Many years ago, when I was at school, I had some talent when it came to long distance running. Consequently, I occasionally represented the school at various athletic events. I took my training very seriously, but I was aware that the training was not ‘the main event’ but important preparation for that event. As such this prelude to the blessings and curses is to prepare the people so that they would be alert to what is being taught when it comes to this important subject.

Verses 9-10 form a declaration by Moses and the priests to the people that they ‘have become the people of the LORD your God’ (v9).  At the end of chapter 26 in verse 17 the people had, metaphorically, put their signature on this covenant with God. Moses acknowledges this by reinstating that they are to obey and follow these commands.  The command to: ‘Keep silence’ before this declaration alerts us: ‘that a message of grave importance is about to be declared.’[1] The inclusion of the leaders in this announcement is interesting as it gives us the impression that those who represent the people confirmed this agreement with the people, whereas before Moses had been speaking to the people on behalf of God, giving them the status of God’s people.  In other words, the whole thing becomes inclusive to the whole nation because God has redeemed them as a nation.  Craigie sums this up nicely with this comment: ‘they were already the people of God, of course, but the ceremony on the plains of Moab reminded them of that status and renewed its reality.’[2]

This is useful to reminder today. We do not cease to be the people of God when we walk out of church; we are the Lord’s all the time.  We are neither more of or of less the Lord’s at home, work, school or college as we are always the Lords!  Just as Israel were to always be the Lord’s people and to conduct themselves accordingly, we are to live and act as His people each day whatever the situation, be it good or bad, peaceful or stressful, wherever we are and whoever we are with.

As mentioned in chapter 11:26-32 the ceremony was to take place on Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim.  In verses 12-14 instructions are given as to the role of each of the tribes in the ceremony.  The tribes of Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin were to stand on Mount Gerizim: ‘to bless the people’ (v12).  Those of Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali were to stand on Mount Ebal and pronounce the curses that follow at the end of the chapter.

Why are these particular tribes on each particular mountain?  The most likely basis for the division is that it partly follows the marital relationships between Jacob and his wives Leah and Rachel.  Those who are descended from Leah and Rachel make up the six tribes on Mount Gerizim.  The six tribes mentioned on Mount Ebal are descended from the four sons of Leah’s and Rachel’s handmaidens as well as the first and last born to Leah.  It could be argued that Reuben is allotted to Ebal as he forfeited his birth-right because of incest (Genesis 49:3-4).  What was to follow in this ceremony, which was finally carried out when they entered the land (Joshua 8:30-35), was that the Levites would teach the people the consequences of either breaking or keeping God’s Law. Whether this was a ceremony that was carried out once or was intended to be repeated as an annual event, we do not know.

In many churches today there is a tendency to focus on the benefits and blessings that we have in Christ.  But here we see that the Levite’s are to teach both the benefits of following the Lord and also the terrible consequences of ignoring his Word. As such this passage acts as a warning to Preachers to preach the whole council of scripture and nothing more and nothing less and for Christians to live by it!

[1] John D Currid, Deuteronomy, an EP study commentary (Evangelical Press, Darlington, 2006) 425.
[2] Peter C. Craigie, The Book of Deuteronomy (Grand Rapids, Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1976) 329.

This month we start a new series looking at the blessings and curses in these chapters and what we can learn from them today.

When you walk into my study you will notice a number of things like a computer and a great many books. But over in the corner is one of the most important things in the room, and that is my notice board.  It has various bits of paper on it.  These are things I need to be reminded of, so they get dealt with. What we are dealing with at the start of this chapter is similar, as it is how the Israelites were to remind themselves of the Law that the Lord had given them and as importantly, how they were to obey that Law.

At the end of chapter 26 there was, metaphorically, the signing of the covenant between the Lord and the people of Israel.  But the emphasis here is not just on the keeping of these commands, but also the consequences of not keeping them.

