Today's Scripture
Deuteronomy 32: 10-12, Psalm 91: 10-16
Today’s Reading Schedule: Deuteronomy 32-34- Click to read
9For the Lord’s portion is His People, Jacob
His allotted inheritance.
“10He found him in a desert land,
and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
He encircled him, He cared for him,
He kept him as the apple of His eye.
11 Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
bearing them on its pinions,
12 The Lord alone guided him,
no foreign god was with him
“But
Jeshurun (Israel) grew fat, and kicked;
you grew fat, stout, and sleek;
then he forsook God who made him
and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.
16 They stirred Him to jealousy with strange gods;
with abominations they provoked Him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons that were no gods,
to gods they had never known,
19 “The Lord saw it and spurned them,
because of the provocation of his sons and his daughters.
20 And He said, ‘I will hide my face from them;
I will see what their end will be,
for they are a perverse generation,
children in whom is no faithfulness.
21 They have made Me jealous with what is no god;
they have provoked Me to anger with their idols.
Psalm 91: 10-16
Because you have made The Lord your dwelling place—
the Most High, who is My Refuge—
10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
no plague come near your tent.
11 For He will command His angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
14 “Because he holds fast to Me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows My name.
15 When he calls to Me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
and show him My salvation.”
Devotion
What does the passage say?
- Deuteronomy 32 is The Song of Moses. It was to be memorized by the leaders of Israel to challenge them to be faithful and to lead the people to honor their Sovereign God who had chosen them as People of The Covenant. Out of all the nations, Israel was God’s portion (just as out of all of Israel the Levites were His portion). They were His witnesses.
- The Lord chose Israel because it was through this people that He would reveal Himself and His ways. He protectively guarded His Chosen people as they settled their land. They were to be God’s servants, the shining Light to the Nations (the Gentiles) so that His Salvation would reach to the ends of the earth Isaiah 49:6
- However, Moses predicted in this Song that Israel would become complacent and corrupted by foreign gods and religious practices. Moses told his people that God would be highly jealous and angered when they were unfaithful to Him. Moses wanted the people to remember this prophecy and be watchful. If they experienced calamity, this Song would remind them to consider how they had been unfaithful to their Rock, their Upright God and inspire them to turn back, repentant, to their ever faithful God.
- Psalm 91 is also a Song of Moses. This beautiful psalm uses many of the Hebrew descriptive names for God. El Elyon – Most High God; Yahweh – The Lord- IAM, the name God called Himself at the burning bush; El Shaddai – God Almighty; YVHV, Adonai, God who alone rules over all.
- Psalm 91 and Deuteronomy 32 state that when we make God our refuge He is with us. When we know His Name, when we call on Him, God is highly protective of us. All through the story of Deliverance, Moses tells us how deeply God wants His creation to know Him by Name, to honor His Name, to recognize His great mercies and even His Judgment.
What Does the passage Mean to Me/US?
One of the greatest challenges of faith is to be God’s Witness. It requires a great deal of surrender. Being God’s Witness makes you vulnerable to all manner of persecution–even in this land of the freedom of religion there has been continuing hostility to those of Jewish heritage. Making The Lord your dwelling place requires humility, sacrificing your will to God’s. We often use the term “a leap of faith” to describe the courage necessary to move in a fearful direction, in which we do not know the path, or outcome. In a sense, every new day is a leap of faith for God’s people. How will we use these hours God has afforded us? Will we chase after gods of our own making, the devices and desires of our hearts? Or perhaps today, we will stand tall and choose Life – God, our Refuge and strength, our present Help in time of trouble. Psalm 46:1 What a challenge in every decision to remember we are God’s witnesses. What if our courage to honor God today draws someone else to see Him and bless His Name?
Prayer
Lord, give us the opportunity today to share our love for you and for others. Strip us of every practical reason not to speak well of you. Set us free from every thought that would muzzle our mouths. May Your praise simply pour forth unrestrained, Jesus, Savior, Redeemer, Joy. In Christ name, we pray, AMEN
Contributed by Stephanie Dickenson
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