Add parallel Print Page Options

Moses’ Final Blessing on Israel

33 This is the blessing with which Moses, the man of God, blessed the Israelites before his death. He said:

The Lord came from Sinai,
    and dawned from Seir upon us;[a]
    he shone forth from Mount Paran.
With him were myriads of holy ones;[b]
    at his right, a host of his own.[c]
Indeed, O favorite among[d] peoples,
    all his holy ones were in your charge;
they marched at your heels,
    accepted direction from you.
Moses charged us with the law,
    as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.
There arose a king in Jeshurun,
    when the leaders of the people assembled—
    the united tribes of Israel.

May Reuben live, and not die out,
    even though his numbers are few.

And this he said of Judah:

O Lord, give heed to Judah,
    and bring him to his people;
strengthen his hands for him,[e]
    and be a help against his adversaries.

And of Levi he said:

Give to Levi[f] your Thummim,
    and your Urim to your loyal one,
whom you tested at Massah,
    with whom you contended at the waters of Meribah;
who said of his father and mother,
    “I regard them not”;
he ignored his kin,
    and did not acknowledge his children.
For they observed your word,
    and kept your covenant.
10 They teach Jacob your ordinances,
    and Israel your law;
they place incense before you,
    and whole burnt offerings on your altar.
11 Bless, O Lord, his substance,
    and accept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
    of those that hate him, so that they do not rise again.

12 Of Benjamin he said:

The beloved of the Lord rests in safety—
the High God[g] surrounds him all day long—
    the beloved[h] rests between his shoulders.

13 And of Joseph he said:

Blessed by the Lord be his land,
    with the choice gifts of heaven above,
    and of the deep that lies beneath;
14 with the choice fruits of the sun,
    and the rich yield of the months;
15 with the finest produce of the ancient mountains,
    and the abundance of the everlasting hills;
16 with the choice gifts of the earth and its fullness,
    and the favor of the one who dwells on Sinai.[i]
Let these come on the head of Joseph,
    on the brow of the prince among his brothers.
17 A firstborn[j] bull—majesty is his!
    His horns are the horns of a wild ox;
with them he gores the peoples,
    driving them to[k] the ends of the earth;
such are the myriads of Ephraim,
    such the thousands of Manasseh.

18 And of Zebulun he said:

Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out;
    and Issachar, in your tents.
19 They call peoples to the mountain;
    there they offer the right sacrifices;
for they suck the affluence of the seas
    and the hidden treasures of the sand.

20 And of Gad he said:

Blessed be the enlargement of Gad!
    Gad lives like a lion;
    he tears at arm and scalp.
21 He chose the best for himself,
    for there a commander’s allotment was reserved;
he came at the head of the people,
    he executed the justice of the Lord,
    and his ordinances for Israel.

22 And of Dan he said:

Dan is a lion’s whelp
    that leaps forth from Bashan.

23 And of Naphtali he said:

O Naphtali, sated with favor,
    full of the blessing of the Lord,
    possess the west and the south.

24 And of Asher he said:

Most blessed of sons be Asher;
    may he be the favorite of his brothers,
    and may he dip his foot in oil.
25 Your bars are iron and bronze;
    and as your days, so is your strength.

26 There is none like God, O Jeshurun,
    who rides through the heavens to your help,
    majestic through the skies.
27 He subdues the ancient gods,[l]
    shatters[m] the forces of old;[n]
he drove out the enemy before you,
    and said, “Destroy!”
28 So Israel lives in safety,
    untroubled is Jacob’s abode[o]
in a land of grain and wine,
    where the heavens drop down dew.
29 Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you,
    a people saved by the Lord,
the shield of your help,
    and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you,
    and you shall tread on their backs.

Moses Dies and Is Buried in the Land of Moab

34 Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain—that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees—as far as Zoar. The Lord said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.” Then Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab, at the Lord’s command. He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor, but no one knows his burial place to this day. Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigor had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended.

Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the Lord had commanded Moses.

