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Deuteronomy Chapter
Twenty-nine
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 29
This
chapter begins with an intimation of another covenant the Lord was about to
make with the people of Israel
Deuteronomy 29:1;
and
to prepare their minds to an attention to it
various things which the
Lord had done for them are recited
Deuteronomy 29:2;
the persons are particularly mentioned with whom the covenant would now be
made
the substance of which is
that they should be his people
and he their
God
Deuteronomy 29:10;
and since they had seen the idols in Egypt and other countries
with which they
might have been ensnared
they are cautioned against idolatry and idolaters
as
being most provoking to the Lord
Deuteronomy 29:16;
which would bring destruction not only on particular persons
but upon their
whole land
to the amazement of posterity; who
inquiring the reason of it
will be told
it was because they forsook the covenant of God
and particularly
were guilty of idolatry
which
whether privately or openly committed
would be
always punished
Deuteronomy 29:22.
Deuteronomy 29:1 These are
the words of the covenant which the Lord commanded
Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab
besides the
covenant which He made with them in Horeb.
YLT
1These [are] the words of
the covenant which Jehovah hath commanded Moses to make with the sons of Israel
in the land of Moab
apart from the covenant which He made with them in Horeb.
These are the words of the covenant
.... Not what
go before
but follow after
in the next chapters
to the end of the book; in
which are various promises of grace
and promises of good things
both with
respect to Jews and Gentiles
intermixed with other things:
which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel
in the land of Moab; or to declare unto them
and acquaint them with
they being now
in the plains of Moab
ready to enter into the land of
Canaan:
besides the covenant which he made with them at Horeb: or Sinai;
which Jarchi interprets
besides the curses in Leviticus
delivered on Sinai;
he seems to have respect to Leviticus 26:14.
This covenant was different from that at Sinai
spoken of Exodus 24:8; being
made not only at a different time
at near forty years' distance
and at a
different place
nor Sinai; but when Israel were come nearer Mount Sion
and
were actually possessed of part of their inheritance
the land of promise
that
part of the land of Moab which the two kings of the Amorites had seized and
dwelt in
whom Israel had dispossessed; and with different persons
that
generation being dead
excepting a very few
which were at Sinai: but it was
different as to the substance and matter of it
it not only including that
and
being a renewal of it
as is generally thought
but containing such
declarations of grace which had not been made before
not only respecting the
repenting and returning Israelites
but the Gentiles also; for this covenant
was made with the stranger
as well as with Israel
Deuteronomy 29:11;
and relates to the times of the Messiah
the call of the Gentiles
the
conversion of the Jews
and their return to their own land in the latter day.
Deuteronomy 29:2 2 Now
Moses called all Israel and said to them: “You have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt
to Pharaoh and to all
his servants and to all his land—
YLT
2And Moses calleth unto all
Israel
and saith unto them
`Ye -- ye have seen all that which Jehovah hath
done before your eyes in the land of Egypt
to Pharaoh
and to all his
servants
and to all his land;
Moses called unto all Israel
.... He had been speaking
before to the heads of them
and delivered at different times what is before
recorded; but now he summoned the whole body of the people together
a solemn
covenant being to be made between God and them; or such things being to be made
known unto them as were of universal concernment:
and said unto them; what is in this chapter; which is only a
preparation or introduction to what he had to declare unto them in the
following:
ye have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of
Egypt; the Targum of Jonathan is
"what the Word of the Lord
did;'for all the wonderful things there done in Egypt were done by the
essential Word of God
Christ
the Son of God; who appeared to Moses in the
bush
and sent him to Egypt
and by him and Aaron wrought the miracles there;
which many now present had seen
and were then old enough to take notice of
and could remember
though their fathers then in being were now dead:
unto Pharaoh and unto all his servants
and unto all his land; the plagues
he inflicted on the person of Pharaoh
and on all his courtiers
and on all the
people in Egypt
for they reached the whole land.
Deuteronomy 29:3 3 the
great trials which your eyes have seen
the signs
and those great wonders.
YLT
3the great trials which
thine eyes have seen
the signs
and those great wonders;
The great temptations which thine eyes have seen
.... Or
trials
the ten plagues which tried the Egyptians
whether they would let
Israel go; and tried the Israelites
whether they would believe in the Lord
and trust in his almighty power to deliver them:
the signs and those great miracles: as the said plagues were
such as were beyond the power of nature to produce
and which only Omnipotence
could really effect.
