Deuteronomy 32:30-40

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.)
32 The vine of them is of the vine of Sodom, and of the suburbs of Gomorrah; the grape of them is the grape of gall, and the cluster is most bitter. (Their vines be like the vines of Sodom, and like those grown in the suburbs of Gomorrah; their grapes be grapes of gall, and their clusters be most bitter.)
33 The gall of dragons is the wine of them, and the venom of adders, that may not be healed. (The gall of dragons is their wine, yea, the cruel venom of adders.)
34 Whether these things be not hid with me, and be sealed (up) in my treasuries, (or in my storehouses)?
35 Vengeance is mine, and I shall yield (it) to them in time, (so) that the foot of them slide; the day of perdition is nigh, and the times hasten to be present.
36 The Lord shall deem his people, and he shall do mercy in his servants; the people shall see that the hand of (the) fighters is sick, or feeble, and also men (en)closed failed, and the remnant people, or left, be wasted. (The Lord shall judge his people, and he shall do mercy to his servants; for he shall see that the hands of their fighters be feeble, or weak, and that the enclosed men have failed, and that the remnant, that is, the people who were left, now is gone.)
37 And they shall say, Where be their gods, in which they had trust? (And then the Lord shall say, Where be your gods, in which ye had trust?)
38 Of whose sacrifices they ate the fatnesses, and they drank the wine of flowing sacrifices, rise they and help you, and defend they you in (time of) need. (Yea, the gods which ate the fat of your offerings, and which drank the wine of your wine offerings, now let them rise up and help you, and defend they you in your time of need!)
39 See, or understand, ye, that I am God alone, and none other God is except me; I shall slay, and I shall make to live; I shall smite, and I shall make whole; and none is that may deliver from mine hand. (See ye, that is, understand ye, that I am God alone, and there is no other god except me; I shall kill, and I shall make to live; I shall strike down, and I shall make whole; no one can rescue anyone out of my hands.)
40 And I shall raise up mine hand to heaven, and I shall say, I live without end. (And I shall raise up my hand to heaven, and I shall say, As surely as I live forever,)

Deuteronomy 32:30-40 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.