The book of Deuteronomy should be carefully studied by those living on the earth today. It contains a record of the instruction given to Moses to give to the children of Israel. In it the law is repeated. At the time when the instruction which it contains was given, the people of Israel were encamped beside the Jordan. All but two of the adults who had left Egypt had died in the wilderness. Now the generation that had arisen during the forty years of journeying were about to pass over the Jordan to receive their inheritance in the promised land. But they must first hear from the lips of Moses the instruction given him by the Lord for them. The words of the law must be repeated to them, and they must hear again the conditions upon which they were to enter into and take possession of the promised land. The law of God was often to be repeated to Israel. That its precepts might not be forgotten, it was to be kept before the people, and was ever to be exalted and honored. Parents were to read the law to their children, teaching it to them line upon line, precept upon precept. And on public occasions the law was to be read in the hearing of all the people. Upon obedience to this law depended the prosperity of Israel. If they were obedient, it would bring them life; if disobedient, death. “These be the words which Moses spake unto all Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain over against the Red Sea.... The Lord our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount: turn you, and take your journey, and go into the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the seaside, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the River Euphrates. Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them. “And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone: the Lord your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.... How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife? Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you. And ye answered me, and said, The thing which thou hast spoken is good for us to do. So I took the chief of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes. And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him. Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God’s: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it. And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do.” Moses had given the people to understand that he did not desire to monopolize the honor of government. Of all the men of Israel, he was the best qualified to be the leader of the people. But he realized that he must have counselors with whom to share the responsibilities of the work. I can not bear these burdens alone, he declared. Wise, God-fearing men were to be chosen to work with him, and they were to remain in their position of trust as long as they gave evidence that they were loyal and faithful. These men were to show favor to no one, and they were not to do one wrong action in order to gain favor. They were never to accept bribes nor to allow themselves to be overawed by evil men. In all their decisions equity was to govern. They were to be “able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness.” The men thus chosen were appointed rulers over the people,—rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, and rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. Speaking of their appointment, Moses declared: “I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him. Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God’s: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it. And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do.” And the people had agreed to the plans outlined by Moses, and had promised to follow the Lord’s directions. Why then had they worked contrary to the Lord’s agreement, arousing mutiny and discontent? Why had they murmured and complained, as if they were hardly dealt with? They had complained of ...
