*Deuteronomy 30:1-20
Moses presents the Israelites with a choice: life and blessing by following God’s commands, or death and curse by disobedience.
- Promise of Restoration:
- Moses reassures the Israelites that even if they have been scattered to the farthest parts of the earth due to their disobedience, they can return to the Lord and obey His commands.
- He promises that the Lord will restore their fortunes and gather them back from exile to the land He promised to their ancestors.
- Conditions for Restoration:
- Moses lays out the conditions for restoration, stating that the Israelites must turn to the Lord with all their heart and soul, obeying His commandments.
- He emphasizes that the commandments are not too difficult to follow and are within their reach, regardless of their current circumstances.
- Choice Between Life and Death:
- Moses presents the Israelites with a choice between life and death, blessing and curse, urging them to choose life by loving the Lord and walking in His ways.
- He reminds them that by choosing life, they and their descendants will prosper and live long in the land the Lord swore to give to their ancestors.
- Assurance of God’s Presence:
- Moses assures the Israelites that the commandments he is giving them are not too hard to keep and that they are not beyond their reach.
- He emphasizes that the word of the Lord is near to them, in their mouths and hearts, so they can obey it.
- Call to Decision:
- Moses calls upon the Israelites to make a decision to love and obey the Lord, knowing that their future and the fate of their nation depend on it.
- He warns them that if they turn away from the Lord and worship other gods, they will perish, and their land will be cursed.
- Appeal to Heaven and Earth as Witnesses:
- Moses calls on heaven and earth to witness the choice the Israelites are making, whether to obey the Lord and live or disobey and face destruction.
- He urges them to choose life, so they and their descendants may live and possess the land the Lord swore to give to their ancestors.
Deuteronomy 30:1-20 teaches us that God gives us the choice to follow Him and experience life and blessings. Moses told the Israelites they could choose life by loving and obeying God or choose destruction by turning away. This reminds us that our decisions matter—when we follow God, we find purpose, peace, and true life. It encourages us to trust Him, make wise choices, and stay close to Him, knowing that He always wants what is best for us.
Deuteronomy 30:1-20 (WEB)
30:1 It shall happen, when all these things have come on you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you shall call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God has driven you, 2 and return to the LORD your God and obey his voice according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul, 3 that then the LORD your God will release you from captivity, have compassion on you, and will return and gather you from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you. 4 If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there he will bring you back. 5 The LORD your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you will possess it. He will do you good, and increase your numbers more than your fathers. 6 The LORD your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your offspring, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. 7 The LORD your God will put all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted you. 8 You shall return and obey the LORD’s voice, and do all his commandments which I command you today. 9 The LORD your God will make you prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your body, in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground, for good; for the LORD will again rejoice over you for good, as he rejoiced over your fathers, 10 if you will obey the LORD your God’s voice, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.11 For this commandment which I command you today is not too hard for you or too distant. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, “Who will go up for us to heaven, bring it to us, and proclaim it to us, that we may do it?” 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, “Who will go over the sea for us, bring it to us, and proclaim it to us, that we may do it?” 14 But the word is very near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it. 15 Behold, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and evil. 16 For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways and to keep his commandments, his statutes, and his ordinances, that you may live and multiply, and that the LORD your God may bless you in the land where you go in to possess it. 17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away and worship other gods, and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you will surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you pass over the Jordan to go in to possess it. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore choose life, that you may live, you and your descendants, 20 to love the LORD your God, to obey his voice, and to cling to him; for he is your life, and the length of your days, that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.