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Force the Other Nations Out of the Land

(Exodus 34.11-16)

Moses said:

(A) People of Israel, the Lord your God will help you take the land of the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. These seven nations have more people and are stronger than Israel, but when you attack them, the Lord will force them out of the land. Then you must destroy them without mercy. Don't make any peace treaties with them, and don't let your sons and daughters marry any of them. If you do, those people will lead your descendants to worship other gods and to turn their backs on the Lord. That will make him very angry, and he will quickly destroy Israel.

(B) So when you conquer these nations, tear down the altars where they worship their gods. Break up their sacred stones, cut down the poles that they use in worshiping the goddess Asherah, and throw their idols in the fire.

The Lord's Chosen People

Moses said:

(C) Israel, you are the chosen people of the Lord your God. There are many nations on this earth, but he chose only Israel to be his very own. You were the weakest of all nations, but the Lord chose you because he loves you and because he had made a promise to your ancestors. Then with his mighty arm, he rescued you from the king of Egypt, who had made you his slaves.

(D) You know that the Lord your God is the only true God. So love him and obey his commands, and he will faithfully keep his agreement with you and your descendants for a thousand generations. 10 But if you turn against the Lord, he will quickly destroy you. 11 So be sure to obey his laws and teachings I am giving you today.

The Lord Will Bless You if You Obey

(Deuteronomy 28.1-14; Leviticus 26.3-13)

Moses said to Israel:

12 (E) If you completely obey these laws, the Lord your God will be loyal and keep the agreement he made with you, just as he promised our ancestors. 13 The Lord will love you and bless you by giving you many children and plenty of food, wine, and olive oil. Your herds of cattle will have many calves, and your flocks of sheep will have many lambs. 14 God will bless you more than any other nation—your families will grow and your livestock increase. 15 You will no longer suffer with the same horrible diseases that you sometimes had in Egypt. You will be healthy, but the Lord will make your enemies suffer from those diseases.

Destroy the Nations and Their Gods

Moses said to Israel:

16 When the Lord helps you defeat your enemies, you must destroy them without pity! And don't get trapped into worshiping their gods.

17 You may be thinking, “How can we destroy these nations? They are more powerful than we are.” 18 But stop worrying! Just remember what the Lord your God did to Egypt and its king. 19 You saw how the Lord used his tremendous power to work great miracles and bring you out of Egypt. And he will again work miracles for you when you face these enemies you fear so much. 20 Some of them may try to survive by hiding from you, but the Lord will make them panic, and soon they will be dead.[a] 21 So don't be frightened when you meet them in battle. The Lord your God is great and fearsome, and he will fight at your side.

22 As you attack these nations, the Lord will force them out little by little. He won't let you get rid of them all at once—if he did, there wouldn't be enough people living in the land to keep down the number of wild animals. 23-24 But when you attack your enemies, the Lord will make them panic, and you will easily destroy them. You will defeat their kings one after another until they are gone, and no one will remember they ever lived.

25 After you conquer a nation, burn their idols. Don't get trapped into wanting the silver or gold on an idol. Even the metal on an idol is disgusting to the Lord, 26 so destroy it. If you bring it home with you, both you and your house will be destroyed. Stay away from those disgusting idols!

The Lord Takes Care of You

Moses said:

Israel, do you want to go into the land the Lord promised your ancestors? Do you want to capture it, live there, and become a powerful nation? Then be sure to obey every command I am giving you.

Don't forget how the Lord your God has led you through the desert for the past 40 years. He wanted to find out if you were truly willing to obey him and depend on him, (F) so he made you go hungry. Then he gave you manna,[b] a kind of food that you and your ancestors had never even heard about. The Lord was teaching you that people need more than food to live—they need every word that the Lord has spoken.

Over the past 40 years, your clothing hasn't worn out, and your feet haven't swollen. (G) So keep in mind that the Lord has been correcting you, just as parents correct their children. Obey the commands the Lord your God has given you and worship him with fear and trembling.

The Lord your God is bringing you into a good land with streams that flow from springs in the valleys and hills. 8-9 You can dig for copper in those hills, and the stones are made of iron ore. And you won't go hungry. Wheat and barley fields are everywhere, and so are vineyards and orchards full of fig, pomegranate,[c] and olive trees, and there is plenty of honey.

Don't Forget the Lord

Moses said to Israel:

10 After you eat and are full, give praise to the Lord your God for the good land he gave you. 11 (H) Make sure that you never forget the Lord or disobey his laws and teachings that I am giving you today. If you always obey them, 12 you will have plenty to eat, and you will build good houses to live in. 13 You will get more and more cattle, sheep, silver, gold, and other possessions.

14 But when all this happens, don't be proud! Don't forget that you were once slaves in Egypt and that it was the Lord who set you free. 15 Remember how he led you in that huge and frightening desert where poisonous snakes and scorpions live. There was no water, but the Lord split open a rock, and water poured out so you could drink. 16 He also gave you manna,[d] a kind of food your ancestors had never even heard about. The Lord was testing you to make you trust him, so that later on he could be good to you.

17 When you become successful, don't say, “I'm rich, and I've earned it all myself.” 18 Instead, remember that the Lord your God gives you the strength to make a living. That's how he keeps the promise he made to your ancestors.

19-20 But I'm warning you—if you forget the Lord your God and worship other gods, the Lord will destroy you, just as he destroyed the nations you fought.

Footnotes

  1. 7.20 make them … dead: Or “send hornets to kill them.”
  2. 8.3 manna: See Exodus 16.1-36.
  3. 8.8,9 pomegranate: A bright red fruit that looks like an apple.
  4. 8.16 manna: See the note at 8.3.

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