Deuteronomy · Chapter 11

Verse 1. Thou shalt love the Lord] Because without this there could be no obedience to the Divine testimonies, and no happiness in the soul; for the heart that is destitute of the love of God, is empty of all good, and consequently miserable. See Clarke’s note on “Deuteronomy 10:12”.

1. Keep his charge — That is, observe what Jehovah requires of you. What follows more fully explains the passage.

V. 2. Know-That is, acknowledge and consider it with diligence and thankfulness.

Verse 2. Know ye this day — That is, acknowledge and consider it with diligence and thankfulness; for that is the sense of the original word here, and in a multitude of other places. Your children, who have not known — But your eyes have seen, verse 7. The chastisement of the Lord — His judgments executed on the Egyptians in various plagues, the sundry methods of punishment and correction he has used to chastise, amend, and render you obedient to his laws, see Deuteronomy 4:36; and 8:5; and Proverbs 1:2, where the same Hebrew word is used in this sense. His greatness, &c. — His majesty and great power, appearing in his works. He uses a variety of words to make them sensible in how many instances the divine power and goodness had been manifested in effecting their deliverance out of Egyptian bondage, and their subsequent preservation.

2. I speak not with your children — Better, And know ye this day: not with your children have I to do. The meaning is this: Not with your children born in the wilderness, who neither knew nor saw what you have seen, am I dealing. I am dealing with you who left Egypt when you were children. You saw the miracles in the time of the people’s deliverance; you saw what was done to your fathers; you saw the signal punishments that were inflicted on the rebellious.

V. 4. Unto this day-The effect of which destruction continueth to this day, in their weakness and fear, and our safety from their farther attempts against us.

Verses 4, 5. Hath destroyed them unto this day — Brought them so low that they have not yet recovered their strength. Or, the effect of which destruction continueth to this day, in their weakness and fear, and our safety from their further attempts against us. What he did in the wilderness — Both in a way of judgment and mercy.

Verses 4, 5. Hath destroyed them unto this day — Brought them so low that they have not yet recovered their strength. Or, the effect of which destruction continueth to this day, in their weakness and fear, and our safety from their further attempts against us. What he did in the wilderness — Both in a way of judgment and mercy.

Verse 6. What he did unto Dathan, &c.] See the notes on Numbers 16:24-33.

6. What he did unto Dathan and Abiram — Korah is not here mentioned, though in Numbers xvi the destruction of Korah and his company is recorded as well as that of Dathan and Abiram. Keil suggests that Korah is omitted out of regard to the feelings of his kindred who were then living. Another suggestion to account for the omission is that the rebellion was sufficiently characterized by the two names Dathan and Abiram. There is the same omission of Korah in Psalm 106:17: “The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram.” Moses is not giving a full history of the misdeeds of the people. Nor does he mention all the rebellions. He is not writing as an annalist, he is talking as a prophet, and he introduces the historical incidents to add force to his admonitions. The substance… in their possession — Literally, the living thing which was at their feet. Undoubtedly it means all their servants. In Numbers 16:32, all the men that belonged to Korah is the correct rendering of the Hebrew expression, and is analogous to this.

V. 7. Your eyes have seen-All of them had seen some, and some of them had seen all the great things done in Egypt and at the Red-sea, and in the Wilderness. What our eyes have seen, especially in our early days, should be improved by us long after.

Verse 7. Your eyes have seen — Some of them had seen all the great things done for them in Egypt, and at the Red sea, and in the wilderness; and all of them had seen some of his mighty acts in their behalf. As if he had said, You yourselves have had experience of God’s goodness and power, and therefore you should be the more affected therewith. What our eyes have seen, especially in our younger days, should be improved by us long after.

Verse 8. Therefore shall ye keep all the commandments] Because God can execute such terrible judgments, and because he has given such proofs of his power and justice; and because, in similar provocations, he may be expected to act in a similar way; therefore keep his charge, that he may keep you unto everlasting life.