In chapter 27 Moses is mentioned in the third person which has not been the case since 5:1 as chapters 5-26 are presented as Moses’ speeches to Israel. So, let me put forward what I think is happening here.  My wife and I enjoy watching movies, but I am also very interested in the composition of movies, the how and whys of how films are put together. So this is bit like the director of a movie getting the camera to draw back to give us a new perspective. Whereas close-ups focus our attention on one thing, when the camera draws back to a wide short we can see much more.  The emphasis of the text has been on Moses teaching the Law, but now the people are being reminded that this Law has consequences which could be good or bad depending on how they react to it. Hence, what we are getting here is, in movie terms, is a wide shot, as we are now not just thinking just about what Moses is teaching, but also about the consequences of the Law.

The chapter starts with a command which is issued by Moses and the elders, and this is that the people are to be faithful in keeping the Law, not just at the present time, but when they cross the Jordan and reach the Land. So, when they do this they were to: ‘set up large stones and plaster them with plaster.’ On the stones they are to write: ‘all the words of this law’ (v3).  Within this command there is a reminder that the land is part of God’s blessing and promise to His people, as seen in the phase: ‘a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you’ (v3).  There is an emphasis on God’s faithfulness despite the disobedience that the Israelites had shown during the Exodus.  Therefore, the gist of these first few verses is that they are to continue in faithfully keeping the Law when they enter the Land.

But how would they be sure that they were continuing to be faithful?  This is where the stones came in. Just as my notice board acts as a reminder to me, these stones would act as a reminder to the Israelites as all the words of the Law were to be written on them: ‘very plainly’ (v8).  What this quite means is not certain.  Was the Law written out in its entirety (after all these were large stones), or just the Ten Commandments as an effective summary? But whether it was the whole or part of the Law these stones would have acted as an effective reminder.[1]  The place that these stones were to be set up was to be Mount Ebal (which is first mentioned in Deuteronomy in chapter 11).  Mount Ebal had an interesting history as it is a place where Abraham first sacrificed in the Land (Genesis 12:6-7). Later Jacob built an alter there (Genesis 33:18-20) and perhaps this is why it was chosen as it emphasises the Lord’s faithfulness to His people.  By the stones was an alter that was to be built out of uncut stones (Exodus 20:25) distinguishing it from the Canaanite alters where the stones would have been fashioned with the tools of the time. As Paul Brown points out: ‘the associations of such implements were all pagan.’[2]

 Once the alter was completed there were to be sacrifices of: ‘burnt offerings’ ‘which symbolise the entire consecration of the offering to God’[3] and also: ‘peace offerings’ , these representing fellowship between the people of God (vs6-7).  What is notable here is that once they were in the Land and had completed this command there was to be rejoicing that God had brought them into the Land and had given them this Law.  This reminds us that when we come together our worship should be joyful as we study God’s Word and goodness towards us!

[1] If the idea seems a bit quaint and removed from the present day, we should remember that many churches have the Ten Commandments situated in a prominent place. Indeed, in the Anglican Church it is part of church law that they should be displayed.
[2] Paul E. Brown, Deuteronomy, An Expositional Commentary.(Day one, Leominster, 2008), 197.
[3] Allan Harman. Deuteronomy, the Commands of the Covenant God (Christian focus publications, Fearn, 2001) 231.

‘There is none like God, O Jeshurun, who rides through the heavens to your help, through the skies in his majesty. The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, Destroy. So Israel lived in safety, Jacob lived alone, in a land of grain and wine, whose heavens drop down dew. Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, the shield of your help, and the sword of your triumph! Your enemies shall come fawning to you, and you shall tread upon their backs’ (Deuteronomy 33:26-29).

As Moses comes to the end of his last words to the people, his emphasis, as it was at the beginning, is on the Lord.  The subject of these last few verses (vs26-29) is Moses’ praise and worship at God’s role in redeeming His people and fulfilling His promises through all that He has done for Israel.  In all this, Moses emphasises that God is quite unique.

The language of verse 26 is interesting because, as in other parts of Deuteronomy, the terminology that is used is similar to the way the Canaanites would have believed their god Baal would have acted.  Being a god of the storm and rain, he would have been seen as having a dominion over the clouds and the sky.  But the point being made here is that Baal is a false god, whereas the Lord God of Israel was unique, and it was He not Baal who had sovereignty over all including the weather. But what is more remarkable is He is their God which is made apparent by the use of God’s nickname for Israel: ‘Jeshurun’.  

