Deuteronomy 1-17

Names of God Bible

Moses Speaks to the People 40 Years after Leaving Egypt

1 This is the speech Moses gave in the desert east of the Jordan River, on the plains, near Suph, between Paran and Tophel, and near Laban, Hazeroth, and Di Zahab. He spoke to all the Israelites. ² (It takes 11 days to go from Mount Horeb to Kadesh Barnea by way of Mount Seir.)

³ On the first day of the eleventh month in the fortieth year after they had left Egypt, Moses told the Israelites everything Yahweh had commanded him to tell them. ⁴ This was after he had defeated King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, and King Og of Bashan, who ruled in Ashtaroth and^[a] in Edrei. ⁵ The Israelites were east of the Jordan River in Moab when Moses began to review God’s teachings.

Moses Reminds Israel of the Events at Mount Horeb

This is what he said:

⁶ At Mount Horeb Yahweh our Elohim said to us, “You have stayed at this mountain long enough. ⁷ Break camp, and get ready! Go to the mountain region of the Amorites, and go to everyone living on the plains, in the mountains, in the foothills, in the Negev, on the whole Mediterranean coast (the land of the Canaanites), and into Lebanon as far as the Euphrates River. ⁸ I’m giving you this land. Enter, and take possession of the land Yahweh swore to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to you, their descendants.”

⁹ At that time I said to you, “I’m not able to take care of you by myself. ¹⁰ Yahweh your Elohim has made your population increase so that you are now as numerous as the stars in the sky. ¹¹ May Yahweh Elohim of your ancestors make you a thousand times more numerous, and may he bless you as he has promised. ¹² How can I take care of your problems, your troubles, and your disagreements all by myself? ¹³ From each of your tribes, choose some men who are wise, intelligent, and experienced, and I’ll appoint them to be your leaders.”

¹⁴ You agreed that this was a good idea.

¹⁵ So I took the heads of your tribes who were wise and experienced men and made them officers for each of your tribes. I put them in charge of groups of 1,000, or 100, or 50, or 10 people. ¹⁶ Also at that time I gave these instructions to your judges: “Hear the cases that your people bring. Judge each case fairly, no matter whether it is a dispute between two Israelites or a dispute between an Israelite and a non-Israelite. ¹⁷ Be impartial in your decisions. Listen to the least important people the same way you listen to the most important people. Never be afraid of anyone, since your decisions come from Elohim. You may bring me any case that’s too hard for you, and I will hear it.” ¹⁸ So I told you how to handle these situations.

Moses Reminds Israel of the Events at Kadesh Barnea

¹⁹ So we left Mount Horeb, as Yahweh our Elohim had commanded. We traveled through all that vast and dangerous desert you saw on the way to the mountain region of the Amorites. At last we came to Kadesh Barnea. ²⁰ Then I said to you, “We have come to the mountain region of the Amorites, which Yahweh our Elohim is giving us. ²¹ Yahweh your Elohim is giving you this land. Go ahead! Take possession of it, as Yahweh Elohim of your ancestors told you. Don’t be afraid or terrified.”

²² All of you came to me and said, “Let’s send men ahead of us to gather information about the land for us. Have them report to us about the route we should take and the cities we’ll come to.”

²³ It seemed like a good idea to me. So I chose 12 of your men, one from each tribe. ²⁴ They left and went into the mountains. When they came to the Eshcol Valley, they explored it. ²⁵ They took some of the region’s fruit with them and brought it back to us. They reported, “The land that Yahweh our Elohim is giving us is good.”

²⁶ But you rebelled against the command of Yahweh your Elohim and refused to go. ²⁷ You complained in your tents and said, “Yahweh hates us! That’s why he brought us out of Egypt. He wanted to hand us over to the Amorites so that they could destroy us! ²⁸ Where are we going anyway? Our own men have discouraged us by saying, ‘The people there are taller and stronger than we are. The cities are big with sky-high walls! We even saw the people of Anak there.’”

²⁹ Then I said to you, “Don’t tremble. Don’t be afraid of them. ³⁰ Yahweh your Elohim, who is going ahead of you, will fight for you as you saw him fight for you in Egypt ³¹ and in the desert.” There you saw how Yahweh your Elohim carried you, as parents carry their children. He carried you wherever you went until you came to this place.

³² In spite of this, you didn’t trust Yahweh your Elohim, ³³ who went ahead of you to find places for you to camp. He appeared in a column of fire at night and in a column of smoke during the day to show you which route to take.

³⁴ When Yahweh heard what you said, he was angry and took this oath: ³⁵ “Not one of these evil people will ever see the good land that I swore to give to your ancestors, ³⁶ except Caleb, son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give the land that he set his feet on to him and his descendants, because he wholeheartedly followed Yahweh.”

³⁷ Yahweh became angry with me because of you. He said, “You won’t go there either. ³⁸ But your assistant Joshua, son of Nun, will go there. Encourage him, because he will help Israel take possession of the land. ³⁹ Although you thought the little children would be captured in war, your children, who are still too young to know the difference between good and evil, will enter that land. I will give it to them, and they will take possession of it. ⁴⁰ Turn around, go back into the desert, and follow the road that goes to the Red Sea.”

⁴¹ You responded, “We have sinned against Yahweh. We’ll go and fight, as Yahweh our Elohim commanded us to do.” Each of you armed yourself for war, thinking you could easily invade the mountain region.

⁴² But Yahweh said to me, “Tell them, ‘Don’t go and fight, because I won’t be with you. You will be defeated by your enemies.’”

⁴³ I told you, but you wouldn’t listen. You defied Yahweh’s command and invaded the mountain region. ⁴⁴ The Amorites who lived there came out and attacked you and chased you like a swarm of bees. They defeated you, chasing you from Seir all the way to Hormah. ⁴⁵ When you came back, you cried to Yahweh, but Yahweh didn’t listen to you or hear you. ⁴⁶ That’s why you stayed in Kadesh as long as you did.

Moses Reminds Israel of the Events at Mount Seir

2 We went back into the desert, following the road that goes to the Red Sea as Yahweh had told me. For a long time we traveled around the region of Mount Seir.

² Yahweh said to me, ³ “You’ve traveled around this region long enough. Now go north. ⁴ Give the people these instructions: ‘You’re going to pass through the territory of your relatives, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They’ll be afraid of you, but be very careful. ⁵ Don’t start a fight with them, because I’m not giving you any of their land—not even enough to stand on. I’ve given Esau’s descendants the region of Mount Seir as their property. ⁶ You must pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.’”

⁷ Yahweh your Elohim has blessed you in everything you have done. He has watched over you as you traveled through this vast desert. For 40 years now Yahweh your Elohim has been with you, and you haven’t needed a thing.

⁸ So we passed by our relatives, the descendants of Esau, who lived in Seir. We turned off the road that goes through the plains to Elath and Ezion Geber and took the road that goes through the desert of Moab.

⁹ Yahweh said to me, “Don’t bother the people of Moab or start a war with them. I’m not giving you any of Ar as your property. I have given it to the descendants of Lot.”

¹⁰ The Emites used to live there. These people were as strong, as numerous, and as tall as the people of Anak. ¹¹ They were thought to be Rephaim, like the people of Anak, but the Moabites called them Emites. ¹² The Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau claimed their land, wiped them out, and took their place, as Israel did in the land that Yahweh gave them.

¹³ Then the Lord said, “Now cross the Zered River.”

So we crossed the Zered River. ¹⁴ Thirty-eight years passed from the time we left Kadesh Barnea until we crossed the Zered River. During that time all our soldiers from that generation died, as Yahweh had sworn they would. ¹⁵ In fact, it was Yahweh himself who got rid of all of them until none were left in the camp.

Moses Reminds Israel about Ammon

¹⁶ When the last of these soldiers had died, ¹⁷ Yahweh said to me, ¹⁸ “Today you are going to pass by the border of Moab at Ar. ¹⁹ When you come near the Ammonites, don’t bother them or start a fight with them. I’m not giving you any of the land that I have already given to the descendants of Lot as their property.”

²⁰ This land was thought of as the land of the Rephaim who used to live there, but the Ammonites called them Zamzummim. ²¹ These people were as strong, as numerous, and as tall as the people of Anak. But Yahweh wiped them out before the Ammonites came so that the Ammonites claimed their land and took their place. ²² Yahweh did the same thing for the descendants of Esau, who lived in Seir. Before the descendants of Esau came, he wiped out the Horites so that Esau’s descendants claimed their land and took their place. Esau’s descendants are still there today. ²³ The same thing happened to the Avvites who lived in villages as far away as Gaza. The Caphtorites, who came from Crete, wiped them out and took their place.

Moses Reminds Israel about King Og and King Sihon

²⁴ The Lord continued, “Now break camp. Cross the Arnon Valley. I’m going to hand King Sihon of Heshbon, the Amorite, over to you. Fight him, and take possession of his country. ²⁵ Today I will start to make all the people under heaven terrified of you. When they hear about you, they will tremble and shake because of you.”

²⁶ From the desert of Kedemoth, I sent messengers to King Sihon of Heshbon with the following offer of peace: ²⁷ “If you allow us to travel through your country, we’ll go straight through and won’t ever leave the road. ²⁸ We’ll pay you in silver for the food we eat and the water we drink. Please let us go through, ²⁹ as the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir, and the Moabites, who live in Ar, did for us. We’ll keep going until we cross the Jordan River into the land Yahweh our Elohim is giving us.”

³⁰ But King Sihon of Heshbon wouldn’t allow us to pass through. Yahweh your Elohim made him stubborn and overconfident in order to hand him over to you, as he has now done. ³¹ Yahweh said to me, “I have begun to give you Sihon and his country. Go ahead! Take possession of his land.”

³² Sihon and all his troops came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz. ³³ Yahweh our Elohim gave Sihon to us, and we defeated him, his sons, and all his troops. ³⁴ At that time we captured all his cities and claimed them for God by destroying men, women, and children. There were no survivors. ³⁵ However, we did loot the cities that we captured, taking the cattle and goods. ³⁶ From Aroer on the edge of the Arnon Valley and the city in that valley as far as Gilead, no city had walls that could keep us out. Yahweh our Elohim gave us all of them. ³⁷ But Yahweh our Elohim had forbidden you to go anywhere near the land of the Ammonites. So you didn’t enter the land along the bank of the Jabbok River or capture the cities in the mountains.

Moses Reminds Israel of How They Defeated King Og of Bashan

3 Next we turned and followed the road that goes to Bashan. King Og of Bashan and all his troops came to fight us at Edrei. ² Yahweh said to me, “Don’t be afraid of him. I’ll hand him, all his troops, and his land over to you. Do to him what you did to King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon.”

³ So Yahweh our Elohim also handed King Og of Bashan and all his troops over to us. We defeated him, leaving no survivors. ⁴ At that time we captured all of his cities. There wasn’t a city we didn’t take. We captured a total of 60 cities—the whole territory of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. ⁵ All of these cities were fortified with high walls and double-door gates with bars across the gates. We also captured a large number of unwalled villages. ⁶ We claimed them all for God, destroying every city, including men, women, and children—as we did to King Sihon of Heshbon. ⁷ However, we did loot the cities, taking all of the cattle and goods.

⁸ We took the land of the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River, from the Arnon Valley to Mount Hermon. ⁹ (The Sidonians call Mount Hermon by the name Sirion, and the Amorites call it Senir.) ¹⁰ We took all of the cities of the plateau, all of Gilead, and all of Bashan as far as Salcah and Edrei, cities of Og’s kingdom in Bashan. ¹¹ (Of the Rephaim only King Og of Bashan was left. His bed was made of iron and was more than 13 feet long and 6 feet wide. It is still in the Ammonite city of Rabbah.)

¹² At that time we took possession of this land. I gave the tribes of Reuben and Gad the land north of Aroer near the Arnon Valley and half of the mountain region of Gilead with its cities. ¹³ I gave the rest of Gilead and all of Bashan ruled by Og to half of the tribe of Manasseh. (The whole territory of Argob in Bashan used to be called the land of the Rephaim. ¹⁴ Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, took the whole territory of Argob as far as the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites. The settlements in Bashan he named Havvoth Jair after himself. This is still their name today.) ¹⁵ I gave Gilead to Machir. ¹⁶ I gave the tribes of Reuben and Gad some of Gilead from the Arnon Valley (the middle of the valley is the border) to the Jabbok River, which is the border of Ammon. ¹⁷ Their land included the plains around the Jordan River. The western border was the river, from the Sea of Galilee to the Sea of the Plains (the Dead Sea), which is near Mount Pisgah on the east.

¹⁸ I gave the tribes of Reuben and Gad and half of the tribe of Manasseh this command: “Yahweh your Elohim has given you this land so that you can take possession of it. All your soldiers must be ready for battle when they cross the Jordan River ahead of the other Israelites. ¹⁹ I know you have a lot of livestock. Your wives, children, and livestock must stay here in the cities that I gave you. ²⁰ Your soldiers will go with the other Israelites until they take possession of the land Yahweh your Elohim is giving them on the other side of the Jordan River. Then they will have a place to rest as you have. After that each of you may go back to the land I gave you.”

²¹ I also gave Joshua this command: “You have seen with your own eyes everything that Yahweh your Elohim has done to these two kings. Yahweh will do the same to all of the kingdoms on the other side of the Jordan River where you’re going. ²² Don’t be afraid of them, because Yahweh your Elohim himself will fight for you.”

Moses Reminds Israel Why He Will Not Enter Canaan

²³ Then I pleaded with Yahweh: ²⁴ “Adonay Yahweh, you have only begun to show me how great and powerful you are. What kind of god is there in heaven or on earth who can do the deeds and the mighty acts you have done? ²⁵ Please let me go over and see the beautiful land on the other side of the Jordan River—those beautiful mountains in Lebanon.”

²⁶ Yahweh was angry with me because of you, so he wouldn’t listen to me. Yahweh said, “That’s enough out of you! Don’t talk to me anymore about this. ²⁷ Go to the top of Mount Pisgah, and look west, north, south, and east. You may look at the land, but you will never cross the Jordan River. ²⁸ Give instructions to Joshua. Encourage and strengthen him, because he will lead these people across the Jordan River, and he will help them take possession of the land you see.”

²⁹ So we stayed in the valley near Beth Peor.

Moses Reminds Israel to Be Loyal to the Lord

4 Israel, listen to the laws and rules I am about to teach you. Obey them so that you will live and be able to enter and take possession of the land that Yahweh Elohim of your ancestors is giving you. ² Never add anything to what I command you, or take anything away from it. Then you will be able to obey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim that I give you.

³ With your own eyes you saw what Yahweh did at Baal Peor. Yahweh your Elohim destroyed everyone among you who worshiped the god Baal while you were at Peor. ⁴ But you were loyal to Yahweh your Elohim and are still alive today.

⁵ I have taught you laws and rules as Yahweh my Elohim commanded me. You must obey them when you’ve entered the land and taken possession of it. ⁶ Faithfully obey these laws. This will show the people of the world your wisdom and insight. When they hear about all these laws, they will say, “What wise and insightful people there are in this great nation!”

⁷ What great nation ever had their gods as near to them as Yahweh our Elohim is near to us whenever we pray to him? ⁸ Or what other great nation has such fair laws and rules as all these teachings I am giving you today?

