Deuteronomy 32:4

Deuteronomy 32:1-52 1. Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. 1. Auseultate coeli, et loquar, et audiat terra eloquia oris mei. 2. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distill as the dew; as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: 2. Stillabit, ut pluvia, doctrina mea: stillabit ut ros eloquium meum, ut pluviae gramen, et ut irabet super herbam. 3. Because I will publish the name of the Lord; ascribe ye greatness unto our God. 3. Quia nomen Jehovae invocabo: date magnitudinem Deo nostro. 4. He is the Rock, his work is perfect; for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth, and without iniquity; just and right is he. 4. Dei perfectum est opus: omnes enim viae ejus judicium: Deus veritas, et non est iniquitas, justus et rectus est. 5. They have corrupted themselves; their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation. 5. Corrupit sese illi, non filii ejus, macula eorum, generatio prava et perversa. 6. Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? is not he thy father that hath bought thee? hath he not made thee, and established thee? 6. Jehovae retribuitis istud popule stulte et insipiens: nonne ipse est pater tuus qui acquisivit te, ipse fecit te, et praeparavit te? 7. Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: ask thy father, and he will show thee; thy elders, and they will tell thee. 7. Memento dierum seculi, intellige annos generationis et generationis, interroga patrein tuum, annuntiabit tibi: senes tuos, et dicent tibi. 8. When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel: 8. Quando haereditates distribuit Excelsus gentibus, quando separavit filios hominum, statuit terminos populorum pro numero filiorum Israelis. 9. For the Lord's portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. 9. Pars enim Jehovae populus ejus, Jacob sors haereditatis ejus. 10. He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness: he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye. 10. Invenit eum in terra deserti, et in vastitate horroris deserti: circunduxit eum, introduxit eum, custodivit eum, ut pupillam oculi sui. 11. As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings; 11. Ut aquila quae excitat nidum suum, super pullos suos cubat, expandit alas suas, assumit eum, portando super alas suas. 12. So the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him. 12. Jehova solus deduxit eum, et non fuit eum illo deus alienigenae. 13. He made him ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eat the increase of the fields; and he made him to suck honey out of the rock, and oil out of the flinty rock; 13. Equitare fecit eum super excelsa terrae, et comedit fructus agri, et fecit ut sugeret mel e petra, et oleum e silice petrae. 14. Butter of kine, and milk of sheep, with fat of lambs, and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the fat of kidneys of wheat; and thou didst drink the pure blood of the grape. 14. Butyrum bovis, et lac ovium, cum adipe agnorum, et arietes filios Basan, et hircos una cum adipe granorum tritici, et sanguinem uvae bibisti rubicundum. 15. But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness: then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation. 15. Et impinguatus est Rectus, et recalcitravit: impinguatus es, in-rassatus es, operuisti: et dereliquit Deum qui fecit eum, ac despexit Ileum salutem suam. 16. They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger. 16. Provocaverunt eum ad zelum super extraneos, per abominationes irritaverunt eum. 17. They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not. 17. Sacrificaverunt daemoniis, non Deo, diis quos non noverant, novis qui de propinquo venerunt quos non timuerunt patres vestri. 18. Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee. 18. Dei qui genuit te, oblitus es, oblitus es, inquam, Dei qui creavit te. 19. And when the Lord saw it, he abhorred them, because of the provoking of his sons and of his daughters. 19. Quum autem vidisset Jehova, exacerbatus est irritatione filiorum et filiarum suarum. 20. And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very forward generation, children in whom is no faith. 20. Et dixit, Abscondam faciem meam ab eis, Videbo quid in novissimo eorum: generatio enim perversitatum sunt: et filii in quibus nulla est fides. 21. They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation. 21. Ipsi ad zelum provocaverunt me, in eo quod non est Deus, ad iracundiam me provocaverunt in vanitatibus suis: et ego ad zelum provocabo eos in eo qui non est populus: in gente stulta provocabo eos ad iram. 22. For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains. 22. Ignis enim succendetur in excandescentia mea, et ardebit usque ad infernum inferiorem: devorabitque terram et fructum ejus, et inflammabit fundamenta montium. 23. I will heap mischiefs upon them; I will spend mine arrows upon them. 23. Cumulabo super eos mala, sagittas meas consumam in eis. 24. They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust. 24. Combusti erunt fame, et comesti aegritudine calida, et excisione amara: dentes quoque bestiarum immittam in eos cum veneno serpentium super terram. 