But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day.
Moses set two groups apart at Baal-peor, those who followed after idolatry were cut off and destroyed from Israel, while every one who held fast to the Lord was left living to that day as they stood ready to enter the promised land. To cleave to Him means to keep His statutes, judgments and commandments without adding to them or taking from them, in firm allegiance, humble faithfulness and obedient service, worshiping Him alone and remaining separate from the nations around. Those who so hold fast are kept alive and guarded by His power, finding prosperity, holiness, happiness and communion with Him as His children, for His commands are not grievous but the way of righteousness and life. Turning to idolatry and self-sufficient rebellion brings His curse, disease, death and destruction, from which no other power can save, because He cannot sustain His people in transgression. Their survival remains a living testimony to the wisdom and blessedness of obedience, set before the church and the nations as an example and admonition to take heed lest any fall.
Historical Setting
The verse sets two groups at Baal-peor against each other: all who followed Baal-peor were destroyed from among Israel, while those who cleaved to the Lord remained alive every one to that day. Cleaving to God is the opposite of apostasy and of turning to idolatry and false worship, and the lives of the survivors demonstrate the consequence of that loyal choice. To cleave in this setting is to hold fast to Him, obey His commands, keep His statutes and judgments without adding to them or diminishing from them, remain distinct from the surrounding world, and live by that obedience. God did not execute judgment at once but gave time to come back to truth, and then preserved alive, shielded, and guarded by His power those who held fast to Him.
It was spoken by Moses while rehearsing the law as Israel stood on the threshold of the promised land preparing to enter and possess it, with loyalty meaning heeding His commands and warnings. Those who refused Baal-peor and held fast were alive every one that day, and Moses' declaration of this drew a hearty answering Yea from them. Their cleaving meant becoming acquainted with their relation to God in His statutes and judgments and doing them in order to enter and possess the blessed land, which was their only hope. Their survival in that hour illustrates the covenant blessing of holding fast to God.
The survival of the faithful also stands against the wider fate of the wilderness generation, in which the disobedient adults died in the wilderness and only two of the adults who left Egypt entered Canaan. That contrast confirms that God's word is fulfilled and underscores the consequences of departing from His commandments. Its setting is further connected with Israel at Sinai and the Lord's law, with life connected to keeping His commandments.
The same living by holding fast describes those who rejected self-sufficient rebellion, refusing to set up a counterinfluence by supposing they could lead without the appointed leaders. Those who became self-sufficient and thought they could lead without Moses and Aaron and those in charge were destroyed when the earth swallowed them. But those who held fast to the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Owner of the universe and of all heaven, above whom no power can stand, remained living.
Meaning of Cleaving
To cleave to the Lord is to keep His statutes and judgments without adding to them or diminishing from them, and to do them in order to enter and possess the land, for obedience to His truth in this sense is life. It stands as the opposite of following Baal-peor unto destruction, since those who refused Baal-peor and held fast remained alive every one to that day, and their hearty assent to Moses' declaration showed their only hope was to become acquainted with their relation to God in His statutes and judgments and do them. To cleave is to stay firm in allegiance by keeping the commandments and giving loyal, obedient service, while the law is delight to those who cleave and becomes an unendurable weight only when they separate from Him and lose His love and power. Those who hold fast are shielded and guarded by His power, and their obedience is their wisdom and understanding, setting them before church and nations as proof of what God does for commandment-keepers.
Cleaving is firm allegiance shown in humble faithfulness, loyal and obedient service, holding fast to God, renewing allegiance to Him, worshiping Him alone, and remaining separate from surrounding nations. It requires choosing a right relationship through obedience, studying and obeying His Word and serving Him wholeheartedly under His watchful protection, with these teachings repeated to children as preparation for entrance into His everlasting kingdom. It is shown in keeping and doing His commandments, which is wisdom and not ignorance, making His people examples who glorify Him, and it belongs to the covenant instruction to obey His commands and remain distinct from the surrounding world. Those who turned into self-sufficient rebellion perished, while those who held fast to the Creator remained living, and the survivors at Baal-peor renewed their allegiance as those urged to worship God alone and stay separate.
