Field guide to Deuteronomy

• In Deuteronomy, a new generation of Israelites must choose to follow God with all their heart.
• They get a recap of God’s commandments before entering the Promised Land.
• Moses gave farewell speeches before he climbed a mountain and died.

After escaping from Egypt (Exodus), Israel spent a year at Mount Sinai getting lots of laws from God (Leviticus). But soon, they disobeyed God and wandered in the wilderness for forty years (Numbers). Now, their children have grown up and are ready to enter the Promised Land (Joshua). Before they did, Moses gave them a motivational speech. He summed up God’s law for the next generation – ‘Deuteronomy’ means ‘second law’ or the law repeated. Israel had to choose to obey these laws so they could live the life God wanted for them. The details of how we live our lives may be different, but we can still choose to obey God.