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Deuteronomy Chapter
Nine
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 9
In
this chapter the Israelites are assured of the ejection of the Canaanites
though so great and mighty
to make room for them
Deuteronomy 9:1
and they are cautioned not to attribute this to their own righteousness
but to
the wickedness of the nations which deserved to be so treated
and to the
faithfulness of God in performing his promise made to their fathers
Deuteronomy 9:4
and that it might appear that it could not be owing to their righteousness
it
is affirmed and proved that they had been a rebellious and provoking people from
their coming out of Egypt to that time
as was evident from their idolatry at
Horeb; a particular account of which is given
and of the displeasure of the
Lord at it
Deuteronomy 9:7
and of their murmurings
with which they provoked the Lord at other places
Deuteronomy 9:22
and the chapter is closed with an account of the prayer of Moses for them at
Horeb
to avert the wrath of God from them for their making and worshipping the
golden calf
Deuteronomy 9:25.
Deuteronomy 9:1 “Hear
O Israel: You are to cross over the Jordan
today
and go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourself
cities great and fortified up to heaven
YLT
1`Hear
Israel
thou art
passing over to-day the Jordan
to go in to possess nations greater and
mightier than thyself; cities great and fenced in the heavens;
Hear
O Israel
.... A pause being made after the delivery
of the preceding discourse; or perhaps what follows might be delivered at
another time
at some little distance; and which being of moment and importance
to the glory of God
and that Israel might have a true notion of their duty
they are called upon to listen with attention to what was now about to be said:
thou art to pass over Jordan this day; not precisely
that very day
but in a short time after this; for it was on the first day of
the eleventh month that Moses began the repetition of the laws he was now going
on with
Deuteronomy 1:3
and it was not until the tenth day of the first month of the next year that the
people passed over Jordan
Joshua 4:19 which
was about two months after this:
to go in and possess nations greater and mightier than thyself; the seven
nations named Deuteronomy 7:1
where the same characters are given of them:
cities great and fenced up to heaven; as they were
said to be by the spies
Deuteronomy 1:28
and were no doubt both large and strongly fortified
and not to be easily taken
by the Israelites
had not the Lord been with them
Deuteronomy 9:3.
Deuteronomy 9:2 2 a people great and tall
the descendants of the Anakim
whom
you know
and of whom you heard it said
‘Who can stand before
the descendants of Anak?’
YLT
2a people great and tall
sons of Anakim
whom thou -- thou hast known
(and thou -- thou hast heard: Who
doth station himself before sons of Anak?)
A people great and tall
.... Of a large bulky
size
and of an high stature
so that the spies seemed to be as grasshoppers to
them
Numbers 13:33
the children of the Anakims
whom thou knowest; by report
having had an account of them by the spies
who described them as very large
bodied men
and of a gigantic stature
the descendants of one Anak
a giant;
and so the Targum of Jonathan
"a people strong and high like the
giants;'from these Bene Anak
children of Anak
or Phene Anak
as the words
might be pronounced
the initial letter of the first word being of the same
sound
BochartF26Canaan
l. 1. c. 1. col. 346. thinks the country had
its name of Phoenicia:
and of whom thou hast heard say
who can stand before the
children
of Anak? or the children of the giants
as the Targums of Onkelos and
Jonathan; which they had heard either from the spies who had suggested the
same
Numbers 13:31 or as
a common proverb in the mouths of most people in those days.
Deuteronomy 9:3 3 Therefore understand today that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a
consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you
shall drive them out and destroy them quickly
as the Lord has said to you.
YLT
3and thou hast known to-day
that Jehovah thy God [is] He who is passing over before thee -- a fire
consuming; He doth destroy them
and He doth humble them before thee
and thou
hast dispossessed them
and destroyed them hastily
as Jehovah hath spoken to
thee.
