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Deuteronomy Chapter
Five
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 5
In
this chapter Moses
after a short preface
Deuteronomy 5:1
repeats the law of the decalogue
or ten commands
with some little variation
Deuteronomy 5:6
and then reminds the Israelites of the terrible manner in which it was
delivered to them
Deuteronomy 5:22
which put them upon making a request that Moses might be a mediator between God
and them
and hear what the Lord had to say
and report it to them; to which
they promised obedience
Deuteronomy 5:24
and which being agreeable to the Lord was granted
Deuteronomy 5:28
and this laid them under a greater obligation to observe the commands of God
and keep them
Deuteronomy 5:32.
Deuteronomy 5:1 And Moses called
all Israel
and said to them: “Hear
O Israel
the statutes and judgments which
I speak in your hearing today
that you may learn them and be careful to
observe them.
YLT
1And Moses calleth unto all
Israel
and saith unto them
`Hear
Israel
the statutes and the judgments
which I am speaking in your ears to-day
and ye have learned them
and have
observed to do them.
And Moses called all Israel
.... The heads of the
various tribes
and elders of the people
as he had on occasion been used to
do; unless it can be thought that at different times he repeated the following
laws to separate parties and bodies of them
until they had all heard them:
and said unto them
hear
O Israel
the statutes and judgments
which I speak in your ears this day; the laws
moral
ceremonial
and judicial
which he was about to repeat
and afresh declare unto
them
being what they had all a concern in
and under obligation to regard.
Deuteronomy 5:2 2 The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.
YLT
2Jehovah our God made with
us a covenant in Horeb;
The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. Which is
Sinai
as Aben Ezra observes; it being the same mountain
only it had two tops
which bore these different names; for certain it is that the decalogue after
repeated was given at Sinai
and had the nature and form of a covenant; see Exodus 24:7.
Deuteronomy 5:3 3 The Lord did not make this covenant with our fathers
but with us
those who
are here today
all of us who are alive.
YLT
3not with our fathers hath
Jehovah made this covenant
but with us; we -- these -- here to-day -- all of
us alive.
The Lord made not this covenant with our fathers
.... That is
not with them only
as Jarchi
Aben Ezra
and Abendana remark; for certain it
is that this covenant was made
or law was given
to the immediate fathers of
this present generation of Israelites
whose carcasses had fallen in the
wilderness; unless this is to be understood of their more remote ancestors
Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob
with whom the covenant of grace was made
or afresh made
manifest
especially with the former; when the law
the covenant here spoken
of
was not delivered until four hundred and thirty years after
Galatians 3:16
but with us
even us
who are all of us here alive this day; many of them
were then present at the giving of the law
and though under twenty years of
age
could remember it
and the circumstances of it; and besides
they were the
same people to whom it was given
though not consisting wholly of the same
individuals.
Deuteronomy 5:4 4 The Lord talked with you face to face on the mountain from the midst of the
fire.
YLT
4Face to face hath Jehovah
spoken with you
in the mount
out of the midst of the fire;
The Lord talked with you face to face in the mount
.... Meaning
not in that free
friendly
and familiar manner
in which he sometimes talked
with Moses
of whom this phrase is used
Exodus 33:11
but
publicly
audibly
clearly
and distinctly
or without the interposition of
another; he did not speak to them by Moses
but to them themselves; he talked
to them without a middle person between them
as Aben Ezra expresses it:
without making use of one to relate to them what he said; but he talked to them
directly
personally:
out of the midst of the fire; in which he descended
and with which the mountain was burning all the time he was speaking; which
made it very awful and terrible
and pointed at the terrors of the legal
dispensation.
Deuteronomy 5:5 5 I
stood between the Lord and you at that time
to declare
to you the word of the Lord; for you were afraid because of
the fire
and you did not go up the mountain. He said:
YLT
5I am standing between
Jehovah and you
at that time
to declare to you the word of Jehovah
for ye
have been afraid from the presence of the fire
and ye have not gone up into
the mount; saying:
I stood between the Lord and you at that time
.... Between
the Word of the Lord and you
as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan; that is
about that time
not at the exact precise time the ten commandments were
delivered
for these were spoken immediately to the people; but when the
ceremonial law was given
which was ordained by angels
in the hand of a
mediator
Galatians 3:19
and
which was at the request of the people as follows
terrified by the appearance
of the fire out of which the moral law was delivered:
to show you the word of the Lord; not the decalogue
that
they heard with their own ears
but the other laws which were afterwards given
that were of the ceremonial and judicial kind:
for ye were afraid by reason of the fire
and went not up into the
mount; lest they should be consumed by it: and indeed bounds were set
about the mount
and they were charged not to break through:
saying; this word is in connection with the preceding verse
the Lord's
talking out of the midst of the fire
when he said what follows.
