God Speaks
Moses Sings a Song, Prophesies Over the Israelites, Then Departs
Verse of the Day: “Because [a person] loves me, says the LORD, I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him, with long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” (Psalm 91:14-16 NIV 2011) “Because [a person] loves me, says the LORD, I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him, with long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” (Psalm 91:14-16 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
Reflection:
Deuteronomy 32
The author of this blog feels compelled by God (YHWH–the God of the Judeo-Christian Bible) to prayer-a-phrase this Hebrew song addressing it to the people of the United States of America, applying it to our history and to teach it to our children.
Prayer: A prayer-song relating Deuteronomy 32 (NLT) to the USA.
1. Listen, O heavens [and nations], and I will speak [on behalf of the LORD God]! Hear, O [all the peoples of the] earth, the words that I say!
2. Let [the LORD’s] teaching fall on [the people of the USA] like rain; let [His message] settle like dew. Let [His] words fall like rain on the tender grass, like showers on young plants.
3. I will proclaim the name of the LORD; how glorious is our God!
4. He is the Rock; His deeds are perfect. Everything He does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright He is!
5. “[We] have acted corruptly toward [You, LORD]; when [we] acted so perversely, are [we really behaving like Your] children? [We] are a deceitful and twisted generation.”
6. Is this the way [we] repay the LORD, [we] foolish and senseless people? Isn’t He [our] Father who created [us]? Has He not made [us] and established [us]?
7. Remember the days of long ago; think about the generations past. Ask [our founding] fathers and [they] will inform [us]. Inquire of [our] elders, and they will tell [us].
8. When the Most High assigned the lands to the nations, when He divided up the human race, He established the boundaries of the peoples according to the number in His heavenly court.
9. “For the people of Israel [all true believers in YHWH] belong to [You] the LORD; [USA and the nation of Israel] is Your special possession.”
10. [The LORD] found Israel in a desert land, in an empty and howling wasteland. [He found the Mayflower colonists on a storm-tossed sea and rocky coastland.] He surrounded them and watched over them; He guarded them as He would [the pupils of] His eyes.
11. Like an eagle that rouses her chicks and hovers over her young, so [when they looked to Him in faith] He spread His wings to take them up and carried them safely on His pinions.
12. The LORD alone guided them; [when] they followed no [other] gods.
13. He let them ride over the highlands and feast on the crops of the fields. He nourished them with honey from the rock and olive oil from the stony ground. [For nearly 250 years as long as the citizens of the USA followed the principles of the Bible, the LORD has blessed US in many ways and walked with US through various disasters.]
14. [You, LORD] fed them yogurt from the herd and milk from the flock, together with the fat of lambs. [You] gave them choice rams from Bashan, and goats, together with the choicest of wheat. [We] drank the finest wine, made from the juice of grapes.
15. But [the Israelites and America] soon became fat and unruly; the people grew heavy, plump, and stuffed! Then they abandoned the God who had made them; they made light of the Rock of their salvation.
16. They stirred up His jealousy by worshiping [other] gods [or ideologies]; they provoked His fury with detestable deeds.
17. They offered sacrifices to demons, which are not God, to gods they had not known before, to new gods only recently arrived [Marxism, pornography for example], to gods their ancestors had never feared.
18. [We] neglected the Rock who had fathered [us]; [we] forgot the God who had given us birth.
19. “[You,] LORD, saw this and drew back, provoked to anger by [Your] own sons and daughters.
20. [You] said, ‘I will abandon them; then see what becomes of them. For they are a twisted generation, children without integrity.
21. They have roused [M]y jealousy by worshiping things that are not God; they have provoked [M]y anger with their useless idols. Now I will rouse their jealousy through people who are not even a people; I will provoke their anger through the foolish Gentiles.
22. For [M]y anger blazes forth like fire and burns to the depths of the grave. It devours the earth and all its crops and ignites the foundations of the mountains.
23. I will heap disasters on them and shoot them down with My arrows.
24. I will weaken them with famine, burning fever, and deadly disease. I will send the fangs of wild beasts and poisonous snakes that glide in the dust.
25. Outside, the sword will bring death, and inside, terror will strike both young men and young women, both infants and the aged.
26. I would have annihilated them, wiping out even the memory of them.
27. I feared the taunt of Israel’s [and America’s] enemy, who might misunderstand and say, “Our own power has triumphed! The LORD had nothing to do with this!”’
28. “But Israel [and USA] is a senseless nation; the people are foolish, without understanding.
29. Oh, that they were wise and could understand this! Oh, that they might know their fate!
30. How could one person chase a thousand of them, and two people put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?
31. But the rock of our enemies is not like our Rock, as even they recognize.
32. Their vine grows from the vine of Sodom, from the vineyards of Gomorrah. Their grapes are poison, and their clusters are bitter.
33, Their wine is the venom of serpents, the deadly poison of cobras.
34. “The LORD says, ‘Am I not storing up these things, sealing them away in [M]y treasury?
35. I will take revenge; I will pay them back. In due time their feet will slip. Their day of disaster will arrive, and their destiny will overtake them.’
36. “Indeed, the LORD will give justice to His people, and He will change His mind about His servants, when He sees their strength is gone and no one is left, slave or free.
37. Then He will ask, ‘Where are their gods, the rocks they fled to for refuge?
38. Where now are those gods, who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their offerings? Let those gods arise and help you! Let them provide you with shelter!
