Joshua the New Leader of Israel(A)

31 Then Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. And he said to them: “I (B)am one hundred and twenty years old today. I can no longer (C)go out and come in. Also the Lord has said to me, (D)‘You shall not cross over this Jordan.’ The Lord your God (E)Himself crosses over before you; He will destroy these nations from before you, and you shall dispossess them. (F)Joshua himself crosses over before you, just (G)as the Lord has said. (H)And the Lord will do to them (I)as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites and their land, when He destroyed them. (J)The Lord will give them over to you, that you may do to them according to every commandment which I have commanded you. (K)Be strong and of good courage, (L)do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, (M)He is the One who goes with you. (N)He will not leave you nor forsake you.”

Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, (O)“Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. And the Lord, (P)He is the One who goes before you. (Q)He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”

The Law to Be Read Every Seven Years

So Moses wrote this law (R)and delivered it to the priests, the sons of Levi, (S)who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 And Moses commanded them, saying: “At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the (T)year of release, (U)at the Feast of Tabernacles, 11 when all Israel comes to (V)appear before the Lord your God in the (W)place which He chooses, (X)you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 12 (Y)Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the Lord your God and carefully observe all the words of this law, 13 and that their children, (Z)who have not known it, (AA)may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess.”

Prediction of Israel’s Rebellion

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, (AB)“Behold, the days approach when you must die; call Joshua, and present yourselves in the tabernacle of meeting, that (AC)I may [a]inaugurate him.”

So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tabernacle of meeting. 15 Now (AD)the Lord appeared at the tabernacle in a pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud stood above the door of the tabernacle.

16 And the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, you will [b]rest with your fathers; and this people will (AE)rise and (AF)play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will (AG)forsake Me and (AH)break My covenant which I have made with them. 17 Then My anger shall be (AI)aroused against them in that day, and (AJ)I will forsake them, and I will (AK)hide My face from them, and they shall be [c]devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, (AL)‘Have not these evils come upon us because our God is (AM)not among us?’ 18 And (AN)I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.

19 “Now therefore, write down this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be (AO)a witness for Me against the children of Israel. 20 When I have brought them to the land flowing with milk and honey, of which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and filled themselves (AP)and grown fat, (AQ)then they will turn to other gods and serve them; and they will provoke Me and break My covenant. 21 Then it shall be, (AR)when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify against them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten in the mouths of their descendants, for (AS)I know the inclination (AT)of their behavior today, even before I have brought them to the land of which I swore to give them.

22 Therefore Moses wrote this song the same day, and taught it to the children of Israel. 23 (AU)Then He inaugurated Joshua the son of Nun, and said, (AV)“Be strong and of good courage; for you shall bring the children of Israel into the land of which I swore to them, and I will be with you.”

24 So it was, when Moses had completed writing the words of this law in a book, when they were finished, 25 that Moses commanded the Levites, who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying: 26 “Take this Book of the Law, (AW)and put it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there (AX)as a witness against you; 27 (AY)for I know your rebellion and your (AZ)stiff neck. If today, while I am yet alive with you, you have been rebellious against the Lord, then how much more after my death? 28 Gather to me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their hearing (BA)and call heaven and earth to witness against them. 29 For I know that after my death you will (BB)become utterly corrupt, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you. And (BC)evil will befall you (BD)in the latter days, because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger through the work of your hands.”

The Song of Moses

30 Then Moses spoke in the hearing of all the assembly of Israel the words of this song until they were ended:

The Song of Moses

32 “Give (BE)ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
And hear, O (BF)earth, the words of my mouth.
Let (BG)my [d]teaching drop as the rain,
My speech distill as the dew,
(BH)As raindrops on the tender herb,
And as showers on the grass.
For I proclaim the (BI)name of the Lord:
(BJ)Ascribe greatness to our God.
He is (BK)the Rock, (BL)His work is perfect;
For all His ways are justice,
(BM)A God of truth and (BN)without injustice;
Righteous and upright is He.

“They(BO) have corrupted themselves;
They are not His children,
Because of their blemish:
A (BP)perverse and crooked generation.
Do you thus (BQ)deal[e] with the Lord,
O foolish and unwise people?
Is He not (BR)your Father, who (BS)bought you?
Has He not (BT)made you and established you?

