Preface

Charts, Graphics, Short Doctrines

Dictionary of Terms

Addendum

Doctrines Alluded To

Fear of the Lord

Satan did not know about the cross

Chapters of the Bible Alluded To or Appropriately Exegeted with this Chapter

Genesis 12

Genesis 17

Genesis 20

Introduction to Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 1

Deuteronomy 34

Psalm 136

Many who read and study this chapter are 1^st or 2^nd generation students of R. B. Thieme, Jr., so that much of this vocabulary is second nature. One of Bob’s contributions to theology is a fresh vocabulary along with a number of concepts which are theologically new or reworked, yet still orthodox. Therefore, if you are unfamiliar with his work, the definitions below will help you to fully understand all that is being said. In addition to this, I will use a number of other more traditional technical theological terms which will be used and defined. Also, I have developed a few new terms and concepts as well.

Definition of Terms

Age of Israel

This is the period of time in history where God works through believers in nation Israel. God also worked through the Abraham and those descended from him until nation Israel was established. See the Three Dispensations: The Age of Israel, the Age of the Hypostatic Union and the Church Age (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Chiasmos

A chiasmos (also spelled chiasmus) is the way that some portions of the Bible are organized. It takes its name from the Greek letter chi (χ). The first section matches with the last, the second with the second-to-the-last, etc. It is called a chiasmos, because the inverted parallelism looks like a chi (actually, half a chi) when one looks at it from its organizational standpoint.

Church Age

The period of time in history where God works through the body of believers, also known as the church. This age began on the Day of Pentecost, following our Lord’s resurrection and ascension, and continues today. See the Three Dispensations: The Age of Israel, the Age of the Hypostatic Union and the Church Age (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Client nation

The client nation is a nation where there are a lot of believers and a lot of mature and growing believers. This nation is known for its evangelization, for its Bible teaching, its Bible scholarship, and missionary activity. The government and leaders may or may not be supportive of such activity. However, generally speaking, such activity is allowed within the national entity. It is this activity which preserves such a national entity. Doctrine of the Client Nation (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Documentary Hypothesis (also known as JEPD Theory)

Documentary Hypothesis simply asserts that the Pentateuch was not authored by Moses but written 1000 years (give or take) after Moses by several authors who wrote portions here and there and then other men have performed extensive revisions and editing after them. See the Doctrine of Documentary Hypothesis (HTML) (PDF) (WPD). Josh McDowell did an outstanding treatise of this in The New Evidence that Demands a Verdict (or Evidence that Demands a Verdict Vol. 2).

The 5^th stage of national discipline

The 5^th stage of national discipline involves complete loss of personal and national sovereignty, the destruction of the family and the nation. Offerings to God are unacceptable. Nations which have undergone this destruction have experienced slavery, cannibalism, and the assimilation of its surviving citizens into other cultures.

Gen X

This is a short and clever reference to the generation of the Exodus. I was going to try to represent this as Gen Ex, but that looked too much like I was just naming the first two books of the Bible. At least with Gen X, most understand that we are speaking of a specific generation. Gen X stands for generation exodus; the generation of adults who left Egypt. Their children with them and the children born in the wilderness will be called the generation of promise.

Generation of Promise

These are the Israelites who will actually go into the Land of Promise and take it (which process is described in the first half of the book of Joshua). They were under the age of 20 at leaving Egypt in the exodus and some of them were born in the desert-wilderness, either as sons of Gen X-ers or as sons of the generation of promise.

Portfolio of Invisible Assets

Also known as a portfolio of spiritual assets. These are the spiritual assets that we receive as a believer in Jesus Christ. We gain greater access to these benefits as we grow spiritually. For further examination: Wenstrom; Rickard; Prep School.

Rebound

You get out of fellowship by sinning. You get back into fellowship by naming your known sins to God. God then forgives you for the sins which you named and any other sins which you also committed (1John 1:9). This process is known as rebound. See the Doctrine of Rebound (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

The Revealed God

We do not look within ourselves or do we build up some concept of God based upon our own experiences, but we first understand God as He has revealed Himself. Throughout the lives of the saints who have gone before us, God revealed Himself through the written Word and sometimes through direct contact. Once a foundation is laid, then we can see how God is understood through various experiences in our lives.

(or, the Revealed Lord)

We do not look within to find God and we do not go out and search for God. He will reveal Himself to us. Those who look to other gods are simply worshiping that which others have defined as God; or, in many cases, they incorporate their own norms and standards into their belief of the God they choose to believe in. Essentially, such a person is making God in his own image.

Sin unto Death

When a believer continues to sin without rebound and without responding to warning discipline, God will often remove that believer from this life with the sin unto death. This is not a particular sin, but usually a series of sins, which may includes acts of human good and evil. Also see http://gracebiblechurchwichita.org/?page_id=539 for more information.

Type

A type is a preordained representation wherein certain persons, events, and institutions of the O.T. stand for corresponding persons, events, and institutions of the N.T. Types are pictures or object lessons by which God has taught His redemptive plan. They are a shadow of things to come, not the image of those things (Col. 2:17 Heb. 8:5 10:1). The Mosaic system, for example, was a kind of kindergarten in which God's people were trained in divine things and taught to look forward to the realities of things yet to come. See Typology (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Some of these definitions are taken from

http://gracebiblechurchwichita.org/?page_id=1556

http://www.bibledoctrinechurch.org/?subpages/GLOSSARY.shtml

http://rickhughesministries.org/content/Biblical-Terms.pdf

http://www.gbible.org/index.php?proc=d4d

http://www.wordoftruthministries.org/termsanddefs.htm

http://www.realtime.net/~wdoud/topics.html

http://www.theopedia.com/

Translation is from the New King James Version; with bolding and underlining done by me. I have bolded the words which are related to what they heard and saw; and underlined the things related to the people being taught and then obeying God’s mandates.

Remember what you see and hear...learn and do the Lord’s commandments

Moses Commands Obedience

"Now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the judgments which I teach you to observe, that you may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you. You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you. Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal Peor; for the Lord your God has destroyed from among you all the men who followed Baal of Peor. But you who held fast to the Lord your God are alive today, every one of you.

"Surely I have taught you statutes and judgments, just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should act according to them in the land which you go to possess. Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, `Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.'

"For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day? Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren, especially concerning the day you stood before the Lord your God in Horeb, when the Lord said to me, `Gather the people to Me, and I will let them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.'

"Then you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the midst of heaven, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness. And the Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; you only heard a voice. So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might observe them in the land which you cross over to possess.

