Bible in 90 Days
12 Toward evening, he shall bathe in water; then, when the sun has set, he may come back into the camp. 13 Outside the camp you shall have a place set aside where you shall go. 14 You shall keep a trowel in your equipment and, when you go outside to relieve yourself, you shall dig a hole with it and then cover up your excrement. 15 Since the Lord, your God, journeys along in the midst of your camp to deliver you and to give your enemies over to you, your camp must be holy, so that he does not see anything indecent in your midst and turn away from you.(A)
Various Precepts. 16 (B)You shall not hand over to their master any slaves who have taken refuge with you from their master. 17 Let them live among you in any place they choose, in any one of your communities[a] that seems good to them. Do not oppress them.
18 There shall be no temple prostitute[b] among the Israelite women, nor a temple prostitute among the Israelite men.(C) 19 You shall not offer a prostitute’s fee or a dog’s pay[c] as any kind of votive offering in the house of the Lord, your God; both these things are an abomination to the Lord, your God.(D)
20 (E)You shall not demand interest from your kindred on a loan of money or of food or of anything else which is loaned. 21 From a foreigner you may demand interest, but you may not demand interest from your kindred, so that the Lord, your God, may bless you in all your undertakings on the land you are to enter and possess.
22 (F)When you make a vow to the Lord, your God, you shall not delay in fulfilling it; for the Lord, your God, will surely require it of you and you will be held guilty. 23 Should you refrain from making a vow, you will not be held guilty. 24 But whatever your tongue utters you must be careful to do, just as you freely vowed to the Lord, your God, with your own mouth.
25 When you go through your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you wish, until you are satisfied, but do not put them in your basket. 26 When you go through your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pluck some of the ears with your hand, but do not put a sickle to your neighbor’s grain.
Chapter 24
Marriage Legislation.[d] 1 (G)When a man, after marrying a woman, is later displeased with her because he finds in her something indecent, and he writes out a bill of divorce and hands it to her, thus dismissing her from his house, 2 if on leaving his house she goes and becomes the wife of another man, 3 and the second husband, too, comes to dislike her and he writes out a bill of divorce and hands it to her, thus dismissing her from his house, or if this second man who has married her dies, 4 then her former husband, who dismissed her, may not again take her as his wife after she has become defiled. That would be an abomination before the Lord, and you shall not bring such guilt upon the land the Lord, your God, is giving you as a heritage.(H)
5 (I)When a man is newly wed, he shall not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any duty be imposed on him. He shall be exempt for one year for the sake of his family, to bring joy to the wife he has married.
Pledges and Kidnappings. 6 [e]No one shall take a hand mill or even its upper stone as a pledge for debt, for that would be taking as a pledge the debtor’s life.
7 If anyone is caught kidnapping a fellow Israelite, enslaving or selling the victim, that kidnapper shall be put to death.(J) Thus shall you purge the evil from your midst.
Skin Diseases. 8 (K)In an attack of scaly infection[f] you shall be careful to observe exactly and to carry out all the instructions the levitical priests give you, as I have commanded them: observe them carefully. 9 (L)Remember what the Lord, your God, did to Miriam on the journey after you left Egypt.
Loans and Wages. 10 When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, you shall not enter the neighbor’s house to receive the pledge, 11 but shall wait outside until the person to whom you are making the loan brings the pledge outside to you. 12 If the person is poor, you shall not sleep in the pledged garment, 13 but shall definitely return it at sunset, so that your neighbor may sleep in the garment(M) and bless you. That will be your justice before the Lord, your God.
14 (N)You shall not exploit a poor and needy hired servant, whether one of your own kindred or one of the resident aliens who live in your land, within your gates.(O) 15 On each day you shall pay the servant’s wages before the sun goes down, since the servant is poor and is counting on them. Otherwise the servant will cry to the Lord against you, and you will be held guilty.(P)
Individual Responsibility. 16 Parents shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their parents; only for one’s own crime shall a person be put to death.(Q)
Rights of the Unprotected. 17 (R)You shall not deprive the resident alien or the orphan of justice, nor take the clothing of a widow as pledge. 18 For, remember, you were slaves in Egypt, and the Lord, your God, redeemed you from there; that is why I command you to do this.
19 (S)When you reap the harvest in your field and overlook a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; let it be for the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow, so that the Lord, your God, may bless you in all your undertakings. 20 When you knock down the fruit of your olive trees, you shall not go over the branches a second time; let what remains be for the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow. 21 When you pick your grapes, you shall not go over the vineyard a second time; let what remains be for the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow. 22 For remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt; that is why I command you to do this.
Chapter 25
Limits on Punishments. 1 When there is a dispute and the parties draw near for judgment, and a decision is given, declaring one party in the right and the other in the wrong, 2 if the one in the wrong deserves whipping, the judge shall have him lie down and in the presence of the judge receive the number of lashes the crime warrants. 3 Forty lashes[g] may be given, but no more;(T) or else, if more lashes are added to these many blows, your brother will be degraded in your sight.