Deuteronomy 29:4 4 Yet
the Lord has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to
hear
to this very day.
YLT
4and Jehovah hath not given
to you a heart to know
and eyes to see
and ears to hear
till this day
Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive
.... They had
some of them seen the above miracles with their bodily eyes
but had not
discerned with the eyes of their understanding the power of God displayed in
them
the goodness of God to them on whose behalf they were wrought
in order
to obtain their deliverance
and the vengeance of God on the Egyptians for
detaining them; so Jarchi interprets it of an heart to know the mercies of the
Lord
and to cleave unto him:
and eyes to see
and ears to hear
unto this day; to see and
observe the gracious dealings of God with them
and to hearken to his voice and
obey it: so the understanding heart
the seeing eye
and hearing ear
in things
spiritual
are from the Lord
are special gifts of his grace
which he bestows
on some
and not on others; see Proverbs 20:12. The
Targum of Jonathan is
"the Word of the Lord did not give you an heart
&c.'
Deuteronomy 29:5 5 And
I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on
you
and your sandals have not worn out on your feet.
YLT
5and I cause you to go forty
years in a wilderness; your garments have not been consumed from off you
and
thy shoe hath not worn away from off thy foot;
And I have led you forty years in the wilderness
.... From the time
of their coming out of Egypt unto that day
which though not quite complete
is
given as a round number. EupolemusF4Apud Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l.
9. c. 30. p. 447.
an Heathen writer
confirms this date of the ministry of
Moses among the Israelites; he says
Moses performed the office of a prophet
forty years:
your clothes are not waxen old upon you: were not worn
out; all those forty years they had been in the wilderness
they had never
wanted clothes fitting for them
according to their age and stature
and which
decayed not; See Gill on Deuteronomy 8:4
and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot; which were
necessary to wear in travelling
and especially in a rugged wilderness; and
yet
thought they had been always in use during so long a time
were not worn
out
which was really miraculous; See Gill on Deuteronomy 8:4.
Deuteronomy 29:6 6 You
have not eaten bread
nor have you drunk wine or similar drink
that you
may know that I am the Lord your God.
YLT
6bread ye have not eaten
and wine and strong drink ye have not drunk
so that ye know that I [am]
Jehovah your God.
Ye have not eaten bread
.... Bread made of corn
common bread
of their own preparing
made by the labour of their own hands;
but manna
the food of angelS
the bread of heaven:
neither have you drank wine
nor strong drink; only water
out of the rock
at least chiefly
and for constancy; though it may be
when
they were on the borders of other countries
as of the Edomites
they might
obtain some wine for their money:
that ye might know that I am the Lord your God; who was both
able and willing to provide food
drink
and raiment for them
and supply them
with all good things
and support them without the use of the common
necessaries of life; which were abundant proofs of his power and goodness.
Deuteronomy 29:7 7 And
when you came to this place
Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan came
out against us to battle
and we conquered them.
YLT
7`And ye come in unto this
place
and Sihon king of Heshbon -- also Og king of Bashan -- doth come out to
meet us
to battle
and we smite them
And when ye came unto this place
.... The borders of Moab
the wilderness before it
to which joined the plains they were now in; see Numbers 21:13
Sihon king of Heshbon
and Og king of Bashan
came out against us
unto battle; not together
but one after the other
and that very quickly; as
soon almost as they had fought with the one
and conquered him
the other came
out against them:
and we smote them; killed them and their armies
and the
inhabitants of their countries; the history of which see in Numbers 21:23.
Deuteronomy 29:8 8 We
took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites
to the
Gadites
and to half the tribe of Manasseh.
YLT
8and take their land
and
give it for an inheritance to the Reubenite
and to the Gadite
and to the half
of the tribe of Manasseh;
And we took their land
.... Which belonged to
the two kings
the lands of Jazer
Gilead
and Bashan
fine countries for
pasturage:
and gave it for an inheritances unto the Reubenites
and to the
Gadites
and to the half tribe of Manasseh; who requested it
and to
whom it was granted on certain conditions
and they were now in possession of
it; see Numbers 32:1.
Deuteronomy 29:9 9 Therefore
keep the words of this covenant
and do them
that you may prosper in all that
you do.
YLT
9and ye have kept the words
of this covenant
and done them
so that ye cause all that ye do to prosper.