Understand therefore this day
.... Or be it known to
you for your encouragement
and believe it:
that the Lord thy God is he which goeth over before thee as
a consuming fire: did not only go before them over the river Jordan
in a pillar
of cloud and fire
to guide and direct them
and was a wall of fire around them
to protect and defend them
but as a consuming fire
before which there is no
standing
to destroy their enemies; see Deuteronomy 4:24
he shall destroy them
and he shall bring them down before thy
face; be they as great and as mighty
as large and as tall as they
may
they will not be able to stand before the Lord
but will soon be made low
and be easily brought down to the earth by him
and to utter destruction; which
would be done in a public and visible manner
so as that the hand of the Lord
would be seen in it by the Israelites:
so shalt thou drive them out
and destroy them quickly
as the
Lord hath said unto thee; that is
the far greater part of them
and so many as to make
room for the Israelites
and which was quickly done. The Jews commonly sayF1Seder
Olam Rabba
c. 11. p. 31
32.
that they were seven years in subduing the
land; otherwise they were not to be driven out and destroyed at once
but by
little and little: see Deuteronomy 7:22.
Deuteronomy 9:4 4 “Do not think in your heart
after the Lord your God has cast them out before you
saying
‘Because of my
righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess
this land’; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that
the Lord is driving them out from before you.
YLT
4`Thou dost not speak in thy
heart (in Jehovah thy God's driving them away from before thee)
saying
For my
righteousness hath Jehovah brought me in to possess this land
seeing for the
wickedness of these nations is Jehovah dispossessing them from thy presence;
Speak not thou in thine heart
.... Never once think
within thyself
or give way to such a vain imagination
and please thyself with
it:
after that the Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee; to make way
for the Israelites
and put them into the possession of their land; which is to
be ascribed not to them
but to the Lord:
saying
for my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to
possess this land; such a thought as this was not to be secretly cherished in their
hearts
and much less expressed with their lips; nothing being more foreign
from truth than this
and yet a notion they were prone to entertain. They were
always a people
more or less
from first to last
tainted with a conceit of
their own righteousness
and goodness
which they laboured to establish
and
were ready to attribute all the good things to it they enjoyed
and nothing is
more natural to men
than to fancy they shall be brought to the heavenly Canaan
by and for their own righteousness; which is contrary to the perfections of
God
his purity
holiness
and justice
which can never admit of an imperfect
righteousness in the room of a perfect one; to justify anyone thereby
is
contrary to the Gospel scheme of salvation; which is not by works of
righteousness men have done
but by the grace and mercy of God through Christ;
it would make useless
null
and void
the righteousness of Christ
which only
can justify men in the sight of God
give a title to heaven and happiness
and
an abundant entrance into it; and would occasion boasting
not only in the
present state
but even in heaven itself; whereas the scheme of salvation is so
framed and fixed
that there may be no room for boasting
here or hereafter
see Romans 3:27
but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord doth drive them
out from before thee; namely
their idolatry
incest
and other notorious crimes; see Leviticus 18:3
which sufficiently justifies God in all his dealings with these nations.
Deuteronomy 9:5 5 It is not because of your righteousness or the
uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land
but
because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out from before you
and that He may fulfill
the word which the Lord swore to your fathers
to
Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob.