Treatment of Oxen.[h] 4 You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out grain.(U)
Levirate Marriage. 5 (V)When brothers live together[i] and one of them dies without a son, the widow of the deceased shall not marry anyone outside the family; but her husband’s brother shall come to her, marrying her and performing the duty of a brother-in-law.(W) 6 The firstborn son she bears shall continue the name of the deceased brother, that his name may not be blotted out from Israel. 7 But if a man does not want to marry his brother’s wife, she shall go up to the elders at the gate and say, “My brother-in-law refuses to perpetuate his brother’s name in Israel and does not intend to perform his duty toward me.” 8 Thereupon the elders of his city shall summon him and speak to him. If he persists in saying, “I do not want to marry her,” 9 [j]his sister-in-law, in the presence of the elders, shall go up to him and strip his sandal from his foot and spit in his face, declaring, “This is how one should be treated who will not build up his brother’s family!” 10 And his name shall be called in Israel, “the house of the man stripped of his sandal.”
Various Precepts. 11 When two men are fighting and the wife of one intervenes to save her husband from the blows of his opponent, if she stretches out her hand and seizes the latter by his genitals, 12 you shall chop off her hand; show no pity.
13 (X)You shall not keep two differing weights in your bag, one heavy and the other light; 14 nor shall you keep two different ephahs[k] in your house, one large and the other small. 15 But use a full and just weight, a full and just ephah, so that you may have a long life on the land the Lord, your God, is giving you. 16 For everyone who does these things, everyone who does what is dishonest, is an abomination to the Lord, your God.(Y)
17 [l](Z)Bear in mind what Amalek did to you on the journey after you left Egypt, 18 how he surprised you along the way, weak and weary as you were, and struck down at the rear all those who lagged behind; he did not fear God. 19 Therefore, when the Lord, your God, gives you rest from all your enemies round about in the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you to possess as a heritage, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens. Do not forget!
Chapter 26
Thanksgiving for the Harvest. 1 (AA)When you have come into the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you as a heritage, and have taken possession and settled in it, 2 you shall take some first fruits(AB) of the various products of the soil which you harvest from the land the Lord, your God, is giving you; put them in a basket and go to the place which the Lord, your God, will choose as the dwelling place for his name. 3 There you shall go to the priest in office at that time and say to him, “Today I acknowledge to the Lord, my God, that I have indeed come into the land which the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us.”(AC) 4 The priest shall then take the basket from your hands and set it in front of the altar of the Lord, your God. 5 Then you shall declare in the presence of the Lord, your God, “My father was a refugee Aramean[m] who went down to Egypt with a small household and lived there as a resident alien.(AD) But there he became a nation great, strong and numerous. 6 (AE)When the Egyptians maltreated and oppressed us, imposing harsh servitude upon us, 7 we cried to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, and the Lord heard our cry and saw our affliction, our toil and our oppression. 8 Then the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and outstretched arm, with terrifying power, with signs and wonders,(AF) 9 and brought us to this place, and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey.(AG) 10 Now, therefore, I have brought the first fruits of the products of the soil which you, Lord, have given me.” You shall set them before the Lord, your God, and you shall bow down before the Lord, your God. 11 Then you and your household, together with the Levite and the resident aliens who live among you, shall celebrate with all these good things which the Lord, your God, has given you.(AH)
Declaration Concerning Tithes. 12 When you have finished setting aside all the tithes of your produce in the third year,(AI) the year of the tithes, and have given them to the Levite, the resident alien, the orphan and the widow, that they may eat and be satisfied in your own communities, 13 you shall declare before the Lord, your God, “I have purged my house of the sacred portion and I have given it to the Levite, the resident alien, the orphan and the widow, just as you have commanded me. I have not transgressed any of your commandments, nor forgotten any. 14 [n]I have not eaten any of the tithe while in mourning; I have not brought any of it while unclean; I have not offered any of it to the dead. I have thus obeyed the voice of the Lord, my God, and done just as you have commanded me.(AJ) 15 Look down, then, from heaven, your holy abode, and bless your people Israel and the fields you have given us, as you promised on oath to our ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey.”(AK)
The Covenant. 16 (AL)This day the Lord, your God, is commanding you to observe these statutes and ordinances. Be careful, then, to observe them with your whole heart and with your whole being. 17 Today you have accepted the Lord’s agreement: he will be your God, and you will walk in his ways, observe his statutes, commandments, and ordinances, and obey his voice. 18 And today the Lord has accepted your agreement: you will be a people specially his own, as he promised you, you will keep all his commandments, 19 and he will set you high in praise and renown and glory above all nations he has made, and you will be a people holy to the Lord, your God, as he promised.
Chapter 27
The Altar on Mount Ebal. 1 Then Moses, with the elders of Israel, commanded the people, saying: Keep this whole commandment which I give you today. 2 On the day you cross the Jordan into the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you, set up some large stones and coat them with plaster. 3 Write on them,(AM) at the time you cross, all the words of this law, so that you may enter the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you. 4 When you cross the Jordan, on Mount Ebal you shall set up these stones concerning which I command you today, and coat them with plaster, 5 (AN)and you shall build there an altar to the Lord, your God, an altar made of stones that no iron tool has touched. 6 You shall build this altar of the Lord, your God, with unhewn stones, and shall offer on it burnt offerings to the Lord, your God. 7 You shall also offer communion sacrifices[o] and eat them there, rejoicing in the presence of the Lord, your God. 8 On the stones you shall inscribe all the words of this law very clearly.
