Deuteronomy 4:3-End

Introduction

Okay, apologies in advance because we are getting to some things that demand conjecture in the face of our stance on fulfillment – and so I am going to offer up some human conjectures that are extra-biblical and not by any means certain or absolute.

I won’t make this too much of a habit unless the text demands it. So, here goes.

Deuteronomy 4:3-End

October 20, 2024
We left off at Deuteronomy 4:2 where Moses instructed the nation not to add nor take away from what YAHAVAH commanded. We talked about the need for the nation to do all that God commanded them, and that believers too must do the same—but the commands from our Lord Yeshua are to believe on Him and love as He commanded.

In the face of all these admonitions, Moses adds a warning to them in verse 3 of chapter 4, saying:

3 “Your eyes have seen what YAHAVAH did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, YAHAVAH thy God hath destroyed them from among you.”
4 “But ye that did cleave unto YAHAVAH your God are alive every one of you this day.”

The warning to the believers in Yeshua’s day was similar—that if they did not ready themselves, stay unified, avoid idolatry and divisions, and watch for the signs of His coming, walking in faith and love, they would not be saved from the coming wrath.

A Warning for Today?

This leads us to a moment that is worth considering. If we are living in an age of fulfillment, we might wonder: Is there a warning for us today that is similar?

I think it is only fair to ask this, considering all the ages before us faced some heavy fallout from failing to do what YAHAVAH said first, and what Yeshua and the Apostles said second, for them to be blessed or saved.

A Comparative Chart

OLD TESTAMENT (Under Law of Moses)
Apostolic Church (Preparing for the End of the Age)

| Warnings | Obey or be cursed | Get ready or get left |
| Commands | Do all that God said | Follow what Yeshua said, along with the Apostles |
| Support Factors God gave them | Prophets, visiting God, signs and wonders, scripture | Powerful Spirit, signs and wonders, scripture, and living apostles |
| Sufferings | Material if unfaithful | Turned over to Satan, put to death even when faithful |
| Outcome | Cursed, killed, put to death, went to Sheol | Killed, went to Sheol, left behind or saved |

Living in the Age of the Spirit

If we are living in the age of fulfillment, we have to ask: How does our faithfulness or temptations toward faithlessness play out differently? What challenges and differences are present today compared to the information we just considered in the chart depicting the faithful in the Old Testament and the faithful in the Apostolic period?

If hell, Satan, sin, and death have been victoriously put away, are we just fortunate to have been born in this age where we freely reap the benefits of our suffering forefathers, or do we also face trials that the other ages did not?

Modern Challenges of Faith

I tend to think that God allows specific suffering for His children in every age, and those who are sold out to walking with Him in “spirit and truth” somehow face trials and difficulties that match the former ages but in ways appropriate to our current time.

Of course, this is all conjecture and not biblically based, but it seems that where God was more present in manifestations to His people in ancient times, today He may be less (in terms of signs and miracles). Perhaps He leaves believers today in an equally difficult environment with Him not being as interactively present.

Where the Old Testament had prophets, signs, and wonders, Moses says at verse 7:

Deuteronomy 4:7 – “For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as YAHAVAH our God is in all things that we call upon him for?”

And the Apostolic Period had Yeshua Himself, His Spirit, and living Apostles to offset the trials and miseries that surrounded them. It seems to me that believers ever since have steadily faced an ever-increasing “trial of having faith” in the following ways:

1. We are without as many overt spiritual wonders, signs, and healings (not to say they don’t happen, but the key is overt).
2. We face the very human condition of pride more than in other ages, as wealth and prosperity are far more widespread today than they ever were before. Materialism, which used to cause pride in kings, is now unrestricted to more people than ever.
3. The blessings of creature comforts and constant “bread and circus” lead to our being spiritually indifferent. The socio-economics of former ages kept what were largely agrarian people constantly seeking God’s help.

Indifference and Pride in the Modern Age

In the end, I see the problems confronting the modern believer to be one of indifference and pride caused by more prosperity and a lack of spiritual evidences and miracles that kept former-age believers in closer contact with God.

That said, it seems that in our age, to believe requires more faith, which truly serves to bring forth only the true seekers of God. There are far more reasons, circumstances, and developments in our day that distract people from even considering God. These distractions are the challenge. More than ever, humans are living in a way where He is not even missed by many, whereas before, He was the go-to for most things.

For me, it seems like God is saying what He said to Adam at the start, summarized as: “Okay, I’ve done my part. It’s all here. You have a beautiful setup. Do what you will. But I am leaving you here to decide how to do it. If you have questions, I’m here.”

For us, what He has done for us is just like what He did for Adam and Eve. He has the complete justification to take a similar stance (if this is the stance He has taken).

Science and Technology Today

Even though science, technology, and many other facets of human existence have stepped in and done for us what could only be accomplished through miracles before, humanity is still a creation made by a Creator and is wired with a place for Him alone, which cannot be filled by anything else.

Sorry for the rant, but it’s important in our day and age.

