What is the meaning of Deuteronomy 5:28? And the LORD heard the words you spoke to me • The scene recalls Israel’s trembling response at Sinai (Deuteronomy 5:23-27). Their plea reached the throne of heaven; “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their cry” (Psalm 34:15). • God’s attentiveness underscores His covenant faithfulness. From slavery (Exodus 3:7) to the border of Canaan, He consistently hears. • Application: He still hears the cries of His people (1 John 5:14), so reverent speech and honest confession matter. and He said to me • The LORD replies to Moses, reinforcing Moses’ role as mediator (Exodus 20:18-19; Hebrews 3:5). • This anticipates the ultimate Mediator: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5). • God’s pattern—speaking through a chosen servant—highlights both His holiness and His mercy. "I have heard the words that these people have spoken to you." • The people recognized their inability to endure God’s unveiled glory (Deuteronomy 5:25; Deuteronomy 18:16). • Corporate acknowledgment of sinfulness and need for distance was not unbelief but reverence. • Numbers 14:28 shows God repeating back Israel’s words when judging; here He repeats their words to affirm them. He listens to collective as well as individual voices. "They have done well in all that they have spoken." • God commends their holy fear. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). • Verse 29 expands: “Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear Me.” The outward request was right; God longs for an enduring inward posture. • Healthy fear produces obedience and worship (Hebrews 12:28-29; Isaiah 66:2). • Their request for a mediator foreshadows the prophetic office and, ultimately, Christ (Deuteronomy 18:15-19). God validates the longing that He Himself will finally satisfy. summary Deuteronomy 5:28 shows a listening God who affirms Israel’s reverent plea for mediation. He hears, He responds through His chosen servant, and He approves their recognition of His holiness. Their words were good because they sprang from godly fear—an attitude God still desires, fulfilled perfectly in Christ, our greater Mediator. |
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