Deuteronomy 4

The people of Israel were blessed above all nations on earth, for they belonged to the true and living

God and were in covenant relationship with Him. They were now preparing to enter the land God promised them when He called Abraham, the father of their nation (Gen. 12:1–3; 13:14–18), and part of that preparation was listening carefully to a farewell speech by Moses, God’s prophet and their leader. After rehearsing the history of the nation (Deut. 1—3), Moses reminded the people of the character of the God of Israel and how they should respond to Him. If we don’t know the character of the God we worship, how can we worship Him “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24)?

The eminent Jewish scholar Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote, “To believe, we need God, a soul, and the Word.” Another Jewish scholar, the apostle Paul, reached the same conclusion and wrote, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10: nkjv).

The God who brought creation into existence by speaking the Word (Ps. 33:6–9) has ordained that His people should live by hearing and obeying His Word.

The verb “to hear” is used nearly 100 times in the book of Deuteronomy. The traditional Jewish confession of faith (Deut. 6:4–5) is called “The Shema,” from the Hebrew word which means “to hear, to pay attention, to understand, to obey.” To the Old Testament Jew and the New Testament Christian, hearing the Word of God involves much more than sound waves impacting the human ear. Hearing God’s Word is a matter of focusing our whole being—mind, heart, and will—on the Lord, receiving what He says to us and obeying it. The Word of God must penetrate our hearts and become a part of our inner being if it is to change our lives. That’s what Jesus meant when He said, “Who has ears to hear, let him hear!” That statement is found at least eight times in the gospels, so it must be important. (See also Deut. 29: and Ezek. 12:2.)

Hearing and obeying the Word of God was Israel’s very life (Deut. 4:1a). When God speaks, He sets before us life and death (30:15–20), and our response determines which it will be. “Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them will live by them. I am the Lord” (Lev. 18: niv). The emphasis in Deuteronomy 4:1–2 and 5 is on commanding and teaching, for the Lord not only tells us what to do but He also explains the truth behind His commands. Jesus may have had this in mind when He told His disciples that He treated them like friends (“insiders”) and not like slaves, because He explained to them what He was doing (John 15:14–15).

Not only was Israel’s life dependent on obedience to God’s Word, but so was their victory over the enemy (Deut. 4:1b). Apart from faith and obedience, Israel couldn’t enter the land and defeat the nations that were strongly entrenched there. How could the Lord go before His people and give them victory if they weren’t following Him obediently (1:30)? The ten spies who failed to grasp the power of God’s promises led Israel into discouragement, defeat, and death because of their unbelief (Num. 13—14). “And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith” (1 John 5: nkjv), and that faith is generated by the Word (Rom. 10:17).

Believers today must find their life and victory in God’s Word. Unless we know what God commands, we can’t obey Him, but if we know His commandments, believe them, and obey them, then His power goes to work in our lives. “And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5: nkjv). Obeying the Lord becomes a joyful privilege when you realize that His commandments are expressions of His love, assurances of His strength, invitations to His blessing, opportunities to grow and bring Him glory, and occasions to enjoy His love and fellowship as we seek to please Him. God’s Word is the open door into the treasury of His grace.

Moses added a warning against changing the Word of God, either by adding to it or by taking from it (Deut. 4:2; see 12:32; Prov. 30:6; Gal. 3:15; Rev. 22:18–19). The early manuscripts of the Scriptures were copied by hand, and it would be easy for the copyist to make changes, but God watches over His Word (Jer. 1:12) and judges those who tamper with it. The Pharisees in Jesus’ day jealously guarded the Scriptures, yet they were guilty of taking away from the Word of God by replacing it with their own traditions (Mark 7:1–13). If God’s Word is our life, then we’re jeopardizing our own future if we don’t honor the Word and obey it from the heart (Eph. 6:6).

Israel’s persistent sin was idolatry and the immoral practices associated with it. While living in Egypt, the Jews got a taste of idolatry and even practiced it during their wilderness wanderings (Acts 7:42–43). When Moses was with God on Mount Sinai, the people in the camp were worshipping a golden calf (Ex. 32). Idolatry was a grievous sin because Israel had been “married” to Jehovah when the nation accepted the covenant at Mount Sinai, so their worship of idols was really adultery (Jer. 3; Hos. 1—2). It was a sin against God’s love as well as a violation of God’s law. The Lord finally had to send His people to Babylon to cure them of idolatry.

