Why does God choose Moses to teach the commandments in Deuteronomy 5:31? Immediate Narrative Setting Israel has just heard Yahweh’s audible voice thunder the Ten Words from Sinai/Horeb (De 5:4–22). Terrified, the people beg for an intermediary (De 5:23-27). God affirms their request (De 5:28-30) and appoints Moses to “stand here with Me” (v 31). The verse answers the people’s plea and anchors Moses in the role of covenant mediator. Divine Selection Rooted in Covenant History 1. Patriarchal Promise—God’s covenant trajectory runs from Abraham (Genesis 15), through the Exodus (Exodus 2:24), to Sinai. Choosing Moses honors promises already sworn. 2. Burning Bush Commission—At Horeb God said, “I will send you to Pharaoh” and “this shall be the sign…you will worship God on this mountain” (Exodus 3:10, 12). De 5:31 fulfills that prophecy on the same mountain. 3. Covenant Continuity—Yahweh always works through a representative head: Noah for post-Flood humanity, Abraham for the nations, Moses for Israel. Each mediator foreshadows Christ (Galatians 3:19, Hebrews 3:5–6). Unique Preparation of Moses • Royal Education—Raised in Pharaoh’s household (Acts 7:22) Moses mastered reading, law, and diplomacy—skills essential for recording and administering divine legislation. • Desert Apprenticeship—Forty years as Midianite shepherd (Exodus 2:15–3:1) trained him to lead and sustain a people in wilderness conditions. • Supernatural Credentialing—The Exodus plagues, Red Sea crossing, manna, and water from the rock authenticated him before Israel and Egypt alike (Exodus 4:30–31; 14:31). No other Israelite carried this résumé. Character Qualifications “Now Moses was a very humble man, more so than any other man on the face of the earth.” (Numbers 12:3) Humility enabled him to receive rather than invent revelation, stewarding God’s words unalloyed (De 34:10). Mediator and Type of Christ God speaks “face to face” with Moses (Exodus 33:11), prefiguring the ultimate Mediator who is Himself God incarnate (1 Timothy 2:5; John 1:17-18). Moses’ intercession after the golden calf (Exodus 32:11-14) anticipates Christ’s priestly advocacy (Hebrews 7:25). Suzerain-Vassal Treaty Architecture Scholars note Deuteronomy mirrors Late Bronze-Age Hittite treaty form—preamble, historical prologue, stipulations, witnesses, blessings-curses, succession. Moses, familiar with Egyptian and Semitic diplomatic conventions, was the logical scribe to inscripturate a covenant document intelligible to the generation about to enter Canaan. Purpose Clauses Embedded in De 5:31 • “to teach them” (didactic)—Law transmission depends on a mouthpiece. • “so that they may follow” (ethical)—Covenant obedience flows from clear instruction. • “in the land” (missional)—The commandments shape Israel into a witness nation occupying a real geography (cf. De 4:5-8). Consistency Across Scripture • Old Testament—“He made known His ways to Moses” (Psalm 103:7). • New Testament—“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17) Multiple biblical authors, spanning fifteen centuries, unanimously affirm Moses as the lawgiver, underscoring internal consistency. Practical Application Believers today inherit the fruit of Moses’ obedience. His faithful transmission allows us to see God’s holiness, our sin, and our need for the Savior foreshadowed in every sacrifice and festival coded into the Torah. By studying Moses’ commandments, we deepen gratitude for Christ who fulfills them (Matthew 5:17). Conclusion God chose Moses to teach the commandments because Moses uniquely satisfied historical, spiritual, educational, and relational criteria for covenant mediation. Deuteronomy 5:31 captures that divine election at the hinge-point between revelation and obedience, ensuring Israel—and, through Scripture, the nations—would clearly hear, remember, and respond to the voice of the living God. |
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