Deuteronomy chapter 4

vs 1

Because that is the deal. Obedience has its reward, in this case. I guess you could make an argument that the wisdom of following God's commands will make your lives better... but I don't buy it.

vs 2

Do not subtract is an obvious rule - I mean, paring away rules because you think they're not worth keeping is not really in the spirit of a code of laws.

It's the "do not add" that is interesting. Usually, the idea of adding laws to a system for the sake of keeping up with the times and so on would be looked upon as a good thing. But these are God's laws. To add to them would be to indicate some sort of lacking in them.

Does that mean that no other system of rules could be built up? I don't know. But it would make sense if the rule was "Don't add laws to this set of laws, saying that they are also God's laws."

vs 3

If your memory of Numbers is a bit weak, Numbers 25 is what you're looking for here - It's the 23000 that Paul refers to, that Moses calls 24000.

vs 4

God doesn't have civilian casualties or collateral damage. If they ever invent a weapon that can do that, they should call it the God Bomb.

vs 5

Because the deal is that the land they are being given is part of their covenant. Of course, when they lose the land, the covenant relationship between them and God still stands - just as it stands before they enter the land.

vs 6

Part of the reason they were to follow these laws was as a testimony to the other countries around them. That outward focus is never lost by God. It also shows that God's bloodthirsty decree to kill a bunch of nations is not universal - those nations got what they deserved - the others are allowed to sit and watch Israel and learn from their wisdom - assuming they ever get any.

vs 7

That verse just doesn't say "Because their gods don't exist, that's why!" It doesn't go that far. It's a curious and interesting thing to look at - the development of Israel's understanding of other gods and their existence or non. The point being here, though, that even if there are other gods, they suck compared to God, because God is close to Israel and is awesome to them.

vs 8

Well, Babylon probably had Hammurabi's code of laws by now. But are they as righteous as these ones? Hell no. These ones are downright gracious and compassionate by comparison.

vs 9

That's not just the giving of laws, or the 10 plagues (which most of them wouldn't have seen - that generation died in the desert). It's the battles with the two nations which they defeated resoundingly, and the fact that they are now here where God promised they would be. God puts the onus on remembering these things and keeping them remembered on the people.

vs 10

Now, when we did Deuteronomy at bible study, I asked a question about this verse, because as I said, most of them weren't alive at that point, or probably wouldn't remember it. But we came to another verse which made it clear that it was talking about remembering as the people of God. They were there, because they are the people of God - not because they were necessarily actually there. This is the view of history in the eastern world. They see it as a living, happening thing. It's something we lost in the west, I have no idea when. But I saw it when I was attending a conference of middle eastern Christian leaders - that's how they talked about history. It was alive for them, real. Worth remembering.