“Remember(BU) the days of old,
Consider the years of many generations.
(BV)Ask your father, and he will show you;
Your elders, and they will tell you:
When the Most High (BW)divided their inheritance to the nations,
When He (BX)separated the sons of Adam,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the [f]children of Israel.
For (BY)the Lord’s portion is His people;
Jacob is the place of His inheritance.

10 “He found him (BZ)in a desert land
And in the wasteland, a howling wilderness;
He encircled him, He instructed him,
He (CA)kept him as the [g]apple of His eye.
11 (CB)As an eagle stirs up its nest,
Hovers over its young,
Spreading out its wings, taking them up,
Carrying them on its wings,
12 So the Lord alone led him,
And there was no foreign god with him.

13 “He(CC) made him ride in the heights of the earth,
That he might eat the produce of the fields;
He made him draw honey from the rock,
And oil from the flinty rock;
14 Curds from the cattle, and milk of the flock,
(CD)With fat of lambs;
And rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats,
With the choicest wheat;
And you drank wine, the (CE)blood of the grapes.

15 “But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked;
(CF)You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he (CG)forsook God who (CH)made him,
And scornfully esteemed the (CI)Rock of his salvation.
16 (CJ)They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods;
With [h]abominations they provoked Him to anger.
17 (CK)They sacrificed to demons, not to God,
To gods they did not know,
To new gods, new arrivals
That your fathers did not fear.
18 (CL)Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful,
And have (CM)forgotten the God who fathered you.

19 “And(CN) when the Lord saw it, He spurned them,
Because of the provocation of His sons and His daughters.
20 And He said: ‘I will hide My face from them,
I will see what their end will be,
For they are a perverse generation,
(CO)Children in whom is no faith.
21 (CP)They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God;
They have moved Me to anger (CQ)by their [i]foolish idols.
But (CR)I will provoke them to jealousy by those who are not a nation;
I will move them to anger by a foolish nation.
22 For (CS)a fire is kindled in My anger,
And shall burn to the [j]lowest [k]hell;
It shall consume the earth with her increase,
And set on fire the foundations of the mountains.

23 ‘I will (CT)heap disasters on them;
(CU)I will spend My arrows on them.
24 They shall be wasted with hunger,
Devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction;
I will also send against them the (CV)teeth of beasts,
With the poison of serpents of the dust.
25 The sword shall destroy outside;
There shall be terror within
For the young man and virgin,
The nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 (CW)I would have said, “I will dash them in pieces,
I will make the memory of them to cease from among men,”
27 Had I not feared the wrath of the enemy,
Lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
Lest they should say, (CX)“Our hand is high;
And it is not the Lord who has done all this.” ’

28 “For they are a nation void of counsel,
Nor is there any understanding in them.
29 (CY)Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this,
That they would consider their (CZ)latter end!
30 How could one chase a thousand,
And two put ten thousand to flight,
Unless their Rock (DA)had sold them,
And the Lord had surrendered them?
31 For their rock is not like our Rock,
(DB)Even our enemies themselves being judges.
32 For (DC)their vine is of the vine of Sodom
And of the fields of Gomorrah;
Their grapes are grapes of gall,
Their clusters are bitter.
33 Their wine is (DD)the poison of serpents,
And the cruel (DE)venom of cobras.

34 Is this not (DF)laid up in store with Me,
Sealed up among My treasures?
35 (DG)Vengeance is Mine, and recompense;
Their foot shall slip in due time;
(DH)For the day of their calamity is at hand,
And the things to come hasten upon them.’

36 “For(DI) the Lord will judge His people
(DJ)And have compassion on His servants,
When He sees that their power is gone,
And (DK)there is no one remaining, bond or free.
37 He will say: (DL)‘Where are their gods,
The rock in which they sought refuge?
38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
And drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise and help you,
And be your refuge.

39 ‘Now see that (DM)I, even I, am He,
And (DN)there is no God besides Me;
(DO)I kill and I make alive;
I wound and I heal;
Nor is there any who can deliver from My hand.
40 For I raise My hand to heaven,
And say, “As I live forever,
41 (DP)If I [l]whet My glittering sword,
And My hand takes hold on judgment,
I will render vengeance to My enemies,
And repay those who hate Me.
42 I will make My arrows drunk with blood,
And My sword shall devour flesh,
With the blood of the slain and the captives,
From the heads of the leaders of the enemy.” ’

43 “Rejoice,(DQ) O Gentiles, with His [m]people;
For He will (DR)avenge the blood of His servants,
And render vengeance to His adversaries;
He (DS)will provide atonement for His land and His people.”

