Moses begins by reminding Israel that they must love and obey God, Deuteronomy 11:1. Love and obedience must go together, 1 John 2:3-6 / 1 John 4:7-11 / 1 John 4:19 / 1 John 5:3 / Revelation 2:4.
There were still some in Israel who were old enough to remember and saw what God had done, and so, Moses encourages them to ‘love the Lord your God’, Deuteronomy 11:1.
Israel’s love for God would be demonstrated in them keeping God’s laws always, John 14:15. He expects them to fear, obey, love, and serve Him with all their heart, Deuteronomy 10:12-13 /
Deuteronomy 10:20.
Out of love for them, God had performed great miracles in their sight, even though some in this new generation never saw or witnessed them, Deuteronomy 11:2, and He has promised them a productive land in Canaan, Deuteronomy 11:1-12.
Many heard what Moses had said, and many had seen the mighty works of the Lord God in Egypt and beyond, Deuteronomy 11:3-6. They knew of the promise to make Abraham a great nation and that God had fulfilled that promise, Deuteronomy 10:22.
God chose Israel because He loved them and had made a promise to them through Abraham, Deuteronomy 7:6-8, and because God redeemed Israel out of the bondage of Egypt, Deuteronomy 7:8 / Deuteronomy 9:26.
Though God had done so much for Israel, they were rebellious against His will, Deuteronomy 9:24. Israel witnessed the miraculous consequences of rebellion against the Lord’s sovereign will, when Korah, Dathan and Abiram desired the priesthood, Deuteronomy 11:6 / Numbers 16:24-33. It was then that the Lord opened up the earth and swallowed the rebellious up in the sight of all Israel.
Oberst, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Concerning the dramatic and terrible judgment of the rebels, Dathan, Abiram, etc., One would think that such an event would have put a stop to all thoughts of rebellion, murmuring, and disobedience for a long time to come, but on the very next day the people were murmuring against Moses, saying, ‘Ye killed the people of Jehovah,’ Numbers 16.’
They saw with their own eyes everything God had done, Deuteronomy 11:7. God’s judgments on the parents with such great events, therefore, should motivate obedience in the lives of the children who were present at the time Moses spoke these words east of the Jordan.
God had performed many miraculous and fearful miracles before the eyes of Israel, and so they must ‘observe all the commandments’ that God is giving them, Deuteronomy 11:1.
Those who keep the commandments of God will have the Promised Land to look forward to, Deuteronomy 11:8-9. A land ‘flowing with milk and honey,’ Deuteronomy 11:9, a land that’s totally different from Egypt, Deuteronomy 11:10.
In Egypt, which was basically a desert land, they had to continually build irrigation systems from the Nile River in order to produce crops. But in Canaan, there would be sufficient natural rain where they wouldn’t have to work additionally to grow crops through the construction of irrigation systems, Deuteronomy 11:11. Canaan is a place that God cares for and sends rain upon it, that it may produce much fruit for its inhabitants, Deuteronomy 11:12.
Moses explains to Israel that if they love, serve, and obey the Lord with everything they have, then the blessings of rain, which produce grain, new wine, and oil, will be theirs Deuteronomy 11:13-14.
In other words, these are God’s terms and conditions for Israel, if they want to be blessed by Him, Deuteronomy 10:12-13 / Matthew 6:33 / Luke 12:31. God will provide grass in the fields for their cattle, and Israel will eat and be satisfied, Deuteronomy 10:15.
Israel need to be careful, or they will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them Deuteronomy 10:16. If Israel isn’t careful, if they turn away from God and turn to idolatry then God’s anger will burn against them, and He will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and Israel will soon perish from the good land God is giving them, Deuteronomy 10:17.
If they were disobedient to the will of God, then God would use the drought to bring about their repentance, Deuteronomy 10:17. Their obedience would bring the continual blessing of the early and latter rains, but God would bring drought upon the land if they ignored His commandments, 1 Kings 17:1 / James 5:17-18.
A good example of this type of blessing is found in the books of Haggai and Zechariah. Haggai explains to the people that the blessing of rain and fruitful earth had been withheld from them because they hadn’t followed God’s command to build the temple, Haggai 1:7-11 / Ezra 1:1-2 / Ezra 6:14.
The blessings of rain and fruitful ground continued to be withheld from Israel, Haggai 2:15-17, as long as their hearts remained hard from sin, Zechariah 7:12. Zechariah uses Israel’s rebellion to make an illustration regarding the blessings of obedience for future generations, that is, Jesus would one day come into the world, Zechariah 3:6-8 / Zechariah 9:9.
The blessings of obedience through Jesus would be ‘fountains’ of water, Zechariah 13:1, from his ‘pierced’ body, Zechariah 12:10. These ‘living waters’, Zechariah 14:8, would bless the people by cleansing their sins, Zechariah 13:1. The blessings of living waters shall ever be supplied by the ‘King over all the earth’, Zechariah 14:9.