25. The sword without, and terror within, shall destroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling also, with the man of gray hairs. 25. Foris orbabit gladius, et in cubiculis erit terror: etiam juvenem, etiam virginera, lactentem cum viro sene. 26. I said, I would scatter them into corners, I would make the remembrance of them to cease from among men: 26. Dicerem, Dispergam eos per angulos, cessare faciam ex hominibus memoriam eorum. 27. Were it not that I feared the wrath of the enemy, lest their adversaries should behave themselves strangely, and lest they should say, Our hand is high, and the Lord hath not done all this. 27. Nisi iram inimici timerem, ne forte alienos se ostentent hostes eorum: ne forte dicant, Manus nostra excelsa, neque Jehova operatus est omnia ista. 28. For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them. 28. Gens enim perdita consiliis sunt, nec est illis intelligentia. 29. Oh that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end! 29. Si sapientes essent, intelligerent novissimum suum. 30. How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had shut them up? 30. Quomodo persequutus fuisset unus mille, et duo fugassent decem millia, nisi quod Deus eorum vendisset eos, et Jehova tradidisset eos? 31. For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. 31. Nam non est sient Deus noster, Deus illorum: et inimici nostri sunt judices. 32. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter: 32. Ex vite enim Sodom est vitis eorum, et ex vitibus Emorrhaeorum uvae eorum, uvae veneni, botri amaritudinum sunt eis. 33. Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps. 33. Venenum draconum, vinum eormn: et venenum aspidum crudele. 34. Is not this laid up in store with me, and sealed up among my treasures? 34. Nonne est reconditum apud me, obsignatum in thesauris meis? 35. To me belongeth vengeance and recompense: their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste. 35. Mea est ultio, et retributio, tempore nutabit pes eorum: quia propinquus est dies afflictionis eorum, et festinant quae futura sunt eis. 36. For the Lord shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up, or left. 36. Quia judicabit Jehova populum suum, et super servos suos poenitebit ipsum, quum videbit quod abierit manus, et non sit clausus et derelictus. 37. And he shall say, Where are their gods, their rock in whom they trusted; 37. Et dicet, Ubi sunt dii eorum, deus in quo sperabant? 38. Which did cat the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink-offerings? let them rise up and help you, and be your protection. 38. Qui adipem sacrificiorum illorum comedebant, et bibebant vinum libaminis illorum: surgant et opitulentur vobis, sit super vos absconsio. 39. See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill and I make alive; I wound, and I:heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. 39. Videte nunc quod ego, ego suae, et non sunt dii mecum: ego mori faciam, et vivere faciam: percutiam, et ego sanabo, et nemo est qui de manu mea eruat. 40. For I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live for ever. 40. Certe levabo ad coelum manum roeare, et dicam, Vivo ego in seculum. 41. If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment, I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me. 41. Si acuero aciem gladii mei, et arripuerit judiceum manus mea, reddam ultionem hostibus meis, et odio habentibus me retribuam. 42. I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh; and that with the blood of the slain, and of the captives, from the beginning of revenges upon the enemy. 42. Inebriabo sagittas meas sanguine, et gladius meus devorabit carnem, sanguine, inquam, occisorum et captivorum a capite in ultionibus inimici. 43. Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people; for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people. 43. Laudate Gentes populum ejus, quia sanguinem servorum suorum vindceabit, et vindictam reddet hostibus suis, et propitius erit terrae suae, populo suo. 44. And Moses came and spake all the words of this song in the ears of the people, he and Hoshea the son of Nun. 44. Venit autem Moses, et recitavit omnia verba cantici istius in auribus populi, ipse et Josue filius Nun: 45. And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel: 45. Et finivit Moses recitare omnia verba ista ad universum Israelem: 46. And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law. 46. Dixitque illis, Adjicite cor vestrum ad omnia verba quae ego testificor adversum vos hodie, ut praecipiatis ea filiis vestris, ut custodiant, et faciant omnia verba legis istius. 47. For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it. 47. Non enim verbum hoc inane a vobis, sed est vita vestra, et per hoc verbum prolongabitis dies super terram ad quam possidendam vos transitis Jordanem. 48. And the Lord spake unto Moses that self-same day, saying, 48. Loquutusque est Jehova ad Mosen eo ipso die, dicendo: 49. Get thee up into this mountain Abarim, unto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho, and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession; 49. Ascende in montem Abarim istum, montem Neboh, qui eat in terra Moab, et qui est e regione Jericho, et vide terram Chenaan, quam ego do filiis Israel in haereditatem. 