Deuteronomy 34

⁴⁶ The judges referred to in verses 18–20 were civil magistrates located in each town. They were not the same as the “judges” described later in the book of Judges. Those later judges were rulers of the entire nation and were often military leaders as well.

⁴⁷ The Israelites’ request for a king showed, first of all, their lack of trust in God as their King. Secondly, in wanting to be like all the nations around them (verse 14), they were going against one of God’s main purposes for Israel—that Israel not be like other nations. Israel was to be an example to other nations of a people who put their trust in God alone and obeyed all of His commands.

⁴⁸ The horses were available in Egypt, and the Israelites would have to return there to get them; in doing so their hearts might be drawn again to the riches of Egypt, and their king might begin to put his trust in horses rather than in God (1 Kings 4:26). The many wives might entice the king to follow false gods, as later happened to King Solomon (1 Kings 11:1–6). Finally, the large amount of silver and gold would enable the king to live in luxury, far removed from his subjects—who were, after all, his brother Israelites.(Indeed, most of the king’s wealth would ultimately come from his subjects—in the form of taxes.) The king was to rule for the benefit of his people, not for the benefit of himself. God knew that all of these worldly things—horses, wives, and wealth—could turn the king’s heart away from Him; and tragically, that is what happened to most of Israel’s later kings.

⁴⁹ For a discussion of sorcery and divination, see comment on Exodus 22:18–20; first footnote to comment on Leviticus 19:26–31.

⁵⁰ After Jesus’ death and the coming of the Holy Spirit—called in John’s Gospel the Counselor (John 14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7)—prophets like those in the Old Testament would not be needed to guide the church; the Holy Spirit would be the Guide, and He would reveal God’s will to all believers—as He does today. However, there is a gift of prophecy that is given to some Christians by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:10,28). Those with this gift are sometimes called “prophets” in the New Testament (Acts 21:10). But these prophets are of a different order; though they speak as the Holy Spirit directs them, they do not have the same degree of authority that the Old Testament prophets had—prophets like Moses, Samuel, Isaiah and the others, who were authorized to write down the very words of God which are the foundation of our faith (Ephesians 2:19–20).

⁵¹ Today some people may be quite convinced that the Holy Spirit has given them a special word, but that word has contradicted Scripture or clearly gone beyond Scripture. When this is the case, we can be certain that that “word” was not from the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit never contradicts Scripture nor does He add to the authoritative word that has already been given. The Holy Spirit does, however, give us guidance in matters that are not expressly mentioned in Scripture, such as our choice of vocation and choice of mate—and numerous smaller matters as well. But the guidance will always be in line with scriptural principles. For further discussion of divine guidance, see footnote to comment on Exodus 28:15–30; comment on Numbers 9:17–23 and footnote to comment.

⁵² Some nations are led by extremely wicked people, but virtually always there are godly people among their inhabitants. In Old Testament times, the moral difference between Israel and the surrounding nations was distinct; today there is much less of a distinction between nations.

⁵³ The Crusades of the Middle Ages were “Christian” in name only; they resulted from a tragic misunderstanding of the Gospel of Christ.

⁵⁴ Moses said: . . . do not leave alive anything that breathes (verse 16). This refers only to humans, not to livestock. Usually the Israelites were permitted to keep the livestock for themselves (see Joshua 8:2).

⁵⁵ Moses’ instructions in verses 10–14 should be contrasted with the customary behavior of soldiers in wartime: instead of marrying their captive women, pagan soldiers are more likely to rape them. As we have seen before, Old Testament law provided for the protection of women, and stipulated that they must be treated with fairness and dignity.

In verse 14, Moses is not implying that sexual intercourse causes a married woman to be dishonored. But in the ancient Middle East, if a wife was put away by her husband, society considered her “dishonored” and she was often mistreated. The divorce laws of Israel were designed to protect the rights of such women.

⁵⁶ The case of Jacob is illustrative: of his two wives he loved Rachel most, but Leah bore him his first son, Reuben (Genesis 29:31–32).

⁵⁷ In verses 22–23, the Hebrew word for tree can mean either an actual tree or something made from the wood of a tree—such as a gallows or a cross.

⁵⁸ These laws of love and of doing good apply not just to one’s brother or neighbor; they apply also to one’s enemies (see Exodus 23:4–5; Matthew 5:43–44).

⁵⁹ The term “cross-dressing” or “transvestism” must be understood correctly. It does not mean, for example, that women cannot wear slacks. Rather it means the blurring of one’s sexual identity by what one wears and the deriving of pleasure from it. This is what is offensive to God.

