The Genius of a Godly Nation Text: Deuteronomy 4:5-8
Introduction: The Envy of the World
We live in an age that is drunk on the wine of relativism. Every man does what is right in his own eyes, and as a result, our nations have become madhouses. We are told that true freedom means casting off all divine restraint, that wisdom is found in a committee of autonomous experts, and that greatness is measured by gross domestic product or military might. Our public discourse is a cacophony of shrieking, and our laws are a tangled mess of contradictions, reflecting the moral chaos of the men who make them.
Into this asylum, the Word of God speaks with a clear, steady, and authoritative voice. It does not offer a suggestion for our consideration. It does not present one option among many. It lays down the unalterable foundation for reality, and it tells us plainly what makes a nation truly great. And what makes a nation great is not its GDP, its navy, or its technological prowess. What makes a nation great is its proximity to the living God and its glad submission to His perfect law.
Moses is standing on the plains of Moab, looking across the Jordan into the Promised Land. He is delivering his final sermons to a new generation of Israelites, the children of that faithless generation that perished in the wilderness. He is laying out the terms of the covenant once more, reminding them of who God is and what He requires. And in our text today, he explains the central purpose of the law God has given them. It was not given to be a burden. It was not a collection of arbitrary rules designed to make life miserable. It was given to be their glory. It was given to be their wisdom. It was given to make Israel the envy of the world, a city on a hill whose light would attract the attention of all the surrounding pagan nations.
This passage is a direct assault on the modern secular project. The secularist wants a wise and great nation, but he wants it without God and without His law. He wants the fruit of righteousness without the root of righteousness. But Moses tells us that this is impossible. True national wisdom, the kind that makes the pagans stop and stare, is inextricably bound up with obedience to the statutes and judgments of God. This is the central issue of our time, and of all time. Will we have the laws of God, or will we have the laws of man? Will we have the wisdom of Heaven, or the ever-shifting follies of earth?
The Text
See, I have taught you statutes and judgments just as Yahweh my God commanded me, that you should do thus in the land where you are entering to possess it. You shall keep and do them, for that is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is Yahweh our God whenever we call on Him? Or what great nation is there that has statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole law which I am setting before you today?
(Deuteronomy 4:5-8 LSB)
The Curriculum of Righteousness (v. 5)
We begin with the foundation, which is divine revelation.
"See, I have taught you statutes and judgments just as Yahweh my God commanded me, that you should do thus in the land where you are entering to possess it." (Deuteronomy 4:5)
Moses begins by establishing his authority, and it is a delegated authority. He is not the source of this law; he is the messenger. "I have taught you... as Yahweh my God commanded me." This is the fundamental principle of all legitimate authority. All authority on earth is derived. It flows downward from God. A teacher, a pastor, a king, a president, a father, none of them are the source of the standard. They are stewards of a standard that has been given to them. The moment they begin to invent their own law, they become tyrants.
Notice the two words used here: "statutes and judgments." Statutes are the fixed, established laws, the principles that do not change. Judgments are the application of those statutes to particular cases. This is a comprehensive legal framework. God does not just give us abstract principles; He shows us how they are to be worked out in the nitty-gritty of life, in property disputes, in criminal cases, in family law. This is not a religion for the ethereal realm; it is a blueprint for life on earth.
And this law has a specific location in view: "in the land where you are entering to possess it." God's law is not meant to be kept in a monastery or in the private recesses of one's heart. It is meant to be embodied, to be lived out publicly, to shape the culture of a specific place. It is law for a people in a land. This is the foundation of a Christian commonwealth. God intends for His truth to take on flesh and blood, to have a geography, to build a society that can be seen and touched.
The Public Display of Genius (v. 6)
Next, Moses explains the evangelistic purpose of this public righteousness.
"You shall keep and do them, for that is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’" (Deuteronomy 4:6)
The obedience of Israel was intended to be a public performance. It was a demonstration project for the whole world. When Israel walked in obedience to God's law, their national life would be so sane, so just, so prosperous, and so joyful that the surrounding pagan nations would be forced to take notice. They would look at Israel's society and be compelled to ask, "How did they do that? Where did they get this wisdom?"
This is God's missionary strategy. The law was not just for internal governance; it was a powerful apologetic. The pagan nations were drowning in their own depravity. Their laws were capricious, their justice was corrupt, their societies were built on violence and exploitation. In contrast, a nation ordered by the law of God would be a beacon of light. Its wisdom would be self-evident. The pagans wouldn't need a seminary degree to see that a society that protects the unborn, honors marriage, demands honest weights and measures, and cares for the poor is vastly superior to their own.
