Deuteronomy 30
New American Standard Bible
Restoration Promised
30 “So it will be when all of these things have come upon you, (A)the blessing and the curse which I have placed before you, and you [a]call them to mind (B)in all the nations where the Lord your God has scattered you, 2 and you (C)return to the Lord your God and [b]obey Him (D)with all your heart and soul in accordance with everything that I am commanding you today, you and your sons, 3 then the Lord your God will (E)restore [c]you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and (F)will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has (G)scattered you. 4 If any of your scattered countrymen are at the [d]ends of the earth, (H)from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will [e]bring you back. 5 (I)The Lord your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will be good to you and (J)make you more numerous than your fathers.
6 “Moreover, (K)the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your [f]descendants, (L)to love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul, so that you may live. 7 (M)And the Lord your God will [g]inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted you. 8 And you will again [h]obey the Lord, and [i]follow all His commandments which I am commanding you today. 9 (N)Then the Lord your God will prosper you [j]abundantly in every work of your hand, in the [k]children of your womb, the [l]offspring of your cattle, and in the [m]produce of your ground, for (O)the Lord will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers; 10 [n]if you [o]obey the Lord your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which (P)are written in this Book of the Law, [p]if you turn to the Lord your God (Q)with all your heart and soul.
11 “For this commandment which I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it far away. 12 It is not in heaven, [q]that you could say, ‘(R)Who will go up to heaven for us and get it for us, and proclaim it to us, so that we may [r]follow it?’ 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, [s]that you could say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us and get it for us and proclaim it to us, so that we may [t]follow it?’ 14 On the contrary, the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may [u]follow it.
Choose Life
15 “See, (S)I have placed before you today life and [v]happiness, and death and [w]adversity, 16 in that I am commanding you today (T)to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, so that you (U)may live and become numerous, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but allow yourself to be led astray and you worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that (V)you will certainly perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter [x]and take possession of it. 19 (W)I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have placed before you life and death, (X)the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your [y]descendants, 20 (Y)by loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, and (Z)by holding close to Him; (AA)for [z]this is your life and the length of your days, [aa]so that you may live in (AB)the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 30:1 Lit return them to your heart
- Deuteronomy 30:2 Lit listen to His voice
- Deuteronomy 30:3 Lit your captivity
- Deuteronomy 30:4 Lit end of the sky
- Deuteronomy 30:4 Lit take you
- Deuteronomy 30:6 Lit seed
- Deuteronomy 30:7 Lit give
- Deuteronomy 30:8 Lit listen to the voice of
- Deuteronomy 30:8 Lit perform
- Deuteronomy 30:9 Lit for good
- Deuteronomy 30:9 Lit fruit
- Deuteronomy 30:9 Lit fruit
- Deuteronomy 30:9 Lit fruit
- Deuteronomy 30:10 Or for you will
- Deuteronomy 30:10 Lit listen to the voice of
- Deuteronomy 30:10 Or for you will
- Deuteronomy 30:12 Lit to say
- Deuteronomy 30:12 Lit perform
- Deuteronomy 30:13 Lit to say
- Deuteronomy 30:13 Lit perform
- Deuteronomy 30:14 Lit perform
- Deuteronomy 30:15 Lit good
- Deuteronomy 30:15 Lit evil
- Deuteronomy 30:18 Lit to
- Deuteronomy 30:19 Lit seed
- Deuteronomy 30:20 Lit that
- Deuteronomy 30:20 Lit to dwell
Deuteronomy 30
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
God’s Fidelity Assured
30 “When all these things have happened to you, the blessings and the curses that I have set before you, if you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you(A) 2 and return to the Lord your God, and you and your children obey him with all your heart and with all your soul, just as I am commanding you today,(B) 3 then the Lord your God will return you from your captivity and have compassion on you, gathering you again from all the peoples among whom the Lord your God has scattered you.(C) 4 Even if you are exiled to the ends of the world,[a] from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there he will take you back.(D) 5 The Lord your God will bring you into the land that your ancestors possessed, and you will possess it; he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors.
6 “Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live.(E) 7 The Lord your God will put all these curses on your enemies and on the adversaries who took advantage of you. 8 Then you shall again obey the Lord, observing all his commandments that I am commanding you today, 9 and the Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all your undertakings, in the fruit of your body, in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your soil. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, just as he delighted in prospering your ancestors,(F) 10 when you obey the Lord your God by observing his commandments and decrees that are written in this book of the law, because you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Exhortation to Choose Life
11 “Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away.(G) 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?’(H) 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?’ 14 No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe.
