Commentary on Deuteronomy, Commentary · Chapter 6
CHAP. VI.
Verſe 1 Verſe 1. NOW theſe are the Commandments, the Statutes, and the Judgments.] Which God promiſed to deliver to him, in the foregoing Chapter, v. 31. and Commandments are thought commonly, to relate unto the Moral Laws; Statutes to Rites and Ceremonies, which have no natural Reaſon for them; and Judgments to Civil Government.
Which the LORD your God commanded to teach you, that ye may do them in the Land whither ye go to poſſeſs it.] They are the Words of God himſelf, in the place before named, v. 31.
This, I ſuppoſe, was ſpoken by Moſes to them, a little time after he had delivered what is contained in the foregoing Chapter: being a Preface to the reſt of the Laws which he received from God in Mount Sinai, as they deſired.
Ver. 2. That thou mightest fear the LORD thy God, Verſe 2 to keep all his Statutes, and his Commandments, which I command thee, &c.] The prime Intention of God's ſpeaking to them by himſelf, and by Moſes, was, to implant his Fear in their Hearts, as the true Principle of Obedience: Which ſo certainly flows from it, if it be preſerved in its power and force, that it frequently in Scripture ſignifies the whole Duty we owe to God. But here more particularly it ſeems to ſignifie their adhering to him as the only God: So it is uſed, 1 Kings XVIII. 3, 12. and in the New Teſtament moſt plainly, X Act. 2, 35.
Ver. 3. Hear therefore, O Iſrael, and obſerve to do Verſe 3 it.] Mark therefore ſo well what I ſay, as to do accordingly.
That it may be well with thee, &c.] As the only way to be happy, and to grow a mighty Nation, and in ſhort, enjoy all that God had promiſed to their pious Anceſtors.
Ver. 4. Hear, O Iſrael.] He repeats it again; becauſe Verſe 4 what he was going to ſay, is of the higheſt Importance.
The LORD our God is one LORD.] Being to remind them of all the Laws which God delivered to them by him, and to endeavour to beget an holy Fear of him, as the Principle of Obedience; he moſt earneſtly preſſes upon them, before he proceed further, the First of the Ten Commandments: Which is, that there is but One God, who alone is to be worſhipped; and that he is their God: Whoſe Laws therefore could not be controuled by the Authority of any other pretended God.
Many of the ancient Fathers, particularly Theodoret, and Greg. Nyſſen, think there is a plain intimation of the Bleſſed Trinity in theſe words, The LORD our God is one LORD: And ſome of the Jews themſelves have thought, there was ſomething extraordinary in it, that the Name of God ſhould be thrice mentioned, as it is in this Sentence: Which ſignifies three Midoth, or Properties, they confeſs; which they ſometimes call three Faces, or Emanations, or Sanctifications, or Numerations, tho' they will not call them three Perſons; as Joſeph de Voyſin obſerves, in his Book againſt: an Anonymus Antitrinitarian, p. 58, 63, 71, 72. And the Cabbaliſts ſay as much, who aſſerting ten Sephiroth in God, (which they take to be ſomething different from the Eſſence of God, and yet not Creatures, but Emanations from it, as Manaſſeh Ben Iſrael explains their Words) they make the Three Firſt of them to be more than the other Seven; and call them Primordial. The First of which they call the Wonderful Intelligence, and the First Intellectual Light, (as St. James calls God the Father of Lights) and the First Glory. The Second they call, among other Names, the Illuminating Intelligence, (juſt as St. John ſaith, the Eternal WORD enlightens every one that cometh into the World) and the Second Glory. And the Third they call the Sanctified Intelligence, (ſo the word foreign, which is in Pual muſt be tranſlated, not Sanctifying, as Rittangelius takes it) or they may mean no more than the Holy Intelligence; which is the very ſame with the Holy Spirit. All this we find in the Book Jetzira, which they fancy was made by Abraham: From whence we cannot but learn, that they had an obſcure Notion of the Bleſſed Trinity; and that the Apoſtles uſed no other Language about it, than what was among the Jews. The beſt of which are ſo ſenſible of ſuch things as I have mentioned, that they think we Chriſtians are not Idolaters, tho' we believe Three Perſons in the Godhead, (which they fancy inclines to Polytheiſm) becauſe we believe the Unity of God; and therefore may be ſaved as well as they. So J. Wagenſeil ſhews in his Annotations upon Sota, Cap. VII. p. 751, &c. And Arnoldus in his Spicilegia after him, p. 1218.
