September 13, 2020
The message of Deuteronomy is one that the church desperately needs to hear today. These final words of Moses given to the children of Israel as they prepared to enter into the Promised Land serve as a warning, an encouragement, and a charge. Through them, God exposes the idolatry of our hearts and calls us to give all of our love, worship, and devotion to Him alone in every area of our lives! Moses warns the people that when they enter the land there will be things that compete with God for their attention, their affections and their worship. We, too, have hundreds of things that compete for our hearts each and every day. In this book, God teaches us how to properly respond to the amazing grace He has given us by giving Him our undivided allegiance, our whole hearts and our whole lives. Over the next 34 days, let’s seek this ancient way together as a church!
This chapter is Moses’ final blessing on the people of Israel before his death. Moses led the people for 40 years as their spokesman to God and God’s prophet to them, so this chapter carries a lot of weight and significance! Moses blesses each individual tribe of the people of Israel in rich and beautiful terms.
Finally, Moses gives the people one final reminder for them to remember and live by: there is no one like the Lord (v.26)! He reminds them how unique their God and their relationship to Him really is, how immense His grace is towards them that they, out of all the people on the earth, can call themselves a people saved by the Lord!
We can claim this title for ourselves as the church as well! Let’s celebrate as we gather today to worship that we are a people saved by the Lord!
Deuteronomy 33
Moses’ Final Blessing on Israel
33 This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death. 2 He said,
“The Lord came from Sinai
and dawned from Seir upon us;
he shone forth from Mount Paran;
he came from the ten thousands of holy ones,
with flaming fire at his right hand.
3 Yes, he loved his people,
all his holy ones were in his hand;
so they followed in your steps,
receiving direction from you,
4 when Moses commanded us a law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.
5 Thus the Lord became king in Jeshurun,
when the heads of the people were gathered,
all the tribes of Israel together.
6 “Let Reuben live, and not die,
but let his men be few.”
7 And this he said of Judah:
“Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah,
and bring him in to his people.
With your hands contend for him,
and be a help against his adversaries.”
8 And of Levi he said,
“Give to Levi your Thummim,
and your Urim to your godly one,
whom you tested at Massah,
with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah;
9 who said of his father and mother,
‘I regard them not’;
he disowned his brothers
and ignored his children.
For they observed your word
and kept your covenant.
10 They shall teach Jacob your rules
and Israel your law;
they shall put incense before you
and whole burnt offerings on your altar.
11 Bless, O Lord, his substance,
and accept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”
12 Of Benjamin he said,
“The beloved of the Lord dwells in safety.
The High God surrounds him all day long,
and dwells between his shoulders.”
13 And of Joseph he said,
“Blessed by the Lord be his land,
with the choicest gifts of heaven above,
and of the deep that crouches beneath,
14 with the choicest fruits of the sun
and the rich yield of the months,
15 with the finest produce of the ancient mountains
and the abundance of the everlasting hills,
16 with the best gifts of the earth and its fullness
and the favor of him who dwells in the bush.
May these rest on the head of Joseph,
on the pate of him who is prince among his brothers.
17 A firstborn bull—he has majesty,
and his horns are the horns of a wild ox;
with them he shall gore the peoples,
all of them, to the ends of the earth;
they are the ten thousands of Ephraim,
and they are the thousands of Manasseh.”
18 And of Zebulun he said,
“Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out,
and Issachar, in your tents.
19 They shall call peoples to their mountain;
there they offer right sacrifices;
for they draw from the abundance of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.”
20 And of Gad he said,
“Blessed be he who enlarges Gad!
Gad crouches like a lion;
he tears off arm and scalp.
21 He chose the best of the land for himself,
for there a commander’s portion was reserved;
and he came with the heads of the people,
with Israel he executed the justice of the Lord,
and his judgments for Israel.”
22 And of Dan he said,
“Dan is a lion’s cub
that leaps from Bashan.”
23 And of Naphtali he said,
“O Naphtali, sated with favor,
and full of the blessing of the Lord,
possess the lake and the south.”
24 And of Asher he said,
“Most blessed of sons be Asher;
let him be the favorite of his brothers,
and let him dip his foot in oil.
25 Your bars shall be iron and bronze,
and as your days, so shall your strength be.
26 “There is none like God, O Jeshurun,
who rides through the heavens to your help,
through the skies in his majesty.
27 The eternal God is your dwelling place,
and underneath are the everlasting arms.
And he thrust out the enemy before you
and said, ‘Destroy.’
28 So Israel lived in safety,
Jacob lived alone,
in a land of grain and wine,
whose heavens drop down dew.
29 Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you,
a people saved by the Lord,
the shield of your help,
and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you,
and you shall tread upon their backs.”
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Family Discussion Question:
- What is the significance of Moses reminding the people once more of God’s holiness and God’s grace towards them at the very end of his life?
I bless you my Father for another day in the land of the living. I lift your name above all because Lord, you deserve all my praises. I open my arms today to receive your blessings which Lord I read from your word. I pray You use me to be a blessing also to those You allow to come my way. I pray your forgiveness Lord when like the children of Israel I follow my own selfish ways , which does not glorify your Kingdom. You are the Lord that answers prayers! Use me to the glory of your name today and all the days of my life. Thank you for our in-person church worship today. May we encounter you in a special way today, may our mouth testify to how we have been touched by the King of kings. Let our life be a sweet smelling incense before you today. In Jesus mighty name I pray.??? Amen.
Gracias mi padre amado. Gracias por este día aún no puedo reunirme en nuestra iglesia para abrazarte y ser ungido por tú espíritu santo pero te doy gracias infinitas porque tú has conservando nuestras salud y cada día me demuestras tú gran amor y misericordia para con nosotros te amo mi Dios prepara mis oídos y mi mente para ser hacedora de la palabra que tú tienes hoy para mi y recibir todas las bendiciones que tienes para mi hogar, úsame para tú gloria bendita muéstrame lo que tú quieres que yo haga, ayúdame a caminar por tú vía y no apartarme nunca de ti en nombre y por amor de tu hijo amado amén ???
Heavenly Father,
I am not even a speck in the universe but Father, you care for me. How, then, should I care for others?
Without you I am nothing. Without you I am powerless to fight the schemes of the evil one. Without your Holy Spirit, I can not help save another lost soul.
You call me Father to help those discouraged, the widow, the fatherless. Without you, I can do nothing for the kingdom. I stand speechless before your throne, humbled by your love for me.
Father, as I go forth this day, fill me with your love. Fill me with your strength. Fill me with your wisdom. Guide me in all that I do, think and say this day.
And when this day is over, I will humbly thank you for your provision, your guidance, and for the heavenly tasks we accomplished together.
For it is in the precious, powerful name of Jesus Christ I lift this petition to you.
Amen
I am saved by the Lord!!
Thank you father for adopting me and allowing me to be your son.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Moses continually told the people of Israel, as we all should, to follow God and all of His commandments. Even on his death bed, so to speak, his foremost thoughts were of his mission to lead God’s people in a life worthy of their Savior and he wanted he wanted to remind them one last time. We, as Christian soldiers, need to continue the march, holding God’s banner high, with the cross of Jesus, going on before. Help us, dear LORD, we pray. Amen