Moses commanded us a law, The inheritance of the congregation of Jacob.
Moses is at the end of his life, blessing the twelve tribes, and he names what he had given them: a law that belongs to the whole assembly of Jacob. So how can a law be an inheritance, and why does the next line call Moses a king?
Verse 4 does not stand alone. The blessings of this chapter rest on relationships, and this verse names one of them.
The Lord is there in majesty, with the terror of the law in His right hand. But He loves the people — that is, His saints standing around Him to receive His words. The people receive a law, through the mediation of Moses, which is the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob. This Moses is there as king. These, then, are the relationships on which these blessings are based.
Moses says nothing here about Israel's failures. Jacob, speaking of the same sons, had named their sins openly.
Jacob gives the history of what his sons did, and some of it is sad and humiliating. Moses, by contrast, presents the actions of divine grace, whether in them or towards them. This alone accounts for the difference. Jacob records the evil deeds of Reuben, Simeon and Levi. Moses leaves them out completely… Jacob views his sons in their personal history. Moses views them in their covenant relationship with the Lord.
The law was not only commanded to Israel. It was also theirs to own.
The song then names the special place of Moses. He commands a law, the possession of the congregation of Jacob. He is king in Jeshurun when the heads of the people, the tribes of Israel, gathered together.
The next line gives Moses a surprising title — and calls Israel by a name few readers will know.
Calling Moses a king may seem unusual, yet God's inspired Word here calls him king in Jeshurun, and earlier, the man of God. Jeshurun, meaning "the upright people," is a term God uses to designate His people Israel. We read repeatedly how the people and their heads came to Moses to find out God's will. God's ideal king would rule God's people according to the mind of God.
The title also points past Moses himself.
Verse 4 recalls the giving of the law by Moses, the law being a heritage in which Israel should have rejoiced. But Moses is called "king in Jeshurun." He did hold the place of authority, yet it is most unusual to call him "king." The answer lies in the prophetic character of the blessing. Moses was a picture of Christ. Christ will hold the place of King in the coming day, when all Israel is gathered in a unity it has never shown before.
Moses held the office, but the throne was God's. That difference came to light when Israel later asked Samuel for a king.
Up to this time the government of Israel had been a pure theocracy. God was their King. He might act through Moses at one time — Moses in this sense is called king in Jeshurun (see Deut. 33:4) — or through Joshua at another… And the Lord said to Samuel, "Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them" (1 Sam. 8:7).
Israel had seen a small version of this scene before, when Jethro — an outsider, not an Israelite — advised Moses to appoint leaders over the people.
In the language of Deuteronomy 33:5, Moses was "king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people and the tribes of Israel were gathered together." In that chapter we find the heads of the people being chosen, as Jethro advised under God; he only gave the advice if "God commands you so." So it seems that here we have a little sample of the coming kingdom. Moses is king; the people are subject to him; the Gentile, in the person of Jethro, comes to rejoice with him and his people.
- Given, not earned. This blessing rests on relationship with God, not on Israel's record; the sins Jacob had named are missing here.
- A law as property. The law came to the assembly of Jacob as their own possession — a heritage they should have rejoiced in.
- A mediator between. The law reached the people through Moses, who both commanded it and stood among them as the man of God.
- A king under the King. Moses ruled Israel according to the mind of God, yet God Himself was the real King. When Israel later demanded a king, God called it a rejection of Himself.
- A picture pointing on. Moses as king over the gathered tribes pictures Christ, who will reign when Israel is gathered in a unity it has never yet shown.
And he was king in Jeshurun, When the heads of the people And the tribes of Israel were gathered together.
Moses blesses the tribes, and the blessing moves from Sinai, to the law, to a king over a gathered people. Some translations make that king the Lord; the writers below read it of Moses, who held his place only on God's behalf.
The word is not a place but a pet name for the nation, and it carries a description of what God intends His people to be.
Jeshurun, meaning "the upright [people]," is a name God uses for His people Israel. Again and again we read how the people and their heads came to Moses to find out God's will. God's ideal king would rule God's people according to the mind of God.
Writers differ over what the name means. It also appears in a title of God.
Name given to Israel, probably meaning 'upright ones;' others prefer 'beloved of Jehovah.' Jehovah was the 'God of Jeshurun;' and Moses, 'king in Jeshurun.'
The kingship comes straight after the law of verse 4. Together these two verses set the footing for every tribal blessing that follows.
Jehovah is there in majesty, with the terror of the law in His right hand. But He loves the people — that is, His saints standing around Him to receive His words. The people receive a law through Moses as mediator, and that law is the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob. This Moses is there as king. These, then, are the relationships that these blessings rest on.
Moses led Israel, but "king" is still a surprising word for him. Writers find the answer in what the blessing looks ahead to.
Verse 4 recalls the giving of the law by Moses, the law being a heritage in which Israel should have rejoiced. But the text calls Moses "King in Jeshurun." He did hold the place of authority, yet the title "king" is still most unusual. The answer to this is in the prophetic character of the blessing. Moses pictured Christ, who will hold the place of King in the coming day. Then all Israel will be gathered in a unity they have never yet shown.
Moses held authority, but the throne was not his. Israel had no king but God — until the people asked for one.
In the days of Samuel the people grew tired of being governed directly by God. They wanted to be like the nations around them, so they asked Samuel to make them a king. Jehovah's answer was that they had not rejected Samuel; they had rejected Him, so that He should not reign over them. Up to this time the government of Israel had been a pure theocracy. God was their King. He might act by Moses at one time, who is himself said in this sense to have been king in Jeshurun (see Deut. 33), or by Joshua at another.
Kingship is not the only office in view here. This scene holds two dignities together in one picture — a pledge Israel itself never lived out.
Here we see the kingly dignity joined with the priestly, for Moses was "king in Jeshurun" (Deut. 33)… No such joining really happened in later times. But here Jehovah pledged it in type; and it awaits its fulfilment in Christ for the earth in days rapidly approaching. "Behold, a man whose name is Branch… he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule on his throne; and he shall be a priest on his throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both" (Zech. 6:12-13).
The verse ties the kingship to a gathered people — heads and tribes together. Hole finds a small preview of that in the day Jethro advised Moses.
In the language of Deuteronomy 33:5, Moses was "king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people and the tribes of Israel were gathered together." In our chapter we find the heads of the people chosen, as Jethro advised under God; and he gave that advice only if "God command you so." So it seems that here we have a little sample of the coming kingdom. Moses is king; the people are subject to him; the Gentile, in the person of Jethro, comes to rejoice with him and his people.
- Upright — Jeshurun is a name for Israel, not a place. It means "upright ones," or by another reading "beloved of Jehovah."
- Law — the reign in verse 5 rests on verse 4. The law came through Moses and became the inheritance of the congregation. Every blessing that follows stands on those relationships.
- King — "king" is a most unusual title for Moses. Writers explain it by the prophetic character of the blessing: he pictures Christ as King.
- Throne — behind Moses stands the real ruler. Israel at this point was a pure theocracy: God Himself was their King, and asking for another king rejected Him.
- Gathered — the king reigns over a gathered people. That is a small sample of the coming kingdom, where one Man holds both throne and priesthood.