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1 Giue eare, O yee heauens, and I will speake; And heare, O earth, the words of my mouth.
2 My doctrine shall drop as the raine: my speech shall distill as the deaw, as the smal raine vpon the tender herbe, and as the showres vpon the grasse.
3 Because I wil publish the Name of the Lord: ascribe yee greatnesse vnto our God.
4 He is the rocke, his worke is perfect: for all his wayes are Iudgement: A God of trueth, and without iniquity, iust and right is he.
5 They haue corrupted themselues, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a peruerse and crooked generation.
6 Doe ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people, & vnwise? Is not he thy Father that hath bought thee? Hath he not made thee, and established thee?
7 ¶ Remember the dayes of olde, consider the yeeres of many generations: aske thy father, and he will shewe thee, thy Elders, and they wil tell thee.
8 When the most High diuided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sonnes of Adam, hee set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.
9 For the Lords portion is his people: Iacob is the lot of his inheritance.
10 He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wildernesse: Hee ledde him about, he instructed him, hee kept him as the apple of his eye.
11 As an Eagle stirreth vp her nest, fluttereth ouer her yong, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:
12 So the Lord alone did leade him, and there was no strange God with him.
13 He made him ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eate the increase of the fields, and he made him to sucke hony out of the rocke, and oyle out of the flintie rocke,
14 Butter of kine, & milke of sheepe, with fat of lambes, and rammes of the breed of Bashan, & goats, with the fat of kidneis of wheat, and thou diddest drinke the pure blood of the grape.
15 ¶ But Iesurun waxed fat, and kicked: Thou art waxen fat, thou art growen thicke, thou art couered with fatnes: then he forsooke God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rocke of his saluation.
16 They prouoked him to ielousie with strange gods, with abominations prouoked they him to anger.
17 They sacrificed vnto deuils, not to God: to gods whom they knew not, to new gods, that came newly vp, whom your fathers feared not.
18 Of the Rocke that begate thee thou art vnmindfull, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.
19 And when the Lord saw it, he abhorred them, because of the prouoking of his sonnes, & of his daughters.
20 And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their ende shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.
21 They haue mooued me to ielousie with that which is not god, they haue prouoked me to anger with their vanities: And I will moue them to ielousie with those which are not a people, I will prouoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled in my anger, and shall burne vnto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountaines.
23 I will heape mischiefes vpon them, I will spend mine arrowes vpon them.
24 They shall bee burnt with hunger and deuoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts vpon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust.
25 The sword without, and terrour within shall destroy both the yong man, and the virgin, the suckling also with the man of gray haires.
26 I said, I would scatter them into corners, I would make the remembrance of them to cease frō among men:
27 Were it not that I feared the wrath of the enemie, lest their aduersaries should behaue themselues strangely, and lest they should say, Our hande is high, and the Lord hath not done all this.
28 For they are a nation voide of counsel, neither is there any vnderstanding in them.
29 O that they were wise, that they vnderstood this, that they would consider their latter end.
30 How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rocke had sold them, and the Lord had shut them vp?
31 For their rocke is not as our Rocke, euen our enemies themselues being iudges.
32 For their vine is of the vine of Sodome, and of the fields of Gomorah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter.
33 Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruell venime of Aspes.
34 Is not this laide vp in store with me, and sealed vp among my treasures?
35 To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence, their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamitie is at hand, and the things that shal come vpon them, make haste.
36 For the Lord shall iudge his people, and repent himselfe for his seruants, when he seeth that their power is gone; and there is none shut vp, or left.
37 And he shall say, where are their gods? their Rocke in whom they trusted;
38 Which did eat the fat of their sacrifices, & dranke the wine of their drinke offerings? let them rise vp and helpe you, and be your protection.
39 See now, that I, euen I am he, and there is no god with mee; I kill, and I make aliue: I wound, and I heale: neither is there any that can deliuer out of my hand.
40 For I lift vp my hand to heauen, and say, I liue for euer.
41 If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take holde on Iudgement, I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me.
42 I will make mine arrowes drunke with blood, (and my sword shal deuoure flesh) and that with the blood of the slaine, and of the captiues, from the beginning of reuenges vpon the enemie.
43 Reioyce, O ye nations with his people, for he will auenge the blood of his seruants, and will render vengeance to his aduersaries, and wil be mercifull vnto his land, and to his people.
44 ¶ And Moses came and spake all the wordes of this song in the eares of the people, he and Hoshea the sonne of Nun.
45 And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel.
46 And hee said vnto them, Set your hearts vnto all the wordes which I testifie among you this day, which yee shall commaund your children to obserue to doe all the wordes of this Law.
47 For it is not a vaine thing for you: because it is your life, and through this thing yee shall prolong your dayes, in the land whither yee goe ouer Iordan to possesse it.
48 And the Lord spake vnto Moses that selfe same day, saying,
49 Get thee vp into this mountaine Abarim, vnto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is ouer against Iericho, and behold the land of Canaan which I giue vnto the children of Israel for a possession:
50 And die in the mount whither thou goest vp, and bee gathered vnto thy people, as Aaron thy brother died in mount Hor, and was gathered vnto his people:
51 Because ye trespassed against me among the children of Israel, at the waters of Meribah Kadesh, in the wildernesse of Zin: because yee sanctified mee not in the midst of the children of Israel.
52 Yet thou shalt see the land before thee, but thou shalt not goe thither vnto the land which I giue the children of Israel.