Deuteronomy 5:6 6 ‘I am
the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt
out of the house
of bondage.
YLT
6`I Jehovah [am] thy God
who hath brought thee out from the land of Egypt
from a house of servants.
Verses 6-11
I am the Lord thy God
.... This is the preface
to the ten commandments
and is the same with that in Exodus 20:2; see
Gill on Exodus 20:2
and
those commands are here delivered in the same order
and pretty near in the
same words
with a little variation
and a few additions; which I shall only observe
and refer to Exodus 20:1 for the
sense of the various laws.
Deuteronomy 5:7 7 ‘You
shall have no other gods before Me.
YLT
7`Thou hast no other gods in
My presence.
Deuteronomy 5:8 8 ‘You
shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that
is in heaven above
or that is in the earth beneath
or that is
in the water under the earth;
YLT
8`Thou dost not make to thee
a graven image
any similitude which [is] in the heavens above
and which [is]
in the earth beneath
and which [is] in the waters under the earth;
Deuteronomy 5:9 9 you
shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I
the Lord your God
am a jealous God
visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those
who hate Me
YLT
9thou dost not bow thyself
to them nor serve them
for I Jehovah thy God [am] a zealous God
charging
iniquity of fathers on children
and on a third [generation]
and on a fourth
to those hating Me;
Deuteronomy 5:10 10 but
showing mercy to thousands
to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
YLT
10and doing kindness to
thousands
to those loving Me
and to those keeping My commands.
Deuteronomy 5:11 11 ‘You
shall not take the name of the Lord your God
in vain
for the Lord will not hold him
guiltless who takes His name in vain.
YLT
11`Thou dost not take up the
Name of Jehovah thy God for a vain thing
for Jehovah doth not acquit him who
taketh up His Name for a vain thing.
Deuteronomy 5:12 12 ‘Observe
the Sabbath day
to keep it holy
as the Lord your God
commanded you.
YLT
12`Observe the day of the
sabbath -- to sanctify it
as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee;
Verse 12-13
Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it
.... Or observe it
by
setting it apart as a time of natural rest
and for the performance of holy and
religious exercises; see Exodus 20:8
where
the phrase is a little varied
"remember the sabbath day to keep it
holy"; it having been instituted before:
as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; not at Sinai
only
for the same might then have been observed of all the rest of the
commands
but before the giving of the law
at the first of the manna; see Exodus 16:23.
Deuteronomy 5:13 13 Six
days you shall labor and do all your work
YLT
13six days thou dost labour
and hast done all thy work
Deuteronomy 5:14 14 but
the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In
it you shall do no work: you
nor your son
nor your daughter
nor your male
servant
nor your female servant
nor your ox
nor your donkey
nor any of your
cattle
nor your stranger who is within your gates
that your male
servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.
YLT
14and the seventh day [is] a
sabbath to Jehovah thy God; thou dost not do any work
thou
and thy son
and
thy daughter
and thy man-servant
and thy handmaid
and thine ox
and thine
ass
and all thy cattle
and thy sojourner who [is] within thy gates; so that
thy man-servant
and thy handmaid doth rest like thyself;
Nor thine ox
nor thine ass
.... In Exodus 20:10
it is
only in general said:
nor thy cattle: here by way of illustration and explanation
the ox and the ass are particularly mentioned; the one being used in ploughing
ground
and treading out the corn
and the other in carrying burdens; and it is
added:
nor any of thy cattle; as their camels
or
whatever else they were wont to use in any kind of service; they were none of
them to do any kind of work on the sabbath day. The following clause also is
not used before
which expresses the end of this institution:
that thy manservant and thy maidservant may have rest as well as
thee; which if the cattle had not rest
they could not have
being
obliged to attend them at the plough or elsewhere; and this respects not only
hired
but bond servants and maidens.
Deuteronomy 5:15 15 And
remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt
and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an
outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God
commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.
YLT
15and thou hast remembered
that a servant thou hast been in the land of Egypt
and Jehovah thy God is
bringing thee out thence by a strong hand
and by a stretched-out arm;
therefore hath Jehovah thy God commanded thee to keep the day of the sabbath.
