How do you say goodbye? Moses answered well the task of saying goodbye. As he ascended the mountain for the final time, he took a moment to turn and bless the people with whom he traveled and for whom he interceded well beyond forty years (Deut. 33:1).
The Lord composed a song through Moses, but now Moses personally addresses the saints to remind them as he knowingly departs, the giving of the law and preservation of the people this whole season was a direct result of God’s permanence and love toward His children (Deut. 33:2–5). This isn’t a mere goodbye, this is a charge to hold fast to the truth of who God is—Moses leaves in no uncertain terms.
One way which the prophet of God draws attention to the people is through repetition, blessing the people in a close approximation of the tribal blessings recorded by Moses in Genesis 49. He re-affirms what God had spoken to the Patriarchs, yet he makes it a personal reminder for each tribe of their blessed state and anticipation of duty (Deut. 33:6–25). Through his goodbye, Moses remembers the purpose of his leadership under God’s hands.
As one accountable to God, Moses rests in the assurance that he gave God’s children no excuse to say they didn’t understand the nature of God. Following their specific blessings, he points again to the doctrine of God. The Lord removes and casts out His wicked enemies. In the same power, He subdues hearts, preserves His people, and blesses them through these marked attributes demonstrated all the way back in the beginning of the Exodus narrative (Deut. 33:26–29). Moses’s prayer over the people isn’t only a goodbye but a confirmation of God’s blessings—reiterating the permanence, faithfulness, and providential wonder of His hand with His people even beyond Genesis 49. Even if Moses leaves, God is still with His people. Such is the sacrificial, humble heart of the prophet—reminding where the emphasis must always rest. May each goodbye point to the promise: God be with you!
Pastor Chris
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