Ver. 5. And thou ſhalt love the LORD thy God with Verſe 5 all thine Heart, &c.] Our bleſſed Saviour alledging theſe two Verſes, XII Mark 29, 50. looks upon theſe Words, as a part of the Firſt Commandment: For after he had ſaid, The firſt of all the Commandments is, Hear, O Iſrael, the LORD our God is one LORD; and thou ſhalt love the LORD thy God with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, &c. he thus concludes, This is the first Commandment. For to own him to be the only God, the Author of our being, and of all things, doth neceſſarily include in it a love of him above all things whatſoever; which requires us to love him, who hath made them ſo lovely. This is another Principle or Spring of Obedience, inſeparable from the Fear of God before-mentioned: Which doth not drive us away from him, but draw us to him; being ſuch a Reverence towards him as Children have to their kind Parents, which is ever mixed with Love to them.
With all thine Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Might.] For there being no other God but he alone, none elſe could have any Right to their Love and Service, but he only: Whoſe Nature is ſo excellent, that it requires the utmoſt we can do, to teſtifie our regard to him. This one of the Jewiſh Writers hath admirably expreſſed in this manner: Whoſoever ſerves God out of love, he gives himſelf to the Study of his Laws, and unto Good Works, &c. which excite him to love God with the moſt flagrant Affection; not for the ſake of any thing in this World, nor for the fear of any Evil; but he ſerves God truly, becauſe he is the Truth, and the chiefeſt Good; that he may be admitted to Communion with him. And a Man ought to love him with the moſt vehement and intenſe Affection; ſo that he languiſh with love to him, juſt as a Man that is in love with one he deſires to make his Wife: Whereſoever he is, at home or abroad, when he eats and drinks, when he lies down and riſes up, he thinks of her. To which Solomon compares the Love of the Spouſe, who ſaith, I am ſick of Love, 2 Cant. 5. To this purpoſe, Baal Chaſidim, mentioned by Wagenſeil, upon Sota, Cap. V. p. 611.
By the Heart may be here meant the Will, which is the Original of all that a Man doth, (as the Jews ſpeak) whether Good or Evil: By the Soul, the Affections, (to which St. Mark adds the Mind, i. e. the Underſtanding, or Rational Faculty) and by Might or Strength, is meant the Power of the Body for Action; which four all together make up the whole Man. And the word ALL added to each of theſe, doth not exclude all other things from any ſhare in our Thoughts and Affections; but only from an equal Intereſt in them. The Love of God ought to be ſuperiour, and direct all our other Motions to ſerve him, as Maimonides expreſſes it in his Preface to Pirke Avoth.
Ver. 7. And thou ſhalt teach them diligently unto thy Children.] In the Hebrew the words are, (as our Margin obſerves) ſhall whet or ſharpen them: ſignifying, Verſe 7 as ſome think, that they ſhould endeavour to make them pierce their Hearts. But De Dieu rather thinks it ſignifies, Beat them into them; as things are hammered on an Anvil with repeated Strokes. Which the famous Bochartus doth not ſo well approve; who obſerves, that the word Sanan, which in Arabick ſignifies in the firſt place to ſharpen or whet; ſignifies alſo Exquiſitè docere, &c. to teach exquiſitely; ſo that he who is taught, be made thereby more acute and perſpicacious. Which is the intention he thinks of the Hebrew word here, L. 2. Canaan, Cap. XVII. However it be expounded, it imports the Diligence they ſhould uſe, (as we tranſlate it) to inſtil this Principle into their Children's Minds, that there is but One God; and to work in them a fear and love of his Divine Majeſty: For to that which goes before, (v. 4, 5, 6.) theſe words have a particular reſpect. By which it appears, that Moſes thought his Law was ſo plain, that every Father might be able to inſtruct his Sons in it, and every Mother her Daughters.
