January 18, 2025
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Deuteronomy and Corinthians? Here’s today’s reading:
Deuteronomy 9 (NIV)
Not Because of Israel’s Righteousness
1 Hear, Israel: You are now about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities that have walls up to the sky. 2 The people are strong and tall—Anakites! You know about them and have heard it said: “Who can stand up against the Anakites?”……Continue Reading
Deuteronomy 9
Moses says God is going ahead to drive out Anakites quickly. We should not think this is because of our own righteousness Or you’re integrity that you are going to take possession of their land but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the Lord, your God will drive them out before you to accomplish what he swore to your father’s to Abraham. Isaac and Jacob, it’s not because of your righteousness. Said the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess. For you are stiff necked people. When Moses came down from the mountain. God told them.
May I become corrupt from what he commanded them and have made an idol for themselves. Again the power of prayer. Moses prayed that the Lord not destroy them. He reminded the Lord of his promises when brought them out of Egypt.
Deuteronomy 9
Deuteronomy 9
So Moses was up on the mountain with the Lord for forty days and forty nights. For the people down the mountain, that’s about a month and 10 days without Moses who was a tangible guidance to the Israelites at that time. Then within those 40 days, they couldn’t wait and had to make their own god. I also see this tendency in myself or any other believer I know. When God puts us on a waiting mode which is most often really, whether it’s waiting for an answer, waiting for a provision, sometimes it is tempting to entertain other “gods” into our lives while God has not answered. This would be in the form of a sinful habit, not abiding in God and following evil desires. I have to be careful to obey God and not quench the Holy Spirit through the seasons of waiting.
Early in this chapter Moses reminded them that God will go across ahead of His people and certainly He had proved that time and time again to them. He always provided but yet when they had to wait for His provision or timing they quickly rebelled. We are no different. I recently read The Calvary Road which discusses the “stiff-necked” position that Moses refers to so often about the Israelites, yet that is still true of us today. It made me put a physical position to their (and my disobedience) the opposite would be a bent neck. Its hard to be selfish and proud when you are bending the neck to God, listening and waiting for His will and not yours to be done. My prayer is that I will learn to bend my neck in times where I try to do the work in my life that I know God should be doing!
Deuteronomy 9
The part when Moses says God isn’t wiping out the nations ahead of Israel because of Israel’s righteousness but because of the nations’ ungodliness reminds me of when Paul talks about us Gentiles being grafted in to God’s people because they have been broken off for rejecting God; but warning that we should be mindful not to reject God ourselves, lest we be broken off too.
I feel kinda guilty reading chapter 9, sounds so much like me. The God of Israel is my God, gracious is He!
Good comments Linda. In the same way we are not saved by our own righteousness but it is what God has done for us. We are only made righteous by Him. Aren`t we just like the Israelites? We are a stiff necked people and need to constantly remember what Christ has done for us. Surrendering our will to Him everyday. God bless you all.
Deuteronomy 9
Moses makes clear that the Jews are not possessing the land because of their righteousness, but because of the wickedness of the people that will be driven out by them. He repeats this three times to drive the point home, showing the tendency we have as humans to think more of ourselves than we ought and we should depend more on God’s grace than on our righteousness. This also shows why God chose to want to annihilate these people groups. And what power He has to be able to defeat armies that others would not even consider attacking. He will help us be over-comers as well if we will just trust Him. And just in case the Jews were tempted to think it was because of their righteousness that they were receiving the land, Moses reminds them of all the time in their travels that they were rebellious to God, namely building the golden calf while Moses was on the mountain getting the 10 commandments.
Moses reminds the people of why God is conquering these nations before them, it is not because of Israel’s righteousness but because of the nations’ wickedness. I think sometimes unbelievers misinterpret Gods actions, especially in the OT of the destruction of nations, man, woman and child, but do not consider the absolute depravity of these people.
I also think we need to be careful in judging the Jews for their disobedience, when we do the same.
DEUTERONOMY 9