TEACHING NOTES Introduction The scroll of Deuteronomy is the conclusion of the Torah but it’s not the end of the story. The story will continue with Joshua as Israel begins to enter the Promised Land. But before this new generation of Israelites can enter the land, Moses needs to give them a crash course of their history and their job description. That’s what Deuteronomy is about - it’s like Torah 101 with Moses. Title: The title Deuteronomy is a Greek word meaning “second law” since it describes Moses retelling the law to Israel. The original Hebrew title was Devarim, which means “words” or “speech” since the scroll contained Moses’ speech to the Israelites. The Hebrew titles follow the storyline: Genesis: bereshit “in the beginning” Exodus: sh’mot “names” Leviticus: vayikra “[the LORD] called out” Numbers: bamidbar “in the wilderness” Deuteronomy: devarim “words/speech” Timeline: Deuteronomy occurs after the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness covered in Numbers. This is Moses’ final speech and instructions before Israel enters the Promised Land. Literary Design: Deuteronomy has three main sections 1. Moses’ Opening Speech (Deut. 1-11) 2. Collections of Laws (Deut. 12-26) 3. Moses’ Final Speech (Deut. 27-34) Deuteronomy 1-11: Moses’ Opening Speech Chapters 1-3: Moses retells Israel’s story, how it took 40 years to make an 11-day journey from Sinai to the Promised Land (Deut. 1:1-8), how leaders/elders were appointed for each tribe (Deut. 1:9-18), how Israel refused to enter the land (Deut. 1:19-33), the penalty for rebellion (Deut. 1:34-46), the wilderness years (Deut. 2:1-25), the defeat of Sihon and Og (Deut. 2:26-3:22), and how Moses was denied entry to the land (Deut. 3:23-29). Chapters 4-11: Moses calls the people to be faithful to the covenant by listening and obeying God’s laws. This section includes a few popular passages that we need to remember. Deut 4:6-8 “6 Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? 8 And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today?” The Shema (hear, listen): The Shema became the prominent prayer for Israelites, prayed twice daily. Deut 6:4-5 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” Deut 6:6-9 “6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Chapter 7: Israel is told to drive out the people living in the Promised Land. Seven groups are mentioned - Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and the Jebusites - most of which are giant clans. Here we find the beginning of controversial language that many have labeled “genocide.” Deut 7:2-5 “2 and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. 3 You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, 4 for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the LORD would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. 5 But thus shall you deal with them: you shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and chop down their Asherim and burn their carved images with fire.” Devote to complete destruction = Heb. ha harem ta harim - put under a ban, excommunicate, declare as forbidden. It cannot mean to completely destroy or kill in this passage because God tells them not to make covenants or intermarry with them. If God meant for Israel to kill them all, He wouldn’t go on to tell them not to make covenants or intermarry with them. Also, we find out later in the story that God commands Israel to offer a peaceful takeover and only go to war if required. What God wants destroyed are the giants and their religions. Also in chapter 7, we find out that Israel is not to drive the people out of the land all at once. Deut 7:22-23 “22 The LORD your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you. 23 But the LORD your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion, until they are destroyed.” In chapter 9, we find out why God wants the giants (sons of the Anakim) driven out the land. Deut 9:5 “5 Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations the LORD your God is driving them out from before you, and that he may confirm the word that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” Chapter 10 includes an interesting passage. Deut 10:15-16 “15 Yet the LORD set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. 16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.” Here we learn that circumcision is a symbol or sign of a person’s willingness to endure pain to keep the covenant. A circumcised heart refers to a person willing to obey God, even at our own expense. At the end of chapter 10, Moses reminds them that God has kept His promise to Abraham. Deut. 10:22 “22 Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.” Chapter 11 ends the first section with the command to love and serve Yahweh. This tells us that love and obedience are interdependent. To love is to obey and to obey is to love. The two cannot be separated. Moses also warns them that God will discipline them like their parents were disciplined in the wilderness. There is also an interesting idea presented. Deut 11:11-12 “11 But the land that you are going over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water by the rain from heaven, 12 a land that the LORD your God cares for. The eyes of the LORD your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.” This land is special because God cares for it and takes care of it. This recalls the garden of Eden, which God planted and gave to Adam and Eve to work and keep it. Canaan seems to be Eden. Chapter 11 ends with a declaration of blessing or curse. Deut 11:26-28 “26 “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: 27 the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, 28 and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today, to go after other gods that you have not known.” This would be acted out on two mountains (Mt. Gerizim & Mt. Ebal) when they enter the land. Also notice that this area is the location of the “oak of Moreh” which is where God appeared to Yahweh in Gen. 12:6. Deuteronomy 12-26: Collection of Laws Chapters 12-16 describes how Israel is to worship Yahweh in the place that He chooses. We’re