Chapter 31 Moses' Final Words.
Having made his great oration Moses was now aware that his death was rapidly approaching, and he spoke even more earnestly in the light of it. And that approaching death could only increase his pessimism about the people.
His first words were to ‘all Israel', encouraging them to trust Yahweh (Deuteronomy 31:1-6), his next to Joshua in order to encourage him in what lay ahead (Deuteronomy 31:7-8), and then he spoke to the priests and elders for the preservation of the covenant (Deuteronomy 31:9-13). But then he entered into the secret counsels of Yahweh and his message was less encouraging, at least for the medium term (Deuteronomy 31:14 onwards). From that point on he was taking the longer view about Israel, and it was not very encouraging at all, so much so that Yahweh commissioned him to write a song in preparation for it, a song of Complaint.
Moses Final Words Of Encouragement To His People And Call To Joshua (Deuteronomy 31:1-8).
Moses now calls the people together again and addresses then in readiness of his death.
Analysis using the words of Moses:
a And Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. And he said to them, ‘I am a hundred and twenty years old this day. I can no more go out and come in, and Yahweh has said to me, “You shall not go over this Jordan” ' (Deuteronomy 31:1-2).
b Yahweh your God, He will go over before you; He will destroy these nations from before you, and you will dispossess them, and Joshua, he will go over before you, as Yahweh has spoken (Deuteronomy 31:3).
c And Yahweh will do to them as He did to Sihon and to Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land; whom He destroyed (Deuteronomy 31:4).
d And Yahweh will deliver them up before you
d And you shall do to them according to all the commandment which I have commanded you (Deuteronomy 31:5).
c Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid at them, for Yahweh your God, He it is who does go with you); He will not fail you, nor forsake you (Deuteronomy 31:6).
b And Moses called to Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and of good courage, for you will go with this people into the land which Yahweh has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you will cause them to inherit it” (Deuteronomy 31:7).
a And Yahweh, He it is who does go before you. He will be with you, He will not fail you, nor forsake you. Fear not, nor be dismayed (Deuteronomy 31:8).
Note that in ‘a' the bad news is that Moses cannot go over Jordan with them because Yahweh has forbidden it, and in the parallel the good news is that Yahweh Himself will go over before them. In ‘b' Yahweh will go over before them and destroy the nations from before them, and so will Joshua. And in the parallel Joshua must be strong and courageous because Yahweh is going before them and will cause them to inherit the land. In ‘c' Yahweh will do to the nations what He did to Sihon and Og, and in the parallel they are therefore to be strong and of good courage. In ‘d' Yahweh will deliver them up before them, then in the parallel they are to ensure that they drive them out or slay them.
Note the two references in the second part of the chiasmus to ‘Be strong and of good courage'. We have already seen earlier that that is typical of the Pentateuch, the repetition of something vital in the second part of a chiasmus (see for example Exodus 18:21-22 a with Exodus 18:25-26 a; Numbers 18:4 with Numbers 18:7; Numbers 18:23 with Numbers 18:24; Deuteronomy 2:21 with Deuteronomy 2:22. Compare also Isaiah 2:19; Isaiah 2:21).
‘ And Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel.'
Once again we have it stressed that we have here the words of Moses, and in fact there is really no good reason to doubt it. As we have seen all the signs point in that direction.
“And Moses went.” This is a gentle indication that this was at a different point in time to the previous chapter, stressing also deliberate purpose.
‘ And he said to them, I am a hundred and twenty years old this day. I can no more go out and come in, and Yahweh has said to me, “You shall not go over this Jordan.” '
He declared his old age (compare Deuteronomy 34:7). One hundred and twenty was probably a round number, possibly representing three generations of forty years. He had been ‘eighty' when he had first approached Pharaoh (Exodus 7:7 - he had had a generation in Egypt and a generation in Midian) and Aaron had been three years older. It may be that each period of his life; his time in Egypt, his time in Moab, and his time leading the people in the wilderness, was seen in terms of ‘three generations' expressed in terms of three forties of years. This was the way numbers were often used in those days, to convey an idea rather than a mathematical fact. Note how many of the references to age and time in Genesis end in nought or five. Thus he had lived through three generations. He may in fact have been, say, in his eighties or nineties.
“I can no more go out and come in.” This did not signify decrepitude. To ‘go out and in' indicated being busy with the affairs of life. But this was no longer to be possible for him because he was to be displaced. His usefulness was over. This was his constant regret. The phrase is not a contradiction of Deuteronomy 34:7. His eye was still keen, he had been able to see across the Jordan. His strength had not abated. He could still walk and move around. But there was nothing further for him to do. His purpose in life was over.
But his greatest disappointment was that he was not to be allowed to cross the Jordan. He was not to be allowed even to step into the land. It was partly because of his failure at Meribah, which had revealed a lack in his full commitment. But we may also see it as indicating that God did not want Israel's first days and memories in the land to be ones of grief and disappointment at the death of their great leader. He wanted them to be days of encouragement. They would need such encouragement before they were finished. Thus it was far better for them to get over the death of Moses before they entered the land. Moses could only ever be a reminder of the wilderness. Joshua could then be a new beginning who would see them through the first years after their entry into the land.
‘ Yahweh your (thy) God, he will go over before you (thee); he will destroy these nations from before you (thee), and you (thou) will dispossess them, and Joshua, he will go over before you (thee), as Yahweh has spoken.'
But lest this discourage them he pointed out that while he may die Yahweh would still be alive. He would go over before them and would destroy the nations from before them so that they would dispossess them. Like a true leader his thoughts were for his people and not for himself. And he also pointed out that Yahweh had appointed a new leader for them, even his servant Joshua. He too, like Moses, would be God's instrument of deliverance. He would be ‘the Servant of Yahweh' in his stead (Joshua 24:29). He too would go over, in the triumphant train of Yahweh (Deuteronomy 31:7-8).
‘ And Yahweh will do to them as he did to Sihon and to Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land; whom he destroyed.'
And they need not therefore fear. Yahweh would destroy the nations before them as He had Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites. He had destroyed them and their lands. They had therefore no need to fear Amorites any more (contrast Deuteronomy 1:44), for now they had seen what Yahweh could do to them.
‘ And Yahweh will deliver them up before you (ye), and you (ye) shall do to them according unto all the commandment which I have commanded you (ye).'
For Yahweh would deliver them up before them, and when He did they were to ensure that they did what He had commanded them, slay every last person, so that evil might be rooted out of the land. Had they in fact carried out this command they might have been saved for a much longer period from the cursings. But subsequently they were disobedient once the initial rest and time of blessing was past (Judges 2:7), simply because they were influenced by the people still remaining in the land, as the narrative in Judges makes clear, and that was why the cursings began to reveal themselves. When God calls on us to do something, however unpleasant, we do well to do it (but we must make sure that it is God Who is calling us to do it).
‘ Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid at them, for Yahweh your (thy) God, he it is who does go with you (thee); he will not fail you (thee), nor forsake you (thee).'
They were therefore to be strong and of good courage. They were to carry no fear in their hearts, and they were not to be afraid of the enemy. For it was Yahweh their God who was going with them, and He would neither fail them nor forsake them. They would be able totally to rely on Him. If God was for them, who could be against them?
Here they were on the verge of the land. Ahead of them lay battle after battle. The thought that Yahweh was with them and that victory was certain in them all if they truly followed Him, would have been a huge encouragement,
We too must ever remember as we go forward in our lives Who it is Who goes with us. The thought should not only keep us from sin, but also be the assurance to us of the certainty of success if we walk with Him. If God be for us who can be against us, no matter how long the trials may go on?