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Deuteronomy 10
New International Version

Tablets Like the First Ones

10 At that time the Lord said to me, “Chisel out two stone tablets(A) like the first ones and come up to me on the mountain. Also make a wooden ark.[a] 2 I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. Then you are to put them in the ark.”(B)

3 So I made the ark out of acacia wood(C) and chiseled(D) out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I went up on the mountain with the two tablets in my hands. 4 The Lord wrote on these tablets what he had written before, the Ten Commandments(E) he had proclaimed(F) to you on the mountain, out of the fire, on the day of the assembly.(G) And the Lord gave them to me. 5 Then I came back down the mountain(H) and put the tablets in the ark(I) I had made,(J) as the Lord commanded me, and they are there now.(K)

6 (The Israelites traveled from the wells of Bene Jaakan to Moserah.(L) There Aaron died(M) and was buried, and Eleazar(N) his son succeeded him as priest.(O) 7 From there they traveled to Gudgodah and on to Jotbathah, a land with streams of water.(P) 8 At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi(Q) to carry the ark of the covenant(R) of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister(S) and to pronounce blessings(T) in his name, as they still do today.(U) 9 That is why the Levites have no share or inheritance among their fellow Israelites; the Lord is their inheritance,(V) as the Lord your God told them.)

10 Now I had stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights, as I did the first time, and the Lord listened to me at this time also. It was not his will to destroy you.(W) 11 “Go,” the Lord said to me, “and lead the people on their way, so that they may enter and possess the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.”

Fear the Lord

12 And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you(X) but to fear(Y) the Lord your God, to walk(Z) in obedience to him, to love him,(AA) to serve the Lord(AB) your God with all your heart(AC) and with all your soul,(AD) 13 and to observe the Lord’s commands(AE) and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?(AF)

14 To the Lord your God belong the heavens,(AG) even the highest heavens,(AH) the earth and everything in it.(AI) 15 Yet the Lord set his affection on your ancestors and loved(AJ) them, and he chose you,(AK) their descendants, above all the nations—as it is today.(AL) 16 Circumcise(AM) your hearts,(AN) therefore, and do not be stiff-necked(AO) any longer. 17 For the Lord your God is God of gods(AP) and Lord of lords,(AQ) the great God, mighty and awesome,(AR) who shows no partiality(AS) and accepts no bribes.(AT) 18 He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow,(AU) and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing.(AV) 19 And you are to love(AW) those who are foreigners,(AX) for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt.(AY) 20 Fear the Lord your God and serve him.(AZ) Hold fast(BA) to him and take your oaths in his name.(BB) 21 He is the one you praise;(BC) he is your God, who performed for you those great(BD) and awesome wonders(BE) you saw with your own eyes. 22 Your ancestors who went down into Egypt were seventy in all,(BF) and now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky.(BG)

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:1 That is, a chest
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Deuteronomy 10
New English Translation

The Opportunity to Begin Again

10 At that same time the Lord said to me, “Carve out for yourself two stone tablets like the first ones and come up the mountain to me; also make for yourself a wooden ark.[a] 2 I will write on the tablets the same words[b] that were on the first tablets you broke, and you must put them into the ark.” 3 So I made an ark of acacia[c] wood and carved out two stone tablets just like the first ones. Then I went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hands. 4 The Lord[d] then wrote on the tablets the same words,[e] the Ten Commandments,[f] which he[g] had spoken to you at the mountain from the middle of the fire at the time of that assembly, and he[h] gave them to me. 5 Then I turned, went down the mountain, and placed the tablets into the ark I had made—they are still there, just as the Lord commanded me.

Conclusion of the Historical Résumé

6 During those days the Israelites traveled from Beeroth Bene Jaakan[i] to Moserah.[j] There Aaron died and was buried, and his son Eleazar became priest in his place. 7 From there they traveled to Gudgodah,[k] and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah,[l] a place of flowing streams. 8 At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi[m] to carry the ark of the Lord’s covenant, to stand before the Lord to serve him, and to formulate blessings[n] in his name, as they do to this very day. 9 Therefore Levi has no allotment or inheritance[o] among his brothers;[p] the Lord is his inheritance just as the Lord your God told him. 10 As for me, I stayed at the mountain as I did the first time, forty days and nights. The Lord listened to me that time as well and decided not to destroy you. 11 Then he[q] said to me, “Get up, set out leading[r] the people so they may go and possess[s] the land I promised to give to their ancestors.”[t]