YLT
5not for thy righteousness
and for the uprightness of thy heart
art thou going in to possess their land;
but for the wickedness of these nations is Jehovah thy God dispossessing them
from before thee; and in order to establish the word which Jehovah hath sworn
to thy fathers
to Abraham
to Isaac
and to Jacob;
Not for thy righteousness
or for the uprightness of thine heart
.... Neither
for their external righteousness before men
or their outward conformity to the
law
nor for the inward sincerity of their hearts
and their upright intentions
in doing good
in which they were defective:
dost thou go to possess their land; this is repeated
and
enlarged on
and explained
that this notion might be entirely removed from
them
and not entertained by them; similar to which is that of men
who fancy
that their sincere obedience
though imperfect
will be accepted of God instead
of a perfect one
on account of which they shall be justified and saved; but by
the deeds of the law no flesh living can be justified in the sight of God
nor
by any works of righteousness done by the best of men
and in the best manner
they are capable of
will any be saved:
but for the wickedness of those nations the Lord thy God doth
drive them out from before thee; which is repeated
that it might be taken
notice of as the true reason of the Lord's dealing with them in such severity;
and which because it would be now doing
when the Israelites passed over
Jordan
and went in to possess the land
it is expressed in the present tense
"doth drive"
the work being not yet finished; sin was the cause of
their ejection out of their land
and another thing was the reason of the
Israelites possessing it
and not their righteousness next expressed:
and that he may perform the word which the Lord sware unto thy
fathers
Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob; it was to fulfil his
covenant
and make good his word of promise to their fathers
and not on
account of any righteousness of theirs; and the salvation of the Lord's people
in a spiritual sense
and their enjoyment of the heavenly Canaan
are owing to
the gracious purposes and promises of God
and to his covenant engagements
as
well as to the undertakings
obedience
and righteousness of his Son
and not
to any righteousness of theirs.
Deuteronomy 9:6 6 Therefore understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of
your righteousness
for you are a stiff-necked people.
YLT
6and thou hast known
that
not for thy righteousness is Jehovah thy God giving to thee this good land to
possess it
for a people stiff of neck thou [art].
Understand therefore that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this
good land to possess it for thy righteousness
.... This is again
repeated to impress it upon their minds
that it was not for any goodness of
theirs
but as a gift of divine goodness to them
that they were put into the
possession of the good land
which greatly exceeded any merits of theirs
and
was entirely owing to the kindness of God to them
and not to any righteousness
of theirs; and this he frequently inculcates
that they might have a thorough
understanding of it. And so the doctrines of justification by the righteousness
of Christ
and not man's
and of salvation by the grace of God
and not the
works of men
are points of knowledge and understanding; and to lead men into
an acquaintance with them is the general design of the Gospel; and he cannot be
reckoned an understanding man
but ignorant of God and his righteousness
of
the law and the spirituality of it
of Christ and the way of salvation by him
of the Spirit and of spiritual things
of the Gospel and its doctrines
nor can
he be wise unto salvation
who expects to get to heaven by his own works of
righteousness; and it might be added
that he is ignorant of himself
of his
state and condition
of his sinfulness and vileness
and of the nature of his
best works; as the Israelites in a good measure seemed to be
whose conviction
is laboured in the following part of this chapter:
for thou art a stiffnecked people; refractory and unruly
like an heifer unaccustomed to the yoke
that draws back from it
and wriggles
its neck out of it; so untoward and perverse were this people
and disobedient
to the commands of God; wherefore there was no show of reason that they were
put into the possession of Canaan for their righteousness; and to make it
appear that they were such a people as here described
several instances are
given.
Deuteronomy 9:7 7 “Remember! Do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day that you departed
from the land of Egypt until you came to this place
you have been rebellious
against the Lord.
YLT
7`Remember -- do not forget
-- that [with] which thou hast made Jehovah thy God wroth in the wilderness;
even from the day that thou hast come out of the land of Egypt till your coming
in unto this place rebels ye have been with Jehovah;
Remember
and forget not how thou provokedst the Lord thy God to
wrath in the wilderness
.... Aben Ezra remarks that this was after they journeyed from
Horeb; but before they came thither
even as soon as
they were in the
wilderness
they provoked the Lord
as by their murmuring for water at Marah
when they had been but three days in the wilderness; and for bread in the
wilderness of Sin
and for water again at Rephidim; all which were before they
came to Horeb or Sinai
and which agrees with what follows:
from the day that thou didst depart out of the land of Egypt until
ye came unto this place
ye have been rebellious against the Lord; though they
had such a series of mercies
yet their life was a continued course of
rebellion against the Lord: which is a sad character of them indeed
and given
by one that thoroughly knew them
was an eyewitness of facts
and had a hearty
respect for them too
and cannot be thought to exaggerate things; so that they
were far from being righteous persons in themselves
nor was there any reason
to conclude it was for their righteousness the land of Canaan was given them.