44 So Moses came with [n]Joshua the son of Nun and spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people. 45 Moses finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 and he said to them: (DT)“Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you shall command your (DU)children to be careful to observe—all the words of this law. 47 For it is not a [o]futile thing for you, because it is your (DV)life, and by this word you shall prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess.”

Moses to Die on Mount Nebo

48 Then the Lord spoke to Moses that very same day, saying: 49 (DW)“Go up this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, across from Jericho; view the land of Canaan, which I give to the children of Israel as a possession; 50 and die on the mountain which you ascend, and be [p]gathered to your people, just as (DX)Aaron your brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people; 51 because (DY)you trespassed against Me among the children of Israel at the waters of [q]Meribah Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Zin, because you (DZ)did not hallow Me in the midst of the children of Israel. 52 (EA)Yet you shall see the land before you, though you shall not go there, into the land which I am giving to the children of Israel.”

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 31:14 commission
  2. Deuteronomy 31:16 Die and join your ancestors
  3. Deuteronomy 31:17 consumed
  4. Deuteronomy 32:2 doctrine
  5. Deuteronomy 32:6 repay the
  6. Deuteronomy 32:8 LXX, DSS angels of God; Symmachus, Lat. sons of God
  7. Deuteronomy 32:10 pupil
  8. Deuteronomy 32:16 detestable acts
  9. Deuteronomy 32:21 foolishness, lit. vanities
  10. Deuteronomy 32:22 lowest part of
  11. Deuteronomy 32:22 Or Sheol
  12. Deuteronomy 32:41 sharpen
  13. Deuteronomy 32:43 DSS fragment adds And let all the gods (angels) worship Him; cf. LXX and Heb. 1:6
  14. Deuteronomy 32:44 Heb. Hoshea, Num. 13:8, 16
  15. Deuteronomy 32:47 vain
  16. Deuteronomy 32:50 Join your ancestors
  17. Deuteronomy 32:51 Lit. Contention at Kadesh

Joshua to Succeed Moses

31 Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel: “I am now a hundred and twenty years old(A) and I am no longer able to lead you.(B) The Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’(C) The Lord your God himself will cross(D) over ahead of you.(E) He will destroy these nations(F) before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross(G) over ahead of you, as the Lord said. And the Lord will do to them what he did to Sihon and Og,(H) the kings of the Amorites, whom he destroyed along with their land. The Lord will deliver(I) them to you, and you must do to them all that I have commanded you. Be strong and courageous.(J) Do not be afraid or terrified(K) because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you;(L) he will never leave you(M) nor forsake(N) you.”

Then Moses summoned Joshua and said(O) to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors to give them,(P) and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you;(Q) he will never leave you nor forsake you.(R) Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Public Reading of the Law

So Moses wrote(S) down this law and gave it to the Levitical priests, who carried(T) the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 Then Moses commanded them: “At the end of every seven years, in the year for canceling debts,(U) during the Festival of Tabernacles,(V) 11 when all Israel comes to appear(W) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose,(X) you shall read this law(Y) before them in their hearing. 12 Assemble the people—men, women and children, and the foreigners residing in your towns—so they can listen and learn(Z) to fear(AA) the Lord your God and follow carefully all the words of this law. 13 Their children,(AB) who do not know this law, must hear it and learn to fear the Lord your God as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

Israel’s Rebellion Predicted

14 The Lord said to Moses, “Now the day of your death(AC) is near. Call Joshua(AD) and present yourselves at the tent of meeting, where I will commission him.(AE)” So Moses and Joshua came and presented themselves at the tent of meeting.(AF)

15 Then the Lord appeared at the tent in a pillar of cloud, and the cloud stood over the entrance to the tent.(AG) 16 And the Lord said to Moses: “You are going to rest with your ancestors,(AH) and these people will soon prostitute(AI) themselves to the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake(AJ) me and break the covenant I made with them. 17 And in that day I will become angry(AK) with them and forsake(AL) them; I will hide(AM) my face(AN) from them, and they will be destroyed. Many disasters(AO) and calamities will come on them, and in that day they will ask, ‘Have not these disasters come on us because our God is not with us?’(AP) 18 And I will certainly hide my face in that day because of all their wickedness in turning to other gods.

