Deuteronomy 32
English Standard Version
32 “Give ear, (A)O heavens, and I will speak,
and let (B)the earth hear the words of my mouth.
2 May (C)my teaching drop as the rain,
my speech distill as the dew,
like gentle rain upon the tender grass,
and (D)like showers upon the herb.
3 For I will proclaim the name of the Lord;
ascribe (E)greatness to our God!
4 (F)“The Rock, (G)his work is perfect,
for (H)all his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness and (I)without iniquity,
just and upright is he.
5 They have dealt corruptly with him;
they are no longer his children (J)because they are blemished;
they are (K)a crooked and twisted generation.
6 Do you thus repay the Lord,
you foolish and senseless people?
Is not he (L)your father, who (M)created you,
who (N)made you and established you?
7 (O)Remember the days of old;
consider the years of many generations;
(P)ask your father, and he will show you,
your elders, and they will tell you.
8 When the Most High (Q)gave to the nations their inheritance,
when he (R)divided mankind,
he fixed the borders[a] of the peoples
according to the number of the sons of God.[b]
9 But the Lord's portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted heritage.
10 “He found him (S)in a desert land,
and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
he (T)encircled him, he cared for him,
he (U)kept him as the apple of his eye.
11 (V)Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
bearing them on its pinions,
12 (W)the Lord alone guided him,
(X)no foreign god was with him.
13 (Y)He made him ride on the high places of the land,
and he ate the produce of the field,
and he suckled him with (Z)honey out of the rock,
and (AA)oil out of (AB)the flinty rock.
14 Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
with fat[c] of lambs,
rams of Bashan and goats,
with the very finest[d] of the wheat—
and you drank foaming wine made from (AC)the blood of the grape.
15 “But (AD)Jeshurun grew fat, and (AE)kicked;
(AF)you grew fat, stout, and sleek;
(AG)then he forsook God (AH)who made him
and scoffed at (AI)the Rock of his salvation.
16 (AJ)They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
with abominations they provoked him to anger.
17 (AK)They sacrificed to demons that were no gods,
to gods they had never known,
to (AL)new gods that had come recently,
whom your fathers had never dreaded.
18 You were unmindful of (AM)the Rock that bore[e] you,
and you (AN)forgot the God who gave you birth.
19 (AO)“The Lord saw it and spurned them,
because of the provocation of (AP)his sons and his daughters.
20 And he said, (AQ)‘I will hide my face from them;
I will see what their end will be,
for they are a perverse generation,
children in whom is no faithfulness.
21 (AR)They have made me jealous with what is no god;
they have provoked me to anger (AS)with their idols.
So (AT)I will make them jealous with those who are no people;
I will provoke them to anger with (AU)a foolish nation.
22 For (AV)a fire is kindled by my anger,
and it burns to (AW)the depths of Sheol,
devours the earth and its increase,
and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23 “‘And I will heap disasters upon them;
(AX)I will spend my arrows on them;
24 they shall be wasted with hunger,
and devoured by plague
and poisonous pestilence;
I will send (AY)the teeth of beasts against them,
with the venom of (AZ)things that crawl in the dust.
25 (BA)Outdoors the sword shall bereave,
and indoors terror,
for young man and woman alike,
the nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 (BB)I would have said, “I will cut them to pieces;
(BC)I will wipe them from human memory,”
27 had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
lest they should say, (BD)“Our hand is triumphant,
it was not the Lord who did all this.”’
28 “For they are a nation void of counsel,
and there is (BE)no understanding in them.
29 (BF)If they were wise, they would understand this;
they would (BG)discern their latter end!
30 How could (BH)one have chased a thousand,
and two have put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock (BI)had sold them,
and the Lord had given them up?
31 For (BJ)their rock is not as our Rock;
(BK)our enemies are by themselves.
32 For their vine (BL)comes from the vine of Sodom
and from the fields of Gomorrah;
their grapes are grapes of (BM)poison;
their clusters are bitter;
33 their wine is the poison of (BN)serpents
and the cruel venom of asps.
34 “‘Is not this laid up in store with me,
(BO)sealed up in my treasuries?
35 (BP)Vengeance is mine, and recompense,[f]
(BQ)for the time when their foot shall slip;
for (BR)the day of their calamity is at hand,
and their doom comes swiftly.’
36 For (BS)the Lord will vindicate[g] his people
(BT)and have compassion on his servants,
when he sees that their power is gone
and there is none remaining, (BU)bond or free.
37 Then he will say, (BV)‘Where are their gods,
(BW)the rock in which they took refuge,
38 who ate the fat of their sacrifices
and drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise up and help you;
let them be your protection!
