Day 070 (Deuteronomy 1-2) - Year 7
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Hey Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for the Bible Recap.

Today we started a new book, and the last book of the Law or the Torah, as it's known in the Jewish world. Of all the Old Testament books quoted in the New Testament, Deuteronomy ranks third, and it's the second most quoted by Jesus. So you may recognize a lot of what we read. The word Deuteronomy means second law. We're going to revisit some old laws as well as see some practical application of them. In many ways, Deuteronomy serves to recap everything we've read so far.

Moses never goes very deep into any of the stories, but he does skim the surface of a lot of things that will be familiar to you. And that's all perfectly timed for us. Because after we wrap up Deuteronomy, we're about to move into a more narrative story with lots of new characters. So it'll be great to have a quick refresher on everything we just learned. Plus, they say you have to hear something eight times before you retain it. So this is all serving to embed it into our hearts and minds.

And anytime we do come across something familiar, I have two challenges for us. First, resist the potential frustration that might come from this. Be grateful you're recalling the things you've already read. That means you really learned it. That's worth celebrating. Second, even in the familiar stories, try to learn something new about God than you learned the first time we covered these things. Ask Him to give you wisdom to see something new that you've never seen before.

Most of these 34 chapters are kind of a motivational sermon by Moses just before he dies. They're his final words to these people that he spent the past 40 years serving. He's loved them, sacrificed for them, fought for them, rebuked them, and now he realizes he won't be there to guide them anymore. And while he trusts God to fulfill his promises to them, he also knows the Israelites really well and seems to be kind of nervous that they're going to screw things up again somehow. Stay tuned to see how that goes. So let's dig in.

When the Sinai covenant between God and the Israelites was originally set in place, it was established with the parents of the people here today. Their parents didn't do a great job of keeping the covenant, so Moses is setting up a covenant renewal here, kind of like when married couples renew their vows. Moses will be reminding the people that God promised them this land and that there are things required of them by this covenant as well.

Today, he starts by going over a few highlights of their time in the desert, and in the days to come, he'll revisit some of the laws with these new people to make sure they grasp what they're entering into. One thing that could be confusing in this conversation is that Moses refers to them as you, even though many of these people hadn't been born yet. He's referring to them as a people, not them specifically. He's walking through all the things he's experienced with the Israelites, dead or alive, since they left Egypt.

He reminds them of all God has done for them. And he also reminds them of the things that have gone wrong because of their sin. For instance, Moses reminds them of the time they almost entered the Promised Land 38 years earlier when they were at Kadesh Barnea. But the spies were afraid and their fear was contagious. Fear always magnifies the enemy and diminishes God. In fact, in 127, we see that it results in them grumbling that God is doing this to them because he hated them.

This is a great example of what we talked about with the Ten Commandments and taking God's name in vain. His name is inextricably linked to his character. And when we disbelieve his character, we take his name in vain. God spent 38 years killing off their unbelief. Moses also recalls how they tried to avoid those 38 years of consequences by taking the land without God's blessing and command. This is a timely reminder for them. They're about to encounter a lot of land that God is not giving to them.

Many of them weren't alive when their parents tried to take the land without God's command, so they may not have personally learned this lesson through the consequences their parents experienced. God lets them know that if they decide to try and take the land God's allotted for Esau and Lot, just because they're God's kids and they think they're entitled to it, things will not go well.

He didn't let them win at Kadesh, and he's telling them he's not giving them Esau's land or Lot's land either. He does not bless all our actions simply because we're his kids and we have a dream in our hearts. His plan still prevails, and we find our greatest joy in following him instead of our own plans. We also get some hope about the Israelites' upcoming battles, because the people they're most afraid of are the giants in the land. And we find out that some of these giants have already been driven out by the people of Esau.

These giants go by a lot of names. Emim, Rephaim, Anakim, Zamzumim. These all appear to also be related to the Nephilim we talked about in Genesis 6. Not only that, but the word Rephaim is also the Hebrew word used in Isaiah 26 to refer to the spirits of the dead. So it seems like there's some supernatural evil stuff happening with these giants, which is another reason, beyond just their size, why the Israelites might be terrified of them.

And if these giants truly are related to fallen angels somehow, then of course the enemy would want to occupy the land God has promised to his people. Of course he would want to try to thwart and counterfeit God's plan. When we first discussed all this way back on day two, we linked to some bonus content to help explain these ideas for those of you who may want more information. We link to that again in today's show notes, as well as a second resource with even more information. What was your God shot today?

I noticed his generosity, even to those who aren't his kids. God blessed Esau, even though the blessing came through his brother Jacob. Esau was still a descendant of Abraham through Isaac. And God blessed Lot, even though he wasn't a descendant of Abraham at all. He was his nephew.

God doles out promises and blessings as He will, and they aren't limited to those who are His children. As His adopted child, I can still rejoice when He blesses others. It displays His common grace and His abundant generosity when He blesses those outside His family. Maybe He's enticing them in. Who knows? And for those of us who have been adopted into His family, we find our greatest comfort in knowing we have an eternal relationship with Him.

Temporary blessings like land and possessions might bring some level of happiness, but we know He's where the joy is.

Okay, Bible readers, it's time for our weekly check-in. How are you doing? In today's reading, Moses gave the Israelites a motivational speech that demonstrated God's character. So I'm here to pull a Moses and do that for you. What have you learned about God so far? If you're behind, don't get frustrated with yourself. Don't give up. You're probably reading the Bible more than you would on your own. And guess what? He's not going to stop pursuing you, so you might as well show up and meet him in this space.

When it feels tough to get in the Word each day, ask Him to grant you an increasing desire to know Him more. He can change your heart.