V. 10. With thy foot-That is, with great pains and labour of thy feet, partly by going up and down to fetch water and disperse it, and partly by digging furrows with thy foot, and using engines for distributing the water, which engines they thrust with their feet. For tho’ the river Nile did once in a year overflow the grounds, and made them fruitful, yet often it failed them, at least in part, and then they were put to great pains about their ground. And when it did overflow sufficiently, and left its mud upon the earth, yet that mud was in a little time hardened, and needed another watering, and much digging and labour both of the hand and feet, especially in places more remote from that river; which inconvenience Canaan was free from.

Verse 10. Wateredst it with thy foot] Rain scarcely ever falls in Egypt, and God supplies the lack of it by the inundations of the Nile. In order to water the grounds where the inundations do not extend, water is collected in ponds, and directed in streamlets to different parts of the field where irrigation is necessary. It is no unusual thing in the East to see a man, with a small mattock, making a little trench for the water to run by, and as he opens the passage, the water following, he uses his foot to raise up the mould against the side of this little channel, to prevent the water from being shed unnecessarily before it reaches the place of its destination. Thus he may be said to water the ground with his foot. See several useful observations on this subject in Mr. Harmer, vol. i., pp. 23-26, and vol. iii., p. 141. “For watering land an instrument called janta is often used in the north of Bengal: It consists of a wooden trough, about fifteen feet long, six inches wide, and ten inches deep, which is placed on a horizontal beam lying on bamboos fixed in the bank of a pond or river in the form of a gallows. One end of the trough rests upon the bank, where a gutter is prepared to carry off the water, and the other is dipped into the water by a man standing on a stage near that end, and plunging it in with his foot. A long bamboo, with a large weight of earth at the farther end of it, is fastened to that end of the janta near the river, and passing over the gallows, poises up the janta full of water, and causes it to empty itself into the gutter.” This, Mr. Ward supposes, illustrates this passage. See Hindoo Customs, &c., vol. iii., p. 104. But after all, the expression, wateredst it with thy foot, may mean no more than doing it by labour; for, as in the land of Egypt there is scarcely any rain, the watering of gardens, &c., must have been all artificial. But in Judea it was different, as there they had their proper seasons of rain. The compound word lgrb beregel, with, under, or by the foot, is used to signify any thing under the power, authority, &c., of a person; and this very meaning it has in the sixth verse, all the substance that was in their possession, is, literally, all the substance that was under their feet, ברגליהם beragleyhem, that is, in their power, possession, or what they had acquired by their labour.

Verse 10. The land is not as the land of Egypt — The fruitfulness of it depends more especially on the divine providence, and therefore you should be careful to serve the Lord, and secure his favour and blessing. Wateredst it with thy foot — That is, with great pains and labour of thy feet; partly by fetching water and dispersing it, and partly by digging furrows, by a spade, with thy foot, and using engines for distributing the water, which engines they wrought with their feet. This is explained by a passage out of Philo, who tells us that the Egyptians, to supply the want of rain, were wont to water their gardens by machines for drawing water, fixed upon the banks of the Nile; which machines were so contrived as to be turned with their feet. So the meaning is, that whereas Egypt was watered by human art, Canaan was watered by rain from heaven, as the next verse explains.

Verse 10. Water it with thy foot. Egypt was watered periodically by the overflowing of the Nile; and the husbandman, following the retiring waters, sowed his seed. When the droughty season came on, the country being intersected with canals, they watered the corn with machines worked by the foot. The overflowing of rivers is finely improved in the sacred writings. “Thou visitest the earth and waterest it, thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God.” Psalm 65:9. Of the increase of divine wisdom, the author of Ecclesiasticus says, “He maketh understanding to abound like the Euphrates, and as Jordan in the time of harvest.” Deuteronomy 24:26.

