“See, I have taught you statutes and judgments (A)just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you are to do these things in the land where you are entering to take possession of it. So keep and do them, (B)for that is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For (C)what great nation is there that has a god (D)so near to it as is the Lord our God (E)whenever we call on Him? Or what great nation is there that has (F)statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole Law which I am setting before you today?

“Only (G)be careful for yourself and watch over your soul diligently, so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen and they do not depart from your heart (H)all the days of your life; but (I)make them known to your sons and your grandsons. 10 Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, when the Lord said to me, ‘Assemble the people to Me, that I may have them hear My words (J)so that they may learn to [a]fear Me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may (K)teach their children.’ 11 You came forward and stood at the foot of the mountain, (L)and the mountain was burning with fire to the heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud, and thick gloom. 12 Then the Lord spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but you saw no form—there was only a voice. 13 So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, that is, (M)the Ten [b]Commandments; and (N)He wrote them on two tablets of stone. 14 The Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, so that you would perform them in the land where you are going over to take possession of it.

15 “So (O)be very careful [c]yourselves, since you did not see any (P)form on the day the Lord spoke to you at Horeb from the midst of the fire, 16 so that you do not (Q)act corruptly and (R)make a carved image for yourselves in the form of any figure, a representation of male or female, 17 a representation of any animal that is on the earth, a representation of (S)any winged bird that flies in the sky, 18 a representation of anything that crawls on the ground, or a representation of any fish that is in the water below the earth. 19 And be careful not to raise your eyes to heaven and look at the sun, the moon, and the stars, (T)all the heavenly [d]lights, (U)and allow yourself to be drawn away and worship them and serve them, things which the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. 20 But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of (V)the iron furnace, from Egypt, to (W)be a people of His own possession, as today.

21 (X)Now the Lord was angry with me on your account, and He swore that I would not cross the Jordan, and that I would not enter the good land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance. 22 For (Y)I am going to die in this land; I am not crossing the Jordan, but you are going to cross, and you will take possession of this (Z)good land. 23 So be careful [e]yourselves, (AA)that you do not forget the covenant of the Lord your God which He made with you, and (AB)make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything against which the Lord your God has commanded you. 24 For the Lord your God is a (AC)consuming fire, a (AD)jealous God.

25 “When you father children and have [f]grandchildren, and you grow old in the land, and you (AE)act corruptly, and (AF)make [g]an idol in the form of anything, and (AG)do what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God to provoke Him to anger, 26 I (AH)call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today, that you will (AI)certainly perish quickly from the land where you are going over the Jordan to take possession of it. You will not [h]live long on it, but will be utterly destroyed. 27 The Lord will (AJ)scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord drives you. 28 (AK)There you will serve gods, the work of human hands, (AL)wood and stone, (AM)which neither see nor hear, nor eat nor smell anything. 29 (AN)But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him (AO)with all your heart and all your soul. 30 When you (AP)are in distress and all these things happen to you, (AQ)in the latter days (AR)you will return to the Lord your God and listen to His voice. 31 For the Lord your God is a (AS)compassionate God; (AT)He will not abandon you nor (AU)destroy you, nor (AV)forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them.

32 “Indeed, (AW)ask now about the earlier days that were [i]before your time, since the (AX)day that God created [j]mankind on the earth, and inquire (AY)from one end of the heavens to the other. (AZ)Has anything been done like this great thing, or has anything been heard like it? 33 (BA)Has any people heard the voice of God speaking from the midst of the fire, as you have heard it, and survived? 34 (BB)Or has a god ventured to go to take for himself a nation from within another nation (BC)by trials, by signs and wonders, by war, (BD)by a mighty hand, by an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, [k]just as the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 You were shown these things so that you might know that the Lord, He is God; (BE)there is no other besides Him. 36 (BF)Out of the heavens He let you hear His voice (BG)to discipline you; and on earth He let you see His great fire, and you heard His words from the midst of the fire. 37 (BH)Because He loved your fathers, He chose [l]their descendants after them. And He [m](BI)personally brought you from Egypt by His great power, 38 driving out from before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in and (BJ)to give you their land as an inheritance, as it is today. 39 Therefore know today, and take it to your heart, that (BK)the Lord, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other. 40 (BL)So you shall keep His statutes and His commandments which I am [n]giving you today, so that (BM)it may go well for you and for your children after you, and (BN)that you may [o]live long on the land which the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 4:10 Or revere
  2. Deuteronomy 4:13 Lit Words
  3. Deuteronomy 4:15 Or for your own lives
  4. Deuteronomy 4:19 Lit host
  5. Deuteronomy 4:23 Or for yourselves
  6. Deuteronomy 4:25 Lit children’s children
  7. Deuteronomy 4:25 Or a carved image
  8. Deuteronomy 4:26 Lit prolong your days
  9. Deuteronomy 4:32 Lit before you
  10. Deuteronomy 4:32 Or Adam
  11. Deuteronomy 4:34 Lit according to all that
  12. Deuteronomy 4:37 Lit his seed
  13. Deuteronomy 4:37 Lit with His presence
  14. Deuteronomy 4:40 Lit commanding
  15. Deuteronomy 4:40 Lit prolong your days

See, I have taught(A) you decrees and laws(B) as the Lord my God commanded(C) me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering(D) to take possession of it. Observe(E) them carefully, for this will show your wisdom(F) and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.”(G) What other nation is so great(H) as to have their gods near(I) them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him? And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws(J) as this body of laws I am setting before you today?

Only be careful,(K) and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach(L) them to your children(M) and to their children after them. 10 Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb,(N) when he said to me, “Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn(O) to revere(P) me as long as they live in the land(Q) and may teach(R) them to their children.” 11 You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain(S) while it blazed with fire(T) to the very heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness.(U) 12 Then the Lord spoke(V) to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form;(W) there was only a voice.(X) 13 He declared to you his covenant,(Y) the Ten Commandments,(Z) which he commanded you to follow and then wrote them on two stone tablets. 14 And the Lord directed me at that time to teach you the decrees and laws(AA) you are to follow in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess.

Idolatry Forbidden

15 You saw no form(AB) of any kind the day the Lord spoke to you at Horeb(AC) out of the fire. Therefore watch yourselves very carefully,(AD) 16 so that you do not become corrupt(AE) and make for yourselves an idol,(AF) an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, 17 or like any animal on earth or any bird that flies in the air,(AG) 18 or like any creature that moves along the ground or any fish in the waters below. 19 And when you look up to the sky and see the sun,(AH) the moon and the stars(AI)—all the heavenly array(AJ)—do not be enticed(AK) into bowing down to them and worshiping(AL) things the Lord your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven. 20 But as for you, the Lord took you and brought you out of the iron-smelting furnace,(AM) out of Egypt,(AN) to be the people of his inheritance,(AO) as you now are.

21 The Lord was angry with me(AP) because of you, and he solemnly swore that I would not cross the Jordan and enter the good land the Lord your God is giving you as your inheritance. 22 I will die in this land;(AQ) I will not cross the Jordan; but you are about to cross over and take possession of that good land.(AR) 23 Be careful not to forget the covenant(AS) of the Lord your God that he made with you; do not make for yourselves an idol(AT) in the form of anything the Lord your God has forbidden. 24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire,(AU) a jealous God.(AV)

25 After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time—if you then become corrupt(AW) and make any kind of idol,(AX) doing evil(AY) in the eyes of the Lord your God and arousing his anger, 26 I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses(AZ) against you(BA) this day that you will quickly perish(BB) from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live there long but will certainly be destroyed. 27 The Lord will scatter(BC) you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive(BD) among the nations to which the Lord will drive you. 28 There you will worship man-made gods(BE) of wood and stone,(BF) which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.(BG) 29 But if from there you seek(BH) the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart(BI) and with all your soul.(BJ) 30 When you are in distress(BK) and all these things have happened to you, then in later days(BL) you will return(BM) to the Lord your God and obey him. 31 For the Lord your God is a merciful(BN) God; he will not abandon(BO) or destroy(BP) you or forget(BQ) the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath.

The Lord Is God

32 Ask(BR) now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created human beings on the earth;(BS) ask from one end of the heavens to the other.(BT) Has anything so great(BU) as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of? 33 Has any other people heard the voice of God[a] speaking out of fire, as you have, and lived?(BV) 34 Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation,(BW) by testings,(BX) by signs(BY) and wonders,(BZ) by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm,(CA) or by great and awesome deeds,(CB) like all the things the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?

35 You were shown these things so that you might know that the Lord is God; besides him there is no other.(CC) 36 From heaven he made you hear his voice(CD) to discipline(CE) you. On earth he showed you his great fire, and you heard his words from out of the fire. 37 Because he loved(CF) your ancestors and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength,(CG) 38 to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance,(CH) as it is today.

39 Acknowledge(CI) and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.(CJ) 40 Keep(CK) his decrees and commands,(CL) which I am giving you today, so that it may go well(CM) with you and your children after you and that you may live long(CN) in the land the Lord your God gives you for all time.

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 4:33 Or of a god