Keep therefore the words of this covenant
and do them
.... To do
which they were laid under great obligations
through the goodness of God to
them
in giving them victory over the two kings
and delivering their countries
into their hands
as well as by all the favours bestowed on them in the
wilderness
where they were sufficiently supplied with food
drink
and
raiment; all which is made use of as a motive and argument to engage them to
observe and keep the covenant the Lord made with them:
that ye may prosper in all that ye do: in all their
occupations and businesses of life
in their manufactures and commerce
in the
culture of their fields and vineyards
and in whatsoever they were employed in
a lawful way; the word used has sometimes
the signification of acting wisely
and prudently
as in Isaiah 52:13; hence
the Septuagint version is
"that ye may understand all that ye do";
and so the Jerusalem Targum.
Deuteronomy 29:10 10 “All
of you stand today before the Lord your God:
your leaders and your tribes and your elders and your officers
all the men of
Israel
YLT
10`Ye are standing to-day
all of you
before Jehovah your God -- your heads
your tribes
your elders
and your authorities -- every man of Israel;
Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God
.... Being
gathered together at the door of the tabernacle
at the summons of Moses. Aben
Ezra interprets it round about the ark
which was the symbol of the divine
Presence:
your captains of your tribes; the heads and rulers of
them:
your elders and your officers
with all the men of Israel; not the
seventy elders only
but their elders in their several tribes
cities
and
families
men of gravity and prudence
as well as of age
and who were in some
place of power and authority or another: and the "officers" may
design such who attended the judges
and executed their orders; see Deuteronomy 16:18;
and with them were the common people
the males
who were grown persons. Aben
Ezra thinks they stood in the order in which they here are mentioned
which is
not improbable; next to Moses the princes
then the elders
and after them the
officers
and next every man of Israel
the males; and then the little ones
with the males; after them the women
and last of all the proselytes.
Deuteronomy 29:11 11 your
little ones and your wives—also the stranger who is in your camp
from
the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water—
YLT
11your infants
your wives
and thy sojourner who [is] in the midst of thy camps
from the hewer of thy
wood unto the drawer of thy water –
Your little ones
your wives
.... Who are scarce ever
mentioned in any special law or solemn transaction:
and thy stranger that is in thy camp; not only the
proselyte of righteousness
who embraced the Jewish religion entirely
but the
proselyte of the gate
who was admitted to dwell among them
having renounced
idolatry. These standing with the Israelites
when this covenant was made
has
respect to the Gentiles
who as well as the Jews have an interest in the
covenant of grace made with Christ; in whom there is
neither Jew nor Gentile
any difference between them:
from the hewer of thy wood to the drawer of thy water; that hewed
wood for firing and other uses
and drew water for the camp; who were generally
mean persons
and perhaps some that came out of Egypt with them are here
intended; however
mean and abject persons are meant
and signifies that none
should be excluded from a concern in this solemn affair on account of their
meanness.
Deuteronomy 29:12 12 that
you may enter into covenant with the Lord your God
and into His oath
which the Lord your God
makes with you today
YLT
12for thy passing over into
the covenant of Jehovah thy God
and into His oath which Jehovah thy God is
making with thee to-day;
That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the Lord thy God
.... That is
they were all to appear and stand in this order before the Lord
that they
might solemnly avouch him to be their God
and hear him declaring them to be
his people
and the many promises and prophecies of good things he should
deliver to them
as well as threatenings of wrath and vengeance in case of
disobedience to him: or "that thou shouldest pass"F5לעברך "ut transeas"
V. L. Tigurine version
Munster
Vatablus
Pagniuns
Cocceius; "ad transeundum"
Montanus. :
which some think is an allusion to the manner of making covenants
by slaying a
creature
and cutting it in pieces
and passing between them
as in Jeremiah 34:18; so
Jarchi and Aben Ezra:
and into his oath; annexed to his covenant and promise
to
show the immutability and certain fulfilment of it on his part; and may signify
not only the oath he swore that they should be his people
but the oath he gave
them
and they took
that he should be their God:
which the Lord thy God maketh with thee this day; which refers
both to the covenant and the oath
or the covenant confirmed by an oath
even
the covenant now made in the plains of Moab
distinct from that at Horeb or
Sinai.
Deuteronomy 29:13 13 that
He may establish you today as a people for Himself
and that He may be
God to you
just as He has spoken to you
and just as He has sworn to your
fathers
to Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob.
YLT
13in order to establish thee
to-day to Him for a people
and He Himself is thy God
as He hath spoken to
thee
and as He hath sworn to thy fathers
to Abraham
to Isaac
and to Jacob.
