Deuteronomy 4:1 - Meaning and Application

This very important and moving speech is so complete, and its points are repeated so often, that we should take it as a whole in explaining it. We cannot easily break it into separate paragraphs, so it helps to gather its teaching into clear parts.

In general, this is Moses applying the history that came before. It comes as a conclusion from all that God has done, “Now therefore listen, O Israel” (Deuteronomy 4:1). We should respond the same way when we look back on God’s providence, his wise rule and care over our lives. The history of earlier times should also lead us to obedience.

The main purpose of Moses’ speech is to urge Israel to stay close to God and serve him alone. He warns them not to turn aside to any other god, or in any way drift from their duty to the Lord. He speaks with strong and persuasive force, both giving instruction and pressing motives on them.

First, he charges them to give careful attention to the word of God and to the statutes and judgments he taught them: “Hearken, O Israel.” He does not mean only that they must listen to him at that moment. He means that whenever the law was read, they should listen closely. They must hear God’s commands as matters of great importance, both because they come from God and because they concern their own souls. At Horeb, another name for Mount Sinai, God had made them hear his words in a striking way (Deuteronomy 4:10). The attention forced on them then should now become a steady habit, because the things God spoke are so good and so weighty. What God spoke once, we should hear again and again.

Second, Moses tells them to keep God’s law pure and complete (Deuteronomy 4:2). They must not add to it, and they must not take away from it. Some take this to mean they must not break the law in practice, by doing what is forbidden or leaving undone what is commanded. Others take it to mean they must not add human ideas to God’s worship, as if his commands were incomplete, or remove anything he has appointed as unneeded. God’s work is perfect, and nothing can be added to it or taken from it without making it worse (Ecclesiastes 3:14). The Jews understood this very strictly, even applying it to the wording of the law itself, down to the smallest letter. Their carefulness has helped preserve the Hebrew text for us. A similar warning is given at the end of the New Testament (Revelation 22:18-19).

Third, he charges them to obey God’s commandments, not just hear them (Deuteronomy 4:2, 5, 14, 6, 13). Hearing must lead to doing, and knowledge must lead to practice. God’s commands were the path they were to walk and the rule they were to follow. They were to guide their moral conduct by his moral law, their worship by his appointed rituals, and their justice by his judicial law. He ends the chapter with the same command: “You shall keep his statutes and his commandments” (Deuteronomy 4:40). Laws are made to be kept.

Fourth, Moses tells them to be very careful and watchful in obeying the law (Deuteronomy 4:9, 15, 23). He says, “Take heed to yourself,” and, “Keep your soul diligently.” Those who want to live a godly life must be cautious and alert. Since we face many temptations and have many sinful tendencies in our own hearts, we need to watch ourselves closely and guard our hearts with care. No one walks rightly who walks carelessly.

Fifth, he especially warns them against idolatry, the sin they would face most strongly from the nations around them, and the sin their hearts would most easily fall into. It would offend God more than any other sin and bring the worst harm to themselves. “Take good heed, lest in this matter you corrupt yourselves” (Deuteronomy 4:15-16). He warns against two forms of idolatry.

One is worshiping images, even if people claim they are using the image to worship the true God, as Israel had done with the golden calf. That exchanges the truth of God for a lie and turns his glory into shame. The second commandment is aimed directly at this, and Moses expands on it here (Deuteronomy 4:15-18). Such worship corrupts people inwardly, because it shapes false ideas of God in the mind and opens the door to every kind of evil. It is also a kind of spiritual unfaithfulness. It can destroy them too. They must make no image of God in human form, male or female, or in the form of any beast, bird, serpent, or fish. The pagan nations worshiped their gods through images like these, though the truth is plain: what a craftsman makes cannot be God (Hosea 8:6). To represent the infinite Spirit by an image, or the great Creator by a created thing, is a serious insult to God and a dangerous lie to ourselves.

To keep them from making such images, Moses reminds them that when God revealed himself at Horeb, he did it through a voice of words that reached their ears. That taught them that faith comes by hearing, and that God meets us in his word. No image was given to their eyes. To see God as he truly is belongs to our joy in the world to come, and to see him wrongly only does us harm in this world. They saw no likeness, no form, no visible image (Deuteronomy 4:12, 15). They may have expected to see something, since they had once been eager to break through to the Lord and look (Exodus 19:21). But what they saw was only fire and brightness, nothing they could turn into an idol. God wisely ordered it that way because of the danger of idolatry.

Moses himself was allowed to see the likeness of the Lord (Numbers 12:8), because God knew he was not likely to fall into idolatry. But the people had just come out of Egypt, where they had admired idols, so they were not to see any likeness of God. If they had seen one, they might have copied it and then thought the second commandment only forbade images other than that one. Bishop Patrick notes that they might have reasoned, “This only forbids any image except the one by which God showed himself to us.” We should take this as a warning not to make images of God in our minds when we worship. There can be idols in the heart even when there are none in the sanctuary.