And ſhalt talk of them when thou ſittest in thine Houſe, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou riſest up.] As much as to ſay, they ſhould take all occaſions to inculcate this great thing, at home and abroad, Night and Day; never ceaſing their moſt earneſt Endeavours, to perſwade their Children, not to worſhip any other God; nor to fail to worſhip the LORD their God, with ſincere Affection.
The Jews have made from hence, one of their affirmative Precepts, That twice a Day, at leaſt, they ſhould recite theſe words, Hear, O Iſrael, &c. which is a very dilute Sence of this Precept: Wherein Moſes requires not meerly their ſaying theſe words (in which there might be a great deal of Superſtition) but taking all opportunities to imprint them upon the Minds and Hearts of their Children.
Verſe 8 Ver. 8. And thou ſhalt bind them for a Sign upon thine Hand, and they ſhall be as Frontlets between thine Eyes.] Juſt thus he commands them to preſerve the Memory of their Deliverance out of the Land of Egypt, almoſt in the ſame words: See XIII Exod. 9, 16. where this is ſufficiently explained. And it appears to be a Proverbial Speech from XLIX Iſa. 16. There are ſome learned Men indeed, who take theſe words literally, notwithſtanding St. Hierom hath delivered his Opinion to the contrary, that there is no Command for Phylacteries, which are grounded upon theſe words; particularly Joſ. Scaliger, in his Elench. Trihaereſ. Nic. Serarii, Cap. 7. 8. Where he thinks God gave this Command to the Iſraelites, to prevent their following the Rites of other Nations; who armed themſelves againſt Dangers, with ſuperſtitious Amulets in their Foreheads; which the Egyptians, he thinks, called Totaphot. But ſince, neither here, nor in Exodus, there are any ſuch words, as thou ſhalt make thee Frontlets; but Moſes only ſaith the things he is ſpeaking of, ſhall be for Frontlets between their Eyes; I take it not to be meant literally. Tho' it's likely they intended well, who ſo underſtood it: For our bleſſed Saviour doth not ſeem to reprove the Jews for wearing Phylacteries; but for their Oſtentation, in making them broader than ordinary.
Ver. 9. And thou ſhalt write them upon the Poſts of thy Houſe, and on thy Gates.] This looks more like a literal Command, than the former; and it might Verſe 9 have been very uſeful to them, when they went in and out of their Houſe, to read theſe words, Hear, O Iſrael, the LORD thy God is one LORD, &c. But the Jews are too ſcrupulous about the Words they ſhould write, and upon what part of the Poſts and Gates they were to put them, &c. as Mr. Selden obſerves, Lib. III. De Synedr. Cap. XIII. N. 2. Tho' after all, it may be, this was not intended; but only, that they ſhould never let this Principle ſlip out of their Mind, but think of it when they went out and came in as well as when they were in their Houſes, and by the Way; when they roſe up, and when they lay down. Yet it muſt be obſerved, that other Nations uſed to write their Laws upon their Gates, as Huetius notes in his Demonſtratio Evangelica, p. 58. which it's likely they did in imitation of the Jews; who to this Day have written in a Parchment theſe Words, from v. 4. to the end of this Verſe, (with that other paſſage, Chap. XI. from v. 13. to v. 20.) which they roll up, and writing on it the Name of Shaddai, put it into a piece of Cane, or other hollow Wood, and faſten it to the Doors of their Houſes, and of each particular Room in them; and as often as they go in and out, they make it a part of their Devotion, to touch this Parchment, and kiſs it: As Leo Modena tells us, in his Hiſtory of the Jews, P. 1. Cap. 2.
Ver. 10. And it ſhall be, when the LORD thy God Verſe 10 ſhall have brought thee into the Land, which he ſware, &c.] Of this he ſpeaks with the greateſt aſſurance; there being no doubt to be made, that God would immediately give them poſſeſſion of the good Land promiſed to them. The only danger was, leſt they ſhould be thrown out of it for their Diſobedience.
Great and goodly Cities, which thou buildedst not.] For they did not lay all waſte, as they did Jericho, (for which there was a particular Reaſon) but dwelt in them, after they had deſtroyed the Inhabitants.
Verſe 11 Ver. 11. And Houſes full of all good things, which thou filledst not, &c.] In this, and what follows in the reſt of the Verſe, he ſets forth the great Bounty of God to them; who intended to enrich them with all manner of Good Things, without any Labour of their own to purchaſe them.