9 Moses, with the levitical priests, then said to all Israel: Be silent, Israel, and listen! This day you have become the people of the Lord, your God.(AO) 10 You shall obey the voice of the Lord, your God, and keep his commandments and statutes which I am giving you today.
Preparation for Blessings and Curses. 11 That same day Moses commanded the people, saying: 12 (AP)When you cross the Jordan, these shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin. 13 And these shall stand on Mount Ebal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali.
The Twelve Curses. 14 The Levites shall proclaim in a loud voice to all the Israelites: 15 [p]“Cursed be anyone who makes a carved or molten idol,(AQ) an abomination to the Lord, the work of a craftsman’s hands, and sets it up in secret!” And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
16 “Cursed be anyone who dishonors father or mother!”(AR) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
17 “Cursed be anyone who moves a neighbor’s boundary markers!”(AS) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
18 “Cursed be anyone who misleads the blind on their way!”(AT) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
19 “Cursed be anyone who deprives the resident alien, the orphan or the widow of justice!”(AU) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
20 “Cursed be anyone who has relations with his father’s wife, for he dishonors his father’s bed!”(AV) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
21 “Cursed be anyone who has relations with any animal!”(AW) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
22 “Cursed be anyone who has relations with his sister, whether his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter!”(AX) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
23 “Cursed be anyone who has relations with his mother-in-law!”(AY) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
24 “Cursed be anyone who strikes down a neighbor in secret!”(AZ) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
25 “Cursed be anyone who accepts payment to kill an innocent person!”(BA) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
26 “Cursed be anyone whose actions do not uphold the words of this law!”(BB) And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”
Chapter 28
Blessings for Obedience. 1 Now,(BC)(BD) if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord, your God, carefully observing all his commandments which I give you today, the Lord, your God, will set you high above all the nations of the earth.(BE) 2 All these blessings will come upon you and overwhelm you when you obey the voice of the Lord, your God:
3 (BF)May you be blessed in the city,
and blessed in the country!
4 Blessed be the fruit of your womb,
the produce of your soil and the offspring of your livestock,
the issue of your herds and the young of your flocks!(BG)
5 Blessed be your grain basket and your kneading bowl!
6 May you be blessed in your coming in,
and blessed in your going out
Victory and Prosperity. 7 The Lord will beat down before you the enemies that rise up against you; they will come out against you from one direction, and flee before you in seven.[r](BI) 8 The Lord will affirm the blessing upon you, on your barns and on all your undertakings; he will bless you in the land that the Lord, your God, is giving you. 9 The Lord will establish you as a holy people, as he swore to you,(BJ) if you keep the commandments of the Lord, your God, and walk in his ways. 10 All the peoples of the earth will see that the name of the Lord is proclaimed over you,[s] and they will be afraid of you.(BK) 11 The Lord will generously increase the fruit of your womb, the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your soil, upon the land which the Lord swore to your ancestors he would give you.(BL) 12 The Lord will open up for you his rich storehouse, the heavens, to give your land rain in due season and to bless all the works of your hands. You will lend to many nations but borrow from none.(BM) 13 The Lord will make you the head not the tail, the top not the bottom, if you obey the commandments of the Lord, your God, which I am giving you today, observing them carefully, 14 not turning aside, either to the right or to the left, from any of the words which I am giving you today, following other gods and serving them.(BN)
Curses for Disobedience. 15 But if you do not obey the voice of the Lord, your God,(BO) carefully observing all his commandments and statutes which I give you today, all these curses shall come upon you and overwhelm you:
16 (BP)May you be cursed in the city, and cursed in the country! 17 Cursed be your grain basket and your kneading bowl! 18 Cursed be the fruit of your womb, the produce of your soil and the offspring of your livestock, the issue of your herds and the young of your flocks! 19 May you be cursed in your coming in, and cursed in your going out!
Sickness and Defeat. 20 The Lord will send on you a curse, panic, and frustration in everything you set your hand to, until you are speedily destroyed and perish for the evil you have done in forsaking me. 21 (BQ)The Lord will make disease cling to you until he has made an end of you from the land you are entering to possess. 22 The Lord will strike you with consumption, fever, and inflammation, with fiery heat and drought, with blight and mildew, that will pursue you until you perish. 23 The heavens over your heads will be like bronze and the earth under your feet like iron.(BR) 24 For rain the Lord will give your land powdery dust, which will come down upon you from the heavens until you are destroyed. 25 The Lord will let you be beaten down before your enemies; though you advance against them from one direction, you will flee before them in seven,[t] so that you will become an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.(BS) 26 Your corpses will become food for all the birds of the air and for the beasts of the field, with no one to frighten them off.(BT) 27 The Lord will strike you with Egyptian boils(BU) and with tumors, skin diseases and the itch, from none of which you can be cured. 28 (BV)And the Lord will strike you with madness, blindness and panic, 29 so that even at midday you will grope in the dark as though blind, unable to find your way.
