Faith Daily Lectio Wednesday, October 28, 2026 Old Testament
Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · Wednesday in the week of the Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 25); St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles
Old Testament
Oratio (prayer)
Lord God, through Moses You set life and death before Your people. Send Your Holy Spirit as I read Deuteronomy 30, that I may hear Your Word close to me and cleave to You in Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Meditatio (meditation)
Deuteronomy 30:1-20
1And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,
2And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
3That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.
4If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:
5And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.
6And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
7And the LORD thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee.
8And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the LORD, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day.
9And the LORD thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the LORD will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers:
10If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
11 For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off.
12It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?
13Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?
14But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.
15 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;
16In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.
17But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;
18I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.
19I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
20That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
Consider even rereading in another translation.
You could also consider listening to this chapter, narrated:
KJV (Max McLean) · ESV (Max McLean) · NIV (dramatized)
You might read the whole reading slowly, aloud, more than once.
Consider this verse, for example:
“therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19)
What other lines speak to you?
Moses looks ahead to a day when Israel will be scattered among the nations under the curse. Even then, if they return to the LORD, He will have compassion on them, gather them, and bring them home. He promises to circumcise their hearts so that they will love Him. The word He gives is not hidden in heaven or beyond the sea. It is near, in their mouth and in their heart. Moses closes by calling heaven and earth to witness that he has set before them life and death, and he pleads with them to choose life.
The Law Moses speaks plainly: "if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear" (v. 17), "ye shall surely perish" (v. 18). God has set before us "life and death, blessing and cursing" (v. 19). Left to ourselves, we do not choose life. Our hearts need more than good advice. They need to be made new.
The Gospel So God promises to do it Himself: "the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart" (v. 6). St. Paul hears Christ in this chapter (Romans 10). The word is "very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart" (v. 14), the word of faith that Jesus died and rose for you. In your Baptism God has given you this new heart, and the word of Christ keeps it alive. The LORD who speaks here "is thy life, and the length of thy days" (v. 20), and He has come near to you in Jesus.
Prayer Lord God, I confess that my heart turns away and does not want to hear. Forgive me for Jesus' sake. Keep Your Word near me, in my mouth and in my heart, and keep me in the life You give. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Tentatio (trial)
When God seems far off, we can think we must climb up to heaven or cross the sea to find Him. Under trial it may help to hear Moses: "It is not in heaven" (v. 12). God has come near in His Word, in Baptism, and at His Table, where Christ gives Himself for you.
Prayer Lord, when You seem far away, remind me that Your Word is near. Help me cleave to You, for You are my life. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version.
My church home: Peace Lutheran Church, McMurray, PA. Looking for a church? See About Daily Lectio.
