Old Testament survey (5): Deuteronomy

Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. (Deuteronomy 4:2)

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. (Deuteronomy 6:4-7)

Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day: And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known. (Deuteronomy 11:26-28)

And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law. For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it. (Deuteronomy 32:46-47)

Overview

[1] Deuteronomy, from Thru The Bible Radio with Dr. J. Vernon McGee ©, with free downloads Notes & Outlines (PDF), Complete 5-Year Study (MP3)

The theme of Deuteronomy may surprise you. The great theme is Love and Obey. You may not have realized that the love of God was mentioned that far back in the Bible, but the word love occurs twenty–two times. The Lord Jesus was not attempting to give something that was brand new when He said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Deuteronomy teaches that obedience is man’s response to God’s love. This is not the gospel, but the great principle of it is here. And let’s understand one thing: the Law is good. Although I emphasize and overemphasize the fact that God cannot save us by Law, that does not imply that the Law is not good. Of course the Law is good. Do you know where the trouble lies? The trouble is with you and me. Therefore God must save us only by His grace. (Read the complete article)

[2] Book of Deuteronomy, from gotquestions.org (this website is also available in Afrikaans, Arabic, Bengali, Burmese-Myanmar, Cebuano, Chinese - Simplified, Chinese – Traditional, Hausa, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Malaysian, Persian-Farsi, Portuguese, Quechua, Sesotho, Spanish, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, Zulu, and 70 other languages)

The Israelites are commanded to remember four things: God’s faithfulness, God’s holiness, God’s blessings, and God’s warnings. The first three chapters recap the trip from Egypt to their current location, Moab. Chapter 4 is a call to obedience, to be faithful to the God Who was faithful to them.

Chapters 5 through 26 are a repetition of the law. The Ten Commandments, the laws concerning sacrifices and specials days, and the rest of the law are given to the new generation. Blessings are promised to those who obey (5:29; 6:17-19; 11:13-15), and famine is promised to those who break the law (11:16-17).

The theme of blessing and cursing is continued in chapters 27-30. This portion of the book ends with a clear choice set before Israel: “I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing.” God’s desire for His people is found in what He recommends: “choose life” (30:19). (Read the complete article)

[3] Deuteronomy, from Scofield Reference Notes (1917 Edition)

DEUTERONOMY consists of the parting counsels of Moses delivered to Israel in view of the impending entrance upon their covenanted possession. It contains a summary of the wilderness wanderings of Israel, which is important as unfolding the moral judgement of God upon those events; repeats the Decalogue to a generation which had grown up in the wilderness; gives needed instruction as the conduct of Israel in the land, and contains the Palestinian Covenant (Deuteronomy 30:1-9). The book breathes the sternness of the Law. Key- words, “Thou shalt”; key-verses, Deuteronomy 11:26-28.

It is important to note that, while the land of promise was unconditionally given Abraham and to his seed in the Abrahamic Covenant (Genesis 13:15; 15:7), it was under the conditional Palestinian Covenant (Deuteronomy 28:1-30:9) that Israel entered the land under Joshua. Utterly violating the conditions of that covenant, the nation was first disrupted (1 Kings 12) and then cast out of the land (2 Kings 17:1-18; 24:1-25:11). But the same covenant unconditionally promises a national restoration of Israel which is yet to be fulfilled.

DEUTERONOMY is in seven divisions:

1. Summary of the history of Israel in the wilderness, 1:1-3:29
2. A restatement of the Law, with warnings and exhortations, 4:1 -11:32,
3. Instructions, Warnings, and Predictions, 12:1-27:26,
4. The great closing prophecies summarizing the history of Israel to the second coming of Christ, and containing the Palestinian Covenant, 28:1-30:20,
5. Last counsels to Priests, Levites, and to Joshua, 31,
6. The Song of Moses and his parting blessings, 32,33,
7. The Death of Moses, 34.

The time covered by this retrospect is approximately forty years.

[4] Deuteronomy (with chart Slow Learners, Slow Travelers), from Uplook Ministries


Further study (Be like the Bereans! Acts 17:11)

[1] Materials by David Malick

• An Introduction to Deuteronomy (download Word doc)
• An Argument of the Book of Deuteronomy (download Word doc)

[2] Israel’s Covenant Renewal, by Bob Deffinbaugh

[3] Regal/Messianic Hope in Deuteronomy, 1, 2 Samuel, and 1, 2 Kings, by Greg Herrick (download Word doc)

[4] Responsibilities of Fatherhood (Deuteronomy 6:1-19), by J. Hampton Keathley, III (download Word doc)

[5] The Law: The First Five Books, by J. Hampton Keathley, III

Sermons on Deuteronomy (Be like the Bereans! Acts 17:11)

[1] Deuteronomy 6 A living legacy, by Danny Parker, First Baptist Church

[2] The Command to Love God, by Ron Humphries, Scotland Baptist Church

[3] DEUTERONOMY: God’s Book of Remembrance, from South McGehee Baptist Church, McGehee AR

[4] From Palm Springs Baptist Church

• The Most Important Thing I Could Tell You, Deuteronomy 30:19-20
• Faith Worth Passing On, Deuteronomy 6

[5] Sermons by Rev. Chris Harbin, Rocks Baptist Church, Pamplin, VA

• Heart Matters: Faithfulness Deuteronomy 30:11 -20
• Not Too Hard Deuteronomy 30:11 -20

[6] A New Deal For God’s People, by Peter Bongers, Stanley Park Baptist Church

[7] Financial Stewardship, Part 1, The Believer and His Money, from Albany Baptist Church, Albany NY

[8] Why Follow God? by George Toews

[9] Example, by Jim L. Wilson

[10] Preparation, by Jim L. Wilson

[11] Notice to Parents, by James Huffman

[12] Obeying the Commands, by David L Peterson IV

[13] Deal or No Deal, by Bruce W. Logue

[14] Who Do You Love? by George Toews

[15] Showing & Telling, by Josh Kelley

[16] What’s a Dad to Do? by Ethan Kallberg

[17] Sermon -01-20-2008 - The Power of Choices, by Fred

[18] Dt 11 PASSING THE BATON, by James Paton

[19] Christian Education Begins At Home, by Mark M. Goodwin

[20] The Road Less Traveled, by Walter Johnson

For other available sermons, please surf to Sermon / Preaching resources. Sermons are also available from South McGehee Baptist Church, McGehee, Arizona; Central Baptist Church, Lowesville; First Baptist Church, Mountain View, Missouri; Swift Creek Baptist Church; Word of Life Baptist Church, Pottsville, Philadelphia; Palm Springs Baptist Church, California; South Woods Baptist Church; Grove Baptist Church, Ulster; Dudley Baptist Church, United Kingdom; Independent Fundamental Baptist Sermons, Fundamental Christian Radio Broadcasts, Off-Site Audio Page and The Christian Radio Tuner

Notes: (1) This ministry does not necessarily endorse or share all the views and opinions expressed in the materials, resources or links mentioned in these posts. Please always refer to the Articles of Faith and Biblical distinctives of Baptists when you study these materials. (2) This lesson is part of the projected 300 plus lessons. From time to time, the lessons will be updated, revised, combined, formatted, and edited to comply with the VOA Simplified English word list. Later on, these lessons will be categorized, numbered sequentially, and made available as PDF downloads.