Biblical Commentary

INVESTIGATION
The Israelites were about to cross into the Promised Land. It had been many years since God gave them the Law at Sinai. That covenant had been made between God and an earlier generation. As the current generation of Israelites prepared to take the Promised Land and confront the pagan people living there, they were forced to ask themselves, “Who are we, and whose are we? Are we, too, people of the covenant?” It was time to summarize the Law of the covenant. It was time to ask the people whether or not they were truly committed solely to the God who had brought them out of Egypt. Did they love God? If so, then He would bless their days in the new land.

Moses’ words in Deuteronomy 4:6–9 could not be more simple, clear, or specific. They were final instructions for the people before they entered the Promised Land. These instructions were given to protect the Israelites, their children, and even their grandchildren. This land may have been promised to their ancestors, but there was only one way they themselves could take, hold, and enjoy the land. They had to fear and love God.

It seemed Moses knew there would be tough challenges for God’s people. “Keep God’s Word before you at every turn,” he essentially told them. “If you want to stay in love with God, even in the face of idolatry, foreign customs, and pagan people, then you must stay focused on the God who got you here and can keep you here,” he seemed to say. Simple enough, right?

IMPORTANCE
As much as any verse in Scripture, Deuteronomy 6:4 teaches the Essential Truth God Is: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One.” This passage, referred to in Hebrew as the Shema, basically served as the Jewish confession of faith. To the Israelites, and to us, this verse serves as a vivid reminder that God is one. The Israelites were in the midst of a pagan society that worshiped multiple gods. Our society is not much different. The call of Deuteronomy 6:5 is timeless, as pertinent today as it was 3500 years ago: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.” These verses attest to the fact that there is a God in heaven worthy of our love and service.

This lesson also teaches the Essential Truth the Bible is God’s Word.

INTERPRETATION
Deuteronomy 6:1–3 Moses was an interesting character. Up to this point in the story, Moses had been a murderer, a shepherd, a prophet, and a leader. Now he was an instructor. He was no longer the leader of the people, since he was not going into the Promised Land with them. His murder of an abusive Egyptian was long behind him (Ex. 2:11–12). He no longer had to encourage the people to move, find their food and water for them, or reprimand them for worshiping golden calves (Ex. 32:1–4). Those emotional, dynamic days were gone. What had happened to the man who once said he was not a good speaker (Ex. 4:10)? Now he was the aging lecturer. He was teaching the people how they must live in the days to come.

Moses had a message for the people. It would turn out to be a few simple but amazingly important words. In the previous chapter, Moses had recounted the basic requirements of the Law, the Ten Commandments (Deut. 5:6–21). As in Exodus, those laws began with God’s reminder, “I am the Lord your God” (5:6). The first commandment backed up these words: “You shall have no other Gods before me” (5:7). In Deuteronomy 6:1, Moses had already given the commandments to the people. He was about to teach God’s summary of His commandments. As in earlier passages, Moses connected following God’s covenant Law to receiving God’s covenant promise. The relationship is reciprocal; obedience is expected if God is going to give what He has promised.

It is important to note that Moses hoped future generations would continue to fear God all their lives. Fear is not simply being afraid. It is living in complete awe and respect of who God really is, never losing perspective or forgetting what He has done. Proper fear of the Lord is acted out in obedience.

Deuteronomy 6:4 Traditionally, particular passages of Scripture were given names, often denoted by the first word or words in the passage. In early Christian communities, the Lord’s Prayer was called Pater Noster, a Latin phrase meaning “Our Father.” The first word in Deuteronomy 6:4, the word translated “hear,” is the Hebrew word shema. In Jewish tradition, this first word was used to refer to this passage. This passage came to be the most important passage in Judaism. Countless generations of Jewish children, including Jesus, have been taught this passage, just as Moses instructed in the previous verses. Ask any Jewish students at school to recite the Shema, and it will be out of their mouths before you finish the request.

