DEUTERONOMY 33: A REHEARSAL ON HOLINESS, A CALL TO FAITHFULNESS

Contributing commentaries by pastors Sonny Islas, Albert Lopez, and James Fire

DEUTERONOMY 33: Last Blessings Before going Home – by Albert Lopez the complete teaching not available on YouTube Channel SHINE BRIGHT Church.

INTRODUCTION: The song of Moses is followed by the blessing of Moses. Imagine hearing this very devastating news as though you were Moses:
You who delivered My people from Egypt and represented Me in front of the people. You misrepresented Me on one occasion and you will not be entering the land, the Promised Land.

But then, after hearing this, you turn around and have the heart to bless God’s people and do it with intention, being specific according to each tribe. That is what Moses is about to do.

Exposing sin is for some, easier than applying grace

How are we doing in this area? Can we bless other’s even if we “are not getting blessed”?

Jacob was exposing his son’s heart and sins in GEN 49 while Moses was exposing his heart and grace here. WHY???

WE ARE MORE INTIMATE WITH SIN THAN WE ARE WITH GOD'S GRACE!

If we were more intimate with God’s grace, we would be less intimate with sin because we would be more intimate with the God of grace. If we are to point out someone’s sin let’s do it with God’s heart not a self-righteous heart!

DEUT 32:15-18 and verse 36 are not idle words for you, indeed it is your life.

DEUT 30:5 says that God has promised – and intends to keep His promise!

I’m sure Moses could have unloaded on each of the twelve tribes and follow in Jacob’s way of exposing their hearts but instead he showed us a Moses – back when he pleaded for his sister when she was struck with leprosy (NUM 12).

As God’s people, we are called to like Moses want our brother and sister to be blessed and if they fall to be restored and reconciled to God.

DEUTERONOMY 33:1
Now this is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.

The man of God (Moses): One of the messengers of God (especially most highly esteemed among prophets); they are called all "a man of God ". The man of God walks with God.

Noah walked with God and was taken safely through the judgment. Before him Enoch modeled a godly life for Methuselah. Methuselah must have passed it along to his son Lamech who shared it with his son Noah.

Now Moses also walked with God but his walk here on Earth was ending, and he wanted to remind and encourage the twelve tribes to continue to walk with their God!

How are we doing with this?? Are we encouraging our children and others to walk with God so they too can one day be with God?

DEUTERONOMY 33:2
And he said: "The LORD came from Sinai and dawned on them from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran, And He came with ten thousands of saints; From His right hand Came a fiery law for them. 3 Yes, He loves the people; All His saints are in Your hand; They sit down at Your feet; Everyone receives Your words.

VERSE 2: He came from the midst of ten thousand holy ones- came from the highest place of honor to the lowest place to suffer shame (from divinity to depravity) to be nailed between two deserving criminals on a roman cross

VERSE 3: HE LOVES THE PEOPLE

GOD came from the myriad of angels in heaven to meet with sinful Israel. Why? GOD left His throne in heaven to rescue sinful man. Why?

Because he loved Israel, God so loved the world and we are called to do the same: Follow the example of our Savior.

ROMANS 13:8-10
8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

DEUTERONOMY 33:4-5
4 Moses commanded a law for us, A heritage of the congregation of Jacob. 5 And He was King in Jeshurun, When the leaders of the people were gathered, All the tribes of Israel together.

VERSE 5: KING IN JESHURUN – JESHURUN is "the upright one". In spite of their frequent disobedience, Israel is seen by God as His special people. “The apple of His eye” (DEUT 32:10; PSA 17:8; ZECH 2:8).

Moses is described in this way: "he was king”. This could be referring to Moses being given a king-like authority. Israel forsook God as their king when they chose Saul to be king instead (1 SAM 8).

God is elsewhere actually declared to be king over Jeshurun:

ISAIAH 44:1-6
1 Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant, And Israel whom I have chosen. 2 Thus says the LORD who made you And formed you from the womb, who will help you: 'Fear not, O Jacob My servant; And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. 3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, And My blessing on your offspring; 4 They will spring up among the grass Like willows by the watercourses.' 5 One will say, 'I am the LORD'S'; Another will call himself by the name of Jacob; Another will write with his hand, 'The LORD'S,' And name himself by the name of Israel. 6 "Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, And his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: 'I am the First and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God.

Embodied in the person of Moses were the offices of Priest, King, and Prophet; this points to Moses being a pattern of the coming Messiah (the LORD Jesus, High Priest (HEB 3:1), King of Kings (REV 17:14) and Prophet of God (MATT 21:11; MARK 6:4).

DEUTERONOMY 33:6-7
6 "Let Reuben live, and not die, Nor let his men be few." 7 And this he said of Judah: "Hear, LORD, the voice of Judah, And bring him to his people; Let his hands be sufficient for him, And may You be a help against his enemies."

VERSE 6 is the beginning of the blessing; now this could have been a general blessing. like “Oh God, I pray that you bless Israel because that would include all twelve tribes. but no! This was a more intimate and deeply thought through prayer and blessing. God not only saw the entire nation of Israel but he also saw the twelve tribes individually and assigned blessings through Moses.