⁹ However, be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you don’t forget the things which you have seen with your own eyes. Don’t let them fade from your memory as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren. ¹⁰ Never forget the day you stood in front of Yahweh your Elohim at Mount Horeb. Yahweh had said to me, “Assemble the people in front of me, and I will let them hear my words. Then they will learn to fear me as long as they live on earth, and they will teach their children the same thing.”

¹¹ So you came and stood at the foot of the mountain, which was on fire with flames shooting into the sky. It was dark, cloudy, and gloomy. ¹² Yahweh spoke to you from the fire. You heard a voice speaking but saw no one. There was only a voice. ¹³ Yahweh told you about the terms of his promise, the ten commandments, which he commanded you to do. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets. ¹⁴ Yahweh also commanded me to teach you the laws and rules you must obey after you cross the Jordan River and take possession of the land.

¹⁵ You didn’t see Yahweh the day he spoke to you from the fire at Mount Horeb. So be very careful ¹⁶ that you don’t become corrupt and make your own carved idols. Don’t make statues that represent men or women, ¹⁷ any animal on earth, any creature with wings that flies, ¹⁸ any creature that crawls on the ground, or any fish in the water. ¹⁹ Don’t let yourselves be tempted to worship and serve what you see in the sky—the sun, the moon, the stars, or anything else. Yahweh your Elohim has given them to all people everywhere. ²⁰ But you are the people Yahweh brought out of Egypt, the iron smelter, in order to make you his own people as you still are today.

²¹ Yahweh was angry with me because of you. So Yahweh your Elohim took an oath that I wouldn’t cross the Jordan River and enter the good land he is giving you as your property. ²² I’m going to die in this land and not cross the Jordan River, but you’re going to go across and take possession of that good land. ²³ Be careful that you don’t forget the promise^[b] that Yahweh your Elohim made to you. Don’t make your own carved idols or statues that represent anything Yahweh your Elohim has forbidden. ²⁴ Yahweh your Elohim is Esh Oklah, El Kanna.

²⁵ Even when you have children and grandchildren and have grown old in that land, don’t become corrupt and make carved idols or statues that represent anything. I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today:^[c] If you do this thing that Yahweh your Elohim considers evil, making him furious, ²⁶ you will quickly disappear from the land you’re going to possess on the other side of the Jordan River. You won’t live very long there. You’ll be completely wiped out. ²⁷ Yahweh will scatter you among the people of the world, and only a few of you will be left among the nations where Yahweh will force you to live. ²⁸ There you will worship wooden and stone gods made by human hands. These gods can’t see, hear, eat, or smell.

²⁹ But if you look for Yahweh your Elohim when you are among those nations, you will find him whenever you search for him with all your heart and with all your soul. ³⁰ When you’re in distress and all these things happen to you, then you will finally come back to Yahweh your Elohim and obey him. ³¹ Yahweh your Elohim is a merciful God. He will not abandon you, destroy you, or forget the promise to your ancestors that he swore he would keep.

³² Search the distant past, long before your time. Start from the very day Elohim created people on earth. Search from one end of heaven to the other. Has anything as great as this ever happened before, or has anything like it ever been heard of? ³³ Have any other people ever heard Elohim speak from a fire and lived? You did! ³⁴ Or has any god ever tried to come and take one nation away from another for himself? Yahweh your Elohim used his mighty hand and powerful arm to do this for you in Egypt. He did this using plagues, miraculous signs, amazing things, and war. He did his great and awe-inspiring deeds in front of you.

³⁵ You were shown these things so that you would know that Yahweh is Elohim. There is no other god. ³⁶ He let you hear his voice from heaven so that he could instruct you. He showed you his great fire on earth, and you heard him speak from the column of fire. ³⁷ Because he loved your ancestors and chose their descendants, he was with you as he brought you out of Egypt by his great power. ³⁸ He forced nations greater and stronger than you out of your way to bring you into their land and give it to you. This land is your own possession today.

³⁹ Remember today, and never forget that Yahweh is Elohim in heaven above and here on earth. There is no other god. ⁴⁰ Obey his laws and commands which I’m giving you today. Then things will go well for you and your descendants. You will live for a long time in the land. Yahweh your Elohim is giving you the land for as long as you live.

Three Cities of Refuge East of the Jordan River

⁴¹ Then Moses set aside three cities on the east side of the Jordan River. ⁴² Those who unintentionally killed someone whom they had never hated could flee to one of these cities and save their lives. ⁴³ The cities were Bezer on the desert plateau for the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead for the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan for the tribe of Manasseh.

Introduction to Moses’ Teachings

⁴⁴ This is what Moses taught the people of Israel. ⁴⁵ These are the commandments, laws, and rules Moses gave the Israelites after they had left Egypt. ⁴⁶ He gave these to the people when they were east of the Jordan River in the valley near Beth Peor, in the land of King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon. Moses and Israel defeated him after they left Egypt. ⁴⁷ They took possession of his land and the land of King Og of Bashan, the two kings of the Amorites who were east of the Jordan River. ⁴⁸ This land went from Aroer on the edge of the Arnon Valley to Mount Siyon (that is, Mount Hermon). ⁴⁹ It included all the plains on the east side of the Jordan River as far as the Dead Sea at the foot of the slopes of Mount Pisgah.

The Ten Commandments^(A)

5 Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: Israel, listen to the laws and rules I’m telling you today. Learn them and faithfully obey them.

² Yahweh our Elohim made a promise^[d] to us at Mount Horeb. ³ Yahweh didn’t make this promise to our ancestors, but to all of us who are alive here today. ⁴ Yahweh spoke to you face to face from the fire on the mountain. ⁵ I stood between Yahweh and you to tell you the word of Yahweh, because you were afraid of the fire and didn’t go up on the mountain. The Lord said:

⁶ “I am Yahweh your Elohim, who brought you out of slavery in Egypt.

⁷ “Never have any other gods. ⁸ Never make your own carved idols or statues that represent any creature in the sky, on the earth, or in the water. ⁹ Never worship them or serve them, because I, Yahweh your Elohim, am El Kanna. I punish children for their parents’ sins to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me. ¹⁰ But I show mercy to thousands of generations of those who love me and obey my commandments.

¹¹ “Never use the name of Yahweh your Elohim carelessly. Yahweh will make sure that anyone who uses his name carelessly will be punished.

¹² “Observe the day of worship as a holy day. This is what Yahweh your Elohim has commanded you. ¹³ You have six days to do all your work. ¹⁴ The seventh day is the day of worship dedicated to Yahweh your Elohim. You, your sons, your daughters, your male and female slaves, your oxen, your donkeys—all of your animals—even the foreigners living in your city must never do any work on that day. In this way your male and female slaves can rest as you do. ¹⁵ Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that Yahweh your Elohim used his mighty hand and powerful arm to bring you out of there. This is why Yahweh your Elohim has commanded you to observe the day of worship.

¹⁶ “Honor your father and your mother as Yahweh your Elohim has commanded you. Then you will live for a long time, and things will go well for you in the land Yahweh your Elohim is giving you.

¹⁷ “Never murder.

¹⁸ “Never commit adultery.

¹⁹ “Never steal.

²⁰ “Never avoid the truth when you testify about your neighbor.^[e]

²¹ “Never desire to take your neighbor’s wife away from him.

“Never long for your neighbor’s household, his field, his male or female slave, his ox, his donkey, or anything else that belongs to him.”

²² These are the commandments Yahweh spoke to your whole assembly on the mountain. He spoke in a loud voice from the fire, the cloud, and the gloomy darkness. Then he stopped speaking. He wrote the commandments on two stone tablets and gave them to me.