Verse 27 makes it clear that Israel would continue to find their security in the Lord and could be assured of that because He is the: ‘eternal God’, the reference to His: ‘everlasting arms’ indicating His strength.  It is said that that there are only two things that are certain in this life and that is ‘death and taxes’ but let me add a third far more encouraging one, and that is God can be trusted and when we come to Him we are secure in Him.  A major theme of Deuteronomy is there has been an assurance that God would go ahead of His people, He would fight their battles and would drive out their enemies and the second part of this verse reassures them of this.  Moses’ words paint a picture of a secure and happy nation being amply provided for due to the climate and agricultural nature of the land, but the phrase: ‘whose heavens drop dew’ (v28) reminds the people even the fruitfulness of nature is because of God’s provision.

The passage ends with the assertion that if God is unique then Israel is unique in having a God who has saved His people.  The language of verse 29 is militaristic in its nature with the language referring to the Lord as ‘the shield of your help, and the sword of your triumph!’ But the nature of this warfare is spiritual as it included destruction of places of worship of the false gods and goddesses of the land.  This was victory over the false religion as such religion had led to depravity and was an affront to God, and, as such, was under God’s judgement.  Here is an emphasis on God’s working through a faithful and obedient people.  So here is a question for the church today.  Do we live in the light of God being a triumphant and we, because we worship such a God, being a triumphant people?  I will leave it those saints of yesteryear to Henry and Scott to sum up what this means.  ‘Never were people so well supported and borne up; “underneath the everlasting arms”; that is, the almighty power of God is engaged for the protection and the consolation of all who trust in him in their greatest straits and distresses, and under their heaviest burdens.  The everlasting arms shall support the interests of the church in general, that they shall not sink, or be run down.  Underneath the church is that Rock of ages on which it is built, and against which the gates of hell shall never prevail.’[1]Now that is real encouragement, and it acts as a book end to Moses’ blessing.  The blessing starts with the faithfulness of the Lord in the past and it ends with the promise of His faithfulness in the future.  The Lord God of Israel is the God of the church today.  After all, we like them, are redeemed people: ‘saved by the Lord’ (v29).  So, what choice do we have but to be encouraged!

[1] Henry and Scott, A Commentary upon the Holy Bible, Genesis to Deuteronomy (London, The Religious Tract Society, 1833) 461.

‘And of Naphtali he said, “O Naphtali, sated with favour, and full of the blessing of the Lord, possess the lake and the south.” And of Asher he said, “Most blessed of sons be Asher; let him be the favourite of his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil. Your bars shall be iron and bronze, and as your days, so shall your strength be” (Deuteronomy 33:23-25).

When we come to Moses’ last two blessings, they are upbeat in nature as there is a strong sense of optimism about the future of these two tribes.

The blessing that is given to the tribe of Naphtali focuses on: ‘the blessing of the Lord’ and the favour his people can experience through that (v23).  The phrase: ‘possess the lake and the south’ refers to the area that was going to be allotted for that tribe, an area which boarded the Sea of Galilee.  The translation here causes some problems as the Hebrew word translated ‘Lake’ (yam) can mean ‘west’.  Allan Harman suggests that the context here means that this may refer to the Sea of Galilee and the southward area which was: ‘the fertile area of the Jordan Valley.’[1] But whatever it may mean the picture is a vivid one of a tribe that will grow and prosper in the years to come.

The final blessing concerns the tribe of Asher (vs24-25), who, as Harman points out, will: ‘live up to his name (blessed).’[2]  As with Jacobs blessing: ‘Asher’s food shall be rich, and he shall yield royal delicacies’, (Genesis 49:20) there are references to fertility of the area they are going to be allotted.  The Galilean Highlands were famous for their olive trees, so the phrase: ‘and let him dip his foot in oil’ (v24) is easily understood as the tribe benefiting from the good land that would give them agricultural abundance.  The description in verse 25 of strong fortifications was probably due to the area that they were going to be allotted.  It was in the northern part of the country and stretched along the coast with a major highway which would have been a natural invasion route.  The tribe would have wished for, and were probably going to take over, strong fortified cities that would give them the strength and protection they might need.

