ETB Deuteronomy 4:1-9,15-20

Session 8: Remember p.73

Discuss: What is your favorite family memory?

The writer of today’s lesson in the leader’s guide talks about keeping a journal.

For many years, I have kept a written record of God’s faithfulness to my family. When He answers a prayer or brings an unanticipated blessing, I record it in my journal. Then when I feel discouraged, I get out the record, which reminds me how faithful God has been. I know that I’ve forgotten to record many answered prayers and blessings. Still, the journal testifies to God’s faithfulness and drives me to gratitude and to worship. [LifeWay Adults (2025). Explore the Bible: Adult Leader Guide, Fall 2025]

Ask: How do your family’s stories get passed down from one generation to the next?

Transition: Deuteronomy is built on a series of speeches or sermons Moses delivered on the border of the promised land. As we dig into a portion of Moses’s first message to the people, we will reflect on how his challenges to the Israelites are applicable in our own journeys.

Understand the Context

As we begin a new book of study this week here are some good overview notes from one of my study bibles:

The Open Bible Introduction

The primary theme of the entire Book of Deuteronomy is the renewal of the covenant.

The Open Bible Introduction

Like Leviticus, Deuteronomy contains a vast amount of legal detail, but its emphasis is on the laymen rather than the priests. Moses reminds the new generation of the importance of obedience if they are to learn from the sad example of their parents.

The Open Bible Introduction

Like Leviticus, Deuteronomy does not progress historically. It takes place entirely on the plains of Moab due east of Jericho and the Jordan River (1:1; 29:1;

Chapter 1 -3 of Deuteronomy are a review of the past 40 years starting at Horeb and through the wanderings. They finish with the battles in Moab and Moses’ ban from entering the Promised Land. But before God call him up the mountain one final time, He gives the prophet the command to speak and record the commands to be followed after he is gone and the people are entering their land.

Deuteronomy is mostly three speeches or sermons from Moses to the people; today’s passage comes from the beginning of the first.

Explore the Text

Deuteronomy 4:1–4 ESV

1 “And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. 2 You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. 3 Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. 4 But you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today.

listen

The verb form of listen indicates this command went to the nation as a whole. Plural verb forms appear in the rest of the passage because Moses also called every individual Israelite to obedience [ETB:ALG Fall '25]

Listen is the Hebrew word “shema.” Moses tells the people to listen as a nation multiple times in his three sermons. Next week’s lesson, however, will look into what is considered “The Shema” as it contains the foundation truths upon which most of all the other commandments are built upon.

When someone tells us to “listen up,” what are the typically trying to communicate?

Does our opinion of the person speaking bear any influence on how well we listen?

If we believe the message is from God, should the messenger matter?

Moses was pleading for the people to listen to him and heed the words that he was writing down, not because of his authority but because he KNEW these things were from God and for the benefit of all the nations.

statutes and the rules

What comes to mind when you heard the phrase “statues and rules?”

If you do, how do you differentiate between the two?

It seems from some of the translators of the Hebrew that “statues” is more of a moral standard to be followed where as “rules” are more legal in nature. God’s laws are always morally perfect, and since He is The Judge, they are legally accurate and binding. Whether they are agreed to by us or not, they are “the rules” of His Earth and His Creation.

the God of your fathers

This phrase stresses the long-term relationship God had established with His people, a relationship that included a promise to Abraham to bring them back to the land (Gen. 12:1-3; 15:16). [ETB:ALG Fall '25]

This may also be a subtle reminder to those listening to think about how their fathers did not obey God’s commands and that is why they are the ones going into the Promised Land instead of them. If God did not spare your fathers for their disobedience, He will not spare you either.

Paul wrote similar language in Romans (11:19-21) when addressing the Gentiles about the Jews who were the conduits of God’s grace to the nations:

Romans 11:19–21 “19 Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you.”

You shall not add to the word that I command you

What are some ways that you have heard God’s Word being “added to” or “diminished?”

This is the first temptation in the Bible...

Gen 3 - “Did God actually say...” “You surely will not die.”

There were some commentators that wrote about how this was not literal statement but more of general statement about Moses’ writings because the rest of the Bible had not been written yet. I do not see it that way.

God can add or take away from His Word all He wants because He is the Word. We humans, however, are to never take His place in regard to His Word. We can only use what He has communicated to us. No more, no less.

Your eyes have seen what the Lord did

Baal-peor was where the people had compromised their faith through sexual sin with foreign women (Num. 25:1-9). The term “Baal of Peor” denotes an image of Baal, the chief god of the Canaanites. Supposedly, he was the god of the storm and of fertility, and his worship often involved illicit sexual rites. God sent a plague against the Israelites who worshiped this pagan god, and 24,000 died (Num. 25:9). [ETB:ALG Fall '25]

Moses is encouraging the people to “Remember what you have personally seen God do.” He then uses the most recent example for them to remember. These things happened between the time of our reading of Balaam and their arriving here at the river across from Jericho. Remembering God’s past works, helps us trust Him for the current and future ones.

