9:1-6 The Israelites were about to cross the Jordan River and drive out seven powerful nations. The cities have high walls and the people are strong and tall like Anakites. But the Lord will go before them and weaken them so the Israelites can drive them out of the land and destroy them quickly. Moses bluntly tells them that they are not being given all this land because they are so righteous. Rather it's because these other nations are so wicked that they are being driven out. The Israelites are not better than the people they are dispossessing; as Moses will show them in several graphic reminders of their "stiff-necked" rebellion against the Lord.
v. 7-29 They provoked the Lord to anger many times, the first of which was at Mount Horeb (Mt. Sinai) when they worshiped a golden calf. The Lord was angry enough to destroy them but Moses interceded and begged Him to forgive them. Even Aaron was in danger of being destroyed by the Lord for his part in the rebellion. Moses had to go up the mountain a second time and fast 40 days and nights. Then the Lord gave him new stone tablets on which He'd written the Ten Commandments.
As a reminder of their rebellious attitude toward the Lord, Moses mentions four other times when the people had made the Lord angry-- at Taberah, Massah, Kibroth Hattaavah and Kadesh Barnea.
� Taberah-- Numbers 11:1-3 The people complained about their hardships and the Lord killed some of those who were at the outskirts of the camp with fire. Taberah means "burning."
� Massah-- Exodus 17:1-7 The people had no water and questioned whether the Lord was with them. They threatened to stone Moses but the Lord told him to strike a rock and it brought forth water for all the people. Massah means "testing."
� Kibroth Hattaavah-- Numbers 11:4-35 Some of the people craved other food and said they were better off in Egypt. The Lord brought a huge number of quail, enough to feed them for a month. But He was angry with them for wanting to return to Egypt so He struck them with a severe plague. Kibroth Hattaavah means "graves of craving."
� Kadesh Barnea-- Deuteronomy 1:19-46 The people were discouraged by the bad report given by 10 of the spies and sat in their tents saying, "The Lord hates us." Because they did not trust the Lord to conquer their enemies He made them turn back toward the desert and kept them out there another 38 years until all the fighting men of that generation died.
The Israelites neither trusted Him nor obeyed Him. Moses says, "You have been rebellious against the Lord ever since I have known you." Yet he interceded for them again and again, appealing to the Lord's desire to protect the honor of His Name among the pagan nations. If He destroyed the Israelites then the other nations would think He hated His people or He was not powerful enough to bring them into Canaan. Moses never made excuses for the Israelites' disobedience.
10:1-11 Moses reminds the people of the new stone tablets and the ark of the covenant in which they were kept. He records the burial place of Aaron and how his son, Eleazar, succeeded him as high priest. In class we read about Aaron's death in Numbers 20:22-29. Like Moses, he was not allowed to enter Canaan because he sinned against the Lord. The Levites were set apart by the Lord to carry the ark of the covenant and minister before Him. That's why the Levites were not given a share of the land when it was divided.
v. 12-22 What does the Lord ask of the Israelites? To fear Him, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve Him with all their heart and soul, and to observe His commands and decrees. All of this is for their own good. The Lord owns the heaven, the earth, and everything in it. He is the one who chose them above all the other nations. That's why they should not be stiff-necked and rebellious but instead should circumcise their hearts, humbling themselves before the Lord. Moses says, "The Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords." He is above all others. He shows no partiality and cannot be influenced by a bribe. He defends the helpless, like widows and orphans. He even provides food for aliens. The Israelites should fear Him, hold fast to Him, and take their oaths in His name. It is the Lord who has made them into a large nation. There were only seventy men with Jacob when he went down to Egypt at the time when Joseph was in power, but now there were more than 600,000 men.
11:1-7 Not only should they fear Him and serve Him, but they should love the Lord and obey His commands. Moses reminds them that it was this generation who saw the many miracles the Lord did for them in the wilderness. It was not their children who saw it but these grownups who were standing with him east of the Jordan River just before they were to cross over. In class we talked about the three generations that were involved here. There was the group that was 20 years and older when they left Egypt, the children of that group, and the grandchildren of that group. The oldest generation died in the wilderness during the 40 years wandering. The next generation would have been little kids when they left Egypt but were grown up by the end of the 40 years. And the youngest generation was born during that 40 years in the wilderness. It was the second generation that Moses was talking to. They were the ones who experienced the discipline of the Lord, saw the signs and wonders at the Red Sea, and all He did for them along the way. They also witnessed what happened to Dathan and Abiram at the time of Korah's rebellion when the earth opened up and swallowed these rebellious men and their families. (Read Numbers 16).
v. 8-15 The Israelites must observe all the commands of the Lord so He will give them strength to go in and take the land on the other side of the Jordan. This is a good land. It's even better than Egypt because in Egypt they had to manually water their crops. But in Canaan the Lord sends rain from heaven. He watches over that land and cares for it from the beginning of the year to its end. But the blessings of this good land are dependent upon their obedience to the Lord's commands. If they obey they will be blessed with rain, new wine, oil, and abundant grain. Even their cattle will enjoy plenty of grass in their pastures.
That's all for this time.