1 Moses encourages the people. 7 He encourage Joshua. 9 He delivered the law unto the priests to read it in the seventh year to the people. 14 God gives a charge to Joshua, 19 and a song to testify against the people. 24 Moses delivers the book of the law to the Levites to keep. 28 He makes a protestation to the elders.
Deu 31:1 Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel:
Jewish commentators take these words to mean that Moses here concluded his exhortations to the people gathered before him.
Then he went from tribe to tribe to give the news of his approaching death, and to exhort the people to uphold and support Joshua, his successor.
Deu 31:2 “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The LORD has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’
He evidently knew that his work was almost finished. He died soon after this (ch. 34:7).
When Moses stood before Pharaoh he was 80 years old (Ex. 7:7). Since then, the 40 years of the desert wanderings had passed.
He appeared to be strong and vigorous (see Deut. 34:7; Joshua 14:11).
Deu 31:3 The LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the LORD said.
The ark and the presence of God would go before them (see Joshua 3:5, 11).
Deu 31:4 And the LORD will do to them what he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, whom he destroyed along with their land.
Deu 31:5 The LORD will deliver them to you, and you must do to them all that I have commanded you.
All the commandments. That is, the various injunctions that God had given for the destruction of the “groves,” idols, and altars of the heathen (see chs. 7:2-5, 25; 12:1–3).
Deu 31:6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
A call to the people to exercise faith. Fear not. The same injunction had been given to their fathers (see chs. 1:21, 29; 3:2, 22; 7:17, 18, 21), but the older generation had been faithless (see ch. 1:28–32).
Goes with you. This promise had been given before (see ch. 20:4). Not fail … you. See the promise made to Joshua after the death of Moses (Joshua 1:5). The apostle Paul applies this experience to the Christian church (see Heb. 13:5).
Moses had lived a long and eventful life. He had served God and His people unselfishly and tirelessly. On earth he could never be greater than he was at that moment; yet God had more in store for him, in the heavenly Canaan. Compare the experience of Paul (2 Tim. 4:6–8).
Deu 31:7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their ancestors to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance.
The new leader by God’s appointment (see Num. 27:18–21). Joshua means “the salvation of God.” He is first mentioned in Ex. 17:9. Like Moses, he had received an appropriate preparation for his work. He had been associated with Moses in the giving of the law, in battle, and in leadership.
Like the 12 apostles selected by Christ, he was given special training in experience and association.
Deu 31:8 The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
Deu 31:9 So Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the Levitical priests, who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and to all the elders of Israel.
This law. From torah, a term inclusive of all the revealed will of God. Nehemiah refers to Ex. 13:2, 12; 23:19, and speaks of what is “written in the law” (Neh. 10:35, 36).
Josiah carried out the injunctions of Lev. 19:30; 20:6, 27, and said he was doing “the words of the law” (2 Kings 23:24).
Hezekiah gave command to carry out the charges of Num. 28 and 29, “written in the law” (2 Chron. 31:3). Bare the ark. See Deut. 10:8; Joshua 3:3, 6; 6:6; 1 Kings 8:3, 4.
Deu 31:10 Then Moses commanded them: “At the end of every seven years, in the year for cancelling debts, during the Festival of Tabernacles,
Year of cancelling dates. The word “cancelling” is from a form of the verb shamat, “to throw down.” In Ex. 23:11 it is rendered “rest.”
The reference here is to the sabbatical year, when the land was to “rest” and when there was release from debt (see Deut. 15:1 10).
The “release” of a man who had sold himself into servitude came after six full years of service (see Deut. 15:12); for him, the “seventh year” did not necessarily coincide with the sabbatical year, the “year of release.”
The reading year of the law came at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles, which began on the 15th of Tishri. The sabbatical year evidently began, like the 50th year, the year of jubilee, in Tishri.
The year of jubilee officially opened with the blowing of trumpets at the close of the Day of Atonement, on the 10th of Tishri (see Lev. 25:9).
Deu 31:11 when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God at the place he will choose, you shall read this law before them in their hearing.
Read this law. The law was also read on other occasions (see Joshua 8:34; 2 Kings 23:2; Neh. 8:1–3). A reverential reading of the Word of God is a stabilizing factor in any man’s life.
It is a good thing to hear what the Lord says to His saints (see Ps. 85:8). The Levites were commanded to teach the Scriptures to the people (see Deut. 33:10; Lev. 10:11; Mal. 2:7).
Deu 31:12 Assemble the people—men, women and children, and the foreigners residing in your towns—so they can listen and learn to fear the LORD your God and follow carefully all the words of this law.
Listen. The sequence is hear, learn, fear the Lord, observe the law (see chs. 4:10; 14:23; 17:19).
Deu 31:13 Their children, who do not know this law, must hear it and learn to fear the LORD your God as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”
Their children. One of the outstanding privileges accorded the Jews was the committal to them of the Word of God (see Rom. 3:1, 2). The plan of redemption, the wonders of the future kingdom—all are recorded in His Word.
It is folly for children to be allowed to grow up in ignorance of the Word. The Scriptures were written to be read and meditated upon. Their wisdom is to be the heritage of our children. To fail to give proper religious training to the young is to fail in a primary duty.
