Deuteronomy 31:30-32:47

Deuteronomy 31:30-32:47

The song that God gave Moses to teach Israel is now given in Deuteronomy 32. The beginning of the song begins by singing praises to God. Moses declares just a few of things that God is, calling Him just, faithful, and sinless. He then describes how Israel has treated Him. Now remember this song was to be taught to them so that future generations could go back to it once they had turned away from God. God knew that His people would begin following after other gods, which is the reason He was giving them this song, so that they would recognize their mistakes and turn back to Him. So in a way this song is more prophetic and was not as relevant to the people that Moses had taught it to. However, it was also a good reminder for them to remain obedient to God and not go astray.

It becomes more obvious that this was written for future generations when Moses begins saying that they should look to their fathers who have inherited the land. At this point in their history, they were still on the outskirts of the land, waiting to enter. So again, it is talking about a future rebellion. But at the same time this song also fulfills God’s promise. God is the one who gave this song to Moses, and it is a small reminder to Israel that He is going to remain faithful and that they are going to inherit the land soon. His faithfulness is then shown in a listing of what He had already done for them. The song points back to their times in Egypt and the wilderness. It shows how even through their disobedience, God cared for and provided for them. He continued to draw them to Himself, and at this point He had a people who were truly following Him.

The future generations that will be born in and grow up in the Promised Land will not know how life was outside the land. They would have only been told of the stories. Just like the current generation did not know what life was like in Egypt, future generations would not know what it was like in the wilderness. As a result, they would turn away from their God and start following after new gods that their fathers had never known. So God sent them a warning in this song, promising them that when those things happened, He would rain down punishment. They would be overtaken by foreign nations, endure horrific disasters, endure famine and diseases, and see war. All this would happen so that they would realize that the false gods they had followed were no god at all. God would use these hard times to draw Israel back to Himself.

Now although we know that all these events actually happened, that is if we continue reading the Books of History, Israel had hope that they would remain faithful. Moses and Joshua asked them to use this song as a warning, hoping to encourage them to remain faithful in the land. Moses then promised them that as long as they remained obedient to God, they would prosper in the Promised Land. However, if they turned from Him, these judgments would come.

Matt