Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them: Your eyes have seen all that the LORD did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials and to all his land. – Deuteronomy 29:2

Today's Scripture Reading (March 17, 2025): Deuteronomy 29

A. W. Tozer commented, "God never uses anyone greatly until He tests them deeply." If you are being tested, then God might have a significant plan for your life. Trials are often a sign that God wants to use us. Of course, we have to accept the invitation. Maybe the most remarkable biblical example of this principle is seen in the life of Job. Job has greatly encouraged many of us who have gone through significant trials. He was tested deeply but is also an example of what we can do even amid trials.

There are passages in the Bible that I struggle with, and this statement in Deuteronomy is one of them. However, admittedly, it is only a problem if you believe that every statement in the Bible has to be literally true and the entire truth. Moses appears to argue that Israel should follow the directive of God because they have been witnesses to all that God has done. And he points back to all that God did when the Israelites were still captives in Egypt. The problem is that it isn't entirely true, and I am sure it will anger some readers. Some did remember all of these things. Moses, Joshua, and Caleb saw and remembered everything God had done. Beyond them, the older members of the society, probably those older than about forty-five, would have remembered the things that God had done in Egypt, the plagues that he brought on the land, the miracle at the Red Sea, and the meeting that took place between Moses and God on the Mount Sinai. Those who were at least forty-five at the time would have been young children during these early events of the Exodus. As Moses spoke to Israel, his audience would have mostly been young; few members of this audience would have been much over fifty. This group did not remember Egypt very well, and most would have no memory of Egypt at all, only recalling the wilderness through which the nation had been traveling.

However, that doesn't mean that they had no memory of the miracles of God. All of their lives had been filled with miracles and the movement of God among the people. They had seen the manna every morning and knew the providence of God every night. They had also heard the stories the elders told of the miracles that had taken place in Egypt in the time before their young lives had begun. 

The journey was almost over, but a time of significant testing was on the horizon. The people had depended on God in the past and needed to rely on him in the coming days. They would need all the faith that they could muster from what the people had experienced, as well as the stories that had been told if they hoped to survive the coming days.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 30