That be may establish thee this day for a people unto himself
and
that he may be unto thee a God
.... Which contains the
sum and substance of the covenant; see Jeremiah 32:38
as he hath said unto thee
and as he had sworn unto thy fathers
to Abraham
to Isaac
and to Jacob; Deuteronomy 26:17.
Deuteronomy 29:14 14 “I
make this covenant and this oath
not with you alone
YLT
14`And not with you alone am
I making this covenant and this oath;
Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath. That is
Moses; for he was ordered to make this covenant with them in the name of the
Lord; what promises of good things
or declarations of his mind and will
God
would make
Moses was to deliver to them; and what was required of them he
would inform them of. Aben Ezra interprets it
not only you
but those that
will come after you
your sons and your sons' sons.
Deuteronomy 29:15 15 but
with him who stands here with us today before the Lord our God
as well as with him who is not here with us
today
YLT
15but with him who is here
with us
standing to-day before Jehovah our God
and with him who is not here
with us to-day
But with him that standeth here with us this day before the
Lord our God
.... Who are before specified according to their dignity
age
sex
and station of life; or rather
"but as with him that
standeth"
&c.
and so with him that is not here with us this day; detained at
home by illness and indisposition of body
or by one providence or another; so
that they could not come out of their tents
and make their appearance before
the tabernacle; though Jarchi interprets this of the people of future
generations.
Deuteronomy 29:16 16 (for
you know that we dwelt in the land of Egypt and that we came through the
nations which you passed by
YLT
16for ye have known how ye
dwelt in the land of Egypt
and how we passed by through the midst of the
nations which ye have passed by;
For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt
.... How long
they and their fathers had dwelt there
the number of years they had been in
the land
as the Targum of Jonathan
which was upwards of two hundred years;
and being a country the inhabitants of which were much given to idolatry
they
had seen many of their idols
and much of their idolatrous worship; and their
hearts had been apt to be ensnared by it
and the minds of some tinctured with
it
and the remembrance thereof might make ill impressions on them; to remove
or prevent which this covenant was made:
and how we came through the nations which ye passed by; as the
Edomites
Ammonites
Moabites
and Midianites
as Aben Ezra observes
through
whose borders they came
as they passed by their countries in their journeys in
the wilderness.
Deuteronomy 29:17 17 and
you saw their abominations and their idols which were among them—wood
and stone and silver and gold);
YLT
17and ye see their
abominations
and their idols
wood and stone
silver and gold
which [are]
with them
And ye have seen their abominations and their idols
.... Or
"their abominations
even their idols"; for the same are meant by
both: it is common in Scripture to call the idols of the Gentiles abominations
without any other explanation of them; see 1 Kings 11:5;
because they are abominable to God
and ought to be so to men: the word for
idols has the signification of dung
and may be rendered dunghill gods
either
referring to such that were bred and lived in dung
as the beetle
worshipped
by the Egyptians
as Bishop Patrick observes; or which were as much to be
loathed and abhorred as the dung of any creature:
wood and stone
silver and gold; these are the materials
of which the idols they had seen in the several countries they had been in
or
passed through
were made of; some of wood
others of stone cut out of these
and carved; others more rich and costly were made of massive gold and silver
and were molten ones; or the images of wood were glided with gold and silver:
which were among them; now these being seen by
them in as they passed along
they might run in their minds
or be called to
remembrance by them
and so they be in danger of being drawn aside to make the
like
and worship them.