Despoilment. You will be oppressed and robbed continually, with no one to come to your aid. 30 Though you betroth a wife, another will have her. Though you build a house, you will not live in it. Though you plant a vineyard, you will not pluck its fruits.(BW) 31 (BX)Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will not eat its flesh. Your donkey will be stolen in your presence, but you will never get it back. Your flocks will be given to your enemies, with no one to come to your aid. 32 Your sons and daughters will be given to another people while you strain your eyes looking for them every day, having no power to do anything. 33 A people you do not know will consume the fruit of your soil and of all your labor, and you will be thoroughly oppressed and continually crushed, 34 until you are driven mad by what your eyes must look upon. 35 The Lord will strike you with malignant boils of which you cannot be cured, on your knees and legs, and from the soles of your feet to the crown of your head.
Exile. 36 (BY)The Lord will bring you, and your king whom you have set over you, to a nation which you and your ancestors have not known, and there you will serve other gods, of wood and stone, 37 and you will be a horror, a byword, a taunt among all the peoples to which the Lord will drive you.
Fruitless Labors. 38 (BZ)Though you take out seed to your field, you will harvest but little, for the locusts will devour it. 39 Though you plant and cultivate vineyards, you will not drink or store up the wine, for the worms will eat them. 40 Though you have olive trees throughout your country, you will have no oil for ointment, for your olives will drop off. 41 Though you beget sons and daughters, they will not remain with you, for they will go into captivity. 42 Buzzing insects will take possession of all your trees and the crops of your soil. 43 (CA)The resident aliens among you will rise above you higher and higher, while you sink lower and lower. 44 They will lend to you, not you to them. They will become the head, you the tail.
45 All these curses will come upon you, pursuing you and overwhelming you, until you are destroyed, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord, your God, by keeping his commandments and statutes which he gave you.(CB) 46 They will be a sign and a wonder[u] for you and your descendants for all time. 47 Since you would not serve the Lord, your God, with heartfelt joy for abundance of every kind, 48 in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and utter want, you will serve the enemies whom the Lord will send against you. He will put an iron yoke on your neck, until he destroys you.(CC)
Invasion and Siege. 49 (CD)The Lord will raise up against you a nation from afar, from the end of the earth, that swoops down like an eagle, a nation whose language you do not understand, 50 a nation of fierce appearance, that shows neither respect for the aged nor mercy for the young. 51 They will consume the offspring of your livestock and the produce of your soil, until you are destroyed; they will leave you no grain or wine or oil, no issue of herd, no young of flock, until they have brought about your ruin. 52 They will besiege you in each of your communities, until the great, fortified walls, in which you trust, come tumbling down all over your land. They will besiege you in every community throughout the land which the Lord, your God, has given you, 53 (CE)and because of the siege and the distress to which your enemy subjects you, you will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of your own sons and daughters whom the Lord, your God, has given you. 54 The most refined and fastidious man among you will begrudge his brother and his beloved wife and his surviving children, 55 any share in the flesh of his children that he himself is using for food because nothing else is left him—such the siege and distress to which your enemy will subject you in all your communities. 56 The most fastidious woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground, so refined and fastidious is she, will begrudge her beloved husband and her son and daughter 57 the afterbirth that issues from her womb and the infants she brings forth because she secretly eats them for want of anything else—such the siege and distress to which your enemy will subject you in your communities.
Plagues. 58 If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which is written in this book, and to fear this glorious and awesome name, the Lord, your God,(CF) 59 (CG)the Lord will bring upon you and your descendants wondrous calamities, severe and constant calamities, and malignant and constant sicknesses. 60 He will bring back upon you all the diseases of Egypt[v] which you dread, and they will cling to you. 61 Even any sickness or calamity not written in this book of the law, that too the Lord will bring upon you until you are destroyed. 62 You who were numerous as the stars of the heavens(CH) will be left few in number, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord, your God.
Exile. 63 (CI)Just as the Lord once took delight in making you prosper and grow, so will the Lord now take delight in ruining and destroying you, and you will be plucked out of the land you are now entering to possess. 64 The Lord will scatter you among all the peoples from one end of the earth to the other, and there you will serve other gods, of wood and stone, which you and your ancestors have not known. 65 Among these nations you will find no rest, not even a resting place for the sole of your foot, for there the Lord will give you an anguished heart and wearied eyes[w] and a trembling spirit. 66 Your life will hang in suspense and you will stand in dread both day and night, never sure of your life. 67 In the morning you will say, “Would that it were evening!” and in the evening you will say, “Would that it were morning!” because of the dread that your heart must feel and the sight that your eyes must see. 68 The Lord will send you back in ships to Egypt, by a route which I told you that you would never see again;(CJ) and there you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but there will be no buyer.
69 These are the words of the covenant which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he made with them at Horeb.