This may be why Moses brought up the tragedy of Israel’s sins at Baal Peor (Deut. 4:3–4; Num. 25). This event was recent enough for the people to remember it. The false prophet Baalam had been hired by King Balak to curse the people of Israel, but each time Baalam tried to curse the Jews, he ended up blessing them (Num. 22—24). His curses didn’t work, but he had a plan that did work. He and Balak invited the Jewish men to attend one of the Moabite religious feasts and encouraged them to participate to the full (Num. 25). This meant having intercourse with the temple prostitutes, and one man even brought his “date” back into the Jewish camp! The fact that God judged His people by killing 24,000 men indicates that many of the Jews eagerly participated in the wicked feast. What the enemy couldn’t accomplish with curses and fighting he accomplished with compromise and “friendship.”

The Jews who refused the invitation and remained true to the Lord were still alive, because the Word is our life, and obeying God’s Word keeps us in fellowship with the Lord (2 Cor. 6:14—7:1). God’s people must be careful not to become friendly with the world (James 4:4) or spotted by the world (1:27), because this leads to loving the world (1 John 2:15–17) and being conformed to the world (Rom. 12:2). This kind of lifestyle invites the chastening of God, for “the Lord shall judge his people” and “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:30–31).

To fear the Lord means to respect who He is, what He is, and what He says, and by our submission and obedience show Him that we love Him and want to please Him. He’s the Creator and we’re the creatures; He’s the Father and we’re the children; He’s the Master and we’re the servants. When we knowingly and willfully defy His authority, we tempt Him to discipline us, and our arrogance only leads to pain and tragic loss. It just isn’t worth it. If you want to identify the blessings believers miss when they fail to fear the Lord, read and ponder these verses: Deuteronomy 6:24; Psalms 25:12; 31:19; 34:9; 112; 145:19; Proverbs 1:7; Isaiah 33:6; Ephesians 5:21; Hebrews 12:28–29.

God’s Word is the revelation of God’s wisdom, and we need to know and follow His wisdom if our lives are to please and glorify Him. The world’s wisdom is foolishness with God (1 Cor. 3:19), and those who follow it will be disappointed. In the Old Testament, the word “wisdom” has to do with character rather than human intelligence and describes the right use of knowledge. “Wisdom means being skillful and successful in one’s relationships and responsibilities, observing and following the Creator’s principles of order in the moral universe,” says Dr. Roy Zuck. Practicing God’s wisdom means you don’t just make a living, you make a life.

Why was it so important for Israel to know and obey God’s wisdom? For one thing, this was the guarantee of their success in taking possession of the Promised Land (Deut. 4:5). When you read the book of Joshua, you discover that God had the campaign all worked out and Joshua simply had to discern God’s will and obey it. The two times Joshua didn’t seek God’s wisdom, the nation experienced humiliating failure (Josh. 7; 9).

In knowing God’s wisdom, the people of Israel would not only succeed in their mission but they would also be witnesses to the other nations (Deut. 4:6–8). The pagan nations in Canaan tried to obtain guidance from their false gods by means of sorcery and various forms of spiritism, all of which were forbidden to the Jews (18:9–14; Isa. 47:12–14). God’s laws clearly revealed to Israel what was right and wrong and covered just about every decision they would have to make. Believers today have the complete Word of God and the assurance that if we obey what God has already taught us, He will give us the guidance we need in the special areas of life (John 7:17). People who live according to God’s wisdom can’t help but demonstrate to those around them that God is real and that following His wisdom brings blessing. Everything about Israel’s religion was so far superior to that of the surrounding nations that the unbelieving pagans couldn’t help but be impressed: the presence of God in Israel’s sanctuary, the divine laws governing their life, the guidance of God, and the absence of cruelty and impurity. The tragedy is that Israel got so accustomed to these blessings that they began to imitate their neighbors and lost their witness.

There’s a third benefit that we enjoy when we follow God’s wisdom: it helps to build godly homes (Deut. 4:9–10). Surrounded as they were by heathen people, Israel was always one generation short of losing God’s blessing, and so it is with the church today (2 Tim. 2:2). If we don’t teach our children about God and His Word, the day will come when a generation will arise that doesn’t know the Lord, which is what eventually happened to Israel (Judg. 2:7–15). “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18: nkjv).

