The Command to Leave Horeb

These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel beyond the Jordan in the wilderness, in (A)the Arabah opposite (B)Suph, between (C)Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. It is eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to (D)Kadesh-barnea. (E)In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the people of Israel according to all that the Lord had given him in commandment to them, after (F)he had defeated Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and (G)Og the king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth and in (H)Edrei. Beyond the Jordan, (I)in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to explain this law, saying, “The Lord our God said to us in Horeb, (J)‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Turn and take your journey, and go to (K)the hill country of the Amorites and to all their neighbors in (L)the Arabah, (M)in the hill country and in the lowland and in the Negeb and (N)by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates. See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, (O)to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’

Leaders Appointed

“At that time (P)I said to you, ‘I am not able to bear you by myself. 10 The Lord your God has multiplied you, and behold, (Q)you are today as numerous as the stars of heaven. 11 (R)May the Lord, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times as many as you are and bless you, (S)as he has promised you! 12 (T)How can I bear by myself the weight and burden of you and your strife? 13 (U)Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.’ 14 And you answered me, ‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’ 15 So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, (V)and set them as heads over you, commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, commanders of tens, and officers, throughout your tribes. 16 And I charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brothers, and (W)judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him. 17 (X)You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for (Y)the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall (Z)bring to me, and I will hear it.’ 18 And I commanded you at that time all the things that you should do.

Israel's Refusal to Enter the Land

19 “Then we set out from Horeb and (AA)went through all that great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the Lord our God commanded us. And (AB)we came to Kadesh-barnea. 20 And I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. 21 See, the Lord your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has told you. (AC)Do not fear or be dismayed.’ 22 Then all of you came near me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may explore the land for us and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up and the cities into which we shall come.’ 23 The thing seemed good to me, and (AD)I took twelve men from you, one man from each tribe. 24 And (AE)they turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out. 25 And they took in their hands some of the fruit of the land and brought it down to us, and brought us word again and said, ‘It is a good land that the Lord our God is giving us.’

26 “Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. 27 And (AF)you murmured in your tents and said, ‘Because the Lord (AG)hated us he has brought us out of the land of Egypt, (AH)to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Where are we going up? (AI)Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, (AJ)“The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen (AK)the sons of the Anakim there.”’ 29 Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. 30 The Lord your God who goes before you (AL)will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God (AM)carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ 32 Yet in spite of this word (AN)you did not believe the Lord your God, 33 (AO)who went before you in the way (AP)to seek you out a place to pitch your tents, in fire by night and in the cloud by day, to show you by what way you should go.

The Penalty for Israel's Rebellion

34 “And the Lord heard your words and was angered, and he swore, 35 (AQ)‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land that I swore to give to your fathers, 36 (AR)except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land on which he has trodden, because he has wholly followed the Lord!’ 37 Even with me (AS)the Lord was angry on your account and said, ‘You also shall not go in there. 38 (AT)Joshua the son of Nun, (AU)who stands before you, he shall enter. (AV)Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. 39 And as for (AW)your little ones, who you said would become a prey, and your children, who today (AX)have no knowledge of good or evil, they shall go in there. And to them I will give it, and they shall possess it. 40 But as for you, (AY)turn, and journey into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea.’

41 “Then you answered me, (AZ)‘We have sinned against the Lord. We ourselves will go up and fight, just as the Lord our God commanded us.’ And every one of you fastened on his weapons of war and thought it easy to go up into the hill country. 42 And the Lord said to me, (BA)‘Say to them, Do not go up or fight, (BB)for I am not in your midst, lest you be defeated before your enemies.’ 43 So I spoke to you, and you would not listen; but you rebelled against the command of the Lord and (BC)presumptuously went up into the hill country. 44 (BD)Then the Amorites who lived in that hill country came out against you and chased you (BE)as bees do and beat you down in Seir as far as (BF)Hormah. 45 And you returned and wept before the Lord, but the Lord did not listen to your voice or give ear to you. 46 So (BG)you remained at Kadesh many days, the days that you remained there.