III. Third Address
Chapter 29
Past Favors Recalled. 1 Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, You have seen with your own eyes all that the Lord did in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and to all his land, 2 the great testings your own eyes have seen, and those great signs and wonders.(CK) 3 But the Lord has not given you a heart to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear until this day.(CL) 4 (CM)I led you for forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes did not fall from you in tatters nor your sandals from your feet; 5 it was not bread that you ate, nor wine or beer that you drank—so that you might know that I, the Lord, am your God. 6 (CN)When you came to this place, Sihon, king of Heshbon, and Og, king of Bashan, came out to engage us in battle, but we defeated them 7 and took their land, and gave it as a heritage to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.(CO) 8 Observe carefully the words of this covenant, therefore, in order that you may succeed in whatever you do.(CP)
All Israel Bound by Covenant. 9 You are standing today, all of you, in the presence of the Lord, your God—your tribal heads, elders, and officials, all of the men of Israel, 10 your children, your wives, and the resident alien who lives in your camp, from those who cut wood to those who draw water for you— 11 to enter into the covenant of the Lord, your God, which the Lord, your God, is making with you today, with its curse, 12 so that he may establish you today as his people and he may be your God, as he promised you and as he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 13 (CQ)But it is not with you alone that I am making this covenant, with its curse, 14 but with those who are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord, our God, and with those who are not here with us[x] today.
Warning Against Idolatry. 15 You know that we lived in the land of Egypt and that we passed through the nations, that you too passed through 16 and saw the loathsome things and idols of wood and stone, of gold and silver, that they possess. 17 There may be among you a man or woman, or a clan or tribe, whose heart is now turning away from the Lord, our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; there may be among you a root bearing poison and wormwood; 18 if any such persons, after hearing the words of this curse, should congratulate themselves, saying in their hearts, “I am safe, even though I walk in stubbornness of heart,” thereby sweeping away moist and dry alike,[y](CR) 19 the Lord will never consent to pardon them. Instead, the Lord’s burning wrath will flare up against them; every curse written in this book will pounce on them, and the Lord will blot out their names from under the heavens.(CS) 20 The Lord will single them out from all the tribes of Israel for doom, in keeping with all the curses of the covenant written in this book of the law.
Punishment for Idolatry. 21 (CT)Future generations, your descendants who will rise up after you, as well as the foreigners who will come here from distant lands, when they see the calamities of this land and the ills the Lord has inflicted upon it— 22 all its soil burned out by sulphur and salt, unsown and unfruitful, without a blade of grass, like the catastrophe of Sodom and Gomorrah,(CU) Admah and Zeboiim,[z] which the Lord overthrew in his furious wrath— 23 (CV)they and all the nations will ask, “Why has the Lord dealt thus with this land? Why this great outburst of wrath?” 24 And they will say, “Because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, which he had made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt, 25 and they went and served other gods and bowed down to them, gods whom they did not know and whom he had not apportioned to them.(CW) 26 (CX)So the anger of the Lord flared up against this land and brought on it every curse written in this book. 27 The Lord uprooted them from their soil in anger, fury, and great wrath, and cast them out into another land, as they are today.” 28 The hidden things[aa] belong to the Lord our God, but the revealed things are for us and for our children forever, to observe all the words of this law.
Chapter 30
Compassion for the Repentant. 1 [ab](CY)When all these things, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, come upon you,(CZ) and you take them to heart in any of the nations where the Lord, your God, has dispersed you, 2 (DA)and return to the Lord, your God, obeying his voice, according to all that I am commanding you today, you and your children, with your whole heart and your whole being, 3 the Lord, your God, will restore your fortunes and will have compassion on you; he will again gather you from all the peoples where the Lord, your God, has scattered you. 4 Though you may have been dispersed to the farthest corner of the heavens, even from there will the Lord, your God, gather you; even from there will he bring you back.(DB) 5 The Lord, your God, will then bring you into the land your ancestors once possessed, that you may possess it; and he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors.(DC) 6 The Lord, your God, will circumcise your hearts[ac] and the hearts of your descendants,(DD) so that you will love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart and your whole being, in order that you may live. 7 The Lord, your God, will put all those curses on your enemies and the foes who pursued you.(DE) 8 You, however, shall again obey the voice of the Lord and observe all his commandments which I am giving you today. 9 Then the Lord, your God, will generously increase your undertakings, the fruit of your womb, the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your soil;(DF) for the Lord, your God, will again take delight in your prosperity, just as he took delight in your ancestors’, 10 because you will obey the voice of the Lord, your God, keeping the commandments and statutes that are written in this book of the law, when you return to the Lord, your God, with your whole heart and your whole being.
11 (DG)For this command which I am giving you today is not too wondrous or remote for you. 12 It is not in the heavens, that you should say, “Who will go up to the heavens to get it for us and tell us of it, that we may do it?” 13 Nor is it across the sea, that you should say, “Who will cross the sea to get it for us and tell us of it, that we may do it?” 14 No, it is something very near to you, in your mouth[ad] and in your heart, to do it.