How can believing parents best influence their children to trust the Lord and live by His wisdom? Moses gives the adults three suggestions: be examples to your children; don’t let God’s Word slip from your minds and hearts; remember what the Lord has done for you in the past and share these experiences with your children. Every Jewish child in Moses’ day was supposed to know the story of the exodus (Deut. 6:20–25; Ex. 10:1–2; 12:24–28; 13:1–16), and in the future, every child was supposed to know the significance of Israel’s crossing the Jordan River (Josh. 4:1–7, 21–24). It’s the responsibility of the older generation to instruct the younger generation and be an example and an encouragement to them (Deut. 6:1–3; 32:44–47; Ps. 34:11; 44:1; 71:17–19; 78:1–8; Titus 2:1–8). Parents must not turn this responsibility over to Sunday School teachers or Bible club leaders, as important as those ministries are, for dedicated Christian parents are God’s first choice as teachers of their children. The sins of parents—especially spiritual neglect and bad example—may be imitated by the children and produce sad consequences later in life (Deut. 5:8–10; Ex. 20:5–6; Num. 14:17–18).

The Lord didn’t lead Israel directly from Egypt to Canaan because they weren’t ready to enter the land and confront the enemy. Liberty isn’t the same as maturity; in fact, without maturity, liberty is a dangerous thing. God didn’t give His law to Israel as a means of salvation because He had already redeemed them by the blood of the Passover lamb. He gave them His law to mature them, for they were like little children who needed a babysitter (Gal. 4:1–7).

What did the people of Israel learn at Mount Sinai? Of first importance, they learned that God is a holy God who must be feared and honored. God demonstrated His great power and glory at Sinai and the people shook with fear. But unless that fear becomes reverence in the heart, it can never transform the life. Israel also learned that God was a gracious and merciful God who provided forgiveness and a means to worship and serve Him.

However, it was also at Mount Sinai that the people discovered their impatience and unbelief when Moses stayed on the mount so long. In their hearts they had a craving for idols, and they worshipped the golden calf. They saw how swiftly God judged their terrible sin, but they also learned that Jehovah would forgive them and give them a new beginning.

Every believer must learn to submit to the will of God as it is expressed in the Word of God. One test of our submission is a willingness to wait on the Lord and not run after substitutes. Even though the golden calf was approved by the high priest, it was wicked and contrary to the will of God.

The nations around Israel worshipped many gods and goddesses, but Israel was to worship only the one true God. “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord” is the first and basic tenet in the Jewish confession of faith, “The Shema” (6:4–5), and the first of the Ten Commandments is, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (5:7). Why? Because all other “gods” are only the creations of sinful imaginations and aren’t gods at all (Rom. 1:18ff.). To worship other gods is to worship nothing and become nothing (Ps. 115:8). One of the Hebrew words for “idols” means “vanity, nothingness.” In his message, Moses gives several arguments to defend this warning against idolatry.

Israel’s experience at Sinai (vv. 10–19). Moses reminded the people of the nation’s awesome experience at Sinai when God made His covenant with them. The mountain blazed with fire and was covered with clouds and great darkness; thunder and lightning frightened the people; and after a trumpet blast that grew louder and louder, God called Moses to the top of the mountain (Ex. 19:16–19; Heb. 12:18–21). The people heard God speak the word but they didn’t see any form of God. The Lord was making it very clear that Israel would be a people of the word, hearing their God speak but not beholding any form that could be copied and then worshipped (Deut. 4:12, 15). “He who can hear can see,” said a Jewish sage, and he was right.

“You saw no form of any kind the day the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire” (v. 15 niv). The conclusion is obvious: God forbids His people to worship visible representations of God or of anything God has made, whether humans, animals, birds, fish, or the sun, moon, and stars. To worship the creation instead of the Creator is the essence of idolatry (Rom. 1:22–25). God made man in His image, but idolaters make gods in their own image and thereby cheapen themselves and insult God.

Israel’s deliverance from Egypt (v. 20). Moses had just mentioned all the nations (v. 19), so he reminded the people that Israel was different from these other nations because Israel was God’s chosen people and His special inheritance (Ex. 19:1–6). The Lord chose Abraham and his descendants to bring His blessings to the whole world (Gen. 12:1–3; John 4:22), and in order to accomplish that important task, Israel had to be a separated people. Each year when they celebrated Passover, the Jews would be reminded that they had been slaves in Egypt and the Lord had delivered them by His great power, and they were His people. It was when Israel began to imitate the other nations and worship their detestable gods that Israel ceased to be a nation devoted wholly to the Lord. Because they forgot their distinctive privileges, they lost their distinctive blessings.

