Servant Of The Lord

Deuteronomy 34:1-8 – Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the Lord showed him the whole land—from Gilead to Dan, all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea, the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar. Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.” And Moses the servant of the Lord died there in Moab, as the Lord had said. He buried him in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is. Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone. The Israelites grieved for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days, until the time of weeping and mourning was over.

Jeremiah 25:9 – I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,” declares the Lord, “and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin.

Deuteronomy 1:3 – In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the Lord had commanded him concerning them.

2 Samuel 11:27 – After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done displeased the Lord.

Application:

• ·         Servant of the Lord was a special title used to refer to those whom the Lord, as the Great King, has taken into His service; they serve as members of God’s royal administration.
• ·         “Servant” is used of Nebuchadnezzar not in the sense of “worshiper” but of “vassal” or “agent of judgment”, just as the pagan ruler Cyrus is called the Lord’s “shepherd” and His “anointed”.
• ·         The Lord had condemned the Israelites to 40 years of wandering in Sinai as punishment for not entering Canaan as He had commanded them to do at Kadesh.
• ·         Not only had David brazenly violated God’s laws; even worse, he had shamelessly abused his royal power, which the Lord had entrusted to him to shepherd the Lord’s people.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Shield

Deuteronomy 33:20-29 – About Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges Gad’s domain! Gad lives there like a lion, tearing at arm or head. He chose the best land for himself; the leader’s portion was kept for him. When the heads of the people assembled, he carried out the Lord’s righteous will, and his judgments concerning Israel.” About Dan he said: “Dan is a lion’s cub, springing out of Bashan.” About Naphtali he said: “Naphtali is abounding with the favor of the Lord and is full of his blessing; he will inherit southward to the lake.” About Asher he said: “Most blessed of sons is Asher; let him be favored by his brothers, and let him bathe his feet in oil. The bolts of your gates will be iron and bronze, and your strength will equal your days. “There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides across the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty. The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out your enemies before you, saying, ‘Destroy them!’ So Israel will live in safety; Jacob will dwell secure in a land of grain and new wine, where the heavens drop dew. Blessed are you, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword. Your enemies will cower before you, and you will tread on their heights.”

Daniel 7:13 – “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence.

Deuteronomy 32:8 – When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.

Psalm 1:1-2 – Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.

Psalm 32:2 – Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.

Deuteronomy 4:7 – What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?

Genesis 15:1 – After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.

Psalm 27:1 – The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?

Habakkuk 3:19 – The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights. For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.

Application:

• ·         Jesus will be enthroned as ruler over the whole earth, and His kingdom “will never be destroyed”, whether on earth or in heaven.
• ·         “Most High” emphasizes the Lord’s sovereignty over all creation.
• ·         “Blessed” is the happy condition of those who revere the Lord and do His will and who put their trust in Him.
• ·         Only those honest with God receive pardon.
• ·         The Israelites always had access to the Lord in prayer.
• ·         “Shield” is  the reference to the Lord as Abram’s King.
• ·         To say “The Lord is my light” is to confess confidence in Him as the source of these benefits.
• ·         “Makes my feet like the feet of a deer” means gives me sure-footed confidence.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Who Dwelt In The Burning Bush

Deuteronomy 33:13-19 – About Joseph he said: “May the Lord bless his land with the precious dew from heaven above and with the deep waters that lie below; with the best the sun brings forth and the finest the moon can yield; with the choicest gifts of the ancient mountains and the fruitfulness of the everlasting hills; with the best gifts of the earth and its fullness and the favor of him who dwelt in the burning bush. Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, on the brow of the prince among his brothers. In majesty he is like a firstborn bull; his horns are the horns of a wild ox. With them he will gore the nations, even those at the ends of the earth. Such are the ten thousands of Ephraim; such are the thousands of Manasseh.” About Zebulun he said: “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, and you, Issachar, in your tents. They will summon peoples to the mountain and there offer the sacrifices of the righteous; they will feast on the abundance of the seas, on the treasures hidden in the sand.”

Exodus 3:5 – “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”

1 Samuel 2:9-10 – He will guard the feet of his faithful servants, but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness. “It is not by strength that one prevails; those who oppose the Lord will be broken. The Most High will thunder from heaven; the Lord will judge the ends of the earth. “He will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”

Isaiah 45:14 – This is what the Lord says: “The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and those tall Sabeans—they will come over to you and will be yours; they will trudge behind you, coming over to you in chains. They will bow down before you and plead with you, saying, ‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god.’”

Isaiah 60:5 – Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come.

Isaiah 61:6 – And you will be called priests of the Lord, you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast.

Haggai 2:7 – I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty.

