30:1-6Moses told the Hebrews that when they were ready to return to God, he would be ready to receive them. God's mercy is unbelievable. It goes far beyond what we can imagine. Even if the Jews deliberately walked away from him and ruined their lives, God would still take them back. God would give them inward spiritual renewal. God wants to forgive us and bring us back to himself, too. Some people will not ‘earn this until their world has crashed in around them. Then the sorrow and pain seem to open their eyes to what God has been saying all along. Are you separated trom God by sin? No matter how far you have wandered, God promises a fresh beginning if only you will turn to him.
Life Application Study BibleDeuteronomyChapter 30
Deuteronomy 30
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 301, 302
A few verse numbers on this page were hard to read in the scan and are marked with a dotted underline — compare with the original page image if in doubt.
30Deuteronomy 30
1“Tn the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you, and when you are living among the nations to which the LORD your God has exiled you, take to heart all these instructions. 2f at that time you and your children return to the LORD your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today, then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you. 4Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the LORD your God will gather you from there and bring you back again. 5The LORD your God will return you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will possess that land again. Then he will make you even more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors! 6“The LORD your God will change your heart* and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live! 7The LORD your God willinflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate and persecute you. ®Then you will again obey the LORD and keep all his commands that I am giving you today. 9” The LORD your God will then make you successful in everything you do. He will give you many children and numerous livestock, and he will cause your fields to produce abundant harvests, for the LORD will again delight in being good to you as he was to your ancestors. 10The LORD your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and soul.
The Choice of Life or Death
1111"This command 1am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach. 12It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, “Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?’ ‘It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?’ 14No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it. 15“Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster. 16For I command you this day to love the LORD your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply,and the LORD your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy. 17“But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, '@then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. 19”Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! 20You can make this choice by loving the LORD your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This* is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lor, you will live long in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” D. THE CHANGE IN LEADERSHIP: MOSES’ LAST DAYS (31:1—34:12) Realizing that he is about to die, Moses commissions Joshua, records the laws in a permanent form, and teaches a special song to the Israelites. Thus, Moses prepared the people for his departure. Similarly, we should not allow others to become dependent upon us for their spiritual growth but help them to become dependent upon God.
Textual footnotes
- 30:6 Hebrew circumcise your heart, 30:20 Or He.
Life Application Notes 3 notes
30:11-14God has called us to keep his commands, while reminding us that his {aws are not hidden from us or beyond our reach. Have you ever said you would obey God if you knew what he wanted? Have you ever complained that obedience is too diffi- Cult for a mere human? These are unacceptable excuses. God’s ‘aws are written in the Bible and are clearly evident in the world around us. Obeying them is reasonable, sensible, and beneficial. The most difficult part of obeying God’s laws is simply deciding to start now. Paul refers to this passage in Romans 10:5-8.
30:19,20Moses challenged Israel to choose life, to obey God, and therefore to continue to experience his blessings. God doesn’t force his will on anyone. He lets us decide whether to follow him or reject him. This decision, however, is a life-or-death matter. God wants us to realize this, for he would like us all to choose life. Daily, in each new situation, we must affirm and reinforce this commitment.