10 Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. 11 He was unequaled for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, 12 and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 33:2 Gk Syr Vg Compare Tg: Heb upon them
  2. Deuteronomy 33:2 Cn Compare Gk Sam Syr Vg: MT He came from Ribeboth-kodesh,
  3. Deuteronomy 33:2 Cn Compare Gk: meaning of Heb uncertain
  4. Deuteronomy 33:3 Or O lover of the
  5. Deuteronomy 33:7 Cn: Heb with his hands he contended
  6. Deuteronomy 33:8 Q Ms Gk: MT lacks Give to Levi
  7. Deuteronomy 33:12 Heb above him
  8. Deuteronomy 33:12 Heb he
  9. Deuteronomy 33:16 Cn: Heb in the bush
  10. Deuteronomy 33:17 Q Ms Gk Syr Vg: MT His firstborn
  11. Deuteronomy 33:17 Cn: Heb the peoples, together
  12. Deuteronomy 33:27 Or The eternal God is a dwelling place
  13. Deuteronomy 33:27 Cn: Heb from underneath
  14. Deuteronomy 33:27 Or the everlasting arms
  15. Deuteronomy 33:28 Or fountain

Psalm 104

God the Creator and Provider

Bless the Lord, O my soul.
    O Lord my God, you are very great.
You are clothed with honor and majesty,
    wrapped in light as with a garment.
You stretch out the heavens like a tent,
    you set the beams of your[a] chambers on the waters,
you make the clouds your[b] chariot,
    you ride on the wings of the wind,
you make the winds your[c] messengers,
    fire and flame your[d] ministers.

You set the earth on its foundations,
    so that it shall never be shaken.
You cover it with the deep as with a garment;
    the waters stood above the mountains.
At your rebuke they flee;
    at the sound of your thunder they take to flight.
They rose up to the mountains, ran down to the valleys
    to the place that you appointed for them.
You set a boundary that they may not pass,
    so that they might not again cover the earth.

10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
    they flow between the hills,
11 giving drink to every wild animal;
    the wild asses quench their thirst.
12 By the streams[e] the birds of the air have their habitation;
    they sing among the branches.
13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
    the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.

14 You cause the grass to grow for the cattle,
    and plants for people to use,[f]
to bring forth food from the earth,
15     and wine to gladden the human heart,
oil to make the face shine,
    and bread to strengthen the human heart.
16 The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly,
    the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 In them the birds build their nests;
    the stork has its home in the fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats;
    the rocks are a refuge for the coneys.
19 You have made the moon to mark the seasons;
    the sun knows its time for setting.
20 You make darkness, and it is night,
    when all the animals of the forest come creeping out.
21 The young lions roar for their prey,
    seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they withdraw
    and lie down in their dens.
23 People go out to their work
    and to their labor until the evening.

24 O Lord, how manifold are your works!
    In wisdom you have made them all;
    the earth is full of your creatures.
25 Yonder is the sea, great and wide,
    creeping things innumerable are there,
    living things both small and great.
26 There go the ships,
    and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it.

27 These all look to you
    to give them their food in due season;
28 when you give to them, they gather it up;
    when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
    when you take away their breath, they die
    and return to their dust.
30 When you send forth your spirit,[g] they are created;
    and you renew the face of the ground.

31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
    may the Lord rejoice in his works—
32 who looks on the earth and it trembles,
    who touches the mountains and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the Lord.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
    and let the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 104:3 Heb his
  2. Psalm 104:3 Heb his
  3. Psalm 104:4 Heb his
  4. Psalm 104:4 Heb his
  5. Psalm 104:12 Heb By them
  6. Psalm 104:14 Or to cultivate
  7. Psalm 104:30 Or your breath

Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we decided to be left alone in Athens; and we sent Timothy, our brother and co-worker for God in proclaiming[a] the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you for the sake of your faith, so that no one would be shaken by these persecutions. Indeed, you yourselves know that this is what we are destined for. In fact, when we were with you, we told you beforehand that we were to suffer persecution; so it turned out, as you know. For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith; I was afraid that somehow the tempter had tempted you and that our labor had been in vain.

Timothy’s Encouraging Report

But Timothy has just now come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love. He has told us also that you always remember us kindly and long to see us—just as we long to see you. For this reason, brothers and sisters,[b] during all our distress and persecution we have been encouraged about you through your faith. For we now live, if you continue to stand firm in the Lord. How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? 10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.

11 Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. 12 And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. 13 And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Thessalonians 3:2 Gk lacks proclaiming
  2. 1 Thessalonians 3:7 Gk brothers

Bible Gateway Recommends