Deuteronomy32

Moses' song in Deuteronomy 32 begins by extolling God's perfect character as the Rock and His faithful care for Israel, whom He chose and nourished. However, Israel, described as Jeshurun, grew rebellious, forsaking God for idols, thus provoking divine wrath and judgment. Despite the impending punishments, God declares His ultimate sovereignty and promises future vengeance on His enemies while showing mercy to His people. The chapter concludes with Moses being commanded to ascend Mount Nebo to view the promised land before his death, as he is forbidden to enter due to past transgression.
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Invocation and Introduction to the Song

1
Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. ​
2
My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: ​
3
Because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.
4
He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he. ​

Israel’s Corruption and Ingratitude

5
They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation. ​
6
Do ye thus requite the LORD, O foolish people and unwise? is not he thy father that hath bought thee? hath he not made thee, and established thee?
7
Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: ask thy father, and he will shew thee; thy elders, and they will tell thee.
8
When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel. ​
9
For the LORD'S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
10
He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye. ​
11
As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings: ​
12
So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.
13
He made him ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eat the increase of the fields; and he made him to suck honey out of the rock, and oil out of the flinty rock;
14
Butter of kine, and milk of sheep, with fat of lambs, and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the fat of kidneys of wheat; and thou didst drink the pure blood of the grape.

Jeshurun Rebels Against the Rock

15
But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation. ​
16
They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger.
17
They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not. ​
18
Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.

God Declares Judgment

19
And when the LORD saw it, he abhorred them, because of the provoking of his sons, and of his daughters. ​
20
And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.
21
They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation. ​
22
For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains. ​
23
I will heap mischiefs upon them; I will spend mine arrows upon them.
24
They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust.
25
The sword without, and terror within, shall destroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling also with the man of gray hairs.

God’s Mercy and the Enemy’s Folly

26
I said, I would scatter them into corners, I would make the remembrance of them to cease from among men: ​
27
Were it not that I feared the wrath of the enemy, lest their adversaries should behave themselves strangely, and lest they should say, Our hand is high, and the LORD hath not done all this.
28
For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them.
29
O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!
30
How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had shut them up? ​
31
For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. ​
32
For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter:
33
Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps.

The Lord’s Vengeance and Sovereignty

34
Is not this laid up in store with me, and sealed up among my treasures? ​
35
To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste. ​
36
For the LORD shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up, or left. ​
37
And he shall say, Where are their gods, their rock in whom they trusted,
38
Which did eat the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink offerings? let them rise up and help you, and be your protection.
39
See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. ​
40
For I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live for ever.
41
If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me.
42
I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh; and that with the blood of the slain and of the captives, from the beginning of revenges upon the enemy.
43
Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people: for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people. ​

Exhortation and Moses’ Final Charge

44
And Moses came and spake all the words of this song in the ears of the people, he, and Hoshea the son of Nun. ​
45
And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel:
46
And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law.
47
For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it. ​

The Lord Instructs Moses to Die

48
And the LORD spake unto Moses that selfsame day, saying, ​
49
Get thee up into this mountain Abarim, unto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho; and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession:
50
And die in the mount whither thou goest up, and be gathered unto thy people; as Aaron thy brother died in mount Hor, and was gathered unto his people:
51
Because ye trespassed against me among the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah-Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin; because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel. ​
52
Yet thou shalt see the land before thee; but thou shalt not go thither unto the land which I give the children of Israel.

Study Notes for Deuteronomy 32

Verse 1

Moses calls upon the heavens and the earth to act as witnesses to the declarations of the covenant, a common motif in ancient Near Eastern treaty documents.

Verse 2

This verse uses powerful nature metaphors (rain, dew) to describe the life-giving and refreshing nature of divine instruction (doctrine), contrasting it sharply with the harshness of the wilderness.

