Lesson 8: Deuteronomy

Greetings, a servant of God, by the grace of God, teaching the truth of God under the authority of Jesus Christ to any who are willing to receive it. (Mat 13:43).

The Holy Bible contains the truth of God by the word of God (Joh 17:17); therefore, God teaches and gives understanding, wisdom, and knowledge to all who pray and seek Him with all the heart (Deu 4:29-31; Jer 29:12,13; Psa 119:2).

Deuteronomy 1: Moses Begins His Final Address

Deuteronomy opens with Moses speaking to all Israel in the plains of Moab, reviewing the journey that brought them to the edge of the land (Deu 1:1). The generation that once refused to enter Canaan has passed, and Moses now prepares their children to receive what God promised. The chapter begins with a reminder of the long path from Horeb to this moment, a journey marked by God’s command, Israel’s failure, and God’s continued faithfulness (Deu 1:6-8). Deuteronomy is not a new set of events; it is Moses’ final instruction, given on the threshold of the land, calling Israel to remember, to obey, and to walk in the covenant with clarity as they prepare to cross the Jordan.

The Setting of Moses’ Final Words

Deu 1:1 These be the words which Moses spoke unto all Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain over against the Red sea, between Paran, and Tophel, and Laban, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab.

Deu 1:2 (There are eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.)

Deu 1:3 And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spoke unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the LORD had given him in commandment unto them;

Deu 1:4 After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, which dwelt at Astaroth in Edrei:

Deu 1:5 On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law, saying,

Deuteronomy 1:1-5 establishes the setting for Moses’ final address. Moses speaks to all Israel east of the Jordan, in the plains of Moab, after the long journey from Horeb and the many stations of the wilderness (Deu 1:1). The location is deliberate: Israel stands opposite the land they are about to enter, and Moses delivers his words at the threshold of fulfillment. The text notes that this instruction comes in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, after God has defeated Sihon and Og and secured Israel’s position (Deu 1:3,4). Moses begins to explain the law, not as new legislation, but as a final, clarifying witness before Israel crosses the Jordan (Deu 1:5). These verses frame Deuteronomy as a covenant renewal, spoken by a leader who will not enter the land but who prepares the people to do so with memory, obedience, and clarity.

The Command to Leave Horeb and Take Possession of the Land

Deu 1:6 The LORD our God spoke unto us in Horeb, saying, You have dwelt long enough in this mount:

Deu 1:7 Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates.

Deu 1:8 Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD swore unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.

Deuteronomy 1:6-8 recalls the moment when God told Israel they had stayed long enough at Horeb. The mountain was the place of covenant, law, and revelation, but it was never meant to be their dwelling (Deu 1:6). God commanded them to turn, journey, and enter the land promised to their fathers, a land stretching from the hill country to the plains, from the south to Lebanon, and even to the great river Euphrates (Deu 1:7). Moses reminds the people that God set the land before them and told them to go in and possess it, fulfilling the oath sworn to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Deu 1:8). These verses frame Israel’s history as movement under command: God directs, Israel follows, and the promise becomes the path they must walk.

The Appointment of Judges to Share the Burden of Leadership

Deu 1:9 And I spoke unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:

Deu 1:10 The LORD your God has multiplied you, and, behold, you are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.

Deu 1:11 (The LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as you are, and bless you, as he has promised you!)

Deu 1:12 How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife?

Deu 1:13 Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.

Deu 1:14 And you answered me, and said, The thing which you have spoken is good for us to do.

Deu 1:15 So I took the chief of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes.

Deu 1:16 And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.

Deu 1:17 You shall not respect persons in judgment; but you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it.

Deu 1:18 And I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do.

Deuteronomy 1:9-18 recalls the moment Moses told Israel he could not bear the weight of the people alone. God had multiplied them, making them as numerous as the stars, and the growth of the nation required a structure that reflected both justice and wisdom (Deu 1:9-11). Moses instructed the people to choose wise, understanding, and known men from their tribes, and he appointed them as heads over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens (Deu 1:13-15). He charged these judges to hear cases impartially, to judge between brothers, and to refuse favouritism, reminding them that judgment belongs to God (Deu 1:16,17). Any matter too difficult was to be brought to Moses, ensuring that justice remained consistent and rooted in God’s authority (Deu 1:18). These verses show that leadership in Israel was never meant to rest on one man alone; it was shared among those who feared God and upheld His righteousness.

The Journey to Kadesh-barnea and the Sending of the Spies

Deu 1:19 And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which you saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadeshbarnea.

Deu 1:20 And I said unto you, You are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the LORD our God does give unto us.

Deu 1:21 Behold, the LORD your God has set the land before you: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of your fathers has said unto you; fear not, neither be discouraged.

Deu 1:22 And you came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come.

Deu 1:23 And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe:

Deu 1:24 And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out.

Deu 1:25 And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, It is a good land which the LORD our God does give us.

Deuteronomy 1:19-25 recalls how Israel traveled through the great and terrible wilderness and came to Kadesh-barnea, the doorway to the land God promised (Deu 1:19). Moses told the people to go up and possess the land, reminding them that God had set it before them (Deu 1:20,21). Instead of moving forward, the people asked to send men ahead to spy out the land and report on the best route and the cities they would face (Deu 1:22). Moses agreed, and twelve men were chosen, one from each tribe (Deu 1:23). They went up into the hill country, surveyed the land, and returned with fruit that confirmed its goodness (Deu 1:24,25). These verses show the tension between God’s command and Israel’s caution: the land was exactly as God promised, yet the people hesitated, choosing evaluation over obedience at the very moment faith was required.