What is the most recent way that you have seen God’s work around you?

you who held fast to the Lord your God

Not only does Moses help them remember what God has done, but he also encourages them in how they responded in faith. It was because of their obedience to the “statutes and rules” that they already had heard that they were now going to be able to enjoy the land promised to them. All of their fathers and many kindred were not and died on the way. God’s blessings and their faithfulness have allowed them to live and be ready to see more of God’s work.

Who helps you see your faithfulness in the past?

Ask: Why do you think Moses kept emphasizing that the words he was speaking were from God?

Deuteronomy 4:5–9 ESV

5 See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 6 Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? 8 And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? 9 “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children—

Multiple times in this passage Moses directs the people to not only listen to God’s commands but to keep them and do them.

Moses’ speech shifts from helping the people see the works of the past to encouraging them in future deeds. Obedience is not really optional. In the previous verse the wording makes it seem that possession of the land is conditional to obedience. As we progress through Israel’s history and the prophets come warning of exiles we see the correlations more clearly. Eventually the people to not “keep them or do them” and they are removed from the land until such their hearts, or rather their children’s hearts, are more ready to be God’s obedient people again.

It seems that the pattern of learning from parents’ mistakes can bring blessing.

What are some mistakes that your parents or mentors made that you were able to avoid, and are grateful to God for revealing them to you?

Three times in the passage God calls the people before Moses a “great nation.”

What makes a nation great?

“Wisdom” denotes the ability to apply knowledge to a situation. The term “understanding” is related to the word “between,” suggesting the ability to distinguish between truth and error. Knowing and fearing God leads to both (Prov. 9:10). As neighboring peoples heard of God’s commands and saw the Israelites living by them, they would conclude that Israel was a great nation comprised of a wise and understanding people. Living by God’s standards would set His people apart. They would be seen as a great nation. Ultimately, that differentiation would point people to God. [ETB:ALG Fall '25]

Those hearing these words the first time had yet to become a nation and yet God through Moses is already promising them a greatness that causes other nations to take note and possibly emulate. God tells them that their “wisdom and understanding” will make them great in the eyes of the other nations, but this is Scripture so only “godly wisdom and understanding” has the impact described.

We have the rest of the Old Testament to tell us how well the people did. Were they a “great nation” by God’s standard?

Has there ever been a nation that maintained godly pursuits for more than a couple generations or leaders?

Those good kings and golden eras are just glimpses and tastes of what the millennial kingdom will be like. All people under God’s rule, and Christ as King. Opposition will be removed one last time, then a Great Kingdom for the rest of eternity.

NIV Bible Speaks Today: Notes Chapter 4

Christians also have rules which distinguish us from the surrounding culture (e.g. loving enemies, generosity, marital faithfulness)—when have you seen these impact on the lives of unbelievers?

But until we get to heaven and the Perfect Kingdom, we are here on earth. Moses sums up all the encouragement and reminders in our last verse of this section, which would be good one to memorize if you haven’t already.

Deuteronomy 4:9 “9 “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children—”

Take care and keep your soul

Obeying God’s Word in the years to come for the Israelites was going to take a focused effort it was not going to come “naturally” they would have to be on their guard for anything that may draw them away from God’s “statutes and rules.” The vigilance could be done by intentionally remembering and keeping these things that God had done in “front of their minds.” Teaching things helps us remember and begins the process in those that are taught.

Hebrews 2:1 “1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.”

Lest you forget

Deuteronomy: One Nation under God The past Informing the Future (4:9–24)

In the Old Testament, the act of remembering was more than simply calling the past to mind. It also involved actively commemorating the past, learning from both positive and negative experiences of history, and then living in a particular way that was consonant with the identity that had been forged in the past. In other words, the past fundamentally informed the future.

When forget what God has done, then we tend do not act upon His faithfulness. Sometimes we need to have constant reminders. That is one of the dangers of removing memorials and historic markers. We forget what was done in the past, even if it was unpleasant, and we will repeat the same mistakes.

When we forget with our mind, the heart will follow.

Lest the depart from your heart

Notice God’s connection between the memory and the heart. When our mind wanders it will eventually redirect our heart and desires.

What can we do today to help our heart’s not wander from God principles?

Psalm 119:11 “11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”

Ecclesiastes 4:12 “12 And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”

Make them known

At some point, the eyewitnesses to God’s mighty works would be gone, so they had to make sure that the testimony was passed down and that a legacy of faith shaped future generations. [ETB:ALG Fall '25]

Next week we will read how we are to “diligently teach” God’s truths to the children.

I do not have any “children’s children” at this time, so how do you who do fulfill this command?