The song of Moses. (1,2) The character of God, The character of Israel. (3-6) The great things God had done for Israel. (7-14) The wickedness of Israel. (19-25) The judgments which would come upon them for their sins. (15-18) Deserved vengeance withheld. (26-38) God's deliverance for his people. (39-43) The exhortation with which the song was delivered. (44-47) Moses to go up mount Nebo to die. (48-52)1,2 Moses begins with a solemn appeal to heaven and earth, concerning the truth and importance of what he was about to say. His doctrine is the gospel, the speech of God, the doctrine of Christ; the doctrine of grace and mercy through him, and of life and salvation by him.
3-6 "He is a Rock." This is the first time God is called so in Scripture. The expression denotes that the Divine power, faithfulness, and love, as revealed in Christ and the gospel, form a foundation which cannot be changed or moved, on which we may build our hopes of happiness. And under his protection we may find refuge from all our enemies, and in all our troubles; as the rocks in those countries sheltered from the burning rays of the sun, and from tempests, or were fortresses from the enemy. "His work is perfect:" that of redemption and salvation, in which there is a display of all the Divine perfection, complete in all its parts. All God's dealings with his creatures are regulated by wisdom which cannot err, and perfect justice. He is indeed just and right; he takes care that none shall lose by him. A high charge is exhibited against Israel. Even God's children have their spots, while in this imperfect state; for if we say we have no sin, no spot, we deceive ourselves. But the sin of Israel was not habitual, notorious, unrepented sin; which is a certain mark of the children of Satan. They were fools to forsake their mercies for lying vanities. All wilful sinners, especially sinners in Israel, are unwise and ungrateful.
7-14 Moses gives particular instances of God's kindness and concern for them. The eagle's care for her young is a beautiful emblem of Christ's love, who came between Divine justice and our guilty souls, and bare our sins in his own body on the tree. And by the preached gospel, and the influences of the Holy Spirit, He stirs up and prevails upon sinners to leave Satan's bondage. In ver. #13,14|, are emblems of the conquest believers have over their spiritual enemies, sin, Satan, and the world, in and through Christ. Also of their safety and triumph in him; of their happy frames of soul, when they are above the world, and the things of it. This will be the blessed case of spiritual Israel in every sense in the latter day.
15-18 Here are two instances of the wickedness of Israel, each was apostacy from God. These people were called Jeshurun, "an upright people," so some; "a seeing people," so others: but they soon lost the reputation both of their knowledge and of their righteousness. They indulged their appetites, as if they had nothing to do but to make provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts of it. Those who make a god of themselves, and a god of their bellies, in pride and wantonness, and cannot bear to be told of it, thereby forsake God, and show they esteem him lightly. There is but one way of a sinner's acceptance and sanctification, however different modes of irreligion, or false religion, may show that favourable regard for other ways, which is often miscalled candid. How mad are idolaters, who forsake the Rock of salvation, to run themselves upon the rock of perdition!
19-25 The revolt of Israel was described in the foregoing verses, and here follow the resolves of Divine justice as to them. We deceive ourselves, if we think that God will be mocked by a faithless people. Sin makes us hateful in the sight of the holy God. See what mischief sin does, and reckon those to be fools that mock at it.
26-38 The idolatry and rebellions of Israel deserved, and the justice of God seemed to demand, that they should be rooted out. But He spared Israel, and continues them still to be living witnesses of the truth of the Bible, and to silence unbelievers. They are preserved for wise and holy purposes and the prophecies give us some idea what those purposes are. The Lord will never disgrace the throne of his glory. It is great wisdom, and will help much to the return of sinners to God, seriously to consider their latter end, or the future state. It is here meant particularly of what God foretold by Moses, about this people in the latter days; but it may be applied generally. Oh that men would consider the happiness they will lose, and the misery they will certainly plunge into, if they go on in their trespasses! What will be in the end thereof? #Jer 5:31|. For the Lord will in due time bring down the enemies of the church, in displeasure against their wickedness. When sinners deem themselves most secure, they suddenly fall into destruction. And God's time to appear for the deliverance of his people, is when things are at the worst with them. But those who trust to any rock but God, will find it fail them when they most need it. The rejection of the Messiah by the Jewish nation, is the continuance of their ancient idolatry, apostacy, and rebellion. They shall be brought to humble themselves before the Lord, to repent of their sins, and to trust in their long-rejected Mediator for salvation. Then he will deliver them, and make their prosperity great.
39-43 This conclusion of the song speaks, 1. Glory to God. No escape can be made from his power. 2. It speaks terror to his enemies. Terror indeed to those who hate him. The wrath of God is here revealed from heaven against them. 3. It speaks comfort to his own people. The song concludes with words of joy. Whatever judgments are brought upon sinners, it shall go well with the people of God.
44-47 Here is the solemn delivery of this song to Israel, with a charge to mind all the good words Moses had said unto them. It is not a trifle, but a matter of life and death: mind it, and you are made for ever; neglect it, and you are for ever undone. Oh that men were fully persuaded that religion is their life, even the life of their souls!
48-52 Now Moses had done his work, why should he desire to live a day longer? God reminds him of the sin of which he had been guilty, for which he was kept from entering Canaan. It is good for the best of men to die repenting the infirmities of which they are conscious. But those may die with comfort and ease, whenever God calls for them, notwithstanding the sins they remember against themselves, who have a believing prospect, and a well-grounded hope of eternal life beyond death.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.