10-12. The land… is not as… Egypt — Moses contrasts the land they have left with the land they are to possess. Egypt depended, as it still does, for its fertility upon the annual overflow of its great river, whose waters were made available for the whole year by artificial water-courses. Human labour and human foresight were constantly required. Man must especially care for the land in Egypt. The country they are seeking is one that Jehovah cared for. Not a land of extended plains reclaimed from the desert by the waters of its single river, but a land of hills and valleys, which drinketh the rain of heaven. Wateredst it with thy foot — This expression suggests their servile toil in Egypt. It may refer to the use of some kind of machinery for irrigation worked by the foot, but “it is more probable that this alludes to the mode of stopping small watercourses with mud by the foot, and turning off the water into another channel.” — WILKINSON’S Ancient Egyptians, vol. i, p. 581. Comp. THOMSON’S Land and the Book, vol. ii, p. 279. A land which the Lord thy God careth for — As if he watered it with his own hands. All that servile toil required in Egypt for irrigation will be unnecessary in the land to which they are bound.

V. 11. Of hills and valleys-And therefore much more healthful than Egypt was, which as it was enriched, so it was annoyed with the Nile, which overflowed the land in summer time, and thereby made the country both unpleasant and unhealthful. And health being the greatest of all outward blessings, Canaan must therefore needs be a more desirable habitation than Egypt. The rain of heaven-Which is more easy, being given thee without thy charge or pains; more sweet and pleasant, not hindering thy going abroad upon thy occasions, as the overflow of the Nile did, whereby the Egyptians were confined in a great measure to their houses; more safe and healthful, being free from that mud which attends upon the waters of the Nile; and more certain too, the former and the latter rain being promised to be given to them in their several seasons, upon condition of their obedience, which condition, tho’ it may seem a clog and inconvenience, yet indeed was a great benefit, that by their own necessities and interest they might be obliged to that obedience, upon which their happiness depended both for this life and the next.

Verse 11. A land of hills and valleys — Which could not be made fruitful but by rain from heaven, which seldom fell in Egypt, whose fruitfulness depended on the overflowing of the Nile. Thus he informs them that the promised land was of such a condition as would keep them in a constant dependance upon God for the fruitfulness of it. He means, however, also to signify that it was much more pleasant and healthful than Egypt, which, as it was enriched, so it was annoyed with the Nile, which, overflowing the land in summer-time, made the country both unpleasant and unhealthy. And health being the greatest of all outward blessings, Canaan must therefore be a more desirable habitation than Egypt. The rain of heaven — Which was more easily obtained, being given them without any charge or pains; more sweet and pleasant, not hindering their going abroad upon their affairs, as the overflowing of the Nile did; more safe and healthful, being free from that mud which attended the waters of the Nile; and more certain too, while they were obedient, the former and the latter rain being promised to be given to them in the proper season, on condition of their adhering to God’s worship, and obeying his laws. And even this condition, though it might seem a clog and inconvenience, yet indeed was a great benefit; for thus, by their own interest and necessities, they were obliged to that obedience and reliance on God upon which their happiness depended, both for this life and the next.

10-12. The land… is not as… Egypt — Moses contrasts the land they have left with the land they are to possess. Egypt depended, as it still does, for its fertility upon the annual overflow of its great river, whose waters were made available for the whole year by artificial water-courses. Human labour and human foresight were constantly required. Man must especially care for the land in Egypt. The country they are seeking is one that Jehovah cared for. Not a land of extended plains reclaimed from the desert by the waters of its single river, but a land of hills and valleys, which drinketh the rain of heaven. Wateredst it with thy foot — This expression suggests their servile toil in Egypt. It may refer to the use of some kind of machinery for irrigation worked by the foot, but “it is more probable that this alludes to the mode of stopping small watercourses with mud by the foot, and turning off the water into another channel.” — WILKINSON’S Ancient Egyptians, vol. i, p. 581. Comp. THOMSON’S Land and the Book, vol. ii, p. 279. A land which the Lord thy God careth for — As if he watered it with his own hands. All that servile toil required in Egypt for irrigation will be unnecessary in the land to which they are bound.