50. And die in the mount whither thou goest up, and be gathered unto thy people; as Aaron thy brother did in mount Hor, and was gathered unto his people: 50. Et morere in monte ad quem ascendis, et congregare ad populos tuos, quemadmodum mortuus est Aharon frater tuus in Hor monte, et congregatus est ad populos suos. 51. Because ye trespassed against me among the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah-Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin; because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel. 51. Et quod praevaricati estis me in medio filiorum Israelis ad aquas jurgii Cades desertl Sin, eo quod non sanctificastis me in medio filiorum Israelis: 52. Yet thou shalt see the land before thee; but thou shalt not go thither unto the land which I give the children of Israel. 52. E regione quidera videbis terram, sed illuc non ingredieris ad terram illam quam do filiis Israelis. 1. Give ear, O ye heavens. Moses commences in a strain of magnificence, lest the people should disdain this song with their usual pride, or even reject it altogether, being exasperated by its severe censures and reproaches. For we well know how the world naturally longs to be flattered, and that no strain can be gratifying to it unless it tickles and soothes the ear with praise. But Moses here not only inveighs bitterly against the vices of the people, but with the utmost possible vehemence stigmatizes their perverse nature, their utterly corrupt morals, their obstinate ingratitude, and incorrigible contumacy. Moreover, he desired that these accusations, whereby he rendered their name detestable, should daily echo from their tongues; and thus they became still more offensive. It was, therefore, requisite that their impatience should be bridled, as it were, in order that they might patiently and humbly receive these just reproofs, however severe they might be. If, therefore, they should repudiate this song, or should turn a deaf ear to it, he declares at the outset that heaven and earth would be witnesses of their prodigious obtuseness; nay, he turns and addresses himself to heaven and earth, and thus signifies that it was worthy of the attention of all creatures, even although they were without intelligence or feeling. For it is a hyperbolical mode of expression, when he assigns the faculty of hearing, and being instructed, to the senseless elements; just as Isaiah, when he would intimate that he found none to give heed to him amongst the whole people, in like manner appeals to the heavens and the earth, and even summons them to bear witness to the prodigious iniquity, that there should be less of intelligence amongst the whole people than in oxen and asses. ( Isaiah 1:2 , 3.) For it is but a meager exposition, which some give of these words, that they are used, by metonymy, for angels and men. [247] 2 My doctrine shall drop as the rain. Some, as I think improperly, here resolve the future tense into the optative mood, [248] for in this splendid eulogium he rather celebrates, in order to commend his doctrine, the fruitfulness [249] which is actually imparted to it by the Holy Spirit, than asks for it to be given to him; and my readers must at once perceive that such a request would have been by no means seasonable. He therefore compares his speech to rain or dew, as if he had said that, if only the people were like the soil in a state of softness and preparation, he would deliver doctrine to them which would irrigate them unto abundant fruitfulness. Although this expression refers especially, and kat ' exochen to the Song, still its force and propriety extends to all divine teaching; for God never speaks except to render men fruitful in good works, just as, by instilling succulency and vigor into the earth by means of rain, He makes it fertile for the production of fruit. But, like the rocks and stones, which imbibe no moisture from the most abundant rains, so many are hindered by their own perversity from being fertilized by spiritual irrigation. Wherefore Moses indirectly throws the blame upon the Israelites, if the doctrine of this Song should drop upon them in vain. 3 Because I will publish the name of the Lord. He signifies by these words that, if there were any spark of piety in the Israelites, it must be manifested by their welcoming this address, wherein the majesty of God shines forth. The first clause of the verse, therefore, stands last in order, since it is an assignment of a reason for the other. For when he exhorts them that they should ascribe to God the glory He deserves, he inculcates upon them obedience and attention, as if he had said that, unless they reverently submit themselves to his teaching, God would be defrauded of this due honor; and this he confirms by adding as a reason that he will sincerely and faithfully publish the name of God. For the word invoke [250] is not used here as in many other passages, but is equivalent to making a profession of God. Moses, then, declares himself to be His proclaimer, in order that, under cover of His most Holy name, he may awaken attention to his words. 