Another kind of idolatry they were warned against was worshiping the sun, moon, and stars (Deuteronomy 4:19). This was one of the oldest forms of idolatry, and one of the most attractive. These heavenly bodies stand above us, shine with great beauty, and serve the whole world, so people were drawn to honor them. That very appeal made the temptation dangerous.

Moses shows how strong the temptation can be when people live by what they see. He warns them not to be led astray by their own imagination or by the customs of the nations around them. The heart is very ready to follow the eye. When people see the sun, moon, and stars, they may admire their height, brightness, regular motion, and useful power so much that they give them the glory that belongs to the One who made them. It takes real firmness to resist this temptation when faith in an invisible God and an invisible world is weak.

Still, Moses also shows how weak that temptation is when people think rightly. The sun, moon, and stars are not gods. They are gifts from the Lord their God, given to all nations. It is foolish to worship them, because they are only servants made to give light on earth. The sun itself, in Hebrew, is called “shemesh,” which means servant, because it serves the whole visible world. Should we honor as a lord what was made to serve us? And since all their usefulness comes from God, it is wrong to give them the praise that belongs to him alone.

Moses also charged the people to teach God’s laws to their children, and to their children’s children (Deuteronomy 4:9-10). In this way, the knowledge and worship of God were to continue from one generation to the next. The life of faith in Israel was meant to remain among them, unless they broke the covenant and lost the privilege. Parents, then, were to make special effort to teach their own children the fear of God and to train them to obey his commands.

He also warned them not to forget their duty: “Take care lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 4:23). God never forgets his covenant, but we easily do. That is the root of many departures from God. So we must guard against anything that would push his covenant out of our minds. We must watch our hearts, because it is easy for religion to slip away if we are careless. Care, caution, and holy watchfulness are the best help against a bad memory.

These are the commands Moses gave them. Now we should notice the reasons he used to support those commands. He does not leave them without strong arguments. In fact, he speaks fully on God’s behalf. Some of his reasons were special to Israel, but many apply to us as well. In the end, it is clear that religion has reason on its side, though careless people shut their ears to it.

One of Moses’ main arguments is the greatness, glory, and goodness of God. If we truly thought about what kind of God we have to do with, we would surely take our duty to him seriously and not dare to sin against him. He reminds them, first, that the Lord Jehovah is the one true and living God (Deuteronomy 4:39). Many things are known, but do us no good because we do not think about them and apply them to ourselves. This truth is so plain that it can hardly be denied, and so powerful that, if people really considered it, it would change the world. The Lord Jehovah is God, an infinite and eternal being, self-existent and self-sufficient, the source of all life, power, and motion. He is God in heaven above, clothed with all glory and ruling all the hosts of heaven. He is also God on the earth below, and though the earth is far from his throne, it is never out of his sight or care. There is no other true and living God besides him. The gods of the nations were only false copies and pretenders. The Israelites, who worshiped the supreme God alone, had no excuse if they turned from him or neglected him.

He also reminds them that God is a consuming fire, a jealous God (Deuteronomy 4:24). They must be careful not to offend him. First, he sees any insult against him, and he will not share his honor with rivals. He demands full love and worship. God’s jealousy over his people is a good reason for us to be watchful over ourselves. Second, he has power to punish insult, especially when it comes to worship, because he is especially jealous there. He is a consuming fire. His anger against sinners is terrible and destructive, a fiery judgment that will destroy his enemies (Hebrews 10:27). Fire only burns what is fit for burning, and God’s wrath falls on those who have made themselves ready for destruction by their own sin (1 Corinthians 3:13; Isaiah 27:4). The New Testament gives the same warning, telling us to serve God with reverence because he is still a consuming fire, even though he is our God and a joy to those who serve him faithfully (Hebrews 12:28-29).

Thirdly, Moses reminds them that God is merciful, as we see in Deuteronomy 4:31. He brings this up to encourage repentance, but it also supports obedience and helps keep them from turning away. Should we leave a merciful God, one who will not leave us if we stay faithful to him? Where could we go that would be better? Should we forget the covenant of our God, when he will not forget the covenant made with our fathers? Let love hold us to our duty, and let God’s mercy move us to stay close to him.

He also points them to their relationship with God, his authority over them, and their duty to him. “The commands you must keep and obey,” Moses says, “are not mine. They are not my ideas or orders, but the commands of the Lord, shaped by perfect wisdom and backed by supreme power.” He is the Lord God of your fathers (Deuteronomy 4:1), so you belong to him by family line. Your fathers were his, and you were born into his house. He is the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 4:2), so you are his by your own agreement. He is the Lord my God (Deuteronomy 4:5), so I speak to you as his servant and messenger. In his name, Moses gave them everything, and only what, he had received from the Lord.