Beware of Idolatry

"Take careful heed to yourselves, for you saw no form when the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, lest you act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of any figure: the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any animal that is on the earth or the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground or the likeness of any fish that is in the water beneath the earth. And take heed, lest you lift your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars, all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them, which the Lord your God has given to all the peoples under the whole heaven as a heritage. But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be His people, an inheritance, as you are this day. Furthermore the Lord was angry with me for your sakes, and swore that I would not cross over the Jordan, and that I would not enter the good land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance. But I must die in this land, I must not cross over the Jordan; but you shall cross over and possess that good land. Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which the Lord your God has forbidden you. For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

"When you beget children and grandchildren and have grown old in the land, and act corruptly and make a carved image in the form of anything, and do evil in the sight of the Lord your God to provoke Him to anger, I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess; you will not prolong your days in it, but will be utterly destroyed. And the Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will drive you. And there you will serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell. But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, when you turn to the Lord your God and obey His voice (for the Lord your God is a merciful God), He will not forsake you nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which He swore to them.

"For ask now concerning the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether any great thing like this has happened, or anything like it has been heard. Did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live? Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord Himself is God; there is none other besides Him. Out of heaven He let you hear His voice, that He might instruct you; on earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire. And because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their descendants after them; and He brought you out of Egypt with His Presence, with His mighty power, driving out from before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land as an inheritance, as it is this day. Therefore know this day, and consider it in your heart, that the Lord Himself is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. You shall therefore keep His statutes and His commandments which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord your God is giving you for all time."

So you know this chapter is all about what these people have actually seen and heard themselves; and this chapter is about what Moses has taught them about God and about their obedience to his teachings.

Deut. 4 is also prophetic. Since Moses is speaking to the generation of promise, whose parents were some of the worst failures in the history of Israel, Moses, through God the Holy Spirit, predicts their history.

Prophecy Found in Deuteronomy 4

Moses tells the children of Israel that he would die prior to going into the land (Deut. 4:22).  

Israel would be removed from this land of promise, which they had not even entered into yet (Deut. 4:26).  

Israel would be scattered throughout the nations of their enemies (Deut. 4:27).  

Israel would lapse into idolatry (Deut. 4:28; see Ezek. 14:1–7).

Finally,  Israel would eventually seek and find God during their exile (Deut. 4:29–30). This was partially fulfilled in Dan. 9:3, but will be completely fulfilled during the Great Tribulation.

Although the people to whom Moses spoke would only see the fulfillment of the first prophecy, these other prophecies would remain with Israel as a testimony against them.

It is important to understand what has gone before. This prequel was simply taken from Deut. 1 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

The Prequel of Deuteronomy 4

Y^ehowah God originally brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, where they had been slaves for several centuries. He worked through Moses, who became their spiritual and national leader. The designation people of Israel refers not to Israel the nation—which does not exist yet—but to their patriarch Israel, originally named Jacob, but renamed Israel by God. The people standing before Moses are descended from Israel (Jacob). God brought them out of Egypt with great signs and wonders.

These people, once free of Egypt, first crossed over the Sea of Reeds and went to Mount Sinai, also known as Mount Horeb. There, God gave them the Law. God first spoke to the children of Israel audibly, giving them the Ten Commandments, and they requested that God speak only to Moses, and that Moses would speak to them.

After receiving the Law of God, which was more than simply the Ten Commandments, God led them northward into what would become southern Judah, and told them to take the land that He promised them. First they sent 12 spies into the land, and they confirmed that the land was everything that God said it was—a land flowing with milk and honey. However, they also brought back stories of the fortified cities and the size and power of their adversaries in the land. Ten of the spies actively lobbied the people to not go into the land, and that night after the spies returned, the people cried and accused God of bringing them there to kill them and they did not want to go into this good land. Two spies, Caleb and Joshua, were ready to lead the people into the land to take it. They believed God’s promises and the rest of the people did not.

God was quite disgusted with them; and then, suddenly, after God told them to turn around and go back into the desert, many of them decided that they had changed their minds and they would attack the Amorites in the land. God told Moses to tell them not to do this, because He would not be with their whiney, sorry butts if they tried to attack the Amorites. They still went and attacked and they were soundly defeated, and chased all over, until they finally came back to Kadesh, where all the people had been camped out.

They lived there for awhile. They moved around to different parts of the desert. During this time, God killed off all the older generation—Gen X as I have designated them (the generation of the exodus)—all those who were 20 and older when they left Egypt. They dropped like flies in the desert, dying the sin unto death, yet while God preserved their children and their children’s children.

So now it is 38 or so years after their failure at Kadesh-barnea and God is leading this new generation of Israelites—I will call them the generation of promise—back to take the land. These are the people who were 20 or younger when they left Egypt, who are now between the ages of 40 and 60, and who have their own children now. As adults, all they have known is God taking care of them in the desert-wilderness.

There is also a set of young adults, aged 20–40, who were born in the desert (all those between ages 1 and 40 were born in the desert-wilderness). The young adults will be considered a part of the generation of promise; they will not be distinguished from those between the ages of 40 and 60.

In the final few chapters of Numbers, God brings this new generation up along the east side of the Dead Sea, to Mountains overlooking the Jordan River to the west of them. God will bring them across this river in the book of Joshua to take the land He has promised them.

However, there is a problem, and that is that Moses will not go with them. He will die east of the Dead Sea. God will not allow Moses to lead them into the land. Here’s what happened:

Near the beginning of this trek from Egypt to the land, there was no water, and the people complained, and God provided water for them through Moses. Moses was to strike this huge rock (which represents the judgment of Jesus on the cross) and from that rock would flow a river of living waters (just as Jesus, by His sacrifice, would provide us with the living water of salvation). This water gushed out and gave the people the water they needed; without which, they would have died in that dry, desolate place.

This same no-water test occurred again near the end of this 40 years in the desert. The people were again thirsty—there was no water. This time, God told Moses to speak to the rock. Jesus, their Savior, represented by the rock, would again give them all the water that they needed. Moses was not to strike the rock, because Jesus died for our sins one time—He is never judged again for our sins. That had already been represented when Moses struck the rock previously. Therefore, the proper way to represent this is by speaking to the rock. Moses was upset with the people, and he yelled at them, and he hit that rock hard, twice, with his walking stick. God still provided the people water, but He could not allow Moses to lead them into the Land of Promise, as he had failed to continue the type which God was setting up. Since Jesus was not judged twice for our sins, the rock was only to be struck one time, which occurred during the first no-water test.

For Moses and for many centuries of Jews, this is seen as simply an act of disobedience. However, since Jesus died on the cross, we understand that there was more to the provision of water than just obedience or lack thereof. God wanted the striking of the rock to represent Jesus dying on the cross for our sins and from Him would flow a river of living waters. When one wished to be refreshed by those waters after the crucifixion, he mere speaks to the rock (for the believer, this is rebound; for the unbeliever, this is expressing saving faith in Jesus Christ). God wanted Moses to establish that as a type; Moses did not; and so Moses was not allowed to cross over the Jordan.

So, here Israel stands, east of the Jordan River, about to cross over and take the land. Moses is going to speak a few words to them—which words will fill up the book of Deuteronomy.