The church today can learn a lesson from this. We’re called to be a separated people who are not conformed to this world (2 Cor. 6:14—7:1; Rom. 12:1–2), and yet the trend today is for churches to pattern ministry after what the world is doing. The philosophy is that the church will attract more people if the lost feel more comfortable with the services. The tragedy is that the sanctuary becomes a theater and “ministry” becomes entertainment. But Scripture and church history make it clear that what Campbell Morgan said is true: “The church did the most for the world when the church was the least like the world.” Jesus didn’t compromise with the world and yet He attracted sinners and ministered effectively to them (Luke 15:1–2). Unless we are a separated people, devoted wholly to the Lord, we can never follow His example.

Moses’ experience at Kadesh (vv. 21–24; Num. 20:1–13). When Moses smote the rock instead of speaking to it, God graciously supplied an abundance of water for His thirsty people, but He disciplined His servant who glorified himself instead of glorifying the Lord. God alone is God, and He alone must be glorified. “I am the Lord; that is my name; and my glory will I not give to another” (Isa. 42:8). Moses warned the people, “For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God” (Deut. 4:24; see Heb. 12:29). God is jealous over His people the way a husband is jealous over his wife or a mother over her children. (See Deut. 5:9; 6:15; 13:2–10; 29:20; 33:16, 21.) He wants the very best for us, but when we deliberately go our own way, we grieve His heart and miss all He wants to do for us.

God’s loving covenant (vv. 25–31). God made a covenant with His people and He expected them to keep it. The word “covenant” is used at least twentyseven times in Deuteronomy and comes from the Hebrew word berith which some scholars say means “to eat bread.” In the East, when people broke bread together, they formed a covenant or treaty that they would help and protect each other (see Gen. 26:26–35). When God established His covenant with Israel at Mount Sinai, Moses and the Jewish elders ate before God on the mountain (Ex. 24:11). The terms of the covenant were simple: if Israel obeyed God’s laws, He would bless them; it they disobeyed, He would chasten them. He would show His love to them in both the blessing and the chastening, “for whom the Lord loves, He chastens” (Heb. 12: nkjv).

Moses would elaborate on the details of the covenant later in his address (Deut. 28—30), but here he warned the people that they would be punished, scattered, and destroyed as a nation if they didn’t take their covenant responsibilities seriously. This, unfortunately, is what happened. During the closing years of Solomon’s reign, to please his many wives he introduced idolatry into the land (1 Kings 11), and this led to God’s judgment and the division and deterioration of the nation (1 Kings 12). In 722 BC, Assyria captured the ten tribes that formed the northern kingdom of Samaria, and Babylon took the southern kingdom of Judah in 586 BC From AD 70 until May 14, 1948, when the modern nation of Israel was recognized, the Jewish people were dispersed throughout the world and had no national homeland.

The love of God (vv. 32–43). When you’re raising small children, you use rewards and punishments to teach them to obey, but when they get older, you hope that character and love will motivate them to shun evil and do what’s right. When Israel turned from the true and living God and began to worship idols, they were sinning against God’s grace and love. The Lord hadn’t chosen any other nation and given it His covenant, nor had He spoken to any other nation and given it His holy law. God had led His people and cared for them from the days of Abraham to the time of Moses, and He had done this for no other nation. Why? It wasn’t because Israel deserved these blessings but because of God’s everlasting love (v. 37; see 7:7–8, 13; 23:5).

God doesn’t want His children obeying Him just to get blessings or to avoid chastening, but because they love Him from the heart. The word “heart” is mentioned more than forty times in Moses’ speech, and the Shema (6:4–5) emphasizes love for the Lord. (See also 10:12; 11:1, 13, 22; 13:3; 19:9; 30:6, 16, 20.) When Moses gave the law to the older generation at Sinai, the emphasis was on the fear of the Lord (Ex. 19:10–25; 20:20), but his application of the law to the new generation magnifies God’s love for Israel and the importance of Israel loving the Lord. They were now to be a mature people who obeyed God from the heart. The Lord is a merciful God (Deut. 4:31), but we shouldn’t tempt Him because He is also a jealous God (v. 24).

