Deuteronomy 8

1 Be thou ware diligently (Be thou careful), that thou do each commandment which I command to thee today, (so) that ye may live, and be multiplied, and that ye enter, and wield the land, for which the Lord swore to your fathers.

2 And thou shalt have mind of all the way, by which thy Lord God led thee by forty years, in (the) desert, that he should torment thee, and should assay thee; and that those things that were treated in thy soul should be known, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, either nay. (And thou shalt remember all the way, by which the Lord thy God led thee for forty years, in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to try, or to test, thee; so that those things that were treated in thy soul could be known, whether thou wouldest obey his commandments, or not.)

3 And he tormented thee with neediness, and he gave to thee meat, manna to eat, which thou knewest not, and thy fathers knew not, that he should show to thee, that a man liveth not in bread alone, but in each word that cometh out of the Lord's mouth. (And so he humbled thee with neediness, or with want, and he gave thee food, manna to eat, which thou knewest not, nor thy fathers knew, to show thee, that a man liveth not by bread alone, but by each word that cometh out of the mouth of the Lord.)

4 Thy cloak, with which thou were covered, failed not for eldness, and thy foot was not bruised underneath, lo! the fortieth year is (lo! this is the fortieth year);

5 that thou think in thine heart, for as a man teacheth his son, so thy Lord God hath taught thee, (so that thou remember in thy heart, that like a man teacheth his son, so the Lord thy God hath taught thee,)

6 that thou keep the commandments of thy Lord God, and go in his ways, and dread him. (and that thou obey the commandments of the Lord thy God, and go in his ways, and fear him/and revere him.)

7 For thy Lord God shall lead thee into a good land, into the land of rivers, and of standing waters, and of wells, in whose fields and mountains the depths of floods break out; (For the Lord thy God shall lead thee into a good land, a land of rivers, and ponds, and springs, and underground streams, gushing forth onto its fields and mountains;)

8 into the land of wheat, of barley, and of vines, in which land fig trees, and pomegranates, and olives come forth; into the land of oil, and honey;

9 where thou shalt eat thy bread without neediness, and thou shalt use the plenty of all things; of which land the stones be iron, and metals of tin be digged (out) of the hills thereof; (where thou shalt eat thy bread without any neediness, or want, and thou shalt make use of the plenty of all things; in which land the stones be made out of iron, and brass can be dug out of its hills;)

10 that when thou hast eaten, and art full-filled, thou bless thy Lord God for the best land which he hath given to thee. (so that when thou hast eaten, and art filled full, thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for this best land which he hath given thee.)

11 Therefore keep thou, and beware, lest any time thou forget thy Lord God, and despise his commandments, and dooms, and ceremonies, which I command to thee today; (And so remember thou, and be careful, lest any time thou forget the Lord thy God, and fail to obey his commandments, and laws, or judgements, and statutes, which I command to thee today;)

12 lest after that thou hast eaten, and art full-filled (and art filled full), (and) hast builded fair houses, and hast dwelled in them,

13 and hast droves of oxen (and hast herds of oxen), and flocks of sheep, and plenty of silver, and of gold, and of all things,

14 thine heart be then raised, and thou think not upon thy Lord God, that led thee out of the land of Egypt, and from the house of servage, (then thy heart be raised up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, who led thee out of the land of Egypt, and from the house of servitude, or of slavery,)

15 and he was thy leader in the great wilderness and fearful, in which wilderness was a serpent burning with blast, and a scorpion, and (a) dipsas, that is, an adder, that maketh them whom he stingeth to die for thirst, and utterly no waters were in the desert, the which Lord brought out streams of the hardest stone, (for he was thy leader in the great and fearful wilderness, in which wilderness there were poisonous serpents, and scorpions, and dipsas, that is, snakes that make those that they sting to die from thirst, and when there was utterly no water in that wilderness, the Lord brought forth streams out of the hardest stone,)

16 and he fed thee with manna (there) in the wilderness, which manna thy fathers knew not. And after that the Lord had tormented thee, and proved thee, at the last he had mercy on thee (And after that the Lord had humbled thee, and had tested thee, finally he had mercy on thee),

17 lest thou wouldest say in thine heart, My strength, and the might of mine hand, hath given all these things to me. (lest thou shouldest say in thy heart, My own strength, and the might of my own hand, hath given me all these things.)

18 But think thou upon thy Lord God, that he hath given strengths to thee (to become prosperous), that he should fulfill his covenant, of which he swore to thy fathers, as this present day showeth. (But rather, remember the Lord thy God, that it is he who hath given thee the power to become prosperous, in order to fulfill his covenant which he swore to thy fathers, as he doeth in this present day.)

