Deuteronomy 32:44

Deuteronomy 32:44._And Moses came and spake. _It is not without reason that Moses again records that he repeated this Song before the people; because it thence appears how far from all ambition he was, in that he did not fear, at the very close of his life, to irritate all their minds, so as to render the memory of his name hateful; and besides, his authority was sanctioned by the silence and submissiveness of the people, when they suffered themselves to be thus severely dealt with. For, such was their general refractoriness, that they never would have listened to him, had not the secret inspiration of the Spirit interposed to subdue them. He associates with himself Joshua, whom he undoubtedly desired to furnish with equal authority, and, what is worthy of observation, he bids them be attentive to the threatenings and reprehensions, in order to obtain reverence for the law. For

44-47 Here is the solemn delivery of this song to Israel, with a charge to mind all the good words Moses had said unto them. It is not a trifle, but a matter of life and death: mind it, and you are made for ever; neglect it, and you are for ever undone. Oh that men were fully persuaded that religion is their life, even the life of their souls!...

Verse 44. _AND MOSES CAME_] Probably from the tabernacle, where God had given him this prophetic ode, and he rehearsed it in the ears of the people....

These verses were, no doubt, added by the author of the supplement to Deuteronomy. For the statements contained in them, consult the marginal references....

EXPOSITION SONG OF MOSES AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS DEATH. In accordance with the Divine injunction, Moses composed an ode, which he recited in the hearing of the people, and committed to writing, to remain with them as a witness for God against them. With this end in view, the ode is directed principally to a contrasting of the unchanging faithfulness of the Almighty with the anticipated perversity and unfaithfulness of his people. The poem may be divided into six parts. 1. An introduction (Deuteronomy 32:1), in which the importance of the doctrine to be delivered is announced. 2. The blamelessness and excellency of Jehovah are placed in contrast with the corruptness and perversity of

AND MOSES CAME,.... To the people, as the Greek version, the heads of the people being gathered together according to his order, Deuteronomy 31:28; The Targum of Jonathan says, he came from the tabernacle, the house of instruction: AND SPAKE ALL THE WORDS OF THIS SONG IN THE EARS OF THE PEOPLE; which is observed both before and after the reading of it, to show the certainty of it, and how punctually and faithfully he had delivered it: HE, AND HOSHEA THE SON OF NUN; the same with Joshua, whose name at first was Hoshea, Numbers 13:16, probably Joshua read the song to one part of the people, while Moses read it to the other....

3. THE BLESSING OF MOSES Chapter S 32:44-33:29 _ 1. Introduction (Deuteronomy 32:44)_ 2. Jehovah's manifestation (Deuteronomy 33:1) 3. The blessing of Reuben, Judah and Levi (Deuteronomy 33:6) 4. The blessing of Benjamin and Joseph (Deuteronomy 33:12) 5. The blessing of Zebulon and Issachar (Deuteronomy 33:18) 6. The blessing of Gad, Dan, Nephtali and Asher ...

Moses'song is a didactic poem, a theodicy in which Yahweh's ways are vindicated. In its sentiments and artistic form it is unsurpassed in the poetry of the OT. Its dominant theme is Yahweh's justice and lovingkindness to Israel notwithstanding the nation's sinfulness. It is impossible to fix the date of this poem with any confidence. But points of contact with Jer., Isaiah 40-55, Ezek., and the Wisdom literature suggest the closing years of the Exile (say 550 B.C.). Moses is certainly not the author, for to the latter the Exodus belongs to his distant past (Deuteronomy 32:7), and the Israelites are already in Canaan (Deuteronomy 32:13 f.). The words translated doctrine (Deuteronomy 32:2), abominations ...

THIS SONG. This is the fifth and last contextual reference to "the Song of Moses". HOSHEA. the old spelling of Joshua. Later it was "Jeshua" (Ezra 2:2). This was adopted by the Septuagint, and ultimately became "Jesus"....

Concluding Note. Can hardly be from the same editorial hand as Deuteronomy 31:30. It is probable from the opening words, _And Moses came_, that this is a fragment from the end of a narrative of divine instructions given to Moses regarding the Song, such as we find in Deuteronomy 31:16-22 (cp. Exodus 19:7; Exodus 24:3); and indeed LXX repeats Deuteronomy 31:22 before it. Its position here is another sign of the editorial re-arrangements which the materials composing these chs. have undergone. Notice the non-deuter. phrase the