The Choice Before Israel. 15 See, I have today set before you life and good, death and evil.(DH) 16 If you obey the commandments of the Lord, your God, which I am giving you today, loving the Lord, your God, and walking in his ways, and keeping his commandments, statutes and ordinances, you will live and grow numerous, and the Lord, your God, will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.(DI) 17 (DJ)If, however, your heart turns away and you do not obey, but are led astray and bow down to other gods and serve them, 18 I tell you today that you will certainly perish; you will not have a long life on the land which you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. 19 I call heaven and earth today to witness against you:(DK) I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live, 20 by loving the Lord, your God, obeying his voice, and holding fast to him. For that will mean life for you, a long life for you to live on the land which the Lord swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give to them.(DL)
Chapter 31
The Lord’s Leadership. 1 When Moses had finished speaking these words to all Israel, 2 he said to them, I am now one hundred and twenty years old(DM) and am no longer able to go out and come in; besides, the Lord has said to me, Do not cross this Jordan. 3 It is the Lord, your God, who will cross before you; he will destroy these nations before you, that you may dispossess them.(DN) (It is Joshua who will cross before you, as the Lord promised.) 4 (DO)The Lord will deal with them just as he dealt with Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and with their country, when he destroyed them. 5 When, therefore, the Lord delivers them up to you, you shall deal with them according to the whole commandment which I have given you.(DP) 6 Be strong and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the Lord, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you.(DQ)
Call of Joshua. 7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and in the presence of all Israel said to him,(DR) “Be strong and steadfast, for you shall bring this people into the land which the Lord swore to their ancestors he would give them; it is you who will give them possession of it. 8 It is the Lord who goes before you; he will be with you and will never fail you or forsake you. So do not fear or be dismayed.”(DS)
The Reading of the Law. 9 (DT)When Moses had written down this law, he gave it to the levitical priests who carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel.(DU) 10 Moses commanded them, saying, On the feast of Booths,(DV) at the prescribed time in the year for remission[ae] which comes at the end of every seven-year period, 11 when all Israel goes to appear before the Lord, your God, in the place which he will choose, you shall read this law aloud in the presence of all Israel. 12 Assemble the people—men, women and children, as well as the resident aliens who live in your communities—that they may hear and so learn to fear the Lord, your God, and to observe carefully all the words of this law. 13 Their children also, who do not know it yet, shall hear and learn to fear the Lord, your God, as long as you live on the land which you are about to cross the Jordan to possess.
Commission to Joshua. 14 (DW)The Lord said to Moses, The time is now approaching for you to die. Summon Joshua, and present yourselves at the tent of meeting that I may commission him. So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the tent of meeting. 15 And the Lord appeared at the tent in a column of cloud; the column of cloud stood at the entrance of the tent.
A Command to Moses. 16 The Lord said to Moses, Soon you will be at rest with your ancestors, and then this people will prostitute themselves[af] by following the foreign gods among whom they will live in the land they are about to enter.(DX) They will forsake me and break the covenant which I have made with them. 17 (DY)At that time my anger will flare up against them; I will forsake them and hide my face from them; they will become a prey to be devoured, and much evil and distress will befall them. At that time they will indeed say, “Is it not because our God is not in our midst that these evils have befallen us?” 18 Yet I will surely hide my face at that time because of all the evil they have done in turning to other gods. 19 Now, write out this song(DZ) for yourselves. Teach it to the Israelites and have them recite it, so that this song may be a witness for me against the Israelites. 20 For when I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey which I promised on oath to their ancestors, and they have eaten and are satisfied and have grown fat, if they turn to other gods and serve them, despising me and breaking my covenant, 21 then, when great evil and distress befall them, this song will speak to them as a witness, for it will not be forgotten if their descendants recite it. For I know what they are inclined to do even at the present time, before I have brought them into the land which I promised on oath. 22 So Moses wrote this song that same day, and he taught it to the Israelites.
Commission of Joshua. 23 Then he commissioned Joshua, son of Nun, and said to him, Be strong and steadfast, for it is you who will bring the Israelites into the land which I promised them on oath.(EA) I myself will be with you.
The Law Placed in the Ark. 24 When Moses had finished writing out on a scroll the words of this law in their entirety, 25 Moses gave the Levites(EB) who carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord this order: 26 Take this book of the law and put it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord, your God, that there it may be a witness against you.(EC) 27 For I already know how rebellious and stiff-necked you will be. Why, even now, while I am alive among you, you have been rebels against the Lord! How much more, then, after I am dead!(ED) 28 (EE)Assemble all your tribal elders and your officials before me, that I may speak these words for them to hear and so may call heaven and earth to witness against them. 29 (EF)For I know that after my death you are sure to act corruptly and to turn aside from the way along which I commanded you, so that evil will befall you in time to come because you have done what is evil in the Lord’s sight, and provoked him by your deeds.
The Song of Moses. 30 Then Moses recited the words of this song in their entirety, for the whole assembly of Israel to hear:
Chapter 32
1 [ag]Give ear, O heavens, and let me speak;
let the earth hear the words of my mouth!(EG)
2 May my teaching soak in like the rain,
and my utterance drench like the dew,
Like a downpour upon the grass,
like a shower upon the crops.
3 For I will proclaim the name of the Lord,
praise the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock—how faultless are his deeds,
how right all his ways!
A faithful God, without deceit,
just and upright is he!(EH)
5 Yet his degenerate children have treated him basely,
a twisted and crooked generation!(EI)
6 Is this how you repay the Lord,
so foolish and unwise a people?
Is he not your father who begot you,
the one who made and established you?(EJ)
7 Remember the days of old,
consider the years of generations past.
