CLARITY EDITION · OLD TESTAMENT
Deuteronomy 4
Chapter 4 of 34
Chapter Overview
What happens in Deuteronomy 4
Moses urges Israel to obey God's commands and not worship idols. He reminds them that they heard God's voice but saw no shape. He warns of the consequences of disobedience but promises that God will show mercy if they return to him.
Scripture
Deuteronomy 4
Obey God's Commands
Study note
Moses urged Israel to obey every command without adding to it or taking away from it. He pointed to Baal-peor as a warning. He said obeying God's laws would make Israel known as the wisest nation on earth.
1 "Now, Israel, pay attention to the rules and laws I am teaching you. Follow them so you can live and go claim the land that the Lord, the God of your forefathers, is handing over to you. Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you.
2 Do not tack anything onto what I am telling you, and do not leave anything out. Obey the commands of the Lord your God exactly as I give them to you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.
3 You saw for yourselves what the Lord did at Baal-peor. He wiped out everyone among you who worshipped the false god Baal at that place. Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baal-peor: for all the men that followed Baal-peor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you.
4 But every one of you who stayed loyal to the Lord your God is still alive today. But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day.
5 Look -- I have passed on to you all the rules and laws the Lord my God gave me. Live by them in the land you are about to move into. Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
6 Follow them carefully, and other nations will be amazed at how wise and smart you are. They will hear about your laws and say, 'This great nation is truly wise and full of understanding!' Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7 Truly, what other nation has a god so close to them? The Lord our God comes near to us every time we call out to him. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?
8 And what other nation has rules and laws as fair and good as the ones I am sharing with you today? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
Remember What You Saw at Horeb
Study note
Moses told the people never to forget what they witnessed at Mount Horeb. They heard God speak from the fire. God declared the Ten Commandments and wrote them on stone tablets. This memory was to be passed down to future generations.
9 Be very careful. Guard yourself so that you never lose hold of the things you have witnessed. Never let those memories slip out of your mind for the rest of your life. Pass them along to your children and grandchildren. Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;
10 Think back to the day you stood in front of the Lord your God at Horeb. He told me, 'Bring the people together so they can hear what I have to say. That way they will learn to honor me for the rest of their lives, and they will pass this on to their children.' Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.
11 You gathered at the bottom of the mountain. Flames shot up from the mountain all the way into the sky, and the mountain was wrapped in darkness, clouds, and thick shadows. And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness.
12 The Lord spoke to you right out of the fire. You could hear his words, but you could not see any form or shape -- only a voice. And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.
13 He declared his covenant to you -- the Ten Commandments -- and ordered you to keep them. Then he carved them onto two tablets of stone. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.
14 At that same time, the Lord told me to teach you his rules and laws. You were to follow them in the land you were about to enter. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.
Warning Against Idol Worship
Study note
Since Israel heard God's voice but saw no physical form, Moses warned them never to make an idol in any shape. He also warned against worshipping the sun, moon, or stars. God is a consuming fire who demands total loyalty.
15 "Watch out! The day the Lord spoke to you from the fire at Horeb, you did not see any physical form at all. Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 So never make an idol shaped like anything -- not like a man or a woman, Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 not like any animal that walks the earth, or any bird that soars through the sky, The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,
18 or any creature that crawls along the ground, or any fish swimming in the water. The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 And when you gaze up at the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars, do not let yourself be pulled into bowing down and worshipping them. The Lord your God placed those lights in the sky for every nation to enjoy. And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
20 But God pulled you right out of Egypt — that blazing hot furnace of slavery. He did this so you could be his own special people, which is what you are today. But the LORD hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.
21 The Lord got angry at me because of your actions. He swore that I would never cross the Jordan or step into the wonderful land the Lord your God is giving you. Furthermore the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance:
22 I will end my life on this side of the Jordan. I will not be crossing over. But you will cross, and you will take possession of that wonderful land. But I must die in this land, I must not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.
23 Be extremely careful not to forget the agreement the Lord your God made with you. Never make an idol of any kind. The Lord your God has strictly forbidden it. Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the LORD thy God hath forbidden thee.
24 The Lord your God is like an all-consuming fire. He insists on having your total devotion. For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.
Consequences of Turning Away
Study note
Moses warned prophetically that if Israel turned to idols, God would scatter them among the nations. But even then, if they searched for God with all their heart, they would find him. God is merciful and would not forget his covenant.