39 “‘See now that (BX)I, even I, am he,
and there is no god beside me;
(BY)I kill and I make alive;
(BZ)I wound and I heal;
and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
40 For (CA)I lift up my hand to heaven
and swear, As I live forever,
41 if I (CB)sharpen my flashing sword[h]
and my hand takes hold on judgment,
I will take vengeance on my adversaries
and will repay those who hate me.
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
and (CC)my sword shall devour flesh—
with the blood of the slain and the captives,
from the (CD)long-haired heads of the enemy.’
43 (CE)“Rejoice with him, O heavens;[i]
bow down to him, all gods,[j]
for he (CF)avenges the blood of his children[k]
and takes vengeance on his adversaries.
He repays those who hate him[l]
and cleanses[m] his people's land.”[n]
44 Moses came and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and (CG)Joshua[o] the son of Nun. 45 And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, (CH)“Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, (CI)that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. 47 For it is no empty word for you, (CJ)but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”
Moses' Death Foretold
48 That very day the Lord spoke to Moses, 49 “Go up (CK)this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, opposite Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel for a possession. 50 And die on the mountain which you go up, and be gathered to your people, as (CL)Aaron your brother died in Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, 51 (CM)because you broke faith with me in the midst of the people of Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin, and because you did not treat me as holy in the midst of the people of Israel. 52 For (CN)you shall see the land before you, but you shall not go there, into the land that I am giving to the people of Israel.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 32:8 Or territories
- Deuteronomy 32:8 Compare Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text sons of Israel
- Deuteronomy 32:14 That is, with the best
- Deuteronomy 32:14 Hebrew with the kidney fat
- Deuteronomy 32:18 Or fathered
- Deuteronomy 32:35 Septuagint and I will repay
- Deuteronomy 32:36 Septuagint judge
- Deuteronomy 32:41 Hebrew the lightning of my sword
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text Rejoice his people, O nations
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Masoretic Text lacks bow down to him, all gods
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text servants
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text lacks He repays those who hate him
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Or atones for
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew his land his people
- Deuteronomy 32:44 Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew Hoshea
Deuteronomy 32
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Song of Moses
32 Pay attention, heavens, and I will speak;
listen, earth, to the words of my mouth.(A)
2 Let my teaching fall like rain
and my word settle like dew,
like gentle rain on new grass
and showers on tender plants.
3 For I will proclaim Yahweh’s name.
Declare the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock—His work is perfect;
all His ways are entirely just.
A faithful God, without prejudice,
He is righteous and true.
5 His people have acted corruptly toward Him;
this is their defect[a]—they are not His children
but a devious and crooked generation.
6 Is this how you repay the Lord,
you foolish and senseless people?
Isn’t He your Father and Creator?
Didn’t He make you and sustain you?
7 Remember the days of old;
consider the years long past.
Ask your father, and he will tell you,
your elders, and they will teach you.
8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance[b]
and divided the human race,(B)
He set the boundaries of the peoples
according to the number of the people of Israel.[c]
9 But the Lord’s portion is His people,
Jacob, His own inheritance.
10 He found him in a desolate land,
in a barren, howling wilderness;
He surrounded him, cared for him,
and protected him as the pupil of His eye.(C)
11 He watches over[d] His nest like an eagle
and hovers over His young;
He spreads His wings, catches him,
and lifts him up on His pinions.(D)
12 The Lord alone led him,
with no help from a foreign god.[e]
13 He made him ride on the heights of the land(E)
and eat the produce of the field.
He nourished him with honey from the rock
and oil from flint-like rock,
14 cream from the herd and milk from the flock,
with the fat of lambs,
rams from Bashan, and goats,
with the choicest grains of wheat;
you drank wine from the finest grapes.[f]
15 Then[g] Jeshurun[h](F) became fat and rebelled—
you became fat, bloated, and gorged.
He abandoned the God who made him
and scorned the Rock of his salvation.
16 They provoked His jealousy with foreign gods;
they enraged Him with detestable practices.(G)
17 They sacrificed to demons, not God,
to gods they had not known,
new gods that had just arrived,
which your fathers did not fear.(H)
18 You ignored the Rock who gave you birth;
you forgot the God who gave birth to you.
19 When the Lord saw this, He despised them,
provoked to anger by His sons and daughters.
20 He said: “I will hide My face from them;
I will see what will become of them,
for they are a perverse generation—
unfaithful children.
21 They have provoked My jealousy
with their so-called gods;[i]
they have enraged Me with their worthless idols.
So I will provoke their jealousy
with an inferior people;[j]
I will enrage them with a foolish nation.(I)
22 For fire has been kindled because of My anger
and burns to the depths of Sheol;
it devours the land and its produce,
and scorches the foundations of the mountains.
23 “I will pile disasters on them;
I will use up My arrows against them.
