Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. On the day before the Israelites enter the Promised Land, Canaan, Moses delivered three speeches to the Israelites and reminded them to obey God. Moses emphasized the promises God made to the Israelites and the importance of loyalty to God. Moses warned them not to worship idols and cautioned them the punishments they would get if they disobey God or worship idols. He also told the Israelites that they had to follow God’s commandments in order to take the Promised Land. Whether they would live a good life in the Promised Land depended on whether they followed God and His law. Throughout Deuteronomy, Moses explained to the Israelites why they should obey God. Although some of the commandments are surprisingly harsh from the modern perspective, I argue that the biblical text and the harsh punishments emphasize the overarching theme that obedience to God is obligatory and the importance of covenant, which is a contract between God and the Israelites.

Deuteronomy discussed various reasons that Israelites had to obey God, and there was no other option. Moses explained that obedience to God is compulsory. In Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” Moses mandated the Israelites to be loyal to God. The LORD is the only God to obey. That is the rule. Moses stated that obedience to God was a simple and foundational principle to follow. In a modern perspective, it seemed harsh because Moses said it as if it were an unobjectionable truth. This unobjectionable truth is the foundation of faith – accept and obey God absolutely. There is no room for reasoning or explanation. The Israelites just had to accept this. Absolute obedience laid the foundation of religion – accepting and obeying the LORD.

Another reason that Israelites should obey God was that obedience to God resulted in blessings, but disobedience resulted in punishment. “See, I set before you this day life and prosperity, death and adversity” (Deuteronomy 30:15). Moses warned the Israelites that after they entered the Land of Canaan, if they followed God and His law, they would have a prosperous life. If not, disaster would destroy them. Moses emphasized to the Israelites God’s promise of good, prosperity, and life, if they followed God. The fact that Moses had to make this argument demonstrated that he was responding to the possibilities that there were incentives for the Israelites to disobey God. As a result, God offered the Israelites the reward of good life and prosperity to prevent the Israelites from giving in to those incentives to disobey God such as idol worship. The reward and punishment system is the essential component of the covenant.

Obedience to God was mandated to an extent that Moses warned against idol worship