Deuteronomy 9:11

thy God to wrath in the wilderness: from the day that thou didst depart out of the land of Egypt, until ye came unto this place, ye have been rebellious against the LORD. 8 Also in Horeb ye provoked the LORD to wrath, so that the LORD was angry with you to have destroyed you. 9 When I was gone up into the mount to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which the LORD made with you, then I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights, I neither did eat bread nor drink water: 10 And the LORD delivered unto me two tables of stone written with the finger of God; and on them was written according to all the words, which the LORD spake with you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly. 11 And it came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights, that the LORD gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant. 12 And the LORD said unto me, Arise, get thee down quickly from hence; for thy people which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt have corrupted themselves; they are quickly turned aside out of the way which I commanded them; they have made them a molten image. 13 Furthermore the LORD spake unto me, saying, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: 14 Let me alone, that I may destroy them, and blot out their name from under heaven: and I will make of thee a nation mightier and greater than they. 15 So I turned and came down from the mount, and the mount burned with fire: and the two

9:7-29 That the Israelites might have no pretence to think that God brought them to Canaan for their righteousness, Moses shows what a miracle of mercy it was, that they had not been destroyed in the wilderness. It is good for us often to remember against ourselves, with sorrow and shame, our former sins; that we may see how much we are indebted to free grace, and may humbly own that we never merited any thing but wrath and the curse at God's hand. For so strong is our propensity to pride, that it will creep in under one pretence or another. We are ready to fancy that our righteousness has got for us the special favour of the Lord, though in reality our wickedness is more plain than our weakness. But when the secret history of every man's life shall be brought forth at the day of judgment, all the world will be proved guilty before God. At present, One pleads for us before the mercy-seat, who not only fasted, but died upon the cross for our sins; through whom we may approach, though self-condemned sinners, and beseech for undeserved mercy and for eternal life, as the gift of God in Him. Let us refer all the victory, all the glory, and all the praise, to Him who alone bringeth salvation.

And it came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights,.... The time of Moses's stay in the mount, when it was just up, and not before: that the Lord gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant, as in Deuteronomy 9:9. Aben Ezra observes, that this shows that the day the tables were given to Moses the calf was made.

When Moses went up the mountain, and stayed there forty days, entirely occupied with the holiest things, so that he neither ate nor drank, having gone up to receive the tables of the law, upon which the words were written with the finger of God, just as the Lord had spoken them directly to the people out of the midst of the fire, - at a time, therefore, when the Israelites should also have been meditating deeply upon the words of the Lord which they had but just heard, - they acted so corruptly, as to depart at once from the way that had been pointed out, and make themselves a molten image (comp. Exodus 31:18-32:6 , with chs. Deuteronomy 24:12-31:17 ). "The day of the assembly," i.e., the day on which Moses gathered the people together before God ( Deuteronomy 4:10 ), calling them out of the camp, and bringing them to the Lord to the foot of Sinai ( Exodus 19:17 ). The construction of the sentence is this: the apodosis to "when I was gone up" commences with "the Lord delivered unto me," in Deuteronomy 9:10 ; and the clause, "then I abode," etc., in Deuteronomy 9:9 , is a parenthesis. - The words of God in Deuteronomy 9:12-14 are taken almost word for word from Exodus 32:7-10 . הרף ( Deuteronomy 9:14 ), the imperative Hiphil of רפה, desist from me, that I may destroy them, for לּי הנּיחה, in Exodus 32:10 .