Moses on Teaching and Fear (Deuteronomy 4:8-10)

In verses 8–10, Moses brings more to them that has application to us today, adding:

8 “And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?”
9 “Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them to thy sons, and thy sons’ sons.”
10 “Specially the day that thou stoodest before YAHAVAH thy God in Horeb, when YAHAVAH said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.”

Because of Christ, where there is love, there cannot be fear. The command was to fear and love Him – not possible, and here’s why: Agape love is selfless, but to love something because we fear it is selfish, as we fear being punished if we don’t.

Teaching Children Today (Deuteronomy 6:7, 11:19, 31:19)

The teachings about YAHAVAH to the nation’s children were an essential part of the people’s economy. Moses repeats this command four times in Deuteronomy, including:

Deuteronomy 6:7 – “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”
Deuteronomy 11:19 – “And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”
Deuteronomy 31:19 – “Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it to the children of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel.”

Parenting Today

I’ve watched the parenting styles of religious folks closely—really closely—over the years. My conclusions are these, take them for what they’re worth:

The more dogmatic parents are with their children today, the more conflict the children have later in life, generally speaking. This conflict is heightened by some factors, including:

• The level of education and intelligence a child has.
• The amount of information they are exposed to in life.
• The independence level of the child

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However, the major difference in the outcome of dogmatic parenting lies in balancing dogmatic attitudes with parental hypocrisy in agape love.

What I’m trying to say is that if parents are going to be strict sticklers toward their children in raising them, they must balance that with genuine agape love.

Because of Christ, the need to raise children with endless teachings of doctrine, dragging them to church, and trying to indoctrinate their minds (as many Christian parents believe is so important and in harmony with scripture) should be balanced with raising children with peace, love, and cautious instruction, allowing them to grow into whatever faith they may embrace. Allow them to ask age-appropriate questions about mom and dad’s faith, rather than ever cramming beliefs into their heads.

I suggest the practice of pointing out to children things that better reflect the existence of God and the need for His Son rather than ever threatening them or using God to make them feel guilty or ashamed for learning to live. When they fail or sin, approach them with the kind of love our Father approaches us with, using the fruits of the spirit, and slowly, slightly introduce them to His love and Light.

We might do better waiting for our children to ask us what we believe and then gently explain why, balancing our opinions with biblical narratives rather than dogmatic declarations of musts.

Moses’ Rehearsal of Beginnings (Deuteronomy 4:11-40)

From verse 11 to 40, Moses rehearses their beginnings. I felt inspired to reread this summary as he reiterates it to them then, and we will comment along the way.

11 “And ye… (meaning their fathers—who are now all dead except for Yeshua and Caleb) came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness.”
12 “And YAHAVAH spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.”
13 “And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.”

The word translated to commandments here is dabar, which means word—so the ten words—which again, we suggest speaks to the first ten words, and then all that supports them were included on the two tablets.

New Testament Comparison (Hebrews 12:18-29)

The writer of Hebrews rehearses this history in the Apostolic record:

Hebrews 12:18 – “For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,”
19 “And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:”
20 “(For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:”
21 “And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)”
22 “But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,”
23 “To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,”
24 “And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.”
25 “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:”
26 “Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.”
27 “And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”
28 “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:”
29 “For our God is a consuming fire.”

Moses’ Continued Instruction (Deuteronomy 4:14-24)

Back to Deuteronomy 4 at verse 14, Moses continues:

14 “And YAHAVAH commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.”
15 “Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that YAHAVAH spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:”
16 “Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,”
17 “The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,”
18 “The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:”
19 “And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which YAHAVAH thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.”
20 “But YAHAVAH hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.”

The longer I live as a believer today, the more I see a connection to this imagery of YAHAVAH taking us out of “the iron furnace” of this world, setting us right in our minds, and letting us wander free from the burning bondage of what people call sin.

Just like when Moses says that YAHAVAH brought them out, so too can I personally witness having been personally brought out from the fires of the same and have witnessed several people experience the same.

Unfortunately, I’ve also witnessed ten times more either remain in that place or return to that place, and the results are so sad to me—so limiting and not necessary. Moses continues at verse 21:

21 “Furthermore YAHAVAH was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which YAHAVAH thy God giveth thee for an inheritance:”
22 “But I must die in this land, I must not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.”
23 “Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of YAHAVAH your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which YAHAVAH thy God hath forbidden thee.”
24 “For YAHAVAH thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.”

Why Is YAHAVAH a Jealous God?

YAHAVAH is a jealous God because He loves us and does not want His creations to pursue after idols that have no capacity to truly set His creations free. We might see Him in this light like a parent who has lost a child to a powerful drug addiction. We pray, wish, and long for them to be free of their captor because we can see the pain and damage it does—not because we are egotistical and demand that our children follow us, but because good parents want their children to be free.

Verse 25:

25 “When thou shalt beget children, and children’s children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of YAHAVAH thy God, to provoke him to anger:”

Moses’ Warning (Deuteronomy 4:26-28)

Moses is driven to present a powerful warning, saying:

26 “I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.”
27 “And YAHAVAH shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither YAHAVAH shall lead you.”
28 “And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.”

The Defeat of False Gods

I am of the opinion that, in that day, these gods—these elohiyms—these spirits in idols that were insensate in material form but sometimes seemed to have power, have been put down by the victory of Christ.

