Deuteronomy 31:14 – 22 “Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, the time of your death is near. Call Joshua and present yourselves at the Tent of Meeting, so that I may commission him.”
So, Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the Tent of Meeting. Then the LORD appeared at the tent in a pillar of cloud, and the cloud stood over the entrance to the tent.
And the LORD said to Moses, “You will soon rest with your fathers, and these people will rise up and prostitute themselves with the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake Me and break the covenant I have made with them.
On that day My anger will burn against them, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, so that they will be consumed, and many troubles and afflictions will befall them.
On that day they will say, ‘Have not these disasters come upon us because our God is no longer with us?’ And on that day I will surely hide My face because of all the evil they have done by turning to other gods.
Now therefore, write down for yourselves this song and teach it to the Israelites; have them recite it, so that it may be a witness for Me against them. When I have brought them into the land that I swore to give their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey, they will eat their fill and prosper. Then they will turn to other gods and worship them, and they will reject Me and break My covenant. And when many troubles and afflictions have come upon them, this song will testify against them, because it will not be forgotten from the lips of their descendants. For I know their inclination, even before I bring them into the land that I swore to give them.”
So that very day Moses wrote down this song and taught it to the Israelites.”
At first this passage seems confusing. God begins by summoning Moses and Joshua so that He can commission Joshua to take over leadership from Moses. But then God turns His attention to Moses, explaining that He is about to teach Moses a song that Moses is to teach the Israelites. This song will stand as a witness against the Israelites when they prove faithless. Presumably, part of the reason God is informing Moses about the song is so that Joshua will also carefully study this song and learn it as well. As the next leader, Joshua needs all the information that he can get.
Just how faithless were the Israelites? God gave Ezekiel a vivid description of the actual behavior of the Israelites in Egypt and afterwards in the wilderness.
“ And I said to them, ‘Cast away the detestable things your eyes feast on, every one of you, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am the Lord your God.’ But they rebelled against me and were not willing to listen to me. None of them cast away the detestable things their eyes feasted on, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt.
“Then I said I would pour out my wrath upon them and spend my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. But I acted for the sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made myself known to them in bringing them out of the land of Egypt. So I led them out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. I gave them my statutes and made known to them my rules, by which, if a person does them, he shall live. Moreover, I gave them my Sabbaths, as a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them. But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness. They did not walk in my statutes but rejected my rules, by which, if a person does them, he shall live; and my Sabbaths they greatly profaned.” (Ezekiel 20:7-13)
Evidently, the Israelites hung on to their worthless Egyptian gods long after the One True Living God had delivered them from slavery, from attack by Pharaoh’s army, and from starvation and thirst in the wilderness. Why would God put up with this behavior? God acted for the sake of His Name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations.
APPLICATION: When you look at the story of the Exodus and then realize just how bad the Israelites still were even after they had seen all those miracles, you realize that God was incredibly patient and merciful! God did not choose the Israelites because they were any more virtuous than the Egyptians with whom they had been living for 400 years. God delivered the Israelites because He had made promises to Abraham when He cut covenant with Abraham. God gave Moses the unenviable task of leading this bunch of idol worshipers out into the wilderness so that they would have no other options than to trust God. Even at that point, there were still those who rebelled. God allowed an entire generation of Israelites to die off in the wilderness because of their rebellion and faithlessness. But how many of the children of the first generation were still cherishing Egyptian idols in their tents?
While we would love to smirk at the behavior of the Israelites, we must ask ourselves if we indulge in the same kind of behavior. Do we really try to learn God’s will for our lives and then do it, or are we trying to do our will in God’s name? The major difference is results. Seeking God’s will for our lives and then asking Him to help us follow His guidance brings life and light and peace. Following our own inclinations brings frustration and despair.
What do you do if you come to the end of your own resources and you truly do want God’s help? Simply ask.
PRAYER: Father God, we are frustrated and confused. We have tried to do things our way and we have failed miserably. We don’t know which way to go. Lord, please give us Your guidance and Your peace. Help us to make right decisions instead of wrong ones. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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