But notwithstanding the apostasy of the people, the Lord gave Moses the tables of the covenant, not only that they might be a testimony of His holiness before the faithless nation, but still more as a testimony that, in spite of His resolution to destroy the rebellious nation, without leaving a trace behind, He would still uphold His covenant, and make of Moses a greater people. There is nothing at all to favour the opinion, that handing over the tables ( Deuteronomy 9:11 ) was the first beginning of the manifestations of divine wrath (Schultz); and this is also at variance with the preterite, נתן, in Deuteronomy 9:11 , from which it is very evident that the Lord had already given the tables to Moses, when He commanded him to go down quickly, not only to declare to the people the holiness of God, but to stop the apostasy, and by his mediatorial intervention to avert from the people the execution of the divine purpose. It is true, that when Moses came down and saw the idolatrous conduct of the people, he threw the two tables from his hands, and broke them in pieces before the eyes of the people ( Deuteronomy 9:15-17 ; comp. with Exodus 32:15-19 ), as a practical declaration that the covenant of the Lord was broken by their apostasy. But this act of Moses furnishes no proof that the Lord had given him the tables to declare His holy wrath in the sight of the people.

[Bible] 9:5. For it is not for thy justices, and the uprightness of thy heart that thou shalt go in to possess their lands: but because they have done wickedly, they are destroyed at thy coming in: and that the Lord might accomplish his word, which he promised by oath to thy fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 9:6. Know therefore that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this excellent land in possession for thy justices, for thou art a very stiffnecked people. 9:7. Remember, and forget not how thou provokedst the Lord thy God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day that thou camest out of Egypt unto this place, thou hast always strove against the Lord. 9:8. For in Horeb, also thou didst provoke him, and he was angry, and would have destroyed thee, 9:9. When I went up into the mount to receive the tables of stone, the tables of the covenant which the Lord made with you: and I continued in the mount forty days and nights, neither eating bread, nor drinking water. 9:10. And the Lord gave me two tables of stone written with the finger of God, and containing all the words that he spoke to you in the mount from the midst of the fire, when the people were assembled together. 9:11. And when forty days were passed, and as many nights, the Lord gave me the two tables of stone, the tables of the covenant, 9:12. And said to me: Arise, and go down from hence quickly: for thy people, which thou hast brought out of Egypt, have quickly forsaken the way that thou hast shewn them, and have made to themselves a molten idol. 9:13. And again the Lord said to me: I see that this people is stiffnecked: 9:14. Let me alone that I may destroy them, and abolish their name from under heaven, and set thee over a nation, that is greater and stronger than this. 9:15. And when I came down from the burning mount, and held the two tables of the covenant with both hands,

To this assembly P, which also uses ḳahal , applies his more favourite term ‘edah , congregation of the sons of Israel , Exodus 35:1 ; Exodus 35:4 ; Exodus 35:20 (a term never used in JE or D, but occurring over 100 times in P, which also sometimes combines the two, cp. Proverbs 5:14 ). Otherwise deuteronomic writers use ḳahal only of peaceful gatherings of the people; to hear the Song of Moses, Deuteronomy 31:30 ; to hear the Law read at Shechem, Joshua 8:35 ; and for the consecration of the Temple, 1 Kings 8:14 ; 1 Kings 8:22 ; 1 Kings 8:55 ( 1 Kings 12:3 is a doubtful instance; LXX omits it). For the post-exilic use of ḳahal and ‘edah see the present writer’s Jerusalem , i. 380 ff. fire … cloud … darkness … ] See on Deuteronomy 4:11 . Sam. and LXX add darkness before cloud . The comparison of E, Exodus 20:18-21 is very instructive: thunderings, lightnings, mountain smoking . with a great voice ] E, the voice of the trumpet . and he added no more ] On this contradiction of E see above, p. 83. two tables of stone ] So Deuteronomy 4:13 ; Deuteronomy 9:9-11 ; Deuteronomy 10:1 ; Deuteronomy 10:3 ; the tables of the covenant , Deuteronomy 9:9 ; Deuteronomy 9:11 ; Deuteronomy 9:15 ; J, two tables of stone , Exodus 34:1 ; Exodus 34:4 ; E, tables of stone , Exodus 24:12 ; Exodus 31:18 b , P, two tables of the testimony , Exodus 31:18 a , Exodus 32:15 a , Exodus 34:29 .