Deuteronomy 9:1 Kommentar

The design of Moses in this chapter is to convince the people of Israel of their utter unworthiness to receive from God those great favours that were now to be conferred upon them, writing this, as it were, in capital letters at the head of their charter, "Not for your sake, be it known unto you," Eze 36:32. I. He assures them of victory over their enemies (Deu 9:1-3). II. He cautions them not to attribute their successes to their own merit, but to God's justice, which was engaged against their enemies, and his faithfulness, which was engaged to their fathers (Deu 9:4-6). III. To make it evident that they had no reason to boast of their own righteousness, he mentions their faults, shows Israel their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins. In general, they had been all along a provoking people (v. 7-24). In particular, 1. In the matter of the golden calf, the story of which he largely relates (Deu 9:8-21). 2. He mentions some other instances of their rebellion (Deu 9:22, Deu 9:23). And, 3. Returns, at Deu 9:25, to speak of the intercession he had made for them at Horeb, to prevent their being ruined for the golden calf.

The call to attention (Deu 9:1), Hear, O Israel, intimates that this was a new discourse, delivered at some distance of time after the former, probably the next sabbath day. I. Moses represents to the people the formidable strength of the enemies which they were now to encounter, Deu 9:1. The nations they were to dispossess were mightier than themselves, not a rude and undisciplined rout, like the natives of America, that were easily made a prey of. But, should they besiege them, they would find their cities well fortified, according as the art of fortification then was; should they engage them in the field, they would find the people great and tall, of whom common fame had reported that there was no standing before them, Deu 9:2. This representation is much the same with that which the evil spies had made (Num 13:28, Num 13:33), but made with a very different intention: that was designed to drive them from God and to discourage their hope in him; this to drive them to God and to engage their hope in him, since no power less than that which is almighty could secure and prosper them. II. He assures them of victory, by the presence of God with them, notwithstanding the strength of the enemy, Deu 9:3. "Understand therefore what thou must trust to for success, and which way thou must look; it is the Lord thy God that goes before thee, not only as thy captain, or commander-in-chief, to give direction, but as a consuming fire, to do execution among them. Observe, He shall destroy them, and then thou shalt drive them out. Thou canst not drive them out, unless he destroy them and bring them down. But he will not destroy them and bring them down, unless thou set thyself in good earnest to drive them out." We must do our endeavour in dependence upon God's grace, and we shall have that grace if we do our endeavour. III. He cautions them not to entertain the least thought of their own righteousness, as if that had procured them this favour at God's hand: "Say not. For my righteousness (either with regard to my good character or in recompence for any good service) the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land (Deu 9:4); never think it is for thy righteousness or the uprightness of thy heart, that it is in consideration either of thy good conversation or of they good disposition," Deu 9:5. And again (Deu 9:6) it is insisted on, because it is hard to bring people from a conceit of their own merit, and yet very necessary that it be done: "Understand (know it, and believe it, and consider it) that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this land for thy righteousness. Hadst thou been to come to it upon that condition, thou wouldst have been for ever shut out of it, for thou art a stiff-necked people." Note, Our gaining possession of the heavenly Canaan, as it must be attributed to God's power and not to our own might, so it must be ascribed to God's grace and not to our own merit: in Christ we have both righteousness and strength; in him therefore we must glory, and not in ourselves, or any sufficiency of our own. IV. He intimates to them the true reasons why God would take this good land out of the hands of the Canaanites, and settle it upon Israel, and they are borrowed from his own honour, not from Israel's deserts. 1. He will be honoured in the destruction of idolaters; they are justly looked upon as haters of him, and therefore he will visit their iniquity upon them. It is for the wickedness of these nations that God drives them out, Deu 9:4, and again, Deu 9:5. All those whom God rejects are rejected for their own wickedness: but none of those whom he accepts are accepted for their own righteousness. 2. He will be honoured in the performance of his promise to those that are in covenant with him: God swore to the patriarchs, who loved him and left all to follow him, that he would give this land to their seed; and therefore he would keep that promised mercy for thousands of those that loved him and kept his commandments; he would not suffer his promise to fail. It was for their fathers' sakes that they were beloved, Rom 11:28. Thus boasting is for ever excluded. See Eph 1:9, Eph 1:11.

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 9 In this chapter the Israelites are assured of the ejection of the Canaanites, though so great and mighty, to make room for them, Deu 9:1, and they are cautioned not to attribute this to their own righteousness, but to the wickedness of the nations which deserved to be so treated, and to the faithfulness of God in performing his promise made to their fathers, Deu 9:4, and that it might appear that it could not be owing to their righteousness, it is affirmed and proved that they had been a rebellious and provoking people from their coming out of Egypt to that time, as was evident from their idolatry at Horeb; a particular account of which is given, and of the displeasure of the Lord at it, Deu 9:7, and of their murmurings, with which they provoked the Lord at other places, Deu 9:22, and the chapter is closed with an account of the prayer of Moses for them at Horeb, to avert the wrath of God from them for their making and worshipping the golden calf, Deu 9:25.

