What does Deuteronomy chapter 32 verse 8-9 mean?

Answer 1

Deuteronomy 32:8-9 (KJV): "When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children [sons] of Israel. For the LORD's portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance."

The ancient Ugaritic religion plainly states that the head of its pantheon, El (who, like the God of The Bible, is also referred to as El Elyon, the "Most High") fathered seventy sons, the "sons of El" (Ugaritic, bn il). An unmistakable linguistic parallel has thus been discovered, one that prompted many scholars to accept on logical and philological grounds that God (El Elyon in Deuteronomy 32:8) divided the earth according to the number of gods who existed from before the time of creation, with each god receiving one nation to rule over. We see fragments of this elsewhere in the Old Testament, most vividly in Psalm 82:1: "God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods." At the end of Psalm 82, God will inherit all the nations when the other gods die like men. We also see occasional Old Testament references to the "sons of God" - modern interpretations assume that they were only angels, but this is not what the Bible says.

If you are still with me, I can give a more detailed explanation of the two verses in question. Verse 9 is the easiest, because the Hebrew God received the nation of Jacob. However, the reference to "according to the number of the children of Israel" in verse 8 still causes problems for most scholars.

In my opinion, we have to look back to a much earlier period in Hebrew history, before the traditions that were later written down in the Bible. It is possible to see that Jacob was once revered as a god, before he evolved into a mortal Israelite hero, as we now see in the Bible. The transformation of mortals to gods or of gods to mortals is not so uncommon in Greek and Near Eastern mythologies. The Bible records that Jacob was renamed Israel on two different occasions. Thus the people of the land of Israel were also the people of the god Israel, and were his mortal descendants. If we conflate 'Israel' with El Elyon, then we can now see Israel as the father of the gods, and the "sons of Israel" as the 70 gods who were the children of the Most High.

AnswerDeu 32:8-9 KJV When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel. (v.9) For the LORD'S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.

This is referring to God's division of the nations in Genesis chapter 10 ('When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance...") These verses 8 & 9 can be unclear in the King James version, but see other more-modern translations:-

Deu 32:8-9 MKJV When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the sons of Israel. (v.9) For Jehovah's portion is His people. Jacob is the lot of His inheritance.

Deu 32:8-9 WEB When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the children of men, he set the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. (v.9) For Yahweh's portion is his people. Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.

Perhaps the best is the Good News Version:-

Deu 32:8-9 GNB The Most High assigned nations their lands; he determined where peoples should live. He assigned to each nation a heavenly being, (v.9) but Jacob's descendants he chose for himself.

Answer 2

It is an illustration, of how God cares for and protects Israel.