Coming out from the world and being distinct is essential to cleaving, rather than placing oneself on a level with idolatrous nations, for joining idolatry brings destruction while cleaving preserves life. All who followed Baal-peor were destroyed from among Israel, but those who did not join themselves to it and held fast remained alive every one, proving that leveling with idolatrous nations brings the sure results of that choice. This separation includes giving children thorough lessons in Bible truth apart from the corruption found among many children in the public schools. Loyalty means following God's requirements rather than human teachings, since Israel's life and prosperity depended on obeying His law, statutes, and judgments, and He cannot sustain a people in transgression. Cleaving to Him is of surpassing value because He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and of man, the Owner of the universe and of all heaven, above whom no power can stand and to whom none is equal.
Life Through Obedience
Those who held fast to the Lord were kept alive, watched over, protected, shielded and guarded by His power, receiving no harm and finding prosperity, holiness, happiness and communion with Him as His children, and the difference between obedience and disobedience is a matter of life. To cleave to Him is to keep His commandments in humble faithfulness, and His care calls for studying and obeying His Word, serving Him wholeheartedly, and repeating these teachings to children as preparation for entrance into His everlasting kingdom. People must choose a right relationship with God through obedience, since disobedience places them outside the protection He offers. Their survival illustrates the protection associated with obedience during the Baal-peor apostasy, when those who remained faithful were still alive while those who followed Baal-peor had been destroyed from among Israel.
His commands are not a curse, a yoke of bondage, or grievous and impossible to keep, but the way to escape the curse of all sin and be righteous before Him, holy, happy, in communion with God, knowing He is their God and they are His children. While the people cleaved to God the law was their delight, but when they separated from Him they lost His love and power and the law became an unendurable weight. To cleave unto the Lord means to stay firm in allegiance to Him by keeping His commandments and giving loyal, obedient service.
Turning to idolatry and self-sufficient rebellion brings disaster, the curse of God, disease, death and destruction from among the people. Those who became self-sufficient, thought they could lead without the appointed leaders, and set up a counterinfluence perished, destroyed when the earth swallowed them, while those who held fast to the Creator remained living. Disregard of God's law brings the wrath of an infinite God from which no other power can save, for life and prosperity depend on obeying His law, statutes and judgments, following His requirements rather than human teachings, because He cannot sustain the people in transgression. The facts of that departure from the commandments were to be repeated from time to time lest they be forgotten, as proof that placing themselves on a level with idolatrous nations brings the sure results of their own choice.
God does not execute judgment at once but gives time to come back to truth and then preserves alive those who hold fast to Him. The judgment on the unfaithful served as a warning against dishonoring God and as mercy that prevented their corrupting influence from spreading.
The survival of the obedient is a living testimony to the blessedness of obedience and proof that keeping the commandments is wisdom and understanding. It sets them before the church and the nations of the earth as examples who glorify Him, showing what God does for commandment keepers, and if the commandments had been kept the state of the world would be different. Their survival as the people prepared to enter the promised land illustrates the covenant blessing of holding fast to God and confirms that His word is fulfilled, in contrast with those who disobeyed and died.
Study and Warning
The whole fourth chapter of Deuteronomy is to be carefully studied by all who would be numbered among God's covenant-keeping people, for it sets forth the reasons His people are identified as His people. It teaches that God alone is God, and that keeping His statutes and commandments brings well-being and long life to Israel and to their children. That instruction is bound up with obedience to God's law as proclaimed at Mount Sinai, including the true Sabbath given to humanity to keep holy.
Obedience to that law was the condition on which Israel was to receive the promises God had given them. Walking according to the Lord's law gives a people wisdom and understanding, distinguishes them through obedience, and brings blessing upon all who obey His statutes, judgments, and commandments. What God required of Israel in order to be a holy people is summed up in the survival of the loyal, who remained alive, with life itself connected to keeping His commandments. These Old Testament instructions describe the obedience God requires of His people throughout history and in the last days, stressing the keeping of the living Word of God in mind. Their principles remain binding and are to be practiced in religious service toward God and toward others, calling for love among believers, justice, liberality, tenderness, compassion, and true courtesy, since departing from His word in conduct misrepresents His character.
The chapter warns all who have heard the truth to heed its teachings and not to treat truth as something to be put on and taken off at will. The facts of the departure from the commandments at Baal-peor and of the deliverance of the faithful who held fast to the Lord were to be repeated from time to time lest they be forgotten. These teachings are to be repeated to children as thorough lessons in Bible truth, preparing them for entrance into God's everlasting kingdom. That deliverance stands as an example and admonition to those upon whom the ends of the world are come, that whoever thinks he stands must take heed lest he fall.
