Today realize and carefully consider that the LORD is God in heaven above and on earth below—there is no other!
Deuteronomy 4:39 NET
As Israel sat perched on the edge of the Promised Land, Moses recounted what God had done to bring them to this place. He reminded them of God’s covenant with them, with its laws and regulations. And he reminded them of the blessings that would come from faithful obedience and the punishment that would come from failing to obey.
But why should they obey? Why should they obey the Lord rather than the gods of the land they would be living in? Deuteronomy 4:39 provides the answer.
The Lord is God in heaven above and earth below. The word translated here as Lord is YHWH, the covenant name God gave to Moses at the burning bush. The word translated as God is Elohim, a generic name for those worshipped as gods.
The Lord is God. And there is no other. Not in the heavens above. Nor on the earth below. The so-called gods of the other peoples were not real gods. They were only deceptive spirits claiming to be something they were not.
The people are told to carefully consider the implications of the Lord–YHWH–being the only God. What difference does it make? If the Lord was only one god among many, they might reasonably be expected to choose to serve the god they felt would benefit them most.
But if there is only one God, the choices are much more limited. They could choose to obey him and experience his blessings. Or to disobey and suffer the consequences.
The Lord is still God in heaven above and earth below. There still is no other God, only pretenders. And it is still appropriate to realize and carefully consider the implications that the Lord is God. Will we be faithful to him as God and experience the blessings that come from following him? Or will we go our own way, following the gods of this age and, in the end, facing God’s judgment?
