Deuteronomy 10:1-22

Deuteronomy: God’s Law of Love

Love and Obey the *LORD your God

Deuteronomy

Philip Smith

Chapter 10

v1 ‘Then the *LORD spoke to me. “Cut two blocks from stone like the first ones. Also, make a wooden box. Then come up to me on the mountain. v2 I will write the same words on the new blocks as the words on the blocks that you broke. Then you must put the blocks in the box.”

v3 So I made a box from the wood of acacia trees. I cut two blocks from stone like the first ones and I took them up the mountain. v4 The *LORD wrote on the blocks the words that he had written before. He wrote those 10 *Commandments to you. He spoke them on the mountain. He spoke from the fire on the day when you gathered on the mountain. Then the *LORD gave the blocks to me. v5 Then I turned and I came back down the mountain. I put the blocks in the box that I had made. The *LORD had ordered that. The blocks are there now.’

God listened to Moses’ prayer and God wrote the *covenant again. The blocks of stone were like the first ones that Moses had broken. That meant that the *covenant was the same. The *covenant was this. ‘I will be your God and you will be my people.’

God says the same thing to Christians today. But we have a new *covenant. Jeremiah 31:33-34 describes the promises of the new *covenant. God will now forgive our *sins. Jesus died to free people from wrong things. To be part of the new *covenant today we have to trust Jesus. To trust Jesus means this. First, we have to confess our *sins. Then God will forgive us and we will have a relationship with him. We will belong to God and he will be our God.

Moses put the blocks in a box. Later they put this box in the place where they gave honour to God. When kings of other nations made agreements with people, they did something similar. However, they gave honour to false gods, they did not give honour to the *LORD God.

v6 (The *Israelites travelled from the wells of Jaakan’s relatives to Moserah. Aaron died there and they buried him. And Eleazar, his son, became the priest instead of him. v7 From that place they travelled to Gudgodah and on to Jotbathah. That was land with streams of water. v8 Then the *LORD appointed the *tribe of Levi to carry the box of the *covenant of the *LORD. The *tribe of Levi would serve the *LORD as priests. And they would declare *blessings as they spoke his name. They still do that today. v9 Because of that, the *tribe of Levi did not receive any land like the other *tribes did. Instead, they received the *LORD himself as their gift. That happened as the *LORD your God had told them.)

Somebody probably added this after the writer had finished Deuteronomy. Aaron’s son became a priest after Aaron had died. The *tribe of Levi carried the box of the *covenant. They served God. They *blessed the *Israelites and spoke the name of God. They had a lot to do and so they would not have had time to grow crops. Instead, they received money and food from the *offerings that the other *Israelites made to God.

Paul says this in 1 Corinthians 9:7-12. Christian teachers should receive payment for their work. ‘We have taught you. We have planted things in you that are about God. So we should harvest a crop. We should receive physical benefits from you.’

v10 ‘Now I had stayed on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights, as I did the first time. The *LORD listened to me at that time also. He did not want to *destroy you. v11 “Go,” the *LORD said to me. “Lead the people on their way. Then they can enter and possess the country. I promised to give this country to their *ancestors.” ’

Because Moses had prayed, God forgave the *Israelites’ *sin. They could now enter the country that God had promised to them.

Christians do not deserve that God forgives their *sins. God forgives us because Jesus died in our place.

v12 ‘Now *Israelites, listen to what the *LORD your God wants you to do. He wants you to *fear the *LORD your God. Do what he has told you to do. Love him. He wants you to serve the *LORD your God. Do all this completely. v13 *Keep all the *commandments and the rules that the *LORD ordered you to do. I am giving them to you today for your benefit.

v14 The heavens and the highest heavens belong to the *LORD your God. The earth and everything on it belongs to him. v15 But the *LORD was very happy to choose your *ancestors and he loved them. He chose you, their *descendants, out of all other nations. He loves you still today. v16 Make your minds morally pure. Do not still refuse to obey him. v17 The *LORD your God is far greater than every false god. And he is the very powerful ruler over all rulers. He is the great God. He is powerful and you should *fear him. He does not have favourites. He will not do something because you give him money. v18 God defends widows and children who have no father. He loves the foreign people who live among us. He gives them food and clothes. v19 So love those foreigners. You used to be foreigners in Egypt. v20 *Fear the *LORD your God and serve him. Be loyal to him. When you make your promises, speak his name only. v21 Praise him. He is your God. You saw the great and wonderful things that he did for you. v22 When your *ancestors went to Egypt, there were only 70 of them. And now the *LORD your God has increased you. You have as many people as there are stars in the sky.’