Deuteronomy 29:18 18 so
that there may not be among you man or woman or family or tribe
whose heart
turns away today from the Lord our God
to go and serve
the gods of these nations
and that there may not be among you a root bearing
bitterness or wormwood;
YLT
18lest there be among you a
man or woman
or family or tribe
whose heart is turning to-day from Jehovah
our God
to go to serve the gods of those nations
lest there be in you a root
fruitful of gall and wormwood:
Lest there should be among you man or woman
or family
or tribe
.... These
words stand in connection with Deuteronomy 29:15
with Deuteronomy 29:16
being in a parenthesis
as may be observed
and show the design of this solemn
appearance of the people
and their entering afresh into covenant; which was to
prevent their falling into idolatry
and preserve them from it
whether a
single person of either sex
or a whole family
or even a tribe
which might be
in danger of being infected with it
and so all the people:
whose heart turneth away this day from the Lord our God
to go and
serve the gods of those nations; whose heart is enticed and drawn aside at
the remembrance of the idols he has seen worshipped by others; and is looking
off from the Lord God
his faith in him being weakened
his fear of him
removed
and his affections for him lessened; and is looking towards the idols
of the nations
with a hankering mind to serve and worship them:
lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and
wormwood: the word "rosh"
which we render "gall"
signifies
according to Jarchi
a bitter herb
which better suits with a root
than gall
and is elsewhere by us rendered "hemlock"
Hosea 10:4; and is
by him very rightly interpreted of a wicked man among them; for not a principle
of immorality
or heresy
rooted in the mind
productive of bitter fruits
or
evil actions
is meant; but a bad man
particularly an idolater
who is rooted
in idolatry
and is guilty of and commits abominable actions; the issue of
which will be bitterness and death
if not recovered; which agrees with what
the apostle says
Hebrews 12:15; who
manifestly alludes to this passage; see the Apocrypha:"In those days went
there out of Israel wicked men
who persuaded many
saying
Let us go and make
a covenant with the heathen that are round about us: for since we departed from
them we have had much sorrow.' (1 Maccabees 1:11)and is
confirmed by what follows.
Deuteronomy 29:19 19 and
so it may not happen
when he hears the words of this curse
that he blesses
himself in his heart
saying
‘I shall have peace
even though I follow the
dictates[a] of my
heart’—as though the drunkard could be included with the sober.
YLT
19`And it hath been
in his
hearing the words of this oath
and he hath blessed himself in his heart
saying
I have peace
though in the stubbornness of my heart I go on
in order
to end the fulness with the thirst.
And it cometh to pass
when he heareth the words of this curse
.... That is
the man before compared to a root bearing bitter herbs
when he should hear the
curses pronounced by the law against such persons as himself:
that he bless himself in his heart; inwardly pronounce
himself blessed
thinking himself secure from the curse of the law
and
flattering himself it will never reach him nor come upon him:
saying
I shall have peace; all happiness and
prosperity
in soul
body
and estate; inward peace of mind now
and eternal
peace hereafter:
though I walk in the imagination of my heart; in
worshipping idols which he vainly and wickedly imagined to be gods; to the
worship of which his wicked heart prompted him
and he was resolutely and
stubbornly bent upon
and in which he continued:
to add drunkenness to thirst; as a thirsty man to
quench his thirst drinks
and adds to that
or drinks yet more and more until
he is drunken; so a man inclined to idolatry
that has a secret desire after
it
thirsts after such stolen or forbidden waters
and drinks of them
adds
thereunto
drinks again and again until he is drunk with the wine of
fornication
or idolatry
as it is called Revelation 17:2; so
the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan understand the words of adding sin to sin
particularly of adding sins of ignorance to pride
or to presumptuous ones.
Wicked men
deceivers and deceived
always grow worse and worse
increasing to
more ungodliness
and yet promise themselves peace and impunity
1 Thessalonians 5:3.
Deuteronomy 29:20 20 “The
Lord would not spare him; for then the anger of the Lord and His jealousy would burn against that man
and every curse that
is written in this book would settle on him
and the Lord would blot out his name from under heaven.
YLT
20Jehovah is not willing to
be propitious to him
for then doth the anger of Jehovah smoke
also His zeal
against that man
and lain down on him hath all the oath which is written in
this book
and Jehovah hath blotted out his name from under the heavens
Then the Lord will not spare him
.... Have no mercy upon
him
nor forgive him
being an hardhearted
impenitent
stubborn
and obstinate
sinner
as well as guilty of the grossest and most provoking sin
as idolatry
is:
but then the anger of the Lord
and his jealousy
shall smoke
against that man; or
"the nose of the Lord shall smoke"F6יעשן אף יהוה
"fumabit nasus Domini"
Montanus. ; alluding to an angry
wrathful
furious man
whose brain being heated
and his passions inflamed
his breath
steams through his nostrils like smoke; it denotes the vehement anger
the
greatness of God's wrath and indignation against such a person
and his burning
zeal or jealousy for his own honour and glory injured by the idolater:
and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon
him: for as he that offends in one point is guilty of all
and
especially in such a principal point as this
which concerns the being and
worship of God; so he makes himself liable to all the curses of the law
which
shall not only come upon him
but abide on him; and there is no person clear of
them but by redemption through Christ
who
by being made a curse for his
people
has redeemed them from the curse of the law:
and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven; he shall have
no name in Israel
not in the church
and among the people of God
from whom he
is to be excommunicated; shall have no name and place in the earth
being cut
off from the land of the living; and shall have no name or fame after his
death
his memory shall rot and perish; and he shall appear to have no name in
the book of life; see Psalm 69:28.
