Commentary - Deuteronomy 31:1-6

Bird's-eye view

This passage marks a pivotal moment in the life of Israel. It is a formal passing of the baton, a covenantal leadership transition from the lawgiver, Moses, to the conqueror, Joshua. Moses, at the end of his long and faithful life, gathers the people to deliver his final charge. The central theme is the absolute necessity of grounding their courage not in their new human leader, however capable, but in the unchanging, ever-present reality of their divine leader, Yahweh. The command to be strong and courageous is not a pep talk based on human potential, but a logical entailment of a theological fact: God goes with them. This is the foundation for the conquest of Canaan, and it is the paradigm for every subsequent generation of God's people as they face their own battles. The promise of God's presence is the fuel for the church's obedience.

The structure is simple and powerful. Moses first establishes his own physical limitation and God's sovereign prohibition, effectively removing himself from the equation. He then points the people to the two-fold reality of their future: Yahweh will go before them, and Joshua will lead them under Yahweh's authority. The basis for their confidence is God's past performance in defeating Sihon and Og. Because God is faithful and sovereign, the people are commanded to be strong and courageous, a command rooted in the promise that God will neither fail nor forsake them. This is the pattern for all Christian discipleship: God's promise precedes and empowers our obedience.

Outline

Context In Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 31 comes at the very end of the great sermons of Moses that constitute the bulk of the book. Having systematically restated and applied the law of God for the new generation poised to enter the Promised Land, the narrative now shifts to the practical arrangements for the future. Chapters 29 and 30 detailed the solemn renewal of the covenant, with its blessings and curses. Now, in chapter 31, Moses prepares the people for his departure. This section is a formal commissioning of Joshua and a final charge to the people and their new leader. It serves as the bridge between the era of law-giving in the wilderness and the era of conquest in the land. The words spoken here are the final marching orders, setting the theological tone for the entire book of Joshua that follows.

Key Issues

Passing the Baton

Leadership transitions are notoriously difficult moments. Whether in a family, a business, or a nation, the handing over of authority is fraught with peril. The people of Israel are facing the ultimate transition. For forty years, their only leader has been Moses, the towering figure who spoke with God face to face. Now he is leaving them. The temptation would be to despair, or to place a messianic weight of expectation on the shoulders of his successor, Joshua. But Moses, in this final charge, short-circuits both of those errors. He directs the people's gaze away from himself, and even away from Joshua, and fixes it squarely on Yahweh. The stability of Israel does not depend on the man holding the staff, but on the God who commands the man. This is a foundational lesson for the church in all ages. Our hope is not in gifted pastors or dynamic leaders, but in the God who promises to be with His people always, even to the end of the age.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1-2 So Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. And he said to them, “I am 120 years old today; I am no longer able to come and go, and Yahweh has said to me, ‘You shall not cross this Jordan.’

Moses begins with a dose of stark realism. He is 120 years old. While other passages note that his eye was not dim nor his vigor abated, he is speaking here of his official capacity. His public ministry, his role as the one who "comes and goes" before the people as their leader, is at its end. This is not a resignation; it is an acknowledgment of God's sovereign timing. He states two reasons for this transition, one natural and one supernatural. The natural reason is his great age. The supernatural reason is God's explicit decree. Because of his sin at Meribah (Num 20:12), Moses is forbidden to enter the land. This is a poignant and humbling moment. The great lawgiver must himself submit to the word of the Lord. He does not complain or lobby for a different outcome. He states it as a fact, teaching the people by example that all of us, even the greatest saints, live and die under the sovereign hand of God.

3 It is Yahweh your God who will cross ahead of you; He will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua is the one who will cross ahead of you, just as Yahweh has spoken.