not told yet where that place will be located. The key idea is that Yahweh wants to be worshiped in one place. This is a big contrast from how the Canaanites worshiped their gods. They had multiple gods with multiple altars and idols in multiple places. Yahweh is one God and wants to have one place He calls home. The rest of this section recalls some of the laws from Leviticus. Chapters 16-18 describes laws for Israel’s leaders. This section is very important because the rest of the Old Testament will tell us about these leaders. But the authors will often describe a leader’s actions without telling us if they are good or bad. This section of Deuteronomy provides the backdrop to understand those stories. For example, we’re told in 1 Kings 4:20-28; 10:14-29 that king Solomon was filthy rich. Most readers see this as a big success and shows the blessings of God on Israel. But if we read Deut. 17:14-20 we see that Solomon broke every command listed for the kings of Israel. If we don’t know the Torah, we will misunderstand the stories after the Torah. Rules for Kings: Moses knows that the people will get to the land and immediately want a human king like all the other pagan nations (Deut. 17:14). This is exactly what happened in 1 Samuel 8, and Samuel warns Israel that this is a bad idea. The high priest was supposed to serve like a king, and he even wore a gold crown. But Israel wants to be like the pagan nations, instead of being holy (unique). Deut. 17:14-20 tells us what kind of king God will allow: The king must be an Israelite, not a foreigner (Deut. 17:15). The king must not have many horses, especially Egyptian horses (Deut. 17:16). The king must not have multiple wives (Deut. 17:17). The king must not have excessive wealth (Deut. 17:17). The king must write his own copy of the Torah (Deut. 17:18). The king must be a Torah scholar who obeys (Deut. 17:19-20). In summary, this section outlines the leadership of Israel as three-fold: Elders/Judges Priests Kings Chapter 20 is very important. It shows that God is not a genocidal maniac. God commands Israel to offer terms of peace to the cities that are not giant clans. If the inhabitants agree they will become Israel’s servants/slaves. If they refuse peace and wish to make war, Israel can fight to take the city or region, but Israel is only allowed to kill the men. However, God commands Israel to kill every person in the clans of giants. Israel is also commanded not to destroy the fruit trees in the land. Chapter 21 contains an interesting command. Deut. 21:22-23 “22 “And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, 23 his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.” This explains why the Jewish leaders wanted Jesus buried before Friday ended (Luke 23:54; John 19:31). Chapter 23 contains another interesting command. Deut. 23:15-16 “15 “You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you. 16 He shall dwell with you, in your midst, in the place that he shall choose within one of your towns, wherever it suits him. You shall not wrong him.” Apparently, if a slave escapes his master’s house, Israel is not allowed to return the slave. Israel is to provide the slave whatever place he chooses to live. Chapters 23-26 explains the civil and social laws of Israel. These cover various issues of business and relationships. There is an important principle to remember when reading these ancient laws of Israel. Compare the laws of Israel to the laws of other ancient cultures, not to modern laws. By comparison to Israel’s neighbors, the biblical laws are far superior. Deuteronomy 27-34: Moses’ Final Speech Chapters 27-28 describes the blessings of obedience and the curses of disobedience. It’s important to notice the warnings of being exiled from the land and the command to repent. God promises to bring Israel back to the land if they repent. Chapters 29-30 describes the renewal of the covenant and how God will forgive Israel even if it rebels and is exiled. Chapter 31 tells us that Joshua will be the successor of Moses. Joshua is told to “Be strong and courageous.” Then God commands all of Israel to come to the tabernacle at the Feast of Booths (every seven years) to hear the reading of the Torah. Deut. 31:16 tells us that Israel is going to fail. “16 And the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise and whore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will forsake me and break my covenant that I have made with them.” God tells Moses to write a song and teach it to Israel. Chapter 32 are the lyrics to the song that God commanded Israel to memorize. This song tells the story of Israel, both good and bad. This song also gives us more insight into past events like the tower of Babel and the dividing of the nations to the sons of God (Deut. 32:8-9). Israel is referred to by the name Jeshurun, which means “upright.” This title might be meant as an irony, since the song describes Jeshurun as rebellious. However, the Septuagint (Greek OT) translates it as “beloved.” Also, our English Bibles translate verse 17 “They sacrificed to demons that were no gods.” But the Hebrew says “They sacrificed to demons that were not God.” The same translation issue occurs also in verse 21. Chapter 33 is a poem or song of Moses’ blessing on the tribes of Israel. Chapter 34 describes Moses’ death. Interestingly, Moses goes up Mt. Nebo to die, and it says “he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab.” Who is he? Apparently, God carried Moses off the mountain and buried him in the valley in some secret place. It would be highly unusual to not know where Moses was buried. This is why many Jews believed that Moses was taken up like Enoch and Elijah. The Next Collection in the Old Testament: The Nevi’im The ending of Deuteronomy flows directly into the next section of the Old Testament, which is the Nevi’im or The Prophets. While our modern divisions of the Old Testament call the next section “Historical Books,” that is not how the Israelites understood it. The Nevi’im were considered prophets because they were retelling Israel’s history from the perspective of the prophets.