And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt
.... Even a
bondservant; for Egypt was an house of bondage
and there the Israelites were
made to serve in hard bondage; of which they are reminded
that their hearts
might be touched with it
and inclined to show pity to persons in somewhat
similar circumstances; calling to mind how sweet a little rest would have been
unto them when in Egypt:
and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence
through a
mighty hand and by a stretched out arm; signifying that their
deliverance from their state of bondage was not owing to themselves
nor to any
creature
but to the mercy and kindness of God
and to his almighty power; and
therefore they were under the greatest obligations to observe any command and
institution of his he should think fit to make; and particularly this of the
sabbath
which was made on that account
as follows:
wherefore the Lord thy God commandeth thee to keep the sabbath day; in
commemoration of their rest from Egyptian bondage.
Deuteronomy 5:16 16 ‘Honor
your father and your mother
as the Lord your God
has commanded you
that your days may be long
and that it may be well with you
in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
YLT
16`Honour thy father and thy
mother
as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee
so that thy days are prolonged
and so that it is well with thee
on the ground which Jehovah thy God is giving
to thee.
Honour thy father and thy mother
as the Lord thy God hath
commanded thee
.... And is the first commandment with promise
as the apostle
observes
Ephesians 6:2 with
a promise of long life and happiness in the land of Canaan
as follows:
that thy days may be prolonged; see Exodus 20:12 here
it is added:
and that it may go well with thee; and which the apostle
also has in the place referred to:
in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee; the land of
Canaan; which the same apostle explains to a greater latitude:
that thou mayest live long on the earth; applying it
to Christians under the Gospel dispensation
whether Jews or Gentiles.
Deuteronomy 5:17 17 ‘You
shall not murder.
YLT
17`Thou dost not murder.
Verses 17-20
Thou shalt not kill
.... The following
commands begin with the copulative "and"
different from the manner
in which they are expressed
Exodus 20:17 which
joins these together
and them with the preceding ones; hence the law is by
some said to be one copulative
and may serve to illustrate a passage in James 2:10.
Deuteronomy 5:18 18 ‘You
shall not commit adultery.
YLT
18`Thou dost not commit
adultery.
Deuteronomy 5:19 19 ‘You
shall not steal.
YLT
19`Thou dost not steal.
Deuteronomy 5:20 20 ‘You
shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
YLT
20`Thou dost not answer against
thy neighbour -- a false testimony.
Deuteronomy 5:21 21 ‘You
shall not covet your neighbor’s wife; and you shall not desire your neighbor’s
house
his field
his male servant
his female servant
his ox
his donkey
or
anything that is your neighbor’s.’
YLT
21`Thou dost not desire thy
neighbour's wife; nor dost thou covet thy neighbour's house
his field
and his
man-servant
and his handmaid
his ox
and his ass
and anything which [is] thy
neighbour's.
Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife
.... Here a
neighbour's wife is put before his house
different from Exodus 20:17 and
"his field" is added
which with what follows take in everything that
is a man's property; and which is not to be desired or coveted in an unlawful
manner by another
and much less should any means be made use of to deprive him
of it; but "lust" is the thing intended and prohibited
be it after
what it may
which is another man's: see Matthew 5:28
of a man's
field
see Isaiah 5:8.
Deuteronomy 5:22 22 “These
words the Lord spoke to all your assembly
in the mountain from the midst of the
fire
the cloud
and the thick darkness
with a loud voice; and He added no
more. And He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me.
YLT
22`These words hath Jehovah
spoken unto all your assembly
in the mount out of the midst of the fire
of
the cloud
and of the thick darkness -- a great voice; and He hath not added
and He writeth them on two tables of stone
and giveth them unto me.
These words the Lord spake unto all your assembly in the mount
.... The above
ten words or commands
which were spoken so audibly and loudly by the Lord
himself on Mount Sinai
that the whole congregation of the people of Israel
heard them:
out of the midst of the fire
of the cloud
and of the thick
darkness; in which the Lord was; see Deuteronomy 4:11
with a great voice
and he added no more; ceased speaking;
after he had delivered the ten commands
he said no more at that time. The
Targum of Jonathan is
"with a great voice which ceased not.'It ceased not
until all were delivered
and then it did; it was a continued voice
yet clear
and distinct:
and he wrote them iwo tables of stone; marble stone
as the Targum of Jonathan; which is much more likely than what the paraphrase
has on Deuteronomy 4:13
this is an emblem of the duration of the law:
and delivered them unto me; to Moses
and by him to
be delivered to the people
who though they had heard them would be apt to
forget them; and therefore they were written
that they might read them
and
meditate on them
and be careful to keep them.
Deuteronomy 5:23 23 “So
it was
when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness
while the
mountain was burning with fire
that you came near to me
all the heads of your
tribes and your elders.
YLT
23`And it cometh to pass as
ye hear the voice out of the midst of the darkness
and of the mountain burning
with fire
that ye come near unto me
all the heads of your tribes
and your
elders
And it came to pass
when ye heard the voice out of the midst of
the darkness
.... The thick darkness
where God was
and with which the
mountain was covered
Exodus 20:21.
for the mountain did burn with fire; which is a reason both
why the Lord spoke out of the midst of the fire
the mountain on which he
descended burning with it and also for his speaking out of the midst of
darkness
because not only a thick cloud covered the mountain
but it was
altogether on a smoke
which ascended as the smoke of a furnace
Exodus 19:16.
that ye come near unto me
even all the heads of your tribes and
your elders; or wise men
as the Targum of Jonathan; by which it appears
that not only the common people were frightened at what they heard and saw on
Mount Sinai
but those of the first rank and eminence among them
who were the
most famous for their authority and wisdom.
Deuteronomy 5:24 24 And
you said: ‘Surely the Lord our God has shown us His glory
and His greatness
and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire. We
have seen this day that God speaks with man; yet he still lives.
YLT
24and say
Lo
Jehovah our
God hath shewed us His honour
and His greatness; and His voice we have heard
out of the midst of the fire; this day we have seen that God doth speak with
man -- and he hath lived.
And ye said
behold
the Lord our God hath showed us his glory and
his greatness
.... In descending on Mount Sinai in the manner he did
and
giving the law from thence with such solemnity; for there was a glory in the
ministration of it
as the apostle argues 2 Corinthians 3:7
it being delivered with so much majesty
and such a glorious apparatus
attending it; see Deuteronomy 33:2.
Aben Ezra interprets this of the appearance of fire in which the Lord was
"and his greatness"
of the thunders and lightnings
and the voice of
the trumpet:
and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire; the ten
words
as the same interpreter rightly notes
which were vocally and audibly
expressed out of the fire:
we have seen this day
that God doth talk with man
and he liveth; they had
proof of it in themselves; God had been talking with them out of the fire
and
yet it did not reach and consume them
but they were still alive.
Deuteronomy 5:25 25 Now
therefore
why should we die? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear
the voice of the Lord our God anymore
then we shall
die.
YLT
25`And
now
why do we die?
for consume us doth this great fire -- if we add to hear the voice of Jehovah
our God any more -- then we have died.
Now therefore why should we die?.... Since we are now
alive
and have so wonderfully escaped the danger we were exposed unto
let us
be careful that we are not liable to it again:
for this great fire will consume us: if it continues
and we
are exposed to it; perhaps some of them might remember the fire that burnt in
the uttermost parts of the camp at Taberah
and the destruction of Korah and
the two hundred and fifty men with him by fire
Numbers 11:1
if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more
then we shall
die; for it was such a voice of words they could not endure as to the
matter of them
and therefore entreated the word might not be spoken to them
any more; it being the killing letter
and the ministration of condemnation and
death; and the manner in which it was delivered was so terrible
that they
concluded they could not live
but must die if they heard it again; and
imagined that if the fire continued
the flames of it would spread and reach
them
and they would not be able to escape them.
Deuteronomy 5:26 26 For
who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God
speaking from the midst of the fire
as we have
and lived?
YLT
26For who of all flesh [is]
he who hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the
fire like us -- and doth live?
For who is there of all flesh
.... What man
was there in any age
that was ever heard of or can be named:
that hath heard the voice of the living God; who lives in
and of himself
and is the author and giver of life to all his creatures
whereby he is distinguished from and is opposed unto the lifeless deities of
the Gentiles; and which makes him and his voice heard the more awful and
tremendous
and especially as
speaking out of the midst of the fire: which was the
present case:
as we have
and lived? of this there never was
the like instance; for though some had seen God and lived
as Jacob did
and
therefore called the name of the place where he saw him Penuel
Genesis 32:30
and
Moses had heard the voice of the angel of the Lord out of a bush
which seemed
to be burning
and was not consumed
Exodus 3:2
yet
none ever heard the voice of the Lord out of real fire
and particularly
expressing such words as he did
but the Israelites. Zoroastres
the founder of
the Magi among the Persians
and of their religion
seems to have had respect
to this
and to have applied falsely this to himself
which belonged to Moses
and the people of Israel; for it is saidF11Hyde Hist. Relig. Vet.
