Deuteronomy 32:12

32:12 The Lord alone was guiding him, ¹ 

no foreign god was with him.

Deuteronomy 32:28

32:28 They are a nation devoid of wisdom,

and there is no understanding among them.

Deuteronomy 33:26

General Praise and Blessing

33:26 There is no one like God, O Jeshurun, ² 

who rides through the sky ³  to help you,

on the clouds in majesty.

[32:12]  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.

[33:26]  ² sn Jeshurun is a term of affection referring to Israel, derived from the Hebrew verb יָשַׁר (yashar, “be upright”). See note on the term in Deut 32:15.

[33:26]  ³ tn Or “(who) rides (on) the heavens” (cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT). This title depicts Israel’s God as sovereign over the elements of the storm (cf. Ps 68:33). The use of the phrase here may be polemical; Moses may be asserting that Israel’s God, not Baal (called the “rider of the clouds” in the Ugaritic myths), is the true divine king (cf. v. 5) who controls the elements of the storm, grants agricultural prosperity, and delivers his people from their enemies. See R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “The Polemic against Baalism in Israel’s Early History and Literature,” BSac 151 (1994): 275.