THE SONG OF MOSES AND THE SONG OF THE LAMB
32 Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
2 My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass:
3 Because I will publish the name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.
4 He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.
5 They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation.
6 Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? is not he thy father that hath bought thee? hath he not made thee, and established thee?
7 Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: ask thy father, and he will shew thee; thy elders, and they will tell thee.
8 When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.
9 For the Lord‘s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
17 They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.
18 Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.
19 And when the Lord saw it, he abhorred them, because of the provoking of his sons, and of his daughters.
20 And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.
21 They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23 I will heap mischiefs upon them; I will spend mine arrows upon them.
24 They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust.
25 The sword without, and terror within, shall destroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling also with the man of gray hairs.
28 For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them.
29 O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!
32 For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter:
35 To me belongeth vengeance and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.
42 I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh; and that with the blood of the slain and of the captives, from the beginning of revenges upon the enemy.
43 Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people: for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people.
44 And Moses came and spake all the words of this song in the ears of the people, he, and Hoshea the son of Nun.
45 And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel:
46 And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law.
47 For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.
– Deuteronomy 32:1-47 (some texts not included)
This song was called the song of Moses and God required the Israelites to learn it in anticipation of their future apostasy in the Promised Land . God knew that, despite His blessings, Israel would turn their backs on Him and follow other gods, bringing divine judgment. When that happened, the song they had learned generations previous would “be a witness . . . against them. . . . When many disasters and calamities come on them, this song will testify against them”Deutoronomy 31:19,21. The Song of Moses was prophetic and at the same time reveled the faithfulness of God.
The same day that Israel learned the Song of Moses, God directed Moses to climb Mt. Nebo, where Moses would be laid to rest (verses 48–50). It is quite interesting that the song of Moses was taught and sung at the same period he was to rest in death.
What you would find out in the book Revelation chapter 15 is very much in line with what happened in the Deuteronomy 32.
“And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.
2 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.” – Revelation 15:1-3
They sang in the heaven in the song of Moses and the song of the lamb. The first was the end of the Mosaic age and the second was the beginning of the kingdom of His son. One spoke judgment on Israel and the other spoke justification of a new Israel of faith in the blood of the lamb.
The song begins with a universal call to listen, followed by praise of the just, faithful, and upright God (Deuteronomy32:1-4). In contrast to God’s faithfulness is Israel’s unfaithfulness (verses 5–6). The song proceeds to recite the history of Israel from their time of bondage in Egypt, through their wilderness wanderings, to their established place in the Promised Land (verses 7–14). The Song of Moses then becomes prophetic: Israel’s future ingratitude and idolatry are predicted, as are the judgments of God for their sin (verses 15–31). Then God promises to avenge Israel against their (and His) enemies, showing compassion on His people (verses 32–42). The song ends on a joyful note, as God’s punishment is past, righteousness is restored, and the land of Israel atoned (verse 43).
Righteousness is restored now by Jesus the lamb of God and not under the law and the commandments.
Another aspect of this song of Moses isthe theme of the avenging of the martyrs of God. it is one that runs throughout scripture. From Genesis 4 where the blood of righteous Abel cries out from the ground, to Revelation, there is a constant thread, of the suffering of God’s saints and the promised vindication and glorification.
The avenging of the martyrs is one of Jesus’ famous statements in his parables. Furthermore, in Matthew 23:29ff Jesus emphatically and positively said that “all of the blood, of all the righteous, from righteous Abel (remember Genesis 4?) unto Zecharias, son of Berechais, whom you killed between the temple and the altar” would be avenged and judged in his generation in the judgment of Jerusalem. So, Jesus appeared in the time foretold by the Song and promised what the Song foretold. And he said it would be fulfilled in his first century generation in the judgment of Jerusalem.
The Song of Moses foretold the events concerning Israel and her last days. The prophecy has nothing to do with any so-called “end of time” or the end of the Christian age (see vs 32:20; 29).
As written in the scriptures Jesus appeared in the last days, and the NT writers repeatedly affirm that they were living in the days foretold by the Old Testament prophets. They even quote from the Song repeatedly to speak of events either taking place, or about to take place. The Apostles regularly made quotes from the Old testament because that as all they had. They didn’t the Authorised King James Version.