Pers. c. 8. p. 160.
"one reason the Persians have fire in so much
veneration is
because they say that Zoroastres
being caught up to heaven
did
not see God
but heard him speaking with him out of the midst of fire.'
Deuteronomy 5:27 27 You
go near and hear all that the Lord our God
may say
and tell us all that the Lord our God
says to you
and we will hear and do it.’
YLT
27Draw near thou
and hear
all that which Jehovah our God saith
and thou
thou dost speak unto us all
that which Jehovah our God speaketh unto thee
and we have hearkened
and done
it.
Go thou near
.... To the mount
and to God on it:
and hear all that the Lord our God shall say; for they
supposed
by the continuance of the Lord on the mount
and the fire burning on
it
that he had more to say
which they were not averse to hear; but desired it
might be not immediately delivered to them
but by the means of Moses; the
sound of the words
and the sight of the fire
being so terrible to them:
and speak thou unto us all that the Lord our God shall speak unto
thee: they did not doubt
knowing the faithfulness of Moses
his
declaring all unto them that should be told him by the Lord; and they were
desirous that he should
they did not want to have anything withheld from them
only they could not bear to see and hear things immediately from the Lord:
and we will hear it and do it; hearken to it
and
receive it
as the word of God
and not man
and yield a ready and cheerful
obedience
even to everything that should be required; see Exodus 20:19.
Deuteronomy 5:28 28 “Then
the Lord heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me
and the Lord said to me: ‘I have heard the voice of the words of this people
which they have spoken to you. They are right in all that they have
spoken.
YLT
28`And Jehovah heareth the
voice of your words
in your speaking unto me
and Jehovah saith unto me
I
have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken unto
thee; they have done well [in] all that they have spoken.
And the Lord heard the voice of your word
when ye spake unto me
.... Not only
in a general way
as he hears and knows all that is spoken by men; for there is
not a word on the tongue
formed upon it
and uttered by it
but what is
altogether known to him; but in a special and particular manner observed
took
notice of
approved
and was well pleased with what these people said:
and the Lord said unto me
I have heard the voice of the words of
this people which they have spoken unto thee; not only heard the sound
of them
but took notice of the sense and meaning of them
and listened to them
with pleasure and delight:
they have well said all that they have spoken; expressing
such an awe and reverence of the divine Majesty
desiring to have a mediator
between God and them
and purposing and promising to hearken to and obey
whatsoever he should command by him.
Deuteronomy 5:29 29 Oh
that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all
My commandments
that it might be well with them and with their children
forever!
YLT
29O that their heart had been
thus to them
to fear Me
and to keep My commands all the days
that it may be
well with them
and with their sons -- to the age!
O that there were such an heart in them
.... Not that
there is properly speaking such volitions and wishes in God; but
as Aben Ezra
observes
the Scripture speaks after the language of the children of men; and
may be considered as upbraiding them with want of such an heart
and with
weakness to do what they had promised; and
at most
as approving of those
things they spoke of as grateful to him
and profitable to them: the words may
be rendered
"who will giveF12מי יתן "quis det"
V. L. Pagninus
Montanus
Vatablus
Drusius; "quis dabit"
Piscator. that they had such an
heart"; not to me
but to them
as Aben Ezra notes; they cannot give it to
themselves
nor can any creature give it to them; none but God can
and
therefore they ought to have prayed to him to give them an heart to hearken and
do; agreeably to which is the Arabic version
"it is to be wished by them
that such an heart would continue with them;'which they by their language
signified was in them: that they would fear me; which is not naturally in the
heart of man
is a gift of God
a part of the covenant of grace
is implanted
in regeneration
and is no inconsiderable branch of it; it is opposed to pride
and is consistent with faith and joy
and is increased by views of the grace
and goodness of God
and is a distinguishing character of a good man:
and keep all my commandments always; not only one
but all
and not only at some certain times
but continually; and which are to be kept
in faith from a principle of love
with a view to the glory of God
and in the
strength of Christ; and to this the fear of God is necessary
for where there
is no fear of God
there is no regard to his commandments; but where there is a
reverential fear of God
there are faith
hope
love
and every other grace;
yea
the Spirit
the author of all
who is in the saints
to enable them to
walk in the statutes of the Lord
and to keep his judgments and do them; and
such keep the commandments of God
not from a slavish fear
but from a sense of
divine goodness:
that it might be well with them
and with their children for ever; for the fear
of God
and the keeping of his commandments
issue in the good of men
in their
own good
their inward peace
and spiritual welfare; in the good of others
their neighbours
servants
and children
by way of example and instruction;
and even in the public peace and prosperity of a nation in which they dwell:
not that these things are meritorious of eternal life
but are what are
approved of by the Lord
and are grateful to him; which is the chief view in
the expression of the text.