Deuteronomy 9:8 8 Also in Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath
so that the Lord was angry enough
with you to have destroyed you.
YLT
8even in Horeb ye have made
Jehovah wroth
and Jehovah sheweth Himself angry against you -- to destroy you.
Also in Horeb ye provoked the Lord to wrath
.... The word
"also" shows that they had provoked him before
but this instance is
given as a very notorious one; here they made the golden calf and worshipped
it
while Moses was on the mount with God
receiving instructions from him for
their good. Near to this place a rock had been smitten for them
from whence
flowed water for the refreshment of them and their cattle; here the Lord
appeared in the glory of his majesty to them
and from hence
for it is the
same mount with Sinai
the law was given to them in such an awful and terrible
manner; and yet none of these things were sufficient to restrain them from
provoking the Lord to wrath by their sins:
so that the Lord was angry with you
to have destroyed you; so very angry
with them
and so justly
that he proposed to Moses to destroy them
and make
of him a great nation in their stead
Exodus 32:10.
Deuteronomy 9:9 9 When I went up into the mountain to receive the tablets
of stone
the tablets of the covenant which the Lord made with
you
then I stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights. I neither ate
bread nor drank water.
YLT
9`In my going up into the
mount to receive the tables of stone (tables of the covenant which Jehovah hath
made with you)
and I abide in the mount forty days and forty nights; bread I
have not eaten
and water I have not drunk;
When I was gone up into the mount to receive the tables of stone
.... The
tables of the law
the same law which forbid idolatry
and which they had
lately heard from the mouth of God himself: even
the tables of the covenant which the Lord made with you; which they
had agreed unto
and solemnly promised they would observe and do
Exodus 24:7
then I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights; and this long
stay was one reason of their falling into idolatry
not knowing what was become
of him
Exodus 24:18.
I neither did eat bread nor drink water; all those
forty days and nights
Exodus 34:28.
Deuteronomy 9:10 10 Then the Lord delivered to
me two tablets of stone written with the finger of God
and on them were
all the words which the Lord had spoken to you on the
mountain from the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly.
YLT
10and Jehovah giveth unto me
the two tables of stone written with the finger of God
and on them according
to all the words which Jehovah hath spoken with you in the mount
out of the
midst of the fire
in the day of the assembly.
And the Lord delivered unto me two tables of stone
written with
the finger of God
.... The letters were of his devising and forming
the writing
was his
the engraving them on the stones was his own doing; and which was done
to show its original
to stamp a divine authority on it
and to denote its
duration; see Exodus 31:18.
and on them was written according to all the words which the Lord
spake with you in the mount; the ten commands
exactly in the same
order
and in the same words
without any variation
as they were delivered to
them with an articulate voice in their hearing; but now were written in this
manner
that they might be read by them
and remain with them
see Exodus 34:28.
out the midst of the fire; in which the Lord was
and whence he spake:
in the day of the assembly; when all the people of
Israel were gathered together at the foot of the mount; see Exodus 19:17.
Deuteronomy 9:11 11 And it came to pass
at the end of forty days and
forty nights
that the Lord gave me
the two tablets of stone
the tablets of the covenant.
YLT
11`And it cometh to pass
at
the end of forty days and forty nights
Jehovah hath given unto me the two
tables of stone -- tables of the covenant
And it came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights
.... The time
of Moses's stay in the mount
when it was just up
and not before: that
the Lord gave me the two tables of stone
even the tables
of the covenant
as in Deuteronomy 9:9.
Aben Ezra observes
that this shows that the day the tables were given to Moses
the calf was made.
Deuteronomy 9:12 12 “Then the Lord said to
me
‘Arise
go down quickly from here
for your people whom you brought out of
Egypt have acted corruptly; they have quickly turned aside from the way which I
commanded them; they have made themselves a molded image.’
YLT
12and Jehovah saith unto me
Rise
go down
hasten from this
for thy people hath done corruptly
whom thou
hast brought out of Egypt; they have turned aside hastily out of the way which
I have commanded them -- they have made to themselves a molten thing!
