“But be assured today that the LORD your God is the one who goes across ahead of you like a devouring fire. He will destroy them; he will subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them quickly, as the LORD has promised you.”
~ Deuteronomy 9:3
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you know how many guys, gals and kids there were in the Israelite people group who left Egypt for the Promised Land? Over the 430 years that Jacob’s extended family clans lived in Goshen, Egypt, Jacob’s extended family grew to somewhere around 600,000 guys plus gals and kids. Jacob’s extended family was God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids. Jacob’s extended family became known as the Israelite people group. Your grandpaa thinks there were probably about two million guys, gals and kids who left Egypt for the Promised Land. God’s specially chosen guys and gals took with them on their exodus to the Promised Land their animals and personal possessions. Do you remember who the guy was who God chose to lead His specially chosen guys, gals and kids from Egypt to the Promised Land? Before God created planet Earth, God chose Moses to be the guy to lead His specially chosen guys, gals and kids out of Egypt to the Promised Land. Deuteronomy 9 has Moses talking to God’s specially chosen guys and gals just days before they would cross the Jordan River into the land area which God had promised them that they would always have as their very own land to live in if . . . Moses is using this time to encourage the two million or so guys, gals and kids to always look to God for His help. Moses knew that God’s specially chosen guys would have to face and kill Anakites – who were giants, in the Promised Land. Moses also is using this time to remind His specially chosen guys and gals about the all bad decisions that they had made during their meandering journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. Do you remember how long that it took for God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids to get to the Promised Land from Egypt? It ultimately took God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids forty years to make the walk.
Why do you think that it took God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids so long to make the trek from Egypt to the land which God had promised them that they would always have as their very own land to live in if . . . as the Promised Land was only about 300 to 600 miles from Egypt depending on the route that they took? You would have to walk three times to New York City from your house in Newark, Delaware to go somewhere around the distance that God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids went to get from Egypt to the Promised Land. Your grandpaa thinks that there wasn’t any way that God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids could move quickly with having to herd their livestock and with having to carry their personal possessions. Other than using chariots to get around – which God’s specially chosen guys and gals did not have, the only way that the Israelite people group guys, gals and kids could get from one place to another place was to walk. On their trek to the Promised Land, Moses had the Israelite people group guys, gals and kids stop at a place called Mt. Sinai. Do you know what happened when God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids made that stop at Mt. Sinai? Moses climbed to the top of Mt. Sinai. Moses stayed on the top of Mt. Sinai for forty days and forty nights. Moses did not eat for the forty days and forty nights when he was on Mt. Sinai. What do you think that Moses was doing while he was on the top of Mt. Sinai? Moses was talking with God. While Moses was on Mr. Sinai, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments to take to His specially chosen guys, gals and kids. Do you know what God’s specially chosen guys and gals did while Moses was on Mt. Sinai? When Moses did not return as soon as they thought that he should return from the top of Mt. Sinai, God’s specially chosen guys and gals decided to make out of gold an idol to worship. God’s specially chosen guys and gals when they lived in Egypt may have worshipped idols instead of worshipping God. God’s specially chosen guys and gals made a calf out of gold. When Moses finally came down from the top of where he had been on Mt. Sinai, how do you think that Moses felt when he saw the calf made from gold? Moses was very angry. Moses threw down the two stone tablets on which God had written the Ten Commandments breaking the two stone tablets. Before Moses came down from Mt. Sinai, God forewarned Moses what His specially chosen guys and gals were doing but . . . Moses was still very disappointed to see God’s specially chosen guys and gals worshipping an inanimate object. Moses reminded God’s specially chosen guys and gals that that was not the only time that they had been rebellious and disobedient to God. Moses reminded God’s specially chosen guys and gals how they had really gotten God angry with them at Taberah, Massah and Kibroth Hattaavah.
Why do you think that Moses wanted to remind God’s specially chosen guys and gals – like right before they were to go into the land that God had promised them, how really rebellious and disobedient that they had been to God. Moses wanted God’s specially chosen guys and gals to remember a couple of things as they entered into the Promised Land. Moses wanted God’s specially chosen guys and gals to remember that as evil and wicked as they had been before God that the guys and gals who were living in the Promised Land were even more evil and wicked than they had been before God. Moses in verse 3 reminds God’s specially chosen guys and gals as they prepared to go into the Promised Land what God would do for them “But be assured today that the LORD your God is the one who goes across ahead of you like a devouring fire. He will destroy them; he will subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them quickly, as the LORD has promised you.” You are just beginning your life journeys. It is a must that you ask God to be your guide to help you make the right decisions on your life journeys.
Deuteronomy 9 (118)