Deuteronomy 5:27, commentary and pictures

At Sinai after seeing God's greatness and hearing His voice out of the fire, the heads and elders feared they would die if they kept hearing Him directly, so they asked Moses to go near as mediator, hear all the Lord would say and speak it all to them, promising to hear it and do it. God heard and approved their words as well said, while longing that they always had such a heart to fear Him and keep all His commandments, so that it would go well with them and their children forever. What He required in order for them to be a holy people was to hear all He speaks and to carefully keep and do His commandments and statutes and judgments in every detail. That same requirement stands now and applies with special force to God's people today, calling for sanctification of mind, soul, and body, perfect obedience to His will, and no excuse for disobedience. Their promise to hear and do was the covenant they soon broke by worshiping a calf made by man instead of giving sincere devotion to the living God, yet His longing and promise extend to all who live till the close of time under the mediation of Jesus Christ, whose prosperity depends on obedience to His requirements.

Setting at Sinai

Moses repeats the commandments after God Himself has declared them, rehearsing the law for Israel before they enter Canaan. The request recorded here belongs to that rehearsal and repetition of what God commanded the people.

All the heads of the tribes and the elders had seen God's glory and greatness and heard His voice out of the fire from the dark, burning mountain. They confessed that God talks with man and man lives. Yet they were convinced that to keep hearing God's voice directly from the midst of the great fire would mean death.

They therefore asked Moses to go near as mediator in their place. He was to hear all that the Lord their God would say and then speak to them all that the Lord would speak to him. They promised to hear it and do it, joining hearing God's instruction with doing it.

Hearing God's words directly had thrilled them, yet their shrinking from hearing for themselves showed unbelief.

God's Response and Covenant

God heard the people's words and said they had spoken well, while adding His longing that they always had such a heart to fear Him and keep all His commandments, so that it would go well with them and their children forever. Their request was approved, though it also showed unbelief in shrinking from hearing Him directly after confessing that God talks with man and man lives. That divine response reveals that He takes no pleasure in punishing the transgressor but must maintain the honor of His throne when His righteous laws are trampled, and He delights to bestow blessings on all who value them.

What He required in order for them to be a holy people unto Himself was to hear all that He speaks and to keep and do His commandments and statutes and judgments. The directions He gave through Moses for receiving His words and doing what He commands are to be carefully observed in every detail. The law so rehearsed includes the renewed command to remember and keep the Sabbath holy, grounded in His creating heaven and earth in six days and resting the seventh. Those six days were six ordinary twenty-four-hour days, not indefinite periods, because the fourth commandment specifies a day people can observe. The Sabbath is a sign of obedience and of God as Creator and the One who sanctifies His people, and keeping the fourth commandment entails keeping the rest.

Their promise to hear and do was the covenant they soon broke by worshiping a calf made by man instead of giving sincere devotion to the living God, pictured by the broken tables of stone. Moses later used this account to contrast their promise of obedience with that breach of their covenant with God. God did not reprove Moses for breaking the tables, but was so angry with Aaron for his sin that He would have destroyed him without Moses' special intercession.

Enduring Call to Obey

The same requirement laid upon ancient Israel to be a holy people — to hear all that the Lord speaks and to keep and do His commandments and statutes and judgments as set forth in Deuteronomy 4-8 — stands now. That instruction applies with special force to God's people today. What is required is sanctification of mind, soul, and body and perfect obedience to His will. There is no excuse for disobedience to His commandments.

It is to be read with profit while nearing the day of God's great final review. In that day the people of this world must stand before the Judge of all the earth to answer for their deeds. The present is the time of investigation, when every character will have been investigated and every case decided for eternity. His longing that His people always have a heart to fear Him and keep all His commandments, and His promise that it would go well with them and their children forever, extend to all who live on earth till the close of time. They extend to all who come under the mediation of Jesus Christ, whose prosperity depends on obedience to God's requirements.

The verse stands with its surrounding instruction in chapters 5, 6, and 7 as teaching for parents to read and follow. Parents are to train their children from infancy to form characters that meet God's approval, taking every precaution to prevent objectionable traits of character. The words of God spoken at Mount Sinai were meant to be kept before children and to guide their whole conduct. Teaching and obeying God's law in home life and business prepares people to regain the Paradise lost through disobedience. A heart steadfastly fixed on the Lord will not think slightly of His law nor give it less regard because of universal disrespect, but will hold it more precious in proportion as it is disregarded and despised by the masses.