The book of Deuteronomy forms the foundation for much of the Old and New Testaments. It provides an overview of the exodus experience, reminding the Israelites that the Lord is the one who formed them, brought them out of Egypt, and provided them with the Promised Land. In this commentary J. Edward Owens highlights the key motifs and themes in this book of instruction: land, the theologies of love, remembering/forgetting, time, retribution, the Divine Name, the Lord as warrior, the Ten Commandments, and the great Shema. Through the story of the Israelites, Deuteronomy reminds us that we are a communal people who are called to remember always the love of the Lord.
J. Edward Owens, OSsT, is currently Minister Provincial of the US Province of Trinitarians. Previously, he was a professor of biblical studies at St. John's Seminary in California and then Oblate School of Theology in Texas. He has written numerous articles in academic and pastoral publications, including The Bible Today, Human Development, and The Catholic Biblical Quarterly Monograph Series. He is also author of the New Collegeville Bible Commentary on Leviticus.
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