The picture that is painted, in these blessings of these two tribes, is of the Lord’s provision for his people in the most generous and practical way after they have entered the Land. How might we understand this today? Simply, by realizing that the Lord equips his people adequately. Does this always mean that we will be blessed materially, or that the Lord’s blessing is indiscriminately given? Not at all! Israel’s experienced in the years to come illustrates that! But the Lord does equip and enable his people to do his work in every age and generation, whatever the circumnutates, when they seek to be faithful to him!

[1] Allan Harman, Deuteronomy, The Commands of the Covenant God (Christian focus publications, Fearn, 2001) 282.

{2} Harman, Deuteronomy, 282.

‘And of Dan he said, “Dan is a lion’s cub that leaps from Bashan” (Deuteronomy 33:22).

The phase ‘unfulfilled potential’ is often used for what was a formally young up and coming sportsman or a rising star in politics that has never really archive all that was expected of them. Verse 22 of chapter 33 concerns the tribe of Dan and along with the tribe of Reuben this is one of the shortest blessings in this address.  But it is one that may indicate unfulfilled potential!

Dan is compared to a: ‘lion’s cub.’ and in my mind this is a picture of youth and vigour and the aggressive qualities that are referred to in Jacob’s blessing in Genesis 49:16-17 where the tribe is referred to as: ‘a viper by the path, that bites the horse’s heels so that the rider falls backwards’ (Genesis 49:17). But it could also relate, as some commentators have noted, to the weakness of youth.  It has also been seem as an indication that this was a tribe that was going to grow.  Indeed, this was the case and the Danites later took extra territory than what had been allotted to them (Joshua 19:47).

It is uncertain what is the significance of the word ‘Bashan’ is here.  A straightforward reading of the text would suggest a place name, but there is no link between the tribe of Dan and Bashan.  So some commentators have surmised this is a play on words that is often found in Ancient Near East languages   So in that case Bashan can be associated with the word: ‘viper’ which would certainly fit in with Jacob’s blessing in Genesis 49:17, but none of these commentators have claimed this with certainty.

The ambiguous nature of this blessing may well be due to the fact that the tribe of Dan became associated with idolatry (see Judges 18) and this may be one of the reasons why they are not referred to as being among the tribes mentioned in Revelation 7:5-8.

Once again, Scripture warns us that we can come from a good heritage.  We can grow up in a Christian family, attended a good church and can see the blessing of God around us and in the lives of others.  Yet there is a danger that we can neglect making a personal decision and, rather than seek the kingdom of God, we make ourselves at home in the kingdom of this world, just as the Danites did, and became a case of unfulfilled potential!  The results of doing so is easily seen in the passage in Revelation 7 where they are not included along with the rest of God’s people! And as such, this acts as a warning to churches and individuals to put the Lord first and seek his will in everything they do!

‘And of Zebulun he said, “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, and Issachar, in your tents. They shall call peoples to their mountain; there they offer right sacrifices; for they draw from the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.” And of Gad he said, Blessed be he who enlarges Gad! Gad crouches like a lion; he tears off arm and scalp. He chose the best of the land for himself, for there a commander’s portion was reserved; and he came with the heads of the people, with Israel he executed the justice of the Lord, and his judgements for Israel” (Deuteronomy 33:18-21).

The next tribes Moses asks for blessing for are the tribes of Zebulun and Issachar (vs18-19).  Although some of the imagery in this part of the text is hard to discern (by whatever it means and by which tribe it refers to) it is overwhelmingly clear that this blessing is a wish for peace and security for both these tribes.

