For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and from the one end of the sky to the other, whether there has been anything as great as this thing is, or has been heard like it?
Parallel Translations
-
For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and from the one end of the sky to the other, whether there has been anything as great as this thing is, or has been heard like it?
-
For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?
-
For ask now of the days past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and from the one end of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?
Cross-references (8)
Passages linked to Deuteronomy 4:32 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Job 8:8 “Please inquire of past generations. Find out about the learning of their fathers.
- Deuteronomy 32:7 Remember the days of old. Consider the years of many generations. Ask your father, and he will show you; your elders, and they will tell you.
- Psalms 44:1 We have heard with our ears, God; our fathers have told us what work you did in their days, in the days of old.
- Matthew 24:31 He will send out his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
- Genesis 1:27 God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them.
- Joel 1:2 Hear this, you elders, And listen, all you inhabitants of the land. Has this ever happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers?
- Deuteronomy 30:4 If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of the heavens, from there Yahweh your God will gather you, and from there he will bring you back.
- Mark 13:27 Then he will send out his angels, and will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the sky.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (12 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
Saved on this device only — never synced or sent anywhere.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Man’s negligence is partly cause, that he knoweth not…
Man’s negligence is partly cause, that he knoweth not God.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Deu 4:32 For ask now of the days that…
Deu 4:32 For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and [ask] from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been [any such thing] as this great thing [is], or hath been heard like it?
Ver. 32. For ask now of the days.] Historiae suntfidae monitrices; great good use is to be made of history, - this holy history especially, whereof every word is pure, precious, and profitable.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain From the one side of heaven, i.e. of the…
From the one side of heaven, i.e. of the earth under heaven. Ask all the inhabitants of the world. Compare Mat 24:31, with Mar 13:27.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain For ask now of the days that are past,…
For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee,.... Inquire into and consult the annals of former times, of ages past:
since the day that God created man upon the earth; trace them quite up to the creation of the world, and men in it:
Read full note →
and ask from the one side of heaven to the other; traverse the whole globe, and examine the records of every nation in it in both hemispheres:
whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it? whether they can give any account of anything seen, heard, or done like what follows; suggesting that they cannot furnish out an instance to be mentioned with it.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain The one side of heaven - That is, of…
The one side of heaven - That is, of the earth under heaven. Ask all the inhabitants of the world.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Deu 4:32-34. The one side of heaven — That…
Deu 4:32-34. The one side of heaven — That is, of the earth under heaven. Ask all the inhabitants of the world. And live — And was not overwhelmed and consumed by such a glorious appearance. By temptations — Temptations is the general title, which is explained by the following particulars, signs, and wonders, &c., which are called temptations, because they were trials both to the Egyptians and Israelites, whether they would be induced to believe and obey God or not. By terrors — Raised in the minds of the Egyptians, or, by terrible things done among them.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Heaven. To our senses the sky seems to rest…
Heaven. To our senses the sky seems to rest upon the horizon. So Jesus says, Then he....shall gather....his elect....from the uttermost part of earth, to the uttermost part of heaven, Matthew xxiv. 31. Vatable translates, "from the east to the west." In no age or place did God ever declare his will, as he had done at Sinai. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 32. For] The connection, as we have seen, is…
32. For] The connection, as we have seen, is not with the immediately preceding Deu_4:29-31, but with either Deu_4:28 or Deu_4:24.
ask now, etc.] The challenge is bold and characteristic of D. From the first of time, from one end of heaven to the other, nothing has ever happened like that which Israel has experienced at Ḥoreb or in the deliverance from Egypt to which the next verses proceed.
Read full note →
the day that God created man] P, Gen_1:27; Gen_5:1, created, bara’, P’s characteristic expression for J’s made and formed.
whether there hath been] Heb. brought itself into being, happened.
