8:3Jesus quoted this verse when the devil tempted him to turn stones into bread (Matthew 4:4). Many people think that life is based on satisfying their appetites. If they can earn enough Money to dress, eat, and play in high style, they think they are living “the good life.” But such things do not satisfy our deepest longings. In the end they leave us empty and dissatisfied. Real life, according to Moses, comes from total commitment to God and living by every word that comes from him. How can we live by his word? (1) Recognize our need for it. (2) Agree that God alone can truly satisfy us. (3) Pray for God’s presence, wisdom, and direction as we read. (4) Savor the relationship you have with him through Christ. (5) Practice what he teaches you.
Life Application Study BibleDeuteronomyChapter 8
Deuteronomy 8
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 276, 277
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.
A Call to Remember and Obey
1“Be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today. Then you will live and multiply, and you will enter and occupy the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors. 2Remember how the LORD your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands. 3Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. 4For all these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn't blister or swell. 5Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the LORD your God disciplines you for your own good. 6“So obey the commands of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and fearing him. 7For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land of flowing streams and pools of water, with fountains and springs that gush out in the valleys and hills. 8It isa land of wheat and barley; of grapevines, fig trees, and pomegranates; of olive oil and honey. 9It is a land where food is plentiful and nothing is lacking. It is a land where iron is as common as stone, and copper is abundant in the hills. 10When you have eaten your fill, be sure to praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. ‘But that is the time to be careful! Beware that in your plenty you do not forget the LORD your God and disobey his commands, regulations, and decrees that I am giving you today. 12For when you have become full and prosperous and have built fine homes to live in, ‘Sand when your flocks and herds have become very large and your silver and gold have multiplied along with everything else, be careful! 14Do not become proud at that time and forget the LORD your God, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. 15Do not forget that he led you through the great and terrifying wilderness with its poisonous snakes and scorpions, where it was so hot and dry. He gave you water from the rock! 16He fed you with manna in the wilderness, a food unknown to your ancestors. He did this to humble you and test you for your own good. 17He did all this so you would never say to yourself, ‘I have achieved this wealth with my own strength and energy.’ 18Remember the LORD your God. He is the one who gives you power to be successful, in order to fulfill the covenant he confirmed to your ancestors with an oath. 189“But I assure you of this: If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, you will certainly be destroyed. 20Just as the LORD has destroyed other nations in your path, you also will be destroyed if you refuse to obey the LORD your God.
Life Application Notes 4 notes
8:4It’s usually easy for us to take God’s protection for granted. We seldom take notice or thank God when our car doesn’t break down, our clothes don't rip, or our tools don’t break. The people of Israel also failed to take notice, it seems, for they didn’t even notice that in 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, their clothes didn’t wear out and their feet didn’t blister or swell. Thus, they did not remember to give thanks to God for these blessings. What has been working well for you? What has been giving you good service? What has been lasting for a long time without breaking down or apart? Remember to thank God for these quiet blessings.
8:10This verse is traditionally cited as the reason we Say grace before or after meals. Its purpose, however, was to warn the israelites not to forget Gad when their needs and wants were Satisfied. Let your table prayers serve as a constant reminder of the LORD’s goodness to you and your duty to those who are less fortunate.
8:11-20In times of plenty, we often take credit for our prosperity and become proud that our own hard work and cleverness have made us rich. It is easy to get so busy collecting and managing wealth that we push God right out of our lives. But it is God who gives us everything we have, and it is God who asks us to manage it for him.
Charts, profiles & sidebars from the printed pages
Study feature · page 277
OBEDIENCE Deuteronomy 8:1 tells us to obey God’s command- ments. We do this by obeying
God with...
OUR HEART By loving him more than any relationship, activity, achievement, or possession
OUR WILL OUR MIND By committing ourselves completely to him By seeking to know him and his Word, so his principles and values form the foundation of all we think and do
OUR BODY By recognizing that our strengths, talents, and sexuality are given to us by God to be used for pleasure and fulfillment according to his rules, not ours
OUR FINANCES... By deciding that all of the resources we have ultimately come from God, and that we are to be managers of them and not owners By deciding to make service to God and man the main purpose of our life’s work OUR FUTURE
deciding factor that kept the Israelites out of the land 40 years earlier (Numbers 13-14). Moses used all his persuasive power to convince his people that God could handle these bullies. He used the illustration of God as a devouring fire, for not even a giant could stand up to that.