Deuteronomy29

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Deuteronomy 29 records a new covenant established by the LORD with Israel in the land of Moab, distinct from the one at Horeb. Moses reminds the people of God's past mighty acts and provision, urging them to keep this covenant for prosperity. The chapter issues a severe warning against any individual or group who might secretly turn to idolatry, promising dire consequences of divine wrath and land desolation.

The Covenant in Moab

¶ These are the words of the covenant, which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, beside the covenant which he made with them in Horeb.

And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, Ye have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt unto Pharaoh, and unto all his servants, and unto all his land;

The great temptations which thine eyes have seen, the signs, and those great miracles:

Yet the LORD hath not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot.

Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink: that ye might know that I am the LORD your God.

And when ye came unto this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, came out against us unto battle, and we smote them:

And we took their land, and gave it for an inheritance unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half tribe of Manasseh.

Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do.

All Israel Enters the Covenant

¶ Ye stand this day all of you before the LORD your God; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, with all the men of Israel,

Your little ones, your wives, and thy stranger that is in thy camp, from the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water:

That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the LORD thy God, and into his oath, which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day:

That he may establish thee to day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God, as he hath said unto thee, and as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath;

But with him that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day:

Warning Against Apostasy and Secret Sin

(For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt; and how we came through the nations which ye passed by;

And ye have seen their abominations, and their idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, which were among them:)

Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood;

And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst:

The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.

And the LORD shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law:

Future Desolation and International Inquiry

So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses which the LORD hath laid upon it;

And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the LORD overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:

Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this land? what meaneth the heat of this great anger?

Then men shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt:

For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them:

And the anger of the LORD was kindled against this land, to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book:

And the LORD rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day.

The Secret and Revealed Will of God

The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

Study Notes for Deuteronomy 29

Verse 1

This covenant supplements the earlier one made at Horeb (Sinai). It focuses on the specific obligations and warnings related to Israel’s immediate entry into the Promised Land.

Verse 2

Moses directs the people’s attention back to the great historical acts of God—the Exodus and the defeat of the kings East of the Jordan—as the basis for their covenant commitment.

Verse 4

This stark assessment suggests that witnessing miracles alone is insufficient for true spiritual comprehension. God must grant the ability to perceive and obey, a theme central to later prophetic literature (cf. Ezek 36:26–27).

Verse 5

The forty years of supernatural provision (clothes and shoes not wearing out) served as a constant, tangible reminder of God’s faithfulness and ability to sustain His people outside of normal means.

Verse 6

The withholding of common sustenance (bread, wine, strong drink) was intentional, designed to force Israel to rely solely on Yahweh’s miraculous provision and recognize Him as their sovereign God.

Verse 9

This verse summarizes the immediate practical purpose of the covenant renewal: obedience leads directly to prosperity and success (wisdom) in the land they are about to inherit.

Verse 10

The detailed list of participants—from leaders to the lowest servants and resident foreigners—stresses the comprehensive nature of the agreement, binding every individual in the community.

Verse 13

The goal of the covenant is mutual establishment: Israel becomes God’s unique people (a vassal nation), and Yahweh confirms His role as their God, fulfilling the promises sworn to the patriarchs.

Verse 15

The covenant binds not only those physically present but also future, unborn generations (“him that is not here”). This establishes the principle of corporate responsibility for covenant faithfulness.

Verse 17

Moses reminds the people that they have witnessed the detestable practices (abominations) and idols of the nations they passed through, emphasizing the tangible temptations they must resist.

Verse 18

The 'root that beareth gall and wormwood' is a powerful metaphor for hidden apostasy or a single individual’s sin that, if tolerated, will eventually poison and corrupt the entire community (cf. Heb 12:15).

Verse 19

This describes the self-deceit of the intentional covenant-breaker who assumes immunity from judgment despite willful sin. The phrase 'add drunkenness to thirst' suggests relentless pursuit of sin without limit.

Verse 20

The judgment for intentional, unrepentant sin is severe. God’s 'jealousy shall smoke' against that person, ensuring the full measure of curses and the complete excision of the offender from Israel.

Verse 22

The prophetic curses are so severe that future generations and foreign visitors will examine the devastated land and seek the reason for God’s judgment upon Israel.

Verse 23

The description of the land as 'brimstone, and salt, and burning' explicitly links Israel’s potential fate to the irreversible, fiery destruction of the wicked cities of the plain (Sodom and Gomorrah).

Verse 24

The eventual desolation will be so striking that it will provoke inquiry even among surrounding nations, confirming God’s justice and sovereignty to the world.

Verse 28

This verse summarizes the ultimate consequence of covenant failure: violent expulsion and exile into a foreign land, a clear prophetic foreshadowing of the Babylonian exile.

Verse 29

This verse sets a crucial theological boundary. Israel is responsible only for obeying the revealed law, leaving God's hidden plans and reasons for specific judgments to Him. Obedience is paramount.

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Deuteronomy29

The Covenant in Moab

All Israel Enters the Covenant

Warning Against Apostasy and Secret Sin

Future Desolation and International Inquiry

The Secret and Revealed Will of God

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