Deuteronomy 29:21 21 And
the Lord would separate him from all the tribes of Israel for adversity
according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this Book of
the Law
YLT
21and Jehovah hath separated
him for evil
out of all the tribes of Israel
according to all the oaths of
the covenant which is written in this book of the law.
And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of
Israel
.... Unto the evil of punishment
devote and consign him to it
and make him a visible and distinguished mark of his displeasure and vengeance.
So some men are righteously separated from others
and preordained unto condemnation
being wicked and ungodly men; for such God has made or appointed for the day of
evil; see Proverbs 16:4
according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in
this book of the law; the evil of punishment he shall be separated unto shall be
according to them
or include them all; the sense is
that the wrath of God
and the whole curse of the law due to him for his sin
shall come upon him; see
Deuteronomy 28:16
&c.
Deuteronomy 29:22 22 so
that the coming generation of your children who rise up after you
and the
foreigner who comes from a far land
would say
when they see the plagues of
that land and the sicknesses which the Lord has laid
on it:
YLT
22`And the latter generation
of your sons who rise after you
and the stranger who cometh in from a land
afar off
have said when they have seen the strokes of that land
and its
sicknesses which Jehovah hath sent into it
--
So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up
after you
.... Not the next generation
but in future times
in ages to
come
at a great distance
even after the destruction of Judea by the Romans;
to which Deuteronomy 29:23
seems to refer:
and the stranger that shall come from a far land; on trade and
business
or for the sake of travelling
his road either lying through it
or
his curiosity leading him to see it:
shall say
when they see the plagues of the land; cities and
towns in ruins
fields lie uncultivated
and the whole land depopulated
and
all become a barren wilderness
which was once a fruitful country
a land
flowing with milk and honey:
and the sicknesses which the Lord hath laid upon it; upon the
inhabitants of it
as the pestilence and other diseases
which shall have swept
the land of them; see Deuteronomy 28:22.
This case supposes a general departure from the worship of God to the service
of idols; otherwise single individuals are punished in their own persons
as in
the Deuteronomy 29:21.
Deuteronomy 29:23 23 ‘The
whole land is brimstone
salt
and burning; it is not sown
nor does it
bear
nor does any grass grow there
like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah
Admah
and Zeboiim
which the Lord overthrew
in His anger and His wrath.’
YLT
23([with] brimstone and salt
is the whole land burnt
it is not sown
nor doth it shoot up
nor doth there
go up on it any herb
like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah
Admah and
Zeboim
which Jehovah overturned in His anger
and in His fury
) –
And that the whole land
thereof is brimstone and salt
and burning
.... That is
is become exceeding barren
as all such land is where there are sulphureous
mines
or salt pits
or burning mountains; not that this would be
or has been
the case of the land of Judea in a strict literal sense; only these are
expressions made use of to show the barrenness of it
which is its case at this
day
not through the nature of its soil being changed
but through the
slothfulness of the inhabitants of it; to which time it better agrees than to
the time of its falling into the hands of the Chaldeans
who left men in it for
husbandmen and vinedressers. Aben Ezra understands this as a prayer to God
that the land might be burnt up; that is
for the sins of the people:
that it is not
sown
nor beareth
nor any grass groweth therein; not being sown
it would
bear and produce no corn for men; and not being manured
no grass would spring
up for the cattle: and so would be
like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah
of Admah and Zeboim; which indeed
are
strictly speaking
become a sulphurous and bituminous lake
called the
salt sea
and the lake Asphaltites
and where no green grass or corn
or any
kind of fruit grow: which the Lord overthrew in his anger and in his wrath the
Targum of Jonathan is
"which the Word of the Lord overthrew;'and it was
Jehovah
the Word
or Son of God
who rained
from Jehovah the Father
out of
heaven
fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah
and the rest of the cities;
See Gill on Genesis 19:24
in
which chapter is the history of this fatal overthrow.
Deuteronomy 29:24 24 “All
nations would say
‘Why has the Lord done so to
this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean?’
YLT
24yea
all the nations have
said
Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus to this land? what the heat of this
great anger?