19 “Now write(AQ) down this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it, so that it may be a witness(AR) for me against them. 20 When I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey, the land I promised on oath to their ancestors,(AS) and when they eat their fill and thrive, they will turn to other gods(AT) and worship them,(AU) rejecting me and breaking my covenant.(AV) 21 And when many disasters and calamities come on them,(AW) this song will testify against them, because it will not be forgotten by their descendants. I know what they are disposed to do,(AX) even before I bring them into the land I promised them on oath.” 22 So Moses wrote(AY) down this song that day and taught it to the Israelites.

23 The Lord gave this command(AZ) to Joshua son of Nun: “Be strong and courageous,(BA) for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you.”

24 After Moses finished writing(BB) in a book the words of this law(BC) from beginning to end, 25 he gave this command to the Levites who carried(BD) the ark of the covenant of the Lord: 26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you.(BE) 27 For I know how rebellious(BF) and stiff-necked(BG) you are. If you have been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! 28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth to testify against them.(BH) 29 For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt(BI) and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster(BJ) will fall on you because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord and arouse his anger by what your hands have made.”

The Song of Moses

30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel:

32 Listen,(BK) you heavens,(BL) and I will speak;
    hear, you earth, the words of my mouth.(BM)
Let my teaching fall like rain(BN)
    and my words descend like dew,(BO)
like showers(BP) on new grass,
    like abundant rain on tender plants.

I will proclaim(BQ) the name of the Lord.(BR)
    Oh, praise the greatness(BS) of our God!
He is the Rock,(BT) his works are perfect,(BU)
    and all his ways are just.
A faithful God(BV) who does no wrong,
    upright(BW) and just is he.(BX)

They are corrupt and not his children;
    to their shame they are a warped and crooked generation.(BY)
Is this the way you repay(BZ) the Lord,
    you foolish(CA) and unwise people?(CB)
Is he not your Father,(CC) your Creator,[a]
    who made you and formed you?(CD)

Remember the days of old;(CE)
    consider the generations long past.(CF)
Ask your father and he will tell you,
    your elders, and they will explain to you.(CG)
When the Most High(CH) gave the nations their inheritance,
    when he divided all mankind,(CI)
he set up boundaries(CJ) for the peoples
    according to the number of the sons of Israel.[b](CK)
For the Lord’s portion(CL) is his people,
    Jacob his allotted inheritance.(CM)

10 In a desert(CN) land he found him,
    in a barren and howling waste.(CO)
He shielded(CP) him and cared for him;
    he guarded him as the apple of his eye,(CQ)
11 like an eagle that stirs up its nest
    and hovers over its young,(CR)
that spreads its wings to catch them
    and carries them aloft.(CS)
12 The Lord alone led(CT) him;(CU)
    no foreign god was with him.(CV)

13 He made him ride on the heights(CW) of the land
    and fed him with the fruit of the fields.
He nourished him with honey from the rock,(CX)
    and with oil(CY) from the flinty crag,
14 with curds and milk from herd and flock
    and with fattened lambs and goats,
with choice rams of Bashan(CZ)
    and the finest kernels of wheat.(DA)
You drank the foaming blood of the grape.(DB)

15 Jeshurun[c](DC) grew fat(DD) and kicked;
    filled with food, they became heavy and sleek.
They abandoned(DE) the God who made them
    and rejected the Rock(DF) their Savior.
16 They made him jealous(DG) with their foreign gods
    and angered(DH) him with their detestable idols.
17 They sacrificed(DI) to false gods,(DJ) which are not God—
    gods they had not known,(DK)
    gods that recently appeared,(DL)
    gods your ancestors did not fear.
18 You deserted the Rock, who fathered you;
    you forgot(DM) the God who gave you birth.