V. 12. Careth for-In a special manner watering it immediately as it were by his own hand, without man’s help, and giving peculiar blessings to it, which Egypt enjoys not. To the end of the year-To give it the rain, and other blessings proper to the several seasons. But all these mercies, and the fruitfulness of the land consequent upon them, were suspended upon their disobedience. And therefore it is not at all strange that some later writers, describe the land of Canaan as a barren soil, which is, so far from affording ground to question the authority of the scriptures, that it doth much more confirm it, this, being an effect of that threatning that God would turn a fruitful land into barrenness for the wickedness of these that dwell in it, Psalm 107:34.

Verse 12. Which the Lord careth for — In a special manner, watering it immediately, as it were, by his own hand, without man’s help, and giving peculiar blessings to it, which Egypt enjoyed not. To the end of the year — To give it the rain, and other blessings proper to the several seasons. But all these mercies, and the fruitfulness of the land consequent upon them, were suspended upon their disobedience. And therefore it is not at all strange that some later writers describe the land of Canaan as a barren soil; which is so far from affording ground to question the authority of the Scriptures, that it much more confirms it, this being an effect of that threatening, that God would turn a fruitful land into barrenness for the wickedness of those that dwelt in it, Psalm 107:34.

10-12. The land… is not as… Egypt — Moses contrasts the land they have left with the land they are to possess. Egypt depended, as it still does, for its fertility upon the annual overflow of its great river, whose waters were made available for the whole year by artificial water-courses. Human labour and human foresight were constantly required. Man must especially care for the land in Egypt. The country they are seeking is one that Jehovah cared for. Not a land of extended plains reclaimed from the desert by the waters of its single river, but a land of hills and valleys, which drinketh the rain of heaven. Wateredst it with thy foot — This expression suggests their servile toil in Egypt. It may refer to the use of some kind of machinery for irrigation worked by the foot, but “it is more probable that this alludes to the mode of stopping small watercourses with mud by the foot, and turning off the water into another channel.” — WILKINSON’S Ancient Egyptians, vol. i, p. 581. Comp. THOMSON’S Land and the Book, vol. ii, p. 279. A land which the Lord thy God careth for — As if he watered it with his own hands. All that servile toil required in Egypt for irrigation will be unnecessary in the land to which they are bound.

13. Hearken — Jehovah is now speaking. The passage, 13-21, is one of the four that the Jews placed in their phylacteries.

V. 14. The ruin of your land-Which is, proper to your land, not common to Egypt, where, as all authors agree, there is little rain. The first rain fell in seed time, to make the corn spring, the other a little before harvest, to ripen it.

Verse 14. The rain-in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain] By the first or former rain we are to understand that which fell in Judea about November, when they sowed their seed, and this served to moisten and prepare the ground for the vegetation of the seed. The latter rain fell about April, when the corn was well grown up, and served to fill the ears, and render them plump and perfect. Rain rarely fell in Judea at any other seasons than these. If the former rain were withheld, or not sent in due season, there could be no vegetation: if the latter rain were withheld, or not sent in its due season, there could be no full corn in the ear, and consequently no harvest. Of what consequence then was it that they should have their rain in due season! God, by promising this provided they were obedient, and threatening to withhold it should they be disobedient, shows that it is not a general providence that directs these things, but that the very rain of heaven falls by particular direction, and the showers are often regulated by an especial providence.

Verses 14, 15. I will give you — Moses here personates God; or, rather, God speaks by him. The rain of your land — Which is proper to your land, and not common to Egypt, where there is little rain. The first rain and the latter rain — In Judea and the neighbouring countries there is seldom any rain, save at two seasons, about the autumnal and vernal equinox, called the former and latter rain. The first fell about the time of sowing their seed, and served to prepare the ground, and make the grain take root in the earth; and the other when the corn was well grown, toward earing-time, to make the ears full and plump for harvest. I will send grass in thy fields — So godliness has here the promise of the life which now is. But the favour of God puts gladness into the heart more than the increase of corn, wine, and oil.