This made me think of how we should follow this example when praying for one another by name, by need, by specifics, with a cry or joy depending on the situation

VERSE 6: Reuben; a prayer that this tribe would survive in great numbers

REUBEN= first born, that would not die out instead have large numbers, uncontrolled like water=boiling-instability, laid with his father’s concubine

VERSE 7: JUDAH- Moses prayed that this tribe would be powerful in leading the

nation to be victorious in battle, through the help of the Lord.

DEUTERONOMY 33:8-11
8 And of Levi he said: "Let Your Thummim and Your Urim be with Your holy one, Whom You tested at Massah, And with whom You contended at the waters of Meribah. 9 Who says of his father and mother, 'I have not seen them'; Nor did he acknowledge his brothers or know his own children; For they have observed Your word And kept Your covenant. 10 They shall teach Jacob Your judgments, And Israel Your law. They shall put incense before You, And a whole burnt sacrifice on Your altar. 11 Bless his substance, LORD, And accept the work of his hands; Strike the loins of those who rise against him, And of those who hate him, that they rise not again."

LEVI- Moses prayed for the Levites to fulfill their tasks, God granting to them PROTECTION FROM THEIR ENEMIES.

URIM = the word means "lights" and provides a clue as to how these precious stones might have functioned. They may have supernaturally glowed when used how god intended. This was before Bible was complete

Moses left off Simeon, but that tribe did receive a number of allies in the southern territory of Judah and did not lose their identity (The abundance was so much that the inheritance Judah had was shared with Simeon).

You can read about it in:

JOSHUA 19:1-9 and also in 1 CHRONICLES 4:34-38.

DEUTERONOMY 33:12
Of Benjamin he said: "The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by Him, Who shelters him all the day long; And he shall dwell between His shoulders."

BENJAMIN - Moses prayed that this tribe would have security and peace because the Lord would shield them; they were given the land in the north of Judah near Jerusalem. With security and peace comes “rest”,

Noah, which means “rest” or “comfort”; this man of God would point to the ultimate rest which is Christ!

Come to me all who are tired and heavy laden and I will give you rest (MATT 11:29). The LORD Jesus still has that open invitation to all who recognize He is the source of true rest.

DEUTERONOMY 33:13-17
13 And of Joseph he said: "Blessed of the LORD is his land, With the precious things of heaven, with the dew, And the deep lying beneath, 14 With the precious fruits of the sun, With the precious produce of the months, 15 With the best things of the ancient mountains, With the precious things of the everlasting hills, 16 With the precious things of the earth and its fullness, And the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come 'on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.' 17 His glory is like a firstborn bull, And his horns like the horns of the wild ox; Together with them He shall push the peoples To the ends of the earth; They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, And they are the thousands of Man.

JOSEPH - this included both Ephraim and Manasseh who would enjoy material prosperity and military might, which would compensate and reward them for the Egyptian slavery of their ancestors.

EPHRAIM would have greater military success in the future than Manasseh as the out working of Jacob’s blessing of the younger over the older

GENESIS 48:20b
…Thus, he put Ephraim before Manasseh.

This practice of putting the younger before the oldest was a continuing pattern: Ishmael bypassed for Isaac, Esau for Jacob, Reuben replaced by Joseph's two sons. Pay attention to the words choice, “best, favor”. Words to not just bless but bless in abundance!

Do we use these words when we pray for one another?

DEUTERONOMY 33:18-19
18 And of Zebulun he said: "Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, And Issachar in your tents! 19 They shall call the peoples to the mountain; There they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness; For they shall partake of the abundance of the seas And of treasures hidden in the sand."

ZEBULUN; ISSACHAR - Moses prayed that these two tribes from the fifth and sixth sons of Leah would receive God's blessing in their daily lives, particularly through the trade on the seas.

DEUTERONOMY 33:20-21
20 And of Gad he said: "Blessed is he who enlarges Gad; He dwells as a lion, And tears the arm and the crown of his head. 21 He provided the first part for himself, Because a lawgiver's portion was reserved there. He came with the heads of the people; He administered the justice of the LORD, And His judgments with Israel."

GAD - this tribe had a large territory east of the Jordan and was a leader in gaining the victory in battles in Canaan.

DEUTERONOMY 33:22
And of Dan he said: "Dan is a lion's whelp; He shall leap from Bashan."

DAN - Dan had the potential for great energy and strength and leaped from its southern settlement to establish a colony in the north.

DEUTERONOMY 33:23
And of Naphtali he said: "O Naphtali, satisfied with favor, And full of the blessing of the LORD, Possess the west and the south."

NAPHTALI - the tribe would enjoy the favor of God in the fullness of his blessing having the land in the west of Galilee and south of the northern Danites

DEUTERONOMY 33:24-25
24 And of Asher he said: "Asher is most blessed of sons; Let him be favored by his brothers and let him dip his foot in oil. 25 Your sandals shall be iron and bronze; As your days, so shall your strength be.