19 The Lord saw this and rejected them(DN)
    because he was angered by his sons and daughters.(DO)
20 “I will hide my face(DP) from them,” he said,
    “and see what their end will be;
for they are a perverse generation,(DQ)
    children who are unfaithful.(DR)
21 They made me jealous(DS) by what is no god
    and angered me with their worthless idols.(DT)
I will make them envious by those who are not a people;
    I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding.(DU)
22 For a fire will be kindled by my wrath,(DV)
    one that burns down to the realm of the dead below.(DW)
It will devour(DX) the earth and its harvests(DY)
    and set afire the foundations of the mountains.(DZ)

23 “I will heap calamities(EA) on them
    and spend my arrows(EB) against them.
24 I will send wasting famine(EC) against them,
    consuming pestilence(ED) and deadly plague;(EE)
I will send against them the fangs of wild beasts,(EF)
    the venom of vipers(EG) that glide in the dust.(EH)
25 In the street the sword will make them childless;
    in their homes terror(EI) will reign.(EJ)
The young men and young women will perish,
    the infants and those with gray hair.(EK)
26 I said I would scatter(EL) them
    and erase their name from human memory,(EM)
27 but I dreaded the taunt of the enemy,
    lest the adversary misunderstand(EN)
and say, ‘Our hand has triumphed;
    the Lord has not done all this.’”(EO)

28 They are a nation without sense,
    there is no discernment(EP) in them.
29 If only they were wise and would understand this(EQ)
    and discern what their end will be!(ER)
30 How could one man chase a thousand,
    or two put ten thousand to flight,(ES)
unless their Rock had sold them,(ET)
    unless the Lord had given them up?(EU)
31 For their rock is not like our Rock,(EV)
    as even our enemies concede.(EW)
32 Their vine comes from the vine of Sodom(EX)
    and from the fields of Gomorrah.
Their grapes are filled with poison,(EY)
    and their clusters with bitterness.(EZ)
33 Their wine is the venom of serpents,
    the deadly poison of cobras.(FA)

34 “Have I not kept this in reserve
    and sealed it in my vaults?(FB)
35 It is mine to avenge;(FC) I will repay.(FD)
    In due time their foot will slip;(FE)
their day of disaster is near
    and their doom rushes upon them.(FF)

36 The Lord will vindicate his people(FG)
    and relent(FH) concerning his servants(FI)
when he sees their strength is gone
    and no one is left, slave(FJ) or free.[d]
37 He will say: “Now where are their gods,
    the rock they took refuge in,(FK)
38 the gods who ate the fat of their sacrifices
    and drank the wine of their drink offerings?(FL)
Let them rise up to help you!
    Let them give you shelter!

39 “See now that I myself am he!(FM)
    There is no god besides me.(FN)
I put to death(FO) and I bring to life,(FP)
    I have wounded and I will heal,(FQ)
    and no one can deliver out of my hand.(FR)
40 I lift my hand(FS) to heaven and solemnly swear:
    As surely as I live forever,(FT)
41 when I sharpen my flashing sword(FU)
    and my hand grasps it in judgment,
I will take vengeance(FV) on my adversaries
    and repay those who hate me.(FW)
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,(FX)
    while my sword devours flesh:(FY)
the blood of the slain and the captives,
    the heads of the enemy leaders.”

43 Rejoice,(FZ) you nations, with his people,[e][f]
    for he will avenge the blood of his servants;(GA)
he will take vengeance on his enemies(GB)
    and make atonement for his land and people.(GC)

44 Moses came with Joshua[g](GD) son of Nun and spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people. 45 When Moses finished reciting all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, “Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day,(GE) so that you may command(GF) your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. 47 They are not just idle words for you—they are your life.(GG) By them you will live long(GH) in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

Moses to Die on Mount Nebo

48 On that same day the Lord told Moses,(GI) 49 “Go up into the Abarim(GJ) Range to Mount Nebo(GK) in Moab, across from Jericho,(GL) and view Canaan,(GM) the land I am giving the Israelites as their own possession. 50 There on the mountain that you have climbed you will die(GN) and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died(GO) on Mount Hor(GP) and was gathered to his people. 51 This is because both of you broke faith with me in the presence of the Israelites at the waters of Meribah Kadesh(GQ) in the Desert of Zin(GR) and because you did not uphold my holiness among the Israelites.(GS) 52 Therefore, you will see the land only from a distance;(GT) you will not enter(GU) the land I am giving to the people of Israel.”

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 32:6 Or Father, who bought you
  2. Deuteronomy 32:8 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls (see also Septuagint) sons of God
  3. Deuteronomy 32:15 Jeshurun means the upright one, that is, Israel.
  4. Deuteronomy 32:36 Or and they are without a ruler or leader
  5. Deuteronomy 32:43 Or Make his people rejoice, you nations
  6. Deuteronomy 32:43 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls (see also Septuagint) people, / and let all the angels worship him, /
  7. Deuteronomy 32:44 Hebrew Hoshea, a variant of Joshua