32–40. The Uniqueness of the God of Israel
This further appeal to the sole deity of Israel’s God is founded upon the nation’s experience of the unparalleled revelations He has made to them, the unparalleled deeds which He has performed for their deliverance (Deu_4:32-39); and it closes on the note with which the ch. opened, the enforcement of the practice of His laws (Deu_4:40).—Throughout in the Sg. form of address; for apparent exceptions see on Deu_4:34. The section is joined by Berth. with Deu_4:9-24 as one separate discourse, but as we have seen Deu_4:32 connects even more naturally with Deu_4:28. Over against the change to the Sg. address we have to place the sympathy of the contents and the similarity of the style with those of Deu_4:1-8. Deu_4:32-39 best develop Deu_4:7, while Deu_4:40, which there is no reason for supposing with Steuern. to be a mere scribal addition of formulas, suitably rounds off the whole by a return to the keynote of Deu_4:1. If Deu_4:9-40 be a later addition to Deu_1:6 to Deu_4:8, it has been very skilfully and sympathetically added.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (32) For ask now . . . whether there…
(32) For ask now . . . whether there hath been any such thing.-The same argument is afterwards employed by St. Paul (Rom_11:29) for the restoration of Israel: “for the gifts and calling of God are without repentance,” i.e., irrevocable. He did not go and take Him a nation out of the midst of another nation in order to abandon them at last. He never did so much in the way of personal and visible interposition for any people; and He will not forsake the work of His own hands. Moses had proved the truth of what he says here in many scenes of sin and peril averted by his own intercession. (See especially Num_14:11-21, and comp. 1Sa_12:22.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 32-40. Still more to enforce his warning against…
Vers. 32-40. Still more to enforce his warning against apostasy, and urge to obedience and faithful adherence to the service of Jehovah, Moses appeals to what they had already experienced of God"s grace in the choosing of them to be his people, in his speaking to them to instruct them, and in the miracles which he had wrought for their deliverance and guidance; grace such as had never been showed before to any nation, or heard of since the creation of the world, and by which those who had experienced it were laid under the deepest obligations of gratitude and duty, to love and serve him by whom it had been showed. With this appeal he closes his first address.
For. This connects the statement that fellows with that which precedes as its cause; it is because Jehovah is a merciful God, that the unparalleled grace showed to Israel had been displayed. The days that are past, etc., i.e. inquire from the earliest time of man"s abode on the earth. From the one side of heaven unto the other; search the records of all times and places, whether any so great a thing has ever happened or been heard of.
Read full note →
Vers. 32-36. Israel"s peculiar greatness. (See Homiletics, Deu_4:11-20 Deu_5:6 Deu_33:29)
Vers. 32-41. The wonderfulness of Israel"s history.
I THE WONDERFULLNESS OF REVELATION AT ALL. (Ver. 33.) It may be argued with great propriety that man needs a revelation; that if there is a God, it is probable he will give one; that the absence of all special revelation would be a greater wonder than the fact of a revelation being given. Yet, when the mind dwells on it, the sense of wonder grows at the thought of the Eternal thus stooping to hold converse with finite, sinful, dying men on earth. Whatever enhances our conceptions of God"s greatness, intensifies in the same measure our wonder at the condescension, grace, and love implied in special revelation. (Ps 8)
II THE WONDERFULLNESS OF GOD"S REVELATION OF HIMSELF IN ISRAEL"S HISTORY. (Vers. 34-39.) God revealed himself to Israel; but, inasmuch as the calling, deliverance, and whole history of the nation was full of the supernatural, he was revealed also in Israel in its history. The miraculous element in the history of Israel is urged as a reason for rejecting it. But remark:
1. It claims to stand out as something absolutely unique in time. This is no case of the vulgar supernatural, begotten of a childish, miracle-loving age. Moses is as conscious of the marvel, of the exceptional character of the occurrences he narrates, as any of his critics; probably more so. He rises to the grandeur of the subject he speaks of, and puts it on the express ground that nothing like it was ever known, or rumored, in history.