Ver. 14. The first rain. This fell in October, when the sun entered the sign of Aquarius, the waterman, and caused the wheat to germinate. The barley was sown about the winter solstice, and reaped after a hundred days; that is, after Easter. The latter rain fell in March, and fed and nourished the corn while eating.

14. The first rain and the latter rain — In “the present time rain in an ordinarily good year falls first at the autumnal equinox. During November frequent thunderstorms occur, and about Christmas the weather is generally stormy. In January the heaviest rains fall, and in February sometimes none at all; but the weather is never settled till after the vernal equinox and the early April showers are past.” — Survey of Western Palestine, Special Papers, p. 196. In the Mishnah we find, “From what time shall they begin the form of praise that the Almighty power is manifested in giving rain? Rabbi Eliezer said from the first day of the feast of tabernacles. Others place it a few days later. Until what time shall rain be sought? Until the passover is finished. Comp. BARCLAY’S Talmud, p. 158.

V. 15. I will send grass in thy fields-So godliness has here the promise of the life which now is. But the favour of God puts gladness into the heart, more than the increase of corn, wine and oil.

Verses 14, 15. I will give you — Moses here personates God; or, rather, God speaks by him. The rain of your land — Which is proper to your land, and not common to Egypt, where there is little rain. The first rain and the latter rain — In Judea and the neighbouring countries there is seldom any rain, save at two seasons, about the autumnal and vernal equinox, called the former and latter rain. The first fell about the time of sowing their seed, and served to prepare the ground, and make the grain take root in the earth; and the other when the corn was well grown, toward earing-time, to make the ears full and plump for harvest. I will send grass in thy fields — So godliness has here the promise of the life which now is. But the favour of God puts gladness into the heart more than the increase of corn, wine, and oil.

Verses 16, 17. That your heart be not deceived — By the specious pretence of idolaters, persuading you that they enjoy fruitful seasons, and other temporal blessings, as a reward for their worship. And he shut up the heaven — Withhold rain from you, which will be a sore judgment, quickly bringing a famine, whereby you will be wasted and consumed. Here, and elsewhere, heaven is compared to a great store-house, wherein God lays up his treasures of dew and rain, (Job 38:22,) the doors whereof God is said to open when he gives rain, and to shut when he withholds it.

V. 17. Shut up the heaven-Which is compared sometimes to a great store-house wherein God lays up his treasures of rain, Job 38:22, the doors whereof God is said to open when he gives rain, and to shut when he withholds it.

Verses 16, 17. That your heart be not deceived — By the specious pretence of idolaters, persuading you that they enjoy fruitful seasons, and other temporal blessings, as a reward for their worship. And he shut up the heaven — Withhold rain from you, which will be a sore judgment, quickly bringing a famine, whereby you will be wasted and consumed. Here, and elsewhere, heaven is compared to a great store-house, wherein God lays up his treasures of dew and rain, (Job 38:22,) the doors whereof God is said to open when he gives rain, and to shut when he withholds it.

V. 18. Lay up-Let us all observe these three rules, 1. Let our hearts be filled with the word of God. Lay up these words in your hearts, as in a store-house, to be used upon all occasions. 2. Let our eyes be fixed upon the word of God: Bind them for a sign upon your hand, which is always in view, and as frontlets between your eyes, which you cannot avoid the sight of. 3. Let our tongues be employed about the word of God, especially with our children, who must be taught this, as far more needful than the rules of decency, or the calling they are to live by.

Verse 18. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words] See Deuteronomy 6:4-8, and see Clarke on “Exodus 13:9”.

Verse 18. Lay up these my words — Let us all observe these three rules: 1st, Let our hearts be filled with the word of God; let it dwell in us richly, in all wisdom, (Colossians 3:16,) and be laid up within us as in a store-house, to be used upon all occasions. 2d, Let our eyes be fixed upon it: Bind these words for a sign upon your hand — Which is always in view; and as frontlets between your eyes — Which you cannot avoid the sight of. 3d, Let our tongues be employed about the word of God, especially with our children, who must be taught this, as far more needful than the rules of decency, any branch of human learning, or the calling they are to live by.