Deut. 4 continues and concludes Moses’ sermon from Deut. 1–3. Deut. 1:6–4:40 is the first sermon of Moses.

I may need to edit this.

Peter Pett’s Prequel to Deuteronomy 4

As we come to the commentary itself we should perhaps summarise what lies before us. Having declared in Whose Name Moses is acting, the first four chapters act as a historical prologue to the covenant and very much deal with Israel's history and its current consequences, and lead up to his announcing the stipulations of the covenant as a command from Yahweh.

Having introduced Yahweh as their God and Overlord (Deuteronomy 1:3, 6), Moses goes on to point out how He had offered the land to their fathers who died in the wilderness and how they had failed Him, even though He had given them every opportunity to succeed (Deuteronomy 1:6-46), so that they were a grim warning for the future. Yahweh had commanded that they enter the land and possess it (Deuteronomy 1:6-8), He had made them a numerous people (Deuteronomy 1:9-12), He had established them as a just and well governed nation (Deuteronomy 1:13-17), and given them clear instructions on what they should do and how they should behave (Deuteronomy 1:18). They had first entered the land through their scouts, through whom they had received its firstfruits. But on seeing the spectre of the enemy in the land they had forgotten what He could do and had turned back to unbelief (Deuteronomy 1:19-40). In that unbelief they had then in desperation again entered to take possession of the land (Deuteronomy 1:43). But this had resulted in them being driven from the land (Deuteronomy 1:44) to wander in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 1:46 to Deuteronomy 2:1), for they had lost their right to the land. For the land was Yahweh's, and only those could possess it who did so through belief in Yahweh, and who were ready to respond to His covenant.

We can thus see in this first chapter a summary of the whole message of the book. That God was offering them the land, that He was making them a numerous and just people, that if they would enter they must enter in faith and obedience, and that if they turned away in unbelief they would be driven from the land, just as their fathers had been.

This description of what their fathers had done was therefore both an invitation and a warning. An invitation to re-enter the land, again with Yahweh's approval, and a clear warning to the new generation, a warning which will be repeated in the heart of the book, to remember that this land was Yahweh's. It was a pure land, a holy land, a land for those who believed, a land for those who were in covenant with Yahweh. It was a land which spued out its inhabitants if they disobeyed Yahweh (Leviticus 18:27-28; Leviticus 20:22), as it had spued out their fathers.

That was why those who now possessed it, the Canaanites/Amorites, were also to be driven out of it (Deuteronomy 4:38; Deuteronomy 7:1; Deuteronomy 11:23) because of their idolatry and gross sin (compare Genesis 15:16). The land was such that it could only be dwelt in by those who walked in faith and obedience. And these his listeners must also recognise that when they themselves have entered the land, if they too are found to be in unbelief, and are disobedient to the covenant, they too will be driven out and wander among the nations (Deuteronomy 4:26-28; Deuteronomy 28:64-68). Instead of being like the stars for multitude they will be few in number (Deuteronomy 4:27; Deuteronomy 28:62). For this is Yahweh's land, a land which can only be permanently occupied by those who are in a loving covenant with Yahweh.

The idea of `the land' is important in Deuteronomy. But it was not just because it was land, valuable as that might be, it was because it was Yahweh's land. We could have said here, `Moses came to them preaching the land of God, for that was why he was sent'. For this was the land where Yahweh would reign. It would be where the kingly rule of God was to be established, and where righteous rulers were to establish justice, and where everyone was to prosper. That was the dream, even if the fulfilment was a little different simply because of their refusal to obey.

So even as they go forward to receive the promises the warning from their fathers hangs over their head that they must have faith in Yahweh, and that when they enter the land that faith must continue, and that if they turn to unbelief, they too will be cast out of the land.

The consequence of the failure of their fathers was that He had allowed that generation to pass away, wandering around aimlessly, cast out of the land and dying in the wilderness, before another attempt was made (Deuteronomy 1:34-35; Deuteronomy 1:37; Deuteronomy 1:46 to Deuteronomy 2:1; Deuteronomy 2:14-16). It was as though the future history of Israel, which would witness a similar failure and expulsion, had been performed in microcosm. It is a foolish thing to say `no' to God.

We should note in all this how closely these thoughts pattern the purpose of the Book of Numbers which also seeks to prepare for entry into the land, stresses the judgment on the first generation, and encourages the new generation to go forward (see Commentary on Numbers).

But now the time had come for the second attempt (Deuteronomy 2:3). This involved going by Edom, Moab and Ammon, who were brother tribes to the east of Jordan, skirting their borders (Deuteronomy 2:4-23). These had had to be left alone (Deuteronomy 2:5; Deuteronomy 2:9; Deuteronomy 2:19), for Israel must also recognise what land was not theirs. God did not want them to attack their related brother tribes, but to pay their way as they went by and remain at peace with them. For their land was not to be seen as available to Israel, but as belonging to these peoples because Yahweh had given it to them (Deuteronomy 2:5; Deuteronomy 2:9; Deuteronomy 2:19). The land that was to belong to Israel still lay ahead. It is that land only that they have a right to take by conquest. That land alone is their inheritance, although extended by permission to parts of Transjordan when their kings proved belligerent and attacked Israel.

By this means it was made very clear that it is Yahweh Who apportions out the lands and Who gives what He will to whom He will, and that their own land, the chosen land, was specific and clearly delineated (compare Deuteronomy 32:8).

But let them now recognise that He had given them the land of Sihon, the Amorite (Deuteronomy 2:24) and of Og, king of Bashan (Deuteronomy 3:2-6), and had commenced the process by which all who heard of Israel would tremble, as He had promised so long before (Deuteronomy 2:25, compare Exodus 15:14-16). Thus they had totally defeated Sihon and possessed his land (Deuteronomy 2:24-36). And the same was also true of Og, king of Bashan, with his mighty cities. They had also overcome him and destroyed all his cities (Deuteronomy 3:1-7). And thus had the whole of that side of Jordan, from the borders of Moab in the south, northward to Gilead and Bashan, been delivered into their hands, being possessed by Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh (Deuteronomy 3:8-17), a firstfruit of what was to come.

It is difficult for us in reading this to gain the atmosphere of the moment. As they stood to hear his words in the plain of Moab no one was more aware than them of the truth of what he was saying. For they were present there, having themselves just been involved in it. They had just returned from fighting a powerful enemy. Great dangers had just been faced, successful battles had been fought with seemingly powerful armies, they had approached great cities with trepidation, but through Yahweh's help they had brought them crashing down. The dead had been counted and were being mourned as heroes, for it was through their sacrifice in the Holy War they had been victorious. The land of Gilead and Bashan was theirs, and they had returned back to camp weary and triumphant. They had tasted the good taste of victory.