Moses set two groups apart at Baal-peor, those who followed after idolatry were cut off and destroyed from Israel, while every one who held fast to the Lord was left living to that day as they stood ready to enter the promised land. To cleave to Him means to keep His statutes, judgments and commandments without adding to them or taking from them, in firm allegiance, humble faithfulness and obedient service, worshiping Him alone and remaining separate from the nations around. Those who so hold fast are kept alive and guarded by His power, finding prosperity, holiness, happiness and communion with Him as His children, for His commands are not grievous but the way of righteousness and life. Turning to idolatry and self-sufficient rebellion brings His curse, disease, death and destruction, from which no other power can save, because He cannot sustain His people in transgression. Their survival remains a living testimony to the wisdom and blessedness of obedience, set before the church and the nations as an example and admonition to take heed lest any fall.
Historical Setting
The verse sets two groups at Baal-peor against each other: all who followed Baal-peor were destroyed from among Israel, while those who cleaved to the Lord remained alive every one to that day. Cleaving to God is the opposite of apostasy and of turning to idolatry and false worship, and the lives of the survivors demonstrate the consequence of that loyal choice. To cleave in this setting is to hold fast to Him, obey His commands, keep His statutes and judgments without adding to them or diminishing from them, remain distinct from the surrounding world, and live by that obedience. God did not execute judgment at once but gave time to come back to truth, and then preserved alive, shielded, and guarded by His power those who held fast to Him.
It was spoken by Moses while rehearsing the law as Israel stood on the threshold of the promised land preparing to enter and possess it, with loyalty meaning heeding His commands and warnings. Those who refused Baal-peor and held fast were alive every one that day, and Moses' declaration of this drew a hearty answering Yea from them. Their cleaving meant becoming acquainted with their relation to God in His statutes and judgments and doing them in order to enter and possess the blessed land, which was their only hope. Their survival in that hour illustrates the covenant blessing of holding fast to God.
The survival of the faithful also stands against the wider fate of the wilderness generation, in which the disobedient adults died in the wilderness and only two of the adults who left Egypt entered Canaan. That contrast confirms that God's word is fulfilled and underscores the consequences of departing from His commandments. Its setting is further connected with Israel at Sinai and the Lord's law, with life connected to keeping His commandments.
The same living by holding fast describes those who rejected self-sufficient rebellion, refusing to set up a counterinfluence by supposing they could lead without the appointed leaders. Those who became self-sufficient and thought they could lead without Moses and Aaron and those in charge were destroyed when the earth swallowed them. But those who held fast to the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Owner of the universe and of all heaven, above whom no power can stand, remained living.
Meaning of Cleaving
To cleave to the Lord is to keep His statutes and judgments without adding to them or diminishing from them, and to do them in order to enter and possess the land, for obedience to His truth in this sense is life. It stands as the opposite of following Baal-peor unto destruction, since those who refused Baal-peor and held fast remained alive every one to that day, and their hearty assent to Moses' declaration showed their only hope was to become acquainted with their relation to God in His statutes and judgments and do them. To cleave is to stay firm in allegiance by keeping the commandments and giving loyal, obedient service, while the law is delight to those who cleave and becomes an unendurable weight only when they separate from Him and lose His love and power. Those who hold fast are shielded and guarded by His power, and their obedience is their wisdom and understanding, setting them before church and nations as proof of what God does for commandment-keepers.
Cleaving is firm allegiance shown in humble faithfulness, loyal and obedient service, holding fast to God, renewing allegiance to Him, worshiping Him alone, and remaining separate from surrounding nations. It requires choosing a right relationship through obedience, studying and obeying His Word and serving Him wholeheartedly under His watchful protection, with these teachings repeated to children as preparation for entrance into His everlasting kingdom. It is shown in keeping and doing His commandments, which is wisdom and not ignorance, making His people examples who glorify Him, and it belongs to the covenant instruction to obey His commands and remain distinct from the surrounding world. Those who turned into self-sufficient rebellion perished, while those who held fast to the Creator remained living, and the survivors at Baal-peor renewed their allegiance as those urged to worship God alone and stay separate.
