Rewards of Obedience

11 “You shall therefore (A)love the Lord your God, and always (B)keep His directive, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments. Know this day (C)that I am not speaking with your sons who have not known and who have not seen the [a]discipline of the Lord your God—His greatness, His mighty hand, His outstretched arm, and (D)His signs and His works which He did in the midst of Egypt to Pharaoh the king of Egypt and to all his land; and what He did to Egypt’s army, to its horses and its chariots, (E)when He made the water of the [b]Red Sea [c]engulf them while they were pursuing you, and the Lord [d]completely eliminated them; and what He did to you in the wilderness, until you came to this place; and (F)what He did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben, when the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, their tents, and (G)every living thing that [e]followed them, among all Israel— but your own eyes have seen all the great work of the Lord which He did.

“You shall therefore keep every commandment which I am commanding you today, (H)so that you may be strong and go in and take possession of the land into which you are about to cross to possess it; and (I)so that you may prolong your days on the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give to them and to their [f]descendants, (J)a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 For the land, into which you are entering to possess it, is not like the land of Egypt from which you came, where you used to sow your seed and water it [g]by your foot like a vegetable garden. 11 But (K)the land into which you are about to cross to possess it, a land of hills and valleys, drinks water from the rain of heaven, 12 a land for which the Lord your God cares; (L)the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it, from the [h]beginning even to the end of the year.

13 “And it shall come about, (M)if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, (N)to love the Lord your God and to serve Him (O)with all your heart and all your soul, 14 that [i](P)He will provide rain for your land in its season, the [j](Q)early and [k]late rain, so that you may gather your grain, your new wine, and your oil. 15 [l](R)He will also provide grass in your field for your cattle, and (S)you will eat and be satisfied. 16 [m](T)Beware that your hearts are not easily deceived, and that you do not turn away and serve other gods, and worship them. 17 Otherwise, (U)the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and He will (V)shut up the sky (W)so that there will be no rain, and the ground will not yield its produce; then (X)you will quickly perish from the good land which the Lord is giving you.

18 (Y)You shall therefore take these words of mine to [n]heart and to soul; and you shall tie them as a sign on your [o]hand, and they shall be as [p]frontlets [q]on your forehead. 19 (Z)You shall also teach them to your sons, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up. 20 (AA)And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 21 so that (AB)your days and the days of your sons may be increased on the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as [r](AC)long as the heavens are above the earth. 22 For if you are (AD)careful to keep all of this commandment which I am commanding you to do, (AE)to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and (AF)cling to Him, 23 then the Lord will [s](AG)dispossess all these nations from you, and you will [t](AH)dispossess nations greater and mightier than you. 24 (AI)Every place on which the sole of your foot steps shall be yours; (AJ)your border will be from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the river, the river Euphrates, as far as [u]the western sea. 25 (AK)No one will be able to stand against you; the Lord your God will [v]instill the dread of you and the fear of you in all the land on which you set foot, just as He has spoken to you.

26 (AL)See, I am placing before you today a blessing and a curse: 27 the (AM)blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am commanding you today; 28 and the (AN)curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today, [w]by following other gods which you have not known.

29 “And it shall come about, when the Lord your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it, (AO)that you shall place the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal. 30 Are they not across the Jordan, west of the road toward the sunset, in the land of the Canaanites who live in the Arabah, opposite (AP)Gilgal, beside (AQ)the [x]oaks of Moreh? 31 For you are about to cross the Jordan to go in to take possession of the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and (AR)you shall possess it and live in it, 32 and you shall be careful to do all the statutes and the judgments which I am placing before you today.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 11:2 Or instruction
  2. Deuteronomy 11:4 Lit Sea of Reeds
  3. Deuteronomy 11:4 Lit flow over their faces
  4. Deuteronomy 11:4 Lit to this day
  5. Deuteronomy 11:6 Lit was at their feet
  6. Deuteronomy 11:9 Lit seed
  7. Deuteronomy 11:10 I.e., use of foot to facilitate irrigation
  8. Deuteronomy 11:12 Lit beginning of the year
  9. Deuteronomy 11:14 As in some ancient versions; MT I
  10. Deuteronomy 11:14 I.e., autumn
  11. Deuteronomy 11:14 I.e., spring
  12. Deuteronomy 11:15 As in some ancient versions; MT I
  13. Deuteronomy 11:16 Lit Watch yourselves
  14. Deuteronomy 11:18 Lit your heart
  15. Deuteronomy 11:18 Or forearm
  16. Deuteronomy 11:18 Or phylacteries
  17. Deuteronomy 11:18 Lit between your eyes
  18. Deuteronomy 11:21 Lit the days of the heavens
  19. Deuteronomy 11:23 Or drive out
  20. Deuteronomy 11:23 Or drive out
  21. Deuteronomy 11:24 I.e., the Mediterranean
  22. Deuteronomy 11:25 Lit give...over all
  23. Deuteronomy 11:28 Lit to follow
  24. Deuteronomy 11:30 Or terebinths

11 Therefore thou shalt love Jehovah thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his ordinances, and his commandments, alway. And know ye this day: for I speak not with your children that have not known, and that have not seen the [a]chastisement of Jehovah your God, his greatness, his mighty hand, and his outstretched arm, and his signs, and his works, which he did in the midst of Egypt unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt, and unto all his land; and what he did unto the army of Egypt, unto their horses, and to their chariots; how he made the water of the Red Sea to overflow them as they pursued after you, and how Jehovah hath destroyed them unto this day; and what he did unto you in the wilderness, until ye came unto this place; and what he did unto Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben; how the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and their tents, and every living thing that followed them, in the midst of all Israel: but your eyes have seen all the great work of Jehovah which he did.

Therefore shall ye keep all the commandment which I command thee this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the land, whither ye go over to possess it; and that ye may prolong your days in the land, which Jehovah sware unto your fathers to give unto them and to their seed, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 For the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs; 11 but the land, whither ye go over to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven, 12 a land which Jehovah thy God [b]careth for: the eyes of Jehovah thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.

13 And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love Jehovah your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14 that I will give the rain of your land in its season, the former rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy grain, and thy new wine, and thine oil. 15 And I will give grass in thy fields for thy cattle, and thou shalt eat and be full. 16 Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; 17 and the anger of Jehovah be kindled against you, and he shut up the heavens, so that there shall be no rain, and the land shall not yield its fruit; and ye perish quickly from off the good land which Jehovah giveth you.

18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul; and ye shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. 19 And ye shall teach them your children, talking of them, when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 20 And thou shalt write them upon the door-posts of thy house, and upon thy gates; 21 that your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which Jehovah sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of the heavens above the earth. 22 For if ye shall diligently keep all this commandment which I command you, to do it, to love Jehovah your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him; 23 then will Jehovah drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourselves. 24 Every place whereon the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours: from the wilderness, and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the [c]hinder sea shall be your border. 25 There shall no man be able to stand before you: Jehovah your God shall lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land that ye shall tread upon, as he hath spoken unto you.

26 Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse: 27 the blessing, if ye shall hearken unto the commandments of Jehovah your God, which I command you this day; 28 and the curse, if ye shall not hearken unto the commandments of Jehovah your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known. 29 And it shall come to pass, when Jehovah thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt set the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal. 30 Are they not beyond the Jordan, behind the way of the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites that dwell in the Arabah, over against Gilgal, beside the [d]oaks of Moreh? 31 For ye are to pass over the Jordan to go in to possess the land which Jehovah your God giveth you, and ye shall possess it, and dwell therein. 32 And ye shall observe to do all the statutes and the ordinances which I set before you this day.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 11:2 Or, instruction
  2. Deuteronomy 11:12 Hebrew seeketh after.
  3. Deuteronomy 11:24 That is, western.
  4. Deuteronomy 11:30 Or, terebinths