Even all nations shall say
.... For the destruction
of this land
and the people of it
would be
as it has been
so very great and
awful
and so very remarkable and surprising
that the fame of it would be
heard among all the nations of the world
as it has been; who
upon hearing the
sad report of it
would ask the following questions:
wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this land? so
distinguished from all others for the fruitfulness and pleasantness of it; the
people
the inhabitants of which
he chose
above all others
to be a special
and peculiar people; and where he had a temple built for him
and where he had
his residence
and worship used to be given unto him:
what meaneth the heat of this great anger? what is the
reason of his stirring up his fierce wrath
and causing it to burn in so
furious a manner? surely it must be something very horrible and provoking
indeed!
Deuteronomy 29:25 25 Then
people would say: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers
which He made with them when He brought them
out of the land of Egypt;
YLT
25`And they have said
Because that they have forsaken the covenant of Jehovah
God of their fathers
which He made with them in His bringing them out of the land of Egypt
Then men shall say
.... The answer that will be returned to the
above questions will be this
because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their
fathers: breakers of covenants with men are always reckoned among the
worst of men
see Romans 1:31; and
especially breakers of covenant with God
and with such a God as the God of
Israel was
so good
so kind
and gracious; and of such a covenant he made with
them
in which so many good things were promised unto them
on condition of
their obedience; as the continuance in
such a land they dwelt in
with an
abundance of privileges
civil and religious: and this covenant God of theirs
was the God of their fathers also; and it was always reckoned an heinous sin
among the Heathens to forsake the gods of their ancestors; see Jeremiah 2:11
which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of
Egypt; which is another aggravation of their breach of the covenant the
Lord made with them; it being made with them by that God
and at that time
when he in so wonderful a manner
with such mighty power
and a outstretched
arm
and in great kindness and tenderness to them
brought then
out of hard
bondage and most wretched slavery in Egypt.
Deuteronomy 29:26 26 for
they went and served other gods and worshiped them
gods that they did not know
and that He had not given to them.
YLT
26and they go and serve other
gods
and bow themselves to them -- gods which they have not known
and which
He hath not apportioned to them;
For they went and served other gods
and worshipped them
.... As did
all Israel
in the times of Solomon
and the ten tribes under Jeroboam
and
other succeeding kings of Israel; and the two tribes in the times of Ahaz
and
especially of Manasseh
when they worshipped all the host of heaven; see 1 Kings 11:33
gods whom they knew not; to whom they
as well as
their fathers before them
were strangers and approved not of them; and of
whose power and goodness they had no experience
and of which there never were
any instances; yet such was their stupidity
as to leave their God
the only
true God
of whom they had many proofs in both respects
and worship these
idols
which had never been profitable and serviceable to them on any account:
and whom he hath not given unto them; which version
seems not to afford a good sense; for to what people soever has God
the true
God
given other gods to worship
which this seems to imply
though he had not
given or allowed any to them? Onkelos paraphrases it
"did not do them
good"; which Jarchi explains
the gods they chose them did not impart to
them any inheritance
or any portion; for the word used signifies to divide
or
part a portion or inheritance; now the Lord God did divide to Israel the land
of Canaan for an inheritance
but these idols had never divided anything to
them
and had been in no instance profitable or advantageous to them; and
therefore it was madness and folly in them to worship them
as well as great
ingratitude to the Lord their God
who had done such great and good things for
them; for so the words may be rendered
"and did not impart" or
"divide to them"F7ולא חלק להם "qui nihil
impertitus est eis"
Pagninus; "et quorum nullus impertitus fuerat
eis quidquem"
Piscator; "neque partitus est ipsis"
Cocceius.
anything; that is
not anyone of them did; for the verb is singular.
Deuteronomy 29:27 27 Then
the anger of the Lord was aroused against this land
to bring on it every curse that is written in this book.
YLT
27and the anger of Jehovah
burneth against that land
to bring in on it all the reviling that is written
in this book
And the anger of the Lord was kindled against this land
.... For this
their idolatry and base ingratitude:
to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book; in this book
of Deuteronomy
and particularly Deuteronomy 28:16;
see Daniel 9:11.
Deuteronomy 29:28 28 And
the Lord uprooted them from their land in anger
in wrath
and in great
indignation
and cast them into another land
as it is this day.’
YLT
28and Jehovah doth pluck them
from off their ground in anger
and in fury
and in great wrath
and doth cast
them unto another land
as [at] this day.