Moses Forbidden to Enter the Land

23 “And I pleaded with the Lord at that time, saying, 24 ‘O Lord God, you have only begun to show your servant (A)your greatness and your mighty hand. For (B)what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as yours? 25 Please let me go over and see (C)the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and (D)Lebanon.’ 26 But (E)the Lord was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the Lord said to me, (F)‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again. 27 (G)Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward, and look at it with your eyes, for you shall not go over this Jordan. 28 But (H)charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see.’ 29 So we remained in (I)the valley opposite Beth-peor.

Moses Commands Obedience

“And now, O Israel, listen to (J)the statutes and the rules[a] that I am teaching you, and do them, (K)that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. (L)You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. Your eyes have seen what the Lord did (M)at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. But you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today. See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. (N)Keep them and do them, for (O)that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For (P)what great nation is there that has (Q)a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so (R)righteous as all this law that I set before you today?

(S)“Only take care, and (T)keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. (U)Make them known to your children and your children's children— 10 how on (V)the day that you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, the Lord said to me, (W)‘Gather the people to me, that I may let them hear my words, (X)so that they may learn to fear (Y)me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children so.’ 11 And (Z)you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while (AA)the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom. 12 Then (AB)the Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of words, (AC)but saw no form; (AD)there was only a voice. 13 (AE)And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, (AF)the Ten Commandments,[b] (AG)and he wrote them on two tablets of stone. 14 And (AH)the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and rules, that you might do them in the land that you are going over to possess.

Idolatry Forbidden

15 (AI)“Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since (AJ)you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, 16 beware (AK)lest you act corruptly (AL)by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure, (AM)the likeness of male or female, 17 the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, 18 the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth. 19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see (AN)the sun and the moon and the stars, (AO)all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. 20 But the Lord has taken you and (AP)brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, (AQ)to be a people of his own inheritance, as you are this day. 21 Furthermore, (AR)the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he swore that I should not cross the Jordan, and that I should not enter the good land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance. 22 For I must die in this land; (AS)I must not go over the Jordan. But you shall go over and take possession of (AT)that good land. 23 (AU)Take care, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and (AV)make a carved image, the form of anything that the Lord your God has forbidden you. 24 For (AW)the Lord your God is a consuming fire, (AX)a jealous God.

25 “When you father children and children's children, and have grown old in the land, (AY)if you act corruptly by making a carved image in the form of anything, and (AZ)by doing what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, so as to provoke him to anger, 26 I (BA)call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, but will be utterly destroyed. 27 And the Lord (BB)will scatter you among the peoples, (BC)and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will drive you. 28 And (BD)there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, (BE)that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. 29 (BF)But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. 30 When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you (BG)in the latter days, you will return to the Lord your God and obey his voice. 31 For the Lord your God is (BH)a merciful God. (BI)He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.

The Lord Alone Is God

32 “For (BJ)ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. 33 (BK)Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? 34 Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, (BL)by signs, by wonders, and (BM)by war, (BN)by a mighty hand and (BO)an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 To you it was shown, (BP)that you might know that the Lord is God; (BQ)there is no other besides him. 36 (BR)Out of heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you. And on earth he let you see his great fire, and (BS)you heard his words out of the midst of the fire. 37 And because (BT)he loved your fathers and chose their offspring after them[c] and brought you out of Egypt (BU)with his own presence, by his great power, 38 (BV)driving out before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as it is this day, 39 know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that (BW)the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; (BX)there is no other. 40 (BY)Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you today, (BZ)that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”

Cities of Refuge

41 Then Moses (CA)set apart three cities in the east beyond the Jordan, 42 that (CB)the manslayer might flee there, anyone who kills his neighbor unintentionally, without being at enmity with him in time past; he may flee to one of these cities and save his life: 43 (CC)Bezer in the wilderness on the (CD)tableland for the Reubenites, Ramoth in Gilead for the Gadites, and Golan in Bashan for the Manassites.