Application:

• ·         Holiness involves being consecrated to the Lord’s service and thus being separated from the commonplace.
• ·         The expected king’s horn will be “lifted high/exalt[ed]” as surely as Hannah’s had been.
• ·         One day the nations will acknowledge Israel’s God.
• ·         Jerusalem will be enriched by the nations.
• ·         True Israel will be a “kingdom of priests” among the Gentiles.
• ·         When Christ came to the earthly temple in Jerusalem, God’s presence was evident as never before.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Teaches Your Precepts To Jacob

Deuteronomy 33:6-12 – “Let Reuben live and not die, nor his people be few.” And this he said about Judah: “Hear, Lord, the cry of Judah; bring him to his people. With his own hands he defends his cause. Oh, be his help against his foes!” About Levi he said: “Your Thummim and Urim belong to your faithful servant. You tested him at Massah; you contended with him at the waters of Meribah. He said of his father and mother, ‘I have no regard for them.’ He did not recognize his brothers or acknowledge his own children, but he watched over your word and guarded your covenant. He teaches your precepts to Jacob and your law to Israel. He offers incense before you and whole burnt offerings on your altar. Bless all his skills, Lord, and be pleased with the work of his hands. Strike down those who rise against him, his foes till they rise no more.” About Benjamin he said: “Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between his shoulders.”

Genesis 49:10 – The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.

Deuteronomy 31:10-11 – Then Moses commanded them: “At the end of every seven years, in the year for canceling debts, during the Festival of Tabernacles, when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place he will choose, you shall read this law before them in their hearing.

Deuteronomy 4:37-38 – Because he loved your ancestors and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength, to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance, as it is today.

Deuteronomy 32:8 – When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.

Application:

• ·         Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, is told to “remove the crown” from his head because dominion over Jerusalem will ultimately be given to the one “to whom it rightfully belongs”.
• ·         Reading the law to the Israelites was one of the main duties of the priests.
• ·         “He loved” is the first reference in Deuteronomy to God’s love for His people. The corollary truth is that His people should love Him.
• ·         “Most High” emphasizes the Lord’s sovereignty over all creation.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

King

Deuteronomy 33:3-5 – Surely it is you who love the people; all the holy ones are in your hand. At your feet they all bow down, and from you receive instruction, the law that Moses gave us, the possession of the assembly of Jacob. He was king over Jeshurun when the leaders of the people assembled, along with the tribes of Israel.

Deuteronomy 4:2 – Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you.

Numbers 23:21 – “No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them.

Judges 8:23 – But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you.”

Application:

• ·         The revelation the Lord gives is sufficient. All of it must be obeyed, and anything that adulterates or contradicts it cannot be tolerated.
• ·         The Lord, not an earthly monarch, was to be king over Israel.
• ·         Because God is King, He was able to use Balaam for His own ends—to bless His people in a new and wonderful manner.
• ·         Gideon, like Samuel, rejected the establishment of a monarchy because he regarded it as a replacement of the Lord’s rule.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Holy Ones

Deuteronomy 33:2-3 – He said: “The Lord came from Sinai and dawned over them from Seir; he shone forth from Mount Paran. He came with myriads of holy ones from the south, from his mountain slopes. Surely it is you who love the people; all the holy ones are in your hand. At your feet they all bow down, and from you receive instruction, the law that Moses gave us, the possession of the assembly of Jacob.

Zechariah 14:5 – You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.

Deuteronomy 4:37-38 – Because he loved your ancestors and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength, to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance, as it is today.

Deuteronomy 7:6 – For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.

Revelation 4:9-11 – Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

Application:

• ·         Holy ones may include both believers and angels.
• ·         “He loved” is the first reference in Deuteronomy to God’s love for His people. The corollary truth is that His people should love Him.
• ·         Holy means separated from all corrupting people or things and consecrated totally to the Lord.
• ·         Lay their crowns is acknowledgment that God alone is worthy of ultimate praise and worship.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Blessing

Deuteronomy 32:44-33:1 – Moses came with Joshua son of Nun and spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people. When Moses finished reciting all these words to all Israel, he said to them, “Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.” On that same day the Lord told Moses, “Go up into the Abarim Range to Mount Nebo in Moab, across from Jericho, and view Canaan, the land I am giving the Israelites as their own possession. There on the mountain that you have climbed you will die and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people. This is because both of you broke faith with me in the presence of the Israelites at the waters of Meribah Kadesh in the Desert of Zin and because you did not uphold my holiness among the Israelites. Therefore, you will see the land only from a distance; you will not enter the land I am giving to the people of Israel.” This is the blessing that Moses the man of God pronounced on the Israelites before his death.

Deuteronomy 30:19-20 – This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Numbers 20:11 – Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.

Jeremiah 35:4 – I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the room of the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah the man of God. It was next to the room of the officials, which was over that of Maaseiah son of Shallum the doorkeeper.

Genesis 22:16 – The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

Genesis 28:12,15 –  He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it…I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

Genesis 49:10,24-25 – The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his…But his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel, because of your father’s God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the skies above, blessings of the deep springs below, blessings of the breast and womb.

