Study Focus: Deut. 6:4–6, Deut. 7:9, Deut. 4:37, Deut. 10:15, Deut. 23:5, Mark 12:28–30, Eph. 2:1–8, 1 John 4:19.
Part I: Overview
In the Hebrew Scriptures, the word “love” appears mostly in the book of Deuteronomy and in the Song of Songs. This affinity between these two books already suggests the particular relational nature of love. Because the book of Deuteronomy is essentially about covenant—that is, about the relationship between God and His people—love is an important theme of this book. Unfortunately, the book of Deuteronomy does not contain a clear definition of “love.” Love is mysterious and beyond our understanding (see Eph. 3:17). Love appears, however, associated with God, fear, and the law. In this lesson, we shall grapple with three complex themes and the difficult questions that devolve from each.
Lesson Themes:
• Love and God. What is love? If God chose His people because He loved them, not because they loved Him (Deut. 7:8), then what is love? If love begins with God and has no cause in the object of love, why did God love? In response, from a human point of view, how can we love a God whom we cannot see? (See 1 John 4:20.)
• Love and fear. If “there is no fear in love” (1 John 4:18), how can we love God and fear Him at the same time?
• Love and the law. How can we love God freely when we are commanded to love Him? How can we reconcile the imperative and legalistic aspect of the law and the spontaneous character of love?
Part II: Commentary
Read Deuteronomy 6:1–9.
“The Commandment” (Deut. 6:1, NKJV)
The construction of the first sentence, “ ‘Now this is the commandment’ ” (NKJV), clearly indicates that the phrase “the commandment” refers to what follows: “the statutes, and the judgments” (Deut. 6:1; compare Deut. 5:1), which God has commanded Moses to “teach.” So, when Moses pronounces his first words, “ ‘This is the commandment,’ ” he alludes to the Ten Commandments, which he had just listed (Deut. 5:1–20). In addition, the definite article before the word mitswah, “commandment,” suggests emphasis. The commandment he is referring to is the commandment par excellence, the commandment that includes all. Interestingly, the same verb tsawah, “command,” that Moses used in his introduction reappears in the middle of the passage in connection with the commandment of love (Deut. 6:6); and there also, as in the introduction (Deut. 6:1), it appears in connection with the verb “teach.” This echo clearly suggests that the commandment to love is, therefore, the commandment Moses has in mind when he says, “the commandment.” So, when Jesus identifies the commandment of love as “the first commandment” (Mark 12:29–31), He is in harmony with Moses’ commentary of the law.
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why does the commandment to love the Lord of love include all the other commandments? Why is the commandment to love one’s neighbor like the command to love God, and not just another (second) distinct commandment (Mark 12:31)?
“That You May Fear the Lord” (Deut. 6:2, NKJV)
Following the flow of Moses’ reasoning, the purpose of “the commandment” is “ ‘that you may fear the Lord your God’ ” (Deut. 6:2, NKJV). In other words, to love God means, first of all, “to fear God,” to realize that there is a God. Love implies the existence of the other person we love. To love God is not loving an abstract principle, a profound wisdom, or a beautiful story. To love God is not a theology or a cultural tradition. To love God is to love Him as a Person. To fear God means to have, and entertain, the acute sense of His presence everywhere and in every moment. God is present not only in the church or when we pray. But God also is present in the office, in the kitchen, in the bedroom, in the marketplace. God is present when we are with people or when in we are alone, in the light or in the darkness. (See Psalm 139:2–12.)
Discussion and Thought Questions: What does it mean to love God as a Person? Why is it not possible to love God without realizing that God is a Person? Read Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14. Why is the fear of God associated with God as the Judge?
“To Keep All His Statutes and All His Commandments” (Deut. 6:2, NKJV)
Therefore, to fear God is to walk with Him, to live continuously in His presence. We cannot love Someone and take another way wherein He is absent. Love leads to the commandments. First, love leads to the commandments because God’s commandments are the expression of His love: “ ‘because the Lord loves you’ ” (Deut. 7:8, NKJV). Second, love leads to the obedience of the commandments because we love the Lord: “ ‘those who love Him and keep His commandments’ ” (Deut. 7:9, NKJV). Note that the Hebrew syntax of this phrase suggests that the conjunction waw (“and”) is to be understood as introducing an explanation: “those who love; that is, who keep His commandments.” The keeping of God’s commandments is not added to the love; it is love. Because we love God, we love His law (Ps. 119:70, 92, 97).
