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Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy isn’t a set of rules. It’s the story of the path we all choose. We all have chosen wrong over right. So we have all earned death over life. And it’s because we too have these hard hearts whatever sin offers we willfully pursue. And without some kind of inward change, this is all we will ever do.

—Spoken Gospel

Source: Spoken Gospel, quoted from the video, “The Bible Explained: Deuteronomy,” published at spokengospel.com.  

The book of Deuteronomy is exactly that—it’s a treaty between a king and his subjects. It begins with an introduction of the Lord God of Israel. Then you have four chapters or so of historical prologue, where all of the work of God’s redemption in delivering his people out of Egypt and settling them in Canan is all revisited and recapitulated. Then you have a restatement of the stipulations (all the laws) that you find in the Ten Commandments and the holiness code and so on. Then you have the section of Deuteronomy that covers the blessings and the curses—the sanctions of the covenant. Then the end of the book is a ceremony of covenant renewal between Moses and the people.  

—R.C. Sproul  

Source: R.C. Sproul in his message, “The Book That Grieved Josiah,” published by Ligonier Ministries at ligonier.org  

Although in later chapters Moses will integrate many prescriptions given at Sinai into his preaching, contrary to prevailing popular opinion Deuteronomy does not present itself as legislation, that is, a book of laws. This is prophetic preaching at its finest…Here Moses’ role is that of a pastor, not a lawgiver. Like Jacob in Genesis 49, Joshua in Joshua 24, and Jesus in John 13-16, knowing that his death is imminent, Moses gathers his flock and delivers his final homily (sermon), pleading with the Israelites to remain faithful to YHWH (The Lord).  

The book of Deuteronomy represents the heart of the Torah, which priests were to teach and model, which psalmists praised (Psalm 19:8-10 [Eng 7-14]; 119), to which the prophets appealed (e.g., Isaiah 1:10; 5:24; 8:20; 30:9; 51:7), by which faithful kings ruled, and righteous citizens lived (Psalm 1). In short, this book provides the theological base for virtually the entire Old Testament and the paradigm for much of its literary style. 

—Daniel Block 

Source: Block, Daniel I. The Gospel According to Moses: Theological and Ethical Reflections on the Book of Deuteronomy. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2012. Used by permission of Wipf and Stock Publishers, www.wipfandstock.com

The Biblical writers seem to have considered Deuteronomy to be a very important book; they used it all the time. Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart say that “Deuteronomy has perhaps had more influence on the rest of the biblical story (both Old and New Testaments) than any other book of the Bible.” They point out that “Deuteronomy… had considerable influence on Israel’s and Judah’s prophets, especially Isaiah and Jeremiah, and through them influenced the major figures of the New Testament (especially Jesus and Paul).” Chris Wright says, “The book of Deuteronomy lies close to the very heartbeat of the Scriptures. It is to the Old Testament something like the book of Romans to the New Testament. It deals with many of the key themes that inform the rest of the Bible.” It is quoted over eighty times in the New Testament, and references to it occur in all the New Testament books except John, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Timothy, and 1 and 2 Peter. Thus it belongs to a small group of four Old Testament books—Genesis Deuteronomy, Psalms, and Isaiah—to which early Christians made frequent reference. When Jesus was tempted, he quoted from Deuteronomy in each of his three responses to Satan. 

—Ajith Fernando 

Content taken from Deuteronomy: Loving Obedience to a Loving God by Ajith Fernando, ©2012. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Behind the voice of Moses in the book of Deuteronomy we hear the voice of YHWH, for Moses repeatedly declares that all his instructions were given as YHWH his God had charged him. But YHWH, the God of Moses and Israel, is incarnate in Jesus Christ. When Moses speaks of YHWH, he speaks of Jesus (cf. Luke 24:44). Deuteronomy was not only Jesus’ favorite book in the Old Testament (judging by the frequency of quotations); he also stands behind the Torah left for our meditation and nurture by Moses. 

 —Daniel Block  

Source: Block, Daniel I. How I Love Your Torah, O LORD. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2011. Used by permission of Wipf and Stock Publishers, www.wipfandstock.com

This book [Deuteronomy] presents the law as a gift of grace to guide the redeemed in the way of righteousness, leading to life (cf. Deuteronomy 4:6-8; 6:20-25).   

. . .

It is within this covenantal context that we must understand the nature and role of the law and the importance of obedience:   

(1) Obedience to the law was not viewed as a burden, but as a response to the unique privilege of knowing God’s will (Deuteronomy 4:6-8), in contrast to the ignorance of nations who worshiped gods of wood and stone (Deuteronomy 4:28; Psalm 115:4-8).   

(2) Obedience to the law is not a way of or precondition to salvation, but the grateful response of those who had already been saved (Deuteronomy 6:20-25).  

(3) Obedience to the law is not primarily a duty imposed by one party on another, but an expression of confidence covenant relationship (Deuteronomy 26:16-19).   

(4) Obedience to the law is the external evidence of the circumcision of one’s heart and the internal disposition of fearing and loving God (Deuteronomy 10:12-11:1; 30:6-9).   

(5) Obedience to the law involves a willing subordination of one’s entire being to the authority of the gracious divine suzerain (Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 10:12-13).   

(6) While obedience to the law is not a prerequisite to salvation, it is evidence of righteousness, which is a precondition to Israel’s fulfillment of the mission to which they have been called and the precondition to their own blessing (Deuteronomy 4:24-25; Deuteronomy 11; Deuteronomy 28).   

(7) Obedience to the law is both reasonable and achievable (Deuteronomy 30:11-20).   

—Daniel Block 

Source: Block, Daniel I. The Gospel According to Moses: Theological and Ethical Reflections on the Book of Deuteronomy. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2012. Used by permission of Wipf and Stock Publishers, www.wipfandstock.com

Why do we call this book the book of Deuteronomy? It’s a combination of two Greek words: deuteros and nomos. Deuteros means “second,” as opposed to “the first.” And nomos is the Greek word for law. So the book of Deuteronomy is called “the second book of the law.” And what Deuteronomy gives us is a summary of all of the laws and dimensions that are found in the rest of the Torah [first five books of the Bible]. It’s like the CliffsNotes on Exodus and Leviticus and Numbers. It’s a condensation, a recapitulation of everything that was given to the people of Israel at Sinai and in the covenant that God makes with Moses.  

 —R.C. Sproul   

Source: R.C. Sproul, quoted from his message, “The Book That Grieved Josiah.” © Ligonier Ministries 2023. Used by permission of Ligonier Ministries. Source: Themes from Deuteronomy

The book of Deuteronomy is one long plea for hearty obedience to God based on the grand motives of love and fear: “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 10:12 ESV).  

—Henrietta Mears  

Source: This content is from What the Bible Is All About, written by Henrietta Mears. Copyright © 1953, 2011 by Gospel Light. Copyright assigned to Tyndale House Publishers, 2015. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.