Dt. 29: All Right, Sparky, Here's the Deal...

Deuteronomy 29:29 "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law."

God lays down the terms of His covenant with Israel here in Deuteronomy 29...pretty clearly and succinctly. It was kind of easy to piece it together myself, but I had the advantage of reading and knowing what happened with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph up to this point. The people of Israel had what mom and dad and Moses was telling them. Did anyone write it down? I don't know. Probably a few of them did. That's why this chapter is so important.

In spite of most of Israel seeing what has happened, and personally being witness to what God has done, Moses says "the LORD has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear." What does that mean? That Israel could not grasp the meaning of these wonders? That Israel could not extrapolate what the prophecies meant? For the forty years they were in the desert, their clothing and sandals did not wear out. Can you imagine wearing that t-shirt you are wearing right now in 2048? Or still wearing those Chuck Taylors you bought in 1968? I can't. But Israel apparently thought nothing of this miracle.

So, what's the big deal? Why follow this covenant? Very simply to "prosper in everything you do (v.9)." That about sums up the American dream, does it not? Or at least the Earthling dream. If someone was willing to make a deal with me that I could prosper in everything I'd do, I'd say, "Show me where to sign, bub." Especially if all I had to do was pledge my undying devotion to a benevolent deity. This is for every Israelite...verses 14 and 15 say with everyone there, but also "with those who are not here today." Does that mean those who have died already? Or those who are yet to be born?

When you are trying to convince someone that your way is best, I suppose one way is to remind them just how bad off they were in Egypt. Slaves. They were slaves. Whipped and beaten. Other countries treated them like dirt. Serving other gods here is likened to a poison that needs to be rooted out (v.18).

Verses 19-21 place the focus on the person's heart. A person can confess anything with their lips, but God can see what is inward, what is inside the heart. So if a person thinks they can take this oath aloud, while inwardly presuming they can continue in their life's pursuit of sin, God will call "All the curses written in this book" to fall upon him. That's a serious offense...to not have heart and mouth in alignment.

God's anger at an abandoned covenant will be so severe, other nations will take note, and wonder just why it is God was so angry, he turned a land into salt and sulfur, a la Sodom and Gomorrah, and then maybe the not-as-famous, Admah and Zeboiim, which were routed when Abram rescued Lot in Genesis 14.

I find the last verse rather cryptic at this point in my reading. "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law." God has things that he keeps a secret...or chooses not to reveal...yet. What are these secret things? As people, we probably think we know all there is to know. Yet, with an eternal God, I could presume that the things we don't know are just as eternal. Ponderous. With the wealth of man's knowledge, and Wikipedia...God has hidden infinite wonders. But the little that God has revealed are enough to satisfy "us and our children forever." Ah, it's a wonder. To be able to be satisfied forever, and still have an eternity of unknowns.