⁶⁰ Most modern societies have similar laws against negligent behavior.

⁶¹ Marriage in ancient Israel was not simply a personal matter between a man and a woman; it was also a property transaction. The man had to pay a bride-price to the girl’s father when he became engaged, and so the girl belonged to him from the time of the engagement. For this reason, an engaged woman was considered legally married (see Exodus 22:16–17 and comment). A similar situation confronted Mary, the mother of Jesus. Even though she was only pledged to be married, Joseph was still called her husband (Matthew 1:18–19).

⁶² The expression to the tenth generation means “to all generations,” that is, “forever.”

⁶³ Jesus did not permit divorce except on the grounds of marital unfaithfulness (Matthew 5:31–32), which ordinarily meant adultery but could also mean (in the opinion of some) offenses such as abandonment, bodily injury, and apostasy—all of which could be considered examples of “unfaithfulness” to one’s marriage vows. Since adultery called for the death penalty (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22), divorce proceedings would not be relevant in adultery cases unless a lesser penalty was given or the husband decided to just divorce his wife quietly (see Matthew 1:1819).

⁶⁴ The Hebrew word for defiled in verse 4 is often used in reference to someone who has committed adultery.

⁶⁵ It has been said that the most important thing anyone can do for the kingdom of God is to love one’s spouse, because if that love is not there everything one does will be negatively affected. There is much truth to this statement.

⁶⁶ The law of “levirate marriage” did not contradict an earlier law prohibiting a man from having sexual relations with his brother’s wife (Leviticus 18:16; 20:21). The prohibition in the earlier law only applied while the brother was still living; the levirate law applied only after the brother had died.

⁶⁷ For the meaning of the term fear of God, see footnote to comment on Genesis 20:8–13; Deuteronomy 6:1–3 and comment.

⁶⁸ Jacob had married the two daughters of Laban the Aramean, and had spent over twenty years in the area of Aram; even after that, he continued “wandering” as a herdsman (Genesis 28:5; 29:16,2628). Finally he and his family moved down to Egypt, where they became a great nation (Genesis 46:2–7,26–27; Exodus 1:5–7).

⁶⁹ Any portion set aside for the Lord’s purpose was considered sacred, or holy.

⁷⁰ The word heaven in verse 15 does not mean the “physical heavens” but rather a spiritual realm, the kingdom of God, which throughout Scripture is commonly referred to as “heaven.”

⁷¹ Some Bible scholars think that the expression all the words of this law (verse 3) refers only to the Ten Commandments.

⁷² The word Amen means “so be it.” To say “Amen” is to signal one’s agreement with what has been said.

⁷³ The blessings and curses listed in Deuteronomy Chapter 28 (and also in Leviticus Chapter 26) are not part of the special ceremony at Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim; rather, they are general blessings and curses that affect the nation as a whole. They are part of Moses’ overall teaching that obedience brings reward and disobedience brings punishment.

⁷⁴ The corresponding references for this section (verses 14–26) are as follows: for verse 15, see Exodus 20:4–6; for verse 16, see Exodus 20:12; for verse 17, see Deuteronomy 19:14; for verse 18, see Leviticus 19:14; for verse 19, see Exodus 22:21–22; 23:6,9; Deuteronomy 24:17–18; for verse 20, see Leviticus 18:8; Deuteronomy 22:30; for verse 21, see Exodus 22:19; Leviticus 18:23; for verse 22, see Leviticus 18:9; for verse 23, see Leviticus 18:17; for verse 24, see Exodus 20:13; for verse 25, see Exodus 23:7–8; Deuteronomy 16:19.

⁷⁵ Only those Israelites between forty and sixty years of age had experienced the Exodus from Egypt. Those under forty had not been born, and those over sixty had all died in the desert (except Moses, Joshua and Caleb).

⁷⁶ God does not forsake His covenant. If by our disobedience we forfeit the covenant blessings, they will merely pass on to others. But the covenant itself will stand. Even when the Old Testament covenant was replaced by a new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31–34; Hebrews 8:8–12), God never left His people without a covenant; He gave them a much better one. And in His great mercy, God opened that new covenant to non-Israelites as well, who by faith in Christ can now enjoy full membership in the family of God. For further discussion of the old and the new covenants, see Exodus 24:1–8 and comment; General Article: Covenants and Dispensations.