The Shema calls God’s people to listen attentively. Simple things are often ignored.  What is coming is such a short, uncomplicated concept that the passage begins with this warning: “listen.” Turn your attention to this. Concentrate on this.

Here is the simple truth: “The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” Don’t be misled by the simplicity. Volumes could be written (and have been) on this verse. “Our God” does not imply that God is owned, but that there is a relationship between Him and His people. In Egypt, the Israelites’ former prison, and in Canaan, their future home, the pagan people worshiped a number of deities. The covenant was to be between the Jewish people and “their” One True God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God of the covenant is the single, powerful, faithful God who created the world and who sustains everything in existence. He is one. This simple statement was the basis of God’s Law.

Deuteronomy 6:5 While verse 4 is the foundation of all the Israelites knew about God and about their relationship to Him, verse 5 states what that knowledge should create in the life of each believer. The believer should commit to loving the Lord with all his or her heart, soul, and strength. These three words have distinct meanings. But, together, their clear message is that nothing in the follower’s life is exempt from devotion to God. Together, they make clear that the follower is to present to God total loyalty, total will, and the total self. There is no room for partial devotion.

Deuteronomy 6:6–9 This beautiful passage illustrates how thoroughly woven into the Israelites’ lives God’s commandments were to be. “Upon your hearts” means God’s laws were to be at the very core of the Jews. In traditional Judaism, the Shema and the rest of the Law were carefully taught to the children. God’s Law was discussed frequently in the home. Copies of the Shema were actually strapped onto the arm and attached to the forehead while praying. These same little scrolls may still be found attached to doorways in the homes of observant Jews.
If we didn’t take cultural context into consideration, modern Christians would attach scrolls to our doors. Most Christians see these instructions as important metaphors. They tell us that, because we love God, we are to make His commandments part of every aspect of our lives.

Matthew 22:34–36 Fast-forward about a thousand years. It was a week of high tension and expectation. Jesus was teaching in Jerusalem just days before His crucifixion. Many Jewish leaders feared Jesus and wanted Him humiliated or killed. Jesus had been responding to their difficult questions in ways that made them look foolish. Then, one of the leaders in the crowd gave Jesus what must have been a favorite question for debate. Of all the laws God gave, which one is the greatest? Which one is most important? These men who saw themselves as wise probably did not expect Jesus to answer this tough question easily. Their hope was not to get a good answer or to learn, but to embarrass Jesus.

Matthew 22:37–40 The question anticipated only one answer. After all, the request was not, “Please rank several important laws.” The question contained the word “greatest.” Jesus, however, responded that the “greatest” law was actually two laws. Jesus refused to be boxed in by the religious leaders’ narrow thinking. Two laws make the greatest law, He responded. The first of the two was the Shema: “Love the Lord.” So far, so good. No one could argue with that answer. There was a second law, Jesus said, that was “like it,” a partner to the first law. Then Jesus quoted Leviticus 19:18, “Love your neighbor.” The first law was the core of the Shema. The second was the core of a great passage about just relationships. “All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments,” He said. By this answer, Jesus was saying essentially everything, for those who love God hang onto these two commandments.

IMPLICATIONS
By the time of the actions of Deuteronomy 6, Moses had given much of his life to bringing the people of Israel to the border of the Promised Land. Now, God prompted him to prepare the people to enter by giving them the heart of the covenant Law. It would protect them and keep them close to God. They must love God. They must keep their love for God and His law before their eyes and deep inside themselves.

Centuries later, when Jesus was about to return to His Father and leave His followers behind, He told them the greatest commandment was to love God and love one’s neighbor. He refused to separate loving God from loving one’s neighbor. If there had been any question about what God had in mind when He instructed His people through Moses to love Him, Jesus had cleared up the issue. Love God, really love God, and love Him by loving your neighbor. Love was and is the greatest commandment. Everything else depends on it. We must do whatever it takes to remember it.

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