The Song of Moses declared that God would judge
His people when they turned to idols.
The judgment would be severe, with God relenting only to maintain His
glory in the face of the arrogant nations He used to chasten Israel. The Song begins to conclude as God pleads with
Israel to consider their latter end. Deut. 32:28-33 presents an interesting
interpretive question with two possible answers, both being consistent with
Biblical history. In these verses is God
talking about Israel or her enemies, the judging nations? Who can chase a thousand? Which, by two people, can chase ten
thousand?
Some (e.g. Matthew Henry) sees this as
referring to Israel. God is asking them
to look back in their history to times when He, their Rock, enabled them to
defeat great enemies when they were numerically insignificant? God has promised this to Israel if they would
obey Him (Lev. 26:8; cf. Josh. 23:10).
There were times in Israel’s history when this really happened. Gideon’s three hundred men defeated an army as numerous as locusts (Judges 7:12). Jonathan and his armor bearer killed a
company of Philistines that resulted in the defeat of the entire army of
Philistia by an Israelite army that initially had only two swords (1 Sam.
13:22; 14:14,20-22). As Jonathan said
and believed, nothing restrains the Lord
from saving, whether by many or by few (1 Sam. 14:6).
But Deut. 28:30 seems to indicate it is Israel’s
enemies who are able to chase many with few.
And this also fits Scripture. God
had said if Israel disobeyed that this is exactly what would happen (Lev.
26:36-37). It happened with a small
Syrian army in the days of King Joash (2 Chr. 24:24). Isaiah prophesied this would happen in the
time of the Babylonian captivity (Isa. 30:15-17).
Either interpretation reveals the same
point. Whether it’s Israel forsaking
their Rock for another rock or the rock being trusted by the nations against the Rock of Israel, the point is that if God sold Israel then she would be defeated. It would not be because the rock of the nations was great; their god is nothing; even the nations
themselves know this (v31). Rather it
would be Israel’s Rock, the one and
only true Sovereign God, who would bring vengeance on Israel.
There is a great picture in vs32-33. Israel is, of course, God’s vine and
vineyard. The vine of the nations and
their idols is the vine of Sodom … the
fields of Gomorrah … grapes of gall.
According to Jamieson/Fausset/Brown’s commentary this refers to a yellow
grape that looks tempting but when you bite into it the taste is bitter and it
is nothing but skin and fiber. This is
the nature of idolatry, whatever we trust to bring satisfaction that must come
only from the true God. Like Israel we
need to be wise and consider (our) latter end (v28-29). To trust in ourselves or in what this
temporal, evil, foolish world has to offer is to guarantee that we will be
ashamed. Little children, keep yourselves from idols (1 John 5:21).
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