Earlier Moses said that these children hadn’t seen the miraculous things which their parents had seen, Deuteronomy 11:2, but in order to guarantee that this generation of children does not fall away from the commandments of God, Israel are to fix God’s words in their hearts and minds and tie them as symbols on their hands and bind them on their foreheads, Deuteronomy 11:18 / Deuteronomy 6:4-8 / Exodus 13:9.
Children were to see the importance of God’s laws in their parents’ everyday lives. At times when they sat at the house, walked along the way somewhere, woke up in the morning, and lay down at night, they were to see and hear the word of God, Deuteronomy 11:19.
It was the responsibility of the parents, not the Levites, to teach the children. The Israelite children occasionally learned from the Levites when the parents took offerings for fellowship meals to the Levites in the cities, but on the farms, the parents were to be continually educating their children in the word of God.
When the children came into their house, they were to see and hear of God, and when they entered or left the city they lived in, they were to hear of God, Deuteronomy 11:20.
The blessings of obedience and the curses of disobedience were at stake. The parents were to teach their children in order that their days and the days of their children may be many in the land God swore to give their ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth, Deuteronomy 11:21.
When Israel went into Canaan, a national pledge was to be made; this pledge to be obedient to the commandments of God wasn’t only a national commitment to the will of God for the generation that made it, but also a pledge for all generations that would follow throughout the history of Israel.
Moses again reminds Israel of God’s terms and conditions: they must keep His commandments, love Him, and hold fast to Him, Deuteronomy 11:22 / Deuteronomy 10:12-13 / Deuteronomy 10:20 / Deuteronomy 11:13. If they do all that God requires, then God will drive out other nations that are larger and stronger than Israel, Deuteronomy 11:23.
Notice also, that God says, ‘every place where you set your foot will be yours’, Deuteronomy 11:24, these are the same words God promised to Joshua when Israel were about to cross over the Jordan River into Canaan, Joshua 1:3. He would extend Israel’s borders and put fear in the hearts of Israel’s enemies, Deuteronomy 11:24-25 / 2 Chronicles 9:26 / Numbers 34:12.
Oberst, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Christians, why can’t we learn this lesson that Israel so stubbornly refused to learn, that faithful service of God will enable us to do things that appear totally impossible, accomplish things that try even the imagination, conquer the unconquerable, and overcome difficulties that seem to be insurmountable? Who can stand up against him who is aligned with and in fellowship with Almighty God?’
Craigie, in his commentary, gives the following summary concerning the blessings and curses.
1. The blessing and curse in the present covenant renewal, Deuteronomy 11:26-28.
2. The blessing and curse in the future covenant renewal, Deuteronomy 11:29-32.
3. The specific legislation, Deuteronomy 12:1 to Deuteronomy 26:19.
4. The blessing and curse in the future covenant renewal, Deuteronomy 27:1-26.
5. The blessing and curse in the present covenant renewal, Deuteronomy 28:1 to Deuteronomy 29:1.’
Moses again repeats what He taught earlier, that is, those who obey God may expect His blessings, but those who disobey God’s laws can expect His curse, that is, they won’t be blessed by God. God says, He is setting before them a blessing and a curse, Deuteronomy 11:26.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘This whole paragraph, Deuteronomy 11:26-32, regards the transfer of the leadership of Israel from Moses to Joshua.’
The blessing if they obey God’s commands and the curse if they disobey God’s commands, will be the result of Israel turning away from God, disobeying God and idolatry, Deuteronomy 11:27-28.
They are to make a memorial regarding this principle upon Mount Gerizim, where the blessings of the covenant were read, and Mount Ebal, where the cursing of God would be read, Deuteronomy 11:29-30 / Deuteronomy 27:11-26.
Ewing, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Gerizim and Ebal were two significant peaks in central Palestine about 3,000 feet in elevation. They were quite close together with a little valley in between.’
When Israel crosses the Jordan to possess the land of Canaan, God instructs them to remember these instructions, Deuteronomy 11:31-32. The blessings and curses would reemphasise the principle that’s taught throughout these words. If they remained faithful, they would be blessed, but if they disobeyed the will of God, they would be cursed and eventually driven from the land of promise, Joshua 8:30-35.
Whybray, in his commentary, says the following.
‘One of the most frequently used words in Deuteronomy is ’today.’ It occurs almost a hundred times, most frequently in the phrase ’the commandment that I am commanding you today.’ This usage is of great significance for the theological understanding of the book. Basically, it is used to indicate the crucial nature of the moment at which the covenant at Horeb is established, and the people are summoned to obedience, Isaiah 49:8 / 2 Corinthians 6:2.’
This is the end of Moses’ second sermon.