Moses reminded the *Israelites about the things that God had done for them. Then he told them what God wanted them to do. He wanted them to respect him and to love him. He wanted them to obey completely. If the people loved God, then they would do all those things. They would obey him and they would serve him. God gave laws to them for their benefit. *Israelites must love God because he loved them first. God had everyone in the whole world to choose from, but he chose the *Israelites. He loved and chose their *ancestors. And he loved and chose the *Israelites too. God does not explain why he did that.

The Bible often describes how much God loves people. John 3:16 says, ‘God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son. So everyone who trusts him will never really die. Instead, they will have eternal life.’ (Eternal life means to be completely alive in our spirits. When we trust Jesus, we receive this life as a special gift. When we have this life, we can live to please God. It is the best way to live.) Ephesians chapter 1 tells us that God chose Christians. ‘Before he made the world, he chose us. He wants us to live *holy lives. He wants us to do nothing wrong, but only things that are good. He loved us. So he chose to make us his sons and daughters by Jesus Christ.’ (See Ephesians 1:4; Ephesians 1:5.) So Christians are, with the *Israelites, the people who belong to God. Christians trust God to free them from *sin. Now, people from every nation can receive God’s promises. (See Matthew 28:19.) ‘There is neither *Jew nor non-*Jew. … You are all one group of people because you belong to Jesus Christ. And because you belong to Christ you are Abraham’s children.’ (See Galatians 3:28-29.)

Verse 17 describes how great God is. He makes proper *judgements about everybody. Nobody can make him change his mind. No gift will make God change his decision. The *Israelites must love other people in the same way that God loves them. The *Israelites must help the widows, the children without parents and the foreigners who live among them. The *Israelites knew what it was like to be in a foreign country. Therefore, they should help those people who were in a similar situation.

Romans 12:13 says this. Christians should let foreigners stay in their homes. James 1:27 says, ‘Look after children without parents and also look after widows.’

Moses reminded the *Israelites again, about what God had done for their nation. He had done great *signs and *wonders to rescue them from Egypt. There were only 70 of them when they went down into Egypt. Now they were a great nation, exactly as God had promised to Abraham. ‘Look at the sky and try to count the stars. You will have as many *descendants as that.’ (See Genesis 15:5.)

Revelation 7:9 describes the view in heaven. ‘I saw a great crowd of people that nobody can count. There were people who came from every nation, *tribe, group of people and language.’

Lord ~ a name for God. It translates the word ‘Adonai’ in the Hebrew language, which means ‘my ruler’. The word ‘lord’ (without a capital letter) means an ordinary ruler.

LORD ~ God gave this special name to himself. It translates the word ‘Yahweh’ in the Hebrew language. It is the Covenant name for God. It links to the words ‘I am’; it means that God has always been here.

covenant ~ the special promise that God made to his people. God’s covenant with the Israelites established a relationship between him and them. But they must obey him.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.

Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
commandment ~ a rule or a command that God gave to the Jews; the 10 rules that God gave to Moses. That was on the mountain called Mount Sinai (or Horeb); a command from someone who has authority.

Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Mount ~ mountain. For example, ‘Mount Sinai’ means the mountain called Sinai.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.

descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
covenant ~ the special promise that God made to his people. God’s covenant with the Israelites established a relationship between him and them. But they must obey him.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.

Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.

Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
tribe ~ a group of people from the same race, who all came from one person. The tribes of *Israel were the 12 large families of Jacob’s sons.
blessing ~ a good thing that God does for us; when someone asks God to do good things for a person or for people; when a person speaks good words about someone.
offerings ~ gifts (also called sacrifices) that a person gives to God, or to a false god.

sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
destroy ~ to damage something so that it does not continue to exist; to kill people or animals.
ancestors ~ people in your family who lived before you.
fear ~ to be afraid; to respect someone who is very great.
keep ~ to do whatever you should do because of a promise or a law; to respect and to give honour to the law.
commandment ~ a rule or a command that God gave to the Jews; the 10 rules that God gave to Moses. That was on the mountain called Mount Sinai (or Horeb); a command from someone who has authority.

Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Mount ~ mountain. For example, ‘Mount Sinai’ means the mountain called Sinai.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.

descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
fear ~ to be afraid; to respect someone who is very great.
holy ~ morally good; something completely good and perfect; something that people consider to be very important in their religion.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.

descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
judgement ~ when God or a judge says what is right or wrong.
sign ~ an unusual event that God uses to teach people something. But sometimes false prophets promised signs.
wonder ~ an event that astonishes people and it shows God’s power. But other people who did not love God sometimes did them too.