Ask your father, he will inform you,
your elders, they will tell you:(EK)
8 When the Most High allotted each nation its heritage,
when he separated out human beings,(EL)
He set up the boundaries of the peoples
after the number of the divine beings;[ah]
9 But the Lord’s portion was his people;
his allotted share was Jacob.(EM)
10 He found them in a wilderness,
a wasteland of howling desert.
He shielded them, cared for them,
guarded them as the apple of his eye.(EN)
11 As an eagle incites its nestlings,
hovering over its young,
So he spread his wings, took them,
bore them upon his pinions.(EO)
12 The Lord alone guided them,
no foreign god was with them.(EP)
13 (EQ)He had them mount the summits of the land,[ai]
fed them the produce of its fields;
He suckled them with honey from the crags
and olive oil from the flinty rock;
14 Butter from cows and milk from sheep,
with the best of lambs;
Bashan[aj] bulls and goats,
with the cream of finest wheat;
and the foaming blood of grapes you drank.
15 So Jacob ate and was satisfied,
Jeshurun[ak] grew fat and kicked;
you became fat and gross and gorged.
They forsook the God who made them
and scorned the Rock of their salvation.(ER)
16 With strange gods they incited him,
with abominations provoked him to anger.(ES)
17 They sacrificed to demons, to “no-gods,”
to gods they had never known,
Newcomers from afar,
before whom your ancestors had never trembled.
18 You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you,
you forgot the God who gave you birth.(ET)
19 The Lord saw and was filled with loathing,
provoked by his sons and daughters.(EU)
20 He said, I will hide my face from them,
and see what becomes of them.
For they are a fickle generation,
children with no loyalty in them!(EV)
21 Since they have incited me with a “no-god,”
and provoked me with their empty idols,
I will incite them with a “no-people”;[al]
with a foolish nation I will provoke them.(EW)
22 For by my wrath a fire is kindled
that has raged to the depths of Sheol,
It has consumed the earth with its yield,
and set on fire the foundations of the mountains.(EX)
23 I will heap evils upon them
and exhaust all my arrows against them:(EY)
24 Emaciating hunger and consuming fever
and bitter pestilence,
And the teeth of wild beasts I will send among them,
with the venom of reptiles gliding in the dust.(EZ)
25 Out in the street the sword shall bereave,
and at home the terror
For the young man and the young woman alike,
the nursing babe as well as the gray beard.(FA)
26 I said: I will make an end of them
and blot out their name from human memory,
27 Had I not feared the provocation by the enemy,
that their foes might misunderstand,
And say, “Our own hand won the victory;
the Lord had nothing to do with any of it.”(FB)
28 For they are a nation devoid of reason,[am]
having no understanding.
29 If they had insight they would realize this,
they would understand their end:
30 “How could one rout a thousand,
or two put ten thousand to flight,
Unless it was because their Rock sold them,
the Lord delivered them up?”
31 Indeed, their “rock” is not like our Rock;
our enemies are fools.
32 For their vine is from the vine of Sodom,
from the vineyards of Gomorrah.
Their grapes are grapes of poison,
and their clusters are bitter.(FC)
33 Their wine is the venom of serpents,
the cruel poison of vipers.
34 Is not this stored up with me,
sealed up in my storehouses?
35 Vengeance is mine and recompense,
for the time they lose their footing;
Because the day of their disaster is at hand
and their doom is rushing upon them!(FD)
36 Surely, the Lord will do justice for his people;
on his servants he will have pity.
When he sees their strength is gone,
and neither bond nor free[an] is left,(FE)
37 He will say, Where are their gods,(FF)
the rock in whom they took refuge,
38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices
and drank the wine of their libations?
Let them rise up now and help you!
Let them be your protection!
39 See now that I, I alone, am he,
and there is no god besides me.
It is I who bring both death and life,
I who inflict wounds and heal them,
and from my hand no one can deliver.(FG)
40 For I raise my hand to the heavens
and will say: As surely as I live forever,
41 When I sharpen my flashing sword,
and my hand lays hold of judgment,
With vengeance I will repay my foes
and requite those who hate me.(FH)
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
and my sword shall devour flesh—
With the blood of the slain and the captured,
from the long-haired heads of the enemy.
43 Exult with him, you heavens,
bow to him, all you divine beings!
For he will avenge the blood of his servants,
take vengeance on his foes;
He will requite those who hate him,
and purge his people’s land.(FI)
44 So Moses, together with Hoshea,[ao] son of Nun, went and spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people.(FJ)
Final Appeal. 45 When Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them,(FK) Take to heart all the words that I am giving in witness against you today, words you should command your children, that they may observe carefully every word of this law. 47 For this is no trivial matter for you, but rather your very life; by this word you will enjoy a long life on the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.(FL)
Moses Looks upon Canaan. 48 On that very day the Lord said to Moses, 49 Ascend this mountain of the Abarim,[ap] Mount Nebo in the land of Moab facing Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites as a possession.(FM) 50 Then you shall die on the mountain you are about to ascend, and shall be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor[aq] and there was gathered to his people,(FN) 51 because both of you broke faith with me among the Israelites at the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the wilderness of Zin: you did not manifest my holiness among the Israelites.[ar](FO) 52 You may indeed see the land from a distance, but you shall not enter that land which I am giving to the Israelites.(FP)
Chapter 33
Blessing upon the Tribes.[as] 1 This is the blessing with which Moses, the man of God, blessed the Israelites before he died.(FQ)
2 (FR)He said:
The Lord came from Sinai
and dawned on his people from Seir;
he shone forth from Mount Paran.
