1. BS625 Pentateuch Session 13: Deuteronomy and Deuteronomic Theology

2. Deuteronomy We get the English title “Deuteronomy” from the Latin deuteronomium, a transliteration of a compound Greek word: deuteros (“second”) and nomos (“law”). The original Hebrew title is debarim (“words”) from the first Hebrew word of the text.

3. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy is given in the form of Moses’ final address to the children of Israel. Much of the material is repeated from earlier sections of the Pentateuch and some sections that are rewritten altogether.

4. Deuteronomy Questions For Our Study of Deuteronomy: What is the connection to Josiah’s reform (640 – 609) (2 Sam )? What is the connection to Josiah’s reform (640 – 609) (2 Sam )? When was Deuteronomy written? When was Deuteronomy written? Was Deuteronomy originally intended to be part of the Torah or was it added later? Was Deuteronomy originally intended to be part of the Torah or was it added later? What was the original purpose of Deuteronomy? What was the original purpose of Deuteronomy?

5. Deuteronomy The theology of Deuteronomy has been simplified by Blenkinsopp as, “one God, one people, one sanctuary.”

6. Deuteronomy One God (strict “monotheism”) One God (strict “monotheism”) One people (“covenant” and “choice”) One people (“covenant” and “choice”) One sanctuary (“land” and later “temple”) One sanctuary (“land” and later “temple”) YHWH, Law, Covenant, Land

7. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 5:1-21 1 Moses convened all Israel, and said to them: Hear, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances that I am addressing to you today; you shall learn them and observe them diligently. 2 The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. 3Not with our ancestors did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive today. 4 The Lord spoke with you face to face at the mountain, out of the fire. 5 (At that time I was standing between the Lord and you to declare to you the words of the Lord; for

8. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 5:1-21 you were afraid because of the fire and did not go up the mountain.) And he said: 6 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 7 you shall have no other gods before me. 8 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 9 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the

9. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 5:1-21 iniquity of parents, to the third and fourth generation of those who reject me, 10 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments. 11 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. 12 Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 For six days you shall labour and do all your work. 14 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the

10. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 5:1-21 Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, or your son or your daughter, or your male or female slave, or your ox or your donkey, or any of your livestock, or the resident alien in your towns, so that your male and female slave may rest as well as you. 15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the sabbath day. 16 Honor your father and

11. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 5:1-21 your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. 17 You shall not murder. 18 Neither shall you commit adultery. 19 Neither shall you steal. 20 Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbour. 21 Neither shall you covet your neighbor’s wife. Neither shall you desire your neighbor’s house, or field, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

12. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 6:1-9 1 Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that the Lord your God charged me to teach you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, 2 so that you and your children and your children’s children may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life, and keep all his decrees and his commandments that I am commanding you, so that your days may be long. 3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe them diligently, so that it may go well with you, and so

13. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 6:1-9 that you may multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you. 4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. 6 Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. 7 Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when

14. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 6:1-9 you lie down and when you rise. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, 9 and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

15. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 26:16-19 16 This very day the Lord your God is commanding you to observe these statutes and ordinances; so observe them diligently with all your heart and with all your soul. 17 Today you have obtained the Lord’s agreement: to be your God; and for you to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, and his ordinances, and to obey him. 18 Today the Lord has obtained your agreement: to be his treasured people, as he promised you, and to keep his commandments; 19 for him to set you high above

16. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 26:16-19 all nations that he has made, in praise and in fame and in honor; and for you to be a people holy to the Lord your God, as he promised.

17. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 28: Promises of Blessings for Obedience Promises of Blessings for Obedience Warning of Curses for Disobedience Warning of Curses for Disobedience Emphasizing the importance of COVENANT

18. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: When all these things have happened to you, the blessings and the curses that I have set before you, if you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you, 2 and return to the Lord your God, and you and your children obey him with all your heart and with all your soul, just as I am commanding you today, 3 then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you, gathering you again from all the peoples among whom the Lord your God has scattered you.

19. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: 4 Even if you are exiled to the ends of the world, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there he will bring you back. 5 The Lord your God will bring you into the land that your ancestors possessed, and you will possess it; he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors. 6 Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live.

20. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: 7 The Lord your God will put all these curses on your enemies and on the adversaries who took advantage of you. 8 Then you shall again obey the Lord, observing all his commandments that I am commanding you today, 9 and the Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all your undertakings, in the fruit of your body, in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your soil. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, just as he delighted in prospering your ancestors, 10

21. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: when you obey the Lord your God by observing his commandments and decrees that are written in this book of the law, because you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 11 Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?’ 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross

22. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: to the other side of the sea for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?’ 14No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe. 15 See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity. 16 If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I am commanding you today, by loving the Lord your God, walking in his ways, and observing his commandments, decrees, and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous, and the Lord

23. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to possess. 17 But if your heart turns away and you do not hear, but are led astray to bow down to other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you shall perish; you shall not live long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, 20 loving the Lord your

24. Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 30: God, obeying him, and holding fast to him; for that means life to you and length of days, so that you may live in the land that the Lord swore to give to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

25. Deuteronomy Theology of Deuteronomy: (1) Enduring Covenant (2) The Land as Promised Blessing (3) One God (Divine Presence) (4) Election of Israel in History (Unique relationship between YHWH & Israel) (5) Kingship of YHWH (theocracy) (6) Law and Grace

26. Deuteronomic Theology Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomist (Dtr) Joshua through Kings is designated the “Deuteronomic” or “Deuteronomistic” History Joshua: taking the land (as a sign of the covenant promised as far back as Genesis 12) Joshua: taking the land (as a sign of the covenant promised as far back as Genesis 12) Judges: YHWH maintains the covenant through temporary leaders called “judges” Judges: YHWH maintains the covenant through temporary leaders called “judges” Ruth: the quaint story of how a woman is redeemed becomes a tale of YHWH’s faithfulness Ruth: the quaint story of how a woman is redeemed becomes a tale of YHWH’s faithfulness Samuel & Kings – theocracy is rejected and monarchy established Samuel & Kings – theocracy is rejected and monarchy established

27. Deuteronomic Theology Deuteronomy and Jeremiah Josiah—(640 – 609) righteous king who was killed resisting the spread of Egyptian rule Josiah—(640 – 609) righteous king who was killed resisting the spread of Egyptian rule Jehoahaz (Shallum)—son of Josiah appointed king after death of his father; (Jeremiah briefly mentions him in an unfavorable way; 22:10-12); after three months he was deposed by Pharaoh Neco Jehoahaz (Shallum)—son of Josiah appointed king after death of his father; (Jeremiah briefly mentions him in an unfavorable way; 22:10-12); after three months he was deposed by Pharaoh Neco Jehoiakim—became an Egyptian vassal—was relentlessly hostile toward Jeremiah (36:21-23) Jehoiakim—became an Egyptian vassal—was relentlessly hostile toward Jeremiah (36:21-23)

28. Deuteronomic Theology Jehoiachin—when Egyptians lose ground to Nebuchadnezzar, (son of Jehoiakim) ruled Judah for only 3 months before surrendering to Babylonian power in 597 BC. Jehoiachin—when Egyptians lose ground to Nebuchadnezzar, (son of Jehoiakim) ruled Judah for only 3 months before surrendering to Babylonian power in 597 BC. Zedekiah—Nebuchadnezzar replaced Jehoiachin with his uncle Zedekiah (who sometimes sided with and sometimes opposed Jeremiah); reigned 11 years but was a weak, vacillating king; while trying to flee Jerusalem in 586, he was killed by Babylonians Zedekiah—Nebuchadnezzar replaced Jehoiachin with his uncle Zedekiah (who sometimes sided with and sometimes opposed Jeremiah); reigned 11 years but was a weak, vacillating king; while trying to flee Jerusalem in 586, he was killed by Babylonians

29. Deuteronomic Theology Gedaliah—after a brief reign, he was killed by his opponents (cf. Jeremiah 41) Gedaliah—after a brief reign, he was killed by his opponents (cf. Jeremiah 41)

30. Deuteronomic Theology Deuteronomy and Jeremiah: Judgment for Idolatry (the most prominent theme) Judgment for Idolatry (the most prominent theme) Promise of deliverance but only after 70 years in exile Promise of deliverance but only after 70 years in exile YHWH’s absolute destruction of Judah and his judgment of all surrounding nations YHWH’s absolute destruction of Judah and his judgment of all surrounding nations

31. Deuteronomic Theology Deuteronomy and the Prophets: Amos—“you and you only” Amos—“you and you only” Hosea—“return to me” Hosea—“return to me” Malachi—sanctity of worshipping YHWH Malachi—sanctity of worshipping YHWH Joel—“return to YHWH and to the covenant” Joel—“return to YHWH and to the covenant” Jonah—non-Jews included in the covenant blessings (pagan sailors, Ninevites, animals) Jonah—non-Jews included in the covenant blessings (pagan sailors, Ninevites, animals)

32. Deuteronomic Theology Deuteronomy and the NT: (Mark 12:28-33) 28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ 29 Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” 31 The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater (Mark 12:28-33) 28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ 29 Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” 31 The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater

33. Deuteronomic Theology Deuteronomy and the NT: than these.’ 32 Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; 33and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ than these.’ 32 Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; 33and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’