The Fifth Book of Moses, called Deuteronomy
Deuteronomy 11
Chapter XI · Vol. I, pp. 498–500
1 An exhortation to obedience, 2 by their own experience of God's great works, 8 by promise of God's great blessings, 16 and by threatenings. 18 A careful study is required in God's words. 26 The blessing and curse is set before them.
1 THEREFORE athou shalt love the LORD thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway.
A.M. 2553. B.C. 1451.
a Lu. 1.74,75. ch. 10.12; 6.5,13; 12.1. Le. 8.35; 18.30.
2 And bknow ye this day: for I speak not with your children which have not known, and which have not seen cthe chastisement of the LORD your God, his greatness, his mighty hand, and his stretched-out arm,
b ch. 4.9,23,36.
c Le. 26.18. ch. 8.2,3,5; 3.24; 4.34; 9.26.
3 And dhis miracles, and his acts, which he did in the midst of Egypt unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt, and unto all his land;
d Ex. vii.-xiv. Ps. 78.11-15; 105.25-38; 136.10-15. Ne. 9.10. ch. 7.18,19. Jos. 24.5-7. Ju. 10.11. 1 Sa. 12.8. Is. 63.9-14. Je. 32.20,21. Ac. 7.36; 13.17.
4 And what he did unto the army of Egypt, unto their horses, and to their chariots; how he made the water of the Red sea to overflow them as they pursued after you, and how the LORD hath destroyed them unto this day;
5 Ande what he did unto you in the wilderness, until ye came into this place;
e Ex. xv.-xl. Le. i.-xxvii. Nu. i.-xxxvi. Ps. lxxviii. cv.; 106.1-33.
6 And fwhat he did unto Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben; how the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and their tents, and all the substance1 that was in their possession,2 in the midst of all Israel:
f Nu. 16.31; 26.9,10; 27.3. Ps. 106.17.
1 Or, living substance which followed them.
2 Heb. was at their feet.
7 But your eyes have seen all the great acts of the LORD which he did.3
3 All those who at the exodus were twenty years old and upwards died in the wilderness; but thousands of those who were under twenty when they left Egypt had witnessed all the miracles of mercy and judgment in Egypt, in the Red Sea, and in the whole wilderness journey. To these Moses now made his appeal.—P.
8 Thereforeg shall ye keep all the commandments which I command you this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the land, whither ye go to possess it;
g Ps. 116.12-16. Jos. 1.6,7. Is. 60.21; 65.9. ch. 4.12,34; 5.16,29,33; 6.1,3,24; 7.12,13; 8.6,7,13; ver. 21-23.
9 And that ye hmay prolong your days in the land, which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give unto them, and to their seed, a land that floweth with milk and honey.
10 For the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot,4 as a garden of herbs:
4 With thy own labour, digging trenches for rills of water, or by watering pans.—[Moses proceeds to contrast Egypt and Canaan. The first point of contrast lies in the irrigation of Egypt, where rain scarcely ever falls. This work is done by 'the foot,' that is, the laborious turning of a wheel by treading successively upon steps in the circumference, while the water is brought up in buckets, and thence conveyed through the level ground in trenches; whereas Canaan was watered without labour, by 'drinking in the rain of heaven.' The second point of contrast lies in the tame uniformity of Egypt, and the lovely succession of hills and valleys in Canaan, thus affording a succession of landscape pictures which in a level country such as Egypt the eye searches for in vain.—C.]
11 But ithe land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven;
12 A kland which the LORD thy God careth5 for: the leyes of the LORD thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year, even unto the end of the year.6
k Ps. 65.9-13; 132.13,14; 87.2,3. Is. 62.12.
5 Heb. seeketh.
l 1 Ki. 9.3. Je. 24.6. Ezr. 5.5. Ps. 33.18; 34.15. ver. 14. Ho. 6.2,3. Joel 2.23.
6 In countries near the equator the seasons of wind and calm, and rain and drought, are almost perfectly uniform, and their changes can be prognosticated with considerable certainty; as we approach the north or the south, they become more variable and uncertain in time, duration, and degree. Still, that the seasons follow a law of nature, both observation and analogy confirm. But what is a law of nature but another name for the will of God impressed upon any part of his works? The seasons therefore are neither from blind chance, nor material elements, but from the Almighty; and, like all his other servants, are made at his will the vehicles of his wrath or of his blessing. Happy the husbandman whose eyes, enlightened by grace, can read both the mercies and judgments of God in the shower and the sunshine, in the drought and in the storm, who, when his 'labour fails,' can yet 'joy in the God of his salvation,' and who, when his 'barns overflow' with plenty, forgets not the hand that gave it.—C.
13 And it shall come to pass, mif ye shall hearken diligently unto my comandments, which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart, and with all your soul,
m ver. 22. Ps. 119.4. ch. 4.1,5,6,9; 6.1-7; 10.12,13. 1 Co. 15.58. 1 Ti. 4.8.
14 That nI will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain, and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.
n Eze. 34.25,26. Ho. 6.3. Joel 2.23. Ja. 5.7. Ps. 65.9-13. The first or former rain fell about October, and the latter in March, before their harvest.
15 And oI will send7 grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat, and be full.
o Ps. 104.14,15. Joel 2.19,22,24.
7 Heb. give.
16 Takep heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;
p ch. 4.9,23; xiii.; 29.18; 8.19. He. 3.12; 2.1; 4.1,13. Job 31.27. 1 Jn. 5.21.