Introduction to the Law

44 This is the law that Moses set before the people of Israel. 45 These are the testimonies, the statutes, and the rules, which Moses spoke to the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt, 46 beyond the Jordan (CE)in the valley opposite Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon, (CF)whom Moses and the people of Israel defeated when they came out of Egypt. 47 And they took possession of his land and the land (CG)of Og, the king of Bashan, the two kings of the Amorites, who lived to the east beyond the Jordan; 48 (CH)from Aroer, which is on the edge of the Valley of the Arnon, as far as Mount (CI)Sirion[d] (that is, (CJ)Hermon), 49 together with all the Arabah on the east side of the Jordan as far as (CK)the Sea of the Arabah, under the slopes of Pisgah.

The Ten Commandments

And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the rules that I speak in your hearing today, and you shall learn them and be careful to do them. (CL)The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. (CM)Not with our fathers did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive today. The Lord spoke with you (CN)face to face at the mountain, out of the midst of the fire, (CO)while I stood between the Lord and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the Lord. For (CP)you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up into the mountain. He said:

(CQ)“‘I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

“‘You shall have no other gods before[e] me.

“‘You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 10 but showing steadfast love to (CR)thousands[f] of those who love me and keep my commandments.

11 “‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

12 “‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but (CS)the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, (CT)that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. 15 (CU)You shall remember that you were a slave[g] in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there (CV)with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

16 “‘Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you, (CW)that your days may be long, and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

17 (CX)“‘You shall not murder.[h]

18 (CY)“‘And you shall not commit adultery.

19 “‘And you shall not steal.

20 “‘And you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

21 “‘And you shall not covet your neighbor's wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor's house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.’

22 “These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly (CZ)at the mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and he added no more. And (DA)he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. 23 And (DB)as soon as you heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes, and your elders. 24 And you said, ‘Behold, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and (DC)greatness, and (DD)we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man (DE)still live. 25 Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us. (DF)If we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, we shall die. 26 (DG)For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of fire as we have, and has still lived? 27 Go near and hear all that the Lord our God will say, and (DH)speak to us all that the Lord our God will speak to you, and we will hear and do it.’

28 “And the Lord heard your words, when you spoke to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘I have heard the words of this people, which they have spoken to you. (DI)They are right in all that they have spoken. 29 (DJ)Oh that they had such a heart as this always, to fear me and to keep all my commandments, (DK)that it might go well with them and with their descendants[i] forever! 30 Go and say to them, “Return to your tents.” 31 But you, stand here by me, and (DL)I will tell you the whole commandment and the statutes and the rules that you shall teach them, that they may do them in the land that I am giving them to possess.’ 32 You shall be careful therefore to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. (DM)You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. 33 (DN)You shall walk in all the way that the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live, and (DO)that it may go well with you, and that you may live long in the land that you shall possess.

The Greatest Commandment

“Now this is (DP)the commandment—the statutes and the rules[j]—that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, that (DQ)you may fear the Lord your God, you and your son and your son's son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and (DR)that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, (DS)as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.

“Hear, O Israel: (DT)The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[k] You (DU)shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And (DV)these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. (DW)You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. (DX)You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. (DY)You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

10 “And when the Lord your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—with great and good cities (DZ)that you did not build, 11 and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant—and when you eat and are full, 12 (EA)then take care lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 13 It is (EB)the Lord your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and (EC)by his name you shall swear. 14 You shall not (ED)go after other gods, (EE)the gods of the peoples who are around you— 15 for (EF)the Lord your God in your midst (EG)is a jealous God—(EH)lest the anger of the Lord your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth.

16 (EI)“You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, (EJ)as you tested him at Massah. 17 You shall (EK)diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and his testimonies and his statutes, which he has commanded you. 18 (EL)And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, that it may go well with you, and that you may go in and take possession of the good land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers 19 (EM)by thrusting out all your enemies from before you, as the Lord has promised.

