DEUTERONOMY LESSON 12


     We will begin this lesson in Deuteronomy 10:1 "At that time the
LORD said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first,
and come up unto me into the mount, and make thee an ark of wood."

     Notice, in this, that Moses hews the second set of stones. God
prepared them the first time. These stones were to be housed in the
ark of the covenant. The plans for the ark were given Moses on the
mount. The ark was built, and put into the tabernacle in the
wilderness at a later time. The ark was to be made of shittim wood and
overlayed with gold.

     Deuteronomy 10:2 "And I will write on the tables the words that
were in the first tables which thou brakest, and thou shalt put them
in the ark."

     We read in a previous lesson, that the finger of God wrote on the
tables of stone. It will be the responsibility of Moses to care for
the tables of stone, until the tabernacle is built, and they are
placed in the ark in the holy of holies.

     Deuteronomy 10:3 "And I made an ark [of] shittim wood, and hewed
two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the mount,
having the two tables in mine hand."

     Moses hewing the stones, instead of God, shows that there must be
some effort on man's part to renew the covenant with God. Perhaps,
there was a short period of time between the time Moses came down with
the first tables, and the time he re-enters the mount with the tables
for God to write on the second time. Chapter 25 in Exodus reveals a
more detailed explanation of this.

     Deuteronomy 10:4 "And he wrote on the tables, according to the
first writing, the ten commandments, which the LORD spake unto you in
the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly: and
the LORD gave them unto me."

     You can find the ten commandments in Exodus chapter 20. Their
first knowledge of the ten commandments was when God spoke them aloud
to the whole camp. Moses went to the mount two separate times, and
received two different sets of the same commandments.

     Deuteronomy 10:5 "And I turned myself and came down from the
mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they
be, as the LORD commanded me."

     The tables were actually put into the ark, after the tabernacle
had been dedicated to the LORD. Moses kept the commandments, until
that time. In a summary, such as this, sometimes one sentence covers a
period of time.

     Deuteronomy 10:6  "And the children of Israel took their journey
from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Mosera: there Aaron died,
and there he was buried; and Eleazar his son ministered in the
priest's office in his stead."

     We see that this has jumped many years forward. God forgave Aaron
and the congregation of Israel, for their worship of the golden calf.
In the verse above, we see that God continued the office of high
priest in the son of Aaron, Eleazar.

     Deuteronomy 10:7 "From thence they journeyed unto Gudgodah; and
from Gudgodah to Jotbath, a land of rivers of waters."

     Gudgodah was associated with the cave of Gilead. Jotbath seemed
to be a place, where the water was plentiful in streams. Water had
been a major problem with the Israelites on their desert journey.
Neither of the places here are well known. They were, probably,
mentioned by Moses, because of the abundance of water there.

     Deuteronomy 10:8  "At that time the LORD separated the tribe of
Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the
LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day."

     This happened back where God had restored the covenant with the
two new tables of stone. At the building of the tabernacle in the
wilderness, God appointed the Levites for work with the holy things.
The tribe of Levi actually substituted for the firstborn of each
family. The Levitical tribe was to keep this separated condition, even
after they came into the land of promise.

     Deuteronomy 10:9 "Wherefore Levi hath no part nor inheritance
with his brethren; the LORD [is] his inheritance, according as the
LORD thy God promised him."

     In the separation of the land of promise, the tribe of Levi did
not inherit. They belonged to the LORD. They were to live of the gifts
of the altar. The tribe of Joseph got two portions instead of one, and
Levi was removed from the land portions. Levites lived and worked in
the service of the LORD. They received cities for their families to
live in. Numbers 18:24 "But the tithes of the children of Israel,
which they offer [as] an heave offering unto the LORD, I have given to
the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the
children of Israel they shall have no inheritance."

     Deuteronomy 10:10 "And I stayed in the mount, according to the
first time, forty days and forty nights; and the LORD hearkened unto
me at that time also, [and] the LORD would not destroy thee."

     This reverts back to Moses' second trip up the mount for the
second set of the tables of the ten commandments. This is summing up
the results of God forgiving them for their transgression.

     Deuteronomy 10:11 "And the LORD said unto me, Arise, take [thy]
journey before the people, that they may go in and possess the land,
which I sware unto their fathers to give unto them."
     This is not looking back. Moses is told of God, for the children
of Israel to go in and possess the land, that their father's should
have gone in and taken.

     Deuteronomy 10:12  "And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God
require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his
ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy
heart and with all thy soul,"

     To retain all that God has given them, requires them to fear the
LORD enough that they will obey Him and walk in His ways. He must be
first in their hearts, souls, and minds. Jesus says it best in the
following Scripture. John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

     Deuteronomy 10:13 "To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his
statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?"

     The commandments and the statutes of God are for the benefit of
man. The blessings of God upon them, depend entirely upon them keeping
God's commandments.

     Deuteronomy 10:14 "Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens
[is] the LORD'S thy God, the earth [also], with all that therein
[is]."

     This is saying, it is not just the earth that belongs to God, but
all of the universe, as well. Everything, and everyone in the
universe, belong to God. It is amazing to Moses that God would have
chosen Israel to be His, out of all the peoples of the world. I
Corinthians 10:26 "For the earth [is] the Lord's, and the fulness
thereof."