ASHER - the prayer request was that this tribe would experience abundant fertility and prosperity, depicted by reference to a foot dipped in oil. shoes of hard metal suited both country people and soldiers

Israel would inherit a good land, but their greatest inheritance was the word of God, that nourished them, protected them and guided them.

God may bless you abundantly, but do you feel like His Word and His presence is your greatest blessing?

DEUTERONOMY 33:26-27
26 "There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, Who rides the heavens to help you, And in His excellency on the clouds. 27 The eternal God is your refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, And will say, 'Destroy!'

The God of Jeshurun - Moses concluded his blessings with a reminder of the uniqueness of Israel’s God:

God is incomparable! He is awesome! His glory is beyond compare! His power is limitless. His knowledge and wisdom are inexhaustible. His grace, His peace, His tender mercies are never failing, His holiness is matchless!

PSALM 93:1
The LORD reigns, He is clothed with majesty; The LORD is clothed, He has girded Himself with strength. Surely the world is established, so that it cannot be moved.

PSALM 97:1-2,9
1 The LORD reigns; Let the earth rejoice; Let the multitude of isles be glad! 2 Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. 9 For You, LORD, are most high above all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.

EXODUS 34:5-7
5 Now the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. 6 And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children's children to the third and the fourth generation."

We tend to over use this word "everything is awesome when your part of a team"

Our identity defines our responsibilities and since we identify with the LORD God, we have awesome responsibilities in service according to the command of the King! We are more than just servants however – we are friends of GOD. And more still than just friends, but children of GOD!

See the following article FROM The MIND of FIRE: I.I.C. Identity Indelibly in Christ.

GALATIANS 4:5
So that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. (see also JOHN 1:12)

Shakespeare said, 

"All the world is a stage, and all women and men are merely players, all have their exits and entrances. and one man in his lifetime plays many parts.”

The important thing is that we let God write the script, chose the cast, and direct the action. Like Enoch before him, Moses believed God, walked with God, and went to be with God. The script is no different for us church! If we disregard him and try to produce the drama ourselves, the story will have a tragic ending. Not “might have” but “will have”.

The children of Israel didn’t follow the script; they were stubborn. That's why they would commit Idolatry and be enslaved.

The prophet Samuel said,
“Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. (1 SAM 15:22).

Many have not followed the script because either they are not born again or they are suffering from a spiritual identity crisis: forgetting who they are in Christ. Remember: The One with Whom we identity is sitting at the right hand of God making intercession for us!

True faith involves the whole of the inner person: the mind understands God's warnings, the heart expresses reverential fears for what is coming, and the will acts in obedience to God's word.

DEUTERONOMY 33:28-29
28 Then Israel shall dwell in safety, The fountain of Jacob alone, In a land of grain and new wine; His heavens shall also drop dew. 29 Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD, The shield of your help And the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, And you shall tread down their high places."

This pledge was only partially fulfilled after they entered the land, but it awaits a complete fulfillment in the kingdom of Messiah

VERSE 28:

“The fountain of Jacob” - this is (the source) for Jacob’s seed

VERSE 29:

“…shield of your help… sword of your majesty!”

The Lord had been Israel’s shield; their sword to fight for them! The LORD Jesus in Revelation is coming with the sword of his mouth (REV 19:15,21).

Christians have the full armor of god with which to engage the enemy and bring glory to GOD by living in victory over all the wiles of the devil (EPH 6).

The Shield of faith – expressing wholehearted trust in the faithfulness and power of God and launching out from there with confident boldness to fulfill God’s will for our lives, according to His everlasting plan!

The Sword of the Spirit – the sword of truth, wielding it with faith in the power of God, ruining the lies, deceptions, subtleties of the enemy, and revealing the light of truth to those who are blind so that they may see Gospel Truth!

Consider that David wielded the sling shot but not in his own power or name:

Then David said to the Philistine,
“You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted. (DEFIED; 1 SAM 17:45).

Check out another article FROM The MIND Of FIRE: Have You Slain Your Giant Today?

THE VICTORIOUS CHRISTIAN LIFE MEANS LIVING UP TO OUR STANDING THROUGH FAITH IN THE POWER OF GOD!

Then Jonathan said to the young man.... perhaps the Lord will work for us, for the Lord is not restrained to save by many or by few.” (1 SAM 14:6).

Most people know that Noah built an ark. What they might not know is that he also built a godly character and a godly family. Had it not been for Noah’s godly family, Abraham would not have been born and without Abraham, would there have been a Jewish nation, the Bible and Savior? (Yes, but by some other means. The fact that Noah was obedient, allowed GOD to use him and bless him in doing so!).

Note to TTUF Readers: Congratulations! You've nearly finished these studies in the Torah, the Five Books of Moses! We have once chapter left, Ch. 34 as taught by pastor Sonny Islas and that will complete the series!

Afterwards, we at SHINE BRIGHT Church will pick up where we left off in our "Wisdom Wednesdays studies in PROVERBS (We left off in Chapter 18, and picking up on Chapter 19).
Once done, SHINE BRIGHT will begin a series of character studies of various Old Testament and New Testament people. We will post these on their own TTUF teaching.

Here at TTUF, we will continue our studies in the Old Testament in the book of JOSHUA!