39. Look now; I myself am He! There is no other god but Me! I am the one who kills and gives life; I am the one who wounds and heals; no one can be rescued from My powerful hand!
40. Now I raise My hand to heaven and declare, “As surely as I live,
41 when I sharpen My flashing sword and begin to carry out justice, I will take revenge on My enemies and repay those who reject Me.
42. I will make My arrows drunk with blood, and My sword will devour flesh–the blood of the slaughtered and the captives [martyrs, the kidnapped and human trafficking victims will be avenged], and the heads of enemy leaders [will be cut off].”‘
43. “Rejoice with Him, you heavens, and let all of God’s angels worship Him. Rejoice with His people, you Gentiles, and let all the angels be strengthened in Him. For He will avenge the blood of His children; He will take revenge against His enemies. [The LORD] will repay those who hate Him and cleanse His people’s land.”
44. So Moses came with Joshua son of Nun and recited all the words of this song to the people.
Druteronomy 33-34
Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding Deuteronomy 33-34:
1. What does this chapter tell me about God?
2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?
Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.
Deuteronomy 33
1. God loves people and wants them to experience His blessings.
2. People often don’t recognize that the good things in their lives ultimately come from God.
Deuteronomy 34
1. God is very tender in the discipline of His children–although He forbade Moses from leading the Israelites into the Promise Land, He miraculously showed it to him. Also, God Himself buried Moses.
2. People are prone to either worship or vilify great leaders like Moses, sometimes both.
Prayer:
3. How might I pray regarding Deuteronomy 33-34?
Dear Father God, You are truly the ultimate source of all blessing. Your glory has particularly shined forth at various points in my life and the life of my nation. One of those blessings has been leaders like Moses to point out the right path and instruct us in what You expect of Your people. You have guided us when we were weak and our numbers were few, as well as when we were many and powerful. At times You gave us strength and helped us defeat our enemies, when we were often filled with pride and neglected to thank You. Please forgive our ingratitude and give us leaders, like the Levites, who turn to You for guidance and decision making. May we be people who obey Your word and guard Your covenant promises. May we not “play favorites” but teach Your regulations and instructions to upcoming generations. Establish the work of righteous leaders and strike down their foes. Help people know that the LORD loves them. Please surround Your people with Your love (whoever and wherever they are). Cause them to live in safety and preserve them from harm. Bless them with agricultural prosperity and good weather. May they have strong, wise leaders. May they come together to offer proper sacrifices to You, LORD. Expand their borders as they carry out Your justice and obey Your regulations. Fill us with Your favor and blessings so that we can bless others. May those who belong to You be happy, blessed, esteemed, and secure all their days. May You, the eternal God, always be adored for Your majestic splendor. Thank You that You are our source of security, our refuge, and our protecting shield, and under us are Your everlasting arms. Your sword will always triumph, and You, LORD God, will be glorified forever. Gracious Father God, would You please give me a glimpse of the future of Your kingdom, especially of those for whom I am responsible? May You be as tender in disciplining me as You were with Moses. I want to leave behind a legacy that points people to You as he did. May part of that legacy be training someone to carry through on tasks for Your kingdom I cannot complete. Until then, please help me to be obedient to Your commands and love You with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. Give me a heart to love Your people as Moses did. Grant me the privilege of seeing You use me in people’s lives even a small fraction of the way You worked through him. You promise in Your word that one day I will see and worship You face to face. Then all of Your adopted children will bring You glory. AMEN
Action (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Deuteronomy 33-34? With the help of God’s Holy Spirit:
- I will confess to the LORD daily any sins the Holy Spirit brings to my mind so that I won’t have to suffer His wrath (which has already been applied to Jesus on the cross).
- I will discuss with the LORD whatever I think is unjust or unfair in my life and trust God to deal with it in the proper way and time.
- I will ask the LORD to show me practical ways I can help people to experience the blessings of God.
- I will write letters of encouragement and gratitude to leaders in various areas of my life and pray for (and if possible, with) them.
- I will mentor a younger person, encouraging them and preparing them to carry on at least one of the roles I now fill, showing them an example of an intimate, interactive relationship with the LORD.
Psalm 91 speaks of the security and protection that is provided by trust in the LORD. It is known as the warrior’s psalm. Although it is often prayed as a protection against physical harm and danger, Psalm 91 is more appropriately applied to spiritual warfare.
Prayer: In Psalm 91, LORD, You speak of the security and protection You provide to those who trust in the LORD. It is a warrior’s psalm. Although I have often prayed it as protection against physical harm and danger, it is more appropriately applied to spiritual warfare. It is like the warning sirens that tell me to run to the bomb-shelter that is You, LORD. All of the circumstances listed in Psalm 91 are used by Satan and his forces to try to distract, disrupt, disturb, destroy, disable, or cause the death of the people You created and chose for Your own. Thank You that I am one of them. This running to You, LORD, and all of the resources You have provided applies to all of my true enemies–the world system, my corrupted human nature, my own personal nature as well as satanically controlled beings or ideologies. If, however, I continually live in Christ, You promise, LORD, “I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in My name. When they call on Me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. I will reward them with long life and give them My salvation.” I know by experience that You do keep Your promises. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will use this Psalm in interactive prayer–letting each phrase (God speaks) guide me as to what I should pray back to Him (we respond).
- I will ask the LORD to reveal how He is working and to confirm the work of my hands.
- I will research the spiritual weapons God has provided and practice to become comfortable in using them.
- I will memorize Psalm 91:14-16.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.