Deuteronomy 32:39 – 47 “See now that I am He; there is no God besides Me. I bring death and I give life; I wound and I heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand. For I lift up My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever, when I sharpen My flashing sword, and My hand grasps it in judgment, I will take vengeance on My adversaries and repay those who hate Me. I will make My arrows drunk with blood, while My sword devours flesh— the blood of the slain and captives, the heads of the enemy leaders.”
Rejoice, O heavens, with Him, and let all God’s angels worship Him. Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; for He will avenge the blood of His children. He will take vengeance on His adversaries and repay those who hate Him; He will cleanse His land and His people.“
Then Moses came with Joshua, son of Nun, and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people. When Moses had finished reciting all these words to all Israel, he said to them, “Take to heart all these words I testify among you today, so that you may command your children to carefully follow all the words of this law. For they are not idle words to you, because they are your life, and by them you will live long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”
These are the last verses for the Song of Moses. God is reminding the Israelites that He is the only true God and that He has power over life and death, and over health and healing. God uses the phrase “I am,” the same phrase He used with Moses at the burning bush. This is also the same phrase that Jesus later uses when the priests send soldiers to arrest him in the Garden of Gethsemane. At the mention of the phrase “I am,” the soldiers fell to the ground. (John 18:6) God is sufficient in Himself and is all -powerful.
“Rejoice, O heavens, with Him, and let all God’s angels worship Him. Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; for He will avenge the blood of His children. He will take vengeance on His adversaries and repay those who hate Him; He will cleanse His land and His people.” Surely when some of the Israelites heard these verses, they must have said, “HUH? God is encouraging the Gentiles to rejoice, the non – Israelites? What’s God up to?” The problem is one of perspective. God’s intentions have always been the salvation of the entire world. God only allowed the Israelites to wipe out tribes that had become so evil and so corrupt that they had totally rejected Him. But God wanted Israel to be a shining example of what could happen to any people who would serve Him whole – heartedly. Here God is calling on heaven and the angels and the Gentiles to rejoice in the day when God sets everything right, cleansing His land and His people. The sad part is that the Israelites always assumed that God’s salvation was only for them, even though throughout the Torah God kept mentioning foreigners who would worship along with the Israelites.
APPLICATION: Recent political events in various parts of the world have left many people hungering for righteous leadership. Sometimes people wonder if God has abandoned His world. Nothing could be farther from the truth! God is still on the throne and He is still passionately interested and involved in every aspect of His world.
| Many times, we become frustrated because we feel that the wicked are getting away with their evil deeds; however, God sees the whole thing differently. 2 Peter 3:8-9 says, “Beloved, do not let this one thing escape your notice: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. ot slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” |
God has promised to take vengeance on His adversaries and to repay those who hate Him. God also has promised to cleanse His land and His people. Remember that God knows all of our hearts better than we do. Only God can thoroughly cleanse us from hidden sins.
The theologian Francis Schaeffer once wrote a book entitled How Shall We then Live? Peter answers that question. “But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to conduct yourselves in holiness and godliness as you anticipate and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be destroyed by fire and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, as you anticipate these things, make every effort to be found at peace—spotless and blameless in His sight. (2 Peter 3:10-14)
God wanted Moses to teach the Israelites the Song of Moses so that they would remember what God had done for them and would not fall away. But the Song of Moses is as much for us as it was for the Israelites. We should remember that there is only one true living God and that He alone holds all the power of the universe. As children of our heavenly Father, we need to live righteous, godly, and holy lives, rejecting the parts of our culture that would drag us down. God promises that if we will take His words to heart, we will live long and fruitful lives.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we need Your help every single minute of our lives. There are so many things around us that try to destroy us. Help us to focus on You and on Your Word. Help us to love You above everything else. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
January 26, 2022 at 6:40 pm
I like the reference to I AM an Jesus. I never caught that exactly in the Gospels.