And the Lord said unto me
.... The omniscient God
who knew what was doing in the camp of Israel
though Moses did not
of which
he informs him:
arise
get thee down quickly from hence; from the
mount where he was; and the word "arise" does not suppose him to be
sitting or lying along
neither of which postures would have been suitable
considering in whose presence he was; but is only expressive of urgency and
haste of his departure; it is not used in Exodus 32:7.
for thy people
which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt
have
corrupted themselves; their way
as the Targum of Jonathan; that is
by idolatry
than
which nothing is more corrupting and defiling; the Lord calls them not his
people
but the people of Moses
being highly displeased with them; and
ascribes their coming out of Egypt to Moses the instrument
and not to himself
as if he repented of bringing them from thence:
they are quickly turned aside out of the way which I commanded
them: it being but about six weeks ago
that the command forbidding
idolatry
the sin they had fallen into
had been given them:
and they have made them a molten image; the image of
a calf made of melted gold.
Deuteronomy 9:13 13 “Furthermore the Lord spoke to
me
saying
‘I have seen this people
and indeed they are a stiff-necked
people.
YLT
13`And Jehovah speaketh unto
me
saying
I have seen this people
and lo
a people stiff of neck it [is];
Furthermore the Lord spake unto me
saying
.... After he
had given him the two tables
and before his departure from the mount:
I have seen this people; took notice of them
their ways
and their works:
and
behold
it is a stiffnecked people; unwilling to
submit to
and bear the yoke of my commandments; see Exodus 32:9.
Deuteronomy 9:14 14 Let Me alone
that I may destroy them and blot out
their name from under heaven; and I will make of you a nation mightier and
greater than they.’
YLT
14desist from Me
and I
destroy them
and blot out their name from under the heavens
and I make thee
become a nation more mighty and numerous than it.
Let me alone
that I may destroy them
.... Do not
say one word to me on their behalf
or entreat me to spare them
and not
destroy them:
and blot out their name from under heaven; that no such
nation may be heard of
or known by the name of Israel:
and I will make of thee a nation mightier and greater than they; of his
family
whereby the Lord's promise to Abraham would not have been made void
but equally firm and sure
since this mightier and greater nation would have
been of his seed; See Gill on Exodus 32:10.
Deuteronomy 9:15 15 “So I turned and came down from the mountain
and the
mountain burned with fire; and the two tablets of the covenant were in
my two hands.
YLT
15`And I turn
and come down
from the mount
and the mount is burning with fire
and the two tables of the
covenant on my two hands
So I turned and came down from the mount
.... As the
Lord commanded:
and the mount burned with fire; as it had for six weeks
past
ever since the Lord's descent upon it; and so it continued
for the words
may be rendered
"and the mount was burning"F2בער "de monte ardente"
V. L. Heb.
"burning"
Ainsworth. ; and yet this did not deter the Israelites
from idolatry:
and the two tables of the covenant were in my two hands: one table in
one hand
and the other in the other hand.
Deuteronomy 9:16 16 And I looked
and behold
you had sinned against the Lord your God—had made for yourselves a molded calf! You had turned
aside quickly from the way which the Lord had
commanded you.
YLT
16and I see
and lo
ye have
sinned against Jehovah your God; ye have made to yourselves a molten calf; ye
have turned aside hastily out of the way which Jehovah hath commanded you.
And I looked
.... When he was come down from the mount
and was nigh the camp:
and
behold
ye had sinned against the Lord your God; that plainly
appeared by what they had done
and at which he was amazed; and therefore a
behold is prefixed to it
it being such a gross sin
having so much impiety and
ingratitude
and stupidity in it:
and made you a molten calf; that he saw with his
eyes
and them dancing about it; see Exodus 32:19.
ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which the Lord had
commanded you; see Deuteronomy 9:7.
Deuteronomy 9:17 17 Then I took the two tablets and threw them out of my
two hands and broke them before your eyes.
