Deuteronomy 34:1-12

Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land:¹ Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain—that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees—as far as Zoar.² The Lord said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.”³

Then Moses, the servant of the Lord,⁴ died there in the land of Moab, at the Lord’s command.⁵ He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor, but no one knows his burial place to this day.⁶ Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigor had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended.⁷

Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the Lord had commanded Moses.⁸ Never since⁹ has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.¹⁰ He was unequaled for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.¹¹

1 A positive look to end it.

2 Israel is claiming as much as they can here – they have never actually held all that land at any point.

3 God fulfills his word.

4 “servant” as the greatest title.

5 To the end, Moses is obedient.

6 Interesting - “to this day” clearly indicates a much later author.

7 They mourned for him according to tradition, as they had with Aaron.

8 A point of obedience for the Israelites to end the book.

9 Once again clearly a far later comment.

10 Even Elijah did not match Moses's knowledge of God.

11 Moses's greatness completes the text.

Take-home: Deuteronomy ends by exalting Moses as the great man of God who brought Israel to the cusp of the Holy Land.