Deu 31:9-13 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Deut 31:9-13: 31:9-13 So that future generations in Israel could be reminded of their covenant obligations, the covenant text was to be read publicly. Doing so was a practical necessity in an era when personal copies of documents were not generally available. 31:9 Ark of the Lord ’s Covenant: This gold-plated wooden chest contained the two stone tablets bearing the text of the Ten Commandments. It was also the Lord’s throne, as he sat there invisibly among his people (see study note on 10:1).

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‏ Deuteronomy 31:9-13

Summary for Deut 31:9-13: 31:9-13 ^a So that future generations in Israel could be reminded of their covenant obligations, the covenant text was to be read publicly. Doing so was a practical necessity in an era when personal copies of documents were not generally available. 31:9 ^b Ark of the Lord’s Covenant: This gold-plated wooden chest contained the two stone tablets bearing the text of the Ten Commandments. It was also the Lord’s throne, as he sat there invisibly among his people (see study note on 10:1).
31:10 ^c The Year of Release was the seventh year of the calendar, not the seventh year of a given transaction between individuals. All debts were to be cancelled and Hebrew bond servants released from obligation to their creditors (see 15:1-3 ^d).

• Festival of Shelters (also known as the Feast of Tabernacles): The people observed this celebration in the seventh month (Tishri, September/October) of every year to commemorate God’s miraculous preservation of Israel in the wilderness. It also celebrated the fall harvest (see 16:13-15 ^e).
31:12 ^f Even foreigners living among the Israelites were to submit to the requirements of the covenant law. Despite their disadvantaged status, the Lord would provide for them (see 10:18 ^g).