Ask: How will obeying God’s Word set believers apart in today’s world?

Deuteronomy 4:15–20 ESV

15 “Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, 16 beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, 17 the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, 18 the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth. 19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. 20 But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be a people of his own inheritance, as you are this day.

These verses are an expansion on the first commandments in Exodus 20 with their orders reversed.

3) You shall not make for yourself a carved image (v16-18)

2) You shall have no other gods before me. (v19)

1) I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt (v.20)

Watch yourselves very carefully closely parallels the instruction in verse 9. Earlier, Moses had urged the people to fear God so they could gain the wisdom that came from faithful obedience. Here, he charged them to worship the Lord only as He prescribed.

You saw no form recalled the moment the people accepted the terms of the covenant at Horeb (Ex. 24:1-8). They heard God’s voice as He spoke to them out of the midst of the fire, but they saw no image or likeness of anything. This event laid a strong foundation against idolatry.  [ETB:ALG Fall '25] 

Discuss: Call attention to the list of pagan idols from other cultures mentioned in verses 16-19. Emphasize that God called His people to live distinct from other nations (v. 20).

Courson’s Application Commentary, Old Testament Volume 1 (Genesis–Job) Deuteronomy 4:14–20

When the Law was given, the children of Israel heard the Word, but saw nothing physical or tangible of God’s Person. Therefore, they were not to make any images to represent Him. And because of this, of all cultures of antiquity, the Jewish people are the only culture without artistic treasures or monuments. Instead, they directed their energies elsewhere, which partially explains the fact that, although they constitute less than one-half of one percent of the world’s population, the Jewish people as an ethnic group have won almost twenty-five percent of all Nobel prizes.

Today that percentage is closer to 20%, but it still proves Courson’s point, when our worship is correct, God’s wisdom and knowledge are more easily discerned, and He reveals His creation more fully.

Ask: What kinds of idols do we need to refrain from worshiping today?

I think that this question misdirects us in our view of our sinful habits. It is not the idols that cause the problem, but our worship. I think the better question would be:

What do we need to refrain from worshipping like an idol? What do we spend our time and effort on that is not guiding our hearts closer to God?

The land that these people had come from and were now supposed to conquer had been full of literal idols. God is trying to give them rules and commands that could break that hold upon their minds and hearts.

CSB Study Bible: Notes Chapter 4

Egypt’s description as an iron furnace is a metaphor for a smelter or crucible whose function was to melt down metals under such intense heat that all the dross and other impurities were separated from them, leaving them pure and usable (

But the Lord has taken you… to be a people of his own inheritance.

The book had a good summation of this on page 80.

Out of all the earth’s inhabitants, God had selected one group, Abraham’s descendants, to be His special people. Hearing their cries in Egypt, God remembered His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He brought them out. This is always God’s work of redemption. He brings us out—from darkness to light, from death to life, from the yoke of slavery to freedom in Christ. God had given the Israelites a new identity, and they were called to respond by worshiping and serving Him in the way He instructed. In time, if Israel remained faithful, people of other nations would see their uniqueness and be drawn to their God. [ETB:PSG Fall '25]

This people would be the conduit for His Son to come and give us as Gentiles the opportunity to also participate in His inheritance.

1 Peter 2:9 “9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

Apply the Text

“Great Is Thy Faithfulness” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Zj6EwlL9E0&list=RD4Zj6EwlL9E0&start_radio=1

The book lists three “reminders” for us to apply to our lives. We are to obey God’s commands, value and seek the wisdom that comes from the Lord, and rejoice that God has called us to be His people.

The follow prayers are from a study on praying Scripture focused on Deut 4:9.

Preparation: Lord, I need help guarding and watching over the inner self to assure Your ways are followed

Adoration: Lord thank You for never forgetting. I am grateful and praise You for being there for my children, grandchildren, and all those that follow be they my physical relatives or spiritual ones. You are eternal and desire relationship with all these.

Confession: I have not watched myself closely or remembered all the things that You have done for me. Help me be more mindful of You and making Your ways know to others.

Thanksgiving: Thank You that I have never slipped Your mind, You guard my heart when I forget. You will be there for grandchildren, great-grandchildren and so on for a thousand generations. Thank You for Your Word which will still be true and available to all of them.

Supplication: Lord, help me to be sensitive to Your prompting about the direction of my heart all the days of my life. Give me insight and discernment to not allow evil desires to enter and grow.

Consecration: Lord, I want to have a purer heart that is closer to Yours and cares for others appropriately. Help me to remember the things that You have done around and through me to continue to desire Your work and ways.

Intercession: God please be with all of those that have not committed any portion of their lives to You who are in my physical family. Help guard and guide the hearts of those who are in my spiritual family. Use me to make Your ways known to those around me. Shape me into a useful vessel for Your work.