Guarding against the prideful nature when entering the promised land

Guarding against the prideful nature when entering the promised land

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You had made for yourselves a molten calf; you had turned aside quickly from the way which the Lord had commanded you.17 "I took hold of the two tablets and threw them from my hands and smashed them before your eyes.18 "I fell down before the Lord, as at the first, forty days and nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of all your sin which you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the Lord to provoke Him to anger.19 "For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure with which the Lord was wrathful against you in order to destroy you, but the Lord listened to me that time also.20 "The Lord was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him; so I also prayed for Aaron at the same time.21 "I took your sinful thing, the calf which you had made, and burned it with fire and crushed it, grinding it very small until it was as fine as dust; and I threw its dust into the brook that came down from the mountain.22 "Again at Taberah and at Massah and at Kibroth-hattaavah you provoked the Lord to wrath.23 "When the Lord sent you from Kadesh-barnea, saying, 'Go up and possess the land which I have given you,' then you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; you neither believed Him nor listened to His voice.24 "You have been rebellious against the Lord from the day I knew you.25 "So I fell down before the Lord the forty days and nights, which I did because the Lord had said He would destroy you.26 "I prayed to the Lord and said, 'O Lord God, do not destroy Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have redeemed through Your greatness, whom You have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand.27 

Deut 9:16-27 (NASB)

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All whom God rejects, are rejected for their own wickedness; but none whom he accepts are accepted for their own righteousness. Thus boasting is for ever done away: see Eph 2:9, 11, 12

That the Israelites might have no pretence to think that God brought them to Canaan for their righteousness, Moses shows what a miracle of mercy it was, that they had not been destroyed in the wilderness. It is good for us often to remember against ourselves, with sorrow and shame, our former sins; that we may see how much we are indebted to free grace, and may humbly own that we never merited any thing but wrath and the curse at God's hand. For so strong is our propensity to pride, that it will creep in under one pretence or another. We are ready to fancy that our righteousness has got for us the special favour of the Lord, though in reality our wickedness is more plain than our weakness. But when the secret history of every man's life shall be brought forth at the day of judgment, all the world will be proved guilty before God. At present, One pleads for us before the mercy-seat, who not only fasted, but died upon the cross for our sins; through whom we may approach, though self-condemned sinners, and beseech for undeserved mercy and for eternal life, as the gift of God in Him. Let us refer all the victory, all the glory, and all the praise, to Him who alone bringeth salvation.

—Matthew Henry Concise

     This is the tragic misinterpretation of the conquest events to which Israel would be prone in defiance of all the obvious historic facts and God's explicit warning to the contrary. The explanation of Israel's triumph could lie only in the wickedness of the Canaanites on the one side (vv. 4c, 5) and in God's forgiving grace to Israel on the other (9:6-10:11). For the relationship of the iniquity of the inhabitants of Canaan to the fulfillment of the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant, see Gen 15:16. Archaeological investigation has revealed the abysmal depths of moral degeneration in Canaanite society and religion in the Mosaic age. The way in which Israel's acquisition of their promised land was bound up with the elimination of the Canaanites exemplifies the principle of redemptive judgment. The salvation of the friends of God necessarily involves their triumph over the friends of Satan. From the viewpoint of the elect, the judgment of the latter is a redemptive judgment (e.g., Rev 19:11 ff.; 20:9, where the redemption of the elect is consummated by the doom of the Satanic hordes).

   More than once judgment had been averted through the intercession of Moses. In this aspect of Moses' ministry, more remarkably than in any other, his mediatorship prefigured the antitypical mediatorship of Christ, who also "made intercession for the transgressors" (Isa 53:12). When at Sinai God threatened to blot out Israel and offered to exalt Moses' descendants as a new covenant nation (Deut 9:14; cf. Ex 32:10), Moses faithfully fulfilled his mediatorial office in behalf of Israel rather than grasp at the opportunity to be a second Abraham. In fact, he offered himself as a second Isaac on the altar. Moses pleaded that if there must be a blotting out, rather than being made the one exception to the judgment, he might be blotted out as a means of securing forgiveness for the others (Ex 32:32). He "stood before him in the breach to turn away his wrath lest he should destroy them" (Ps 106:23). The intercession referred to in Deut 9:18, 19, 25-29 (cf. 10:10) was offered during Moses' second forty days on the mount.

—Wycliffe Bible Commentary

(my commentary)

Certainly the preparation phase immediately prior to entering the promised land, consisted of a great deal of reflection by Moses for the people of Israel, to ensure they where entering knowing it was God's grace and not their own righteousness that got them there.   The necessary journey and transformation of God's people from slaves in Egypt's to children of God entering His covenant both physically and spiritual.   The season of transformation was coming to end and now a season of claiming is ahead.  The warning here is somber, that desert time has proven the Israelites nature, to pridefully forget God as their source of provision and salvation, and to sin against His ordinances,  and only through the intercession of Moses and periods of prayer and fasting are they allowed to continue, still feeling in cases God's discipline, but never being fully disqualified.  More and more it is revealed that both the promised land and God's grace are in no way a result of Israelites good works or righteousness, but instead came purely from God's love, grace, and committment to His promises.

A  - The application for my life is to recognized the season I am entering to in I need to reflect on my arrival here is because of two factors.   The first factor is God's grace and mercy covered my past sins, and brought me here despite my efforts and not because of them.   For me the sin has been one of anger and rebellion against authority and against others, and in some cases against God.   Jesus'  intercession on the Cross has made it possible for me today to enter the promised land, because, like Moses, he intercedes on my behalf, and has already paid the price for my sins.   The second factor is the wicked that still lives in the world.  He saved me for a purpose, and I must recognize my victories in the promised land are not because of me but rather because of the sinful ways of the world which God truly desires and will wipe out.   Practically all of this means that I must be aware of pride in my life, pride that I am all that I am because of my own efforts, and pride that my success comes from my hard work.   When it comes to God's kingdom work there is very little room for or need for pride.   God wins in the end, we are on his team, so if we know we are on the winning team during the game, do we really need to puff ourselves up, or should we humble ourselves and give all the glory to God?

P -  Dear heavenly Father, thank you for this study on man's prideful nature.   Lord I pray you would gently guide me through riding my self of prideful thoughts, actions, and attitudes that live in me.   I thank you Lord for your grace and mercy, I owe you everything, and have nothing to offer in return other than my love, and dedication to a growing relationship with you.   I pray all this in Jesus name, Amen.