Israel’s Refusal to Enter and Their Failure to Trust the Lord

Deu 1:26 Notwithstanding you would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God:

Deu 1:27 And you murmured in your tents, and said, Because the LORD hated us, he has brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.

Deu 1:28 Where shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there.

Deu 1:29 Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them.

Deu 1:30 The LORD your God which goes before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;

Deu 1:31 And in the wilderness, where you have seen how that the LORD your God bare you, as a man does bear his son, in all the way that you went, until you came into this place.

Deu 1:32 Yet in this thing you did not believe the LORD your God,

Deu 1:33 Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to show you by what way you should go, and in a cloud by day.

Deuteronomy 1:26-33 recounts how Israel refused to go up, even after the spies confirmed the goodness of the land (Deu 1:26). Instead of moving forward, the people murmured in their tents, claiming that the Lord hated them and had brought them out of Egypt only to destroy them (Deu 1:27). They focused on the strength of the inhabitants and the height of the cities, letting fear rewrite what God had already promised (Deu 1:28). Moses reminded them that the Lord would fight for them, just as He had in Egypt and throughout the wilderness, carrying them as a father carries his son (Deu 1:29-31). Yet despite God’s visible care, Israel did not believe Him (Deu 1:32). Moses concludes the section by reminding them that the Lord went before them, choosing their camps and guiding them by fire and cloud (Deu 1:33). These verses expose the core issue: the refusal to enter the land was not a strategic decision or a moment of caution; it was unbelief in the face of God’s proven faithfulness.

God’s Judgment on the Unbelieving Generation and the Promise to Caleb

Deu 1:34 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and swore, saying,

Deu 1:35 Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I swore to give unto your fathers,

Deu 1:36 Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he has trodden upon, and to his children, because he has wholly followed the LORD.

Deu 1:37 Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, You also shall not go in there.

Deu 1:38 But Joshua the son of Nun, which stands before you, he shall go in there: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

Deu 1:39 Moreover your little ones, which you said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in there, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.

Deu 1:40 But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.

Deuteronomy 1:34-40 recounts how the LORD heard Israel’s words and swore that none of the men of that generation would see the good land He promised to their fathers (Deu 1:34,35). Their refusal to trust Him at Kadesh-barnea became the defining moment of their fate. Only Caleb is singled out for a different outcome. He followed the LORD fully, and God promised that he would enter the land and that his children would possess the portion he walked upon (Deu 1:36).

Moses then reminds the people that even he would not enter the land because of their rebellion, though Joshua would lead them in (Deu 1:37,38). The children whom the people claimed would become prey are the very ones God says will enter and inherit the land, while the unbelieving generation must turn back into the wilderness (Deu 1:39,40). These verses show that God’s judgment is precise: unbelief forfeits the promise, faith receives it, and the next generation becomes the vessel through which God fulfills what He swore to the fathers.

Israel’s Presumption, Their Defeat, and the Long Return into the Wilderness

Deu 1:41 Then you answered and said unto me, We have sinned against the LORD, we will go up and fight, according to all that the LORD our God commanded us. And when you had girded on every man his weapons of war, you were ready to go up into the hill.

Deu 1:42 And the LORD said unto me, Say unto them, Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest you be smitten before your enemies.

Deu 1:43 So I spoke unto you; and you would not hear, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD, and went presumptuously up into the hill.

Deu 1:44 And the Amorites, which dwelt in that mountain, came out against you, and chased you, as bees do, and destroyed you in Seir, even unto Hormah.

Deu 1:45 And you returned and wept before the LORD; but the LORD would not hearken to your voice, nor give ear unto you.

Deu 1:46 So you abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that you abode there.

Deuteronomy 1:41-46 recounts how Israel attempted to reverse God’s judgment after hearing that they would not enter the land. They confessed their sin and declared they would go up and fight, as though renewed resolve could undo what unbelief had forfeited (Deu 1:41). Moses warned them not to go, telling them plainly that the LORD was not among them and that their attempt would end in defeat (Deu 1:42). But the people went up presumptuously, ignoring the LORD'S command, and the Amorites struck them down as far as Hormah (Deu 1:43,44). Israel returned and wept before the LORD, but He did not listen, for their tears were not obedience but regret without submission (Deu 1:45). The section ends with Israel remaining many days in Kadesh, a prolonged pause that reflects the weight of their rebellion (Deu 1:46). These verses show that obedience cannot be performed retroactively without restoration or after final judgement; when God withdraws His presence, human effort becomes presumption, and presumption leads only to defeat.

Closing Reflections

Deuteronomy 1 ends with a sober reminder that God’s longsuffering does not cancel His judgments. Israel’s attempt to enter the land after God had already decreed their fate was not repentance but presumption. They tried to perform obedience retroactively, without restoration and after final judgment, and the LORD was not among them (Deu 1:41,42). Their defeat at the hands of the Amorites revealed that human resolve cannot replace obedience and faith, and momentum cannot undo unbelief (Deu 1:43,44).

Israel wept, but their tears were not submission; they were the grief of a people who wanted the promise without the obedience that sustains it (Deu 1:45). The chapter closes with Israel remaining many days in Kadesh, a prolonged pause that reflects the weight of their rebellion (Deu 1:46). Deuteronomy begins by reminding the new generation that the land was lost to their fathers not by strength of enemies but by continued failure to trust the God who carried them. The path forward will require faith, obedience, and a heart that does not repeat the unbelief of Kadesh.

The LORD willing, to be continued.