Deuteronomy 3:27, commentary and pictures

God answered Moses' plea to enter the land beyond the river by telling him to climb to the top of Pisgah and look west and north and south and east at the land, for he would see it but would not cross the Jordan. The sentence pronounced after his failure at Meribah at Kadesh stood firm and could not be changed, even though he pleaded earnestly to go in. He forfeited entry because at the rock he acted in anger and struck instead of speaking, failing to give God the glory and to magnify Him before the people. His position as teacher and example made the open transgression especially serious, so God required exact obedience and would not treat a public failure as though it had not happened. He deeply repented, confessed his sin, and accepted the decree without complaint, and God told him to charge and strengthen Joshua, who would lead the people into the inheritance Moses could only see.

Pisgah View Denied Entry

The verse is God's answer to Moses' plea to enter the land beyond the Jordan, telling him to go up to the top of Pisgah and lift his eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward to behold the land, for he should not go over the Jordan. The command to look in every direction at the land from its heights did not revoke the sentence pronounced after his sin at Meribah at Kadesh. Despite his earnest pleading that the sentence be revoked and that he be allowed to enter, the decree that he would not cross the Jordan and enter the land stood firm and could not be changed.

He was allowed to look across the Jordan toward the promised land and the Canaan he longed to enter, to see it from Pisgah and Mount Pisgah, but he was forbidden to cross the Jordan into it. He would neither enter it himself nor lead Israel into it. His earnest pleading could not secure a change in that sentence.

God instead told him to charge and encourage and strengthen Joshua, who would go over and lead the people into the inheritance Moses could only see. Knowing he must die and must bear the penalty, Moses continued to care for Israel by preparing the people to enter their inheritance and guarding them against transgression by repeating God's law and recounting His dealings with them.

Reasons God Refused Moses

Moses forfeited entry into the land because at the rock he failed to give God the glory for bringing water from it. He had been told to speak to the rock, but instead he struck it, and he did so in anger. In that moment of impatience he missed an opportunity to magnify God before the people and to remind them that God's warnings are sure and His promises are dependable.

His transgression at Kadesh was open and marked before Israel, and for that reason his honored position did not spare him from the decree that he would not cross the Jordan. His long faithful service and suffering did not make that public disobedience something God could simply overlook. His responsible role as teacher and example made the mistake especially serious, and his punishment made clear to Israel that God, not Moses, had led them.

God refused his plea to reverse the judgment because to do otherwise after disobedience before Israel would make God's word seem unimportant. He requires exact obedience and does not treat a public failure as though it had not happened. The judgment demonstrated that God's word must be obeyed and that the actions of leaders set an example for the people.

Moses Response and Belief

Moses grieved over the punishment of being allowed to see the promised land from Pisgah but barred from crossing the Jordan because of his sin. He confessed his transgression and accepted God's decree without complaint, though the people's murmuring had helped bring about the moment of impatience in which he failed to give God glory for the miracle. He deeply repented of his transgression and pleaded to enter the land, but God's decision stood and he had to bear the penalty of his sin.

His earnest plea to enter and share Israel's inheritance shows he did not believe a good person enters eternal bliss immediately at death. The hope of sharing Canaan still mattered to him even as he was forbidden to cross the Jordan into the land he was allowed to view from Mount Pisgah. The command belongs also to the account of God testing Israel through trials so they would call on Him, receive deliverance, and learn to trust His power.