2. An adequate reason existed for these wonders. The interposition of God, as narrated in these verses, the whole revelation, with its terrors, its signs and wonders, its fire, its lawgiving, is abundantly worthy of the Being who is said to have revealed himself, and of the ends for which that discovery of himself was made. On the other hand, it rises high above what man would naturally have imagined God to do, had he set himself to invent a story of the kind.
3. The wonders are well attested. Moses appealed to a generation, the older part of which had witnessed them. Critics dispute the Mosaic authorship of the address; but apart from this, it is to be said that the whole after-history of the nation rests on their reality. There is, however, an inherent sublimity, fitness, vividness, sense of reality in the narratives, and in this appeal to eye-witnesses, which speaks of itself for the truthfulness of the history. When narratives of the same kind, presenting the same marvelous characteristics, can be produced from other literatures, and laid alongside of these, we will be able to believe in their legendary or invented character.
4. These wonders established a unique claim on Israel for obedience and fidelity (vers. 39, 40).
III THE WONDERFULNESS OF GOD"S REVELATION OF HIMSELF IN ISRAEL IS SURPASSED BY HIS REVELATION OF HIMSELF IN CHRIST. These wonders in Israel were but the earlier acts in a great drama, of which the later belong to the dispensation of the gospel. While Moses appeals to the limited character of the former revelation as enhancing its wonder (ver. 34), it is the greater marvel of the revelation in Christ, that it is universal in its scope, and brings in a redemption which all can share. We think here of the incarnation, the miracles of Christ, the resurrection, the outpouring of the Spirit, the miraculous spread of the gospel, subsequent reformations and revivals, conversions, the supernatural power exhibited in the renewal and sanctification of souls, the successes of missions, etc. (cf. Heb_2:1-5) The appeals of Moses, and his exhortations to wonder and obey, come down to ourselves, accordingly, with enormously enhanced force. J.O.
Vers. 32-40. The deliverance of the Lord"s people unparalleled.
Moses would have the Israelites to regard God"s deliverance of them from Egypt as a matter for the most grateful admiration. There had been nothing like it since the beginning of the world. There was direct and immediate communion with God; there was deliverance of the people from Egypt by unexampled judgments; and all was to show his character as a sovereign and loving God. The effect of such a discipline should be filial obedience. It suggests the following lessons:
I THE LORD"S PEOPLE SHOULD GRATEFULLY STUDY THEIR DELIVERANCE. The marvelous Exodus from Egypt and communion at Sinai were deserving of the most faithful study. No people had ever been so favored before. But our personal deliverance from the bondage of sin, our march through the wilderness of life, our fellowship with God from the mountain-top of ordinances, the entire experience of a spiritual soul, combine to eclipse even the discipline of Israel. Each one is prepared, who understands his state, to say, "Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul". (Psa_66:16)
II UNPARALLELED EXPERIENCE FROM GOD ARGUES AN UNPARALLELED GOD. For it is a revelation of his powers and character he makes in these matters, and we are expected to reason from our experience up to himself. "Unto thee it was showed," said Moses, "that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God; there is none else beside him." He moves in an unparalleled fashion, that we may recognize in him the unparalleled One.
The use of personal experience is, therefore, to reach the Divine side of it, and see what reflection of Deity it presents.
III IT WAS GOD"S LOVE WHICH HE ILLUSTRATED IN BRINGING ISRAEL FROM EGYPT TO CANAAN. The casting out of the Canaanites, the extermination of the idolaters, was judgment justly exercised upon them; but it was love towards Israel. Hence one of the psalmists makes these conquests a proof that "his mercy endureth forever". (Psa_136:17-22) And God"s dealings with his people always are to illustrate his love, They find how all things work together for good unto. (Rom_8:28)
IV IT IS FILIAL OBEDIENCE HIS PEOPLE SHOULD RENDER. The similarity between ver. 40 and the fifth commandment of the Decalogue is certainly remarkable. The idea of God"s fatherhood is as certainly in the mind of Moses and of the filial obedience of Israel. Long life is attached to their filial obedience to God, as it is attached in that commandment to the filial obedience we render to man. And indeed this "fatherhood of God," with its correlative "sonship of man," constitutes the crowning relation into which God and man come. How glorious it is l Earth becomes the school of God"s children; the promise of the life that now is cheers them on, and heaven contracts the kindly light of home. We should never rest contented till our study of God"s dealings leads us into assurances and hopes like these. The Israelites were to be obedient, and in consequence successful children; and the same blessed conditions become ours by faith! R.M.E.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Ask now of the days that are past.