An Exhortation to Love Both God and People

12 Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you except to revere him,[u] to obey all his commandments,[v] to love him, to serve him[w] with all your mind and being,[x] 13 and to keep the Lord’s commandments and statutes that I am giving[y] you today for your own good? 14 The heavens—indeed the highest heavens—belong to the Lord your God, as does the earth and everything in it. 15 However, only to your ancestors did he[z] show his loving favor,[aa] and he chose you, their descendants,[ab] from all peoples—as is apparent today. 16 Therefore, cleanse[ac] your hearts and stop being so stubborn![ad] 17 For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awesome God who is unbiased and takes no bribe, 18 who justly treats[ae] the orphan and widow, and who loves resident foreigners, giving them food and clothing. 19 So you must love the resident foreigner because you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. 20 Revere the Lord your God, serve him, be loyal to him, and take oaths only in his name. 21 He is the one you should praise;[af] he is your God, the one who has done these great and awesome things for you that you have seen. 22 When your ancestors went down to Egypt, they numbered only seventy, but now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars of the sky.[ag]

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:1 tn Or “chest” (so NIV, CEV); NLT “sacred chest”; TEV “wooden box.” This chest was made of acacia wood; it is later known as the ark of the covenant.
  2. Deuteronomy 10:2 sn The same words. The care with which the replacement copy must be made underscores the importance of verbal precision in relaying the Lord’s commandments.
  3. Deuteronomy 10:3 sn Acacia wood (Heb “shittim wood”). This is wood from the acacia, the most common timber tree of the Sinai region. Most likely it is the species Acacia raddiana because this has the largest trunk. See F. N. Hepper, Illustrated Encyclopedia of Bible Plants, 63.
  4. Deuteronomy 10:4 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  5. Deuteronomy 10:4 tn Heb “according to the former writing.” See note on the phrase “the same words” in v. 2.
  6. Deuteronomy 10:4 tn Heb “ten words.” The “Ten Commandments” are known in Hebrew as the “Ten Words,” which in Greek became the “Decalogue.”
  7. Deuteronomy 10:4 tn Heb “the Lord.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.
  8. Deuteronomy 10:4 tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” earlier in this verse.
  9. Deuteronomy 10:6 sn Beeroth Bene Jaakan. This Hebrew name could be translated “the wells of Bene Jaakan” or “the wells of the sons of Jaakan,” a site whose location cannot be determined (cf. Num 33:31-32; 1 Chr 1:42).
  10. Deuteronomy 10:6 sn Moserah. Since Aaron in other texts (Num 20:28; 33:38) is said to have died on Mount Hor, this must be the Arabah region in which Hor was located.
  11. Deuteronomy 10:7 sn Gudgodah. This is probably the same as Haggidgad, which is also associated with Jotbathah (Num 33:33).
  12. Deuteronomy 10:7 sn Jotbathah. This place, whose Hebrew name can be translated “place of wadis,” is possibly modern Ain Tabah, just north of Eilat, or Tabah, 6.5 mi (11 km) south of Eilat on the west shore of the Gulf of Aqaba.
  13. Deuteronomy 10:8 sn The Lord set apart the tribe of Levi. This was not the initial commissioning of the tribe of Levi to this ministry (cf. Num 3:11-13; 8:12-26), but with Aaron’s death it seemed appropriate to Moses to reiterate Levi’s responsibilities. There is no reference in the Book of Numbers to this having been done, but the account of Eleazar’s succession to the priesthood there (Num 20:25-28) would provide a setting for this to have occurred.
  14. Deuteronomy 10:8 sn To formulate blessings. The most famous example of this is the priestly “blessing formula” of Num 6:24-26.
  15. Deuteronomy 10:9 sn Levi has no allotment or inheritance. As the priestly tribe, Levi would have no land allotment except for forty-eight towns set apart for their use (Num 35:1-8; Josh 21:1-42). But theirs was a far greater inheritance, for the Lord himself was their apportionment, that is, service to him would be their full-time and lifelong privilege (Num 18:20-24; Deut 18:2; Josh 13:33).
  16. Deuteronomy 10:9 tn That is, among the other Israelite tribes.
  17. Deuteronomy 10:11 tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  18. Deuteronomy 10:11 tn Heb “before” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NRSV “at the head of.”
  19. Deuteronomy 10:11 tn After the imperative these subordinated jussive forms (with prefixed vav) indicate purpose or result.
  20. Deuteronomy 10:11 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 15, 22).
  21. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  22. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “to walk in all his ways” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV); NAB “follow his ways exactly”; NLT “to live according to his will.”
  23. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  24. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “heart and soul” or “heart and being”; NCV “with your whole being.” See note on the word “being” in Deut 6:5.
  25. Deuteronomy 10:13 tn Heb “commanding” (so NASB, NRSV). For stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy, “giving” has been used in the translation.
  26. Deuteronomy 10:15 tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  27. Deuteronomy 10:15 tn Heb “take delight to love.” Here again the verb אָהֵב (ʾahev, “love”), juxtaposed with בָחַר (bakhar, “choose”), is a term in covenant contexts that describes the Lord’s initiative in calling the patriarchal ancestors to be the founders of a people special to him (cf. the note on the word “loved” in Deut 4:37).
  28. Deuteronomy 10:15 tn The Hebrew text includes “after them,” but it is redundant in English style and has not been included in the translation.
  29. Deuteronomy 10:16 tn Heb “circumcise the foreskin of” (cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV). Reference to the Abrahamic covenant prompts Moses to recall the sign of that covenant, namely, physical circumcision (Gen 17:9-14). Just as that act signified total covenant obedience, so spiritual circumcision (cleansing of the heart) signifies more internally a commitment to be pliable and obedient to the will of God (cf. Deut 30:6; Jer 4:4; 9:26).
  30. Deuteronomy 10:16 tn Heb “your neck do not harden again.” See note on the word “stubborn” in Deut 9:6.
  31. Deuteronomy 10:18 tn Or “who executes justice for” (so NAB, NRSV); NLT “gives justice to.” Cf. Exod 22:21; Lev 19:33-34; Deut 24:14, 17; 27:19.
  32. Deuteronomy 10:21 tn Heb “your praise.” The pronoun is subjective and the noun “praise” is used here metonymically for the object of their praise (the Lord).
  33. Deuteronomy 10:22 tn Or “heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
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Deuteronomy 10
New King James Version