4. His work is perfect. Those who take these expressions generally, and without particular reference to this passage, not only obscure their meaning, but also lessen the force of the doctrine they contain. Let us, then, understand that the perfection of God's works, the rectitude of His ways, etc., are contrasted with the rebellion of the people; for if there were anything [251] in God's works imperfect and in arranged, if His mode of dealing were deficient in rectitude, if His truth were doubtful; if, in a word, there were anything wanting, then there would have been a natural excuse why the people should have sought for something better than they found in Him, since the desire of obtaining that which is best is deserving of no reprehension. Lest, then, the Israelites should offer any such pretext, Moses anticipates them. Before he begins to treat of the wicked ingratitude of the people, he lays down this principle, that they were not induced to transfer their affections elsewhere by any deficiency in God. The general statement is indeed true in itself, and may be applied to various purposes; but we must consider what the object of Moses here is, namely, to remove from the people every pretext for their impious and perfidious rebellion, and this in order that their amazing folly may be more apparent, when they forsake the fountain of living waters, and hew them out cisterns with holes in them, as God himself complains in Jeremiah 2:13 . We perceive therefore, that every honorable distinction which is here attributed to God, brands the people with a corresponding mark of ignominy, in that they had knowingly and voluntarily deprived themselves of the plenitude of all good things, which might have been enjoyed by them had they not alienated themselves from God. God's work is spoken of, not only with reference to the creation of the world, but to the whole course of His providence; as if it were said that nothing could be discovered in God's works which could be found fault with. Now this perfection is not perceptible in every individual thing, for even vermin are God's creatures; and amongst men some are blind, some lame, some deaf, and others mutilated in one of their members; and many fruits also never arrive at maturity. Yet we plainly see that it is foolish and misplaced to bring forward such questions as these as objections to the perfection of God, here celebrated by Moses, inasmuch as the very defects and blemishes of our bodies tend to this object, that God's glory may be made manifest. ( John 9:3 .) The next statement, that all his ways are right, [252] conveys a similar truth; for it is well known that the word mspht, mishphat, is used for rectitude, and works and ways are synonymous. The latter part of the verse is a confirmation of the former part, since Moses signifies in both that all who censure God may be clearly convicted of petulant impiety, since supreme justice shines forth in all His acts. The words I have rendered, "God is truth," others construe with the genitive case, "a God of truth." Either is true, and agreeable to the usage of Scripture; but the apposition is more emphatic, which declares that God is not only true, but the Truth itself. At any rate, this applies to the persons who pay entire allegiance to the word of God, for their expectations shall never be frustrated. Thus the people are indirectly reproved for their unbelief, in that they deserted God, whose faithfulness was not only tried and proved, but who is the very fountain of truth. Although what follows, that there is no iniquity in God, seems to some to have but little force, it is nevertheless of great importance; for we well know how often men are so absurd in their subterfuges, as in a manner to arraign God instead of themselves; and although they do not dare to accuse Him openly, still they do not hesitate to acquit themselves, and thus to cast direct obloquy upon Him. Elsewhere, therefore, God inquires by His Prophet, "what iniquity the people had found in Him?" ( Jeremiah 2:5 ,) and in another place expostulates with them, because He was loaded with their hatred and abuse, as if He dealt unjustly with such sinners. ( Ezekiel 18:2 ,5.) When, therefore, He vindicates Himself from such calumnies, it follows that no blame attaches itself to Him, but that the wickedness of those who turn away from Him is abundantly condemned. 