Deu_4:32
Ask now of the days that are past.
Read full note →
Inquiry of the past
1. The past may refer to--
(1) General history. So in context.
(2) Individual life. So we take it now.
2. Inquiry of the past.
(1) Some do not think of the past. This arises from--
(a) Thoughtlessness.
(b) Guilt.
(c) A false philosophy.
(2) It is our wisdom to ask of the days that are past.
(a) Because the past is in existence now.
(b) Because for the past we are responsible.
(c) Because the past is full of useful lessons.
I. Ask of past blessings. How have they been received?
1. The blessings.
(1) Material.
(2) Spiritual.,
Prayers answered, inspiring and uplifting influences imparted, help rendered, souls need supplied, strength in trial, light in darkness, wisdom in ignorance, discipline to purify and perfect.
2. Their reception. Have they been received--
(1) As from God?
(2) As undeserved mercies?
(3) In a thankful spirit?
II. Ask of past opportunities. How have they been used?
1. Opportunities of getting good.
(1) Mental good.
(2) Moral good. Have they been turned to profit, or lost forever?
2. Opportunities of doing good.
(1) To the bodies of men.
(2) To the souls of men. Instructing the ignorant, guiding the perplexed, comforting the sorrowful, rebuking the sinner, reclaiming the citing, speaking the word in season, etc.
III. Ask of past sills. Have they been repented of and pardoned?
1. Sins of omission.
2. Sins of commission.
(1) Against God. Irreverence. Unsubmissiveness. Ingratitude. Unfaithfulness.
(2) Against man. Injustice. Untruthfulness. Uncharitableness. (Homilist.)
The days that are past
An imperial philosopher, having divided time into the past, the present, and the future, says, we should give the past to oblivion, the present to duty, and the future to Providence. Now, we admire two of these admonitions. We readily give the future to Providence, and we ought to give the present to duty, so that whatsoever our hands find to do, we may do it with our might. But we can never consent to give the past to oblivion. God requires that which is past, and He requires us to remember it.
I. The past days of others, those who have lived before us.
1. See that your aim in this be not only, or principally, mere amusement; but endeavour to derive lessons mental and moral, and religious instruction, from the characters and the events recorded.
2. Secondly, beware how you place implicit confidence in history. Endeavour to distinguish between fiction and truth.
3. Relinquish the prejudice which Solomon assails when he says, Ask not why the former days were better than these, for thou dost not wisely concerning this matter. No, the thing is not true; we ought to be wiser than the ancients, for we are much more ancient than they. Certainly, the world is older now than it was ages ago. Surely mankind are not incapable of intellectual or moral progression and improvement.
II. Those of yourselves: those which you have passed through in your own history and experience. These come nearer home, and are more easily reviewed and compared. There is something very solemn in the thought of days that are past; past, never to return, while their moral results remain forever as subjects of future responsibility. And who has not to reckon upon days that are past? for time, like tide, stays for no man.
1. Let us ask, then, what they have to say concerning the world. Mr. Savage has strikingly remarked, I never knew any of the people of the world praise it at parting. Nor need we wonder at this: we should wonder if they did. They have been too much in it, they have seen too much of it, they have been too much deceived by it, to recommend it to others, when dying, from their own history and experience.