⁷⁷ The Lord desires that every human being might be saved and not perish (John 3:16; 2 Peter 3:9); but He will not forgive a hardened and defiant sinner. Such a person will suffer all the curses written in this book (verse 20)—that is, the curses listed in Deuteronomy 28:15–68 (see Leviticus 26:14–39).

⁷⁸ God does reveal some future events to believers through His prophets, but such revelations are limited and specific in nature and are always given for some special purpose.

⁷⁹ God’s word has been given to us not simply that we may know it but also that we may follow it (verse 29). Do not merely listen to the word . . . Do what it says (James 1:22). If we follow God’s words, they will lead to life (Deuteronomy 4:1; 30:6,16)—abundant life on earth and eternal life in heaven (see Leviticus 18:5 and comment).

⁸⁰ There is only one sin that God will not forgive, and that is the sin we refuse to confess. That refusal blocks the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and cuts us off from God’s grace (Mark 3:28–29).

⁸¹ In verse 6, there is a marvelous new teaching: God will circumcise the Israelites’ hearts. This is the essence of the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31–34; Hebrews 8:8–12). The Israelites were unable to fully obey the law; they needed the enabling of God’s grace to obey. We humans cannot circumcise our own hearts all by ourselves. Here we learn of God’s gracious promise to help us. And He helps us through His Holy Spirit. This verse points forward to the coming of Jesus and to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of believers.

⁸² The Apostle Paul quoted verses 12–14 in his letter to the Romans to show that the word by which we are saved is in our mouth and in our heart. Paul wrote: . . . if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:6–10).

⁸³ God will never totally leave or forsake His people. But if they disobey Him, He certainly will withdraw His presence from them, deprive them of blessings, and often punish them severely. However, those of God’s people who deliberately leave Him and forsake Him will be cut off and destroyed; it won’t be God who has forsaken them but they who have forsaken God (see verses 16–17).

The writer to the Hebrews quotes verse 6 to show that because we can count on God’s being with us, we never have to be anxious; we can be content with what we have (Hebrews 13:5).

⁸⁴ The term prostitute themselves can be understood both in a literal or physical sense and also in a metaphorical or spiritual sense (see Exodus 34:15). The worship of Canaanite gods often involved ritual prostitution; such worship was also the equivalent of spiritual adultery and prostitution, because when the Israelites went after other gods they were being unfaithful to their one true heavenly Husband.

⁸⁵ See comment on verses 5–6 and footnote to comment.

⁸⁶ When God “hides His face,” He withdraws His presence and His favor. It is the opposite of God’s “making His face shine” upon people and “turning His face” toward them (see Numbers 6:24–26). All of these different expressions, of course, are examples of anthropomorphism. For further discussion of anthropomorphism, see footnotes to comments on Genesis 8:21–22; Exodus 3:7–9.

⁸⁷ God didn’t give fixed boundaries to the nations all at one time. God is sovereign: all through history He has allowed one nation to rise and another to fall. But now, since the coming of Christ, earthly nations are no longer so important in God’s plan of redemption for mankind; what is important is the Church—a “spiritual nation”—through which God intends to send the Gospel of salvation to every corner of the earth.

⁸⁸ In his letter to the Romans, Paul quoted verse 21 to show that the Israelites would be supplanted by the Gentiles, who were not a “chosen people” and who had not been taught God’s laws (Romans 10:19). Such humiliation would indeed make the Israelites envious and angry.

⁸⁹ Paul quoted verse 35 to show that only God has the right to take revenge; we humans must never do so (Romans 12:19). God’s vengeance is rooted in His righteousness; our human vengeance is rooted in pride and self-centered anger.

⁹⁰ The writer to the Hebrews quoted verses 35 and 36 to show that God will not only judge His enemies, but He will also judge His own people—in particular, those who reject His Son Jesus Christ (Hebrews 10:30).

⁹¹ In his letter to the Romans, Paul quoted the first line of verse 43 to show that the nations—that is, the Gentile nations—were to become full partakers in God’s covenant and full members of God’s family (Romans 15:10).

⁹² Jeshurun means “the upright one,” that is, Israel.

⁹³ The Old Testament was originally written in the Hebrew language.

⁹⁴ According to verse 1, Moses climbed to the top of Pisgah. Pisgah may not be a proper noun; in Hebrew, it means “ridge” or “range.”

⁹⁵ It is unlikely that Moses saw every part of the promised land; some of the land would have been obscured by mountains that were higher than Mount Nebo.