²³ But when you heard the voice coming from the darkness and saw the mountain blazing with fire, all the leaders and heads of your tribes came to me. ²⁴ You said, “Yahweh our Elohim has let us see how great and glorious he is. We’ve heard his voice come from the fire. Today we’ve seen that people can live even if Elohim speaks to them. ²⁵ Why should we die? This great fire will consume us! If we continue to hear the voice of Yahweh our Elohim, we’ll die! ²⁶ Who has ever heard the voice of Elohim Chay speak from a fire, as we did, and lived? ²⁷ Moses, go and listen to everything that Yahweh our Elohim says. Then tell us whatever Yahweh our Elohim tells you. We’ll listen and obey.”

²⁸ When Yahweh heard the words that you spoke to me, Yahweh said, “I have heard what these people said to you. Everything they said was good. ²⁹ If only they would fear me and obey all my commandments as long as they live! Then things would go well for them and their children forever.

³⁰ “Tell the people to go back to their tents. ³¹ But you stay here with me. I will give you all the commands, laws, and rules that you must teach them to obey in the land which I’m giving them to possess.”

³² So be careful to do what Yahweh your Elohim has commanded you. Never stop living this way. ³³ Follow all the directions Yahweh your Elohim has given you. Then you will continue to live, life will go well for you, and you will live for a long time in the land that you are going to possess.

Love the Lord

6 These are the commands, laws, and rules Yahweh your Elohim commanded me to teach you. Obey them after you enter the land and take possession of it. ² As long as you live, you, your children, and your grandchildren must fear Yahweh your Elohim. All of you must obey all his laws and commands that I’m giving you, and you will live a long time. ³ Listen, Israel, and be careful to obey these laws. Then things will go well for you and your population will increase in a land flowing with milk and honey, as Yahweh Elohim of your ancestors promised you.

⁴ Listen, Israel: Yahweh is our Elohim. Yahweh is the only God. ⁵ Love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. ⁶ Take to heart these words that I give you today. ⁷ Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you’re at home or away, when you lie down or get up. ⁸ Write them down, and tie them around your wrist, and wear them as headbands as a reminder. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

¹⁰ Yahweh your Elohim will bring you into the land and give it to you, as he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This land will have large, prosperous cities that you didn’t build. ¹¹ Your houses will be filled with all kinds of things that you didn’t put there. You will have cisterns that you didn’t dig and vineyards and olive trees that you didn’t plant. After you have eaten all that you want, ¹² be careful that you don’t forget Yahweh, who brought you out of slavery in Egypt. ¹³ You must fear Yahweh your Elohim, serve him, and take your oaths only in his name. ¹⁴ Never worship any of the gods worshiped by the people around you. ¹⁵ If you do, Yahweh your Elohim will become very angry with you and will wipe you off the face of the earth, because Yahweh your Elohim, who is with you, is El Kanna.

¹⁶ Never test Yahweh your Elohim as you did at Massah. ¹⁷ Be sure to obey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim and the regulations and laws he has given you. ¹⁸ Do what Yahweh considers right and good. Then things will go well for you, and you will enter and take possession of that good land which Yahweh promised to your ancestors with an oath. ¹⁹ You will see Yahweh expel your enemies as he said he would.

²⁰ In the future your children will ask you, “What do these regulations, laws, and rules which Yahweh our Elohim commanded you mean to you?” ²¹ Tell them, “We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but Yahweh used his mighty hand to bring us out of there. ²² Right before our eyes Yahweh did miraculous signs and amazing things that were spectacular but terrible for Egypt, Pharaoh, and his whole family. ²³ Yahweh led us out of there to bring us here and give us this land he promised to our ancestors with an oath. ²⁴ Yahweh our Elohim commanded us to obey all these laws and to fear Yahweh. These laws are for our own good as long as we live so that he will preserve our lives. It’s still true today. ²⁵ This is how we’ll have the Lord’s approval: If we faithfully obey all these laws in the presence of Yahweh our Elohim, as he has commanded us.”

Israel Is Commanded to Destroy the Canaanites and Their Idols

7 Yahweh your Elohim will bring you to the land you’re about to enter and take possession of. He will force many nations out of your way: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—seven nations larger and more powerful than you. ² When Yahweh your Elohim gives them to you and you defeat them, destroy every one of them because they have been claimed by the Lord. Don’t make any treaties with them or show them any mercy. ³ Never marry any of them. Never let your daughters marry their sons or your sons marry their daughters. ⁴ These people will turn your children away from me to worship other gods. Then Yahweh will get very angry with you and will quickly destroy you.

⁵ But this is what you must do to these people: Tear down their altars, smash their sacred stones, cut down their poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah, and burn their idols. ⁶ You are a holy people, who belong to Yahweh your Elohim. Yahweh your Elohim chose you to be his own special possession out of all the nations on earth.

⁷ Yahweh set his heart on you and chose you, even though you didn’t outnumber all the other people. You were the smallest of all nations. ⁸ You were chosen because Yahweh loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors. So Yahweh used his mighty hand to bring you out. He freed you from slavery under Pharaoh (the king of Egypt). ⁹ Keep in mind that Yahweh your Elohim is the only Elohim. He is a faithful El, who keeps his promise^[f] and is merciful to thousands of generations of those who love him and obey his commands. ¹⁰ But he sends destruction to pay back everyone who hates him. He never takes long to pay back anyone who hates him.

¹¹ So obey the commands, laws, and rules I’m giving you today.

¹² If you listen to these rules and faithfully obey them, Yahweh your Elohim will keep his promise to you and be merciful to you, as he swore to your ancestors. ¹³ He will love you, bless you, and increase the number of your descendants. He will bless you with children. He will bless your land with produce: grain, new wine, and olive oil. He will bless your herds with calves, and your flocks with lambs and kids. This will all happen in the land Yahweh will give you, as he swore to your ancestors. ¹⁴ You will be blessed more than any other people. Your men and women will be able to have children, and your animals will be able to have offspring. ¹⁵ Yahweh will keep you from having any kind of illness. He will not strike you with any of the terrible diseases you experienced in Egypt. Instead, he will strike all those who hate you. ¹⁶ You must destroy all the people Yahweh your Elohim hands over to you. Have no pity on them, and never worship their gods, because they will be a trap for you.

¹⁷ You may say to yourselves, “These nations outnumber us. How can we force them out?” ¹⁸ Don’t be afraid of them. Remember what Yahweh your Elohim did to Pharaoh and all of Egypt. ¹⁹ You saw with your own eyes the terrible plagues, the miraculous signs, and the amazing things Yahweh your Elohim did. He used his mighty hand and powerful arm to bring you out. Yahweh your Elohim will do the same thing to all the people you’re afraid of. ²⁰ Yahweh your Elohim will spread panic among them until they all die. There will be no one left—not even those who were hiding from you. ²¹ Don’t be afraid of them, because Yahweh your Elohim is with you. He is a great and awe-inspiring El. ²² Little by little Yahweh your Elohim will force these nations out of your way. You won’t be able to wipe them out quickly. Otherwise, you would be overrun with wild animals. ²³ Yahweh your Elohim will hand these people over to you and will throw them into a great panic until they’re destroyed. ²⁴ He will hand their kings over to you, and no one on earth will even remember their names. No one will be able to stop you. You will destroy them all. ²⁵ Burn their idols. Don’t ever long for the silver and gold on these idols or take any of it for yourselves. It might be a trap for you. Besides, these idols are disgusting to Yahweh your Elohim. ²⁶ Never bring a disgusting idol into your house. If you do, you and the idol will be destroyed. Consider it detestable and disgusting. It must be destroyed.”

Israel Told Never to Forget God

8 Be careful to obey every command I give you today. Then you will live, and your population will increase. You will enter and take possession of the land that Yahweh promised to your ancestors with an oath.