17 And then the LORD's wrath be kindled against you, and he qshut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you.
q 1 Ki. 8.35; 17.1. 2 Ch. 6.26; 7.13. ch. 28.23,24. Am. 4.7. 1 Sa. 12.25. Je. 14.1-6. Hag. 1.9-11; 2.10,17.
18 Therefore shall ye rlay up these my words in your heart, and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.
r Ps. 119.11. ch. 6.8. Ex. 13.9,16. Pr. 3.1; 7.2,3; 6.20-23.
19 Ands ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
21 That your udays may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth.
u ver. 9. Ex. 20.12. ch. 5.16. Pr. 4.10. Ps. 89.29,30; 72.5.
22 For xif ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him;
x ver. 13. ch. 4.2; 6.1,3. Mat. 22.37; 4.10. Ac. 11.23. Tit. 2.11,12. 1 Ti. 4.8.
23 Theny will the LORD drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves.
24 Everyz place whereon the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours: from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the uttermost sea, shall your coast be.8
z Jos. 1.3; 14.9. Ge. 15.18-21. Ex. 23.23,31; 34.11-13. Ju. 2.1-3. 2 Ch. 9.26. Nu. 34.3-12. 1 Ki. 4.21,24.
8 The possession of the whole 'land of promise,' 'from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates' (Ge. 15. 18), was thus made conditional. If the people were faithful and obedient they would obtain it; if not, then the promise was null. The people did not fulfil the condition, and therefore they never possessed the whole country.—P.
25 There ashall no man be able to stand before you: for the LORD your God shall lay the fear of you, and the dread of you, upon all the land that ye shall tread upon, as he hath said unto you.
26 Behold, bI set before you this day a blessing and a curse;9
b ch. 30.15-20. Le. xxvi. ch. xxvii.-xxxii.
9 For the meaning of a blessing and a curse, see notes on Ge. 1.22,28; 2. 14, 17.—C.
27 Ac blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day:
c ch. 28.1-14. Le. 26.3-13. Is. 3.10; 1.19. Ro. 2.7,10. Ps. 19?.11. 1 Ti. 4.8. 1 Co. 15.58.
28 And a dcurse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.
29 And it shall come to pass, when the LORD thy God hath brought thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalte put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal.1
e ch. 27.12-26. Jos. 8.30-35.
1 These two mountains lie to the westward of Jordan, in the lot of Ephraim. They are in height from 2,700 to 2,800 ft., extending from east to west in lines nearly parallel, with the beautiful valley of Shechem or Sychar, now called Nablous, about 200 paces in width, between them. They are about a league in length, and approach in form to a semicircle, Mount Ebal to the north. Travellers have represented Mount Gerizim as more fertile and picturesque than Ebal, so that the two mountains in their natural aspect and condition were, in some degree, emblems of the blessing of fertility and beauty, and the curse of barrenness and deformity.—C.
30 Are they not on the fother side Jordan, by the way where the sun goeth down, in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the2 champaign gover against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh?3
f West side of it, ch. 1.1,5; 3.8; ver. 31.
2 Plain country.
g Jos. 5.9. Ge. 12.6,7. Ju. 7.1.
3 This verse is obscure, and has been a source of difficulty to commentators. Its full meaning appears to be as follows:—Are they not beyond Jordan, that is, on its western side, in the direction in which the sun sets; are they not in the land of the Canaanites, who live in the Arabah facing Gilgal; are they not beside the terebinths (or plains) of Moreh? The mention of the Arabah and Gilgal is connected with the territory of the Canaanites, and not with the situation of Ebal and Gerizim; while the last clause of the verse refers to the mountains, and has no connection with the Arabah or Gilgal.—P.
31 For ye hshall pass over Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the LORD your God giveth you, and ye shall possess it, and dwell therein.
h ch. 9.1. Jos. 3.13-17; xv.-xix. Ps. 44.2,3; 78.55; 66.6,12; 105.43,44; 135.12; 136.21,22.
Notes
[Ver. 12. The changing seasons, which God himself regulates, made Palestine fertile. In Egypt human labour and skill regulated the irrigation by which the land was made productive. In Palestine the 'early rain' of autumn moistened the parched soil, and prepared it for the sowing of the seed. The 'latter rain' of early spring brought the grain crops to maturity. The bright sun of summer ripened the grapes and other fruits. Thus were 'the eyes of the Lord always upon' the land. P.]
Reflections.—Thus let my love to the LORD always work in holy obedience to all his commandments. Let the remembrance of his early kindness to me and mine, and his awful judgments on others around me, stir me up to the utmost circumspection in my conduct. God's mercies should leave an impression on us which neither time nor age should ever efface. And while sins shorten men's days, and cause countries to spue out their inhabitants, yea, often into ruin, let me carefully observe God's kindness, even in outward things. Mercies coming from the immediate hand of God are doubly sweet. Godliness hath the promise of the life that now is, as well as of that which is to come. But if we refuse to be influenced by God's mercies, we must sink under his judgments. When the heart is filled with the knowledge and love of God's word, the tongue will be as the pen of a ready writer in speaking of divine things. Let me, therefore, by all means, labour to fix a deep sense of spiritual things upon my own soul, and be careful to transmit the knowledge of them unto men: for true religion stamps a reverence on its professors, which keeps even their enemies in awe of them; and godliness, transmitted with our possessions, is the surest way to perpetuate them in our families. How plain and evident, in God's word, is the way to happiness and misery! And if men will not see, will not walk aright, their blood must be on their own head. Since, then, the blessings and curses of time and eternity are set before me in the gospel, let me choose Jesus and his inexhaustible fulness of blessings, as my portion, and my everlasting all!