John Calvin Commentary Deuteronomy 9:17

"And I took hold of the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and brake them before your eyes." — Deuteronomy 9:17 (ASV)

And I took the two tables, and cast them out. Moses here accuses himself of no transgression. He does not, therefore, imply that he was urged to break the tables by the impetuosity of excessive anger. Rather, he again stresses what they deserved. Consequently, he fulfilled the role of a herald,³⁹¹ denouncing, not only by word of mouth but also by a solemn rite, that God’s Covenant was broken and made void by their faithlessness. For this reason also, he cast down and broke the tables before their eyes, so that, alarmed by such a dreadful punishment, they might more earnestly apply themselves to the expiation of their sins.

³⁹¹ Lat. “Fecialis munere;” alluding doubtless to the custom of the Roman “Fecialis munere;” alluding doubtless to the custom of the Roman Feciales, in throwing a bloody spear into the territories of others as a declaration of war. See in throwing a bloody spear into the territories of others as a declaration of war. See Liv. 1:32. 1:32.