As evidence of God’s love and mercy, Moses set apart three “cities of refuge” on the east side of the Jordan, to which people who accidentally killed somebody could flee and get justice and find protection (vv. 41–43). This subject will be dealt with in detail in 19:1–14.

The archeologist’s spade has revealed that the book of Deuteronomy follows a literary pattern used in the ancient Near East for treaties between rulers and their vassal nations. With Israel, of course, the Lord had conquered their enemies and set the Jews free, and they were His special people, but as they entered their land, this freedom involved responsibilities. They were a covenant people and Deuteronomy defines the terms of the covenant. Like the ancient vassal treaties, Deuteronomy has a preamble (1:1–5) and a review of the history behind the treaty (1:6—4:49). Then it lists the ruler’s stipulations for the conduct of his subjects (chaps. 5—26) and what would happen if they disobeyed (chaps. 27—30). It closes with an explanation of how the treaty would operate in future generations (chaps. 31—34).

Moses began by calling Israel to hear God’s covenant, learn it, and do whatever it commanded (5:1). As we have seen, “to hear” means much more than to listen casually to words that somebody is speaking. It means to listen attentively, to understand, to heed and obey. When God made this covenant, it included every generation of the nation of Israel from that day on and not just with the generation that gathered at Sinai. Moses was addressing a new generation and yet he said, “The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb” (v. 2). Just as God’s covenant with Abraham included the Jewish people of future generations, so did His covenant at Sinai, for God was their “dwelling place in all generations” (Ps. 90:1). Most of the people who had been at Sinai died during the wilderness wanderings, but the covenant of God stood fast.

Moses was the mediator between Jehovah and Israel because the people were afraid to hear the voice of God (Deut. 5:23–27; Ex. 20:18–21; and see Gal. 3:19). If we are believing and obedient people, hearing God’s voice means blessing and encouragement, but if our hearts are not right with God, His voice could mean judgment.

The law of God (vv. 6–21; Ex. 20:1–17). The Lord opened the proclamation of His law by reminding the people that it was He who delivered them from the slavery of Egypt (Deut. 5:6; see Neh. 9:9–11; Ps. 77:14–15; 105:23–38; 136:10–15; Isa. 63:11–14). This great act of redemption should have been motive enough for the people to listen to God’s law and obey it, just as the redemption we have in Christ should motivate us to obey Him. Each year at Passover, the Jews were reminded of God’s great act of salvation, and each time the church celebrates the Lord’s Supper, we’re reminded that Christ died for us that we might be saved from our sins and belong to Him. The Lord wants us to obey Him, not as slaves cringing before a master, but as grateful children who love their heavenly Father and appreciate all He is to us and has done for us.

The first four commandments had to do with Israel’s relationship to God personally: acknowledging that there is but one Lord (Deut. 5:6), abstaining from worshipping idols (vv. 8–10), honoring God’s name (v. 11), and observing the Sabbath (vv. 12–15). The first commandment (vv. 6–7) is expressed in the Shema (6:4–5), and the second commandment (vv. 8–10) is the logical expression of the first. If there is but one true God, then the making and worshipping of idols is not only illogical, but it’s a denial of Israel’s confession of faith. Israel was “married” to Jehovah at Sinai, and idolatry was a breach of that marriage covenant and the equivalent of adultery. Keep in mind that in the East in that day, idolatry could involve sexual intercourse with temple prostitutes.

We have already noted that the Lord doesn’t punish the children and grandchildren because of their ancestors’ sins (Ezek. 18), but He can permit the sad consequences of those sins to affect future generations, physically, mentally, and spiritually. Children are prone to imitate their parents, and Eastern peoples lived in extended families, with three and four generations often in the same home. It’s easy to see that the older members of the family had opportunities to influence the younger ones either for good or for evil. But the Lord also blesses successive generations of people who honor and obey Him. My great-grandfather prayed that there would be a preacher of the gospel in every generation of our family, and there has been. I minister today because of godly ancestors who trusted the Lord.

In the third commandment (Deut. 5:11), God’s name represents God’s character and reputation, and to honor His name means to make Him “look good” to the people around us. All parents want their children to bring honor to the family name. We pray, “Hallowed be thy name” (Matt. 6:9), and then we live and speak in such a way that we help to answer that prayer. Using God’s name under oath to defend a dishonest statement, as well as cursing and swearing, are ways of dishonoring the Lord’s name. Bearing that name and living like a Christian will honor God’s good name before a watching world (1 Peter 4:12–16).

