Deuteronomy 33:27

33:27 The everlasting God is a refuge,

and underneath you are his eternal arms; ¹ 

he has driven out enemies before you,

and has said, “Destroy!”

Deuteronomy 33:1

Introduction to the Blessing of Moses

33:1 This is the blessing Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death.

Deuteronomy 1:3

1:3 However, it was not until ²  the first day of the eleventh month ³  of the fortieth year ⁴  that Moses addressed the Israelites just as ⁵  the Lord had instructed him to do.

[33:27]  ¹ tn Heb “and from under, arms of perpetuity.” The words “you” and “his” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Some have perceived this line to be problematic and have offered alternative translations that differ significantly from the present translation: “He spread out the primeval tent; he extended the ancient canopy” (NAB); “He subdues the ancient gods, shatters the forces of old” (NRSV). These are based on alternate meanings or conjectural emendations rather than textual variants in the mss and versions.

[1:3]  ² tn Heb “in” or “on.” Here there is a contrast between the ordinary time of eleven days (v. 2) and the actual time of forty years, so “not until” brings out that vast disparity.

[1:3]  ³ sn The eleventh month is Shebat in the Hebrew calendar, January/February in the modern (Gregorian) calendar.

[1:3]  ⁴ sn The fortieth year would be 1406 b.c. according to the “early” date of the exodus. See E. H. Merrill, Kingdom of Priests, 66-75.

[1:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “according to all which.”