Day 65 · Part 4: The Wilderness
Hear, Israel (1 of 2)
In the Story
In context
Moses repeats the Ten Commandments that the Lord spoke at Horeb (Deuteronomy 5:6–21; Exodus 20:1–17). That covenant, he says, was made “with us, even us, who are all of us here alive today” (5:3). One difference: here the Sabbath is kept because “you were a servant in the land of Egypt” (5:15), while Exodus gives the six days of creation (Exodus 20:11).
Chapter 6 holds the words Jews call the Shema, after its first Hebrew word, “Hear”: “Hear, Israel: Yahweh is our God. Yahweh is one. You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might” (6:4–5). Jesus called this the first commandment (Mark 12:29–30), and he answered the devil in the wilderness with words from these chapters (6:13, 16; Matthew 4:7, 10).
Chapter 7 is hard: Israel is commanded to destroy the seven nations of Canaan completely and show them no mercy (7:1–2, 16). It also says why the Lord chose Israel: not for their numbers, “for you were the fewest of all peoples,” but “because Yahweh loves you” (7:7–8).
Know that Yahweh, he is God. It is he who has made us, and we are his. We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, and bless his name. For Yahweh is good. His loving kindness endures forever, his faithfulness to all generations.
Psalms 100:3–5 · Moses says, “Know therefore that Yahweh your God himself is God, the faithful God”; the psalm sings, “Know that Yahweh, he is God.”
For families
Moses tells parents to talk of the Lord’s words with their children “when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up” (Deuteronomy 6:7). And when a son asks what the laws mean, the answer is a story: “We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. Yahweh brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand” (6:20–21).
Moses names sitting at home, walking along the road, going to bed and getting up. When does your family talk together most?
In the Bible
World English Bible, as published by eBible.org (public domain).
Deuteronomy 5
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Deuteronomy 6
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Deuteronomy 7
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A hymn for today
Jesus Loves Me · words by Anna B. Warner
- Jesus loves me! this I know,For the Bible tells me so;Little ones to Him belong;They are weak, but He is strong.RefrainYes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me!The Bible tells me so.
- Jesus loves me! He who diedHeaven's gate to open wide;He will wash away my sin,Let His little child come in.RefrainYes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me!The Bible tells me so.
- Jesus loves me! He will stayClose beside me all the way;If I love Him when I die,He will take me home on high.RefrainYes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me!The Bible tells me so.