Deuteronomy 3:28 is Moses speaking to the people of Israel just before they enter the promised land. He tells them to commission Joshua, encourage him, and strengthen him, because Joshua will lead the nation across the Jordan and give them the land that Moses himself will never enter. The verse is Moses passing on the leadership of God’s people to the man God has chosen to succeed him.
But commission Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him; for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which you shall see.”
Deuteronomy 3:28 (WEB)
What Deuteronomy 3:28 Means
The verse begins with “But,” which signals a turn. Moses has just been told that he will not cross the Jordan with the people, and he is now being pointed toward what comes next. The instruction to “commission Joshua” means to formally appoint him and charge him with the task. Moses is not simply suggesting a successor; he is handing over real authority in a public, recognized way.
The three verbs “encourage him, and strengthen him” describe what the new leader will need. Joshua will face a frightening army of new enemies and a vast responsibility, and Moses asks the community to support him with words and with their trust. The verse does not promise that the task will be easy, nor does it guarantee a particular outcome for every battle. It promises that Joshua will lead, and that the people will possess the land God has given them.
The Context of Deuteronomy 3:28
Deuteronomy is the final book of the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. Its speeches are traditionally attributed to Moses as he addresses Israel on the plains of Moab, shortly before his death and before the people cross into Canaan. The audience is the second generation of Israelites, most of whom were children or had not yet been born when the first generation refused to enter the land decades earlier.
Just before this verse, Moses describes how he pleaded with the LORD to see the good land beyond the Jordan, and how the LORD refused, telling him to be satisfied with viewing it from Pisgah. The verse then turns him from his own disappointment toward the future of the nation. Read this way, the command to commission Joshua is an act of faithful release, showing that Moses cares more about God’s purposes for the people than about his own place in them.
Key Phrases in Deuteronomy 3:28
Joshua 1:9
Haven’t I commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
(WEB)
This verse comes right after Joshua takes up Moses’ role, and God himself repeats the call to be strong and courageous. It shows that the encouragement Moses speaks in Deuteronomy 3:28 is backed by the Lord’s own promise to be with Joshua wherever he goes.
Deuteronomy 31:7-8
7 Moses called to Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them; and you shall cause them to inherit it. 8 The LORD himself is who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be discouraged.”
(WEB)
Here Moses publicly encourages Joshua in the presence of all Israel, going over the same commissioning in greater detail. Reading it alongside Deuteronomy 3:28 shows how seriously Moses took the transition and how firmly he wanted the people to trust their new leader.
A Short Prayer From Deuteronomy 3:28
Lord, you raise up leaders for your people and you know when one season must give way to another. Help me to receive the people you place before me with an open heart, and to speak words that strengthen rather than diminish them. When I am asked to let go of something I have carried for a long time, give me grace to release it with trust in your faithfulness. Teach me to care more about your purposes than about my own place in them, and keep me steady as you lead your people forward. Amen.
