INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK DEUTERONOMY KENT CLINGER, PH.D.

Transcription

1 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY BY KENT CLINGER, PH.D.

2 2 Preface: Introduction To the Book Of Deuteronomy By Kent clinger, Ph.D. I. Welcome to the book of Deuteronomy! A. This fascinating book is often overlooked by Christians, but in many ways it is central to understanding much of the meaning of the Old Testament. B. You are invited to study this intriguing book along with us and we pray that God will continue to draw us closer to Him. Commentary: I. Title or Name:

3 3 A. Deuteronomy derives its name in English from Deuteronomy 17: Deuteronomy 17:18, When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. (NIV) 2. In this passage, Moses is giving instructions to the people concerning a future king, who was to have a copy of this law (or instruction) made. 3. The ancient Greek translation, the Septuagint (commonly abbreviated LXX), translated this as a deuteronomion, which means more of a second law. 4. This translation has remained with us in English. B. The name of the book of Deuteronomy in the original Hebrew is the opening phrase of the book translated, These are the words The entire first sentence, These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the desert east of the Jordan gives a much better introduction to the content and context of the book of Deuteronomy than 2 nd Law does. II. Contextual Setting:

4 4 A. Like the other books of the Pentateuch (the first five books, called the Torah law, or instruction by Jews), Deuteronomy picks right up where the previous book ends. 1. In this case, the people of Israel are in the plains of Moab, poised to enter the promised land of Canaan. a. In Genesis the LORD God has told Abraham to leave Ur and move to Canaan, where God makes a covenant with Abraham promising him many descendants, lands, and blessings for all nations. b. Jacob moves the clan to Egypt, where his son Joseph has become powerful, to escape famine. 2. As Exodus opens, the children of Jacob (also called Israel thus his offspring are called Israelites ) grow into a large family and Pharaohs (Egyptian kings) come to power who do not remember Joseph. a. The Pharaohs enslave the Israelites, but God preserves Moses life and brings him back to Egypt to help deliver his people. b. God shows His power to Pharaoh as well as His supremacy to the Egyptian gods by sending plagues on Egypt until Pharaoh allows Israel to leave. c. God delivers His people from Egypt and establishes His covenant with his people at Mt. Sinai in the book of Exodus.

5 The book of Leviticus states many of the rules or stipulations of the covenant. 4. In Numbers, the people move to Kadesh-Barnea, where they appear to be ready to enter the land of Canaan. III. Outline and Structure: a. However, 10 of the 12 spies lack the faith to lead the people into the land that God promised. b. Only Caleb and Joshua trust that God will give them the land as He promised. c. So God punishes the people by not allowing the adults to enter into the land of Canaan and the Israelites are sentenced to forty years in the wilderness as a result. d. Two censuses taken in the book demonstrate that the older generation has passed away. e. At the end of Numbers, the people move to Moab where they will prepare for the entrance into the promised land at last. A. Moses speeches: 1. Deuteronomy is made up primarily of three written speeches given by Moses in the plains of Moab shortly

6 6 before his death and before Joshua led the people of Israel into the promised land. 2. The remainder of the material concerns the presentation of Joshua as Moses successor (the rest of chapter 31), a poetic section known as the Song of Moses (chapter 32), a deathbed or final blessing by Moses (chapter 33), and a recording of Moses death and burial (chapter 34). 3. Deuteronomy 1:6-4:40 1 st speech 4. Deuteronomy 5:1-26:68 2 nd speech 5. Deuteronomy 29:2-31:8 3 rd speech B. Covenant Form: 1. In 1954, G. E. Mendenhall published two articles calling attention to many covenants (or treaties) from the Ancient Near East which had been discovered and analyzed. a. Many of these were made between a powerful king (known as the suzerain), and a lesser king (also called the vassal). b. These treaties, many of which were roughly contemporary to Deuteronomy, were fairly uniform in their structure. c. Deuteronomy also has these same features.

7 7 d. Deuteronomy is a covenant document between God (the suzerain) and his people (the Israelites)! e. This has huge implications for the interpretation of the book. g. God has entered into an agreement (covenant or treaty) with His people at Mt. Sinai, and Moses is recommitting the people to the covenant following the forty years in the wilderness when the older generation that made the covenant in the first place has died off. 2. The common features of an ancient Near Eastern treaty and the counterpart in Deuteronomy are given below: a. The preamble which introduces the suzerain (In Deuteronomy, the historical setting is introduced in the first five verses.). b. A historical prolog a section which discusses the history that the suzerain and vassal have shared Deuteronomy 1:6 4:40. c. The treaty stipulations (requirements of the treaty or covenant). i. General Stipulations Deuteronomy 4:41 11:32.

8 8 C. Other forms: ii. Specific Stipulations Deuteronomy 12:1 26:19. d. A demand for a periodic public reading so that all will know what the covenant requirements are Deuteronomy 27:1-26. e. The covenant results: i. The blessings for keeping the covenant Deuteronomy 28:1-14. ii. The curses for disobedience to the covenant Deuteronomy 28: f. A list of witnesses Deuteronomy 30: Concentric form, or chiasm: a. Several author shave seen a basic outline in Deuteronomy with parallel outer sections (chapters 1-3 and 31-34), two parallel inter sections (chapters 4-11 and 27-30), with a central core (chapters 12-26). b. This type of form is called a chiasm and is presumably used to place emphasis on the central section.

9 9 IV. Author: 2. The specific covenant stipulations (chapters 12-26) are sometimes viewed as following the basic outline of the Ten Commandments. A. One of the most controversial aspects of the book of Deuteronomy has been its authorship. 1. To most Christians, Moses is the obvious author. B. The book itself claims to be a series of speeches by Moses (1:1). 1. Deuteronomy 1:1, These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the desert east of the Jordan that is, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth and Disahab. (NIV) C. He is mentioned as writing within the book (31:9). 1. Deuteronomy 31:9, So Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the Levitical priests, who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. (NIV) D. The New Testament quotes from Deuteronomy as connected with Moses (Matthew 19:8 and Deuteronomy 24:1-4; 1 Corinthians 9:9 and Deuteronomy 25:4; and Hebrews 10:38 and Deuteronomy 17:2-6).

10 Matthew 19:8, Jesus replied, Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. (NIV) 2. Deuteronomy 24:1-4, If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man, and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies, then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the Lord. Do not bring sin upon the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance. (NIV) 3. 1 Corinthians 9:9, For it is written in the Law of Moses: Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain. Is it about oxen that God is concerned? (NIV) 4. Deuteronomy 25:4, Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain. (NIV) 5. Hebrews 10:28, Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. (NIV)

11 Deuteronomy 17:2-6, If a man or woman living among you in one of the towns the Lord gives you is found doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God in violation of his covenant, and contrary to my command has worshiped other gods, bowing down to them or to the sun or the moon or the stars in the sky, and this has been brought to your attention, then you must investigate it thoroughly. If it is true and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, take the man or woman who has done this evil deed to your city gate and stone that person to death. On the testimony of two or three witnesses a person is to be put to death, but no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness. (NIV) E. Yet, for two hundred years, some have questioned Mosaic authorship and somehow connected the book to the reforms of Josiah (this presumption is a part of a general theory about the authorship of the Pentateuch called the Documentary Hypothesis ). 1. For a detailed analysis of these arguments, please see the commentaries of Wright, Thompson and Driver. F. The argument for the Mosaic origin of most of the book certainly carries more weight than the speculative assertion that the book was written by prophets, priests, or scribes/wise men from the 7 th century B.C. or later.

12 12 V. Date: A. The date of Deuteronomy obviously is closely connected to the author. B. The dates of Moses life are not known accurately primarily since the Pharaohs of Exodus are not mentioned by name. 1. There are two common guesses about the time of the Exodus and therefore the date of Deuteronomy: a B.C. This is the very common date assuming the Exodus was under the reign of Rameses II (as in Cecil B. Demille s 1956 moved The Ten Commandments ). b B.C. Several scholars have suggested that the Pharaohs recorded in Exodus better fit Egyptian history during the 15 th century B.C. (See Pfeiffer s Kingdom of Priests). c. This also fits the date given in 1 Kings 6:1 which says that in the four-hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites had come out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomons reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month, he began to build the temple of the LORD. VI. Teachings of Deuteronomy:

13 13 A. The teachings of Deuteronomy reflect the treaty form of the book (see Craigie). 1. The covenant given at Sinai was not given only for that generation. a. It was to be ongoing. b. The covenant had to be renewed for every generation. c. Consequently, covenant renewal ceremonies are also recorded in Joshua 8 and Joshua 24. B. The history of the people of Israel reveals God in His actions. 1. The love of God for mankind generally and the people of Israel specifically is demonstrated in His mighty acts of history. C. The primary requirements of the covenant is to love God (since He has loved man) and also to love our fellow man. 1. The Ten Commandments can be summed up by loving God and loving our fellow man. D. Loving God is shown by keeping certain regulations the treaty stipulations. 1. There are many of these, some which seem very obvious and others which seem rather obscure.

14 14 E. When the people obey God (observe the covenant), God will bless His people. 1. When the people disobey God (violate the covenant), God will remove His blessing and punish the people.

15 15 Questions on Introduction to Deuteronomy 1. The Book of Deuteronomy consists of speeches. How many speeches, and who made them? 2. What is the historical setting of the Book of Deuteronomy? Where do the speeches take place and what is about to happen to the people of Israel? 3. Why are few truly elderly part of this occasion? 4. What are two approximate dates for the book of Deuteronomy?

16 According to what format is the book of Deuteronomy arranged? 6. What does the Hebrew title of the book of Deuteronomy mean? 7. What part of an ancient Near Eastern treaty are reflected in Deuteronomy? 8. Who is the more powerful party in the treaty that is Deuteronomy?

17 What will happen when the Israelites ae faithful to the treaty?_

18 18 Bibliography Bill T. Arnold and Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Old Testament: a Christian Survey. Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, John Bright, A History of Israel, 4 th Edition, Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, KY, Peter C. Craigie, The Book of Deuteronomy, in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament, R. K. Harrison, Editor, William B. Erdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI, S. R. Driver, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Deuteronomy, 3 rd Edition, in The International Critical Commentary, T. & T. Clark, Edinburgh, Victor P. Hamilton, Handbook on the Pentateuch. Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI, G. E. Mendenhall, Law and Covenant in Israel and the ancient Near East. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, [Reprinted from THE BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST. Volume XVII No. 2 (May, 1954) pp and No. 3 (September, 1954), pp ] Eugene H. Merrill, Kingdom of Priests: A History of Old Testament Israel. Baker, Grand Rapids, MI, 1996.

19 19 J. A. Thompson, Deuteronomy: An Introduction and Commentary, in The Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, D. J. Wiseman, Editor, Intervarsity Press, Leicester, England, (1974). Christopher Wright, Deuteronomy, in the New International Biblical Commentary, Robert L. Hubbard, Jr. and Robert K. Johnston, Editors. Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, MA, 1996