ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

Falaite Siulai 30, 2021

Ma‘u ā; ‘oua te ke toe lea kiate au ‘i he me‘a ko ē

Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again 

Teutalonome 3 (Deuteronomy 3) 

(25-26) Ka u a‘a atu mu‘a, ‘o mamata ki he fonua lelei ‘i he kauvai ‘o Soatani na, ‘a e mo‘unga lelei na mo Lepanoni. Ka na‘e tuputāmaki ‘a Sihova kiate au koe‘uhi ko kimoutolu, pea na‘e ‘ikai te ne tali au: ka ne folofola kiate au, Ma‘u ā; ‘oua te ke toe lea kiate au ‘i he me‘a ko ē.

(25-26) Please let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon.’ But the Lord was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again

 

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Deuteronomy 3

Then I pleaded with the LORD … Let me cross over and see: Moses knew God was rich in mercy and forgiveness. He knew there was no harm in asking God to relent from His previous judgment that Moses would not see the Promised Land.

We can appreciate what a painful thing this was for Moses. He lived the first 40 years of his life confident in his own ability to deliver Israel. He spent the next 40 years of his life having that confidence demolished as he tended his father-in-law's sheep. He spent the last 40 years of his life being used of God to do what he was called to do. Now, he was not allowed to see the end result. No wonder Moses pleaded with the LORD.

Enough of that! Speak no more to Me of this matter: God did not want to hear Moses' appeal on this matter. Because of his sin at Meribah (Numbers 20), where he misrepresented God as being angry with Israel when He was not, Moses could not enter the Promised Land.

This may seem an excessively harsh punishment for Moses. It seemed that after only one slip-up, he then had to die short of the Promised Land. But Moses was being judged by a stricter standard because of his leadership position with the nation, and because he had a uniquely close relationship with God.

It is right for teachers and leaders to be judged by a stricter standard (James 3:1); though it is unrighteous to hold teachers and leaders to a perfect standard. It is true the people's conduct was worse than Moses' but it is irrelevant.

Worst of all, Moses defaced a beautiful picture of Jesus' redemptive work through the rock which provided water in the wilderness. The New Testament makes it clear this water-providing, life-giving rock was a picture of Jesus (1 Corinthians 10:4). Jesus, being struck once, provided life for all who would drink of Him (John 7:37). But was unnecessary - and unrighteous - that Jesus would be struck again, much less again twice, because the Son of God needed only to suffer once (Hebrews 10:10-12). Jesus can now be come to with words of faith (Romans 10:8-10), as Moses should have only used words of faith to bring life-giving water to the nation of Israel. Moses "ruined" this picture of the work of Jesus God intended.

Speak no more to Me of this matter: Moses was a great man of intercession - perhaps one of the greatest in the Bible. Yet, God would say "no" even to Moses in prayer. God will sometimes say no even to His mightiest intercessors (Jeremiah 15:1).