Deuteronomy 6: 4-8 is arguably the most important verses in the Bible because it’s telling us how to worship God. In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses knows that he is going to die soon, not getting to enter the land that the Lord promised to the Israelites. So he gathers the people around and begins to tell them the story of God and all that he has done for the Israelites. He reminds them of Egypt, and how when the Israelites cried out to him God came and saved them. And he reminds them of how they had sinned against the Lord. He recounts their travels in the wild’s after their defeat at the hands of the Amorites and tells them how the Lord was with them. Finally he comes to what is referred to as the Shema in Deuteronomy 6. These verses are called the Shema because of how they start off with the word “Hear”. Shema is the Hebrew word …show more content…
It tells us, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (v 4). The Hebrews use the name Elohim as God’s name during this verse, which means “three in one”. This references what the Christians call the Holy Trinity, or the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Even though these three are separate beings they are all one God, each with their own parts to play. God is telling us that their is only one God and that is him. He is the only one that we are supposed to worship and praise. Many times throughout history the Israelites turned from this rule and were punished for it. God is a God who loves us and wants us to love him like he loves us. Adam Clarke in his commentary wrote, “On this verse the Jews lay great stress; it is one of the four passages which they write on their phylacteries, and they write the last letter in the first and last words very large, for the purpose of exciting attention to the weighty truth it contains.” (Clarke’s Commentary Volume 1, 754). This “weighty truth” is the truth that God is the only God that there is, and we shouldn’t have any others before
The first four chapters of Genesis indicate that God is the eternal Creator the universe; that God communicates with His creation and evaluates his own work, and that God is sovereign, exercising “supreme authority and absolute power over all things” (Lecture 2, para. 5). There is but one true God, who exists as a Triune Being and is three Persons in one essence; a Divine essence which exists wholly, invisibly, simultaneously and eternally, within three members of the one Godhead—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (Lecture 2, para. 7). Harmoniously linked, “each divine figure of the Trinity exercises dominion over creation and is involved in the biblical narrative in its own unique, yet cooperative, way” (Johnson, p. 178). The unity of the Trinity not only illustrates the full divinity of God, the immeasurable power, benevolence, wisdom and omnipresence distinctly setting Him apart from His creation, but also shows that He is the source of all that is good, true, beautiful, loving, just, and
I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ “This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation. “Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to
As you read this week’s textbook reading assignments, take notes in response to these questions and statements. This study guide will help you to prepare for your quiz.
Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy compose the majority of the Hebrew law, also known as the Torah. Leviticus is a continuation of Exodus, and it contains the Sinaitic legislation from the time of the completion of the Tabernacle. Throughout the story, we see God accepts the sacrifice of the victim rather the death of the sinner.
The monotheistic belief of Judaism recognises that God is omnipotent, omnipresent and pure spirit. The concept of the oneness of God, is expressed through the Shema which is an affirmation of faith Jews proclaim, commencing with “Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one.”- Deuteronomy 6:4. This
The whole book of Deuteronomy is telling the story of a people that made a deal with God. They made promises to serve him according to the way that he wanted to be served. Deuteronomy laid out all the wonderful things that would happen to them if they were obedient and kept their promises. It also laid out what would happen if they did not keep their promise. It was pretty harsh too.
As Dr. Carson states in our video, “God always responds to us out of the perfections of all that He is…He is never less than God” (Carson, 2016). Carson reminds us, “He doesn’t need us…we need Him” (Carson, 2016). These are the components of the covenant and law that paved the way for redemption, and was the preparation for Jesus’ redemptive act on the cross and coming out of the tomb. The need for grace was shown through the law. “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God” (Deuteronomy 4:24, HCSB). “Be careful not to forget the covenant of the Lord your God that He made with you…” (Deuteronomy, 4:23, HCSB). He prepared them for the coming of promises and ultimately the need of a savior. Redemption comes only through Jesus Christ and we would not know this without the law and God’s seeking us out to make a new covenant with
The text is a passage known as the Shema (“Hear”) which has become the fundamental dogma of the Old Testament and was also identified in the New Testament (Mark 12:29-30) as the most important of all the commandments. This comprises the basic teaching which exhorts the Israelites to love God with their whole being, including the intellect, emotions and will. The central importance defined by Moses in this passage extends to the required teaching of these
In the covenantal promise at Sinai, He makes this clear. The first commandment in the Decalogue states that "you shall have no other gods before me" (Ex. 20:3) which establishes that God works alone and is not part of a pantheon. He is not one god among many, but the one True God. As well, when God reveals His name, YHWH, to His people and establishes the Law, the Old Testament format for the covenant is very similar to the Hittite treaties and Assyrian treaties from the Late Bronze Age. This reflects the character of God to reveal His law and the covenant relationship in a language and custom that His chosen people are familiar with. He is a thoughtful and compassionate God who communicates in a way that His people will understand. Though treaties were common in this time, no deity had ever entered into a treaty with humans - which further reveals His unique covenant relationship with His people. As well, the treaties typically expressed a suzerain and vassal type relationship, and it is possible that YHWH is even further establishing His royal rule and relationships with His people as their faithful King. Through the formation of Israel as God's chosen people depicted in the covenant at Sinai, His care and promises are evidenced through a royal inscription by an Egyptian pharaoh on the Merneptah Stele (ca. 1209) which mentions that Israel was established as a people in the land of
You shall love the L-rd your G-d with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you today shall be upon your heart. You shall teach them thoroughly to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road, when you lie down and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for a reminder between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates. (Deuteronomy 6: 5-9).