With him were myriads of holy ones;
at his right hand advanced the gods.[at]
3 Indeed, lover of the peoples,
all the holy ones are at your side;
They follow at your heels,
carry out your decisions.
4 Moses charged us with the law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.(FS)
5 A king arose[au] in Jeshurun
when the chiefs of the people assembled,
and the tribes of Israel united.(FT)
6 May Reuben live and not die out,(FU)
but let his numbers be few.
7 Of Judah he said this:
Hear, Lord, the voice of Judah,
and bring him to his people.[av]
His own hands defend his cause;
be a help against his foes.(FV)
8 Of Levi he said:(FW)
Give to Levi your Thummim,
your Urim[aw] to your faithful one;
Him you tested at Massah,
contended against him at the waters of Meribah.(FX)
9 [ax]He said of his father and mother,
“I have no regard for them”;
His brothers he would not acknowledge,
and his own children he did not recognize.
For they kept your words,
and your covenant they upheld.(FY)
10 (FZ)They teach your ordinances to Jacob,
your law to Israel.
They bring incense to your nostrils,
and burnt offerings to your altar.
11 Bless, Lord, his strength,
be pleased with the work of his hands.
Crush the loins of his adversaries
and of his foes, that they may not rise.
12 Of Benjamin he said:
The beloved of the Lord,
he abides in safety beside him;
He shelters him all day long;
the beloved abides at his breast.[ay](GA)
13 Of Joseph he said:(GB)
Blessed by the Lord is his land
with the best of heaven above
and of the abyss crouching beneath;
14 With the best of the produce of the sun,
and the choicest yield of the months;
15 With the finest gifts of the ancient mountains
and the best from the everlasting hills;
16 With the best of the earth and its fullness,
and the favor of the one who dwells on Sinai.
Let these come upon the head of Joseph
and upon the brow of the prince among his brothers.(GC)
17 His firstborn bull, majesty is his!
His horns are the horns of a wild ox;
With them he gores the peoples,
attacks the ends of the earth.
These are the myriads of Ephraim,
and these the thousands of Manasseh.
18 Of Zebulun he said:(GD)
Rejoice, Zebulun, in your expeditions,
exult, Issachar, in your tents!
19 They invite peoples to the mountain
where they offer right sacrifices,
Because they suck up the abundance of the seas[az]
and the hidden treasures of the sand.
20 Of Gad he said:(GE)
Blessed be the one who has made Gad so vast!
He lies there like a lion;
he tears the arm, the head as well.
21 He saw that the best should be his,
for there the commander’s portion was assigned;
he came at the head of the people.
He carried out the justice of the Lord
and his ordinances for Israel.(GF)
22 Of Dan he said:
Dan is a lion’s cub,(GG)
that springs away from a viper!
23 Of Naphtali he said:
Naphtali, abounding with favor,
filled with the blessing of the Lord,
take possession of the west and south.(GH)
24 Of Asher he said:(GI)
Most blessed[ba] of sons be Asher!
May he be the favorite among his brothers,
and may he dip his foot in oil!
25 May the bolts of your gates be iron and bronze;
may your strength endure through all your days!
26 There is none like the God of Jeshurun,
who rides the heavens in his power,
who rides the clouds in his majesty;(GJ)
27 The God of old is a refuge;
a support are the arms of the Everlasting.
He drove the enemy out of your way
and he said, “Destroy!”(GK)
28 Israel abides securely,
Jacob dwells apart,
In a land of grain and wine,
where the heavens drip with dew.(GL)
29 Happy are you, Israel! Who is like you,
a people delivered by the Lord,
Your help and shield,
and the sword of your glory.
Your enemies cringe before you;
you stride upon their backs.(GM)
IV. The Death of Moses
Chapter 34
1 Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo,(GN) the peak of Pisgah which faces Jericho, and the Lord showed him all the land—Gilead, and as far as Dan, 2 all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea,(GO) 3 the Negeb, the plain (the valley of Jericho, the City of Palms), and as far as Zoar. 4 The Lord then said to him, This is the land(GP) about which I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, “I will give it to your descendants.” I have let you see it with your own eyes, but you shall not cross over. 5 So there, in the land of Moab, Moses, the servant of the Lord, died(GQ) as the Lord had said; 6 and he was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor; to this day no one knows the place of his burial.(GR) 7 Moses was one hundred and twenty years old(GS) when he died, yet his eyes were undimmed and his vigor unabated. 8 The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab for thirty days, till they had completed the period of grief and mourning for Moses.
9 Now Joshua, son of Nun,(GT) was filled with the spirit of wisdom, since Moses had laid his hands upon him; and so the Israelites gave him their obedience, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
10 (GU)Since then no prophet has arisen in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, 11 (GV)in all the signs and wonders the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt against Pharaoh and all his servants and against all his land, 12 and all the great might and the awesome power that Moses displayed in the sight of all Israel.
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