YLT
17`And I lay hold on the two
tables
and cast them out of my two hands
and break them before your eyes
And I took the two tables
and cast them out of my two hands
.... In wrath
and indignation at the sin they were guilty of:
and brake them before your eyes; as an emblem of their
breach of them by transgressing them.
Deuteronomy 9:18 18 And I fell down before the Lord
as at the first
forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread
nor drank water
because of all your sin which you committed in doing wickedly
in the sight of the Lord
to provoke Him to anger.
YLT
18and I throw myself before
Jehovah
as at first
forty days and forty nights; bread I have not eaten
and
water I have not drunk
because of all your sins which ye have sinned
by doing
the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah
to make Him angry.
And I fell down before the Lord
.... In prayer for Israel
who had sinned; but this he did not immediately after he had broken the tables
but when he had first ground the calf to powder
strewed it on the water
and
made the children of Israel drink it; and when he had chided Aaron
and ordered
the sons of Levi to slay every man his brother:
as at the first forty days and forty mights; which is to
be connected
I think
not with what goes before; for we read not that he fell
down before the Lord
at the first time he was with him so long in the mount;
but with what follows: "I did neither eat bread nor drink water"; as
he neither ate nor drank the first forty days
so neither did he these second
forty; see Deuteronomy 9:9.
because of all your sins which ye sinned
in doing wickedly in the
sight of the Lord
to provoke him to anger; for they were guilty of
more sins than one; besides idolatry
they were guilty of unbelief
ingratitude
&c. which were notorious and flagrant
were done openly and
publicly
in sight of his glory and majesty on the mount; all which must be
very provoking to him
and on account of these Moses prayed and fasted.
Deuteronomy 9:19 19 For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure with
which the Lord was angry with you
to destroy you. But the Lord listened to me at that time also.
YLT
19`For I have been afraid
because of the anger and the fury with which Jehovah hath been wroth against
you
to destroy you; and Jehovah doth hearken unto me also at this time.
For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure wherewith the
Lord was wroth against you
.... Which was exceeding vehement
as
appeared by his words to Moses
forbidding to intercede for them
that he might
consume them
and make of him a greater nation; wherefore he dreaded the issue
of it
lest it should be
to destroy you; that that should be his full resolution and
determination; however
he made use of means
and betook himself to fasting and
prayer; so heartily affected was he to this people when his temptations lay
another way:
but the Lord hearkened unto me at that time also; as he had at
other times
when this people had sinned
and he entreated for them; in which
he was a type of Christ
the Mediator and Advocate
whom the Father always
hears.
Deuteronomy 9:20 20 And the Lord was very
angry with Aaron and would have destroyed him; so I prayed for Aaron
also at the same time.
YLT
20`And with Aaron hath
Jehovah shewed himself very angry
to destroy him
and I pray also for Aaron at
that time;
And the Lord was very angry with Aaron
to have destroyed him
.... For
complying with the request of the people in making a calf for them
and for
that miserable shift he made to excuse himself; which so provoked the Lord
that he threatened to destroy him
and he was in danger of being cut off
had
it not been for the intercession of Moses:
and I prayed for Aaron also the same time: who either
was included in the general prayer for the people
Exodus 32:31 or a
particular prayer was made for him
though not recorded
and which also
succeeded.
Deuteronomy 9:21 21 Then I took your sin
the calf which you had made
and
burned it with fire and crushed it and ground it very small
until it was as fine as dust; and I threw its dust into the brook that
descended from the mountain.
YLT
21and your sin
which ye have
made -- the calf -- I have taken
and I burn it with fire
and beat it
grinding well till that it [is] small as dust
and I cast its dust unto the
brook which is going down out of the mount.
And I took your sin
the calf which ye had made
.... Which was
the object of their sin
which lay in making and worshipping it; see Isaiah 31:7.
and burnt it with fire
and stamped it; with his feet
after it was burnt
to bring it into small pieces:
and ground it very small; or
as the Targum of
Jonathan
"ground it in a mortar well;'the burnt and broken pieces:
even until it was as small as dust; being ground to powder
as in Exodus 32:20.
and I cast the dust thereof into the brook that descended out of
the mount; and made the children of Israel to drink of it
as in the
previously mentioned place; See Gill on Exodus 32:2; all
this was done before the prayer for Aaron and the people.
Deuteronomy 9:22 22 “Also at Taberah and Massah and Kibroth Hattaavah you
provoked the Lord to wrath.
YLT
22`And in Taberah
and in
Massah
and in Kibroth-Hattaavah
ye have been making Jehovah wroth:
And at Taberah
and at Massah
and at Kibrothhattaavah
ye
provoked the Lord to wrath. These places are not mentioned in the strict
order in which the provocations were made at them; for they provoked the Lord
at Massah by murmuring for water
before they provoked him at Taberah
by
complaining as it should seem of their journeying; for Massah was before they
came to Sinai
and Taberah after they departed from thence; though some
as
Aben Ezra observes
say that Taberah is Massah; but it could not be the Massah
in Rephidim
for that was on one side of Mount Sinai
and Taberah on another;
though different places might be so called from their tempting the Lord at
them; rather Taberah and Kibrothhattaavah seem to be the same; where the people
died with the flesh in their mouths they lusted after
and were buried; since
no mention is made of their removal at that time from the one place to the
other
nor of Taberah in the account of their journeys
only Kibrothhattaavah;
see Exodus 17:7.
Deuteronomy 9:23 23 Likewise
when the Lord sent you
from Kadesh Barnea
saying
‘Go up and possess the land which I have given
you
’ then you rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God
and you did not believe Him nor obey His voice.
YLT
23and in Jehovah's sending
you from Kadesh-Barnea
saying
Go up
and possess the land which I have given
to you
then ye provoke the mouth of Jehovah your God
and have not given
credence to Him
nor hearkened to His voice;
Likewise when the Lord sent you from Kadeshbarnea
.... From
whence the spies were sent to search the land
though previous to it they had
the following order to go up and possess it; see Numbers 32:8.
saying
go up and possess the land which I have given you; this they
were bid to do
before they desired the spies might be sent to search it first;
and after they had returned and made their report
they were encouraged to go
up and take possession of it:
then ye rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God;
refusing to go up into it: and ye believed him not; that he would
cast out and destroy the inhabitants of it
and put them into the possession of
it; which they distrusted by reason of the gigantic stature of some that dwelt
in it
and their fortified cities:
nor hearkened to his voice; whether commanding or
encouraging.
Deuteronomy 9:24 24 You have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew you.
YLT
24rebels ye have been with
Jehovah from the day of my knowing you.
You have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew
you. Either from the time he first had and took knowledge of them and
visited them
before his departure from Egypt to the land of Midian; (see Exodus 2:11
compared with Acts 7:25); or from
the time that he was sent to them to deliver them out of Egypt; see Exodus 5:20 and
especially from the time he brought them into the wilderness.
Deuteronomy 9:25 25 “Thus I prostrated myself before the Lord; forty days and forty nights I kept prostrating myself
because the
Lord had said He would destroy you.
YLT
25`And I throw myself before
Jehovah
the forty days and the forty nights
as I had thrown myself
for
Jehovah hath said -- to destroy you;
Thus I fell down before the Lord forty days and forty nights
as I
fell down at the first
.... Which Jarchi says are the selfsame said above
Deuteronomy 9:18
but doubled or repeated
because of the order of his prayer. The words "at
the first" are not in the text; and
as before observed
we do not read
that Moses fell down at the first forty days he was in the mount
unless it can
be thought he did
Exodus 32:11
wherefore this falling down seems to be as he fell down at the second forty
days; and so this was a third forty days
according to the Jewish writers
and
of which opinion were Dr. Lightfoot and others; See Gill on Exodus 34:28
because the Lord had said he would destroy you; threatened
them with destruction
and seemed as if it was his intention to destroy them;
nay
even after Moses's first prayer
though he bid him go and lead the people
on
yet he declared that he would visit their sin upon them
Exodus 32:34.