5. They have corrupted themselves. Moses now inveighs unhesitatingly against the perfidy of the people, and gives loose to the most unmeasured upbraidings; for if God be just and true, then it was plain enough that the Israelites were a depraved and perverse nation. This perverse nation, he says, has corrupted itself towards Him, namely Him, whom he has just lauded for His perfect justice and faithfulness; and he accuses them of having basely prostituted to every sort of sin the chastity which they had promised to God. There is no doubt but that they were sorely wounded by these epithets, and would have been transported with rage, had they not seen that God's incomparable servant, when he had now been called upon to die by God's command, spoke as it were from heaven. The voice, therefore, of the dying man restrained their pride, so that they did not now dare to oppose him as a mortal; and afterwards, when the condemnation had been assented to by public authority, and by general accord, they were less at liberty to vent their madness against it. He introduces, by way of anticipation, the statement that they were not His children; for else they might obviously have made the objection that the sacred race of Abraham, which God had adopted, should be dealt with less reproachfully. Moses, therefore, declares that they are not children, because they are a perverse nation. For although their adoption always stood firm, still its efficacy was restricted to the elect part of them, so that God, without breaking His covenant, might reject the general body. But to explain the matter more clearly, it must be borne in mind that the Spirit, on different grounds, at one time assigns the name of God's children to hypocrites, at another takes it away; for sometimes it is an aggravation of their criminality, when they are called the children of Abraham and Jacob as well as of God, an instance of which will soon occur. Here, however, in order that they may cease to glory without cause, they are said not to be children, because they are degenerate, and therefore disinherited by God, so as no longer to retain their honorable position. In this sense Moses declares that they are not children, as having cast off God from being their Father. It is added this was done with their spot (or disgrace; [253] ) unless it be thought preferable to take it that. they were corrupted by their spots, or by their sins, to which I willingly assent; although I do not reject the other sense, namely, that their alienation from God had rendered them ignominious, or that they had contracted the stain of disgrace by their faithlessness. 6. Do ye thus requite the Lord. In order to expose the ingratitude of the people to greater infamy, he now begins to commemorate the benefits whereby God had laid them under obligation to Himself: for the more liberally God deals with us, the more earnest ought to be the piety awakened in our hearts; nay, His goodness, as soon as we have tasted of it, ought to draw us at once to Him. Now God, although he has been always bountiful towards the whole human race, had, in a peculiar manner showered down an immense abundance of His bounty upon that people; this, then, Moses alleges, and shows how basely ungrateful they had been. He first expostulates with them interrogatively, asking them whether this was a fitting return for God's especial blessings; and then proceeds to enumerate them. He inquires of them, then, whether God was not their father, from the time when He had honored them with the distinction of His adoption: and under this single head he comprehends many things, because from this source proceeded whatever blessings God had conferred upon them. Not, however, to examine every point with the accuracy it deserves, what more binding obligation could be imagined than that God should have chosen one nation for Himself out of the whole world, whose father He should be by special privilege? For, although all human beings, since they were created in the image of God, are sometimes called His children, still to be accounted His children was the special privilege of the sons of Abraham. And, in order to prove that this was not a natural, but an acquired dignity, Moses immediately afterwards explains in what way God was their Father: viz., that he purchased, made, and prepared them. The foundation and origin, then, was the gratuitous good pleasure of God, when He took them to be His own peculiar people. Elsewhere, indeed, His second purchase of them is mentioned, when He redeemed them from Egypt; here, however, Moses goes back farther, viz., to the covenant made with Abraham, whereby they were separated from other nations, as will presently more clearly appear. I reject, as not in harmony with the context, the translation which some give of the word, qnh, kanah, i.e., to possess. [254] In the same sense it is added, that they were made by God: which does not. refer to the general creation, but only to the privilege of adoption, whereby they became God's new work, and in which another form was imparted to them; in which sense also He is called their framer, or Maker. Elsewhere, also, when the Prophet says, "Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves," ( Psalm 100:3 ,) he undoubtedly magnifies that special prerogative, whereby God had distinguished the sons of Abraham above all other races. For, since the fall of Adam had brought disgrace upon all his posterity, God restores those, whom He separates as His own, so that their condition may be better than that of all other nations. At the same time it must be remarked, that this grace of renewal is effaced in many who have afterwards profaned it. Consequently the Church is called God's work and creation, in two senses, i.e., generally with respect to its outward calling, and specially with respect to spiritual regeneration, as far as regards the elect; for the covenant of grace is common to hypocrites and true believers. On this ground all whom God gathers into His Church, are indiscriminately said to be renewed and regenerated: but the internal renovation belongs to believers only; whom Paul, therefore, calls God's "workmanship, created unto good works, which God hath prepared," etc. ( Ephesians 2:10 .) The same is the tendency of the third word, which may, however, be taken for to "establish;" [255] although I have preferred to follow the more received sense, viz, that God had prepared His people, as the artificer fashions and fits his work. 7 Remember the days of old. This is an explanation of the preceding verse, for Moses again shows how God had acquired this people, viz., because he had chosen to separate them from other nations according to His own good pleasure. But, since the Israelites might be inflated by their present superiority, they are reminded of their origin, and Moses commands them not to consider what they now are, but also from whence they had been taken, and with this view he says, Remember the old times; ask the elders, etc. For we know how men, when they do not reflect that whatever they have, proceeded from God, and is held, as it were, at will, are blinded by their dignity, so as not only to despise others, but also to exalt themselves against, the Author of all good things. Moses, in order to subdue this arrogance, says that all peoples were alike under the hand and power of God, and thus that their diversity was not in their original nature, but derived from elsewhere, i.e., from God's free choice. In the word vhnchl, behanchel, there is some ambiguity: for some translate it, When the Most High divided the earth to the nations; and, though I do not reject this, still I have preferred the meaning more in accordance with the context; [256] for Moses says the same thing twice over, and the second clause is the explanation of the first. He says, therefore, that God distributed the nations, as an inheritance is divided; and then this is more clearly repeated, when he mentions the separation of the sons of Adam. When, in the latter part of the verse, it is said, that He set bounds to the nations according to the number of the children of Israel, it is commonly explained that He set bounds to the nations in such sort, that the habitation of the sons of Abraham was secured to them. Some of the Hebrews take it in a more restricted sense, viz., that in the distribution of the world, so much was given to the seven nations of Canaan as should be sufficient for the children of Israel. In my opinion, however, his meaning is, that in the whole arrangement of the world, the object which God had in view was to provide for His elect people: for, although His bounty extended to all, still He had such regard for His own, that, chiefly on their account, His care also extended to others. The word number is expressly employed; as if Moses had said, that, however small a portion of the human race the posterity, of Abraham might be, nevertheless that number was before God's eyes, when He ordered the state of the whole world; unless it be preferred to take the word msphr, misphar, [257] for a ratio; but it will not be unsuitable to the passage to understand it that this small body was so precious to God, that he arranged the whole distribution of the world with a view to their welfare. Some refer it to the calling of the Gentiles, as if Moses had said that the empire of the whole world was destined to the seed of Abraham, because it was to be propagated through all the regions of the world; but this is altogether erroneous, for nothing is here indicated but the distinction, formerly conferred upon one nation. [258] 9 For the Lord's portion is his people. This is the main point, that God was moved by nothing but His own good pleasure to make so much of this people, who had been derived from a common origin with all others: for when he says, that Jacob was the portion of Jehovah, and the lot of His inheritance, he does not mean that there was anything better in them than in others, but he assigns the reason why God preferred this one nation to the rest of mankind; viz., because He took it to Himself as His hereditary portion, which dignity depends upon His gratuitous election. 10. He found him in a desert land. If the intention of Moses had been to record all the instances of God's paternal kindness towards the people, he must have commenced from the time of Abraham; like the prophet who, when presenting a complete narrative in the Psalm, begins from that original covenant, which God had made with the fathers, ( Psalm 105:8 ;) and also introduces the benefits which He had conferred upon them, when they were but few in number, and strangers in the land, when they went from one nation to another, yet he suffered no man to do them wrong, and reproved kings for their sakes. ( Psalm 105:14 .) But Moses, studying brevity, deemed it sufficient to bring forward a more recent and more notorious blessing; nay, he omits the early part of their deliverance, and only makes mention of the desert, he says, then, that Go

He is the {c} Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he. (c) Or mighty God; noting that only God is mighty, faithful and constant in his promise.