20 (EN)“When your son asks you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the Lord our God has commanded you?’ 21 then you shall say to your son, (EO)‘We were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 22 And (EP)the Lord showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes. 23 And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers. 24 And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, (EQ)to fear the Lord our God, (ER)for our good always, that (ES)he might preserve us alive, as we are this day. 25 And (ET)it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us.’

A Chosen People

“When the (EU)Lord your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, (EV)the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations (EW)more numerous and mightier than you, (EX)and when the Lord your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must (EY)devote them to complete destruction.[l] (EZ)You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. (FA)You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. (FB)Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you (FC)quickly. But thus shall you deal with them: (FD)you shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their (FE)pillars and chop down their (FF)Asherim and (FG)burn their carved images with fire.

“For (FH)you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be (FI)a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but (FJ)it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping (FK)the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, (FL)the faithful God (FM)who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, 10 and (FN)repays to their face those who hate him, by destroying them. (FO)He will not be slack with one who hates him. He will repay him to his face. 11 (FP)You shall therefore be careful to do the commandment and the statutes and the rules that I command you today.

12 (FQ)“And because you listen to these rules and keep and do them, the Lord your God will keep with you (FR)the covenant and the steadfast love that he swore to your fathers. 13 He will (FS)love you, bless you, and multiply you. (FT)He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your wine and your oil, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock, in the land that he swore to your fathers to give you. 14 You shall be blessed above all peoples. (FU)There shall not be male or female barren among you or among your livestock. 15 And the Lord will take away from you all sickness, and none of the evil (FV)diseases of Egypt, which you knew, will he inflict on you, but he will lay them on all who hate you. 16 And (FW)you shall consume all the peoples that the Lord your God will give over to you. (FX)Your eye shall not pity them, neither shall you serve their gods, for that would be (FY)a snare to you.

17 “If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I. How can I dispossess them?’ 18 (FZ)you shall not be afraid of them but you shall (GA)remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt, 19 the great trials that your eyes saw, (GB)the signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, by which the Lord your God brought you out. So will the Lord your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid. 20 Moreover, (GC)the Lord your God will send hornets among them, until those who are left and hide themselves from you are destroyed. 21 You shall not be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is (GD)in your midst, (GE)a great and awesome God. 22 (GF)The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once,[m] lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you. 23 (GG)But the Lord your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion, until they are destroyed. 24 And (GH)he will give their kings into your hand, and you shall (GI)make their name perish from under heaven. (GJ)No one shall be able to stand against you until you have destroyed them. 25 The carved images of their gods (GK)you shall burn with fire. You (GL)shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be (GM)ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the Lord your God. 26 And you shall not bring an abominable thing into your house and become devoted to destruction[n] like it. You shall utterly detest and abhor it, (GN)for it is devoted to destruction.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 4:1 Or just decrees; also verses 5, 8, 14, 45
  2. Deuteronomy 4:13 Hebrew the ten words
  3. Deuteronomy 4:37 Hebrew his offspring after him
  4. Deuteronomy 4:48 Syriac; Hebrew Sion
  5. Deuteronomy 5:7 Or besides
  6. Deuteronomy 5:10 Or to the thousandth generation
  7. Deuteronomy 5:15 Or servant
  8. Deuteronomy 5:17 The Hebrew word also covers causing human death through carelessness or negligence
  9. Deuteronomy 5:29 Or sons
  10. Deuteronomy 6:1 Or just decrees; also verse 20
  11. Deuteronomy 6:4 Or The Lord our God is one Lord; or The Lord is our God, the Lord is one; or The Lord is our God, the Lord alone
  12. Deuteronomy 7:2 That is, set apart (devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)
  13. Deuteronomy 7:22 Or quickly
  14. Deuteronomy 7:26 That is, set apart (devoted) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction); twice in this verse

Remember the Lord Your God

“The whole commandment that I command you today (A)you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers.

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26 (A)“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:

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Justice

18 “You shall appoint (A)judges and officers in all your towns that the Lord your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment.

