Monday - Deuteronomy 31 - The Setting Sun

As we all know, God refused to allow Moses to go into Canaan. So, Moses gave orders to Joshua and instructions to the people in order to try to preserve all which he had labored to establish. Clearly Moses had the heart to continue. Over and over again he challenged the people to be courageous (Deuteronomy 31:6, 7, 8 & 23). He warned against succumbing to fear. Now, as unusual as it may sound, fear is the opposite of faith (II Timothy 1:7). Moses remembered that it was fear that had caused the previous generation to balk at God's commands. As such, he warned them not to be afraid to do what God required of them.

Of all the things that Moses could have done to try to ensure the future faithfulness of his people, he did the one best thing. In obedience to God's demand, he wrote out a copy of God's law and left it for the people to read (or, to be more exact, to hear) and to sing (Deuteronomy 31:11 & 19). He let it be known that the nation was expected to faithfully consult it (that is, God's law) in its entirety and to obey it unwaveringly. Isn't it amazing that God told them exactly what to do even though He knew absolutely that they would NOT obey His words (Deuteronomy 31:16 & 29)? The fact is they were already going astray (Deuteronomy 31: 21 & 27). And, their covert dissatisfaction was a harbinger of what horrid rebellion was to come.