What Does Deuteronomy 31:7 Mean?

Commissioning Joshua "in the sight of all Israel" formalizes the transfer of the mantle of the authority before the eyes of the covenantal witnesses. By identifying the specific task of causing the people to "inherit" the land, the Law reveals that the Lord provides a succession that is as public as the call of the first mediator. This verse reveals that the Lord considers the "legitimacy" of the successor to be a function of the divine mandate delivered through the Word.

Legitimacy of the successor reveals the logic of the divine order that ensures that the leadership of the nation remains an extension of the will of the King. The Law reveals that the Lord detests the "anarchy" of a leaderless community or the "presumption" of an unauthorized ruler, providing a standard where the "Commission" is the guard for the "Stability." It teaches that the true guidance of the nation is provided by the "Wisdom" of the Spirit, demonstrating that the goal of the community is the maintenance of a land where the transition of the power is the evidence of the providence.

The commission of the successor points toward the supreme "Successor" who finished the work the Father gave him to do and has inherited the Name that is above every name. As the Gospel reveals a King who said, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth," the work of Christ provides the ultimate inheritance. Through the victory of the Son, the believers find that "it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell," find their peace in the One whose "Inaugurated Reign" has secured the eternal leadership for the assembly of the God.