In other words, I do not see the spirit gods of Baal, Molech, or the fly, toad, or ox gods as being on earth today. I say this based on the following biblically supported facts.

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Psalm 82: The Judgment of Elohiyms
In Psalm 82, we read:

1 “God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.”
He then goes on to ask, how long will these gods unrighteously judge, summarizing with verse 5:
5 “They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.”
But then the writer says:
6 “I have said, Ye are gods; (speaking to the mighty gods above) and all of you are children of the most High.”
7 “But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.”
8 “Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.”

To me, this suggests that YAHAVAH, in the heavenly economy, had children—elohiyms—some of whom chose evil and some of whom were good. But all of them would, though elohiyms, die like men.

The Death of the Gods

When would the death of these gods occur? It would—and it did—occur at the victory of Christ over them. We remember the familiar passages in 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul describes when this would occur and what it would look like, speaking of the resurrection:

1 Corinthians 15:23 – “But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.”
24 “Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.”

Rule, authority, and power. The Greek words arche, exousia, and dunamis—all put down. But the arche, authority, and power of what? Certainly not of YAHAVAH. So, then, these “other elohiyms” were going to die like men.

(By the way, that passage proves the elohiyms were not men but from a different economy that would also end.)

Putting it together, I suggest that this end would come when Christ returned, launching the resurrection and ending everything from that former economy, including the fallen forces that opposed YAHAVAH (summarized as arches, authority, and power).

Believers and the Spiritual Battle (Ephesians 6:10-13)

To the believers of that day in the Bride, we read the following instructions as they waited for the end of that age in Ephesians 6:10-13:

10 “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.”
11 “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
12 “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
13 “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

We note the use of:

• Principality (translated from arche in verse 12)
• Exousia (translated to power)
• And the phrase Rulers of the Darkness, translated from the Greek “Kosmocrator scotius” and which refers to Satan as the “ruler,” meeting all the descriptors used by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 and also the Psalm passages that say that these errant elohiyms/gods from that day would “die like men.”

The Source of Evil Today

So, if I am correct, and if Christ has had the total victory over sin, death, and Satan, then all of the former elohiyms/gods that went south are dead, leaving us to ask, “What is the source of evil today?”

Scripture makes it plain that we have the capacity for evil—just like Eve and Adam showed before their act of rebellion. But I would suggest that there could (COULD) be forces at work in our world that reflect the same sinister nature of these former gods. I cannot help but wonder if they are the result of what might be considered a collective human spirit.

A Collective Human Spirit

I say this as a possible thought based on the following:

1. God made man in His image. Rejecting the idea that we are ever destroyed but are, in fact, “eternal by His breath of life,” I wonder if there is a spiritual repository of collective human traits, thoughts, ideas, and evils that have been gathering since the Fall, replacing the fallen elohiyms of yesteryear.
2. Perhaps deceased human beings, intent on evil and refusing the Light extended to them, upon physical death, exist in the realms of darkness, outside the kingdom, and are free to continue warring against Him.
3. Perhaps as long as there exists some light in them, some ability to humble themselves and reach out to the Light, they will abide in the realm of light outside Jerusalem. But I wonder about those who abjectly reject all light and love the Dark, wanting nothing to do with God—whether they have become or are becoming “a new Ha Satan,” equipped to tempt us with their working knowledge of having been human and trying to tempt human beings forevermore to resist God.

People typically say that this wouldn’t seem possible because they would know there is a God and could never rebel in such a way, as they would see and know Him after death. But I would cite that His heavenly children in the heavenly creation did the same. So, why wouldn’t the humans who love the Dark?

Just something to think about.

Seeking YAHAVAH (Deuteronomy 4:29-32)

Picking it back up at verse 29, Moses says:

29 “But if from thence thou shalt seek YAHAVAH thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.”

I want to point out that it seems that in the pursuit of God, we only get a response that is in accordance with the truth we put out. In other words, if we put forth half-truths, we will get back the same—not lies, but weak light. The more we fully give Him of our whole heart honestly, the more we get back.

He truly seeks those who truly want Him, seek Him, and are open to Him, or as Moses puts it, who “seek Him with all their heart and soul.” I completely reject the notion that He would not respond to such—ever. Moses adds:

30 “When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to YAHAVAH thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;”
31 “(For YAHAVAH thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.”
32 “For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?”

Reflecting on the Human Experience (Deuteronomy 4:33-40)

Moses continues as if human existence has been around forever, when he says:

33 “Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?”
34 “Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that YAHAVAH your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?”
35 “Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that YAHAVAH he is God; there is none else beside him.”
36 “Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.”
37 “And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt;”
38 “To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.”
39 “Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that YAHAVAH he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.”
40 “Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which YAHAVAH thy God giveth thee, for ever.”

The Cities of Refuge (Deuteronomy 4:41-42)

We then read what seems like an abridgment of Moses’ words when someone (probably Joshua)

adds:

41 “Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;”
42 “That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live.”

This speaks to the cities of refuge.

Summary of the Chapter

The chapter wraps up with a summary of them being on this side of the River Jordan and yet to enter into the land promised.

We will stop here