² Remember that for 40 years Yahweh your Elohim led you on your journey in the desert. He did this in order to humble you and test you. He wanted to know whether or not you would wholeheartedly obey his commands. ³ So he made you suffer from hunger and then fed you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had seen before. He did this to teach you that a person cannot live on bread alone but on every word that Yahweh speaks. ⁴ Your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t swell these past 40 years. ⁵ Learn this lesson by heart: Yahweh your Elohim was disciplining you as parents discipline their children. ⁶ Obey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim. Follow his directions, and fear him.

⁷ Yahweh your Elohim is bringing you into a good land. It is a land with rivers that don’t dry up. There are springs and underground streams flowing through the valleys and hills. ⁸ The land has wheat and barley, grapevines, fig trees, and pomegranates. The land has honey and olive trees for olive oil. ⁹ The land will have enough food for you, and you will have everything you need. The land has rocks with iron ore, and you will be able to mine copper ore in the hills. ¹⁰ When you have eaten all you want, thank Yahweh your Elohim for the good land he has given you.

¹¹ Be careful that you don’t forget Yahweh your Elohim. Don’t fail to obey his commands, rules, and laws that I’m giving you today. ¹² You will eat all you want. You will build nice houses and live in them. ¹³ Your herds and flocks, silver and gold, and everything else you have will increase. ¹⁴ When this happens, be careful that you don’t become arrogant and forget Yahweh your Elohim, who brought you out of slavery in Egypt. ¹⁵ He was the one who led you through that vast and dangerous desert—a thirsty and arid land, with poisonous snakes and scorpions. He was the one who made water come out of solid rock for you. ¹⁶ He was the one who fed you in the desert with manna, which your ancestors had never seen. He did this in order to humble you and test you. But he also did this so that things would go well for you in the end. ¹⁷ You may say to yourselves, “I became wealthy because of my own ability and strength.” ¹⁸ But remember Yahweh your Elohim is the one who makes you wealthy. He’s confirming the promise^[g] which he swore to your ancestors. It’s still in effect today.

¹⁹ I warn you today that if you forget Yahweh your Elohim and follow other gods, and if you serve them and bow down to them, you will certainly be destroyed. ²⁰ Yahweh is going to destroy other nations as you enter the land. You will be destroyed like them if you don’t obey Yahweh your Elohim.

Israel Has Been Given Canaan because of God’s Mercy

9 Listen, Israel, you’re about to cross the Jordan River. You’ll be forcing out nations that are larger and stronger than you, with big cities that have sky-high walls. ² Their people are tall and strong. They’re descendants of Anak. You know all about them. You’ve also heard it said, “Who can oppose the descendants of Anak?” ³ Realize today that Yahweh your Elohim is the one who is going ahead of you like Esh Oklah. He will wipe them out and will use you to crush their power. You will take possession of their land and will quickly destroy them as Yahweh promised you.

⁴ When Yahweh your Elohim expels these people in front of you, don’t say to yourselves, “Because we’ve been living right, Yahweh brought us here to take possession of this land.” No, it’s because these nations are so wicked that Yahweh is forcing them out of your way. ⁵ It’s not because you’ve been living right or because you’re so honest that you’re entering to take possession of their land. It’s because these people are so wicked that Yahweh your Elohim is forcing them out of your way. It’s also because Yahweh wants to confirm the promise he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ⁶ So understand this: It’s not because you’ve been living right that Yahweh your Elohim is giving you this good land to possess. You are impossible to deal with!

⁷ Never forget how you made Yahweh your Elohim angry in the desert. You’ve rebelled against Yahweh from the day you left Egypt until you came here. ⁸ Even at Mount Horeb you made Yahweh so angry that Yahweh wanted to destroy you. ⁹ When I went up on the mountain to get the stone tablets, the tablets of the promise that Yahweh made to you, I stayed on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights without food or water. ¹⁰ Then Yahweh gave me the two stone tablets inscribed by Elohim himself. On them were written all the words that Yahweh spoke to you from the fire on the mountain on the day of the assembly.

¹¹ At the end of the 40 days and 40 nights, Yahweh gave me the two stone tablets with his promise on them. ¹² Yahweh told me, “Leave right away. Your people whom you brought out of Egypt have ruined everything. They’ve quickly turned from the way I commanded them to live. They’ve made an idol for themselves.”

¹³ Yahweh also said to me, “I’ve seen these people, and they are impossible to deal with. ¹⁴ Leave me alone! I’ll destroy them and wipe their name off the earth. Then I’ll make you into a nation larger and stronger than they are.”

¹⁵ So I turned and went down the mountain while it was still burning with fire. I was carrying the two tablets with the promise on them. ¹⁶ Then I saw that you had sinned against Yahweh your Elohim. You had made a statue of a calf for yourselves. You had quickly turned from the way Yahweh commanded you to live. ¹⁷ I took the two tablets, threw them down, and smashed them in front of you.

¹⁸ Once again I threw myself down in front of Yahweh. I went without food and water for 40 days and 40 nights because of the sin you committed. You did what Yahweh considered evil and made him furious. ¹⁹ I was terrified of Yahweh’s anger and fury. He was so angry he wanted to destroy you. But once more Yahweh listened to me.

²⁰ Yahweh also became very angry with Aaron and wanted to destroy him. But at that time I prayed for Aaron, too.

²¹ I took that sinful calf you made and burned it. I crushed it, grinding it thoroughly until it was as fine as powder. Then I threw the powder into the river that flowed down the mountain.

²² You also made Yahweh angry at Taberah, Massah, and Kibroth Hattaavah.

²³ When Yahweh sent you from Kadesh Barnea, he said, “Go and take possession of the land I’m giving you.” But you rebelled against the word of Yahweh your Elohim. You didn’t believe him or obey him. ²⁴ You’ve rebelled against Yahweh as long as I’ve known you.

²⁵ I threw myself down in front of Yahweh for 40 days and 40 nights because Yahweh said he would destroy you. ²⁶ I prayed to Yahweh and said, “Adonay Yahweh, don’t destroy your people. They belong to you. You saved them by your great power and used your mighty hand to bring them out of Egypt. ²⁷ Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Disregard the stubbornness, wickedness, and sin of these people. ²⁸ Otherwise, the country we left will say, “Yahweh wasn’t able to bring them to the land he promised them. He hated them. That’s why he brought them out—to let them die in the desert.” ²⁹ They are your people. They belong to you. You used your great strength and powerful arm to bring them out of Egypt.

10 At that time Yahweh said to me, “Cut two more stone tablets like the first ones, and come up to me on the mountain. Also make an ark out of wood. ² I will write on the tablets the same words that were on the first tablets, which you smashed. Then you will put them in the ark.”

³ I made an ark out of acacia wood. I cut two more stone tablets like the first ones. I carried the two tablets up the mountain. ⁴ Yahweh wrote on these tablets the same words as before, the ten commandments. He had spoken these words to you from the fire on the mountain on the day of the assembly. Then Yahweh gave them to me. ⁵ I came back down the mountain and put the tablets in the ark I had made. They are still there, where Yahweh commanded me to put them.

⁶ The Israelites moved from the wells of the Jaakanites to Moserah. Aaron died there and was buried, and his son Eleazar succeeded him as priest. ⁷ They moved from there to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land with rivers that don’t dry up. ⁸ At that time Yahweh set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of Yahweh’s promise, to stand in Yahweh’s presence when they serve him as priests, and to praise his name, as they still do today. ⁹ This is why the tribe of Levi has no land of their own as the other tribes have. Yahweh your Elohim is their only possession, as he promised them.

¹⁰ I stayed on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights as I did the first time. Once again Yahweh listened to me and Yahweh agreed not to destroy you. ¹¹ Yahweh said to me, “Lead the people on their journey. They will enter and take possession of the land I will give them, as I swore to their ancestors.”