After years of wilderness wandering Zebulun would be successful: ‘in your going out’ quite possibly because they would become successful traders and Issachar would experience success: ‘in your tents’ which possibly means they would develop as successful farmers. Whether verse 19 refers to both these tribes is open to debate.  However, some have seen it as a reference to Mount Tabor which was in territory which later belonged to the tribe of Zebulun.  Although the site was later condemned by the prophet Hosea, very likely because idolatry was being practised there, it could have been a legitimate place of worship when the land was first occupied.  The reference to: ‘the seas’ and: ‘the hidden treasures of the sand’ is quite possibly because part of Zebulun’s territory was along the sea coast near the modern coastal town of Haifa and the tribe may of the developed some form of maritime trade, although whether this is so is not clear from the rest of the Old Testament.

The tribe of Gad like the tribe of Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh had already acquired their inheritance (3:16).  The verses of Moses’ blessing concerning them pays attention to this fact and calls for the Lord to give further blessing by enlarging their territory  (v20).  The text draws attention to the quality of their land.  It was particularly good, the tribe had seen this and, undoubtedly, this was a major factor in them approaching Moses and asking for it (Numbers 32:1-5).

But the text also draws our attention to their bravery and formidable fighting skills by comparing them to the way a lion acts.  In Deuteronomy 3:18-20 we saw that Moses commanded these tribes to go up and fight alongside their: ‘brother’ Israelites and Gad had done this.  They were not selfish in their acquisition of land east of the Jordan, but were willing to leave their families and all that they possessed to carry out the Lord’s will for Israel (v21) by partaking in the invasion of the land, which we have evidence of in Joshua 22:1-6.

There is an important lesson for Christians today in the way Gad behaved.  The experience of becoming a Christian varies for each person.  Some will find it a struggle with opposition from family and friends.  But for those who become Christians and belong to a Christian family or have the support of the good church there can be a real sense of enjoying good fellowship, having a fairly comfortable and blessed life already and never having to engage in the battle of Christian witness on the home front.  The tribe of Gad are an example of those who did not just put their feet up once they got their inheritance and enjoy the benefits the Lord had given them; they were ready to do His work first and foremost and go to war with their brothers!  We, like them, should be prepared to do battle by doing the Lord’s will and witnessing to His great love!

And of Joseph he said, “Blessed by the Lord be his land, with the choicest gifts of heaven above, and of the deep that crouches beneath, with the choicest fruits of the sun and the rich yield of the months, with the finest produce of the ancient mountains and the abundance of the everlasting hills, with the best gifts of the earth and its fullness and the favour of him who dwells in the bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph, on the pate of him who is prince among his brothers.  A firstborn bull—he has majesty, and his horns are the horns of a wild ox; with them he shall gore the peoples, all of them, to the ends of the earth; they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh” (Deuteronomy 33:13-17).

The next blessing is the longest and concerns the tribe of Joseph (vs13-17).  The blessing is very similar to the blessing Jacob gives concerning Joseph in Genesis 49:22-26.   The size of the blessing here indicates the importance and position that the tribe had among the tribes in regard to its status and its territory.

The blessing starts with an emphasis on the Lord’s provision through nature, His control over it and that He would bless the tribe through this provision (vs13-16a).  This is in direct contrast to the beliefs of the people of the land who believed Baal controlled the weather.  So, this blessing teaches God’s complete sovereignty over all of His creation.  This was in marked contrast to the supposed regional deities of the land like Baal who specialised in one area of controlling the cosmos.  No doubt this was a fitting blessing for the tribe whose patriarch, Joseph, had provided food for Egypt and the surrounding nations as well as being the means of preservation for God’s people.

This first section ends by referring to God’s favour being shown to the tribe with a reference to the burning bush (v16) that Moses encountered in the desert of Sinai (Exodus 3:2).  Because of the nature of the Hebrew some commentators have argued the emphasis of the passage cannot be on the Lord being present in the burning bush, but the significance of the area where Moses met Him.[1]  Yet others see no textual support for this. But, however you interpreted it, what is interesting is why this particular illustration of God meeting Moses is here, as this is the only other reference to it in the Old Testament?  I would surmise it is for the following reason; this was a reminder of God reconnecting with His people.  At the start of Exodus, Israel as a nation seems disconnected from God and from Ezekiel 20:7-8 we see the sad state that Israel had slipped into with the worship of false gods and idolatry being rampant in their religious practice.  Yet God met with Moses in a remarkable way through the burning bush, and this was the start of the Lord reconnecting with His people.