Ver. 18. A sign upon your hand. These phylacteries were of use to make the scriptures known: we do not need them now, having bibles almost in every house, which are read daily in christian families.

V. 21. As the days of heaven-As long as the heaven keeps its place and continues its influences upon earth.

Verse 21. As the days of heaven — As long as the heaven keeps its place, and continues its influences upon the earth. Thus the psalmist says of the son of David, the Messiah, His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

21. As the days of heaven upon the earth — If obedient to these precepts, faithful to Jehovah your God, the goodly land will be yours and your children’s as long as heaven is above the earth. Verses 18-21 is, in part, a repetition of Deuteronomy 6:6-9.

V. 24. Every place-Not absolutely, as the Rabbins fondly conceit, but in the promised land, as it is restrained in the following words; either by possession, or by dominion, namely, upon condition of your obedience. The wilderness-Of Sin, on the south-side. To Lebanon-Which was on the north border. Euphrates-On the east. So far the right of dominion extended, but that their sins cut them short: and so far Solomon extended his dominion. The uttermost sea-The western or midland sea.

Verse 24. From the river] Euphrates, which was on the east, to the uttermost sea-the Mediterranean, which lay westward of the promised land. This promise, notwithstanding the many provocations of the Israelites, was fulfilled in the time of Solomon, for “he reigned over all the kings from the river (Euphrates) even unto the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt.” See 2 Chronicles 9:26, and the note, See Clarke “Numbers 34:12”.

Verse 24. Every place — Not absolutely, as the Jewish rabbis fondly imagine, but in the promised land, as the sense is restrained in the following words; either by possession or by dominion, namely, upon condition of your obedience. From the wilderness — Of Sin, on the south of Canaan, and Lebanon — On the north. From Euphrates — On the east. So far the right of dominion extruded, but that their sins cut them short; so far, however, Solomon extended his dominion. Unto the uttermost sea — The Mediterranean, on the west.

Ver. 24. From the wilderness and Lebanon; that is, east of Lebanon, and south-west, as far as the brook Bezor, going to Egypt. This describes the kingdom of Israel as in the days of Solomon. The boundaries of nations once settled, ought to prevent war for aggrandizement and conquest. The whole of the small kingdom of Damascus was included in the grant, because the words are, from the river Euphrates: yet they never possessed it, but were often annoyed by its wars.

24. Every place… shall be yours — The boundaries of the land are here briefly stated: from Arabia on the south to Lebanon on the north; from the Euphrates on the east to the Mediterranean on the west. For other statements of the boundaries comp. Genesis 15:18-21; Exodus 23:31; Numbers 34:6.

V. 26. I set before you-I propose them to your choice.

Verse 26. Behold, I set before you-a blessing and a curse] If God had not put it in the power of this people either to obey or disobey; if they had not had a free will, over which they had complete authority, to use it either in the way of willing or nilling; could God, with any propriety, have given such precepts as these, sanctioned with such promises and threatenings? If they were not free agents, they could not be punished for disobedience, nor could they, in any sense of the word, have been rewardable for obedience. A STONE is not rewardable because, in obedience to the laws of gravitation, it always tends to the centre; nor is it punishable be cause, in being removed from that centre, in its tending or falling towards it again it takes away the life of a man.

That God has given man a free, self-determining WILL, which cannot be forced by any power but that which is omnipotent, and which God himself never will force, is declared in the most formal manner through the whole of the sacred writings. No argument can affect this, while the Bible is considered as a Divine revelation; no sophistry can explain away its evidence, as long as the accountableness of man for his conduct is admitted, and as long as the eternal bounds of moral good and evil remain, and the essential distinctions between vice and virtue exist. If ye will obey, (for God is ever ready to assist,) ye shall live; if ye will disobey and refuse that help, ye shall die. So hath Jehovah spoken, and man cannot reverse it.