Discussion and Thought Questions: How does the fact that “to love God” means to keep His commandments affect our understanding of love? How will our dismissal of God’s commandments affect our love for Him? Why will our observance of God’s commandments affect our understanding of who He is as a Person and, hence, our love for Him?
“You Shall Love the Lord” (Deut. 6:5, NKJV).
The fact that God commands us to love is not a problem, because “God is love” (1 John 4:8). “To love God” is the commandment because it cannot be otherwise; it is the absolute imperative because of who God is. Thus, because God is love, the commandment involves the totality of our being. Love stems from the heart; that is, from within, from what is not visible, from our most intimate thoughts and feelings, our profound intentions. Significantly, the commandment that concludes the decalogue, “ ‘you shall not covet’ ” (Deut. 5:21, NKJV), gives, at the end of the law, the inner key to all the commandments. It is not enough to have the law, to have the truth, to know that we should not kill or commit adultery. Moreover, to refrain from committing adultery or from killing is not enough; we should not even think about it or desire it (Matt. 5:28). Because “love” is a passion, our response of love to God is pressing; it emanates from our heart today (Deut. 6:6). It is not just an act of memory or a hope for the future. It is present and involves our daily life. To love God, who is always present in His love, is to make God relevant in our present life. Therefore, to love God, who loves, is total; it embraces “all”—not only “all your heart,” but also “all your soul” (Deut. 6:5, NKJV), which means “all your person.” And it does not stop there. Because of what love is, it implies intensity. We cannot love God in a mediocre or lackluster way.
Discussion and Thought Questions: Does our love for God limit itself to the obedience of His commandments? Is it possible to love God apart from His commandments? If not, why not? How does fanaticism affect the genuineness of our love for God? Why is fanaticism contrary to the love of God?
“You Shall Teach Them” (Deut. 6:7, NKJV).
Just as Moses was commanded to teach God’s commandments (Deut. 6:1), we are commanded to teach (Deut. 6:7). Because the commandment to teach God’s commandments derives from God’s love, the mission to teach them cannot derive from the intention to force or the desire for personal profit. If people accept Jesus under the threat of the sword or under the prospect of some benefit, they will not understand the meaning of God’s law and who God really is. This biblical passage has been chosen to signify the mission of Israel as a witness to God. In the Hebrew text in the first line, “ ‘Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one’ ” (Deut. 6:4, NKJV), the letter ‘ayin, which ends the first word shema‘, “hear,” and the letter dalet, which ends the last word, “one,” make the word “witness.” For the ancient scribes who copied the Torah, this line contained the very essence of the identity of Israel and her mission as God’s people to witness to the world everywhere, at any time, in the morning and in the night, at birth and at death, about who God is: the unique God who loves His people.
Discussion and Thought Questions: What does the teaching of God’s commandments mean? What is the connection between the notion of a unique God and the notion of a loving God who desires to be loved? Does mission limit itself to the law? How would such a limited understanding distort the meaning of the law?
Part III: Life Application
Read Deuteronomy 6:8, 9. This text, with others (compare Exod. 13:9, 16; Deut. 11:8), is used as a source to justify the Jewish tradition of the tefilin (phylacteries); that is, the practice of binding this text on the hand and between the eyes. Although there is no convincing evidence of this practice in biblical times as a literal application of this passage, this tradition seems to have been very ancient; it is attested to in the New Testament (Matt 23:5) and in the writings of Flavius Josephus and some Qumran artifacts. What is clear, however, is the symbolic significance of this ritual. Visit a synagogue or search for a demonstration of this ritual on the internet in order to better visualize it.
Meditate on the lessons of faith and devotion that are symbolized in all the gestures of this practice:
• “ ‘You shall bind’ ” (Deut. 6:8, NKJV). The law of God should be tightly connected to our physical persons. The binding also suggests the idea of faithfulness and a loving relationship with God.
• “ ‘On your hand’ ” (Deut. 6:8, NKJV). The law of God should affect our actions.
• “ ‘Between your eyes’ ” (Deut. 6:8, NKJV). The law of God should affect our mind and our discernment.
• “ ‘Write them on the doorposts’ ” (Deut. 6:9, NKJV). The law of God should affect our home.
Discussion and Thought Questions: How might an understanding of this practice help us in our relationship with God? How could this practice become detrimental to our relationship with God? Read Revelation 14:9. How may the practice of the tefillin help us understand the identity of God’s remnant?