     Deuteronomy 10:15 "Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to
love them, and he chose their seed after them, [even] you above all
people, as [it is] this day."

     This is actually speaking of Abraham, who greatly pleased God.
The blessings that came to this family, were because of God's love for
Abraham. Israel was honored above all nations with God's great love
for them. They had nothing to give God in return, but their love. Even
the long stay in Egypt was a conditioning of these people to receive
the blessings of God.

     Deuteronomy 10:16 "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your
heart, and be no more stiffnecked."

     The circumcision was an outward sign of the keeping of the
covenant agreement. Moses is explaining to them here, that the cutting
away of the worldliness from their hearts was the true circumcision.
The condition of the heart is more important to God than the condition
of their flesh. We, Christians, must realize that Christianity is a
relationship with Christ, and not a form of religion.

     Deuteronomy 10:17 "For the LORD your God [is] God of gods, and
Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth
not persons, nor taketh reward:"

     The nations around them worship false gods. The True God is the
only God. He proved that over and over. One of the purposes of the ten
plagues on Egypt, was to defame the false gods of Egypt. God showed
His supreme power over nature, when He parted the Red Sea at His
command.  He showed His power over all provisions, when He caused
water to flow from the Rock. He needs nothing at all. He wants our
love and respect.

     Deuteronomy 10:18 "He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless
and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment."

     He is the Provider of those who trust Him. God cares for those
who are unable to care for themselves. He is Father to the fatherless,
and takes up the gap for the widow, as well. He provides food for
those who are His, even if He has to rain it down from heaven. He
provides their robe of righteousness to all who believe.

     Deuteronomy 10:19 "Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were
strangers in the land of Egypt."

     If a person has experienced the same problem as another person,
he can relate to him better. They were strangers. They should love the
stranger, because they understand him.

     Deuteronomy 10:20 "Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt
thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name."

     The greatest fear these Israelites had known, was at the mount
when the LORD spoke from the fire to them. The fear, this is speaking
of, is a reverence and an awe of someone so great. A person must
choose who they will serve in this life. You cannot serve God and man.
Joshua 24:15 "And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose
you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers
served that [were] on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the
Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will
serve the LORD."  There is a time when every person must make this
decision. Acts 4:12 "Neither is there salvation in any other: for
there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must
be saved."   The decision of these Israelites is the same as you and I
must make. Who do I fear enough to worship? Do I love Him enough to
serve Him?  Will I remain faithful to Him?  Is His name the name I
swear by, because there is no greater?

     Deuteronomy 10:21 "He [is] thy praise, and he [is] thy God, that
hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes
have seen."

     The LORD, He is God. He is the only One to praise. They have seen
miracles beyond the capacity of mankind. He had given them all the
room in the world to praise Him. Jeremiah 33:11 "The voice of joy, and
the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of
the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts:
for the LORD [is] good; for his mercy [endureth] for ever: [and] of
them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the
LORD.  For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the
first, saith the LORD."  The only thing we have to offer God, for all
the wonderful provisions He has made for us, is our love, our
obedience, and our praise.  Hebrews 13:15 "By him therefore let us
offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit
of [our] lips giving thanks to his name."

     Deuteronomy 10:22 "Thy fathers went down into Egypt with
threescore and ten persons; and now the LORD thy God hath made thee as
the stars of heaven for multitude."

     When the brothers of Joseph found him in Egypt, they brought
Jacob and his family into Egypt. Jacob brought 70 people into Egypt
and his descendents came out just over 400 years later with close to
3,000,000 people. God had fulfilled His promise to Abraham, to make
his descendents as the stars of heaven for multitude. Genesis 15:5
"And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven,
and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto
him, So shall thy seed be."
































                        Deuteronomy 12 Questions


1.  Who must prepare the two tables of stone this time?
2.  When was the ark built?
3.  What was the ark made of?
4.  What will go on the tables?
5.  What wrote on the tables of stone?
6.  What is shown by Moses hewing these stones, instead of God?
7.  Where can we read more details on this subject?
8.  Where had God first given the ten commandments to these people?
9.  Where, in Exodus, is there a list of the ten commandments?
10. Where would the tables be stored?
11. Where did Aaron die?
12. Who ministered in Aaron's place?
13. Gudgodah was associated with what?
14. What was the tribe of Levi separated out to do?
15. Who was the tribe of Levi a substitute for?
16. Why did the tribe of Levi not inherit land?
17. Quote Numbers chapter 18 verse 24.
18. How long did Moses stay on the mountain the second time?
19. Why was God willing to still give them the promised land?
20. What does the LORD require of Israel?
21. Quote John chapter 14 verse 15.
22. The commandments are for whose benefit?
23. Quote Deuteronomy chapter 10 verse 14.
24. For the earth is the ___________.
25. What was the long stay in Egypt for?
26. They were to circumcise their _________.
27. Christianity is a ___________ with Christ.
28. What was one of the purposes of the ten plagues in Egypt?
29. When did God show His supreme power over nature?
30. Why should they love the stranger?
31. Quote Joshua chapter 24 verse 15.
32. Quote Acts chapter 4 verse 12.
33. What is the sacrifice we can offer to God?