Here is the central declaration. Do not fear because Moses is leaving. Why? Because Moses was never the ultimate leader in the first place. It is Yahweh your God who will cross ahead of you. He is the true Commander-in-Chief. He is the one who goes into battle before you. The destruction of the Canaanite nations is His work, not yours. Your part is to follow in His wake and "dispossess them," to take possession of what He has already won for you. Only after establishing this primary reality does Moses mention the human successor. "Joshua is the one who will cross ahead of you." Notice the order. God first, Joshua second. Joshua's leadership is entirely derivative. He is the leader "just as Yahweh has spoken." His authority comes from God's appointment, not his own resume. This is a beautiful type of Christ. Joshua, whose name is Yeshua, the same as Jesus, means "Yahweh saves." He is the one who will lead God's people into their promised inheritance, but he does so only as the appointed agent of God Himself. Our Jesus is the true Captain of our salvation who goes before us to win the victory.

4 And Yahweh will do to them just as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when He destroyed them.

Faith is not a leap in the dark; it is a step into the light of God's revealed character. How can Israel be sure that God will destroy the formidable nations in Canaan? They are to reason from God's past performance. Moses points them back to the recent, spectacular victories over Sihon and Og on the east side of the Jordan. God has a track record. He has already demonstrated both His power and His intention to give them victory. This is how faith argues. We look at the empty tomb of our Lord Jesus, the ultimate victory over our greatest enemies, sin and death, and from that past event, we draw confidence for all our present and future battles. The victories over Sihon and Og were the down payment, the earnest, of the full inheritance to come.

5 And Yahweh will give them over before you, and you shall do to them according to all the commandments which I have commanded you.

This verse perfectly balances divine sovereignty and human responsibility. The promise is absolute: "Yahweh will give them over before you." The victory is guaranteed. It is a gift. But this divine gift does not lead to human passivity. The result of this promise is a command: "and you shall do to them according to all the commandments." God gives the victory, but Israel must fight. God delivers the enemy, but Israel must execute the sentence. Specifically, they were to conduct the war according to the laws of herem, the laws of holy war, devoting the spoils to God. This is not a contradiction. God's sovereignty empowers and commands our obedience. He works out His purposes through our faithful, obedient actions.

6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or be in dread of them, for Yahweh your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.”

This is the grand conclusion and the emotional peak of the charge. Based on everything just said, the imperative is given: "Be strong and courageous." This is not a suggestion to try and feel brave. It is a command to act with strength and courage, regardless of how you feel. Courage is not the absence of fear; it is obedience in the presence of fear. And where does this strength come from? The reason is given immediately, and it is everything. "For Yahweh your God is the one who goes with you." The foundation for your courage is not your skill with a sword, or your numbers, or a positive mental attitude. The foundation is the presence of the living God. The indicative ("God is with you") is the ground for the imperative ("Be courageous"). The verse ends with a magnificent twofold promise: "He will not fail you or forsake you." He will not let you down, and He will not leave you. This promise is quoted directly in Hebrews 13:5 as the basis for Christian contentment and confidence. The same God who went with Joshua goes with us. The same promise that fueled the conquest of Canaan is the promise that fuels our pursuit of holiness and our engagement in the Great Commission.

Application

The charge to Israel on the plains of Moab is our charge as well. We too stand on the brink of a promised land, the progressive victory of the gospel in history, and we face our own intimidating Canaanites: a hostile culture, personal temptations, the challenges of raising godly children in an ungodly age. The temptation is to look at the giants and tremble, or to look at our own inadequacies and despair.

This text commands us to lift our eyes higher. Our Moses, the law, has shown us our sin and our inability to cross over in our own strength. But our Joshua, Jesus, has come. He has already crossed the ultimate Jordan of death and resurrection, and He goes before us to secure the victory. The command to us is the same: "Be strong and courageous." This is a command for the Christian husband leading his family, for the mother homeschooling her children against the grain, for the student speaking the truth on a college campus, for the pastor preaching the whole counsel of God when it is unpopular.

Our courage is not manufactured. It is a fruit that grows in the soil of God's promises. The central promise is right here: "Yahweh your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you." Christ echoes this in His final words to the church: "And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matt 28:20). Because He is with us, we have every reason to be strong. Because He will not fail us, we have every reason to be courageous. Let us therefore shake off our fears, remember the great victories God has already won for us in the cross, and advance boldly to take possession of the inheritance He has promised.