As I continue my daily Torah studies, I come to Deuteronomy 4:9-40. What follows is a summary for your reference and review, followed by commentary and application:
- vs 13–He proclaimed His covenant to you which He ordered you to obey, the Ten Words which He wrote on two stone tablets
- vs 14-Moshe taught the people laws and rulings so that they would live by them in the land of promise and avoid adopting the ways of the heathen/the religions and practices of the nations that would surround them
- vss 15-19–Moshe warns the people not to be taken by the fact that they’ve never seen Yehovah, especially when he came down to them at Horeb (reference Exo 19). Human nature often leads men to want to visualize or depict that which they’ve experienced and have come in contact with in some form of another (graven image which becomes and idol). Thus Moshe warns the people not to make unto themselves carved images of created thing and be so inclined to worship those things
- vs 20–Yehovah selected for Himself a people that He called a “people of inheritance;” and delivered them out of Egypt (what parallels are there for us today; us who have been selected for Him to be a people of inheritance, we were delivered from religion and sin–our personal Egypts)
- vss 21-24–don’t forget the covenant that Yehovah made with you–(don’t forget the covenant that Yehovah has made with us–spiritual Israelites). When we break that marriage covenant with Yehovah by abandoning the tenets of the true Faith once delivered for another Yeshua and another Yehovah–a neoplatonist conception of the Father and Maschiyach, we invoke within Him jealousy and we place ourselves in jeopardy and harm’s way
- vss 25-26–time and time again Moshe warns the people to stay true to the covenant between He and them. Indeed, the temptation to adopt the ways of the former inhabitants of the land that they would ultimately conquer and inhabit would be extremely great. But the covenant that existed between Yehovah and Israel required the people of promise to remain faithful to that covenant promise and avoid idolatry at any level and in any form. Otherwise, violations of that covenant would be grounds for them to be expelled from the land
- vss 25-31–Moshe prophecizes that the people would indeed violate the covenant with Yehovah and ultimately they would be scattered among the nations of the world, yet just a few would remain. Those who would be scattered would adopt the ways of those with whom they were led away by, turning to the ways of those people. I’ve always wondered why Yehovah continued on with His plans for Israel despite knowing that Israel would violate the covenant many times over. I don’t think we can fully understand the reasons why, but suffice to say that He is a God of promises and He promised this inheritance to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and He would without fail deliver on that promise
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- Yet there will come a time when Israel will return to Yehovah and Shemah Him. Yehovah will then be merciful unto them and remember the covenant which He made with them. This in the time of acharit-hayamin
- vss 32-40-Moshe admonishes the people to examine their history and why they were where they were at that time. Every step of their journey had been orchestrated by the Almighty for purposes of providing them and their progeny reminders and to ensure that they knew without a shadow of doubt that Yehovah was THE one true God. And if they would simply obey that which Yehovah taught them through Moshe, then life would go well with them and their off-spring and they would live prolonged lives in the land and be a light to the world
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- Interesting that the focus was on their temporal existence as human beings. There was a promise ahead of them, thousands of years down the road, in which eternal life would be ultimate goal of mankind as well as being a light to the world through obedience to Torah and affiliation with Yeshua HaMaschiyach. But for now, it was only for them to live prosperous and healthy lives in the land that Yehovah provided them and be that light to the world
- What does that say about us today? We’ve now entered in to the era where our focus is more on a time when we will live with Yeshua here on earth forever and ever. Yet we are called to focus on that which we can do today to further the Kingdom of Yehovah. Yeshua said that the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few (Luk 10:2)
Commentary and Application
What does it mean to take heed of one’s self and keep one’s soul diligently? Heed in Hebrew is “shamar” which means to guard, keep, observe. In other words, always monitor and assess one’s self. We are to constantly do this. This we are to do thoughout our lives. Make sure that we are constantly measuring ourselves in accordance to that which we’ve experienced, heard and learned. It’s so easy to slip in to things that are not of Yehovah (cf. Dt. 4:23; Rom 4:23). We must be obsessive and meticulous, perpetual in our self-awareness and self-assessments; to the point of teaching these principles to our progeny.