Nine of the Ten Commandments are repeated in the New Testament epistles for the church to obey; the exception is the fourth commandment (Deut. 5:12–15) about the Sabbath Day. Why? The Sabbath Day was a special sign between Israel and the Lord (Ex. 31:12–17; Neh. 9:13–15; Ezek. 20:12, 20) and wasn’t given to any other nation (Ps. 147:19–20). The Sabbath had its beginning in creation (Gen. 2:1–3) and for that reason was a part of Israel’s religious life even before the law was given at Sinai (Ex. 16:23, 25). But at Sinai, Sabbath observance became a part of God’s covenant with Israel and was associated with their deliverance from Egypt (Deut. 5:15). Canaan would be Israel’s place of rest (3:20; 12:10; 25:19), and the weekly Sabbath would give them a foretaste of that rest. Believers today have their rest in Christ (Matt. 11:28–30; Heb. 3—4) and look forward to eternal rest in heaven (Rev. 14:13). Unfortunately, Israel didn’t honor the Sabbath Days or the Sabbatical Year, and the Lord had to discipline them (2 Chron. 36:14–21; Ezek. 20; Isa. 58:13–14; Jer. 17:19–27).

Many well-meaning people call Sunday “the Christian Sabbath,” but strictly speaking, this is a misnomer. Sunday is the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day, and the Sabbath is Saturday, the seventh day of the week. The Sabbath symbolizes the old covenant of law: you labored for six days and then you rested. The Lord’s Day commemorates the new covenant of grace: it opens the week with rest in Christ and the works follow. Both the Sabbath and the Lord’s Day emphasize the importance of devoting one day in seven to the Lord in worship and service. Every day belongs to the Lord and it’s unbiblical to make the observance of days a test of spirituality or orthodoxy (Col. 2:16–17; Rom. 14:1— 15:7; Gal. 4:1–11).

The fifth commandment (Deut. 5:16) moves us from our relationship to the Lord to living out that relationship with other people, beginning in the home. Both the divine and human aspects of the law are important and must not be separated, because we’re commanded to love the Lord and also love our neighbors (Mark 12:28–34). Piety begins at home with honoring one’s father and mother, a law that was very important in Israel (Deut. 27:16; Ex. 21:15, 17; Lev. 19:3, 32; Prov. 1:8; 16:31; 20:20; 23:22; 30:17) and is still important in the church (Eph. 6:1–3; 1 Tim. 5:1–2). Too many people in today’s society worship youth and resent the idea of getting old, and for this reason the aged are often neglected and abused and, in some nations, legally killed (euthanasia— “assisted suicide”).

This leads logically to the sixth commandment (Deut. 5:17), which requires that we honor human life and not commit murder. God is the giver of life and only He has the right to take it. Because we’re made in God’s image, murder is an attack against God (Gen. 1:26–27; 9:6). The Bible doesn’t forbid self-defense (Ex. 22:2), but only the state has the right to take human life in cases of capital offense (Rom. 13). Jesus warned that murder often begins with anger (Matt. 5:21–26), and that while murder is far worse, anger is the moral equivalent of murder. It’s worth noting that the law was given to Israel to restrain people and punish them for their crimes, and not to reform them. While the law can’t change the human heart (Heb. 7:19), it can restrain and punish those who defy its authority and refuse to obey its precepts.

The seventh commandment (Deut. 5:18) calls for sexual purity and the honoring of marriage as God’s appointed way for the proper use and enjoyment of human sexuality. In ancient Israel, adultery was considered a capital crime (22:22), while in today’s society, it’s hardly considered a sin, let alone a crime. God can forgive sexual sins (1 Cor. 6:9–11) but He doesn’t promise to interfere with the painful consequences (2 Sam. 12:13–14; Prov. 6:20–35; Gal. 6:7–8; Heb. 13:4). It’s disgusting the way the media glorify sex and turn fornication and adultery into entertainment.

God is concerned not only about the way we treat other people but also about the way we treat other people’s property. The eighth commandment (Deut. 5:19) simply says, “Neither shalt thou steal.” Brief and to the point, it covers a multitude of offenses: stealing property, stealing a person’s good name (slander), cheating on an examination, and even stealing people (slavery, kidnapping). Ephesians 4: makes it clear that there are only three ways to get property: work for it, receive it as a gift, or steal it. Only the first two are acceptable to the Lord.

