Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Deuteronomy 29:12
That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the LORD thy God, and into his oath, which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day:
12. enter into the covenant ] Lit. pass over into only here. Cp. the passing over into a select and numbered body, Exo 30:13 f. (P); also the prepositions in our terms ‘ trans -act,’ ‘carry through.’ On covenant see Deu 4:13.
and into his oath ] Cp. Neh 10:29: enter into an oath. God confirms His covenant by an oath, Deu 4:31, etc. The Heb. ’alah is used three times in this ch., 12, 14, 19 ( q.v.), as = oath, and thrice Deu 29:20-21 and Deu 30:7 as imprecation, or curse; but nowhere else in Deut.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 12. That thou shouldest enter] leaber, to pass through, that is, between the separated parts of the covenant sacrifice. See Clarke on Ge 15:18.
And into his oath] Thus we find that in a covenant were these seven particulars:
1. The parties about to contract were considered as being hitherto separated.
2. They now agree to enter into a state of close and permanent amity. 3. They meet together in a solemn manner for this purpose.
4. A sacrifice is offered to God on the occasion, for the whole is a religious act.
5. The victim is separated exactly into two equal parts, the separation being in the direction of the spine; and those parts are laid opposite to each other, sufficient room being allowed for the contracting parties to pass between them.
6. The contracting parties meet in the victim, and the conditions of the covenant by which they are to be mutually bound are recited.
7. An oath is taken by these parties that they shall punctually and faithfully perform their respective conditions, and thus the covenant is made and ratified. See Jer 34:18-19, and Clarke’s notes on “Ge 6:18“; “Ge 15:18“; “Ex 29:45“; Le 26:44-45.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Into covenant, and into his oath, i.e. into covenant or agreement, confirmed by a solemn oath.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the Lord thy God,…. That is, they were all to appear and stand in this order before the Lord, that they might solemnly avouch him to be their God, and hear him declaring them to be his people, and the many promises and prophecies of good things he should deliver to them, as well as threatenings of wrath and vengeance in case of disobedience to him: or “that thou shouldest pass” e: which some think is an allusion to the manner of making covenants, by slaying a creature, and cutting it in pieces, and passing between them, as in Jer 34:18; so Jarchi and Aben Ezra:
and into his oath; annexed to his covenant and promise, to show the immutability and certain fulfilment of it on his part; and may signify not only the oath he swore that they should be his people, but the oath he gave them, and they took, that he should be their God:
which the Lord thy God maketh with thee this day; which refers both to the covenant and the oath, or the covenant confirmed by an oath, even the covenant now made in the plains of Moab, distinct from that at Horeb or Sinai.
e “ut transeas”, V. L. Tigurine version, Munster, Vatablus, Pagniuns, Cocceius; “ad transeundum”, Montanus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(12) Enter (literally pass ) into covenant with the Lord.Comp. Eze. 20:37 : I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant Rashi illustrates by Jer. 34:18, the passing between the parts of the divided victim, in order to enter into the covenant. (Comp. Gen. 15:17-18.) But no such ceremony is mentioned here, and therefore we can only say that possibly the practice may have given occasion for this use of the word pass.
His oath.A word here used for the first time in Deuteronomy. It is rendered curse in Deu. 29:19-21. It seems to mean an imprecation in the name of God (comp. Lev. 5:4; Gen. 24:41), which may bring a curse if the thing sworn to is not fulfilled.
Which the Lord thy God maketh with thee.Maketh; literally, cutteth. The word refers to the covenant.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
It is a delightful thought, that in the gospel church, as in the Jewish, the absent soul is as much included as the one that is present. If absent in body, yet present in spirit. JESUS, the great head of his people, with whom the covenant is made, is the same yesterday, and today, and forever. Hence he saith himself, “that I should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given me.” All are beheld in him from the beginning. See those precious scriptures, Joh 6:37Joh 6:37 ; Isa 8:18 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
maketh = confirmeth.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
thou shouldest: Deu 5:2, Deu 5:3, Exo 19:5, Exo 19:6, Jos 24:25, 2Ki 11:17, 2Ch 15:12-15
enter: Heb. pass, This is an allusion to the solemn ceremony used by several ancient nations, when they entered into a covenant with each other. The victims, slain as a sacrifice on this occasion, were divided, and and parts laid asunder: the contracting parties then passed between them, imprecating, as a curse on those who violated the sacred compact, that they might in like manner be cut asunder – Gen 15:10. St. Cyril, in his work against Julian, shows that passing between the divided parts of a victim was used also among the Chaldeans and other people.
into his oath: Deu 29:14, 2Ch 15:12-15, Neh 10:28, Neh 10:29
Reciprocal: Gen 24:41 – General Exo 34:10 – I make Deu 28:9 – sworn Deu 29:19 – this curse Jos 9:6 – make ye Ezr 10:3 – let us make Jer 34:18 – when Eze 16:20 – thy sons Eze 17:15 – Shall he prosper Mar 10:14 – Suffer Act 5:14 – multitudes Act 21:5 – with Heb 8:9 – the covenant Heb 9:20 – testament
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
29:12 That thou shouldest {g} enter into covenant with the LORD thy God, and into his oath, which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day:
(g) Alluding to them, that when they made a sure covenant, divided a beast in two, and past between the parts divided, Gen 15:10.