Notes
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Key Text: Deuteronomy 6:5
Study Focus: Deut. 6:4–6, Deut. 7:9, Deut. 4:37, Deut. 10:15, Deut. 23:5, Mark 12:28–30, Eph. 2:1–8, 1 John 4:19.
Part I: Overview
In the Hebrew Scriptures, the word “love” appears mostly in the book of Deuteronomy and in the Song of Songs. This affinity between these two books already suggests the particular relational nature of love. Because the book of Deuteronomy is essentially about covenant—that is, about the relationship between God and His people—love is an important theme of this book. Unfortunately, the book of Deuteronomy does not contain a clear definition of “love.” Love is mysterious and beyond our understanding (see Eph. 3:17). Love appears, however, associated with God, fear, and the law. In this lesson, we shall grapple with three complex themes and the difficult questions that devolve from each.
Lesson Themes:
• Love and God. What is love? If God chose His people because He loved them, not because they loved Him (Deut. 7:8), then what is love? If love begins with God and has no cause in the object of love, why did God love? In response, from a human point of view, how can we love a God whom we cannot see? (See 1 John 4:20.)
• Love and fear. If “there is no fear in love” (1 John 4:18), how can we love God and fear Him at the same time?
• Love and the law. How can we love God freely when we are commanded to love Him? How can we reconcile the imperative and legalistic aspect of the law and the spontaneous character of love?
Part II: Commentary
Read Deuteronomy 6:1–9.
“The Commandment” (Deut. 6:1, NKJV)
The construction of the first sentence, “ ‘Now this is the commandment’ ” (NKJV), clearly indicates that the phrase “the commandment” refers to what follows: “the statutes, and the judgments” (Deut. 6:1; compare Deut. 5:1), which God has commanded Moses to “teach.” So, when Moses pronounces his first words, “ ‘This is the commandment,’ ” he alludes to the Ten Commandments, which he had just listed (Deut. 5:1–20). In addition, the definite article before the word mitswah, “commandment,” suggests emphasis. The commandment he is referring to is the commandment par excellence, the commandment that includes all. Interestingly, the same verb tsawah, “command,” that Moses used in his introduction reappears in the middle of the passage in connection with the commandment of love (Deut. 6:6); and there also, as in the introduction (Deut. 6:1), it appears in connection with the verb “teach.” This echo clearly suggests that the commandment to love is, therefore, the commandment Moses has in mind when he says, “the commandment.” So, when Jesus identifies the commandment of love as “the first commandment” (Mark 12:29–31), He is in harmony with Moses’ commentary of the law.
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why does the commandment to love the Lord of love include all the other commandments? Why is the commandment to love one’s neighbor like the command to love God, and not just another (second) distinct commandment (Mark 12:31)?
“That You May Fear the Lord” (Deut. 6:2, NKJV)
Following the flow of Moses’ reasoning, the purpose of “the commandment” is “ ‘that you may fear the Lord your God’ ” (Deut. 6:2, NKJV). In other words, to love God means, first of all, “to fear God,” to realize that there is a God. Love implies the existence of the other person we love. To love God is not loving an abstract principle, a profound wisdom, or a beautiful story. To love God is not a theology or a cultural tradition. To love God is to love Him as a Person. To fear God means to have, and entertain, the acute sense of His presence everywhere and in every moment. God is present not only in the church or when we pray. But God also is present in the office, in the kitchen, in the bedroom, in the marketplace. God is present when we are with people or when in we are alone, in the light or in the darkness. (See Psalm 139:2–12.)
Discussion and Thought Questions: What does it mean to love God as a Person? Why is it not possible to love God without realizing that God is a Person? Read Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14. Why is the fear of God associated with God as the Judge?
“To Keep All His Statutes and All His Commandments” (Deut. 6:2, NKJV)
Therefore, to fear God is to walk with Him, to live continuously in His presence. We cannot love Someone and take another way wherein He is absent. Love leads to the commandments. First, love leads to the commandments because God’s commandments are the expression of His love: “ ‘because the Lord loves you’ ” (Deut. 7:8, NKJV). Second, love leads to the obedience of the commandments because we love the Lord: “ ‘those who love Him and keep His commandments’ ” (Deut. 7:9, NKJV). Note that the Hebrew syntax of this phrase suggests that the conjunction waw (“and”) is to be understood as introducing an explanation: “those who love; that is, who keep His commandments.” The keeping of God’s commandments is not added to the love; it is love. Because we love God, we love His law (Ps. 119:70, 92, 97).