Verse 26. I set before you — I propose them to your consideration and your choice. So that if a curse should be your portion, instead of a blessing, and you should be in a calamitous and miserable, and not in a prosperous and happy condition, you must thank yourselves for it. This he explains more at large in the 28th chapter. And the whole historical part of the Old Testament bears witness that God caused a blessing or a curse to attend them, according as they observed or broke his laws.

26. Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse — A blessing, if they obey and have Jehovah for their God; a curse, if they are disobedient and go after other gods.

V. 28. Which ye have not known-Which you have no acquaintance with, nor experience of their power, or wisdom, or goodness, as you have had of mine.

Verse 28. Other gods which ye have not known — With which you have no acquaintance, and of whose power, and wisdom, and goodness, you have no experience, as you have had of mine.

V. 29. Put-Heb. Thou shalt give, that is, speak or pronounce, or cause to be pronounced. So the word to give is used, Deuteronomy 13:1,2 Job 36:3 Proverbs 9:9. This is, more particularly expressed, Deuteronomy 27:12,13.

Verse 29. Thou shalt put the blessing upon Mount Gerizim, and the curse upon Mount Ebal.] The etymology of these names may be supposed to cast some light on this institution. גרזים gerizzim, from zrg garaz, to cut, cut off, cut down; hence גרזים gerizzim, the cutters down, fellers, and reapers or harvest-men, this mountain being supposed to have its name from its great fertility, or the abundance of the crops it yielded, which is a possible case. Of lby[ ebal or eybal the root is not found in Hebrew; but in Arabic [Arabic] abala signifies rough, rugged, curled, &c.; and [Arabic] abalo, from the same root, signifies white stones, and a mountain in which such stones are found; [Arabic] alabalo, the mount of white stones. See Giggeius and Golius. And as it is supposed that the mountain had this name because of its barrenness, on this metaphorical interpretation the sense of the passage would appear to be the following: God will so superintend the land, and have it continually under the eye of his watchful providence, that no change can happen in it but according to his Divine counsel, so that its fertility shall ever be the consequence of the faithful obedience of its inhabitants, and a proof of the blessing of God upon it; on the contrary, its barrenness shall be a proof that the people have departed from their God, and that his curse has in consequence fallen upon the land. See the manner of placing these blessings and curses, Deuteronomy 27:12, &c. That Gerizim is very fruitful, and that Ebal is very barren, is the united testimony of all who have travelled in those parts. See Ludolf, Reland, Rab, Benjamin, and Mr. Maundrell. Sychem lies in the valley between these two mountains.

THAT the land of Judea was naturally very fertile, can scarcely be supposed by any who considers the accounts given of it by travellers; with the exception of a few districts, the whole land is dry, stony, and barren, and particularly all the southern parts of Judea, and all the environs of Jerusalem, most of which are represented as absolutely incapable of cultivation. How then could it ever support its vast number of inhabitants? By the especial providence of God. While God kept that people under his continual protection, their land was a paradise; they lent to all nations and borrowed from none. What has it been since? A demi-solitude, because that especial blessing no longer descends upon it. No land, says Calmet, was more fertile while under the benediction of God; none more barren when under his curse. Its present state is a proof of the declaration of Moses, Deuteronomy 28:23: “The heaven over their head is brass; the earth under their feet, iron.” The land itself, in its present state is an ample proof of the authenticity of the Pentateuch. Should facts of this kind be lost sight of by any who read the sacred writings?

DEUTERONOMY

Verses 29, 30. Put — Hebrew, Thou shalt give; that is, speak, or pronounce, or cause to be pronounced. This is more particularly expressed Deuteronomy 27:12, 13. Over against — Looking toward Gilgal, though at some considerable distance from it. Beside the plains of Moreh — This was one of the first places that Abraham came to in Canaan. So that in sending them thither to hear the blessing and the curse, they were reminded of the promise made to Abram in that very place, Genesis 12:6, 7.