Deu 31:14 The LORD said to Moses, “Now the day of your death is near. Call Joshua and present yourselves at the tent of meeting, where I will commission him.” So Moses and Joshua came and presented themselves at the tent of meeting.
Present yourselves. Literally, “take your stand” (see Ex. 33:7). A charge. Compare ch. 3:28, where Moses was commanded to charge Joshua. Joshua’s leadership was to entail great responsibilities.
Presented themselves. Literally, “took their stand.” Presumably they stood in the court facing the door of the tabernacle, over which the glory of God would appear.
Deu 31:15 Then the LORD appeared at the tent in a pillar of cloud, and the cloud stood over the entrance to the tent.
On special occasions the pillar of cloud that rested upon the tabernacle (see Num. 9:15, 18) would move to the door of the tabernacle. Here, God’s glory shone through it (see Ex. 33:9, 10; 40:35).
Deu 31:16 And the LORD said to Moses: “You are going to rest with your ancestors, and these people will soon prostitute themselves to the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake me and break the covenant I made with them.
A sad picture of the future history of God’s people.
Prostitute. Ex. 34:15. There were certain tendencies already manifest that indicated the future conduct of the nation (see Judges 2:7–17). The psalmist has recorded a sad chapter in Israel’s history (see Ps. 106:34–39). They were told not to fear the heathen gods (Judges 6:10) and knew well their duty to the true God (Ex. 20:3).
Break my covenant. By the worship of other gods (see Ex. 20:22, 23; 23:32, 33; Deut. 5:3, 4; 6:3, 4). In entering the covenant relationship they had agreed to recognize the Lord as God, and to love and serve Him only.
Deu 31:17 And in that day I will become angry with them and forsake them; I will hide my face from them, and they will be destroyed. Many disasters and calamities will come on them, and in that day they will ask, ‘Have not these disasters come on us because our God is not with us?’
Angry. It was manifested in Judges 2:14 at their first apostasy after crossing the Jordan.
Hide my face. This means a withdrawal of God’s protecting hand (see Deut. 32:20; Isa. 8:17; 64:7; Eze. 7:22; 39:23). God is not among us. See Jer. 14:9; Micah 3:11; cf. Isa. 12:6; Zeph. 3:15, 17.
Deu 31:19 “Now write down this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it, so that it may be a witness for me against them.
This song. See 32:1. The Israelites would learn to sing the song and thereby hand it down from generation to generation. It would thus ever remain vivid in their memories and bind them to the lofty principles for which Moses stood.
Deu 31:20 When I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey, the land I promised on oath to their ancestors, and when they eat their fill and thrive, they will turn to other gods and worship them, rejecting me and breaking my covenant.
Deu 31:21 And when many disasters and calamities come on them, this song will testify against them, because it will not be forgotten by their descendants. I know what they are disposed to do, even before I bring them into the land I promised them on oath.”
Disposed to do. The word here translated “imagination” is from a verb root meaning “to devise in one’s mind,” “to devise,” “to establish,” “to form.” The derived noun form is used of an impulse of the mind, a device, a purpose.
The plannings, inclinations, and designs already in the heart of many were open to God (see 1 Chron. 28:9; and Ps. 103:14, “frame”).
Deu 31:22 So Moses wrote down this song that day and taught it to the Israelites.
Deu 31:23 The LORD gave this command to Joshua son of Nun: “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you.”
Courageous. The Lord repeated this to Joshua after the death of Moses (see Joshua 1:6, 7, 9; cf. 10:25).
Deu 31:24 After Moses finished writing in a book the words of this law from beginning to end,
Deu 31:25 he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD:
The Levites. See 1 Kings 8:3. It was their assigned privilege and duty to approach the ark when commanded to do so.
Deu 31:26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God. There it will remain as a witness against you.
Beside the ark. Jewish commentators are divided in their views respecting these words. Some maintain the written scroll was placed inside the ark with the two tables of stone, others, that it was placed in a compartment formed at the right side of the ark by a projecting board.
The definite statement that “there was nothing in the ark save the two tables which Moses put therein at Horeb” (2 Chron. 5:10) confirms the latter suggestion.
The principles inscribed upon the two tables of stone were of such a nature as to place them in a class by themselves. The Decalogue was supreme; the “book” containing “the words of this law” (Deut. 31:24) was an amplification and application of its principles to the economy of Israel.
Deu 31:27 For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the LORD while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die!
Stiff-necked. The word translated “stiff” also has the meaning of “hard,” “serve,” “difficult,” “stubborn” (see Jer. 7:26; 17:23; 19:15). The people were set in their ways, and it was difficult if not impossible for them to change.
Deu 31:28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth to testify against them.
Deu 31:28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth to testify against them.
Deu 31:29 For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall on you because you will do evil in the sight of the LORD and arouse his anger by what your hands have made.”
In the days t come. This same expression occurs for the first time in Gen. 49:1, where it is translated “last days” (see Num. 24:14; Deut. 4:30). This expression is used with considerable latitude in the OT. Generally, it refers simply to the future.
Deu 31:30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel:
Moses recited. Joshua was associated with him in this (see ch. 32:44). Moses, the great legislator, was about to lay down his burdens. A younger man, a soldier, was to take up the task of leading Israel in the conquest of Palestine. God had strengthened Moses; He would also go before Joshua.