19 Forsooth if thou forgettest thy Lord God, and followest alien gods, and worshippest them in (thine) heart, and honourest [them] withoutforth, lo! now I before-say to thee, that thou shalt perish utterly; (But if thou forgettest the Lord thy God, and followest foreign, or other, gods, and worshippest them inwardly, and honourest them outwardly, lo! I now say to thee beforehand, that is, I warn thee, that thou shalt utterly perish;)

20 as [the] heathen men perished, which the Lord did away in thine entering, so also ye shall perish, if ye shall be unobedient to the voice of your Lord God. (as the heathen shall perish, whom the Lord shall do away when thou shalt enter into the land, so also ye shall perish, if ye do not obey the voice of the Lord your God.)

Deuteronomy 8 Commentary

Chapter 8

Exhortations and cautions, enforced by the Lord's former dealings with Israel, and his promises. (1-9) Exhortations and cautions further enforced. (10-20)

Verses 1-9 Obedience must be, 1. Careful, observe to do; 2. Universal, to do all the commandments; and 3. From a good principle, with a regard to God as the Lord, and their God, and with a holy fear of him. To engage them to this obedience. Moses directs them to look back. It is good to remember all the ways, both of God's providence and grace, by which he has led us through this wilderness, that we may cheerfully serve him and trust in him. They must remember the straits they were sometimes brought into, for mortifying their pride, and manifesting their perverseness; to prove them, that they and others might know all that was in their heart, and that all might see that God chose them, not for any thing in them which might recommend them to his favour. They must remember the miraculous supplies of food and raiment granted them. Let none of God's children distrust their Father, nor take any sinful course for the supply of their necessities. Some way or other, God will provide for them in the way of duty and honest diligence, and verily they shall be fed. It may be applied spiritually; the word of God is the food of the soul. Christ is the word of God; by him we live. They must also remember the rebukes they had been under, and not without need. This use we should make of all our afflictions; by them let us be quickened to our duty. Moses also directs them to look forward to Canaan. Look which way we will, both to look back and to look forward, to Canaan. Look which way we will, both to look back and to look forward will furnish us with arguments for obedience. Moses saw in that land a type of the better country. The gospel church is the New Testament Canaan, watered with the Spirit in his gifts and graces, planted with trees of righteousness, bearing fruits of righteousness. Heaven is the good land, in which nothing is wanting, and where is fulness of joy.

Verses 10-20 Moses directs to the duty of a prosperous condition. Let them always remember their Benefactor. In everything we must give thanks. Moses arms them against the temptations of a prosperous condition. When men possess large estates, or are engaged in profitable business, they find the temptation to pride, forgetfulness of God, and carnal-mindedness, very strong; and they are anxious and troubled about many things. In this the believing poor have the advantage; they more easily perceive their supplies coming from the Lord in answer to the prayer of faith; and, strange as it may seem, they find less difficulty in simply trusting him for daily bread. They taste a sweetness therein, which is generally unknown to the rich, while they are also freed from many of their temptations. Forget not God's former dealings with thee. Here is the great secret of Divine Providence. Infinite wisdom and goodness are the source of all the changes and trials believers experience. Israel had many bitter trials, but it was "to do them good." Pride is natural to the human heart. Would one suppose that such a people, after their slavery at the brick-kilns, should need the thorns of the wilderness to humble them? But such is man! And they were proved that they might be humbled. None of us live a single week without giving proofs of our weakness, folly, and depravity. To broken-hearted souls alone the Saviour is precious indeed. Nothing can render the most suitable outward and inward trials effectual, but the power of the Spirit of God. See here how God's giving and our getting are reconciled, and apply it to spiritual wealth. All God's gifts are in pursuance of his promises. Moses repeats the warning he had often given of the fatal consequences of forsaking God. Those who follow others in sin, will follow them to destruction. If we do as sinners do, we must expect to fare as sinners fare.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 8

In this chapter Moses repeats the exhortation to observe the commands of God, and urges the Israelites to it, from the consideration of the great and good things God had done for them in the wilderness, and even in those instances which were chastisements, and were of an humbling nature, De 8:1-6, and on the consideration of the blessings of the good land they were going to possess, De 8:7-9 for which blessings they are exhorted to be thankful, and are cautioned against pride of heart through them, and forgetfulness of God, and of his goodness to them while in the wilderness, and when brought into the land of Canaan, which they were to ascribe to his power and goodness, and not their own, De 8:10-18, and the chapter is concluded with a warning against idolatry, lest they perish through it as the nations before them, De 8:19,20.