[He is] the Rock, his work [is] perfect: for all his ways [are] judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right [is] he. He is the rock. — A firm and everlasting refuge, a "Rock of Ages." Isaiah 26:4 One age passeth away, and another, and a third, …, but the rock remains. "The name of the Lord is a strong tower"; Proverbs 18:10 "munition of rocks"; Isaiah 33:16 rocks so deep, no pioneer can undermine them; so thick, no cannon can pierce them; so high, no ladder can scale them.

The rock, or, a rock , as for the stability and everlastingness of his nature, and invincibleness of his power, so also for his fixedness and immutability in his counsels and promises and ways; so that if there shall be a sad change in your affairs from a high and prosperous to a calamitous and deplorable condition, as there will be, remember that this proceeds from yourselves, and from the change of your ways and carriages towards God, and not from God, in whom there is no variableness nor shadow of change , Jam 1:17 . His work is perfect; all his works and actions are unblamable, as being perfect, wise, and righteous, as it follows. All his ways are judgment; all his administrations in the world, and particularly all his dealings with you, are managed with judgment and justice. A God of truth, constant to his promises: you cannot accuse him of any levity or unfaithfulness towards you to this day.

He is the rock,.... That is, Jehovah is the rock, whose name Moses proposed to publish; and our God, to whom the heavens and the earth are called upon to ascribe greatness, even Christ the rock of salvation: here begins the song; the first word in it is very emphatic; it has a letter in it larger than usual, to denote the greatness of this Person, and to make it observable; he is "this" or "that rock" (k), by way of eminence, that rock and stone of Israel, Jacob prophesied of, which was typified by the rock Moses had smitten in the wilderness, and which, no doubt, he knew, as the Apostle Paul did, that it was a type of Christ, and had taught the Israelites so to understand it; and therefore this epithet of a divine Person would not seem strange to them, and yet is that rock the unbelieving Jews would and did stumble at, and the rock of salvation they lightly esteemed and rejected; the rock of refuge for sensible sinners to flee unto for shelter and safety from the wrath and justice of God, and from every enemy; the rock the church of God and every believer are built upon, and in which they dwell; and who is the rock of ages that will endure forever, as the Saviour of his people, and the foundation of their faith and hope: his work is perfect; not so much the work of creation or of providence, which are both the works of Christ, but that of redemption and salvation, in which there is not only a display of all the divine perfections, but is complete in all its parts; the law is perfectly fulfilled, justice is fully satisfied, a perfect righteousness is wrought out, a complete pardon is procured, perfect peace is made, full atonement of sins obtained, and the whole work is finished; and is so perfect that nothing is wanting in it, or can be added to it, nor can it be unravelled or undone again: likewise the work of building the church on this rock is carrying on, and will be perfected when all the elect of God, all given to Christ and redeemed by his blood, shall be called by grace and gathered in; when the last of the chosen ones, and redeemed of the Lamb, is brought in and laid in the building; when Christ shall deliver up the kingdom to the Father complete, and God shall be all in all, and his church and people will be in a perfect state to all eternity: for all his ways are judgment; his ways, which he himself has taken and walked in; his ways of providence are according to the best judgment and highest wisdom, and according to the strictest justice and equity; his ways of grace towards the salvation of his people, and the building up his church on himself, the rock; all the methods he took in eternity