And the Lord rooted them out of the land
.... Which was
true both at the Babylonish captivity by Nebuchadnezzar
and at their present
one by the Romans; and especially the latter
by whom they have been so rooted
out
as that they have not been able to return to it these 1700 years
nor to
have any inheritance or possession in it; whereas
at the end of seventy years
they returned from the Babylonish captivity to their land again: and which was
done
in anger
and in wrath
and in great indignation; which were
most abundantly shown in the utter destruction of their land
city
and temple
by the Romans:
and cast them another land
as it is this day; the ten
tribes were cast into Assyria
and from thence into the cities of the Medes
the two tribes into the land of Chaldea
and now into all lands; and none their
own
but another
a strange and foreign country. The word "cast"
denotes the vehemence of the divine displeasure at them
expressed by the
removal of them out of their own land into another. In the Hebrew word for
"cast"
a middle letter in it is greater than usual; the reason of
which perhaps is
that this dealing of God with them might be observed and
taken notice of as very remarkable; and Ainsworth thinks it is to observe the
greatness of the punishment; and the Jews understand this of the casting away
of the ten tribes: and they gather from hence that the ten tribes shall not
return
though about it they are divided; for so they say in the MisnahF8Sanhedrin
c. 11. sect. 3.
"the ten tribes shall not return
as it is said
and cast
them into another land
as this day; as the day goes and does not return
so
they go and return not; these are the words of R. Akiba. R. Eliezer says
as
the day brings on darkness and light
so the ten tribes who are now dark shall
be enlightened.'
Deuteronomy 29:29 29 “The
secret things belong to the Lord our God
but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our
children forever
that we may do all the words of this law.
YLT
29`The things hidden [are] to
Jehovah our God
and the things revealed [are] to us and to our sons -- to the
age
to do all the words of this law.
The secret things belong unto the Lord our God
....
Respecting the people of Israel
and the providential dealings of God with
them
and especially the final rejection of them; with respect to which
the
apostle's exclamation agrees with this
Romans 11:33; and
though the Lord had revealed many things which should befall them
there were
others still secret with him
and the reasons of others; and particularly the
times and seasons of their accomplishment
which he retains in his own power
Acts 1:6. There are
many secret things in nature
which cannot be found out and accounted for by
men
which the Lord only knows; and there are many things in Providence
which
are unsearchable
and past finding out by finite minds
especially the true
causes and reasons of them; and there are many things relating to God himself
which remain secret with him; notwithstanding the revelation he has made of
himself; for not only some of his perfections
as eternity
immensity
&c.
are beyond our comprehension; but the mode of subsistence of the three divine
Persons in the Godhead
the paternity of the one
the generation of the other
and the procession of the Spirit from them both; the union of the two natures
divine and human
in the person of Christ; the thoughts
purposes
and decrees
of God within himself
until brought into execution; and so there are many
things relating to his creatures
as the particular persons predestinated unto
eternal life
what becomes of such who die in infancy
what will befall us in
life
when we shall die
where and in what manner
and also the day and hour of
the last judgment. The Jews generally interpret this and what follows of the
sins of men
and punishment for them
and
particularly
idolatry; take Aben
Ezra's sense instead of many
"he that commits idolatry secretly
his
punishment is by the hand of heaven (from God immediately); he that commits it
openly
it lies upon us and upon our children to do as is written in the
law:"
but those things which are revealed belong to us and
to our children for ever; the things of nature and Providence
which are plain and
manifest
are for our use and instruction; and especially the word and
ordinances of God
which are the revelation of his will
the doctrines and
promises contained in the Scriptures
each of the duties of religion
and the
commandments of God
such as are of eternal obligation
which may be chiefly
designed
because it follows:
that we may do all the words of this law: for the end
of this revelation is practice; hearing and reading the word will be of no
avail
unless what is heard and read is practised. Some render the wordsF9So
some in Fagius and Vatablus.
"the secret things of the Lord our God are
revealed to us and to our children;'but neither the construction of the words
in the original
nor the Hebrew accents
will admit of such a version;
otherwise it would furnish out a very great truth: for the secrets of God's
love
of his council and covenant
are revealed unto his people
as well as
many of his providences
and the mysteries of his grace; see Psalm 25:14. There
are some extraordinary pricks in the Hebrew text on the words "to us and
to our children": which are designed to point out the remarkable and
wonderful condescension and goodness of God
in making a revelation of his mind
and will
both with respect to doctrine and duty
to the sons of men.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)