The last words of the Song of Moses are a promise that God will “make atonement for his land and people” Deuteronomy 32:43 . This is a significant promise, because the atonement for God’s people is none other than the sacrifice of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ
And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. – Colossians 1:20
The only atonement that could be made for murder was the death of the murderer in the law. There was no repentance offered. No sacrifice could be given. There could be no escape. This is the Law of Blood Atonement. There was a provision for making atonement for innocent killings in the law. They could flee to a city of refuge per Numbers 35.
Consider then that as Peter noted, the people killed Jesus in ignorance Acts 3:14,15,17.
14 But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.
17 And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.
Were they then to flee to a literal city of refuge, one of the six cities designated in Numbers and Deuteronomy 19 which was a shadow of the reality to come? No. As the Hebrews writer said, he and his readers had, “fled for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before us”
(Hebrews 6:18) by turning to Jesus, the one that had been slain. They were invited to a relationship with Jesus who is the fulfillment of the city of refuge.
Throughout Israel’s history, Israel is depicted as the willful murderer of the prophets. This is one cases the Muslims even have against the Jews. Jesus was put on trial by them, and Pilate found no fault in him, the crowd demanded his death, and cried out, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!” (Matthew 27:25f). The leaders of the people understood what they were doing!
Peter offered the people a bail out declaring that they did not know what they were doing when they called for Jesus’ blood. He even said the leaders did not know what they were doing! (Acts 3:14f). What Peter was doing was seeking to offer “amazing grace” in his remarks, for without that offer only judgment remained.
But the Jews gave open consent to the purposeful, willful murder of Jesus. Thus, the writer said that all that could remain for them was destruction (Hebrews 6:6-8).
In Acts 2:22f, Peter affirmed that Israel was without excuse for not recognizing Jesus as their Messiah. Jesus was, “approved of God by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in your midst, as you yourselves also know.” He continued, “You have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain” this One that they should have recognized as their Savior. Peter also affirmed that the apostles were “witnesses” of all that had taken place, thus fulfilling Numbers 35, and the demand for witnesses before punishment could be given. In verse 36, he digs up their guilt in crucifying Christ. He then called on them to repent and incredibly, offered them forgiveness!
So, Peter was essentially like the other Apostles radically– calling them to leave Torah behind. To refuse to repent was to agree, to consent purposely, to the murder of the innocent Jesus, thus, incurring and invoking the Law of Blood Atonement. To remain in that system was to remain in a system that offered them only death and destruction. They could die to the Law by entering Jesus, their Christ, or, they could remain under Torah, and die by Torah.
The choice was simple, “repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus (the) Christ, for the remission of sins” or, face certain death and judgment from God for shedding innocent blood. Thus, Peter called on his audience, “Save yourselves from this untoward generation” (Acts 2:40.)
John said that after the song of Moses was sung in heaven he saw what was finally the judgment of God upon apostate Israel.
5 And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened:
6 And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles.
7 And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.
8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled. Revelation 15:5-8
Peter’s words echo Deuteronomy 32:5, which called the generation of Israel’s last days “a crooked and perverse generation.” Peter was telling them that the fulfillment of the Song was upon them! They were in fact the “terminal generation” in which God would, “avenge the blood of His saints, and make atonement for the land, the people.”
When we couple the Song of Moses, Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 23, with Peter’s sermon, with the rest of the NT testimony, the evidence is overwhelming. Jesus’ generation was the generation foretold by Moses in the Song. This is confirmed by the fact that the Song is directly quoted several times in the New Testament in the context of the persecution of the saints, and the promise of coming, imminent, vindication at the coming of the Lord (cf. Romans 12:19; Hebrews 10:31f; Revelation 19:1-2).
As the Song foretold, in Israel’s final generation, God would both avenge the blood of His saints, and bring judgment on their killers. The song of the lamb speaks of Jesus as our refuge. It proclaims the grace of God that has been revealed to us by the perfect obedience of our savior Jesus.
In Revelation 5:9,10 we see the song of the lamb, a different song from that of Moses.
And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
The song of the lamb is the victory of Jesus for us that has given us the inheritance of life, position of royalty, justification and glorification and redemption in the finished work. One song ended one age but the other began a new age. Praise God we have a new song.
THE THORN IN THE FLESH – PAUL WHITE
MYTHS ABOUT SPIRITUAL MATURITY
IS BIOLOGICAL DEATH A CURSE THAT REMAINS?
About Author
Awesome