Israel Encouraged to Follow God’s Guidance

¹² Israel, what does Yahweh your Elohim want you to do? Yahweh your Elohim wants you to fear him, follow all his directions, love him, and worship Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul. ¹³ Yahweh wants you to obey his commands and laws that I’m giving you today for your own good. ¹⁴ Remember that the sky, the highest heaven, the earth and everything it contains belong to Yahweh your Elohim. ¹⁵ Yahweh set his heart on your ancestors and loved them. Because of this, today he chooses you, their descendants, out of all the people of the world.

¹⁶ So circumcise your uncircumcised hearts, and don’t be impossible to deal with any longer. ¹⁷ There is no one like Yahweh—your one true Elohim and Adonay. He is the great, powerful, and awe-inspiring El. He never plays favorites and never takes a bribe. ¹⁸ He makes sure orphans and widows receive justice. He loves foreigners and gives them food and clothes. ¹⁹ So you should love foreigners, because you were foreigners living in Egypt. ²⁰ Fear Yahweh your Elohim, worship him, be loyal to him, and take your oaths in his name. ²¹ He is your glory. He is your Elohim, who did for you these spectacular and awe-inspiring deeds you saw with your own eyes. ²² When your ancestors went to Egypt, there were 70 of them. Now Yahweh your Elohim has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky.

11 Love Yahweh your Elohim, and do what he wants you to do. Always obey his laws, rules, and commands. ² Remember today the discipline you learned from Yahweh your Elohim. (I’m not talking to your children. They didn’t see or experience any of this.) You saw and experienced his great power—his mighty hand and powerful arm. ³ You saw the miraculous signs and deeds he did in Egypt to Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) and to his whole country. ⁴ You saw what he did to the Egyptian army, its horses and chariots. He drowned them in the Red Sea when they pursued you. So Yahweh destroyed them forever. ⁵ You saw what he did for you in the desert until you came here. ⁶ You also saw what he did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, from the tribe of Reuben. In the middle of all the Israelites the ground opened up and swallowed them, their families, their tents, and every living creature with them. ⁷ You saw with your own eyes all these spectacular things that Yahweh did.

⁸ Obey all the commands I’m giving you today. Then you will have the strength to enter and take possession of the land once you’ve crossed the Jordan River. ⁹ Then you will also live for a long time in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors and their descendants—a land flowing with milk and honey.

¹⁰ The land you’re about to enter and take possession of isn’t like the land you left in Egypt. There you used to plant your seed, and you had to water it like a vegetable garden. ¹¹ The land you’re about to enter is a land with hills and valleys, watered by rain from the sky. ¹² It is a land Yahweh your Elohim cares about. Yahweh your Elohim watches over it all year long.

¹³ If you faithfully obey the commands that I’m giving you today, love Yahweh your Elohim, and serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, ¹⁴ I will send rain on your land at the right time, both in the fall and in the spring. Then you will gather your own grain, new wine, and olive oil. ¹⁵ I will provide grass in the fields for your animals, and you will be able to eat all you want.

¹⁶ Be careful, or you’ll be tempted to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. ¹⁷ Yahweh will become angry with you. He’ll shut the sky so that there’ll be no rain. Then the ground won’t grow any crops, and you’ll quickly disappear from this good land Yahweh is giving you.

¹⁸ Take these words of mine to heart and keep them in mind. Write them down, tie them around your wrist, and wear them as headbands as a reminder. ¹⁹ Teach them to your children, and talk about them when you’re at home or away, when you lie down or get up. ²⁰ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. ²¹ Then you and your children will live for a long time in this land that Yahweh swore to give to your ancestors—as long as there’s a sky above the earth.

²² Faithfully obey all these commands I’m giving you. Love Yahweh your Elohim, follow all his directions, and be loyal to him. ²³ Then Yahweh will force all these people out of your way. Then you will take possession of the land belonging to people taller and stronger than you. ²⁴ I will give you every place on which you set foot. Your borders will be from the desert to Lebanon, from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea. ²⁵ No one will be able to stop you. As Yahweh your Elohim promised, he will make people terrified of you wherever you go in this land.

Choose the Blessing or the Curse

²⁶ Today I’m giving you the choice of a blessing or a curse. ²⁷ You’ll be blessed if you obey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim that I’m giving you today. ²⁸ You’ll be cursed if you disobey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim, if you turn from the way I’m commanding you to live today, and if you worship other gods you never knew. ²⁹ When Yahweh your Elohim brings you into the land you’re about to enter, recite the blessing from Mount Gerizim and the curse from Mount Ebal. ³⁰ (These mountains are on the west side of the Jordan, beyond the road that goes west, in the region of the Canaanites who live on the plains facing Gilgal, next to the oak trees of Moreh.) ³¹ You’re about to cross the Jordan River to enter and take possession of the land Yahweh your Elohim is giving you. When you take possession of it and live there, ³² be careful to obey all the laws and rules I’m giving you today.

The Proper Place to Worship

12 Here are the laws and rules you must faithfully obey in the land that Yahweh Elohim of your ancestors is giving you as your own. You must obey them as long as you live in the land.

² Completely destroy all the worship sites on the high mountains, on the hills, and under every large tree. The people you’re forcing out worship their gods in these places. ³ Tear down their altars, crush their sacred stones, burn their poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah, cut down their idols, and wipe out the names of their gods from those places.

⁴ Never worship Yahweh your Elohim in the way they worship their gods. ⁵ Yahweh your Elohim will choose a place out of all your tribes to live and put his name. Go there and worship him. ⁶ Bring him your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, one-tenth of your income, your contributions, the offerings you vow to bring, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your cattle, sheep, and goats. ⁷ There, in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim, you and your families will eat and enjoy everything you’ve worked for, because Yahweh your Elohim has blessed you.

⁸ Never worship in the way that it’s being done here today, where everyone does whatever he considers right. ⁹ Up until now you haven’t come to your place of rest, the property Yahweh your Elohim is giving you. ¹⁰ But you will cross the Jordan River and settle in the land Yahweh your Elohim is giving you as your own property. He will give you peace from all your enemies around you so that you will live securely. ¹¹ Then Yahweh your Elohim will choose a place where his name will live. You must bring everything I command you to that place. Bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, one-tenth of your income, your contributions, and all the best offerings you vow to bring to Yahweh. ¹² Enjoy yourselves in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim along with your sons, daughters, male and female slaves, and the Levites. (The Levites live in your cities because they have no land of their own as you have.) ¹³ Be careful that you don’t sacrifice your burnt offerings wherever you want. ¹⁴ Instead, sacrifice them only at the place that Yahweh will choose in one of your tribes. There you must do everything I command you.

¹⁵ In whatever city you live, you may slaughter and eat as much meat as you want from what Yahweh your Elohim has blessed you with. Clean and unclean^[h] people may eat it as if they were eating a gazelle or a deer. ¹⁶ But never eat the blood. Pour it on the ground like water. ¹⁷ You may not eat the Lord’s offerings in your cities. Those offerings are: one-tenth of your grain, new wine, and olive oil; the firstborn of your cattle, sheep, or goats; the offerings you vow to bring; your freewill offerings; and your contributions. ¹⁸ Instead, you, your sons and daughters, male and female slaves, and the Levites who live in your cities must eat these in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim at the place Yahweh your Elohim will choose. There in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim enjoy everything you’ve worked for. ¹⁹ Don’t forget to take care of the Levites as long as you live in your land.

