken them, and had sold them out to their enemies, yea, the Lord had given them up into the hands of their enemies?)
31 For our God is not as the gods of them, and our enemies be judges (of this). (For our enemies have no god like our God, ours is strong, and they know that their gods be weak.)

Deuteronomy 32:21-31 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.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.