1. Therefore thou shalt love the Lord thy God-- and keep his charge-- and his statutes-- and his judgments-- and his commandments-- alway.

1. Dilige igitur Jehovam Deum tuum-- et custodi custodiam ejus-- et statuta ejus-- et judicia ejus-- et praecepta ejus omnibus diebus.

2. And know ye this day: for I speak not with your children which have not known-- and which have not seen the chastisement of the Lord your God-- his greatness-- his mighty hand-- and his stretched-out arm--

2. Et scitote hodie-- non enim cure filiis vestris loquor-- qui non noverunt-- neque viderunt eruditionem Jehovae Dei vestri-- magnitudinem ejus-- manum ejus validam-- et brachium ejus extentum--

3. And his miracles-- and his acts-- which he did in the midst of Egypt unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt-- and unto all his land;

3. Et signa ejus-- et opera ejus quae fecit in medio Aegypti-- ipsi Pharaoni regi Aegypti-- et universae terrae ejus.

4. And what he did unto the army of Egypt-- unto their horses-- and to their chariots: how he made the water of the Red sea to overflow them-- as they pursued after you-- and how the Lord hath destroyed them unto this day;

4. Et quae fecit exercitui Aegyptiorum-- equis ejus et curribus ejus: qui inundare fecit aquas maris rubri super fades eorum-- dum vos persequerentur: et perdidit eos Jehova usque in hanc diem.

5. And what he did unto you in the wilderness-- until ye came into this place;

5. Quae praeterea fecit vobis in deserto donec veniretis usque ad locum istum.

6. And what he did unto Dathan and Abiram-- the sons of Eliab-- the son of Reuben: how the earth opened her mouth-- and swallowed them up-- and their households-- and their tents-- and all the substance that was in their possession-- in the midst of all Israel.

6. Et quae fecit Datham et Abiram filiis Eliab filii Ruben-- quando aperuit terra os suum-- deglutivit eos-- domosque eorum ac tabernacula eorum-- atque universam substantiam quae erat in pedibus eorum-- in medio totius Israelis.

7. But your eyes have seen all the great acts of the Lord which he did.

7. Quandoquidem oculi vestri viderunt omnia opera Jehovae magna quae fecit.

1. Therefore thou shalt love the Lord thy God. The whole address has this scope, that the people should testify their gratitude by their obedience, and thus being allured by God's bounties, should reverently embrace His Law. On this account also, he requires them to love God, before he exhorts them to obey the Law itself. For, although he might have imperiously and menacingly commanded them, he preferred to lead them gently to obedience, by setting before them the sweetness of His grace. In sum, he exhorts them that, being invited by God's love, they should love him in return. Meanwhile, it is well to observe that free affection is the foundation and beginning of duly obeying the Law, for what is drawn forth by constraint, or servile fear, cannot please God. He designates the precepts of the Law by various names, in order that they may zealously and attentively apply themselves to listen to God, who has omitted nothing calculated to regulate their life; for, by this variety of words, he signifies that God had familiarly and perfectly taught whatever was required. As to the three latter words, "his statutes, and judgments, and commandments," what I have observed in Genesis and in the Psalms may be referred to. The word msmvt, [254] meshamroth, or guards, (custodiae,) which here stands first, is spoken in commendation of the Law on this ground, that it fences in our life, as it were, with rails, lest it should be exposed to errors on the right hand and on the left,. At the end of the verse he exhorts them to perseverance, because it was not allowable for the recollection of their deliverance ever to cease.

2. And know ye this day. He again confirms the preceding sentence; because they had been more than sufficiently taught by the illustrious acts of God, how great was His power and how remarkable His mercy toward themselves. Two meanings may be given to the words; for some connect them thus, "Know ye this day the chastisement of the Lord," and include in a parenthesis the clause, "for I speak not with your children, which have not known, and have not seen;" but others read the word of exhortation "know ye" separately, and [255] without any connection. The latter view pleases me best; although it little affects the substance of the matter which exposition we follow. For Moses admonishes them, that, if they only pay attention to the works of God, His glory, which may instruct them to fear Him, may be clearly beheld in them. In order, however, to urge them more vehemently, he adds, that he does not speak to posterity, to which the fame of these miracles would reach, but that he addresses eye-witnesses, who need no proof of them, having been assured of them by certain experience. He celebrates in many expressions of eulogy these miracles, whereby God had testified to them His power and goodness, lest they should lightly pass by what was worthy of their most earnest attention, and constant meditation. I forbear now to speak of other points, which I have elsewhere commented on. The word mvsr [256] musar, which stands first, is general, and extends to all the specific terms that follow; some, therefore, improperly render it "chastisement." Where it is said at the end of verse 4, that the Egyptians were "destroyed unto that day," we must understand that the effects of the slaughter, wherewith God destroyed them, were felt as if still present.

5. And what he did unto you. These things will be spoken of in their proper place in the regular course of the history, from which my method of teaching has compelled me to wander a little. For Moses, to heighten the authority of the Law, sets before them compendiously the circumstances which had occurred in the desert, partly in order that God's judgments might alarm them by their severity, and partly that His mercies might draw their minds towards Him by their graciousness. Finally, he concludes by saying that he does not speak of unknown things, but that he merely recalled to their recollection the works of God whereof they had been themselves spectators.

