How to Read Deuteronomy

Early in this century archaeologists began turning up samples of Near Eastern treaties. These “suzerainty treaties” set down in official form the relationship between a powerful king (suzerain) and the people he ruled over. Such treaties shed new light on the book of Deuteronomy, which seems to follow very closely the pattern of such treaty. Typically, a treaty with a powerful king consisted of the following element:

1. A preamble identifying the parties of the treaty, such as king and a small cluster of treaties who want his protection.
2. A capsule history describing previous relations between the two parties.
3. Rules defining each party’s obligations. The king may swear to defend some tribes with his armies in return for allegiance, taxes, and a percentage of produce.
4. Witnesses to the treaties, including, in many cases, a list of gods.
5. Curses and blessings specifying what will take place if one of the parties breaks the treaty. The king may promise the people prosperity and peace if they keep the terms, but invasion, deportation, or death if they break them.

Read Deuteronomy as an example of a treaty between a king and his people. Treaty is another word for the one we have been using-covenant-to describe the formal agreement between God and the Israelites. With a little work, you can identify various portions of Deuteronomy that parallel the five elements above.

Chapters 1-11 and 27-34 contain the best summary of Moses’ speeches to the Israelite. He holds back no emotion as he retells the story of his life. Almost all the action he describes repeats what we’ve heard before (see Exodus 12-2-; 32-34; Numbers 11-17;20-24), but Deuteronomy provides a much more personal account.

Unlike other ancient books, the Bible gives major emphasis to “nobodies”-poor people, aliens, widows, orphans, the sick. Many of the laws relating to them repeat laws from the three proceeding books. But Deuteronomy gives hidden insights into why God has such special concern for nobodies and why the Israelite should also. It also gives intriguing ideas on how such concern can be translated into actual political and economic policies. As you go through the book, mark each passage that relates to such people.

The New Testament quotes Deuteronomy more often than almost any other Old Testament book. Twenty-one of the 27 New Testament books allude to Deuteronomy; some scholars count 90 different citations. Jesus himself drew from it during his temptation (Matthew 4).