Deuteronomy 9:26 26 Therefore I prayed to the Lord
and said: ‘O Lord God
do not
destroy Your people and Your inheritance whom You have redeemed through Your
greatness
whom You have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand.
YLT
26and I pray unto Jehovah
and say
Lord Jehovah
destroy not Thy people
and Thine inheritance
whom Thou
hast ransomed in Thy greatness; whom Thou hast brought out of Egypt with a
strong hand;
And I prayed therefore unto the Lord
.... What
follows is a different prayer from that in Exodus 32:31 and
agrees better with that in Deuteronomy 9:11
delivered before he came down from the mount
yet could not be the same
because delivered at another forty days and nights:
and said
O Lord God
destroy not thy people
and thine
inheritance: because they were his inheritance
a people whom he had chosen
for his peculiar treasure; this is the first argument used
another follows:
which thou hast redeemed through thy greatness; redeemed out
of the house of bondage
the land of Egypt
by his great power
as next
explained:
which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand: inflicting
plagues on the Egyptians
particularly destroying their firstborn
which made
them the Israelites urge to depart.
Deuteronomy 9:27 27 Remember Your servants
Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob; do
not look on the stubbornness of this people
or on their wickedness or their
sin
YLT
27be mindful of Thy servants
of Abraham
of Isaac
and of Jacob
turn not unto the stiffness of this people
and unto its wickedness
and unto its sin;
Remember thy servants
Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob
.... The
covenant he had made with them
the promises he had made to them of the
multiplication of their seed
and of giving the land of Canaan to them; which
is a third argument used with the Lord not to destroy them:
look not unto the stubbornness of this people
nor to their
wickedness
nor to their sin; nor to the natural temper and disposition
of the people
which was to be stubborn
obstinate
stiffnecked
and
self-willed; nor to their wickedness
which appears in various instances; nor
to that particular sin of idolatry they had now been guilty
of; tacitly owning
that if God looked to these things
there was sufficient reason to destroy
them.
Deuteronomy 9:28 28 lest the land from which You brought us should say
“Because the Lord was not able to bring them to the land which He promised them
and
because He hated them
He has brought them out to kill them in the wilderness.”
YLT
28lest the land say from
which Thou hast brought us out
Because of Jehovah's want of ability to bring
them in unto the land of which He hath spoken to them
and because of His
hating them
He brought them out to put them to death in the wilderness;
Lest the land whence thou broughtest us out say
.... The land
of Egypt
the inhabitants of it:
because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which he
promised them; the land of Canaan
the inhabitants of it being so mighty
and
their cities so strongly fortified. Here Moses expresses his concern for the
glory of God
and the honour of his perfections
and makes that a fourth
argument why he should not destroy them:
and because he hated them
he hath brought them out to slay them
in the wilderness; out of Egypt
a plentiful country
into a wilderness where
nothing was to be had; but his choice of them for his inheritance
his
redemption of them out of bondage and misery
the care he took of them
and the
provision he had made for them in the wilderness
clearly showed that they were
not the objects of his hatred
but of his love.
Deuteronomy 9:29 29 Yet they are Your people and Your inheritance
whom You brought out by Your mighty power and by Your outstretched arm.’
YLT
29and they [are] Thy people
and Thine inheritance
whom Thou hast brought out by Thy great power
and by
Thy stretched-out arm!
Yet they are thy people
.... Though they had
sinned against him:
and thine inheritance; which he would not
forsake and cast off; at least Moses hoped on this account he would not
and
makes use thereof as an argument with him why he should not
and which he
repeats
adding in effect what he had said before:
which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power and stretched out
arm; even out of the land of Egypt; the doing of which was plainly the
effect of his almighty power
and an evidence of it
considering the weakness
of Israel and the strength of Egypt
and the manner in which the Lord brought
about this surprising event.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》