Deuteronomy 34:8

8 And the people of Israel ¹wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. Then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.

Deuteronomy 34:8 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 34:8

And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of
Moab thirty days
According both to Josephus ^F14 and the Samaritan Chronicle ^F15, they cried and wept in a very vehement manner, when he signified to them his approaching death, and took his leave of them; and when he was dead they mourned for him, in a public manner, the space of time here mentioned, the time of mourning for his brother Aaron, ( Numbers 20:29 ) ;

so the days of weeping [and] mourning for Moses were ended;
on the eighth of Nisan or March, as says the Targum of Jonathan, and on the "ninth" they prepared their vessels and their cattle for a march, and on the tenth passed over Jordan, and on the "sixteenth" the manna ceased, according to the said paraphrase.

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FOOTNOTES:

F14 Ut supra. (De Bello Jud. l. 4. c. 8. sect. 49.)
F15 Apud Hottinger, p. 456.

Deuteronomy 34:8 In-Context

6 and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no one knows the place of his burial to this day.

7 Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated.

8 And the people of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. Then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.

9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him. So the people of Israel obeyed him and did as the LORD had commanded Moses.

10 And there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,

Cross References

• 1. Numbers 20:29; [Genesis 50:3]