24 They will be weak from hunger,
ravaged by pestilence and bitter plague;
I will unleash on them wild beasts with fangs,
as well as venomous snakes that slither in the dust.
25 Outside, the sword will take their children,
and inside, there will be terror;
the young man and the young woman will be killed,
the infant and the gray-haired man.(J)
26 “I would have said: I will cut them to pieces[k]
and blot out the memory of them from mankind,
27 if I had not feared insult from the enemy,
or feared that these foes might misunderstand
and say: ‘Our own hand has prevailed;
it wasn’t the Lord who did all this.’”
28 Israel is a nation lacking sense
with no understanding at all.[l]
29 If only they were wise, they would figure it out;
they would understand their fate.
30 How could one man pursue a thousand,
or two put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock had sold them,
unless the Lord had given them up?
31 But their “rock” is not like our Rock;
even our enemies concede.
32 For their vine is from the vine of Sodom
and from the fields of Gomorrah.
Their grapes are poisonous;
their clusters are bitter.
33 Their wine is serpents’ venom,
the deadly poison of cobras.
34 “Is it not stored up with Me,
sealed up in My vaults?
35 Vengeance[m] belongs to Me; I will repay.[n](K)
In time their foot will slip,
for their day of disaster is near,
and their doom is coming quickly.”
36 The Lord will indeed vindicate His people
and have compassion on His servants(L)
when He sees that their strength is gone
and no one is left—slave or free.
37 He will say: “Where are their gods,
the ‘rock’ they found refuge in?
38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices
and drank the wine of their drink offerings?
Let them rise up and help you;
let it[o] be a shelter for you.
39 See now that I alone am He;
there is no God but Me.(M)
I bring death and I give life;
I wound and I heal.
No one can rescue anyone from My hand.(N)
40 I raise My hand to heaven and declare:
As surely as I live forever,
41 when I sharpen My flashing sword,
and My hand takes hold of judgment,
I will take vengeance on My adversaries
and repay those who hate Me.
42 I will make My arrows drunk with blood
while My sword devours flesh—
the blood of the slain and the captives,
the heads of the enemy leaders.”[p]
43 Rejoice, you nations, concerning His people,[q](O)
for He will avenge the blood of His servants.[r]
He will take vengeance on His adversaries;[s](P)
He will purify His land and His people.[t]
44 Moses came with Joshua[u] son of Nun and recited all the words of this song in the presence of the people. 45 After Moses finished reciting all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, “Take to heart all these words I am giving as a warning to you today, so that you may command your children to carefully follow all the words of this law. 47 For they are not meaningless words to you but they are your life, and by them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”
Moses’ Impending Death
48 On that same day the Lord spoke to Moses,(Q) 49 “Go up Mount Nebo in the Abarim range in the land of Moab, across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan I am giving the Israelites as a possession. 50 Then you will die on the mountain that you go up, and you will be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people.(R) 51 For both of you broke faith with Me among the Israelites at the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin by failing to treat Me as holy in their presence. 52 Although from a distance you will view the land that I am giving the Israelites, you will not go there.”(S)
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 32:5 Or Him; through their fault; Hb obscure
- Deuteronomy 32:8 Or Most High divided the nations
- Deuteronomy 32:8 One DSS reads number of the sons of God; LXX reads number of the angels of God
- Deuteronomy 32:11 Or He stirs up
- Deuteronomy 32:12 Lit him, and no foreign god with Him
- Deuteronomy 32:14 Lit the blood of grapes
- Deuteronomy 32:15 DSS, Sam, LXX add Jacob ate his fill;
- Deuteronomy 32:15 = Upright One, referring to Israel
- Deuteronomy 32:21 Lit with no gods
- Deuteronomy 32:21 Lit with no people
- Deuteronomy 32:26 LXX reads will scatter them
- Deuteronomy 32:28 Lit understanding in them
- Deuteronomy 32:35 Sam, LXX read On a day of vengeance
- Deuteronomy 32:35 LXX, Tg, Vg read Me; and recompense I will recompense
- Deuteronomy 32:38 Sam, LXX, Tg, Vg read them
- Deuteronomy 32:42 Or the long-haired heads of the enemy
- Deuteronomy 32:43 LXX reads Rejoice, you heavens, along with Him, and let all the sons of God worship Him; rejoice, you nations, with His people, and let all the angels of God strengthen themselves in Him; DSS read Rejoice, you heavens, along with Him, and let all the angels worship Him; Heb 1:6
- Deuteronomy 32:43 DSS, LXX read sons
- Deuteronomy 32:43 DSS, LXX add and He will recompense those who hate Him; v. 41
- Deuteronomy 32:43 Syr, Tg; DSS, Sam, LXX, Vg read His people’s land
- Deuteronomy 32:44 LXX, Syr, Vg; MT reads Hoshea; Nm 13:8,16
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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