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DEUTERONOMY
CHAPTER 34

1 And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the LORD shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan, 2 And all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea, 3 And the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar. 4 And the LORD said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither. 5 So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. 6 And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.

This is really a relatively short chapter, especially as it concerns the death of one of the greatest men the world has ever known.
Let me share something with you at the end of this chapter which may make it more meaningful.
When I'm greeting people, most of them ask me, "How are you?" And I respond with, "Oh, I'm just meaner than ever." Most folk will laugh that off and just go on with the conversation. But some ask why I say that. Here's why. I am actually misquoting the book of Numbers, chapter 12, and verse 3 which says, "(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth."
The word "meek" does not mean weak or timid, even though the word does have a sense of describing an "humble" person. The word "meek" actually means power under control - or self-discipline.
Now I remember some folk of an older generation saying, "My daddy was a mean man." They weren't implying that he was awful; they were saying that he was self-disciplined.
As Christians we should be growing in self-control each day of our lives; growing in deference to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We should be less of ourselves each day, and more submissive to the authority of our Lord. THAT'S what I mean when I say I'm meaner than ever.

Now, in relation to the above discussion, many commentators have said that Moses obviously couldn't have written this chapter because of his death. What I submit is that Moses obviously DID write this chapter, because he truly was (besides our Lord, Jesus) the most MEEK, or self-controlled man ever on planet earth!
And when God described to Moses how he would die, Moses took it for the absolute truth and wrote it down!
God PROMISED Moses that he could SEE the land, but not ENTER the land. So God led Moses up to a high mountain, and Moses had an overview of the promised land.
At this point, we should pay particular attention to verse 6. When Moses had sight of the land, he died. Then GOD HIMSELF buried Moses! What an HONOR! Do you think God's anger toward Moses' previous sins was abated? Do you think God had truly forgiven Moses? Do you think God really loved this man Moses? He surely DID!
Further, God knew how people would honor Moses if they had the chance. So God buried Moses where NO ONE else would know his tomb. He would not be paraded around in some carsophagus like a special antique; neither would he be displayed as some "lesser-god."
In the memories of all Jewish writers, the law of God is referred to as the "Law of Moses." It was especially revealed by God to Moses for the people.
God would allow people neither to honor nor dishonor Moses; but God honored him in a special way. He buried him.

7 And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.

Isn't this interesting? Moses was 120 years of age when he died, but he was like 30! God had kept Moses miraculously in good health. But when the time came (God's time) for death, Moses DIED! Probably the greatest, most self-disciplined man that ever lived DIED just like every one else!
We should learn a lesson here. Death is not an enemy. Yes, we should fight to live every day as long as we know God has a purpose for us. But when we know He's through with us, we should be ready to go. God will care for honoring our memory - we don't need to be concerned with that.

8 And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.

The whole nation of Israel mourned Moses for 30 days.

9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Then Joshua took the leadership of the nation, and began preparations for entering Canaan land.

10 And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, 11 In all the signs and the wonders, which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land, 12 And in all that mighty hand, and in all the great terror which Moses shewed in the sight of all Israel.

Here's a statement many people miss. Moses was THE most confirmed prophet Israel ever had. God PROVED this prophet with many "signs and wonders." There was NEVER another prophet in Israel's history that equaled this man Moses (verse 10).
God spoke to Moses "face to face" in front of the whole nation. And God did that time after time during Moses' life.
Once Moses comitted to obeying God, he continued to be obedient all his life. He never quit. He obeyed God explicitly. The ONLY incident of his disobedience was at the waters of Meribah-Kadesh (see Deuteronomy 32:51).
Now we could certainly say that his anger at that time was provoked severely by the criticism and bickering of the poeople against God (see Numbers 20:8-13).
But Moses DIED without entering the "Promised Land." Friends, that speaks to our hearts! A person cannot enter heaven's glory by obedience to the LAW! The law proves a man as a sinner! The law makes us GUILTY! The law condemns us to DEATH!
It is only by a personal relationship with Jesus that we can be forgiven! It was Moses' personal relationship with God that gave him forgiveness, not his obedience to the law.
This doesn't negate our need to be obedient to the law. If there's one lesson we ought to learn from Moses it is OBEDIENCE, self-control.
But we must surrender all that we are to Jesus, and become all that He wants us to be. It is THAT relationship that saves us! Then the law becomes our "schoolmaster" to teach us how Jesus wants us to live. But the condemnation of the law is broken by the blood of Christ at Calvary. And forgiveness is imputed to our souls by our submissiveness to Him as Lord of our lives.
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death."

It is ONLY by submissiveness to Jesus that we can BE obedient to the law. For it is Christ's Spirit in us that makes us DESIRE to be obedient to what He teaches us.

Please continue to follow with us daily in Bible study.