And now here they were gathered to hear Moses, to learn that Yahweh was now about to give them the land of the promises for them to possess, the land of Canaan itself. So he rallied the soldiery of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh, calling on them to play their full part in the invasion of Canaan (Deuteronomy 3:18-20), and encouraged and strengthened Joshua on whom the main responsibility for the invasion would fall (Deuteronomy 3:21-22; Deuteronomy 3:28). As one man they were to be ready, poised for the entry into Canaan over the River Jordan, although sadly he, Moses, would not be a part of it, having been forbidden by Yahweh (Deuteronomy 3:23-27).

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=4&ch=4 accessed May 12, 2015.

We need to know who the people are who populate this chapter.

The Principals of Deuteronomy 4

Characters

Commentary

Moses

Moses is the leader of the children of Israel, those he led out of Egypt with great signs and wonders done by God—signs and wonders which were seen both by the Egyptians and the Israelites.

Joshua

Joshua was the other one of the 12 spies who was willing to obey God and go into the land to take it. Joshua would become Israel’s next great leader after Moses.

The children of Israel

This is a general term applied to the people who left with Moses out of Egypt. One could include the children who were born to them when in the desert in this category.

Gen X

There are actually two distinct generations to which Moses will only occasionally refer. Gen X are those who are 20 and older when they begin to consider taking the Land of Promise, which lies before them. These would be those considered adult enough to go to war. God would wipe out this generation of Jews because of their cowardice and unbelief. Gen X is a term I came up with; it is not found in the Bible.

The Generation of Promise

Those who are children when the Israelites come to the southern border of Judah (what would soon become Judah), who were not old enough to fight when God told them to take the land, they are the generation of promise. Them and those born to them in the desert over the next 40 years.

Primarily, this is a continuation of Moses speaking to the generation of promise.

Here is what to expect in Deuteronomy 4:

Peter Pett’s Synopsis of Deuteronomy 4

Thus was it now necessary for them to listen to Yahweh's covenant requirements and do them, so that they might `live' and possess the land (Deuteronomy 4:1 compare Deuteronomy 30:15; Deuteronomy 32:47). This was basic to all that lay ahead. They must remember that they had survived because of their obedience, while others had died in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 4:3-4), and that he had given them Yahweh's statutes and commandments (Deuteronomy 4:2; Deuteronomy 4:5-9) (as contained in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers). It was on the basis of their obedience to this covenant that their success was guaranteed (Deuteronomy 4:9), and to this end he reminds them again of the awesome experience at Sinai, and the way in which Yahweh had revealed Himself to them (Deuteronomy 4:10-14), and had declared His covenant requirements (Deuteronomy 4:14). And he warns in the light of this against foolish behaviour, and especially idolatry, once they are in the land (Deuteronomy 4:15-20). They must be faithful to their sovereign Lord and yield themselves to no other. Let them not forget that it was He Who had delivered them out of the fiery furnace of Egypt (Deuteronomy 4:20).

And they must remember how even he, Moses, was forbidden to enter the land because of his disobedience (Deuteronomy 4:21-22). Thus they must take to heart the lesson that the One Who is giving them the land can just as easily take it away from them again. It is ever theirs on probation. He has taken it from their fathers. He has taken it from Moses. He will take it from the Canaanites, driving them out because of their vile behaviour and idolatry (Deuteronomy 4:38). And He will give it to Israel. But let them be ever aware that He can just as easily take it from them too if they fail to respond in full obedience, and make images for themselves (Deuteronomy 4:23-25), driving them too out into exile among foreigners until they repent of their failure Deuteronomy 4:26-28.

But Moses could not leave it there, for he knew that in the end it was God's purpose through Abraham's descendants to establish blessing for the world. So he knew that such rejection could not be the end. Though men may fail God would not. So he declares that then if they repent He will restore them (Deuteronomy 4:29-31), for they are the people through whom His purposes must be worked out as promised to their forefathers.

These are the initial warnings of the covenant, preparing for the blessings and possible cursings ahead (Deuteronomy 27:15 to Deuteronomy 28:68), typical of the overlordship covenants (suzerainty treaties). The point is being continually emphasised that the land was Yahweh's and could only belong to those who were true to the covenant

Let them then now consider. Was ever people like them? Had any ever had experiences like theirs? Was ever any god like their God in His greatness, Who had so wonderfully delivered them and was now about to give them possession of His land? (Deuteronomy 4:33-39). That is why they were to obey His commandments and laws (Deuteronomy 4:40). He was seeking to keep them steadfast to the end.

Chapters 1-4 thus contain all that is necessary for the establishment of a covenant. Preamble, declaration of what they owe to their Overlord, offer, requirement to obey His statutes and ordinances, and warning of what will follow if they do not, followed by an emphasis on the witness of heaven and earth to the covenant and on their own witness to the power and faithfulness of Yahweh. Yet it is also a preliminary introduction to a more detailed exposition of the covenant, for the requirements are not spelled out in detail.

For this will lead on into Deuteronomy 5, which is the commencement of `the renewal of the covenant' speech (Deuteronomy 4:44 to Deuteronomy 29:1) in what is almost a re-enactment of what had taken place at Mount Sinai. In it Moses will bring the Sinai experience right into the present in all its vividness (Deuteronomy 5:2; Deuteronomy 5:22-29). As he declares, `Yahweh did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even all of us who are alive here this day' (Deuteronomy 5:3). And then he brings what happened at Sinai before them as though it were something that had happened to them and as something in which they had taken part (as the eldest among them had as children), including the very declaration of the covenant words, slightly but deliberately altered to suit their situation (Deuteronomy 5:5-29). And he does it in such a way that it stresses that they are as much involved in the covenant of Sinai as their fathers had been (Deuteronomy 5:3; Deuteronomy 5:23-30). They must see what had happened there as having happened to them. And now therefore they must bind themselves in that covenant to do all that was commanded in it. For Yahweh has sent him with details of the requirements of that covenant which he is now about to pass on to them (Deuteronomy 5:31-33). And it is at this point that he begins to outline the requirements of the covenant, the covenant stipulations (chapter 6 onwards), which he will follow up with cursings and blessings (Deuteronomy 27:11 to Deuteronomy 28:68) and the sealing of the covenant.

Like all chapters of the Word of God, you need more than just the simple plot outline to understand what God wants us to know.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=4&ch=4 accessed May 12, 2015.

I find it extremely helpful to be able to understand the sort of organization that an author uses. This allows the chapter to unfold in a logical, progressive way. Moses uses 3 incidents from the past to teach the Israelites. Then he looks forward to future events, and presents these future events almost as if they were history, because Moses, at the end, will draw some conclusions, based upon what they people had already seen and heard; along with things that would occur in the future to their descendants.

