Deuteronomy 33:1-5 – The privilege of being God’s own

Like the Patriarchs before him, Moses also imparted blessings on the children of Israel before his departure. Deuteronomy 33 describe the blessings he pronounced on each of the tribes of Israel. The blessing was an impartation of a word of encouragement, a prophecy concerning their future, and details of each of the tribe’s inheritance. Here Moses' last words were given not as the law nor a song of warning, but an encouraging word for each tribe. As the leader of the young nation, he blessed the children of Israel.

Moses was referred to in Deuteronomy 33:1 as the man of God. No one can deny that Moses was a godly man, a God-centred man. It was he who under the instruction of God led the children of Israel out of  Egypt and rigorously led them forty years through the wilderness. He gallantly bore many challenging moments when the children of Israel grumbled and turned on him. He was found often praying, interceding, and urging the people not to break faith with God. Now as the people faced the daunting task of possessing the promised land, a word from this great servant of God was truly timely. He took the time to bless and gave each of the 12 tribes an encouraging word to help them turn their thoughts to their gracious God.

In these first five verses of Deuteronomy 33, Moses spoke of how God magnificently and gloriously revealed His greatness and power at Mount Sinai, and by grace made Israel His people. He made a covenant with them and through Moses, He gave them the law. And as their Covenant LORD, He not only loved and cared for them but also led them as they followed Him. He did not just become their covenant LORD, but He also became their sovereign King.

What a privilege it was for the children of Israel to have God Himself making them His covenant people. It was He who had initiated the whole moment. Today in Christ, God has also initiated and made us His New Covenant people. In Him God has given us the privilege to be His sons and daughters. And Romans 8:15 says, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” This same verse also tells us that we can have intimacy with God. The word Abba is an endearing term. When we address God as Abba, we are calling on God as our personal and intimate “papa” or “daddy.” What a joy it is to know God as our Lord and loving Father! Let us not be afraid to draw near to God confidently to receive grace to help in time of need. What a privilege!