and time were all formed according to the counsel of God, and planned with the greatest wisdom, founded in his righteous nature, and according to covenant compact with his Father, and entered into in the most honourable manner; and in which he brought about the salvation of his people, in perfect consistence with the justice and holiness of God, and to the honour of them and his holy law: and he has executed all his offices of prophet, priest, and King, in the most just and righteous manner: the ways which he has prescribed his people to walk in, and in which he leads them, are ways of truth, righteousness, and holiness; such are all his ordinances and commandments: a God of truth; so Christ is called; see Gill on Isaiah 65:16 ; or the true God, which also is his name, 1 John 5:20 ; and is so called in opposition to fictitious deities, and such who are only so by name or office, but not by nature; whereas he is truly and properly God, as appears from his names and nature, from his perfections, works, and worship, ascribed to him: or "God the truth" (l), for he is "the truth", John 14:6 ; the truth of all types, promises, and prophecies, which all have their accomplishment in him; the sum and substance of all truths and doctrines, from whom they all come, and in whom they all centre: or "the God of faith" or "faithfulness" (m); the object of faith, and the author and finisher of it; and who is faithful, as the God-man and Mediator, to him that appointed him, being intrusted with all the elect of God, with all promises and blessings of grace for them, with the fulness of grace to communicate unto them, with the glory of God in their salvation, and with their future and final happiness; and is faithful in the discharge of his offices of prophet, priest, and King: and without iniquity; in his nature, in his heart, in his lips, and in his life; nor was ever any committed by him: just and right is he; just, both as a divine Person, and as man and Mediator; a lover and doer of righteousness, a worker out of righteousness for his people, and the justifier of them by it; just and righteous, as the, servant of God, as King of saints, and Judge of the whole world; "right" or "upright", which is the character of a divine Person, agrees with Christ, and may denote his sincerity, uprightness, and faithfulness. (k) "quod attinet ad rupem illam", Piscator; "rupes illa", Van Till; "rupes illa", Vitringa. (l) "Deus veritas", Pagninus, Montanus. (m) "Deus fidei", Vatablus, Cocceius; "Deus veritatis sive fidei", Vitringa.

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.

4. He is the Rock—a word expressive of power and stability. The application of it in this passage is to declare that God had been true to His covenant with their fathers and them. Nothing that He had promised had failed; so that if their national experience had been painfully checkered by severe and protracted trials, notwithstanding the brightest promises, that result was traceable to their own undutiful and perverse conduct; not to any vacillation or unfaithfulness on the part of God (Jas 1:17), whose procedure was marked by justice and judgment, whether they had been exalted to prosperity or plunged into the depths of affliction.

He is the Rock, his work is perfect - Rather, the Rock, perfect is his work. This epithet, repeated no less than five times in the Song Deuteronomy 32:15 , Deuteronomy 32:18 , Deuteronomy 32:30-31 , represents those attributes of God which Moses is seeking to enforce, immutability and impregnable strength. Compare the expression "the stone of Israel" in Genesis 49:24 ; and see 1 Samuel 2:2 ; Psalm 18:2 ; Matthew 16:18 ; John 1:42 . Zur, the original of "Rock," enters frequently into the composition of proper names of the Mosaic time, e. g., Numbers 1:5-6 , Numbers 1:10 ; Numbers 2:12 ; Numbers 3:35 , etc. Our translators have elsewhere rendered it according to the sense "everlasting strength" Isaiah 26:4 , "the Mighty One" Isaiah 30:29 ; in this chapter they have rightly adhered to the letter throughout.