1. At that time the Lord said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first—It was when God had been pacified through the intercessions of Moses with the people who had so greatly offended Him by the worship of the golden calf. The obedient leader executed the orders he had received as to the preparation both of the hewn stones, and the ark or chest in which those sacred archives were to be laid. read more
3. And I made an ark of shittim wood—It appears, however, from :-, that the ark was not framed till his return from the mount, or most probably, he gave instructions to Bezaleel, the artist employed on the work, before he ascended the mount—that, on his descent, it might be finished, and ready to receive the precious deposit. read more
4, 5. he wrote on the tables, according to the first writing—that is, not Moses, who under the divine direction acted as amanuensis, but God Himself who made this inscription a second time with His own hand, to testify the importance He attached to the ten commandments. Different from other stone monuments of antiquity, which were made to stand upright and in the open air, those on which the divine law was engraven were portable, and designed to be kept as a treasure. JOSEPHUS says that each of... read more
5. I . . . put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they be, as the Lord commanded me—Here is another minute, but important circumstance, the public mention of which at the time attests the veracity of the sacred historian. read more
6-9. the children of Israel took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Mosera—So sudden a change from a spoken discourse to a historical narrative has greatly puzzled the most eminent biblical scholars, some of whom reject the parenthesis as a manifest interpolation. But it is found in the most ancient Hebrew manuscripts, and, believing that all contained in this book was given by inspiration and is entitled to profound respect, we must receive it as it stands, although... read more
10-22. Moses here resumes his address, and having made a passing allusion to the principal events in their history, concludes by exhorting them to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully. read more
God renewed the broken covenant with Israel because of Moses’ intercession, not because Israel deserved it. Moses made the ark (Deuteronomy 10:3) in the sense that he directed Bezalel to make it (cf. Exodus 25:10; Exodus 37:1). "Ark" was a common English word for box, chest, or basket in seventeenth-century England, and most modern English translations still use this old word. Other evidences of God’s grace were His appointment of another high priest when Aaron died (Deuteronomy 10:6) and His... read more
In view of His past grace to His people, what did God require of them? Moses summarized Israel’s responsibility: fear, walk, love, serve, and keep. God expected total allegiance to Himself and obedience to His covenant."These are the central ideas not only of Deuteronomy but of the whole Pentateuch in its final shape." [Note: Sailhamer, p. 444.] The fear of the Lord (Deuteronomy 10:12) includes the response that springs from one’s knowledge of his personal sinfulness as he realizes that he... read more
Admonition to fear and love God 10:12-22Having recited what God had done for the Israelites, Moses now called on them to respond and make a commitment to Him."The structure of the passage reveals an enveloping pattern in which injunctions to obey God (Deuteronomy 10:12-13; Deuteronomy 20-22) embrace the corollary command to exhibit proper care and concern for other people, especially the socially and economically disadvantaged (Deuteronomy 10:14-19). The motive clause and that which binds the... read more
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Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Deuteronomy 10:12
Ver. 12. And now, Israel— Moses here, applying what he had said, exhorts the Israelites to obedience, by various motives taken from the preceding benefits of God, ver. 10, 11. 22 from His supreme authority and their dependance, ver, 14 from his particular care and paternal tenderness towards them, ver. 15 from his infinite power, ver. 17 and from his inflexible justice, ver. 17, 18. read more