²⁰ Yahweh your Elohim will expand your country’s borders as he promised. You will say, “I’m hungry for meat.” Then eat as much meat as you want. ²¹ If the place Yahweh your Elohim chooses to put his name is too far away from you, you may slaughter an animal from the herds or flocks that Yahweh has given you. Eat as much as you want in your city. I have commanded you to do this. ²² Eat it as you would eat a gazelle or a deer: Clean and unclean people may eat it together. ²³ However, be sure you never eat blood, because blood contains life. Never eat the life with the meat. ²⁴ Never eat blood. Pour it on the ground like water. ²⁵ If you don’t eat blood, things will go well for you and your descendants. You will be doing what Yahweh considers right.

²⁶ Take the holy things and the offerings you have vowed to bring, and go to the place Yahweh will choose. ²⁷ Sacrifice the meat and the blood of your burnt offerings on the altar of Yahweh your Elohim. The blood of your sacrifices is to be poured out beside the altar of Yahweh your Elohim, but you may eat the meat. ²⁸ Be sure you obey all these instructions I’m giving you. Then things will always go well for you and your descendants because you will be doing what Yahweh your Elohim considers good and right.

²⁹ Yahweh your Elohim will destroy the nations where you’re going and force them out of your way. You will take possession of their land and live there. ³⁰ After they’ve been destroyed, be careful you aren’t tempted to follow their customs. Don’t even ask about their gods and say, “How did these people worship their gods? We want to do what they did.” ³¹ Never worship Yahweh your Elohim in the way they worship their gods, because everything they do for their gods is disgusting to Yahweh. He hates it! They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods.^[i]

³² Be sure to do everything I command you. Never add anything to it or take anything away from it.

How Israel Is to Deal with False Prophets

13 ^[j]One of your people, claiming to be a prophet or to have prophetic dreams, may predict a miraculous sign or an amazing thing. ² What he predicts may even take place. But don’t listen to that prophet or dreamer^[k] if he says, “Let’s worship and serve other gods.” (Those gods may be gods you’ve never heard of.) ³ Yahweh your Elohim is testing you to find out if you really love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁴ Worship Yahweh your Elohim, fear him, obey his commands, listen to what he says, serve him, and be loyal to him. ⁵ That prophet or dreamer must be put to death because he preached rebellion against Yahweh your Elohim, who brought you out of Egypt and freed you from slavery. He was trying to lead you away from following the directions Yahweh your Elohim gave you. You must get rid of this evil.

⁶ Your own brother, son, or daughter, the wife you love, or your best friend may secretly tempt you, saying, “Let’s go worship other gods.” (Those gods may be gods that you and your ancestors never knew. ⁷ They may be the gods of the people around you, who live near or far, from one end of the land to the other.) ⁸ Don’t be influenced by any of these people or listen to them. Have no pity on them. Don’t feel sorry for them or protect them. ⁹ You must put them to death. You must start the execution. Then all the other people will join you in putting them to death. ¹⁰ Stone them to death because they were trying to lead you away from Yahweh your Elohim, who brought you out of slavery in Egypt. ¹¹ All Israel will hear about it and be afraid. Then no one among you will ever do such a wicked thing again.

¹² You may hear that the residents in one of the cities which Yahweh your Elohim is giving you to live in ¹³ have been led away from the Lord your God by worthless people. You may hear that these people have been saying, “Let’s worship other gods.” (Those gods may be gods you’ve never heard of.) ¹⁴ Then make a thorough investigation. If it is true, and you can prove that this disgusting thing has been done among you, ¹⁵ you must kill the residents of that city with swords and destroy that city and everyone in it, including the animals, because they are claimed by God. ¹⁶ Gather their goods into the middle of the city square. Then burn their city and all their goods as a burnt offering to Yahweh your Elohim. It must remain a mound of ruins and never be rebuilt. ¹⁷ Don’t ever take any of the things claimed for destruction. Then Yahweh will stop being angry and will show you mercy. In his mercy he will make your population increase, as he swore to your ancestors. ¹⁸ Yahweh your Elohim will do this if you listen to him, obey all the commands that I’m giving you today, and do what Yahweh your Elohim considers right.

Religious Practices^(B)

14 You are the children of Yahweh your Elohim. So when someone dies, don’t mourn by cutting yourselves or shaving bald spots on your head. ² You are people who are holy to Yahweh your Elohim. Out of all the people who live on earth, Yahweh has chosen you to be his own special possession.

³ Never eat anything that is disgusting to the Lord. ⁴ Here are the kinds of animals you may eat: oxen, sheep, goats, ⁵ deer, gazelles, fallow deer,^[l] wild goats, mountain goats, antelope, and mountain sheep. ⁶ You may eat all animals that have completely divided hoofs and that also chew their cud. ⁷ But some animals chew their cud, while others have completely divided hoofs. You may not eat these kinds of animals. They include camels, rabbits, and rock badgers. (Although they chew their cud, they don’t have divided hoofs. They are unclean^[m] for you.) ⁸ Also, you may not eat pigs. (Although their hoofs are divided, they don’t chew their cud.) Never eat their meat or touch their dead bodies.

⁹ Here’s what you may eat of every creature that lives in the water: You may eat any creature that has fins and scales. ¹⁰ But never eat anything that doesn’t have fins and scales. It is unclean for you.

¹¹ You may eat any clean bird. ¹² But here are the birds that you should never eat: eagles, bearded vultures, black vultures, ¹³ buzzards, all types of kites, ¹⁴ all types of crows, ¹⁵ ostriches, nighthawks, seagulls, all types of falcons, ¹⁶ little owls, great owls, barn owls, ¹⁷ pelicans, ospreys, cormorants, ¹⁸ storks, all types of herons, hoopoes, and bats.

¹⁹ Every swarming, winged insect is also unclean for you. They must never be eaten. ²⁰ However, you may eat any other kind of flying creature that is clean.

²¹ Never eat any creature that dies naturally. You may give it to the foreigners who live in your cities, and they may eat it. You may also sell it to foreigners who are visiting. But you are people who are holy to Yahweh your Elohim.

Never cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Giving God One-Tenth of Everything

²² Every year be sure to save a tenth of the crops harvested from whatever you plant in your fields. ²³ Eat the tenth of your grain, new wine, and olive oil, and eat the firstborn of your cattle, sheep, and goats in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim in the place he will choose to put his name. Then you will learn to fear Yahweh your Elohim as long as you live.

²⁴ But the place Yahweh your Elohim will choose to put his name may be too far away. Yahweh your Elohim may bless you with so much that you can’t carry a tenth of your income that far. ²⁵ If so, exchange the tenth part of your income for silver. Take the silver with you, and go to the place Yahweh your Elohim will choose. ²⁶ Use the silver to buy whatever you want: cattle, sheep, goats, wine, liquor—whatever you choose. Then you and your family will eat and enjoy yourselves there in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim. ²⁷ Never forget to take care of the Levites who live in your cities. They have no land of their own as you have.

²⁸ At the end of every third year bring a tenth of that year’s crop, and store it in your cities. ²⁹ Foreigners, orphans, and widows who live in your cities may come to eat all they want. The Levites may also come because they have no land of their own as you have. Then Yahweh your Elohim will bless you in whatever work you do.

The Seventh-Year Celebration

15 At the end of every seven years, you must cancel debts. ² This is what you will do: If you’ve made a loan, don’t collect payment on the debt your neighbor still owes you. Don’t demand that your neighbor or relative pay you, because the time for suspending payments on debts has been proclaimed in Yahweh’s honor. ³ You may demand that a foreigner pay, but don’t collect payment on the debt another Israelite still owes you. ⁴ In any case, there shouldn’t be any poor people among you, because Yahweh your Elohim will certainly bless you in the land he is giving you as your own possession. ⁵ He will bless you only if you listen carefully to Yahweh your Elohim and faithfully obey all these commands I’m giving you today. ⁶ Yahweh your Elohim will bless you, as he promised. You will make loans to many nations, but you will not have to borrow from any of them. You will rule many nations, but no nation will ever rule you.