2. Ask the days that are past what they have to say concerning yourselves. Have they not shown you many things with which you were formerly unacquainted, and filled you with surprise and regret? Ah! how many convictions have you violated, how many resolutions have you broken? Instead of the paradise you promised yourself, you have found yourselves in a wilderness. Have not your dependencies often proved broken reeds--not only unable to sustain your hopes, but which have pierced you through with many sorrows? And yet will not these days that are past also tell you something else? Will they not tell you that life has been at least a chequered scene If you have been in the wilderness, have you not found grace in the sanctuary Have you not had there the fiery, cloudy pillar to guide you? Have you not had the manna to sustain you? Have you not had the waters from the rock to refresh you? Have you not had some of the grapes of Eshcol?
3. Ask of the days that are past what they have to say concerning the Scriptures.
(1) Have they not tended to confirm them?
(2) Have they not tended to explain them?
(3) Have they not tended to endear them?
4. Ask the days that are past what they have to say concerning our Lord and Saviour. Ask them whether He has not been a good Master; whether you cannot say at the end of ten, or twenty, or thirty, or forty, or sixty years, Thou hast dealt well with Thy servant, O Lord. Ask them whether He has not been a good Master; whether you cannot say at the end of ten, or twenty, or thirty, or forty, or sixty years, Thou has dealt well with Thy servant, O Lord. Ask them whether He has not been your powerful Helper and your kindest Friend. Three conclusions are derivable from this:--
(1) The first is, that you commit yourselves to God by prayer, that you may be prepared for all your future days, whatever may be their complexion.
(2) Secondly, that you should beware of presumption; that you should leave off devising, and say, The Lord shall choose my inheritance for me.
(3) Thirdly, you should equally guard against despondency; for though you know not what your future days may be, you know that nothing they contain in them will happen by chance. One thing you know, that all the way of the Lord towards you will be mercy and truth. One thing you know, that all things work together for good to them that love God. (W. Jay.)
The voice of the past
Time is a great mystery. Time, says Carlyle, is forever very literally a miracle--a thing to strike us dumb; for we have no word to speak about it. Strictly speaking, it is we who move, and time stands still, although the contrary appears to be the ease; as to travellers in any speedy kind of locomotion, the objects close at hand seem to flit rapidly past them, whereas they know that it is themselves that are in motion. Of nothing are we more slow to think than of the nature and value of time, both as regards its highest present uses and its relation to that eternity from which, by Divine fiat, it was first drawn, and into which it shall finally return. The past is a very solemn word. It is irrevocably gone, marked on the part of us all by manifold follies and sins; replete with painful accusations of conscience. Although the past is so irrevocably gone from our reach that it cannot be used for the purpose for which it was originally given,--that of living in its duration to God,--yet a serious review of the past year, for instance, may and, if rightly made, must, be productive of profit to us all. Just as the ship which has been totally wrecked, although it can no more traverse the sea, yet its shattered planks may be rendered serviceable for many useful purposes. Let us ask of the days that are past--
I. That we may entertain a humbling consciousness of our own unprofitableness in the use we have made of our time. Constituted as we are, it is imperative upon us that we should give much of our attention to the care of the body and to the regulation of our temporal affairs; yet it is a humbling reflection that beings possessed of such amazing capacities as those enfolded in every human soul, should have so much of their attention engaged in things which bear unequivocal marks of insignificance. Much of the past year has passed in sleep, in providing and partaking of food, in humble domestic arrangements, in the dull routine of business or the idle lassitude of relaxation. And who amongst us can plead guiltless to such charges as these? Who can say of the past year, Its time has gone just as I could have wished; I could not desire any future year to be better spent than this has been? Alas! none.
II. That we may have a grateful sense of the Divine goodness and forbearance.
III. That we may, by Divine help, resolve to correct in the future those things which have been evils in the past. (J. Foster.)