What follows is perhaps the best outline of this chapter, that, if you have the organization straight in your mind, so that it all holds together. The first 3 things were object lessons, based upon that which they have seen and heard. Then there are two prophetical lessons, of things which would come to pass; and the lessons to be drawn from future things. Then we have two more sets of historical incidents followed by the conclusion.

The emphasis is upon what they have seen and heard, because that forms the basis for all that they learn from Moses in this chapter. Therefore, Moses is going to make reference to what they have seen and heard, and then build principles upon that.

The Organization of Deuteronomy 4 Based upon a Series of Object Lessons

Object Lesson

Text

Commentary

(1)     Introduction

(Deut. 4:1–2)

"And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you. (Deut. 4:1–2; ESV; capitalized throughout)

The Israelites need to listen to the statutes and judicial applications that Moses is teaching them, and this will give them abundant life. Then they can go into the Land of Promise and take it. They are not to add or take away from what Moses teaches them.

(2)     Baal Peor

(Deut 4:3-8)

Your eyes have seen what the LORD did at Baal-peor, for the LORD your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. But you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the LORD my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 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.' (Deut. 4:3–6)

The events at Baal Peor dramatically demonstrated that turning from God would lead to terrible consequences. Specifically refers to Israel's idolatry at Baal Peor, which God judged by killing 24,000 people. Those who remained faithful survived, but now they faced another test of their faith as Moses called them to further obedience in the light of this event.

(3)     Sinai

"Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children's children--how on the day that you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, the LORD said to me, 'Gather the people to Me, that I may let them hear My words, so that they may learn to fear Me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children so.' And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom.

(3)     Sinai (con’t)

Then the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of words, but saw no form; there was only a voice. And He declared to you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments, and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and rules, that you might do them in the land that you are going over to possess.

They saw no form of God; therefore, they were not to engage in idolatry. They had no basis with which to make an idol.

(3)     Sinai (con’t)

(Deut 4:9-20)

"Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth. (Deut. 4:9–18)

(4)     Meribah

(Deut 4:21-24)

Furthermore, the LORD was angry with me because of you, and He swore that I should not cross the Jordan, and that I should not enter the good land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance. For I must die in this land; I must not go over the Jordan. But you shall go over and take possession of that good land. Take care, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which He made with you, and make a carved image, the form of anything that the LORD your God has forbidden you. For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. (Deut. 4:21–24)

At the second Meribah incident, Moses disobeyed God; and therefore, he would not go into the land.

(5)     The Great Dispersion

(Deut. 4:25–28)

 "When you father children and children's children, and have grown old in the land, if you act corruptly by making a carved image in the form of anything, and by doing what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, so as to provoke him to anger, I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, but will be utterly destroyed. And the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the LORD will drive you. And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. (Deut. 4:25–28)

At some point in time, future generations of Israelites will turn against God, and He would scatter them throughout the gentiles.

(6)     The Regathering of Israel

(Deut. 4:29–31)

But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find Him, if you search after Him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey His voice. For the LORD your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that He swore to them. (Deut. 4:29–31)

When outside of the land, the Israelites would return to God in their thinking, and God would remember the covenant which He had made with their fathers.

(7)     Egypt and the exodus

(Deut. 4:32–36)

"For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

Nothing like this has happened before in human history, that God would take a nation (Israel) out of another nation (Egypt). This has all occurred with great signs, wonder and power.

(7)     Egypt and the exodus con’t

To you it was shown, that you might know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides Him. Out of heaven He let you hear His voice, that He might discipline you. And on earth He let you see his great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire. (Deut. 4:32–36)

(8)     God’s stated motivation with the illustration of Egypt continued

(Deut. 4:37–39)

And because He loved your fathers and chose their offspring after them and brought you out of Egypt with His own presence, by His great power, driving out before you nations greater and mightier than yourselves, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as it is this day, know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. (Deut. 4:37–39)

God did this out of grace, because He loved their fathers. Know, therefore, because of what happened, that their God is the God.

(9)     Conclusion

(Deut. 4:40)

Therefore you shall keep His statutes and His commandments, which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for all time." (Deut. 4:40)

The key to long, prosperous life in the land is knowing, preserving and obeying God’s Law.

Inspired and partially taken from http://thirdmill.org/studybible/note.asp/id/44646 accessed May 14, 2015. However, most of this is original.

Pett is able to summarize this chapter by a single paragraph:

Pett’s Brief Synopsis of Deuteronomy 4

Having established the certainty of their successful entry into the land Moses now follows this up with a charge to fulfil all God's requirements . And he does it in the light of what God has revealed Himself to be. This chapter up to verse 40 in fact makes the first four chapters into a mini-covenant for it follows the historical prologue of Deuteronomy 1-3 by summarising the stipulations of their Overlord (Deuteronomy 4:1-2), stresses how favoured they are because of His superiority and the superiority of the teaching that He has given them (Deuteronomy 4:7-8) and that He had appeared personally in order to urge these stipulations on them (Deuteronomy 4:10-15), and ends with warnings in line with the covenant pattern (Deuteronomy 4:25-28), and an appeal to witnesses (Deuteronomy 4:26). It thus forms a mini-covenant within the larger covenant.

 From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=4&ch=4 accessed May 12, 2015.

Here is one more:

Whedon Summarizes Deuteronomy 4 in a Single Paragraph

After the preceding historical review Moses passes to a forcible exhortation to keep the law of Jehovah. He commences by urging the people to keep the requirements of Jehovah without adding to them or taking from them. He warns them of the perils of disobedience by recalling to their minds the fate of those who joined in the idolatrous and licentious rites of Baal-peor. He reminds them that they who kept Jehovah's commandments are alive. He tells them that their greatness as a nation and their position in the estimation of other nations would depend upon their observance of these statutes and requirements. He warns them not to forget what they have seen in their past experience. By the sublime scenes of Horeb, when Jehovah spake unto them out of the midst of the fire, they are warned against idolatry. The discourse passes to a threatening of their dispersion among the nations as the punishment for their turning away from God, but with a promise of their restoration if they shall again seek Jehovah. Again, Moses appeals to the wonders of their past history. He tells them God loved their fathers. He brought them out of Egypt with a mighty hand. He is to drive out great and mighty nations so as to give them an inheritance. This first discourse closes with promises of prosperity if they will keep the commandments and statutes of Jehovah

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/whe/view.cgi?bk=4&ch=4 accessed May 14, 2015.

Peter Pett Looks Backward and Forwards

It is difficult for us in reading this to gain the atmosphere of the moment. As they stood to hear his words in the plain of Moab no one was more aware than them of the truth of what he was saying. For they were present there, having themselves just been involved in it. They had just returned from fighting a powerful enemy. Great dangers had just been faced, successful battles had been fought with seemingly powerful armies, they had approached great cities with trepidation, but through Yahweh's help they had brought them crashing down. The dead had been counted and were being mourned as heroes, for it was through their sacrifice in the Holy War they had been victorious. The land of Gilead and Bashan was theirs, and they had returned back to camp weary and triumphant. They had tasted the good taste of victory.