Deuteronomy 5:30 30 Go
and say to them
“Return to your tents.”
YLT
30`Go
say to them
Turn back
for yourselves
to your tents;
Go say to them
get you into your tents again. Which they had
left
being brought by Moses
at the direction of God
to the foot of Mount
Sinai
to receive the law from his mouth; this being done
they are ordered to
return to their tents again
to their families
wives
and children.
Deuteronomy 5:31 31 But
as for you
stand here by Me
and I will speak to you all the commandments
the
statutes
and the judgments which you shall teach them
that they may observe them
in the land which I am giving them to possess.’
YLT
31and thou here stand thou
with Me
and let Me speak unto thee all the command
and the statutes
and the
judgments which thou dost teach them
and they have done in the land which I am
giving to them to possess it.
But as for thee
stand thou here by me
.... On the
mount by him whither he was called up; Moses was not permitted to go to his
tent when the children of Israel were
but was ordered to wait upon the Lord to
receive instructions from him
which he was to communicate to the people
being
a kind of a mediator between God and them
as they requested
and which was
granted them:
and I will speak unto thee all the commandments
and the statutes
and the judgments: all laws
moral
ceremonial
and judicial
which belong to them
as men
as in a church state
and members of a body politic:
which thou shalt teach them
that they may do them; for all
doctrine is in order to practice
without which all instructions
and
theoretical notions
signify little: and these they were more especially to do
and some of them peculiarly:
in the land which I give them to possess it: the land of
Canaan
and which laid on them no small obligation to do the commandments of
God; since of his free favour and good will
and as a pure gift of his
he had
bestowed upon them a land flowing with milk and honey
into which he was just
now about to bring them; as nothing can more strongly engage souls to a
cheerful obedience to the service of God
whether in private or in public
than
the consideration of the great and good things which God of his rich grace
bestows upon them
and has promised to them
and prepared for them
and will
quickly put them into the possession of; and upon such an account Moses presses
the observance of the commands of God in the following verses.
Deuteronomy 5:32 32 “Therefore
you shall be careful to do as the Lord your God
has commanded you; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
YLT
32`And ye have observed to do
as Jehovah your God hath commanded you
ye turn not aside -- right or left;
Ye shall observe to do therefore as the Lord your God doth command
you
.... Observe every precept
as to matter and manner
which the
Lord has commanded
and that under a sense of the great obligations laid on
them by him
in giving them freely so good a land to possess:
you shall not turn to the right hand or to the left; but walk in
the way of the commandments of God
and not depart from them at all
but follow
the Lord in his own ways fully. The phrase is expressive of a strict and close
attention to the word of God
without deviating from it in the least; for every
sin
which is a transgression of some command of God or another
is a going out
of the way that directs unto; see Isaiah 30:21.
Deuteronomy 5:33 33 You
shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God
has commanded you
that you may live and that it may be well with you
and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall
possess.
YLT
33in all the way which
Jehovah your God hath commanded you ye walk
so that ye live
and [it is] well
with you
and ye have prolonged days in the land which ye possess.
Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God hath
commanded you
.... None are to be avoided or departed from on any consideration
whatever; see Psalm 119:6 an
instance of this we have in Zacharias and Elizabeth
Luke 1:6 that ye
may live; corporeally
comfortably
in all the outward enjoyments of life
needful for them
particularly in the possession of the land of Canaan
and the
benefits of it; for these promises of life upon obedience seem to reach no
further
unless as types and emblems of what is enjoyed through the obedience
and righteousness of Christ
as the following phrases show:
and that it may be well with you
and that ye
may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess; the land of
Canaan; though the Jewish writersF13Moreh Nevochim
par. 3. c. 27.
p. 418. carry it further
even to heaven and eternal happiness; and so may we
in the sense before given.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》