The goodness of God displayed in creation, providence, and redemption
I. View the text as the language of a contemplative and spiritual mind, retired from the cares of the world, surveying with pious delight the wonders of creation, and tracing in all the works of God the glory and goodness of their Almighty Maker. Universal nature proclaims the glory of God. This earth which we inhabit, the ground upon which we tread, declare to us the greatness and mercy of the Almighty. How great is its beauty! How beneficial its fruits! By its liberal provision all former generations have been supported, and from its unexhausted magazines and varied resources all nations are supplied with food and raiment. When, from the inanimate creation, the Christian turns his views to the animal world, he traces there the footsteps of the Almighty, and the operations of His hand. The beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, and the fish of the sea, their shape and figure, their infinite variety, the fit season of their production, their skill in procuring food, and especially their utility to man, all testify that the earth is replenished with the Creators goodness. Man himself is the perfection of this lower world. Let the Christian, from himself and the wonders around him, rise to the contemplation of the heavenly bodies. These celestial luminaries instruct as well as shine. And perhaps, could we wing our way beyond this visible diurnal sphere, and soar above these rolling planets, we should discover other suns, other stars, other and perhaps nobler systems, established through the boundless regions of space. But here inquiry stops; here our views terminate; yet from such a survey of the heavens and the earth we feel an elevating impulse: we are lost in wonder and admiration.
II. Consider the text as the reflection of a child of providence, after a serious and devout review of the dispensations of God to himself and to others. Nothing yields us so certain a conviction of the providence of God, or evinces so fully its extent, equity, and care, as the consideration of the experience of it which we ourselves have had. It will therefore be the frequent and delightful employment of good men to recall the memory of Gods great goodness, and to reflect upon the measures of His providence with them in former years. They gratefully contemplate the Divine care which protected them from many dangers. But with still Greater satisfaction the Christian reflects upon the care of providence extended to his spiritual concerns. To Thee, my God, I ascribe all the glory and the praise of all that I am, and all that I enjoy! To the silent, secret, effectual influences of Thy Spirit I owe the pleasures of religion which I experience; to the unseen hand of Thy providence conducting me through the mazes of the world I ascribe that comfortable situation in life which I have attained. But the Christian confines not his contemplations upon providence to himself, or the inconsiderable transactions of his own life. He extends his prospect, and sees God ruling over all; he views the Almighty sitting upon His throne of justice and judgment, dispensing to every man a just proportion of good and evil, according to the counsel of His sovereign will. Numberless events in the course of providence, indeed, are to him dark and intricate; he cannot penetrate into their causes, nor assign any satisfactory reason for them. But he checks every hasty, unguarded thought and expression upon the subject. He knows that only a small corner of the plan of Divine administration is made known to him; how these partial evils shall promote the general good, and display the glory of the sovereign Disposer, he cannot now explain. But a scene far more bright and joyous opens upon the Christians view in the conduct of the Almighty respecting the redemption of man. He contemplates, with astonishment, that plan of wisdom and grace into which angels desire to look. He views the kingdom of Christ advancing in the world, mean and contemptible in its origin, opposed in its progress by the hostile persecuting spirit of the rulers of the world, yet gathering strength from every wound, spreading far and wide, including, in process of time, a great part of the habitable world, and now established on such solid permanent foundations as affords warrant, even upon principles of human probability, for believing that no weapon formed against its interests shall finally prosper. These are subjects which, to the pious, contemplative Christian, afford inexhaustible matter of delightful meditation and praise.
III. Consider the text as the breathings of the Christian when adoring the unsearchable riches of Christ Jesus, and ascribing all his salvation to unmerited sovereign grace. This is the noblest theme of all. A Christian beholds with delight the Supreme Judge passing an act of indemnity, and acquitting the sinner from the charge of guilt, restoring to favour and adopting him into His family. I conclude with a few practical inferences:--
1. Consider how unsearchable must be the greatness, and how ineffable the glory, of that God who does so great things for the children of men.
2. Observe the ingratitude, the guilt, and danger of impertinent sinners, who remain at ease without God and without Christ in this life.