Based on the laws presented in Deuteronomy, aliens (or “sojourners”) are allowed to live amongst God’s chosen people. He forbids the Israelites from oppressing the “strangers” (or non-Israelites/Gentiles)—especially since they—too—were once aliens in the land. They are to be treated fairly and justly—every member of the community should have a fair hearing and judge rightly from one person to another (Deuteronomy 1:16). Anyone who deprives the alien, orphan, or widow from justice is to be cursed (Deuteronomy 27:19). In addition, aliens should be given (ample) food: God instructs the Israelites to give leftover grapes and olives to the foreigners, orphans, and widows (Deuteronomy 24: 20-21).
Deuteronomy comes next in the Pentateuch--the do this, do that, Deuteronomy. The name Deuteronomy means “the second law. “It was given because the Greek translators found in it a repetition of some laws previously given, and the enactment of some new laws.” Almost similar in its structure to Numbers this book has three parts, the three parts are the three speeches delivered by Moses in Moab. The first speech Moses gives starts in Deuteronomy 1:6 and ends with Deuteronomy 4:40. This speech Moses gives has practical meaning and analysis of the events that led them up to the previous forty years. The second part of Deuteronomy is Moses’s second speech (Deuteronomy 5-Deuteronomy 26). Moses adds some laws and encourages the people to live up to their plan of being God’s nation and to raise the children up in this way. The third speech from Moses begins in the twenty-seventh chapter and finishes in chapter thirty. Moses tells the people not to
Yahweh is a single incomprehensible being. Unlike Christianity, God is not a trinity, he is one being. The unity and oneness of God is an important element of the Jewish faith. The amount of emphasis Jews put on the unity of God can be seen in the opening line of the most important prayer of Judaism; The Shema. According to Tracey, R. Rich, creator of Judaism 101.org, “The Shema is one of only two prayers that are specifically commanded in Torah (the other is Birkat Ha-Mazon -- grace after meals). It is the oldest fixed daily prayer in Judaism, recited morning and night since ancient times” (Rich). The opening line of the Shema declares “Hear, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One” (Rich). The Shema repeatedly declares God as the one and only sovereign ruler over man and warns of worshipping anything besides him. The Shema, “Warns Beware, lest your heart be deceived and you turn and serve other gods and worship them. And the anger of the Lord will blaze against you, and he will close the heavens and there will not be rain, and the earth will not give you its fullness” (Rich). It is clear that God in Judaism is opposed to sharing his glory with anyone. God is mysterious and unknowable, he has only revealed so much to humanity. Yahweh reveals himself to those who he uses as part of his divine plans. Yahweh reveals
The first source to which Christian theology looks for it's teaching is the New Testament. It is the New Testament, which unfolds the divine plan introduced in the Old, and it is by the New Testament revelation that the Old Testament revelation is interpreted. For this reason all Christians theologians have made the New Testament their primary source for data in constructing views of God and His relation to the world. We must place all theology in context. As the Old Testament affirms, God is incomparable. Isaiah writes that we dare not make our God out of gold, or carry the divine around in a neat package to sit here or stand there. God reminds Israel, and all peoples, that "I am God and there is no other, I am God and there is none like me."
The Law of Moses, or Moses’s Law refers to the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, sometimes call the Pentateuch, or Torah which is a central reference of Judaism. Of the covenants found in the Pentateuch are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These books contained the laws and instruction given by the Lord to Moses which establishes Israel as a nation. All five of the books are believed to be written by Moses himself, with the exception of Deuteronomy. There is controversy as to who did complete Deuteronomy as it could have not been completed by Moses in its entirety, because it tells the story of his death. While it is evident that the books of the Bible were written from Deuteronomy to Revelation, the agreement, or Covenant with God originates here with the Law of Moses.