Heaven and Earth As God's Witnesses
When you beget children and grandchildren and have
grown old in the land, act corruptly and make a carved image in
the form of anything, and do evil in the sight of the LORD your
God to provoke Him to anger, I call heaven and earth to
witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly
perish from the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess;
you will not prolong your days in it, but will be utterly
destroyed. And the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and
you will be left few in number among the nations where the LORD
will drive you. And there you will serve gods, the work of men's
hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor
smell. (Deut. 4:25-28)
But if your heart turns away so that you do not
hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them,
I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall
not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the
Jordan to go in and possess. I call heaven and earth as
witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and
death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that
both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the
LORD your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may
cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days;
and that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore to your
fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them. (Deut.
30:17-20)
Gather to me all the elders of your tribes, and
your officers, that I may speak these words in their hearing and
call heaven and earth to witness against them. For I know
that after my death you will become utterly corrupt, and
turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil
will befall you in the latter days, because you will do evil in
the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger through the work
of your hands. (Deut. 31:28-29)
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth
(Genesis 1:1). These two were called to be witnesses by Moses in the
name of the LORD against the people of God if they violated the
commandments of the LORD! They would give testimony for or against
the people of God in the courts of the King of kings!
As Moses was approaching his last days on earth, he
could no longer be a witness watching over the Israelites and
ensuring that they obeyed the laws of the LORD. Thus, he called
heaven and earth to be witnesses as they were from the beginning and
to the end! They were more lasting than Moses himself! Heaven and
earth would always be there whenever the people of God exist. Moses
did not pray to the heavens and the earth, he simply called them to
be God's witnesses:
"Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth." (Deut. 32:1)
The prophet Isaiah also did the same:
"Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth!
For the LORD has spoken:
"I have nourished and brought up children,
And they have rebelled against Me;
The ox knows its owner
And the donkey its master's crib;
But Israel does not know,
My people do not consider."" (Isaiah 1:2-3)
Why were two witnesses required? What were their other
purposes besides being witnesses?
Whoever is deserving of death shall be put to
death on the testimony of two or three witnesses; he shall not
be put to death on the testimony of one witness. The hands of
the witnesses shall be the first against him to put him to death,
and afterward the hands of all the people. So you shall put away
the evil person from among you. (Deut. 17:6-7)
One witness shall not rise against a man
concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the
mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established.
(Deut. 19:15)
But if he will not hear, take with you one or two
more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word
may be established.' (Matthew
18:16)
Anyone who has rejected Moses' law dies without
mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. (Heb. 10:28)
Two witnesses would not lie as they testify against
the people when they sin. They would also be the ones to put them to
death. When the people of God sinned against Him, God would command
the heaven to be shut up that there would be no rain, and the earth
would not give its produce (Deuteronomy 11:17) The LORD Himself
would punish them as heaven and earth witnessed and acted against
the people. But if they repent, the heaven would give its rain
again, and the earth would give its fruit again, as God would send
forth His blessing.
When heaven and earth are called to be God's
witnesses, there is no hiding away from their eyes. Every sin is
being exposed! Every evil thought is brought before God! Every
righteous act and every good work are also accounted for. Where
could we hide from God? Even this is the love of God! He has placed
us under the care of heaven and earth! He is not afraid that we
would flee and hide from Him. But His main concern is that we would
return in true repentance before Him! He wants us to be with Him. He
desires us to be blessed, and not cursed! He desires heaven and
earth to be for us, and not against us!
The LORD will open to you His good treasure, the
heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to
bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations,
but you shall not borrow. And the LORD will make you the head
and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath,
if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I
command you today, and are careful to observe them. (Deut.
28:12-13)
Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on
earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth
will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you that if two of you
agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be
done for them by My Father in heaven. (Matthew 18:18-19)
If heaven and earth were God's witnesses, we must not
swear by them:
But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by
heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His
footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great
King. (Matthew 5:34-35)
But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either
by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your
"Yes," be "Yes," and your "No," "No," lest you fall into
judgment. (James 5:12)
If heaven and earth were God's witnesses, they would
ensure that the Will of God is being done:
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:10)
If heaven and earth were God's witnesses, they would
ensure that every Word of God is being fulfilled:
For as the rain comes down, and the snow from
heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah
55:10-11)
Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the
Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For
assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one
jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is
fulfilled. (Matthew 5:17-18)
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will
by no means pass away. (Matthew 24:35)
If heaven and earth were God's witnesses, let us wise
up and fear the LORD our God with holy reverence and awe!
Blessed is every one who fears the LORD,
Who walks in His ways. (Psalm 128:1)
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Prov.
9:10)
Always remember this: Our God, Who made heaven and
earth, desires to bless us from Zion! Let us not make Him do
otherwise.
The LORD Who made heaven and earth
Bless you from Zion! (Psalm 134:3)
Written On:
26 August 2005