Moses also urges them to see how wise it is to live by God’s law: “This is your wisdom in the sight of the nations” (Deuteronomy 4:6). If they keep God’s commands, they act wisely for their own good. That is not only right, it also serves their true well-being. This is one of the oldest truths in Scripture: “The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom” (Job 28:28).

They would also meet the expectations of the nations around them. When other people heard or read the law given to Israel, they would conclude that this was surely a wise and understanding people. Great things may rightly be expected from those who have God’s revelation and to whom God’s words are entrusted. They ought to be wiser and better than others, and if they live by the rules given to them, they will be. If they do not, then shame may for a time fall on the religion they claim to follow, but in the end it will return on them in judgment. Those who enjoy God’s light and law should live in a way that keeps their name honorable and brings glory to God (see Ecclesiastes 10:1).

Moses then points to the special blessings Israel enjoyed because of their good standing before God (Deuteronomy 4:7, 4:8). Our fellowship with God, which is the greatest honor and joy we can have in this world, is kept alive through his word and through prayer. In both of these, Israel was more blessed than any other people on earth. No people were ever so favored in speaking to God (Deuteronomy 4:7). He was near them in everything they called on him for, ready to answer their questions through his oracle and to answer their prayers through his providence. When they cried out for bread, water, or healing, they found him near to help and rescue them, a very present help, in their midst (Psalm 46:1, Psalm 46:5). His ear was open to their prayers.

Notice three things. First, God’s people are marked by this, they call on him in every need. They make known to God every request and seek his direction in all things. Second, those who call on God will surely find him near, ready to answer in peace every prayer that comes from faith. See Isaiah 58:9. He is like a father answering a child’s cry, saying, “Here I am. What is it, my child?” Third, this privilege makes God’s people truly great and honored. What could lift a person or nation higher than this? What name is more noble than Israel, a prince with God? What nation is so great? Other nations might boast of larger numbers, bigger lands, or older history, but none could boast of such nearness to heaven as Israel had. They had their gods, but those gods were not near them the way Israel’s God was, and they could not help in trouble as Israel’s God did (1 Kings 18:27).

No people were ever so favored in hearing from God, through the statutes and judgments set before them (Deuteronomy 4:8). This too was Israel’s greatness above every other nation. What nation is so great, that has statutes and judgments so right? All of God’s laws are perfectly just and right, far above the laws of any nation. God’s law is much better than human law. No law agrees so fully with natural fairness, with clear reason, and with itself in every part. No law is so helpful to human good as Scripture’s law (Psalm 119:128). To have these statutes and judgments set before them is the true greatness of any people (Psalm 147:19, Psalm 147:20). It is an honor that the Bible is held in respect and given room among us. It shows that a people stand high in God’s favor, and it also helps raise them high among the nations. Those who honor the law will be honored by it.

Moses then points them to God’s glorious appearance at Mount Sinai, where he gave them this law. He presses this strongly: “Take care, and do not forget the day when you stood before the Lord your God in Horeb” (Deuteronomy 4:10). Some of them were still alive and could remember it, though they had been under twenty at the time. The others could be said to have stood there in their fathers, who received the law and entered into covenant there, not only for themselves but for their children. God had especially the children in view when he gave the law, so that they would teach it to their children.

They must remember two things, and, one would think, they could never forget them. First, they must remember what they saw at Mount Sinai (Deuteronomy 4:11). They saw fire and darkness together, a strange and fearsome sight. Each made the other more striking. The darkness made the fire look even more dreadful, and the fire made the darkness seem even deeper and more awful. Night fires are the most frightening, and this fire in the darkness made the whole scene seem more solemn. The darkness was so thick that such a fire did not drive it away. In this way, God later speaks of showing himself for his people and against their enemies in fire and darkness together (Psalm 18:8, Psalm 18:9). He says again, as Moses repeats here in Deuteronomy 4:36, what they saw, because he wants them never to forget it: “He showed you his great fire.”

One flash of lightning, that fire from heaven, fills people with awe. Some have noticed that many creatures naturally turn their faces toward lightning, as if ready to receive its effect. If that is so, how much more dreadful must a constant fire from heaven be. It gave a foretaste of the day of judgment, when the Lord Jesus will appear in flaming fire.

Moses reminds them not only of what they saw, but also of what they did not see: they saw no form or likeness of God. So they had no reason to make any image of him in their minds or on their high places of worship. What they saw of God was enough to prove that he is infinitely powerful and perfect, but it gave no reason to think of him as having a body like ours.