3. Let the children of God give glory to their heavenly Father for all His mercies. (A. Bonar.)
Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire?--
The speciality of the Bible
This is the eternal challenge of the Bible. The appeal may be regarded as a call to the study of comparative religion There are many religions in the world gather them up rote one view, extend the inquiry far and wide, through time and space, and see whether the Bible does not separate itself from all other books by miracles that cannot be rivalled and by excellences that cannot be equalled. The Bible simply wants to be heard, to be read, and to be understood. It asks nothing from its ablest teachers but a paraphrase true to its own spirit and tone. It will not have addition; it will have expansion: it will not be decorated from the outside; it asks that its root may have full scope to express in leaf and blossom and bud and fruit all the bloom of its beauty and all the wealth of its uses. This is the position Moses occupies: we cannot amend the position; we accept it. Note the speciality which Moses fixes upon. He asks a question--Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?--if so, prove it. The challenge is not a lame one. The Bible awaits the evidences. We, if earnest men, should be in quest of the best book, without asking who wrote it or by what authority was it written. If it speak to us as no other book can speak, we are bound to accept it. Christianity says in effect--What other religion is there that deals with sin as I deal with it? I do not ignore it; I do not hasten over it; I do not treat it as a mere incident, or a cutaneous affection which superficial means may subdue and which proper attention may remove. What other religion, theory, philosophy, grapples with sin as Christianity does? It will penetrate it, cleave it asunder, analyse it, search into it, and never rest until it gets out of the soul the last fibre of the bad root, the last stain of the fatal poison. Let us be fair to facts; whether we are in the Church or out of the Church, whether we belong to this section or to that section, do let us in common decency acknowledge that Christianity, come whence it may, does grapple with infinite energy with sin. The appeal of Christianity also is--Ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether any other religion tries to make the same kind of men that Christianity makes? Let us judge the tree by its fruit. We are not superstitious or fanatical or narrow-minded; we do ask the question, and insist upon an answer, Does any other religion make such men as Christianity makes? Here Christianity must be judged by its purpose, by its own written word and claim, and not wholly by the men themselves, because we are still in the land of bondage in many particulars: we are in the flesh; we suffer from a thousand weaknesses; Christianity, therefore, must be judged in its declared intention regarding the culture of manhood. What kind of men does Christianity want to make? Weak men? It never made one weak man. Strong men, valiant men, men of the keenest mind, men of the largest judgment, men of the most generous disposition; if that is the kind of men Christianity wants to make, where is the religion that can excel or equal Christianity in that purpose? Produce the men! Judge by facts. Where Christianity has entered into a life, what has it done with that life? Can it be proved that Christianity, fairly understood and thoroughly received, has soured the temper, narrowed the sympathies, dwarfed the noble ambitions of the soul? Has Christianity ever made unhappy homes, unrighteous parents? Let the challenge be thoroughly understood and frankly replied to. Christianity lives visibly in the Christian. Christianity wants to put away all other evidence, argument, and wordy encounter, and to be able to say, Judge me by my children; judge me by my believers; I am what they are. Therefore, if the Church of the Living God could stand up complete in the purpose of its Redeemer and Sanctifier, the snowy pureness of its character, the lofty dignity of its moral temper would abash every assailant and silence every accuser. Do not be harsh, or point with mocking finger to some poor weak soul, and say, If this man represents Christianity we do not want to know further what Christianity is. Christianity can only be judged by the Book which reveals it, by the Christ who founded it, and by the noble history which has surrounded it. So we accept and repeat this challenge. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Moses continues to speak to the people of Israel as if they were one man, so all instances of "you" and the command "ask now" are singular. (See: Forms of You)
Read full note →
Did ever a people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live?
Here the people of Israel are reminded of how Yahweh has spoken to them in an amazing way in the past. This rhetorical question can be translated as a statement. AT: "No other people besides you has heard God speak from the middle of the fire and lived." (See: Rhetorical Question)
hear the voice of God speaking
Here God is represented by his voice. AT: "hear God's voice as he spoke" (See: Synecdoche)
translationWords
God
create
heaven
people group
voice
life
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.