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Marrying Female Captives

10 “When you go out to war against your enemies, and the Lord your God gives them into your hand and you take them captive,

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Offerings of Firstfruits and Tithes

26 “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance and have taken possession of it and live in it,

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10 “You are standing today, all of you, before the Lord your God: the heads of your tribes,[a] your elders, and your officers, all the men of Israel,

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 29:10 Septuagint, Syriac; Hebrew your heads, your tribes

Joshua to Succeed Moses

31 So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel. And he said to them, “I am (A)120 years old today. I am no longer able to (B)go out and come in. The Lord has said to me, (C)‘You shall not go over this Jordan.’ The Lord your God (D)himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them, and Joshua will go over at your head, (E)as the Lord has spoken. And the Lord will do to them (F)as he did to Sihon (G)and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. And the Lord will give them over to you, and you shall do to them (H)according to the whole commandment that I have commanded you. (I)Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, (J)for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. (K)He will not leave you or forsake you.”

Then (L)Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, (M)“Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it. It is the Lord (N)who goes before you. He will be with you; (O)he will not leave you or forsake you. (P)Do not fear or be dismayed.”

The Reading of the Law

Then Moses (Q)wrote this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, (R)who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 And Moses commanded them, (S)“At the end of every seven years, at the set time in the year of release, at (T)the Feast of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes (U)to appear before the Lord your God at the place that he will choose, (V)you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 12 (W)Assemble the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, and be careful to do all the words of this law, 13 and that their children, (X)who have not known it, (Y)may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, (Z)as long as you live in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Joshua Commissioned to Lead Israel

14 And the Lord said to Moses, (AA)“Behold, the days approach when you must die. Call Joshua and present yourselves in the tent of meeting, that (AB)I may commission him.” And Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tent of meeting. 15 And (AC)the Lord appeared in the tent in a pillar of cloud. And the pillar of cloud stood over the entrance of the tent.

16 And the Lord said to Moses, (AD)“Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise and (AE)whore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will (AF)forsake me and (AG)break my covenant that I have made with them. 17 Then my anger will be kindled against them in that day, and (AH)I will forsake them and (AI)hide my face from them, and they will be devoured. And many evils and troubles will come upon them, so that they will say in that day, (AJ)‘Have not these evils come upon us because (AK)our God is not among us?’ 18 And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil that they have done, because (AL)they have turned to other gods.

19 “Now therefore write (AM)this song and (AN)teach it to the people of Israel. Put it in their mouths, that this song may be (AO)a witness for me against the people of Israel. 20 For when I have brought them into the land (AP)flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to give to their fathers, and they have eaten and are full and (AQ)grown fat, (AR)they will turn to other gods and serve them, and (AS)despise me and (AT)break my covenant. 21 And when many evils and troubles have come upon them, this song shall confront them as (AU)a witness (for it will live unforgotten in the mouths of their offspring). For (AV)I know what they are inclined to do even today, before I have brought them into the land that I swore to give.” 22 So Moses wrote this song the same day and taught it to the people of Israel.

23 (AW)And the Lord[a] commissioned Joshua the son of Nun and said, (AX)“Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the people of Israel into the land that I swore to give them. (AY)I will be with you.”

24 When Moses had finished (AZ)writing the words of this law in a book to the very end, 25 Moses commanded (BA)the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, 26 “Take this Book of the Law (BB)and put it by the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for (BC)a witness against you. 27 For I know how rebellious and (BD)stubborn you are. Behold, even today while I am yet alive with you, (BE)you have been rebellious against the Lord. How much more after my death! 28 Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, that I may speak (BF)these words in their ears and (BG)call heaven and earth to witness against them. 29 For I know that after my death (BH)you will surely act corruptly and turn aside from the way that I have commanded you. And (BI)in the days to come (BJ)evil will befall you, because you will do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, (BK)provoking him to anger through the work of your hands.”

The Song of Moses

30 Then Moses spoke the words of this song until they were finished, in the ears of all the assembly of Israel:

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 31:23 Hebrew he

32 “Give ear, (A)O heavens, and I will speak,
    and let (B)the earth hear the words of my mouth.
May (C)my teaching drop as the rain,
    my speech distill as the dew,
like gentle rain upon the tender grass,
    and (D)like showers upon the herb.
For I will proclaim the name of the Lord;
    ascribe (E)greatness to our God!

(F)“The Rock, (G)his work is perfect,
    for (H)all his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness and (I)without iniquity,
    just and upright is he.
They have dealt corruptly with him;
    they are no longer his children (J)because they are blemished;
    they are (K)a crooked and twisted generation.
Do you thus repay the Lord,
    you foolish and senseless people?
Is not he (L)your father, who (M)created you,
    who (N)made you and established you?
(O)Remember the days of old;
    consider the years of many generations;
(P)ask your father, and he will show you,
    your elders, and they will tell you.
When the Most High (Q)gave to the nations their inheritance,
    when he (R)divided mankind,
he fixed the borders[a] of the peoples
    according to the number of the sons of God.[b]
But the Lord's portion is his people,
    Jacob his allotted heritage.

10 “He found him (S)in a desert land,
    and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
he (T)encircled him, he cared for him,
    he (U)kept him as the apple of his eye.
11 (V)Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
    that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
    bearing them on its pinions,
12 (W)the Lord alone guided him,
    (X)no foreign god was with him.
13 (Y)He made him ride on the high places of the land,
    and he ate the produce of the field,
and he suckled him with (Z)honey out of the rock,
    and (AA)oil out of (AB)the flinty rock.
14 Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
    with fat[c] of lambs,
rams of Bashan and goats,
    with the very finest[d] of the wheat—
    and you drank foaming wine made from (AC)the blood of the grape.

15 “But (AD)Jeshurun grew fat, and (AE)kicked;
    (AF)you grew fat, stout, and sleek;
(AG)then he forsook God (AH)who made him
    and scoffed at (AI)the Rock of his salvation.
16 (AJ)They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
    with abominations they provoked him to anger.
17 (AK)They sacrificed to demons that were no gods,
    to gods they had never known,
to (AL)new gods that had come recently,
    whom your fathers had never dreaded.
18 You were unmindful of (AM)the Rock that bore[e] you,
    and you (AN)forgot the God who gave you birth.

19 (AO)“The Lord saw it and spurned them,
    because of the provocation of (AP)his sons and his daughters.
20 And he said, (AQ)‘I will hide my face from them;
    I will see what their end will be,
for they are a perverse generation,
    children in whom is no faithfulness.
21 (AR)They have made me jealous with what is no god;
    they have provoked me to anger (AS)with their idols.
So (AT)I will make them jealous with those who are no people;
    I will provoke them to anger with (AU)a foolish nation.
22 For (AV)a fire is kindled by my anger,
    and it burns to (AW)the depths of Sheol,
devours the earth and its increase,
    and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.

23 “‘And I will heap disasters upon them;
    (AX)I will spend my arrows on them;
24 they shall be wasted with hunger,
    and devoured by plague
    and poisonous pestilence;
I will send (AY)the teeth of beasts against them,
    with the venom of (AZ)things that crawl in the dust.
25 (BA)Outdoors the sword shall bereave,
    and indoors terror,
for young man and woman alike,
    the nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 (BB)I would have said, “I will cut them to pieces;
    (BC)I will wipe them from human memory,”
27 had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
    lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
lest they should say, (BD)“Our hand is triumphant,
    it was not the Lord who did all this.”’

28 “For they are a nation void of counsel,
    and there is (BE)no understanding in them.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 32:8 Or territories
  2. Deuteronomy 32:8 Compare Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text sons of Israel
  3. Deuteronomy 32:14 That is, with the best
  4. Deuteronomy 32:14 Hebrew with the kidney fat
  5. Deuteronomy 32:18 Or fathered

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