The book of Deuteronomy written by Moses is one of those books that are often neglected by Christians for a number of reasons. There is constant repetition of important truths and there is the length of the book – it requires hard work to read, understand and digest, but the benefits are worth it. In our English Bibles we refer to this book as “Deuteronomy” because of a mistranslation of Deut. 17:18 where that verse speaks of the future king of Israel sitting on this throne over his kingdom, writing for himself in a book “a copy of this law”. This is often referred to as “second law”,hence the name Deuteronomy. The Hebrew title begins with the opening words of the book in Deut. 1:1 – “these are the words.”

The book of Deuteronomy generally follows the structural pattern of an ancient vassal treaty, but this should not be pushed too far. It is preferable to see the book as the last words of Moses to the nation prior to their preparations to enter the land under Joshua. Ancient kings often entered into treaties or pacts with vassal countries, and those treaties contained a certain structure. There was an introduction, a historical overview (the king’s dealings with the vassal), a general call to allegiance, a specific call to allegiance, the witnessing of the treaty by divine gods, blessings and cursings for obedience or disobedience. [Read more…]