Coming out from the world and being distinct is essential to cleaving, rather than placing oneself on a level with idolatrous nations, for joining idolatry brings destruction while cleaving preserves life. All who followed Baal-peor were destroyed from among Israel, but those who did not join themselves to it and held fast remained alive every one, proving that leveling with idolatrous nations brings the sure results of that choice. This separation includes giving children thorough lessons in Bible truth apart from the corruption found among many children in the public schools. Loyalty means following God's requirements rather than human teachings, since Israel's life and prosperity depended on obeying His law, statutes, and judgments, and He cannot sustain a people in transgression. Cleaving to Him is of surpassing value because He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and of man, the Owner of the universe and of all heaven, above whom no power can stand and to whom none is equal.
Life Through Obedience
Those who held fast to the Lord were kept alive, watched over, protected, shielded and guarded by His power, receiving no harm and finding prosperity, holiness, happiness and communion with Him as His children, and the difference between obedience and disobedience is a matter of life. To cleave to Him is to keep His commandments in humble faithfulness, and His care calls for studying and obeying His Word, serving Him wholeheartedly, and repeating these teachings to children as preparation for entrance into His everlasting kingdom. People must choose a right relationship with God through obedience, since disobedience places them outside the protection He offers. Their survival illustrates the protection associated with obedience during the Baal-peor apostasy, when those who remained faithful were still alive while those who followed Baal-peor had been destroyed from among Israel.
His commands are not a curse, a yoke of bondage, or grievous and impossible to keep, but the way to escape the curse of all sin and be righteous before Him, holy, happy, in communion with God, knowing He is their God and they are His children. While the people cleaved to God the law was their delight, but when they separated from Him they lost His love and power and the law became an unendurable weight. To cleave unto the Lord means to stay firm in allegiance to Him by keeping His commandments and giving loyal, obedient service.
Turning to idolatry and self-sufficient rebellion brings disaster, the curse of God, disease, death and destruction from among the people. Those who became self-sufficient, thought they could lead without the appointed leaders, and set up a counterinfluence perished, destroyed when the earth swallowed them, while those who held fast to the Creator remained living. Disregard of God's law brings the wrath of an infinite God from which no other power can save, for life and prosperity depend on obeying His law, statutes and judgments, following His requirements rather than human teachings, because He cannot sustain the people in transgression. The facts of that departure from the commandments were to be repeated from time to time lest they be forgotten, as proof that placing themselves on a level with idolatrous nations brings the sure results of their own choice.
God does not execute judgment at once but gives time to come back to truth and then preserves alive those who hold fast to Him. The judgment on the unfaithful served as a warning against dishonoring God and as mercy that prevented their corrupting influence from spreading.
The survival of the obedient is a living testimony to the blessedness of obedience and proof that keeping the commandments is wisdom and understanding. It sets them before the church and the nations of the earth as examples who glorify Him, showing what God does for commandment keepers, and if the commandments had been kept the state of the world would be different. Their survival as the people prepared to enter the promised land illustrates the covenant blessing of holding fast to God and confirms that His word is fulfilled, in contrast with those who disobeyed and died.
Study and Warning
The whole fourth chapter of Deuteronomy is to be carefully studied by all who would be numbered among God's covenant-keeping people, for it sets forth the reasons His people are identified as His people. It teaches that God alone is God, and that keeping His statutes and commandments brings well-being and long life to Israel and to their children. That instruction is bound up with obedience to God's law as proclaimed at Mount Sinai, including the true Sabbath given to humanity to keep holy.
Obedience to that law was the condition on which Israel was to receive the promises God had given them. Walking according to the Lord's law gives a people wisdom and understanding, distinguishes them through obedience, and brings blessing upon all who obey His statutes, judgments, and commandments. What God required of Israel in order to be a holy people is summed up in the survival of the loyal, who remained alive, with life itself connected to keeping His commandments. These Old Testament instructions describe the obedience God requires of His people throughout history and in the last days, stressing the keeping of the living Word of God in mind. Their principles remain binding and are to be practiced in religious service toward God and toward others, calling for love among believers, justice, liberality, tenderness, compassion, and true courtesy, since departing from His word in conduct misrepresents His character.
The chapter warns all who have heard the truth to heed its teachings and not to treat truth as something to be put on and taken off at will. The facts of the departure from the commandments at Baal-peor and of the deliverance of the faithful who held fast to the Lord were to be repeated from time to time lest they be forgotten. These teachings are to be repeated to children as thorough lessons in Bible truth, preparing them for entrance into God's everlasting kingdom. That deliverance stands as an example and admonition to those upon whom the ends of the world are come, that whoever thinks he stands must take heed lest he fall.