29. Thou shalt put the blessing upon Mount Gerizim, and the curse upon Mount Ebal — There were special reasons for selecting these mountains. They are almost at the geographical centre of the land. They lie opposite each other, with a beautiful, well-watered valley between — Ebal on the north and Gerizim on the south, each rising more than twenty-five hundred feet in height above the level of the sea. In the valley was Shechem — modern Nablus. The modern town is beautifully surrounded with well-watered and productive gardens. Shechem was so prominent in the history of the patriarchs that the gathering of the tribes there would be especially impressive and significant. This was the first spot where Abraham pitched his tent in Canaan, and where he built an altar. To this place Jacob came on his return from Mesopotamia, and pitched his tent east of the city near to Shechem. Here he bought the parcel of a field from Hamor, Shechem’s father. Genesis 33:19. Here, too, he built an altar for worship. Here the tribes were soon to bury the bones of Joseph. See Joshua 24:32.

V. 30. Over against-Looking toward Gilgal, tho’ at some considerable distance from it. Beside the plains of Moreh-This was one of the first places that Abram came to in Canaan. So that in sending them thither to hear the blessing and the curse, they were minded of the promise made to Abram in that very place, Genesis 12:6,7.

Verses 29, 30. Put — Hebrew, Thou shalt give; that is, speak, or pronounce, or cause to be pronounced. This is more particularly expressed Deuteronomy 27:12, 13. Over against — Looking toward Gilgal, though at some considerable distance from it. Beside the plains of Moreh — This was one of the first places that Abraham came to in Canaan. So that in sending them thither to hear the blessing and the curse, they were reminded of the promise made to Abram in that very place, Genesis 12:6, 7.

Ver. 30. Beside the plains of Moreh. The readings vary here. The Septuagint reads, “Near the tall oak.” The Samaritan version after Moreh, adds an expletive, “before Sichem,” which was necessary, in order that a stranger might identify the spot. See note on Genesis 13:18.

30. By the way where the sun goeth down — Referring to the great highway for travel from Syria to Egypt, which runs through the land on the west side of the Jordan. There was another main road on the east side of the river. Which dwell in the champaign — In the Arabah. This term was applied to the whole valley, extending from the sources of the Jordan to the gulf of Akabah. As the Israelites are now encamped on the east side of the Jordan, the Arabah would be right before them as they looked toward the west. Knobel thinks the region in which Nablus is situated to be meant. Over against Gilgal — Not Gilgal on the west side of the Jordan near Jericho, but probably the Gilgal mentioned in 2 Kings 2:1. In the narrative it is said that Elijah and Elisha came down from Gilgal to Bethel, and from Beth-el, going by Jericho, they pass on to the Jordan. This Gilgal was higher than Beth-el, and evidently more remote from Jordan. A place bearing the name Jiljilieh is thought to be the site of this Gilgal. The critics have made this one of the points of attack on the authenticity of the book. “It must seem strange that Moses, who had never been in the land of Canaan, should know all these places and be able to describe them so accurately. But it is still more strange that he should know the name Gilgal, which, according to the book of Joshua, was not given to the place till after the people had entered the land of Canaan. It is plain the text was written at a later age, when these names and places were familiarly known.” — Pentateuch Examined, ii, p. 200. Now it would be strange indeed if Moses were not familiar with the geography of the land. The monuments of Egypt show acquaintance with Syria. The great roads for commerce and war led through Canaan. Forty years spent in Egypt, forty years in Midian, and forty years on the very borders of the land would certainly give opportunity for familiar knowledge of the physical features of the land. As there were several places that bore the name Gilgal, one at least may have had that name before the conquest. The plains of Moreh — Rather, the terebinths of Moreh, hallowed in the minds of the Israelites as the place of the divine manifestation to Abraham. Genesis 12:6, 7.

31, 32. Ye shall pass over Jordan — Moses gives a reason for these specific directions in the confident assurance he has that the people are to cross the Jordan and take possession of the land.

31, 32. Ye shall pass over Jordan — Moses gives a reason for these specific directions in the confident assurance he has that the people are to cross the Jordan and take possession of the land.