The ninth commandment (Deut. 5:20) forbids all forms of lying, whether on the witness stand in court or over the back fence (see 17:6–13). Truth is the cement that holds society together, and things fall apart when people don’t keep their promises, whether contracts in business or vows at the marriage altar. This commandment also prohibits slander, which is lying about other people (Ex. 23:1; Prov 10:18; 12:17; 19:9; 24:28; Titus 3:1–2; James 4:11; 1 Peter 2:1). God’s people should be known for speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15).

The focus of the tenth commandment (Deut. 5:21) is covetousness, the sinful desire in the heart for anything that rightfully we shouldn’t have. This commandment and the first commandment (v. 1) deal with inward attitudes rather than outward actions, but breaking either of these two commandments could lead to breaking all the rest of them. Because of covetousness, people have robbed, committed adultery, lied, and even murdered. If we obey the first commandment and truly love God and worship only Him, then covetousness won’t be a problem (Matt. 6:33; Luke 12:16; Eph. 5:3; Col. 3:5).

Christian believers who depend on the indwelling Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22–26) and live by the law of love (Rom. 13:8–10) don’t have to strive to obey these commandments, because the life of God will flow through them and enable them to fulfill the righteousness of God (8:1–17). The old nature knows no law, but the new nature needs no law. There’s probably a law in your city that requires parents to care for their children, but how many parents think about that law? Parents care for their children because they love them, not because they’re afraid of going to jail.

Because we’ve been born again into God’s family and have received God’s divine nature within, we are enabled by the Spirit to obey God’s law and live godly lives (1 John 3:1–9).

The God of the law (vv. 22–33). The purpose of the law of God is to reveal the God of the law, and when you focus on Him, you find it a delight to obey His commands (Ps. 40:8). Moses closed his review of the Ten Commandments by reminding the new generation that at Sinai God revealed His glory and His greatness. The God of Israel is not to be trifled with because He is a holy God. Israel would never again go to Sinai and see the fire, the cloud, the darkness, and the lightning, and hear the awesome voice of God speak from the mountain, but they needed to remember the majesty of their God and the authority of His Word.

Many churches today have lost the biblical concept of the majesty and authority of God as expressed in His law. This deficiency has cheapened our worship, turned evangelism into religious salesmanship, and converted the Bible into a self-help book that’s guaranteed to make you a success. A.W. Tozer was right when he said that “no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God.” He also said, “The essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him.” If that’s true, and I believe it is, then many evangelical Christians are guilty of idol worship.

In his appeal to Israel, Moses urged them to remember the majesty of God and respect the Word of God. He quoted Jehovah’s own words, “Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always” (Deut. 5: niv). Obedience is always a matter of the heart, and if we love the Lord, we will keep His commandments (John 14:15, 21–24). There’s no conflict between the greatness of God and the grace of God, His transcendence and His immanence, for we can love the Lord and fear the Lord with the same heart (Ps. 2:10–12; 34:8–9). The fear of the Lord is a major theme in Deuteronomy (6:2, 13, 24; 10:20; 14:23; 17:19; 31:12), but so is the love of God for us (7:7; 10:15; 23:5) as well as our love for Him (6:5; 10:12; 11:1, 13, 22; 19:9; 30:6, 16, 20). The immature believer with a shallow theology sees a contradiction here, but the mature believer rejoices in the balance revealed in the Word: “God is love” and “God is light” (1 John 4:8; 1:5).

Even though God’s children live under grace and not under the Mosaic law (Rom. 6:14; Gal. 5:1), it’s important for us to know the law of God so that we might better know the God of the law and please Him. Christ has fulfilled the types and symbols found in the law, so we no longer practice the Old Testament rituals as Israel did. Christ bore the curse of the law on the cross (Gal. 3:10–13) so that we need not fear judgment (Rom. 8:1). But the moral law still stands and God still judges sin. It’s as wrong today to lie, steal, commit adultery, and murder as it was when Moses received the tables of the law at Mount Sinai. In fact, it’s worse, because we have today the full revelation of God’s will through Jesus Christ, and we sin against a flood of light.

“I will delight myself in your statutes; I will not forget your word” (Ps. 119:16).