Matthew Henry paints a context of Moshe’s admonitions here to that of idolatry. Why? Becauise this would ultimately be the nation’s Achilles heel, as well as idolatry was especially irksome to Yehovah and would ultimately lead to harsh punishment. I like Matthew Henry’s examination of this issue of idolatry as it is here being spoken by Moshe. Henry sees the issue in two veins: (1) the creation of graven images that would not only violate the 2nd of the 10-commandments, but in the spirit of this commandment diminish or subtract from the truth that is Yehovah and shame His glory. This harkens back to the golden calf incident in Horeb as documented in the Book of Exodus. One has to seriously question the thoughts of the people who coaxed Aaron in to creating the idol after witnessing the unfathomable exhibit of Yehovah’s glory coming down from heaven on to Mount Sinai (this being the shadow picture of the Feast of Shavuot or Pentecost). That incident was done, according to Yehovah Himself, to become an indelible image in the minds of the people forever and serve as a certification that Moshe was indeed Yehovah’s elect to lead and teach the people (i.e., the people were to Shama Moshe) as well as capture the attention of the people when He, Yehovah, would shout down His commandments to the nation (Exo. 19:9). This event, the likes as has never been seen by the human since, as well as the admonishment and commandment never to make or worship before any idol (Hebrew=pecel), quickly vanished from the hearts and minds of the people as they compelled Aaron to make for them the idol of the Golden Calf. This incident so enraged Yehovah that He was set to destroy the nation and start over with Moshe alone. Israel that day was spared utter and total destruction because Moshe mediated on behalf of the people–11 And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said: ‘LORD, why doth Thy wrath wax hot against Thy people, that Thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, saying: For evil did He bring them forth, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from Thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against Thy people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Thy servants, to whom Thou didst swear by Thine own self, and saidst unto them: I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.’ 14 And the LORD repented of the evil which He said He would do unto His people. (Exo 32:11-14 JPS) Here, in the most glaring and beautiful manner, we see through Moshe’s actions a shadow picture of the Messiah, of Yeshua HaMaschiyach, who has since His ascension in to heaven, mediated before Yehovah on behalf of His elect. How dare we, the elect of Yehovah, assume with pompous and self-righteous assertiveness that grace has blinded the eyes of Yehovah to our idolatrous and sinful behavior. Churchianity has taught us that our sins are covered by the blood of Yeshua and thus our eternal destiny is assured and we have free license to live as our flesh dictates. This mindset dear Saints, is nothing more than spiritual idolatry, which is Matthew Henry’s second point. How Churchianity has fashioned, not only in graven images such as paintings and statutes that litter Catholic and even some protestant Churches, humanly contrived perceptions and idealizations of Yehovah and Yeshua and we, like Israel, blindly and boldly accept and structure our lives in accordance with those perceptions and idealizations. This is one of the many reasons why Torah is so vital to the Believer in Messiah. It serves as a record of the history of Israel and the many events and things that they experienced. Many of those events and things translate in to sad but sobering reminders of how depraved we as humans are, despite having a clear understanding of what Yehovah has accomplished in us through His Son, Yeshua HaMaschiyach.
I truly believe that it is the Messianic Believer’s true calling to take up Ancient Israel’s mantle and be that light to the nations. How do we do that. By living Torah. As the world sees that we are meticulously but joyously following the ways of Torah while acknowledging that Yeshua is our Redeemer that has given to us His Ruach Kodesh, we naturally become an object of curiosity to the world. Yes, many will villainize us and attempt to discredit us as simply another cult that is obtuse to the ways of popular Christianity. But eventually, if we continue in the ways of Yehovah and we show forth in our lives wonders and blessings that are not realized in Christianity or in Judaism for that matter, then the people will be drawn to the simple truth of our Faith and to Yeshua HaMaschiyach. We must not squander this opportunity. We possess the truth and a dying world desperately needs that truth. And no matter how hard and persistently the establishment of our day seeks to suppress this Message of the Kingdom of Yehovah and His righteousness, the truth will still peek through–just as sprigs of grass pop through cracks in a sidewalk or driveway, there is no way to entirely suppress the truth that comes directly from the Word of God. We don’t all have to have huge and prosperous ministries to bring that light and further the true Gospel. We simply must avail ourselves to the calling and employ of Yehovah and the Ruach as we walk daily with Messiah. It may come down to simply living to the best of our ability Torah and that alone will facilitate the work. Invariably, many will ask why we do what we do and seek to understand who and what we are. These interactions provide us the opportunity to evangelize and spread to the world the True Gospel Message. That old gospel song from the 70’s rings so ever true here: “It only takes a spark to get a fire going–then all those around are warmed by its glowing–That’s how it is with God’s love–once you experience it…you want to pass it on.” May you walk in the power and might of the Ruach Kodesh and may you and family be most blessed fellow Saints. Shalom.