Discussion and Thought Questions: How does the fact that “to love God” means to keep His commandments affect our understanding of love? How will our dismissal of God’s commandments affect our love for Him? Why will our observance of God’s commandments affect our understanding of who He is as a Person and, hence, our love for Him?
“You Shall Love the Lord” (Deut. 6:5, NKJV).
The fact that God commands us to love is not a problem, because “God is love” (1 John 4:8). “To love God” is the commandment because it cannot be otherwise; it is the absolute imperative because of who God is. Thus, because God is love, the commandment involves the totality of our being. Love stems from the heart; that is, from within, from what is not visible, from our most intimate thoughts and feelings, our profound intentions. Significantly, the commandment that concludes the decalogue, “ ‘you shall not covet’ ” (Deut. 5:21, NKJV), gives, at the end of the law, the inner key to all the commandments. It is not enough to have the law, to have the truth, to know that we should not kill or commit adultery. Moreover, to refrain from committing adultery or from killing is not enough; we should not even think about it or desire it (Matt. 5:28). Because “love” is a passion, our response of love to God is pressing; it emanates from our heart today (Deut. 6:6). It is not just an act of memory or a hope for the future. It is present and involves our daily life. To love God, who is always present in His love, is to make God relevant in our present life. Therefore, to love God, who loves, is total; it embraces “all”—not only “all your heart,” but also “all your soul” (Deut. 6:5, NKJV), which means “all your person.” And it does not stop there. Because of what love is, it implies intensity. We cannot love God in a mediocre or lackluster way.
Discussion and Thought Questions: Does our love for God limit itself to the obedience of His commandments? Is it possible to love God apart from His commandments? If not, why not? How does fanaticism affect the genuineness of our love for God? Why is fanaticism contrary to the love of God?
“You Shall Teach Them” (Deut. 6:7, NKJV).
Just as Moses was commanded to teach God’s commandments (Deut. 6:1), we are commanded to teach (Deut. 6:7). Because the commandment to teach God’s commandments derives from God’s love, the mission to teach them cannot derive from the intention to force or the desire for personal profit. If people accept Jesus under the threat of the sword or under the prospect of some benefit, they will not understand the meaning of God’s law and who God really is. This biblical passage has been chosen to signify the mission of Israel as a witness to God. In the Hebrew text in the first line, “ ‘Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one’ ” (Deut. 6:4, NKJV), the letter ‘ayin, which ends the first word shema‘, “hear,” and the letter dalet, which ends the last word, “one,” make the word “witness.” For the ancient scribes who copied the Torah, this line contained the very essence of the identity of Israel and her mission as God’s people to witness to the world everywhere, at any time, in the morning and in the night, at birth and at death, about who God is: the unique God who loves His people.
Discussion and Thought Questions: What does the teaching of God’s commandments mean? What is the connection between the notion of a unique God and the notion of a loving God who desires to be loved? Does mission limit itself to the law? How would such a limited understanding distort the meaning of the law?
Part III: Life Application
Read Deuteronomy 6:8, 9. This text, with others (compare Exod. 13:9, 16; Deut. 11:8), is used as a source to justify the Jewish tradition of the tefilin (phylacteries); that is, the practice of binding this text on the hand and between the eyes. Although there is no convincing evidence of this practice in biblical times as a literal application of this passage, this tradition seems to have been very ancient; it is attested to in the New Testament (Matt 23:5) and in the writings of Flavius Josephus and some Qumran artifacts. What is clear, however, is the symbolic significance of this ritual. Visit a synagogue or search for a demonstration of this ritual on the internet in order to better visualize it.
Meditate on the lessons of faith and devotion that are symbolized in all the gestures of this practice:
• “ ‘You shall bind’ ” (Deut. 6:8, NKJV). The law of God should be tightly connected to our physical persons. The binding also suggests the idea of faithfulness and a loving relationship with God.
• “ ‘On your hand’ ” (Deut. 6:8, NKJV). The law of God should affect our actions.
• “ ‘Between your eyes’ ” (Deut. 6:8, NKJV). The law of God should affect our mind and our discernment.
• “ ‘Write them on the doorposts’ ” (Deut. 6:9, NKJV). The law of God should affect our home.
Discussion and Thought Questions: How might an understanding of this practice help us in our relationship with God? How could this practice become detrimental to our relationship with God? Read Revelation 14:9. How may the practice of the tefillin help us understand the identity of God’s remnant?
Notes