Deuteronomy 8:4-204Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years. 5Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee. 6Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him. 7For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills; 8A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey; 9A land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. 10When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. 11Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: 12Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; 13And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; 14Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; 15Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint; 16Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; 17And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. 18But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. 19And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. 20As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God. (Deuteronomy 8:4‑20)
“THY RAIMENT waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years."
Israel had many trials in the wilderness, just as we do, but they were but occasions for God to show His tenderness. Their clothing never grew old; their feet did not become sore, nor swell as they trod the flinty soil. And all who have Christ now have a robe of beauty that is fresh eternally; our feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. The rough places along the way only make the comfort of this more precious.
"Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee." No one escapes the discipline of the Lord, but it is all for our good and blessing, and it is the tender discipline of a Father for the son in whom He delights. For this reason they were to walk in His ways and to fear Him always, for all God's ways with us are to do us good in the end.
The next few verses are exceedingly beautiful telling of the wonderful land which beckoned them.
"For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks, of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills;
"A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey;
"A land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack anything in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of Whose hills thou mayest dig brass.
"When thou has eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which He hath given thee." vv. 7-10.
Those "brooks of water," the "fountains and depths that spring out of the valleys and hills" in the earthly Canaan all remind us of the fullness of the Spirit, "the living water" which the Lord Jesus gives to those who come to Him in their thirst. And in that heavenly land that fullness of the Spirit abounds to glorify Christ and fill to overflowing the hearts of all the redeemed.
Canaan was a land of grain and fruits and stored with precious metals. God was giving His people the best land on earth.
But here were dangers which the wilderness was preparing them for. In the midst of all these good things they might forget the Lord who had brought them out of Egypt where they were slaves and had nothing, and they might say, "My power, and the might of my hand, have gotten me this wealth." How deceitful is the heart!
Therefore Moses warns them to remember the Lord who gave them all these blessings, and to thank Him for them, for if they forgot Him and were disobedient like the other nations, He would treat them as He treated those nations. "As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God." In spite of these warnings, we know that this is the very thing that happened to Israel in the government of God.
Surely these things are written for our learning for our hearts are no better. How quick we are to forget the Lord and His goodness! But, thank God, when we enter our heavenly land, there will be no longer the flesh in us, we shall grieve His heart no more. Instead, from these hearts and lips shall pour forth endless praise and thanksgiving to God our Father and to our blessed Lord for the grace that brought us there.
Messages of the Love of God 1/26/1975