Also, it was at Sinai that the Lord entered into a covenant with His people.  ‘It was because of those great moments in the past that the tribe of Joseph would experience in the future the blessing of God in the land of promise.’[2]  Hence, the significance of the event! The Lord had not forgotten His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and, what was more important, He was going to keep them!

The second part of the blessing (vs16b-17) relates to the tribe’s military might which would be so essential in the conquest of the land and the protection of it afterwards.  This was to be part the Lord’s blessing and his ‘favour’ towards them as a tribe.  The illustration of the tribe’s military prowess is graphically illustrated as being like that of a: ‘firstborn bull’.  The picture here is of an animal that is the strongest in its family and that nothing can withstand.  In the same sense Moses prays that nothing will be able to stand against the tribe of Joseph.  The passage ends with a reference to: ‘the ten thousands of Ephraim’ and: ‘the thousands of Manasseh.’  By this, Moses emphasises the pre-eminence of Ephraim, despite the fact that Manasseh was the first born of Joseph sons, the numbers, being symbolic, reinforce this and give credence to Jacob’s blessing and prophecy in Genesis 48:14-20.

This blessing has much to teach the church today.  Although we do not believe in a ‘Wealth, health and prosperity gospel’ and we do not seem to be living in a time of great revival at this moment, God wants to bless us spiritually with a greater knowledge and belief in Him. He wants us, because of this, to live as a triumphant people.  But most of the time we do anything but!  We focused too much on the world and live in a way that suggests we are beset on each side and that we are an irrelevance to the world in general!  True, we do face real spiritual opposition and the fight is hard.  But to quote a major theme in Deuteronomy, it is the Lord who fights the battle, and He is calling us to be obedient.  One-day God will be seen to be triumphant overall.  That means we worship a victorious God and if that’s true we will be seen as His victorious people!

[1] J.A. Thompson, Deuteronomy, An Introduction and Commentary (Leicester, Inter-Varsity Press, 1974) 130.
[2]Peter. C Craige, The Book of Deuteronomy, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Eerdmans publishing co, Michigan, 1976) 398.

‘Of Benjamin he said, “The beloved of the Lord dwells in safety.  The High God surrounds him all day long, and dwells between his shoulders.” (Deuteronomy 33:12).

The blessing in relation to the tribe of Benjamin is comparatively short in comparison to Levi’s one in the verses before it.  Also the tone is very different from Jacob’s blessing in Genesis 49:27    A straightforward reading of the first part of this verse highlights the Lord’s love for them, as the text gives us a picture of intimacy and security by highlighting His protection towards them. This is very much echoing Judah’s comments to Joseph concerning his younger brother Benjamin in Genesis 44:20.

The second part of the verse is subject to translational difficulties.  What exactly does: “The High God surrounds him all day long, and dwells between his shoulders.” mean?  Again, a straightforward reading of the text would suggest this is emphasising the Lord’s love by using a father and son illustration of a father putting his son on his shoulders and carrying him.  The illustration of the Lord acting like a father towards his people has been used before in Deuteronomy when Moses reminds them how he tried to encourage them in the light of the spies discouraging report with the words: “and the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.” (1:31).

However, it is possible to read another meaning into this phrase.  Allan Harman points out that the word: ‘shoulder’, when used in the Hebrew text in Joshua 15:8 and 18:16, is used to describe the side of the mountain which Jerusalem was built on.  He concludes that this is a reference to the Tabernacle as it would ultimately be situated in Jerusalem.  Later the temple would be built there and as this was seen as the dwelling place of God, and Jerusalem was within Benjamin’s territory, this also seems plausible explanation.[1]

However, the main thing we should come away with is the anticipation that the tribe of Benjamin will dwell in the land in safety and security.  Also the father and son relationship theme of the second part of the verse emphasises the beginning of the verse which refers to Benjamin as the Lord’s: ‘beloved’.  Such is the nature of the Lord’s relationship with the believer.

