Deuteronomy 33:1 - Meaning and Application

The first verse serves as the chapter title, and it is a blessing. In the previous chapter, Moses had spoken out the terrors of the Lord against Israel because of their sin. That chapter was like Ezekiel’s scroll, full of sorrow and warning. Now, to soften that stern message and show that he was not leaving them in anger, he adds a blessing here and leaves them his peace, which would rest on all among them who were people of peace.

In this, Moses is like Christ, who blessed his disciples as his last act on earth (Luke 24:50). Moses blessed them in two ways. First, he blessed them as a prophet, a man of God. It is a great gift to have the prayers of those who have God’s favor in heaven. In this blessing, Moses not only spoke good wishes over the people, but also, by the Spirit of prophecy, foretold what would happen to them.

Second, he blessed them as a father to Israel, as good rulers should do for their people. Jacob, on his deathbed, blessed his sons (Genesis 49:1), and Moses follows that example here by blessing the tribes descended from them. This shows that even though the tribes had often provoked God, the promise of blessing was not canceled. Doing this just before his death would leave a stronger impression on them, and it also showed Moses’ deep goodwill toward them. He wanted their good, though he himself would die and not share in it.

He begins his blessing with a lofty description of God’s glorious appearance when he gave Israel the law, and of the great benefit they received from it. First, there was a visible and striking display of God’s majesty, enough to silence atheists and unbelievers, wake up the dull and careless, and put shame on any secret leaning toward false gods (Deuteronomy 33:2). His appearance was glorious. He shone like the sun when it rises in full strength. Even Seir and Paran, two mountains some distance away, were lit up by the divine glory that appeared on Mount Sinai and reflected some of its light. So bright was the scene, and so widely noticed, that nearby lands took note of it.

The prophet alludes to this when speaking of God’s mighty acts in providence (Habakkuk 3:3-4; Psalm 18:7-9). The Jerusalem Targum adds a strange explanation, saying that when God came down to give the law, he first offered it on Mount Seir to the Edomites, who refused it because it said, "You shall not kill." Then he offered it on Mount Paran to the Ishmaelites, who refused it because it said, "You shall not steal." Then he came to Mount Sinai and offered it to Israel, and they said, "All that the Lord says, we will do." I would not repeat such a groundless idea except that it is very old.

His escort was also glorious. He came with his holy myriads, as Enoch had long before foretold that he would come in the last day to judge the world (Jude 1:14). These were the angels, the chariots of God, among whom the Lord was present in that holy place (Psalm 68:17). They attended God’s majesty and served him in the great events of that day. That is why Scripture says the law was given through angels (Acts 7:53; Hebrews 2:2).

Second, God gave them his law. It is called a fiery law because it was given from the midst of fire (Deuteronomy 4:33), and because it works like fire. When received, it melts the heart, warms it, purifies it, and burns away the waste of sin. When rejected, it hardens, burns, torments, and destroys. The Holy Spirit came down with divided tongues as of fire, and in that sense the gospel also is a fiery law.

The law is said to go from his right hand, either because he wrote it on tablets of stone, or to show the power and force of the law, along with the divine strength that goes with it so it will not return empty. Or it may mean that it came as a gift, and a precious one at that, a blessing from the right hand. It was also a sign of God’s special kindness toward them: "Yes, he loved the people" (verse 32), and so, even though it was a fiery law, it is said to go for them, that is, for their good (Deuteronomy 33:2). The law of God written in the heart is sure proof that God’s love has been poured there. We should count God’s law one of the gifts of his grace.

The words also mean that he embraced the people, or held them in his bosom. That shows not only deep love, but also tender and careful protection. All his saints are in his hand. Some understand this especially of how he supported and preserved them alive at Mount Sinai, when the terror was so great that even Moses trembled. They heard God’s voice and lived (Deuteronomy 4:33). Others take it to mean that he formed them into a people by his law, shaping them like a potter shapes clay. Or it may mean they were in his hand to be covered, protected, used, and directed, as the seven stars were in the hand of Christ (Revelation 1:16).

God has all his saints in his hand. And though there are ten thousands of them (Deuteronomy 33:2), his hand, which measures the waters, is large and strong enough to hold them all. We can be sure that none can snatch them out of his hand (John 10:28).

Third, God prepared them to receive the law he gave. They sat down at his feet like students at a teacher’s feet, showing reverence, attention, and humble submission to what was taught. So Israel stood at the foot of Mount Sinai and promised to hear and do whatever God would say. Some translate the phrase as "they were struck to your feet," meaning the terrors of Mount Sinai humbled them greatly for the moment (Exodus 20:19). Everyone stood ready to receive God’s words, and they did so again when the law was read publicly to them (Joshua 8:34).

It is a great privilege when, after hearing the words of God once, we have the chance to hear them again. Jesus said, "I have made your name known to them, and I will make it known" (John 17:26). In the same way, Israel not only received the law, but was to keep receiving it through prayer and other living messages from God.

The people are then taught, in gratitude for God’s law, always to remember both the law itself and Moses, through whom it was given (Deuteronomy 33:4-5). Two of the Chaldee paraphrasts read it as, "The children of Israel said, Moses commanded us a law." The Jews say that as soon as a child could speak, his father was required to teach him these words: "Moses commanded us a law, even the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob." They are taught to speak with great respect of the law and to call it the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob.

They saw the law as something special to them, something that set them apart from other nations. Other peoples did not know it (Psalm 147:20), and even if they had known it, they were not bound by it the way Israel was. For that reason, Bishop Patrick says, when the Jews conquered a country, they did not force people to accept the law of Moses. They only required them to keep the seven commands given to Noah.

They also saw the law as something handed down to them, like an inheritance passed on to children. Inheritance is meant to go on to the next generation, and they understood the law in that way. They also counted it as their wealth and their true treasure. Those who have God’s word and the means of grace have reason to say, “We have a fine inheritance.” A person is truly rich when the word of Christ lives in them richly.

The law may be called their inheritance because it came to them along with their land. It was so closely joined to the land that turning away from the law would mean losing the inheritance. See Psalm 119:111.

They were also taught to speak with great respect about Moses. They were especially bound to honor his name because he did not arrange for his family to keep his name alive in the way Aaron did. Moses’ descendants were never known as “the sons of Moses,” as the priests were called “the sons of Aaron.”

First, they had to recognize Moses as a great blessing to the nation because he gave them the law. Even though the law came from God’s hand, it came to them through Moses’ hand. Second, “he was king in Jeshurun.” Jeshurun is a poetic name for Israel, meaning the upright or blessed people. Moses gave them the law, and while he lived, he also saw that it was obeyed and carried out. They were very fortunate to have such a ruler, one who led them and went before them at all times.

Some understand this title as referring to God himself. He showed himself to be their King when he gave them the law, and he remained their King as long as they were Jeshurun, that is, an upright people, until they rejected him (1 Samuel 12:12). But this seems more likely to refer to Moses. Good government is a great blessing to any people, and they should be deeply thankful for it. A government is especially happy when, like Israel’s, and like ours, power is shared between the king in Jeshurun and the heads of the tribes when they are gathered together.