25 "After you have lived in the land for a long time, if you turn bad and carve idols, doing things that make the Lord your God angry — When thou shalt beget children, and children's children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of the LORD thy God, to provoke him to anger:
26 I am calling on heaven and earth right now as witnesses: you will be wiped out fast from this land. Your time there will be short. I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.
27 The Lord will scatter you among foreign nations, and only a handful of you will make it through alive. And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.
28 In those foreign places you will end up worshipping idols made of wood and stone. People carved them, but they can't see, hear, eat, or smell. And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 But even there, if you go looking for the Lord your God with everything you have -- your whole heart and your whole soul -- you will find him. But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
30 Someday, when you are suffering and all these terrible things have happened, you will finally turn back to the Lord your God. You will do what he says. When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;
31 The Lord your God is full of mercy. He will not leave you behind, he will not let you be destroyed, and he will not break the promise he made to your ancestors. (For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.
The Lord Alone Is God
Study note
Moses asked Israel to search all of history: has anything like this ever happened? Has any nation heard God speak from fire and survived? The Lord alone is God. Moses urged them to obey so things would go well for them.
32 Go ahead and search through all of history, from the very beginning when God first created people on earth. Has anything this incredible ever happened before? Has anyone ever heard of anything like it? For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?
33 Has any other nation ever heard God speak right out of a fire and lived to tell about it? Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?
34 Has any god ever rescued one whole nation from inside another nation? Has any god used tests, miraculous signs, amazing deeds, and warfare? Has any god used an unstoppable hand, a powerful arm, and terrifying acts? The Lord your God did all this for you in Egypt! Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?
35 God showed you all of this so you would understand that the Lord alone is God. Nobody else even comes close. Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him.
36 He let you hear his voice from heaven so he could teach you. On earth, he showed you his enormous fire, and you heard him speak right from the flames. Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.
37 He loved your ancestors so much that he chose their descendants to follow them. He personally brought you out of Egypt using his mighty strength. And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt;
38 He pushed aside nations bigger and stronger than you. He did this to bring you into their land. He is handing it over to you right now. To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.
39 So understand it today and never forget: the Lord is God -- in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other. Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.
40 Follow his rules and commands that I am giving you right now. Things will go well for you and your descendants, and you will enjoy a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you permanently." Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, for ever.
Cities of Refuge East of the Jordan
Study note
Moses set apart three cities of refuge east of the Jordan -- Bezer, Ramoth, and Golan. If someone accidentally killed another person, they could flee to one of these cities and be safe.
41 Moses then designated three cities east of the Jordan River. Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;
42 If someone killed a person by accident and had no grudge against them, they could run to one of these cities and be safe. That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:
43 The three cities were Bezer on the open plains for the Reubenites. Ramoth in Gilead was for the Gadites. Golan in Bashan was for Manasseh. Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.
44 Here is the set of laws that Moses presented to the Israelites. And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:
45 These are the commands, rules, and laws Moses gave to the people of Israel after they came out of Egypt. These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt,
46 They were on the east side of the Jordan, in the valley near Beth-peor. This had been the land of King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled from Heshbon. Moses and the people of Israel had beaten him after leaving Egypt. On this side Jordan, in the valley over against Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they were come forth out of Egypt:
47 They had taken over his land, along with the land of King Og of Bashan. These were the two Amorite kings who ruled east of the Jordan. And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, which were on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;
48 This territory stretched from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley all the way to Mount Hermon. From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto mount Sion, which is Hermon,
49 It covered everything east of the Jordan, reaching as far south as the Dead Sea, below the slopes of Mount Pisgah. And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the springs of Pisgah.
Key Themes
Themes in Deuteronomy 4
The danger of idolatry in every formRemembering God's direct revelationObedience as the path to lifeGod is near when we seek him
Prophetic Connections
How this chapter points to Christ
Deuteronomy 4:29-31 Acts 17:27
Moses' promise that seekers will find God echoes in Paul's sermon on Mars Hill, where he declares that God is not far from any of us, so that people might reach out and find him.
Apply This Today
Living Deuteronomy 4
Moses warns that prosperity and comfort can lead to spiritual amnesia. The command not to make any image of God protects the infinite Creator from being reduced to something we can control. Yet even if Israel forgets, God promises that when they seek Him with all their heart, they will find Him. God is always findable for those who truly search.
Go Deeper
Study Deuteronomy in Covenant Path
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