This is a profound rebuke to the modern church's retreat from the public square. We have been told to keep our faith private, to sequester our morality within the four walls of the church building. But God's intention has always been for the righteousness of His people to be "in the sight of the peoples." When we obey God's law in our families, our businesses, and our civil life, we are holding up a sign that says, "There is a better way to live." A truly obedient Christian community should be the most attractive and compelling society on earth. Our problem is not that the world has rejected our wisdom; it is that we have so rarely displayed it.
The Privilege of Proximity (v. 7)
Moses then reveals the first of two reasons for this national greatness: unparalleled access to God.
"For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is Yahweh our God whenever we call on Him?" (Deuteronomy 4:7)
This is a rhetorical question, and the answer is a resounding "none." The pagan gods were distant, fickle, and deaf. You had to bribe them with sacrifices, placate them with rituals, and hope you caught them on a good day. They were part of the cosmic furniture, forces to be managed, not a Father to be called upon.
But Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel, is different. He is near. He is not a distant deity but a present help. The tabernacle was in their midst. The pillar of cloud and fire led them. And most importantly, He was available "whenever we call on Him." This is the privilege of covenant relationship. God has bound Himself to His people with promises. He invites them to pray, to seek His face, to ask for help, and He promises to hear and answer.
This is the secret engine of a godly nation. It is not just about having the right laws; it is about having a living relationship with the Lawgiver. A wise nation is a praying nation. It is a nation that knows it is dependent on God for everything, from the rain in the fields to victory in battle, and it is a nation that knows how to get ahold of Him. The secularist thinks he can build a great society through human ingenuity alone. But he is like a man trying to power a city by plugging all the appliances into each other. He has no external power source. A godly nation is plugged into the infinite power of the sovereign God of the universe.
The Perfection of the Standard (v. 8)
The second reason for Israel's greatness is the objective perfection of God's law.
"Or what great nation is there that has statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole law which I am setting before you today?" (Deuteronomy 4:8)
Again, the answer is "none." The greatness of Israel was not in the people themselves. They were a stiff-necked and rebellious lot, as Moses repeatedly reminds them. Their greatness was in the law they had been given. The law of God is perfect because it is a reflection of the character of God. It is holy, just, and good. It is not the product of human trial and error. It is divine wisdom, handed down from Heaven.
This is why all attempts to build a just society on a foundation other than God's law are doomed to fail. Human laws are a reflection of human character, which is fallen, selfish, and corrupt. Man-made laws will always be a compromise with sin. They will always bend to political pressure, to popular opinion, and to the lusts of the powerful. But God's law is righteous. It does not bend. It is an objective standard of justice that stands over and above all men and all nations.
A nation that builds its legal code on this foundation is building on rock. A nation that builds on the shifting sands of human opinion is building a house that will be swept away in the first storm. The choice before us is the same choice that was before Israel. Will we have God's righteous law, or will we have the unrighteous and chaotic laws of the pagans? There is no third option.
Conclusion: The Nearness of God in Christ
As Christians reading this text, we must see that everything promised to Israel finds its ultimate fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ and His church. The law was their wisdom, but Christ is the wisdom of God (1 Cor. 1:24). The law was righteous, but Christ is our righteousness (1 Cor. 1:30). The law was a public witness, and we, the church, are now that city on a hill, that light of the world (Matt. 5:14).
But what about the nearness of God? If God was near to Israel in the tabernacle, how much nearer is He to us now? The writer to the Hebrews tells us that we have not come to a physical mountain that burned with fire, but we have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, to the very presence of God (Heb. 12:22-24). Through the blood of Jesus, we have a boldness to enter the holy of holies that the high priest could only dream of (Heb. 10:19-22).
And God is near to us not just in heaven, but here on earth. The Holy Spirit has made our bodies and our churches His temple (1 Cor. 6:19, Eph. 2:22). God does not dwell in a tent in our midst; He dwells within us. The privilege of proximity that made Israel the envy of the world is magnified a thousand times over in the new covenant. "For what great nation is there that has a god so near?" We are that nation. We are that holy nation, that royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9).
Therefore, the command to Israel is a command to us. We have been given a law, the royal law of liberty in Christ. We have been given unparalleled access to the throne of grace. The world is watching. They are starving for wisdom, for justice, for a society that makes sense. Let us, therefore, keep and do the words of our King. Let us build our families, our churches, and our communities on the solid rock of His Word. And as we do, the nations will look on in wonder and say, "Surely this great people is wise and understanding, for their God is with them."