And now here they were gathered to hear Moses, to learn that Yahweh was now about to give them the land of the promises for them to possess, the land of Canaan itself. So he rallied the soldiery of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh, calling on them to play their full part in the invasion of Canaan (Deuteronomy 3:18-20), and encouraged and strengthened Joshua on whom the main responsibility for the invasion would fall (Deuteronomy 3:21-22; Deuteronomy 3:28). As one man they were to be ready, poised for the entry into Canaan over the River Jordan, although sadly he, Moses, would not be a part of it, having been forbidden by Yahweh (Deuteronomy 3:23-27).

Thus was it now necessary for them to listen to Yahweh's covenant requirements and do them, so that they might `live' and possess the land (Deuteronomy 4:1 compare Deuteronomy 30:15; Deuteronomy 32:47). This was basic to all that lay ahead. They must remember that they had survived because of their obedience, while others had died in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 4:3-4), and that he had given them Yahweh's statutes and commandments (Deuteronomy 4:2; Deuteronomy 4:5-9) (as contained in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers). It was on the basis of their obedience to this covenant that their success was guaranteed (Deuteronomy 4:9), and to this end he reminds them again of the awesome experience at Sinai, and the way in which Yahweh had revealed Himself to them (Deuteronomy 4:10-14), and had declared His covenant requirements (Deuteronomy 4:14). And he warns in the light of this against foolish behaviour, and especially idolatry, once they are in the land (Deuteronomy 4:15-20). They must be faithful to their sovereign Lord and yield themselves to no other. Let them not forget that it was He Who had delivered them out of the fiery furnace of Egypt (Deuteronomy 4:20).

And they must remember how even he, Moses, was forbidden to enter the land because of his disobedience (Deuteronomy 4:21-22). Thus they must take to heart the lesson that the One Who is giving them the land can just as easily take it away from them again. It is ever theirs on probation. He has taken it from their fathers. He has taken it from Moses. He will take it from the Canaanites, driving them out because of their vile behaviour and idolatry (Deuteronomy 4:38). And He will give it to Israel. But let them be ever aware that He can just as easily take it from them too if they fail to respond in full obedience, and make images for themselves (Deuteronomy 4:23-25), driving them too out into exile among foreigners until they repent of their failure Deuteronomy 4:26-28.

But Moses could not leave it there, for he knew that in the end it was God's purpose through Abraham's descendants to establish blessing for the world. So he knew that such rejection could not be the end. Though men may fail God would not. So he declares that then if they repent He will restore them (Deuteronomy 4:29-31), for they are the people through whom His purposes must be worked out as promised to their forefathers.

These are the initial warnings of the covenant, preparing for the blessings and possible cursings ahead (Deuteronomy 27:15 to Deuteronomy 28:68), typical of the overlordship covenants (suzerainty treaties). The point is being continually emphasised that the land was Yahweh's and could only belong to those who were true to the covenant

Let them then now consider. Was ever people like them? Had any ever had experiences like theirs? Was ever any god like their God in His greatness, Who had so wonderfully delivered them and was now about to give them possession of His land? (Deuteronomy 4:33-39). That is why they were to obey His commandments and laws (Deuteronomy 4:40). He was seeking to keep them steadfast to the end.

Chapters 1-4 thus contain all that is necessary for the establishment of a covenant. Preamble, declaration of what they owe to their Overlord, offer, requirement to obey His statutes and ordinances, and warning of what will follow if they do not, followed by an emphasis on the witness of heaven and earth to the covenant and on their own witness to the power and faithfulness of Yahweh. Yet it is also a preliminary introduction to a more detailed exposition of the covenant, for the requirements are not spelled out in detail.

For this will lead on into Deuteronomy 5, which is the commencement of `the renewal of the covenant' speech (Deuteronomy 4:44 to Deuteronomy 29:1) in what is almost a re-enactment of what had taken place at Mount Sinai. In it Moses will bring the Sinai experience right into the present in all its vividness (Deuteronomy 5:2; Deuteronomy 5:22-29). As he declares, `Yahweh did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even all of us who are alive here this day' (Deuteronomy 5:3). And then he brings what happened at Sinai before them as though it were something that had happened to them and as something in which they had taken part (as the eldest among them had as children), including the very declaration of the covenant words, slightly but deliberately altered to suit their situation (Deuteronomy 5:5-29). And he does it in such a way that it stresses that they are as much involved in the covenant of Sinai as their fathers had been (Deuteronomy 5:3; Deuteronomy 5:23-30). They must see what had happened there as having happened to them. And now therefore they must bind themselves in that covenant to do all that was commanded in it. For Yahweh has sent him with details of the requirements of that covenant which he is now about to pass on to them (Deuteronomy 5:31-33). And it is at this point that he begins to outline the requirements of the covenant, the covenant stipulations (chapter 6 onwards), which he will follow up with cursings and blessings (Deuteronomy 27:11 to Deuteronomy 28:68) and the sealing of the covenant.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=4&ch=3 accessed March 26, 2015.

James Coffman makes a fascinating observation, which helps to tie the book of Deuteronomy together as a cohesive whole.

Meredith Kline: The Book of Deuteronomy is Like the Suzerain Treaties

Deuteronomy very closely follows the covenant (treaty) pattern in vogue during the mid-second millennium b.c. This pattern, found in all of the suzerain treaties like those of the Hittite kings of that era, features the following items:

(1)     identification of the author of the covenant as speaker (Deut. 1:1–5);

(2)     reference to past historical relations (Deut. 1:6–4:40);

(3)     the presentation of the central demand of the suzerain for pure devotion and obedience to the maker of the covenant (Deut. 4:44–26:19);

(4)     blessings and cursings invoked upon the lesser parties to the covenant (Deut. 27–28);

(5)     invocation of witnesses (Deut. 29);

(6)     the requirement to transmit the knowledge of the covenant to subsequent generations (Deut. 30);

(7)     allusions to the dynastic issue (Deut. 31–34).

(From James Coffman’s commentary) Kline further stated that, "Deuteronomy embodies to some extent all the features which constitute the documentary pattern of ancient suzerainty treaties." Furthermore, the `critical orthodoxy' of the first-half of this century has stubbornly insisted on dating Deuteronomy around the seventh century B.C.; "but the pattern of covenant treaties followed here is of a kind that is typical of the mid-1400 B.C. era, and not of the seventh century."

Coffman continues: There is also another striking fact. The conformity of Deuteronomy to those patterns prevalent in the times of Moses (about 1400 B.C.) is not the obvious, slavish copying of such patterns, like those that would have marked the work of any forger, but the conformity is a variable one, with all of the leading aspects of the covenant pattern "found here and there throughout Deuteronomy, and this is explained by the origin of the material in the free oratory of Moses' farewell." The significance of this is profound. First, the documentary thesis with its alleged sources of the Pentateuch is discredited and denied. The Mosaic authorship is continued. The late-dating of Deuteronomy is intellectually impossible!

Coffman was quite adamant about the Mosaic authorship of Deuteronomy, and about the total lack of evidence against this position; but men who held such a position anyway. Throughout Coffman’s examination of Deut. 4, he continually and passionately does battle with those who believe differently. I found it to be quite an enjoyable read, in part due to Coffman’s passion and dogmatism.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/view.cgi?bk=4&ch=4 accessed May 11, 2015 (slightly edited). This is in James Coffman’s commentary, and he cites Meredith G. Kline; Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Deuteronomy (Chicago: Moody Press, 1962) p. 160. I added the Scriptural references, but without doing a great deal of research. A similar approach to this topic is found in the Introduction to Deuteronomy (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Deuteronomy 4:1a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

w^e (or v^e) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʿattâh (עַתָּה) [pronounced ģaht-TAWH]

now, at this time, already

adverb of time

Strong’s #6258 BDB #773

When followed by an imperative or an interrogative, w^e + the adverb ʿattâh mean and so, thus, things being so, therefore, now therefore, now then. Sometimes, the concept of time is lost when this combination is used to incite another.

Yis^erâʾêl (יִשְׂרַאֵל) [pronounced yis-raw-ALE]

God prevails; contender; soldier of God; transliterated Israel

masculine proper noun; God-given name to Jacob; and national name for the Jewish people

Strong’s #3478 & #3479 BDB #975

shâmaʿ (שָמַע) [pronounced shaw-MAHĢ]

listen [intently], hear, listen and obey, [or, and act upon, give heed to, take note of], hearken to, be attentive to, listen and be cognizant of

2^nd person masculine singular, Qal imperative

Strong's #8085 BDB #1033

ʾel (אֶל) [pronounced ehl]

unto; into, among, in; toward, to; against; concerning, regarding; besides, together with; as to

directional preposition (respect or deference may be implied)

Strong's #413 BDB #39

chuqqîym (חֻקִּים) [pronounced khook-KEEM]

decrees, those things which are decreed; statutes; boundaries, defined limitations; appointed portions of labor, tasks

masculine plural noun with the definite article

Strong's #2706 BDB #349

w^e (or v^e) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʾel (אֶל) [pronounced ehl]

unto; into, among, in; toward, to; against; concerning, regarding; besides, together with; as to

directional preposition (respect or deference may be implied)

Strong's #413 BDB #39

mîsh^epâţîym (מִשְפָּטִים) [pronounced mish^e-paw-TEEM]

laws; judgements; appeals; responsibilities; privileges; customs; justice; verdicts rendered by a judge, judicial decisions, judicial sentences

masculine plural noun with the definite article

Strong's #4941 BDB #1048

The NET Bible: These technical Hebrew terms (חֻקִּים [khuqqim] and מִשְפָּטִים [mishpatim]) occur repeatedly throughout the Book of Deuteronomy to describe the covenant stipulations to which Israel had been called to subscribe (see, in this chapter alone, vv. 1, 5, 6, 8). The word חֻקִּים derives from the verb חֹק (khoq, “to inscribe; to carve”) and מִשְפָּטִים (mishpatim) from שָפַט (shafat, “to judge”). They are virtually synonymous and are used interchangeably in Deuteronomy.

This appears to be the laws on the books and the application of those laws to individual cases.

Statutes and Judicial Decrees

Translation/Source

Statutes

Judicial Decrees

Hebrew:

chuqqîym (חֻקִּים) [pronounced khook-KEEM]

mîsh^epâţîym (מִשְפָּטִים) [pronounced mish^e-paw-TEEM]

BDB definitions:

decrees, those things which are decreed; statutes; boundaries, defined limitations; appointed portions of labor, tasks

laws; judgements; appeals; responsibilities; privileges; customs; justice; verdicts rendered by a judge, judicial decisions, judicial sentences

The NET Bible:

The word חֻקִּים derives from the verb חֹק (khoq, “to inscribe; to carve”).

The word מִשְפָּטִים (mishpatim) from שָפַט (shafat, “to judge”).

The Pulpit Commentary

the things prescribed or enacted by law, whether moral, ritual, or civil

rights, whether public or private, all that each could claim as his due, and all he was bound to render to God or to his fellow-men as their due

The Pulpit Commentary These two comprehend the whole Law as binding on Israel.

Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge

Statutes, every thing that concerned morals and the rites and ceremonies of religion

judgments, all matters of civil right and wrong

Thomas Constable

"Statutes" (Deuteronomy 4:1) were the permanent basic rules of conduct

"judgments" (ordinances, Deuteronomy 4:1) were decisions God revealed in answer to specific needs. The judgments set precedent for future action (e.g., the case of Zelophehad's daughters)

Schultz

“Statutes” were laws that were written down or inscribed on some suitable medium

“Ordinances” were the decisions of a judge

Enter the Bible

"Statute" (hoq) is technically something inscribed or chiseled into stone. Statutes often establish death penalties and include curses uttered against the wicked

"Ordinance" (mishpat, vv. 1, 8) is the decision rendered by a judge (shofet) in regard to a dispute. Such decisions were remembered and eventually gathered into a body of law that effectively set precedent for similar cases.

The Complete Jewish Bible

laws

rulings

The Expanded Bible

laws [statutes; ordinances; requirements]

commands

The Context Group Version

New European Version

Updated Bible Version

the statutes

the ordinances

English Standard Version

the statutes

the rules

NASB/NKJV

the statutes

the judgments

The NET Bible suggests that these are equivalent terms which can be used interchangeably. This may be true in some passages.

Jamieson, Fausset and Brown gives a nice summation: By statutes were meant all ordinances respecting religion and the rites of divine worship; and by judgments, all enactments relative to civil matters. The two embraced the whole law of God.

Matthew Poole has a similar position: The statutes; the laws which concern the worship and service of God. The judgments; the laws concerning your duties to men. So these two comprehend both tables, and the whole law of God.

Moses will specifically name statues and judgments together in Deut. 4:1, 8 5:1 6:1 11:32 (they are named together with other similar words in other passages—Deut. 4:45 11:1).

