Did God ask Israel to live a miserable life in order to keep His commandments?
No. The context states God was not asking Israel to live a life of misery in order to keep His commandments. Under that law, obedience was demanding but not impossible, and it would have brought blessing to the hilt. They could have been the happiest, most contented nation on earth, but the choice was theirs.
Les explains that under law Israel’s responsibility was far more demanding than what we are responsible for today, yet it was not impossible. God was not requiring them to live a life of misery to keep His commandments. If they hearkened diligently unto the voice of the Lord and observed and did all His commandments, God would set them on high above all the nations of the earth. They would have been blessed to the hilt and could have been the happiest, most contented nation of people on earth. But it was up to them. Les qualifies that in the Old Testament economy, God rewarded obedience with material blessings, which is why many patriarchs were wealthy. He contrasts this with the present-day error he calls “prosperity salvation,” the idea that if you just get saved, God will pour out all kinds of wealth upon you. That, he says, is not according to the book.