Verse 4

The title 'He is the Rock' (Hebrew: *Tsur*) is a central theme of this song, emphasizing God’s reliability, permanence, justice, and faithfulness, contrasting Him with the fleeting nature of idols.

Verse 5

The phrase 'their spot is not the spot of his children' signifies that Israel's moral corruption has led to a fundamental theological estrangement, behaving in a manner inconsistent with God’s people.

Verse 8

This verse provides a crucial theological statement: while God dispersed all nations, He set their boundaries specifically in relation to the future inheritance of Israel, underscoring Israel's unique status as God's chosen portion.

Verse 10

This passage describes God's tender care for Israel in the wilderness, using imagery of intimate guidance, instruction, and protection ('kept him as the apple of his eye').

Verse 11

The metaphor of the eagle illustrates God’s diligent, protective, and training role, teaching Israel how to rely on Him and eventually carry them safely to their destination.

Verse 15

'Jeshurun' (meaning 'the upright one') is a poetic and ironic name for Israel. This verse describes the danger of prosperity leading to arrogance and apostasy, where the people 'waxed fat, and kicked' against their Deliverer.

Verse 17

The objects of Israel’s worship are identified as 'devils' (*shedim*), highlighting the demonic nature underlying the worship of foreign gods, who were 'new gods' whom the ancestors did not acknowledge.

Verse 19

God’s response to Israel’s apostasy is deep displeasure and 'abhorrence.' This is not mere anger, but a profound rejection of the covenant relationship due to the people’s provocation.

Verse 21

God promises reciprocal judgment: just as Israel provoked God with 'no-gods' (idols), God will provoke Israel using a 'no-people' (a foolish, insignificant, or Gentile nation) to execute judgment.

Verse 22

The judgment is described as a catastrophic fire reaching the foundations of the earth and the 'lowest hell' (*Sheol*), emphasizing the depth and totality of God’s wrath.

Verse 26

God reveals His internal deliberation. He considers utter annihilation but holds back out of concern that Israel's enemies would arrogantly claim victory for themselves rather than attributing the judgment to Yahweh.

Verse 30

This rhetorical question emphasizes that Israel’s military success or failure is entirely dependent on God. Their future defeats will prove that God Himself 'sold them' into the enemy's hands.

Verse 31

Even the enemies of Israel concede the superiority of Yahweh ('our Rock') compared to their own deities, confirming the justice of God’s actions.

Verse 34

God asserts that He keeps a meticulous record of all human actions, implying that judgment is stored up and will be delivered precisely when He deems fit.

Verse 35

This foundational verse, quoted in Romans 12:19 and Hebrews 10:30, establishes that vengeance belongs exclusively to the sovereign God, assuring Israel that their oppressors will inevitably suffer recompense.

Verse 36

The judgment serves a redemptive purpose; God will 'repent himself' (show compassion) for His servants when they are completely helpless and their power is exhausted, leading to final vindication.

Verse 39

This is a profound declaration of absolute monotheism and omnipotence: Yahweh alone is God. He possesses the exclusive power over life, death, wounding, and healing, demonstrating His unmatched sovereignty.

Verse 43

This call for the nations (Gentiles) to rejoice with Israel anticipates the universal scope of God's final redemption, where He will avenge His people and show mercy to His land.

Verse 44

This verse marks the transition from the Song itself to its delivery and application. Hoshea (Joshua) is mentioned alongside Moses, highlighting his role as the immediate successor and witness to the Law.

Verse 47

Moses powerfully stresses that the Law is not a trivial matter but 'your life.' Obedience to these commands is the means by which Israel will secure and prolong their existence in the promised land.

Verse 48

The final section of the chapter shifts to God's direct command concerning Moses' fate, separating the leader from the people before they enter Canaan.

Verse 51

God explicitly recalls the sin at Meribah-Kadesh (Numbers 20:10-13), where Moses failed to 'sanctify' God by striking the rock rather than speaking to it, resulting in the penalty of not entering the land.

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