Deuteronomy 32

Long before wrestler Dwayne Johnson flexed his acting chops--most notably in Furious 7, in which his character devised an unconventional way to break off an arm cast--God took on the nickname of "The Rock." And, knowing God's sturdy, unchanging, dependable nature, it's not hard to see why. However, a rock is a solid object--a very solid one, as anyone who's been thumped on the head with a rock knows all too well. And yet, nowadays, very few people actually see God as a solid, tangible, physical manifestation.

I'm a visual learner. I learned to read at an early age (apparently), and I need to take notes at lectures because otherwise I'll forget what the professor said. In fact, if I'm doing something else when people are talking, I often have to ask them to repeat what they said again. I process information best if I can actually see or visualize it--and because I haven't literally seen God, sometimes I find it difficult to remember that He's there. Now, that doesn't mean that I don't think Timbuktu doesn't exist just because I've never seen it before, or that all history is bunkum because I wasn't there to witness it. And yet all too often, I don't see God as the one reliable, steadfast force in my life, instead relying on material objects I can see but that will fade in time.

Moses's song, as with most Biblical poetry, is rife with natural imagery. Especially evocative is verse 2, which compares the teaching of God to falling rain. If you're outside, you can't really avoid rain. It's unstoppable, falling in profuse amounts. God's word is likewise, inexorably falling and, like rain, nourishing the world below. And yet rain, for all its bounty, is not injurious (most of the time). Would you rather stand underneath falling rain or falling rocks? God's word cleanses, revives, and provides sustenance to us. All we have to do is choose to "go outside" to receive it.

Verse 10 features the first use of the phrase "apple of his eye." If you think about it, this makes no sense. How can an apple fit in one's eye? And even if you did have a tiny apple in your eye, why on earth would anyone consider that the thing you adore the most? The "apple" here is not a literal apple; instead it refers to the pupil of the eye. The pupil is nothing but a hole (the iris does all the work), but it allows light to pass through to the retina so that we can see. God cherishes us infinitely more than anyone cherishes their pupils. I'm sure teachers would also concur with this statement.