Footnotes:

[254] msmrt. A. V., charge. The LXX. keeps closest to the Hebrew idiom, phulaxe ta phulagmata autou. -- W.

[255] Tellement que tont le reste va son train. -- Fr.

[256] mvsr S.M. has rendered this word castigatio. V., disciplina. The root is ysr; and both the root and noun meaning to correct and correction, will sometimes mean to chastise, etc. -- W

16. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;

16. Cavete ergo vobis ne seducatur cor vestrum, et recedatis, colatisque deos alienos, et vos incurvetis coram eis.

17. And then the LORD'S wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you.

17. Unde excandescat ira Jehovae in vos, et claudat coelos ne sit pluvia, ac ne det terra fructum suum: pere-atisque celeriter e terra bona quam Jehova dat vobis.

16 Take heed to yourselves. By often inculcating the same thing, viz., that they should diligently take heed, he indirectly arraigns man's proneness to superstition; and this too is again expressed in the words, "that your heart be not deceived;" for by them he signifies, that unless they take diligent heed to themselves, nothing will be more easy than for them to fall into the snares of Satan. Wherefore the impudence of the Papists is the less excusable, who intoxicate their own and others' minds with security, when God constantly exhorts them to solicitude. Let us learn, then, that since many impostures and deceits besiege us on every side, we shall in the vanity of our nature be liable immediately to fall into them, unless we carefully guard ourselves. By the expression "turn aside," he implies what has been before said, that whosoever declines to corrupted worship, impiously falls away from the true God. Unbelievers but little think so, for with them it is a light transgression to exceed in this respect; and they would wilfully blind the eyes of God with their inventions (commentis), nay, there is nothing too silly for them to desire to be approved of, and sanctioned by God. But if it be objected that obedience is better than sacrifice, they shield themselves under the cover of their good intention, as if God were not at liberty to repudiate what they foolishly obtrude upon Him. At any rate, they so pertinaciously indulge themselves in their inconsiderate zeal, that they will hardly acknowledge the slightest fault in it. But, on the other side, God declares that all are apostates who do not confine themselves to the simplicity of the Law. A threat is again added, that God will avenge the violation of His worship, and will curse their land, until He shall destroy them by dearth and famine; and, finally, He pronounces that they shall perish off that land which God had promised them to the end that He might be there purely worshipped.

18. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart, and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.

18. Ponite verba haec in corde vestro, et animo vestro, atque ea ligate in signum in manu vestra, sintque in frontalia inter oculos vestros.

19. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

19. Et docete ea filios vestros, et loquamini de eis quum sedebis domi tuae, et quum ambulabis per viam: quumque jacebis in lecto, et quum surges.

20. And thou shalt write them upon the door-posts of thine house, and upon thy gates.

20. Scribes quoque ea in postibus domus tuae, et in portis tuis.

18. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words. He again demands their serious attention, lest if the doctrine he propounds should be only lightly and carelessly received, it should speedily be let slip; for to lay up in, or on, the heart, is the same as to hide deeply in it; although, where the word "soul" is added, the "heart" refers to the mind, or the intellectual faculties. In fine, he commands them to have the Law not only impressed on the mind, but embraced with sincere affection. In the next place, he commands that aid to the memory which we have just considered, viz., that they should wear the precepts on the arms and foreheads; as if God should constantly meet them, to arouse their senses. For (as has been said) God had no regard to the bands themselves, but would have them seen on their arms and foreheads for another object, viz., [236] to suggest and renew their care for religion. Again, He appointed them to occupy the place of ornaments, in order to accustom the people to take their chief delight in meditating on the Law. Thus that foolish ambition is sufficiently refuted, when hypocrites sought after a reputation for holiness by their fringes and other fopperies, as well as that gross error of the whole people, in thinking that they discharged their duty to God by their outward dress. What follows afterwards, that the precepts should be written on the gates of their cities, and on their private houses, tends to the same thing; for we have said, that since men's minds are prone to vanity, and are easily distracted by innumerable allurements, they have need of such stays to hold them back. And this object is plainly expressed, when He commands them severally to speak of the precepts of the Law, whether they are sitting at home, or going abroad, or lying down, or rising up; because without diligent exercise, it usually happens that whatever men have once learnt is soon lost. He adds, also, another effect of this diligence, viz., that not only should each of them consult their own individual advantage, but also teach their children, whereby God's Law would ever be maintained in rigor by perpetual succession.

Footnotes:

[236] C'est de renouveler aux enfans d'Israel la pensee, qu ils devoyent avoir de s'enquerir de sa volonte;" to renew in the children of Israel the care they ought to have in inquiring as to His will. -- Fr.

26. Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;

26. Vide, ego pono coram vobis hodie benedictionem et maledictionem:

27. A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day:

27. Benedictionem, si obedieritis praeceptis Jehovae Dei vestri, quae ego praecipio vobis hodie:

28. And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.

28. Maledictionem vero, si non obedieritis praeceptis Jehovae Dei vestri, sed recesseritis e via quam ego praecipio vobis hodie, ut ambuletis post deos alienos quos non novistis.

29. And it shall come to pass, when the Lord thy God hath brought thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal.

29. Quumque introduxerit te Jehova Deus tuus in terram quam tu ingrederis ut possideas eam, tunc dabis benedictionem super montem Garizim, et maledictionem super montem Ebal.

30. Are they not on the other side Jordan, by the way where the sun goeth down, in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the champaign over against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh?

30. Annon sunt trans Jordanem post viam ad occasum solis vergentem in terra Chananaei, qui habitant in planitie e regione Gilgal, juxta campestria Moreh?

31. For ye shall pass over Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God giveth you, and ye shall possess it, and dwell therein.

31. Vos enim transituri estis Jordanem, ut pergatis ad possidendam terram quam Jehova Deus vester dat vobis, et haereditabitis eam, et habitabitis in ea.

32. And ye shall observe to do all the statutes and judgments which I set before you this day.

32. Custodite ergo ad faciendum omnia statuta, et judicia, quae ego pono ante faciem vestram hodie.

26. Behold, I set before you this day. He now embraces the two points at once, viz., that they would be blessed if they earnestly apply themselves to the keeping of the Law, and cursed, if they shake off its yoke and revel in their lusts. But, when he says that he here sets before them a blessing and a curse, it is as much as to declare, that he does not merely tell them what is right, but that the reward is prepared if they obey; and if not, that the punishment is also at hand. Thus we see, that the doctrine which he had hitherto delivered is sealed by hope and fear, since they would not lose their labor if they obeyed it, nor be unpunished if they rejected it. But, that they may learn surely to embrace the promises and to fear the threatenings, he repeats what we have met with before, [203] that God, who is both a faithful rewarder, and a severe judge, is the Author of the Law; yet at the same time he magnifies his own ministry, [204] since it behooved them to depend upon God, and to acquiesce in His commandments, in such a manner as still to submit themselves to His Prophet. For such is men's pride, that they desire to fly above the clouds to listen to God; whilst He would be heard in His servants, by whose mouth He speaks. Moses, therefore, would again enforce upon them this humility, when he states that he enjoins what God has commanded, as if to call himself the organ of the Holy Spirit.

29. And it shall come to pass, when the Lord. I have lately expounded a similar passage, which, although it is subsequent in the order observed by Moses, yet, inasmuch as it sets out the matter more clearly, I have not hesitated for perspicuity's sake to put first. I said that God's intention was, whilst appointing the Israelites to proclaim their own condemnation, to lay them under more solemn obligation to keep the Law. If He had Himself declared His will through the Levites only, they ought indeed to have been seriously affected, and to have listened with reverence both to the blessings and the curses; but when each of them testifies with his own mouth what the Levites dictated by God's command, the introduction of this assent, as a solemn ratification, [205] was more efficacious in awakening their zeal and attention. A more fitting season, however, for this protest was after they had entered the promised land than as if it had been made in the plain of Moab; for the sight of the land tended to its confirmation, as if they had been brought into court to make a covenant with God.

These [206] two mountains are situated opposite to each other, in such a manner that the two divisions of the people might easily stand to bless and to curse, so that they might in concert approve of the promises and threats of God.

30. Are they not on the other side of Jordan. Although the form of interrogation is common in Hebrew, yet in this place Moses affirms more vehemently than as if he had only stated directly that these mountains were in the land of Canaan; for he wishes to encourage them in the confidence of entering the promised inheritance; just as he adds immediately afterwards, "Ye shall pass over Jordan." For, although they had already experienced the miraculous power of God in the conquest of the Amorites, and in heir occupation of the land of Bashan, yet such was their incredulity, that it was necessary constantly to dissipate their fears, so that they might lay aside all hesitation, and boldly prepare to advance. Finally, he founds an exhortation upon this great goodness of God; for the actual enjoyment of the land ought to have stimulated them the more in the service of God, because they were made to inherit it for the purpose of keeping the Law.

Footnotes:

[203] Added in Fr., "Plusieurs fois."

[204] Added in Fr., "Disant que c'est luy qui commande apres Dieu;" saying that it is he who commands after God.

[205] The Latin word used by C. is a legal one, ratihabitio, explained by Du Cange by "confirmatio, occurring more than once in the Digest, and in more modern writers." -- Adelung's Gloss. Man., in voce.

[206] "Ebal and Gerizim are two closely adjoining mountains, separated by a narrow valley, about a furlong in breadth, in which stands the town of Naplous, the ancient Shechem. This beautiful valley, covered with olive woods and corn fields, has Mount Gerizim on the south, and Mount Ebal on the north. The two mountains are, according to Buckingham, nearly equal in altitude, neither of them exceeding seven or eight hundred feet above the level of the valley, but much more above the level of the sea, as the whole country here is considerably elevated." -- Illustrated Comment on Deuteronomy 27:4.