[1]Allan Harman, Deuteronomy, The Commands of the Covenant God (Christian focus publications, Fearn, 2001) 280.

‘And of Levi he said,“Give to Levi your Thummim, and your Urim to your godly one, whom you tested at Massah, with whom you quarrelled at the waters of Meribah; who said of his father and mother, ‘I regard them not’; he disowned his brothers and ignored his children.  For they observed your word and kept your covenant.  They shall teach Jacob your rules and Israel your law they shall put incense before you and whole burnt offerings on your altar.  Bless, O Lord, his substance, and accept the work of his hands; crush the loins of his adversaries, of those who hate him, that they rise not again” (Deuteronomy 33:8-11).

The blessing of verses 8-11 is directed at the tribe of Levi.  This is the second longest blessing that Moses gives, the longest being to the tribe of Joseph.  Once again the blessing for the tribe takes the form of a prayer for the future of the tribe and their dedication and role in serving the Lord’s people in the years to come.

The: ‘Thummim’ and: ‘Urim’ of verse 8 referred to the means by which the Lord’s will was often discerned.  They were probably two flat stones which the high priest kept in his breastplate (Exodus 28:30 and Leviticus 8:8).  The origin of the words on each side of these stones is interesting; ‘Urim’ is derived from the word that means ‘curse’ whereas ‘Thummim’ is derived from the word which means: ‘perfect.’  If, when thrown, both sides showed ‘Urim’ then the answer was in the negative and the consequences for the person asking the question, if proceeding with the action connected with that question, could be to incur a curse.  If ‘Thummim’, the answer was positive.  In the case of a combination of the two words the priests would say that it was impossible to give a definite answer.[1]  What this clearly shows is the pastoral role of the tribe from which the priestly office derived.  It is also a reversal of Jacob’s curse from Genesis 49:5-7.

At first it seems unclear as to how the tribe of Levi was responsible for testing the Lord at Massah or how they: ‘quarrelled’ with the Lord at Merbeth (Exodus 17:1-7 and Numbers 20:1-13).  But I think Allan Harman has the answer in the sense that both Moses and Aaron, who represented Levi, had both been tested through this event.[2]  What is clear from the following verses is the loyalty to the Lord that Levi had shown.

There’s no doubt that the tribe of Levi acted with great zeal for the Lord’s cause at key points in the history of the exodus.  For example, they carried out the Lord’s judgement to the letter in the aftermath of the idolatry of the Golden calf (Exodus 32:27-28) and Phinehas, a Levite, had acted zealously when the men of Israel indulged in sexual immorality and idolatry with the Moabite women (Numbers 25:6-13).  Indeed, their faithfulness concerning the incident with the Golden Calf is what led to the tribe being set aside for the Lord’s service.  The three areas that service covered were seeking the Lord’s will, instructing the people in God’s Law and taking responsibility for Israel’s formal worship.

The words of verse 9 for can be compared to Jesus’ comments when He teaches, using an extreme example (which was common in Jewish teaching), that love for God and the sacrifice that that entails is to come first in all the Christian says and does (Matthew 10:34-39 and Luke 14:26).  Just as the Levites were to guard the Lord’s Covenant, those who minister to God’s people are to hold God’s Word as precious.  This role is the focus of verse 10 as this was Levi’s unique role within the people of Israel and throughout the Old Testament as teachers of the people.  Those who were priests had a special role in that they offered incense and sacrifices to the Lord in accordance with the Law.  In other words, they acted as intercessors to the Lord on behalf of the people.  Moses ends his blessing with a call to the Lord that this role would continue and the Lord would bless the work of the Levites and protect them from anyone who would oppose them.  In our day and age it is just as important that we pray that the Lord strengthens and protects those who minister His Word.

[1] Raymond Brown, The Message of Deuteronomy, The Bible Speaks Today  (Inter-Varsity-Press, 1993) 314.
[2] Allan Harman. Deuteronomy, the Commands of the Covenant God (Christian focus publications, Fearn, 2001) 279.