15 “See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity.(I) 16 If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God[b] that I am commanding you today, by loving the Lord your God, walking in his ways, and observing his commandments, decrees, and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to possess. 17 But if your heart turns away and you do not hear but are led astray to bow down to other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you shall certainly perish; you shall not live long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.(J) 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live,(K) 20 loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him, for that means life to you and length of days, so that you may live in the land that the Lord swore to give to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”(L)
Deuteronomy 30
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
30 Now when all these things shall be come upon thee, the blessing or the curse, which I have set forth before thee, and thou shalt be touched with repentance of thy heart among all the nations, into which the Lord thy God shall have scattered thee,
2 And shalt return to him, and obey his commandments, as I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul:
3 The Lord thy God will bring back again thy captivity, and will have mercy on thee, and gather thee again out of all the nations, into which he scattered thee before.
4 If thou be driven as far as the poles of heaven, the Lord thy God will fetch thee back from thence,
5 And will take thee to himself, and bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it: and blessing thee, he will make thee more numerous than were thy fathers.
6 The Lord thy God will circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed: that then mayst love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, that thou mayst live.
7 And he will turn all these curses upon thy enemies, and upon them that hate and persecute thee.
8 But thou shalt return, and hear the voice of the Lord thy God, and shalt do all the commandments which I command thee this day:
9 And the Lord thy God will make thee abound in all the works of thy hands, in the fruit of thy womb, and in the fruit of thy cattle, in the fruitfulness of thy land, and in the plenty of all things. For the Lord will return to rejoice over thee in all good things, as he rejoiced in thy fathers:
10 Yet so if thou hear the voice of the Lord thy God, and keep his precepts and ceremonies, which are written in this law: and return to the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.
11 This commandment, that I command thee this day is not above thee, nor far off from thee:
12 Nor is it in heaven, that thou shouldst say: Which of us can go up to heaven to bring it unto us, and we may hear and fulfill it in work?
13 Nor is it beyond the sea: that thou mayst excuse thyself, and say: Which of us can cross the sea, and bring it unto us: that we may hear, and do that which is commanded?
14 But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth and in thy heart, that thou mayst do it.
15 Consider that I have set before thee this day life and good, and on the other hand death and evil:
16 That thou mayst love the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways, and keep his commandments and ceremonies and judgments, and thou mayst live, and he may multiply thee, and bless thee in the land, which thou shalt go in to possess.
17 But if thy heart be turned away, so that thou wilt not hear, and being deceived with error thou adore strange gods, and serve them:
18 I foretell thee this day that thou shalt perish, and shalt remain but a short time in the land, to which thou shalt pass over the Jordan, and shalt go in to possess it.
19 I call heaven and earth to witness this day, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Choose therefore life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
20 And that thou mayst love the Lord thy God, and obey his voice, and adhere to him (for he is thy life, and the length of thy days,) that thou mayst dwell in the land, for which the Lord swore to thy fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give it them.
Deuteronomy 30
The Message
30 1-5 Here’s what will happen. While you’re out among the nations where God has dispersed you and the blessings and curses come in just the way I have set them before you, and you and your children take them seriously and come back to God, your God, and obey him with your whole heart and soul according to everything that I command you today, God, your God, will restore everything you lost; he’ll have compassion on you; he’ll come back and pick up the pieces from all the places where you were scattered. No matter how far away you end up, God, your God, will get you out of there and bring you back to the land your ancestors once possessed. It will be yours again. He will give you a good life and make you more numerous than your ancestors.
6-7 God, your God, will cut away the thick calluses on your heart and your children’s hearts, freeing you to love God, your God, with your whole heart and soul and live, really live. God, your God, will put all these curses on your enemies who hated you and were out to get you.
8-9 And you will make a new start, listening obediently to God, keeping all his commandments that I’m commanding you today. God, your God, will outdo himself in making things go well for you: you’ll have babies, get calves, grow crops, and enjoy an all-around good life. Yes, God will start enjoying you again, making things go well for you just as he enjoyed doing it for your ancestors.
10 But only if you listen obediently to God, your God, and keep the commandments and regulations written in this Book of Revelation. Nothing halfhearted here; you must return to God, your God, totally, heart and soul, holding nothing back.
11-14 This commandment that I’m commanding you today isn’t too much for you, it’s not out of your reach. It’s not on a high mountain—you don’t have to get mountaineers to climb the peak and bring it down to your level and explain it before you can live it. And it’s not across the ocean—you don’t have to send sailors out to get it, bring it back, and then explain it before you can live it. No. The word is right here and now—as near as the tongue in your mouth, as near as the heart in your chest. Just do it!
15 Look at what I’ve done for you today: I’ve placed in front of you
Life and Good
Death and Evil.
16 And I command you today: Love God, your God. Walk in his ways. Keep his commandments, regulations, and rules so that you will live, really live, live exuberantly, blessed by God, your God, in the land you are about to enter and possess.
17-18 But I warn you: If you have a change of heart, refuse to listen obediently, and willfully go off to serve and worship other gods, you will most certainly die. You won’t last long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
19-20 I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live. And love God, your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him. Oh yes, he is life itself, a long life settled on the soil that God, your God, promised to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson