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The Covenant in Moab

29 [a](A)These are the words of the covenant which Yahweh commanded Moses to cut with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the (B)covenant which He had cut with them at Horeb.

[b]And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “You have seen all that Yahweh did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and all his land; (C)the great trials which your eyes have seen, those great signs and wonders. Yet to this day (D)Yahweh has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear. And I have led you forty years in the wilderness; (E)your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandal has not worn out on your foot. (F)You have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or strong drink, in order that you might know that I am Yahweh your God. (G)Then you came to this place, and Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan came out to meet us for battle, but we struck them down; and we took their land and (H)gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of the Manassites. (I)So you shall keep the words of this covenant to do them, (J)that you may prosper in all that you do.

10 “You stand today, all of you, before Yahweh your God: your heads, your tribes, your elders, and your officers, even all the men of Israel, 11 your little ones, your wives, and the sojourner who is within your camps, from (K)the one who chops your wood to the one who draws your water, 12 that you may enter into the covenant with Yahweh your God and into His oath, which Yahweh your God is cutting with you today, 13 in order that He may establish you today as His people and that (L)He may be your God, just as He spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

14 “Now not with you alone am I (M)cutting this covenant and this oath, 15 (N)but both with those who stand here with us today in the presence of Yahweh our God and with those who are not with us here today— 16 for you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we came through the midst of the nations through which you passed; 17 moreover, you have seen their detestable things and their idols of (O)wood, stone, silver, and gold, which they had with them— 18 (P)lest there be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from Yahweh our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; lest there be among you (Q)a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood. 19 And it will be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will [c]bless himself in his heart, saying, ‘I have peace though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order [d]to sweep away the watered land with the dry.’ 20 Yahweh shall not be willing to pardon him, but rather the anger of Yahweh and (R)His jealousy will [e](S)burn against that man, and every curse which is written in this book will [f]rest on him, and Yahweh will (T)blot out his name from under heaven. 21 Then Yahweh will separate him out for [g]adversity from all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant (U)which are written in this book of the law.

22 “And the generation to come, your sons who rise up after you and (V)the foreigner who comes from a distant land, shall see the plagues of the land and the diseases with which Yahweh has [h]afflicted it, and they will say, 23 ‘All its land is (W)brimstone and salt, (X)a burning waste, [i]unsown and nothing sprouting, and no grass grows in it, like the overthrow of (Y)Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which Yahweh overthrew in His anger and in His wrath.’ 24 And all the nations will say, ‘(Z)Why has Yahweh done thus to this land? Why this great burning anger?’ 25 Then men will say, ‘(AA)Because they forsook the covenant of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, which He cut with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. 26 And they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods whom they have not known and whom He had not apportioned to them. 27 Therefore, the anger of Yahweh was kindled against that land, (AB)to bring upon it every curse which is written in this book; 28 and (AC)Yahweh uprooted them from their land in anger and in fury and in great wrath, and He cast them into another land, as it is this day.’

29 (AD)The secret things belong to Yahweh our God, but (AE)the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may do all the words of this law.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 29:1 Ch 28:69 in Heb
  2. Deuteronomy 29:2 Ch 29:1 in Heb
  3. Deuteronomy 29:19 Or consider himself blessed
  4. Deuteronomy 29:19 To destroy everything
  5. Deuteronomy 29:20 Lit smoke
  6. Deuteronomy 29:20 Lit lie down
  7. Deuteronomy 29:21 Lit evil
  8. Deuteronomy 29:22 Lit made it sick
  9. Deuteronomy 29:23 Lit it is not sown and does not cause to sprout

Remembering the Exodus and Conquest

29 [a]These are the terms of the covenant that the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelis in the land of Moab in addition to the covenant that he made with them in Horeb. [b]Moses called all Israel together and addressed them: “You saw everything that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his servants,[c] and to his whole country. Those great feats that you saw with your own eyes are signs and great wonders. Yet to this day, the Lord hasn’t given you a heart that understands, eyes that perceive, and ears that discern. Though I’ve led you for 40 years in the desert, neither your clothes nor your shoes have worn out. You didn’t have bread to eat or wine or anything intoxicating to drink, so that you would learn[d] that I am the Lord your God. Then you reached this place, where King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan had come out to meet and fight with us, but we defeated them. We captured their land and handed it as an inheritance to the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh. Therefore, keep the terms of this covenant, carrying them out so that you’ll be wise in everything you do.”

Entering into a Covenant Relationship

10 “All of you are standing today in the presence of the Lord your God—the heads of your tribes, your elders, your magistrates, all the men of Israel, 11 along with your children, your wives, even the foreigner in your camp, including the woodchopper and the water drawer— 12 to enter into a covenant with the Lord your God and into the oath that he[e] is about to make with you today, 13 so that he will elevate you to be a people for him. And he will be God to you, just as he promised you and swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 14 Now, I’m not making this covenant and oath with you alone, 15 but with whoever is here with us standing in the presence of the Lord our God today, as well as with those who aren’t here with us today.”

Incurring the Judgment of God

16 “Now, you know how we lived in the land of Egypt and how we traveled through the territory of[f] other nations. 17 You have seen their detestable practices, their idols of wood, stone, silver, and gold that they had with them. 18 Be alert so there is no man, woman, family, or tribe whose heart is turning away from the Lord your God to go and serve the gods of those nations. Be alert so there will be no root among you that produces poisonous and bitter fruit,[g] 19 because when such a person[h] hears the words of this oath, he will bless himself and say:

‘I will have a peaceful life, even though I’m determined to be stubborn.’[i] By doing this he will be sweeping away both watered and parched ground alike.’

20 “The Lord won’t forgive such a person.[j] Instead, the zealous anger of the Lord will blaze against him. All the curses that were written in this book will fall on him. Then the Lord will wipe out his memory[k] from under heaven. 21 The Lord will set him apart from all the tribes of Israel for destruction,[l] according to the curses of the covenant that were written in this Book of the Law.”

A Reminder of Sodom and Gomorrah

22 “Then the generation to come—your descendants after you and the foreigners who come from afar—will see plagues and illnesses infecting the land that the Lord will inflict on it. 23 The whole land will be covered[m] with salt pits and burning sulfur, with nothing planted, nothing sprouting, and producing no vegetation—overthrown like Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, when the Lord overthrew them in his raging fury. 24 All the nations will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do this to this land? What is the meaning of this fierce and great anger?’ 25 Then they will answer themselves,[n]

‘Because they’ve abandoned the covenant of their Lord, the God of their ancestors that he had made with them when he brought them out of Egypt. 26 They followed and worshipped other gods whom they had not known and whom he did not assign to them. 27 For this reason, the anger of the Lord raged against this land, to bring upon it all the curses that were written in this book. 28 The Lord uprooted them from the land in his anger, wrath, and great fury, deporting them to another land, and that’s the way things are today.’

29 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but what has been revealed belongs to us and to our children forever, so that we might observe the words of this Law.”

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 29:1 This v. is 28:69 in MT
  2. Deuteronomy 29:2 This v. is 29:1 in MT, and so throughout the chapter
  3. Deuteronomy 29:2 Lit. his slaves
  4. Deuteronomy 29:6 Or know
  5. Deuteronomy 29:12 Lit. the Lord your God
  6. Deuteronomy 29:16 The Heb. lacks the territory of
  7. Deuteronomy 29:18 Lit. wormwood; i.e. bitter things
  8. Deuteronomy 29:19 Lit. he
  9. Deuteronomy 29:19 The quotation possibly ends here.
  10. Deuteronomy 29:20 Lit. him
  11. Deuteronomy 29:20 Lit. name
  12. Deuteronomy 29:21 Lit. evil
  13. Deuteronomy 29:23 The Heb. lacks will be covered
  14. Deuteronomy 29:25 The Heb. lacks themselves