Deuteronomy 4:1b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

ʾăsher (אֲֹשֶר) [pronounced uh-SHER]

that, which, when, who, whom; where; in that, in which, in what

relative pronoun; sometimes the verb to be is implied

Strong's #834 BDB #81

ʾânôkîy (אָנֹכִי) [pronounced awn-oh-KEE]

I, me; (sometimes a verb is implied)

1^st person singular personal pronoun

Strong’s #595 BDB #59

lâmad (לָמַד) [pronounced law-MAHD]

training, making accustomed, teaching

Piel participle

Strong’s #3925 BDB #540

ʾêth (אֶח) [pronounced ayth]

you; untranslated mark of a direct object; occasionally to you, toward you

sign of the direct object affixed to a 2^nd person masculine plural suffix

Strong's #853 BDB #84

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced l^e]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

ʿâsâh (עָשָֹה) [pronounced ģaw-SAWH]

to do, to make, to construct, to fashion, to form, to prepare, to manufacture; accomplish

Qal infinitive construct

Strong's #6213 BDB #793

Deuteronomy 4:1c

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

l^emaʿan (לְמַעַן) [pronounced l^e-MAH-ģahn]

for the sake of, on account of, to the intent of, to the intent that, to the purpose that, in order that, in view of, to the end that; so that

compound preposition and substantive which acts like a preposition

Strong’s #4616 BDB #775

This is the substantive maʿan (מַעַן) [pronounced MAH-ģahn], which means purpose, intent, combined with the lâmed preposition (which is the only way that it is found in Scripture).

From the NET Bible footnote for Psalm 51:4: The Hebrew term l^emaʿan (לְמַעַן) [pronounced l^e-MAH-ģahn] normally indicates purpose ("in order that"), but here it introduces a logical consequence of the preceding statement. (Taking the clause as indicating purpose here would yield a theologically preposterous idea - the psalmist purposely sinned so that God's justice might be vindicated!) For other examples of l^emaʿan (לְמַעַן) [pronounced l^e-MAH-ģahn] indicating result, see 2 Kings 22:17 Jer 27:15 Amos 2:7.

châyâh (חָיָה) [pronounced khaw-YAW]

to live, to have life, to revive, to recover health, to be healed, to be refreshed

2^nd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong's #2421 & #2425 BDB #310

It means, ➊ to live, to have life; ➋ to continue safe and sound (Joshua 6:17 Num. 14:38); ➌ to live again, to revive (I King 17:22 Ezek. 37:5); ➍ to recover health, to be healed (Gen. 20:7 Joshua 5:8); ➎ to be refreshed when one is weary or sad (Gen. 45:27 Judges 15:19).

Deuteronomy 4:1d

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

w^e (or v^e) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

bôwʾ (בּוֹא) [pronounced boh]

to come in, to come, to go in, to go, to enter, to advance; to attain

2^nd person masculine plural, Qal perfect

Strong’s #935 BDB #97

w^e (or v^e) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

yârash (שיָרַ) [pronounced yaw-RASH]

to possess, to take possession of, to occupy a geographical area [by driving out the previous occupants], to take possession of anyone [or their goods]; to inherit, to possess; to expel, to drive out

2^nd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong’s #3423 BDB #439

ʾêth (אֶח) [pronounced ayth]

untranslated generally; occasionally to, toward

indicates that the following substantive is a direct object

Strong's #853 BDB #84

ʾerets (אֶרֶץ) [pronounced EH-rets]

earth (all or a portion thereof), land, territory, country, continent; ground, soil; under the ground [Sheol]

feminine singular noun with the definite article

Strong's #776 BDB #75

Deuteronomy 4:1e

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

ʾăsher (אֲֹשֶר) [pronounced uh-SHER]

that, which, when, who, whom; where; in that, in which, in what

relative pronoun; sometimes the verb to be is implied

Strong's #834 BDB #81

YHWH (יהוה) [pronunciation is possibly yhoh-WAH]

transliterated variously as Jehovah, Yahweh, Y^ehowah

proper noun

Strong’s #3068 BDB #217

ʾĚlôhîym (אלֹהִים) [pronounced el-o-HEEM]

God; gods, foreign gods, god; rulers, judges; superhuman ones, angels; transliterated Elohim

masculine plural construct

Strong's #430 BDB #43

ʾâb (אָב) [pronounced aw^bv]

father, both as the head of a household, clan or tribe; founder, civil leader, military leader

masculine plural noun with the 2^nd person masculine plural suffix

Strong’s #1 BDB #3

nâthan (נָתַן) [pronounced naw-THAHN]

is giving, granting, is placing, putting, setting; is making

Qal active participle

Strong's #5414 BDB #678

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced l^e]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition with the 2^nd person masculine plural suffix

No Strong’s # BDB #510

Deuteronomy 4:2a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

lôʾ (לֹא or לוֹא) [pronounced low]

not, no

negates the word or action that follows; the absolute negation

Strong’s #3808 BDB #518

yâçaph (יָסַף) [pronounced yaw-SAHPH]

to add, to augment, to increase, to multiply; to add to do = to do again; to continue to

2^nd person masculine plural, Hiphil imperfect

Strong's #3254 BDB #414

ʿal (עַל) [pronounced ģahl]

upon, beyond, on, against, above, over; on the ground of, because of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, with, by, besides, in addition to, to, toward, together with, in the matter of, concerning, as regards to

preposition of relative proximity

Strong’s #5921 BDB #752

dâbâr (דָּבָר) [pronounced daw^b-VAWR]

word, saying, doctrine, thing, matter, command; business, occupation; case; something; manner

masculine singular noun with the definite article

Strong's #1697 BDB #182

ʾăsher (אֲֹשֶר) [pronounced uh-SHER]

that, which, when, who, whom; where; in that, in which, in what

relative pronoun; sometimes the verb to be is implied

Strong's #834 BDB #81

ʾânôkîy (אָנֹכִי) [pronounced awn-oh-KEE]

I, me; (sometimes a verb is implied)

1^st person singular personal pronoun

Strong’s #595 BDB #59

tsâvâh (צָוָה) [pronounced tsaw-VAW]

commanding, commissioning, mandating, appointing; ordaining; laying charge upon, giving charge to, charging, ordering; instructing [as in, giving an order]

Piel participle

Strong's #6680 BDB #845

ʾêth (אֶח) [pronounced ayth]

you; untranslated mark of a direct object; occasionally to you, toward you

sign of the direct object affixed to a 2^nd person masculine plural suffix

Strong's #853 BDB #84

Deuteronomy 4:2b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

w^e (or v^e) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

lôʾ (לֹא or לוֹא) [pronounced low]

not, no

negates the word or action that follows; the absolute negation

Strong’s #3808 BDB #518

gâraʿ (גָּרַע) [pronounced gaw-RAHĢ]

to diminish, to restrain, to withdraw

2^nd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong’s #1639 BDB #175

It actually means to shave off [a beard], and therefore to cut off, to take away, to detract, to withhold. When followed by the preposition ʾel (ל∵א), it means to take in, to lay up, to put in store for oneself. In Job 15:8, the NASB renders this verb to limit.

min (מִן) [pronounced min]

from, off, out from, of, out of, away from, on account of, since, than, more than

preposition of separation with the 3^rd person masculine singular suffix

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

So far, Deut. 4:2 You [all] will not add to the word which I command you and you will not take from it,...