by Stephen Rodgers
DEUTERONOMY IN 10 WORDS OR LESS
“Moses reminds the Israelites of their history and God’s laws.”
TITLE
The English title “Deuteronomy” comes from the Greek word (Deuteronomium) meaning “this second law,” (which was actually a mistranslation of “copy of this law” referring to Deut 17:18) whereas the Hebrew title is derived from the books’s first two words (Eleh ha-devarim), translated “These are the words.” (Deut 1:1)
As previously mentioned, it is sometimes referred to as the “Fifth Book of Moses.”
AUTHOR & AUDIENCE
Both Jewish and Christian traditions attribute the five books of the Pentateuch primarily to Moses. Like Numbers, Deuteronomy makes explicit claims regarding Mosaic authorship (Deut 1:1,5; 4:44; 31:9,22,24; 33:4). Both the OT (1Ki 2:3; 8:53; 2Ki 14:6; 18:12) and the NT (Ac 3:22-23; Ro 10:19) specifically support the claim of Mosaic authorship as well.
Furthermore, both the OT (Num 33:2; Jos 8:31; Ezr 6:18; Neh 13:1; Dan 9:11,13; Mal 4:4) and the NT (Matt 8:4;Mk 12:26; Lk 16:29; 24:27, 44; Jn 5:46; 7:22; Ac 15:1; 1Co 9:9; 2Co 3:15) credit Moses as the author of the Pentateuch.
For more information, see the “Author and Composition” section of the Pentateuch article.
The original audience were the generation of Israelites who would soon enter Canaan. Since the generation who lived through the events of the Exodus and the subsequent giving of the Law had died off (with the exception of Caleb and Joshua), they were in need of a “refresher course.”
DATE
Depending on whether one subscribes to an early (ca. 1,446 BC) or late (ca. 1,260 BC) date of the Exodus would determine the time during which Deuteronomy was written (after the Exodus but prior to Moses’ death). (It should be noted that while good arguments have been put forth in favor of both dates, the majority of scholars surveyed for this series tended to favor an early date).
Given the internal dates supplied in Deuteronomy, we also know that Deuteronomy (like Numbers) was written during the final year of Moses’ life.
BACKGROUND & SETTING
Like Leviticus, Deuteronomy does not advance historically but takes place in one location over about one month of time (compare Deut 1:3 and 34:8 with Jos 5:6-12). As previously mentioned, this book details the giving of the law to the generation of Israelites born after the Exodus. It also details the commissioning of Joshua as the new leader (Deut 31:1-29), Moses viewing (but not entering!) of the Promised Land (Deut 32:48-52; 34:1-4), and the death of Moses (Deut 34:5-12).
HISTORICAL & THEOLOGICAL THEMES
In broad terms, Deuteronomy deals with three themes: 1) Covenant, 2) Choices, and 3) God Himself.
- God’s unmerited love (Deut 7:6-9) is the basis of not only the covenant by also of His people’s trust in Him.
- The covenant exhorted God’s people to teach, remember, and obey (Deut 6:6-25). God promised that obedience would bring blessing (Deut 28:1-14) but warned that disobedience would result in harm (Deut 28:15-68). (On a related note, this forms the basis for John Frame’s excellent treatment of Christian ethics).
- On the subject of God, Deuteronomy reveals that the LORD is the only God (Deut 4:39; 6:4), jealous (Deut 4:24), faithful (Deut 7:9), loving (Deut 7:13), merciful (Deut 4:31), yet angered by sin (Deut 6:15).
LITERARY FEATURES
Like the previous books of the Pentateuch, Deuteronomy mingles narrative with law. However, whereas the formula of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers is “the LORD spoke to Moses,” the rhetorical stance of Deuteronomy is that Moses speaks to the people. The effect is an extended exhortation to covenant faithfulness.
Some have noted that there as similarities between Deuteronomy and ANE suzerainty treaties. The ESV SB explains: “In a suzerainty treaty, a king or suzerain rehearsed what he had done for his nation and stipulated what he required in response. There is also an incipient note of anticipation, as it is understood that the instructions are given to a people on the verge of setting up a utopia—a good society governed by identifiable institutions and practices—in a promised land.”
For further reference, the ESV Study Bible has a helpful chart:
| Ancient Treaty Structure |
Deuteronomy |
| Preamble |
Deut 1:1–5 |
| Historical Prologue |
Deut 1:6–4:49 |
| General Stipulations |
Deut 5:1–11:32 |
| Specific Stipulations |
Deut 12:1–26:19 |
| Blessings and Curses |
Deut 27:1–28:68 |
| Document Clause |
Deut 31:9–29 |
| Witnesses |
Deut 32:1–47 |
It should be noted that similarities between the structure of Deuteronomy and other ANE Hittite manuscripts serves to bolster the claim that Deuteronomy is a Late Bronze Age document and not a more recent compilation.
INTERPRETIVE CHALLENGES
Deuteronomy presents relatively few interpretive challenges. Two minor challenges that sometimes are referred to are 1) whether Deuteronomy can be properly understood as a document structured as a suzerainty treaty (see LITERARY FEATURES above), and 2) the identity of the covenant made in the land of Moab (Deut 29:1). The former is an issue of some scholarly interest, but no real consensus has been reached, and the implications either way are not very noteworthy. In regards to the later issue, the majority opinion is that this was a renewal of the Sinaitic Covenant, although other views (the Palestinian Covenant view, the New Covenant view) exist as well.
OBJECTIONS
Most of the objections related to Deuteronomy center around a number of alleged anachronisms (something that occurs outside of its proper time). These so-called discrepancies are really no trouble at all, so we will deal with them briefly:
- Deuteronomy 1:1 could be interpreted to mean that Moses and Israel already crossed the Jordon (which contradicts the text). However the term (be’er hayyardern) is ambiguous, and could just as easily indicated that they were east of the Jordan, not west.
- Deuteronomy 2:12 seems to indicate a post-conquest frame of reference, until one considers that it was obviously written after the events described in Deuteronomy 2:26-3:11, which record a conflict with the same tribe.
- Last but not least, there is the famous case of the death of Moses in Deuteronomy 34:5-12. Skeptics claim that Moses could not possibly have written an account of his own death and burial. However, it is possible that 1) he was prophetically inspired to do so, or (more likely) 2) that portion of the book was written by someone else, most likely Joshua (which is in keeping with Jewish tradition; see Baba Bathra 14b-15a). It should be noted that the appending of words from a subsequent book to the preceding one was a common practice in antiquity to ensure proper sequencing (see Joshua/Judges and Chronicles/Ezra), and are generally not considered by scholars to negate general authorship.
NOTABLE QUOTABLES
- Deuteronomy 6:4
- Deuteronomy 6:5
- Deuteronomy 6:15
DID YOU KNOW?
- The 10 Commandments from Exodus 20 are restated in Deuteronomy 5.
- The Law of the Pentateuch often is maligned as being harsh and oppressive. This fails to account for the fact that unlike many other ANE legal systems, God specifically designated special protections for widows, orphans, resident foreigners, the disabled, and the elderly (Deut 5:14; 14:29; 15:7-11;16:11,14; 24:10-21;26:12-13; 27:19).
- Deuteronomy is the 3rd most-quoted OT book in the NT (behind Psalms and Isaiah).
Other Works Referenced