Verſe 12 Ver. 12. Then beware lest thou forget the LORD, which brought thee forth out of the Land of Egypt, &c.] In Proſperity we are too prone to forget our Benefactors.
Verſe 13 Ver. 13. Thou ſhalt fear the LORD thy God, and ſerve him.] Preſerve an awful Sence of him in thy Mind, and be conſtant in his Worſhip and Service; which was never more neceſſary, than when they enjoyed ſo many Bleſſings from him.
And ſhalt ſwear by his Name.] When there was any need for it: As in making Covenants with their Neighbours, or in bearing their Teſtimony before a Judge, they were to ſwear only by the Name of God; not by any Idol, nor by the Heaven, or the Earth, or any thing therein; for they can bear Witneſs to nothing: See XXIII Joſhua 7, 8. Nor was it lawful, as Maimonides obſerves, (in his Treatiſe called Shebuoth) to joyn any other thing with the Name of God. But it was all one, whether a Man ſware by the proper Name of God, or by any of his Attributes, as by the Name of him who is merciful, or gracious, or long-ſuffering, &c. for this is a perfect Oath: See Selden, L. 2. De Synedr. Cap. XI. N. 2. And ſee N. 7. concerning other Oaths.
Ver. 14. Ye ſhall not go after other Gods, of the Gods of the People which are round about you.] This ſhews, Verſe 14 that his Intention in this Chapter, is to preſs upon them the Obſervation of the Firſt Commandment; which our Saviour juſtly calls, the Great Commandment.
Ver. 15. For the LORD thy God is a jealous God.] Verſe 15 See XX Exod. 5. XXXIV Exod. 14.
Among you.] In the Hebrew, In the midst of you; to obſerve all you do, tho' never ſo ſecretly.
Leſt the Anger of the LORD thy God be kindled against thee, and deſtroy thee from off the face of the Earth.] For this was the moſt provoking of all other Sins: And therefore we never read, either in the Law, or in the Prophets, the word Charon (i. e. Fury), or Aph (Anger), or Caas (Indignation), or Kinah (Jealouſie) aſcribed unto God, but when mention is made of Idolatry: So Maimonides obſerves, More Nevoch. P. I. Cap. XXXVI.
Ver. 16. Ye ſhall not tempt the LORD your God, as Verſe 16 ye tempted him in Maſſah.] Never diſtruſt God's good Providence, nor murmur againſt him in any diſtreſs: For that was the Temptation at Maſſah, XVII Exod. 2, 7.
Ver. 17. You ſhall diligently keep the Commandments Verſe 17 of the LORD your God, and his Teſtimonies, and his Statutes, which he hath commanded thee.] As if he had ſaid, I cannot too oft preſs this upon you; nor can you uſe too great care in this matter.
Ver. 18. And thou ſhalt do that which is right and Verſe 18 good in the ſight of the LORD, that it may be well with thee.] As they loved themſelves, he charges them not to follow their own Deſires, (which is called doing that which is good in their own Eyes) but govern themſelves by his Holy Will.
And that thou mayest go in and poſſeſs the good Land.] Or rather, After thou hast gone in, and poſſeſſed the good Land which the LORD ſware unto thy Fathers: For there was no doubt of their going in; but only of their behaviour there, after they were made ſo happy, v. 10, 11, 12.
Verſe 19 Ver. 19. To cast out all thine Enemies from before thee, as the LORD hath ſpoken.] He ſeems particularly to charge them to drive out the People of Canaan, as God had commanded, XXXIII Numb. 32. For otherwiſe, they would tempt them to forget this great Principle of their Religion, that the God of Iſrael was the only God, and intice them to ſerve their Idols, v. 14.