Hear, O Israel,.... A pause being made after the delivery of the preceding discourse; or perhaps what follows might be delivered at another time, at some little distance; and which being of moment and importance to the glory of God, and that Israel might have a true notion of their duty, they are called upon to listen with attention to what was now about to be said: thou art to pass over Jordan this day; not precisely that very day, but in a short time after this; for it was on the first day of the eleventh month that Moses began the repetition of the laws he was now going on with, Deu 1:3, and it was not until the tenth day of the first month of the next year that the people passed over Jordan, Jos 4:19 which was about two months after this: to go in and possess nations greater and mightier than thyself; the seven nations named Deu 7:1 where the same characters are given of them: cities great and fenced up to heaven; as they were said to be by the spies, Deu 1:28, and were no doubt both large and strongly fortified, and not to be easily taken by the Israelites, had not the Lord been with them, Deu 9:3.

MOSES DISSUADES THEM FROM THE OPINION OF THEIR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Deu. 9:1-25) this day--means this time. The Israelites had reached the confines of the promised land, but were obliged, to their great mortification, to return. But now they certainly were to enter it. No obstacle could prevent their possession; neither the fortified defenses of the towns, nor the resistance of the gigantic inhabitants of whom they had received from the spies so formidable a description. cities great and fenced up to heaven--Oriental cities generally cover a much greater space than those in Europe; for the houses often stand apart with gardens and fields intervening. They are almost all surrounded with walls built of burnt or sun-dried bricks, about forty feet in height. All classes in the East, but especially the nomad tribes, in their ignorance of engineering and artillery, would have abandoned in despair the idea of an assault on a walled town, which to-day would be demolished in a few hours.

Deu 9:1-3 Warning against a conceit of righteousness, with the occasion for the warning. As the Israelites were now about to cross over the Jordan ("this day," to indicate that the time was close at hand), to take possession of nations that were superior to them in size and strength (the tribes of Canaan mentioned in Deu 7:1), and great fortified cities reaching to the heavens (cf. Deu 1:28), namely, the great and tall nation of the Enakites (Deu 1:28), before which, as was well known, no one could stand (התיצּב, as in Deu 7:24); and as they also knew that Jehovah their God was going before them to destroy and humble these nations, they were not to say in their heart, when this was done, For my righteousness Jehovah hath brought me in to possess this land. In Deu 9:3, היּום וידעתּ is not to be taken in an imperative sense, but as expressive of the actual fact, and corresponding to Deu 9:1, "thou art to pass." Israel now knew for certain - namely, by the fact, which spoke so powerfully, of its having been successful against foes which it could never have conquered by itself, especially against Sihon and Og - that the Lord was going before it, as the leader and captain of His people (Schultz: see Deu 1:30). The threefold repetition of הוּא in Deu 9:3 is peculiarly emphatic. "A consuming fire:" as in Deu 4:24. ישׁמידם הוּא is more particularly defined by וגו יכניעם והוּא, which follows: not, however, as implying that השׁמיד does not signify complete destruction in this passage, but rather as explaining how the destruction would take place. Jehovah would destroy the Canaanites, by bring them down, humbling them before Israel, so that they would be able to drive them out and destroy them quickly "מהר, quickly, is no more opposed to Deu 7:22, 'thou mayest not destroy them quickly,' than God's not delaying to requite (Deu 7:10) is opposed to His long-suffering" (Schultz). So far as the almighty assistance of God was concerned, the Israelites would quickly overthrow the Canaanites; but for the sake of the well-being of Israel, the destruction would only take place by degrees. "As Jehovah hath said unto thee:" viz., Exo 23:23, Exo 23:27., and at the beginning of the conflict, Deu 2:24. Deu 9:4-6 When therefore Jehovah thrust out these nations before them (הדף, as in Deu 6:19), the Israelites were not to say within themselves, "By (for, on account of) my righteousness Jehovah hath brought me (led me hither) to possess this land." The following word, וּברשׁעת, is adversative: "but because of the wickedness of these nations," etc. - To impress this truth deeply upon the people, Moses repeats the thought once more in Deu 9:5. At the same time he mentions, in addition to righteousness, straightness or uprightness of heart, to indicate briefly that outward works do not constitute true righteousness, but that an upright state of heart is indispensable, and then enters more fully into the positive reasons. The wickedness of the Canaanites was no doubt a sufficient reason for destroying them, but not for giving their land to the people of Israel, since they could lay no claim to it on account of their own righteousness. The reason for giving Canaan to the Israelites was simply the promise of God, the word which the Lord had spoken to the patriarchs on oath (cf. Deu 7:8), and therefore nothing but the free grace of God, - not any merit on the part of the Israelites who were then living, for they were a people "of a hard neck," i.e., a stubborn, untractable generation. With these words, which the Lord Himself had applied to Israel in Exo 32:9; Exo 33:3, Exo 33:5, Moses prepares the way for passing to the reasons for his warning against self-righteous pride, namely, the grievous sins of the Israelites against the Lord.