Application:

• ·         When they chose the Lord, they chose life. “All the words of this law” are said to be their “life”. The law, the Lord and life are bound together. “Life” in this context refers to all that makes life rich, full and productive—as God created it to be.
• ·         Moses’ action was a lack of trust in God, as though he believed that a word alone would not suffice. God’s holiness was offended by Moses’ rash action, for he had not shown proper deference to God’s presence.
• ·         Man of God was a synonym for “prophet”, emphasizing his relationship to the One who has called him.
• ·         There is no greater name in which the Lord can take an oath than His own name.
• ·         Jesus Himself is the bridge between heaven and earth, the only “mediator between God and mankind”.
• ·         Unlike the gods of pagan religions, in which the gods were merely local deities who gave protection only within their own territories, the one true God assured Jacob that He would always be with him wherever he went.
• ·         Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, is told to “remove the crown” from his head because dominion over Jerusalem will ultimately be given to the one “to whom it rightfully belongs”.
• ·         “Mighty One of Jacob” stresses the activity of God in saving and redeeming His people.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Rejoice, You Nations, With His People

Deuteronomy 32:35,40-43 – It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them.”…I lift my hand to heaven and solemnly swear: As surely as I live forever, when I sharpen my flashing sword and my hand grasps it in judgment, I will take vengeance on my adversaries and repay those who hate me. I will make my arrows drunk with blood, while my sword devours flesh: the blood of the slain and the captives, the  heads of the enemy leaders.” Rejoice, you nations, with his people, for he will avenge the blood of his servants; he will take vengeance on his enemies and make atonement for his land and people.

Psalm 149:6-9 – May the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands, to inflict vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, to bind their kings with fetters, their nobles with shackles of iron, to carry out the sentence written against them—this is the glory of all his faithful people. Praise the Lord.

Isaiah 65:18 – But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.

Psalm 65:3 – When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.

Psalm 79:9 – Help us, God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake.

Application:

• ·         Avenging is God’s prerogative, not ours.
• ·         Vengeance is God’s just retribution on those who have attacked His kingdom.
• ·         John links the notion of a new heaven and a new earth with the “new Jerusalem”.
• ·         “Forgave our transgressions” means accepted the atonement sacrifices you appointed and so forgave our sins.
• ·         As the desolation of God’s people brings reproach to God, so their salvation and prosperity bring Him glory.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

I Myself Am He

Deuteronomy 32:36-39 – The Lord will vindicate his people and relent concerning his servants when he sees their strength is gone and no one is left, slave or free. He will say: “Now where are their gods, the rock they took refuge in, the gods who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? Let them rise up to help you! Let them give you shelter! “See now that I myself am he! There is no god besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand.

Numbers 25:1-2 – While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods.

Isaiah 41:4 – Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord—with the first of them and with the last—I am he.”

Isaiah 43:10 – “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.

John 11:25-26 – Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Isaiah 6:10 – Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”

Isaiah 57:18-19 – I have seen their ways, but I will heal them; I will guide them and restore comfort to Israel’s mourners, creating praise on their lips. Peace, peace, to those far and near,” says the Lord. “And I will heal them.”

Hosea 6:1 – “Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds.

Malachi 4:2 – But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.

Exodus 3:14 – God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”

Deuteronomy 4:35 – You were shown these things so that you might know that the Lord is God; besides him there is no other.

Application:

• ·         Israel’s engagement in the fertility rites of Baal involved not only the evil of sexual immorality. It was also a breach of covenant with the Lord, a worship of the gods of the land and a foretaste of the people’s ruin in the unfolding of their history.
• ·         Since the Lord was present with the first of the generations and will still be there with the last of them, He is the eternal Lord of history and nations.
• ·         God’s work in behalf of Israel is proof of His saving power.
• ·         Jesus was saying more than that He gives resurrection and life. He is life. Jesus not only is life, but He also conveys life to believers so that death will never triumph over them.
• ·         Believers may die physically but, as those who have eternal life, their physical death is not their ultimate end. Death cannot destroy the life Christ gives.
• ·         Israel’s deafness and blindness are mentioned. One day, however, the nation will be able to see and hear.
• ·         God will forgive and restore His people.
• ·         “Let us return” was a shallow proposal of repentance, in which Israel acknowledged that God, not Assyria, was the true physician.
• ·         Christ is the “rising sun” from heaven.
• ·         I AM WHO I AM was the name by which God wished to be known and worshiped in Israel—the name that expressed His character as the dependable and faithful God who desires the full trust of His people.
• ·         Moses insists that there is only one God.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Avenge

Deuteronomy 32:35 – It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them.”

Genesis 4:24 – If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

Genesis 30:2 – Jacob became angry with her and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?”

Application:

• ·         Avenging is God’s prerogative, not ours.
• ·         Lamech’s arrogant announcement of personal revenge found its counterpoint in Jesus’ response to Peter’s question about forgiveness.
• ·         Jacob was forever trying to secure the blessing by his own efforts. Here he has to acknowledge that the blessing of offspring could come only from God.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV