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Deuteronomy 33 · a question people ask

"He was king in Jeshurun" (33:5). Who was king?

Interpretation

The verse reads, "He was king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people were gathered, all the tribes of Israel together" (33:5). It doesn't name the king. The name just before it is Moses: "Moses commanded us a law, an inheritance for the assembly of Jacob" (33:4). Before that, the verses speak of the LORD (33:2-3). Christians read it in two main ways, each resting on verses. Both agree that the chapter opens and closes with the LORD (33:2-3, 33:26-29).

How Christians read it

Where Christians differ, Favor sets out the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.

The LORD

Those who hold this view read 33:5 with 33:2-3, where "The LORD came from Sinai" (33:2) and "he loves the people" (33:3). At the sea Israel sang, "The LORD will reign forever and ever" (Exodus 15:18). Balaam said of Israel, "The LORD his God is with him. The shout of a king is among them" (Numbers 23:21). And when Israel later asked for a king, the LORD told Samuel, "they have rejected me as the king over them" (1 Samuel 8:7).

Deuteronomy 33:2-3 · Exodus 15:18 · Numbers 23:21 · 1 Samuel 8:7

Moses

Those who hold this view read 33:5 with 33:4, where the nearest name is Moses, who "commanded us a law". Moses was the one who set leaders over the tribes: "So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and respected men, and made them heads over you" (1:15). And he was the one who called them together: "Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers" (31:28).

Deuteronomy 33:4 · Deuteronomy 1:15 · Deuteronomy 31:28

The verses

“He said, “The LORD came from Sinai, and rose from Seir to them. He shone from Mount Paran. He came from the ten thousands of holy ones. At his right hand was a fiery law for them. Yes, he loves the people. All his saints are in your hand. They sat down at your feet. Each receives your words. Moses commanded us a law, an inheritance for the assembly of Jacob. He was king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people were gathered, all the tribes of Israel together.”
Deuteronomy 33:2-5 · World English Bible
““There is no one like God, Jeshurun, who rides on the heavens for your help, in his excellency on the skies. The eternal God is your dwelling place. Underneath are the everlasting arms. He thrust out the enemy from before you, and said, ‘Destroy!’ Israel dwells in safety, the fountain of Jacob alone, In a land of grain and new wine. Yes, his heavens drop down dew. You are happy, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD, the shield of your help, the sword of your excellency? Your enemies will submit themselves to you. You will tread on their high places.””
Deuteronomy 33:26-29 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Deuteronomy 33

Deuteronomy 33: Underneath are the everlasting arms

Moses, called "the man of God" here for the first time in the Bible, blesses the tribes as Jacob did, but differently: Levi, whom Jacob said he would scatter, is blessed with the Thummim and Urim; Dan, not Judah, is "a lion’s cub"; Simeon isn't named. And God frames it all: "The eternal God is your dwelling place. Underneath are the everlasting arms" (33:27).

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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions