32:12 The Lord alone was guiding him, 1
no foreign god was with him.
32:13 He enabled him 2 to travel over the high terrain of the land,
and he ate of the produce of the fields.
He provided honey for him from the cliffs, 3
and olive oil 4 from the hardest of 5 rocks, 6
32:14 butter from the herd
and milk from the flock,
along with the fat of lambs,
rams and goats of Bashan,
along with the best of the kernels of wheat;
and from the juice of grapes you drank wine.
1 tn The distinctive form of the suffix on this verb form indicates that the verb is an imperfect, not a preterite. As such it draws attention to God’s continuing guidance during the period in view.
2 tn The form of the suffix on this verbal form indicates that the verb is a preterite, not an imperfect. As such it simply states the action factually. Note as well the preterites with vav (ו) consecutive that follow in the verse.
3 tn Heb “he made him suck honey from the rock.”
4 tn Heb “oil,” but this probably refers to olive oil; see note on the word “rock” at the end of this verse.
5 tn Heb “flinty.”
6 sn Olive oil from rock probably suggests olive trees growing on rocky ledges and yet doing so productively. See E. H. Merrill, Deuteronomy (NAC), 415; cf. TEV “their olive trees flourished in stony ground.”