He also reminds them of what they heard at Mount Sinai (Deuteronomy 4:12). The Lord spoke to them with a clear voice, in their own language, and they heard it. Moses expands on this near the end of his speech (Deuteronomy 4:32, 33, 36). First, they heard the voice of God speaking out of heaven. God shows himself to the whole world in creation, without speech or language, yet their voice is heard (Psalm 19:1-3). But to Israel he made himself known by spoken words, coming down to the weakness of the church in its early stage.

They also heard him from the middle of the fire, which showed that it was God himself who spoke. Who else could dwell with a devouring fire? God spoke to Job out of the whirlwind, which was frightening. To Israel he spoke out of the fire, which was even more terrifying. We should thank God that he does not speak to us this way, but through people like ourselves, whose fear does not drive us away (Job 33:6, 7).

They heard and yet lived (Deuteronomy 4:33). It was a great mercy that the fire did not destroy them, and that they did not die of fear, even when Moses himself trembled. Never before had any people heard anything like this. Moses tells them to ask about earlier times and distant lands, and they would find no other example of God favoring a people in this way (Deuteronomy 4:32). Such a special honor called for special obedience. Since God had done far more for them than for other nations, it was right to expect more from them.

Moses also urges them to remember God’s kind acts in bringing them out of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, where they were forced to labor hard. He formed them into a people and then took them as his own, a people set apart for his inheritance (Deuteronomy 4:20). He mentions this again in Deuteronomy 4:34, 37, 38. God had never done such a thing for any other nation, and the rise of Israel was unlike the rise of all other peoples.

They were honored and set apart, not because they deserved it or were especially attractive, but because God loved their fathers. He chose them. This shows the reason for free grace, God’s undeserved kindness. We are loved not for our own sake, but for his sake, the One who holds the covenant in trust.

They were brought out of Egypt by miracles and signs, in mercy to them and in judgment on the Egyptians. God stretched out his arm against Egypt, and Moses’ outstretched hand showed that judgment as he called down the plagues. They were also meant for a happy settlement in Canaan (Deuteronomy 4:38). Other nations had to be removed to make room for them, showing how much dearer they were to God. Egypt and Canaan both had to give way to Israel’s honor and good. Those who stand in Israel’s light or block Israel’s way do so at their own peril.

Moses also urges them to remember how God had sometimes shown his righteousness against them because of their sins. He names the matter of Peor in particular (Deuteronomy 4:3, 4). This had happened very recently. Their own eyes had seen the sudden destruction of those who joined themselves to Baal-peor, and the safety of those who held fast to the Lord. From that, they could easily see the danger of turning away from God and the blessing of staying close to him.

He also mentions again God’s anger against himself: “The Lord was angry with me for your sakes” (Deuteronomy 4:21, 22). He says this to test whether they were truly thankful and whether they felt the loss they had brought on their faithful friend and leader. We should be more moved by what others suffer because of us than by our own suffering.

Moses then presses the sure reward of obedience. He begins with this thought: that they may live and go in and possess the land (Deuteronomy 4:1). He ends with the same idea, that it may go well with them and with their children after them (Deuteronomy 4:40). They must know that they were being watched in their conduct, and that their prosperity depended on their devotion to God. If they kept God’s commands, he would surely keep his promises.

He also warns them of the ruin that would follow if they turned away from God. This he unfolds in Deuteronomy 4:25-31. He foresees that in time, after they had long lived in the land and grown settled and comfortable, they would corrupt themselves and make a carved image. That would be the sin most likely to catch them (Deuteronomy 4:25).

He then predicts God’s judgments on them. They would be destroyed (Deuteronomy 4:26) and scattered among the nations (Deuteronomy 4:27). Their sin would become their punishment (Deuteronomy 4:28): there they would serve gods made by human hands, whether by force or through their own foolishness, looking for help where no true help could be found. Those who throw off the duties of religion in times of ease cannot expect its comfort in times of distress. It is right that such people should be sent to the gods they chose to serve (Judges 10:14).

Yet Moses still gives them hope that God would show mercy in later days, bringing them by judgment to repentance and taking them back into covenant with himself (Deuteronomy 4:29-31). Whatever place we are in, we may seek the Lord our God from there, even if we are far from our own land or from his holy temple. No place on earth is cut off from heaven.

Only those who seek God with all their heart will find him to their comfort. That means people who are fully given to him, truly longing for his favor and earnestly seeking it. Afflictions are sent to stir us up and lead us back to God, and by God’s grace working through them, many are brought to their right mind. “When these things come upon you,” Moses says in effect, “you will see what comes of turning away from him” (see Daniel 9:11, 12). God’s faithfulness to his covenant also gives hope that he will not reject us, even if suffering drives us back to him. If, at last, we remember the covenant, we will find that he has not forgotten it.

Now bring all these reasons together, and then ask whether religion does not have reason on its side. No one throws off the rule of God unless they have first given up the good sense that belongs to a human being.