Verſe 20 Ver. 20. And when thy Son asketh thee in time to come, ſaying, What mean the Teſtimonies, and the Statutes, and the Judgments, which the LORD our God hath commanded you?] Abarbinel thinks, that their Poſterity, in future Ages, might obſerve three ſorts of Precepts in the Law, viz. Teſtimonies, which in Hebrew are called Eduth, which were ſuch Conſtitutions as bare witneſs of ſome great thing God had done for them, and preſerved the Memory thereof; ſuch was the Paſſover. And then, Secondly, There were Chukkim (Statutes), which are ſuch Precepts the Reaſon of which is unknown. And, Thirdly, Miſchpatim (Judgments), which are ſuch whoſe Reaſon is evident. Now they might deſire to know the Reaſon, why ſuch ſeveral Laws were given: And he thinks Moſes teaches them to give a diſtinct Anſwer to their Children, about each of theſe.
Ver. 21. Then thou ſhalt ſay unto thy Son, we were Pharaohs Bondmen in Egypt, and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty Hand.] As if he had ſaid, Tell them the Reaſon why he gave us the firſt Verſe 21 ſort of Precepts; particularly that about the Paſſover was; becauſe we were Slaves, and God brought us into a State of Liberty; which he would have always thankfully remembred, by the obſervation of that Feaſt, which teſtified what God wrought for us by his own Power alone. The like may be ſaid of the other two great Feſtivals, which were to preſerve the Memory of ſuch-like Benefits.
Ver. 22. And the LORD ſhewed Signs and Wonders, Verſe 22 great and ſore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and all his Houſhold, &c.] Particularly ſlew all their Firſt-born, and ſpared thoſe of the Iſraelites: The Memory of which he ordered to be preſerved, by giving their Firſt-born unto him, XIII Exod.
Ver. 23. And he brought us out from thence, that he Verſe 23 might bring us in, to give us the Land which he ſware to our Fathers.] This is the Reaſon, Abarbinel fancies, of giving them the Judgments before-mentioned: God brought us out, ſaith he, to place us in this good Land, and ſettle us here, under a Government of our own. Now Civil Society cannot be preſerved, without juſt Judgments; and therefore, that we might live in good Order, God gave us theſe Political Laws.
Ver. 24. And the LORD commanded us to do all Verſe 24 theſe Statutes, to fear the LORD our God.] As for the third ſort, which are Statutes, give your Children this Anſwer: That tho' we do not know the Reaſon of them, yet the benefit of them is manifeſt; for they lead us to the Fear of God: And nothing is ſo much for our Good, as that; both for the eternal Good of our Souls, and for the long Life of our Bodies. So he interprets the laſt Words of this Verſe: And ſo doth Maimonides.
For our Good always, that he may preſerve us alive, as it is at this Day.] The firſt Words in the Hebrew are, That it may be well with us all our Days: Or more literally, For good to us all our Days. That is, ſay our Rabbins, (they are the Words of Maimonides, P. III. More Nevochim, Cap. XXVII. where he repeats what I obſerved before, upon IV. 40.) That it may be well with us in that World which is wholly good; and our Days may be prolonged in that World which is wholly long. Or in ſhort, that thou mayeſt come into the World, which is wholly good and long; which is a perpetual Subſiſtence. As for the laſt Words, they belong, he thinks, to their Corporeal Subſiſtence here, which endures but for a time; and therefore he ſaith, As at this Day; to ſhew he ſpeaks of the preſent World, wherein they ſhould live happily by obſerving his Laws.
Verſe 25 Ver. 25. And it ſhall be our Righteouſneſs, if we obſerve to do all theſe Commandments.] Their Children might ſay, If there be ſuch Benefits in obſerving the Statutes, which lead to the fear of God, and to Happineſs here and hereafter, what need we trouble our ſelves about the other two? Unto which Abarbinel imagines, they are taught to give this Anſwer: It is our Righteouſneſs, if we obſerve to do ALL theſe Commandments, i. e. We cannot be righteous before God, if we have not reſpect to all his Precepts, whether Teſtimonies, Statutes, or Judgments; which are all comprehended in this word Mitzvoth, or Commandments. This is ſomething nice and curious,Chapter VII. but there is a great deal of Truth in it.
The word Righteouſneſs alſo, it muſt be acknowledged, often comprehends Mercy in it: And thus the LXX. and the Vulgar Latin here underſtand it. And to take in this Sence, theſe Words may be thus expounded: If we obſerve to do all theſe Commandments, God will account us a righteous People, and be kind to us.
Before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us. Having a ſincere Reſpect to God, in all that we do.