⁷ This is what you must do whenever there are poor Israelites in one of your cities in the land that Yahweh your Elohim is giving you. ⁸ Be generous to these poor people, and freely lend them as much as they need. Never be hard-hearted and tight-fisted with them.^[n]

⁹ When the seventh year—the year when payments on debts are canceled—is near, you might be stingy toward poor Israelites and give them nothing. Be careful not to think these worthless thoughts. The poor will complain to Yahweh about you, and you will be condemned for your sin. ¹⁰ Be sure to give to them without any hesitation. When you do this, Yahweh your Elohim will bless you in everything you work for and set out to do. ¹¹ There will always be poor people in the land. That’s why I command you to be generous to other Israelites who are poor and needy.

¹² Whenever Hebrew men or women are sold to you as slaves, they will be your slaves for six years. In the seventh year you must let them go free. ¹³ But when you let them go, don’t send them away empty-handed. ¹⁴ Generously give them provisions—sheep from your flocks, grain from your threshing floor,^[o] and wine from your winepress. Be as generous to them as Yahweh your Elohim has been to you. ¹⁵ Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and Yahweh your Elohim freed you. That’s why I’m giving you this command today.

¹⁶ But suppose a male slave says to you, “I don’t want to leave you,” because he loves you and your family and is happy with you. ¹⁷ Then take an awl and pierce it through his ear lobe into a door, and he will be your slave for life. Do the same to a female slave if she doesn’t want to leave.

¹⁸ If you have to let your slave go free, it won’t be a hardship for you. It would have cost you twice as much to hire someone to do the same work for those six years. Besides, Yahweh your Elohim will bless you in everything you do.

Setting Aside Firstborn Males for God

¹⁹ You must dedicate every firstborn male from your herds and flocks to Yahweh your Elohim. Never use a firstborn ox for work, and never shear a firstborn sheep. ²⁰ Every year you and your family must eat these animals in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim in the place Yahweh will choose. ²¹ But if an animal is lame or blind or has any other serious defect—never sacrifice it to Yahweh your Elohim. ²² Eat it in your city. Clean and unclean^[p] people may eat them together as if they were eating a gazelle or a deer. ²³ But never eat the blood. Pour it on the ground like water.

Three Major Festivals

16 Honor Yahweh your Elohim by celebrating Passover in the month of Abib. In the month of Abib Yahweh your Elohim brought you out of Egypt at night. ² Slaughter an animal from your flock or herd as the Passover sacrifice to Yahweh your Elohim. Do this at the place where Yahweh will choose for his name to live. ³ Never eat leavened bread with the meat from this sacrifice. Instead, for seven days you must eat unleavened bread at this festival. (It is the bread of misery because you left Egypt in a hurry.) Eat this bread so that, as long as you live, you will remember the day you left Egypt. ⁴ There should be no yeast anywhere in your land for seven days. Never leave until morning any of the meat you slaughter on the evening of the first day.

⁵ You’re not allowed to slaughter the animals for Passover in any of the cities Yahweh your Elohim is giving you. ⁶ Instead, slaughter your animals for Passover in the place where Yahweh your Elohim will choose for his name to live. Do this in the evening as the sun goes down. This is the same time you did it when you left Egypt. ⁷ Cook the meat, and eat it at the place Yahweh your Elohim will choose. In the morning you may go back to your tents. ⁸ For six days eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day hold a religious assembly dedicated to Yahweh your Elohim. Don’t do any work that day.

⁹ Count seven weeks from the time you start harvesting grain. ¹⁰ Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to Yahweh your Elohim. Bring a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings Yahweh your Elohim has given you. ¹¹ Enjoy yourselves in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim along with your sons, daughters, male and female slaves, the Levites who live in your cities, the foreigners, orphans, and widows who live among you. Enjoy yourselves at the place Yahweh your Elohim will choose for his name to live. ¹² Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and obey these laws carefully.

¹³ After you have gathered the grain from your threshing floor^[q] and made your wine, celebrate the Festival of Booths for seven days. ¹⁴ Enjoy yourselves at the festival along with your sons, daughters, male and female slaves, the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows who live in your cities. ¹⁵ For seven days you will celebrate this festival dedicated to Yahweh your Elohim in the place Yahweh will choose. You will enjoy yourselves, because Yahweh your Elohim will bless all your harvest and all your work.

¹⁶ Three times a year all your men must come into the presence of Yahweh your Elohim at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Booths. But no one may come into the presence of Yahweh without an offering. ¹⁷ Each man must bring a gift in proportion to the blessings Yahweh your Elohim has given him.

Administering Justice

¹⁸ Appoint judges and officers for your tribes in every city that Yahweh your Elohim is giving you. They are to judge the people fairly. ¹⁹ Never pervert justice. Instead, be impartial. Never take a bribe, because bribes blind wise people and deny justice to those who are in the right. ²⁰ Strive for nothing but justice so that you will live and take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

²¹ When you build the altar for Yahweh your Elohim, never plant beside it any tree dedicated to the goddess Asherah. ²² Never set up a sacred stone. These are things Yahweh your Elohim hates.

17 Never offer an ox or a sheep that has a defect or anything seriously wrong with it as a sacrifice to Yahweh your Elohim. That would be disgusting to Yahweh your Elohim.

² In one of the cities Yahweh your Elohim is giving you, there may be a man or woman among you who is doing what Yahweh your Elohim considers evil. This person may be disregarding the conditions of Yahweh’s promise^{[r] 3} by worshiping and bowing down to other gods, the sun, the moon, or the whole army of heaven. I have forbidden this. ⁴ When you are told about it, investigate it thoroughly. If it’s true and it can be proven that this disgusting thing has been done in Israel, ⁵ then bring the man or woman who did this evil thing to the gates of your city, and stone that person to death. ⁶ The person can only be sentenced to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses, but no one should ever be sentenced to death on the testimony of only one witness. ⁷ The witnesses must start the execution, then all the other people will join them in putting the person to death. You must get rid of this evil.

⁸ There may be a case that is too hard for you to decide. It may involve murder, assault, or a dispute—any case which may be brought to court in your cities. Take this case to the place that Yahweh your Elohim will choose. ⁹ Go to the Levitical priests and the judge who is serving at that time. Ask for their opinion, and they will give you their verdict ¹⁰ at the place that Yahweh will choose. Do what they tell you. Follow all their instructions carefully, ¹¹ and do what they tell you to do in their verdict. Do exactly what they tell you to do in their decision. ¹² If anyone deliberately disobeys the priest (who serves Yahweh your Elohim) or the judge, that person must die. You must get rid of this evil in Israel. ¹³ When all the people hear about it, they will be afraid and will never defy God’s law again.

¹⁴ You will enter the land that Yahweh your Elohim is giving you. You will take possession of it and live there. You will say, “Let’s have our own king like all the other nations around us.” ¹⁵ Be sure to appoint the king Yahweh your Elohim will choose. He must be one of your own people. Never let a foreigner be king, because he’s not one of your own people.

¹⁶ The king must never own a large number of horses or make the people return to Egypt to get more horses. Yahweh has told you, “You will never go back there again.” ¹⁷ The king must never have a large number of wives, or he will turn away from God. And he must never own a lot of gold and silver.

¹⁸ When he becomes king, he should have the Levitical priests make him a copy of these teachings on a scroll. ¹⁹ He must keep it with him and read it his entire life. He will learn to fear Yahweh his Elohim and faithfully obey everything found in these teachings and laws. ²⁰ Then he won’t think he’s better than the rest of his people, and he won’t disobey these commands in any way. So he and his sons will rule for a long time in Israel.