Latest Commentaries

Moses elaborates on the curses the Suzerain (Ruler) God will bring on Israel if they fail to abide by His covenantal laws. These curses are in the form of natural disasters, diseases, and agricultural failures.

Moses spells out the curses that will fall on the Israelites if they fail to obey their Suzerain (Ruler) God.

Moses continues with the series of blessings. He now tells Israel that the Suzerain God will defeat their enemies, establish Israel as a holy people to Himself, and give them a leadership position over all the peoples of the earth, provided that they obey the terms of the covenant.

Moses continued to outline the script for the ceremony to be performed once they had success taking Canaan. This part urged the Israelites to obey their covenant partner, Yahweh, in order that they may be blessed beyond measure in the land of Canaan, which was God’s promise to them if they followed faithfully the terms of the agreement.

This section contains a list of twelve curses that the Levites were to recite to the Israelites. Upon hearing each curse, the Israelites are to respond by saying ‘Amen.’

In these verses, Moses continued to describe the covenant renewal ceremony. He arranged the people of Israel into two sets of six tribes in preparation of the recitation of the blessings and curses that follow. These verses should be read together with Joshua 8:30-35, where these instructions are fulfilled.

Moses (joined now by the Levitical Priests) reaffirms God’s covenantal relationship with Israel.

Moses and the elders prescribe the rituals to be performed when Israel arrives in the Promised Land.

Moses told the Israelites that this covenant renewal was a reminder of their special relationship with Yahweh and their special status among the nations of the earth.

Moses commands the Israelites to offer a special tithe to the Suzerain God every third year to support the vulnerable of the Israelite society.

Moses commands the Israelites to set aside the firstfruits of their harvest for the Suzerain (Ruler) God once they were settled in the Promised Land. This offering was an acknowledgement of God’s gifts of redemption, covenant, and land.

Moses urged the Israelites to remember to wipe out the Amalekites when they are settled in the Promised Land. This was in response to the brutality the Amalekites showed when they attacked the Israelites during the exodus from Egypt.

Moses commands the Israelites to use accurate weights and measures when they engage in commerce with other people.

This law prescribed to cut off the hand of a wife who sought to deliver her husband in a fight by seizing the genitals of his opponent.

Beginning a section that focuses on the principle of the tenth commandment which restricts envy, Moses described the principles relating to levirate marriage. They involve a situation where one of two brothers dwelling together dies without having a son. Though the surviving brother was required to marry his brother’s wife so his family line could continue, this law dictated what to do if the surviving brother refuses to do what was required of him.

Moses’s concern for compassion moves to the treatment of domestic animals. He now commands Israel not to muzzle the ox while he is threshing.

Moses instructs the Israelites on how to administer legal justice in the land. This law limits the number of lashes to be given to a criminal to forty.

Moses told the Israelites that they could eat from their neighbors’ vineyard or standing grain. They were, however, prohibited from gathering more fruits or grain than was necessary to meet their immediate need.

Moses commanded the Israelites to fulfill their vows in a timely manner. Failure to keep their vows will surely bring judgment on them.

Moses prohibited Israelites from charging interest on loans to fellow Israelites.