Moses reminds the people that the Lord made a covenant with them at Mount Sinai, a covenant not with their ancestors, but with all who were alive as he spoke.
He reviews with them the Ten Commandments, which were predicated on the fact that the Lord rescued them from the land of Egypt where they were slaves.
1. They must not have any other god but the Lord.
2. They must not make for themselves an idol or image. The must not bow down and worship those idols or images, because the Lord is a jealous God, who lays the sins of the parents upon their children even in the third and fourth generations of those who reject Him,, but lavishes love for a thousand generations on those who love Him and keep His commands.
3. They must not misuse the name of the Lord.
4. They were to observe the Sabbath day.
5. They were to honor their father and their mother – the first commandment with promise: they would live a long, full life in the land the Lord their God is giving them.
6. They must not murder.
7. They must not commit adultery.
8. They must not steal.
9. They must not testify falsely against their neighbor.
10. They must not covet.
Whenever I hear the Ten Commandments, I am reminded of Jesus’ words. He summarized them into two:
- Love the Lord your God with all of your heart and soul and mind.
- Love your neighbor as yourself.
Moses mentions several times how important it is to obey all the commands the Lord gave them and to stay on the path He commanded them to follow.
Chapter 6 contains another one of my favorite passages of scripture. Beginning with verse 4 (the Shema), Moses gives them a path to follow that will help them remember what the Lord expects of them:
“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.” And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your sould, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
Isn’t that beautiful? Not only were they to talk about the Lord and His commands as they went about their daily activity, but they were also to tie them to their hands, wear them on their forehead and write them on their doorposts and gates.
The phylacteries, small boxes with parchment containing parts of the Torah, are worn by many Orthodox Jews today. The doors of the Orthodox contains what is known as the Mezuzah. It is a parchment containing parts of the Torah in a protective case and is hung on the doorpost. Orthodox Jews will touch it whenever they enter the home.
God was really looking out for the Israelites when He gave them these ways to remember Him.
And, the portion describing the land of Canaan is almost poetic. See verses 10-11 – in short, they would enjoy cities they did not build, goods they did not produce, cisterns they did not dig, vineyards and olive trees they did not plant.
Of course, all of this was only if they did not worship other gods. When they entered the land, they were to destroy the people completely, not make treaties with them, not intermarry with them, not allow their pagan altars to stand. They were a holy people and God expected them to act that way.
Just as God was willing and eager to bless them, so He was willing to punish them. Unfortunately, we will discover that the Israelites didn’t live up to the promise of blessing.
Tomorrow, its Deuteronomy 8 – 10.
Until next time…
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