The Second Pair of Tablets(A)

10 “At that time the Lord said to me, [a]‘Hew for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and come up to Me on the mountain and make yourself an (B)ark of wood. 2 And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke; and (C)you shall put them in the ark.’

3 “So I made an ark of acacia wood, hewed two tablets of stone like the first, and went up the mountain, having the two tablets in my hand. 4 And He wrote on the tablets according to the first writing, the Ten [b]Commandments, (D)which the Lord had spoken to you in the mountain from the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly; and the Lord gave them to me. 5 Then I turned and (E)came down from the mountain, and (F)put the tablets in the ark which I had made; (G)and there they are, just as the Lord commanded me.”

6 (Now the children of Israel journeyed from the wells of Bene Jaakan to Moserah, where Aaron (H)died, and where he was buried; and Eleazar his son ministered as priest in his [c]stead. 7 (I)From there they journeyed to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land of [d]rivers of water. 8 At that time (J)the Lord [e]separated the tribe of Levi (K)to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, (L)to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and (M)to bless in His name, to this day. 9 (N)Therefore Levi has no portion nor inheritance with his brethren; the Lord is his inheritance, just as the Lord your God promised him.)

10 “As at the first time, (O)I stayed in the mountain forty days and forty nights; (P)the Lord also heard me at that time, and the Lord chose not to destroy you. 11 (Q)Then the Lord said to me, ‘Arise, begin your journey before the people, that they may go in and possess the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.’

The Essence of the Law

12 “And now, Israel, (R)what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to (S)love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today (T)for your [f]good? 14 Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the (U)Lord your God, also the earth with all that is in it. 15 The Lord delighted only in your fathers, to love them; and He chose their [g]descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day. 16 Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your (V)heart, and be (W)stiff-necked[h] no longer. 17 For the Lord your God is (X)God of gods and (Y)Lord of lords, the great God, (Z)mighty and awesome, who (AA)shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. 18 (AB)He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing. 19 Therefore love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. 20 (AC)You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall hold fast, and take oaths in His name. 21 He is your praise, and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen. 22 Your fathers went down to Egypt with seventy persons, and now the Lord your God has made you as the stars of heaven in multitude.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:1 Cut out
  2. Deuteronomy 10:4 Lit. Words
  3. Deuteronomy 10:6 place
  4. Deuteronomy 10:7 brooks
  5. Deuteronomy 10:8 set apart
  6. Deuteronomy 10:13 benefit or welfare
  7. Deuteronomy 10:15 Lit. seed
  8. Deuteronomy 10:16 rebellious
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Deuteronomy 10
English Standard Version

New Tablets of Stone

10 “At that time the Lord said to me, (A)‘Cut for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and come up to me on the mountain and (B)make an ark of wood. 2 And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets that you broke, and (C)you shall put them in the ark.’ 3 So I made an ark (D)of acacia wood, and (E)cut two tablets of stone like the first, and went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hand. 4 And (F)he wrote on the tablets, in the same writing as before, the Ten Commandments[a] (G)that the Lord had spoken to you on the mountain out of the midst of the fire (H)on the day of the assembly. And the Lord gave them to me. 5 Then I turned and (I)came down from the mountain and (J)put the tablets in the ark that I had made. (K)And there they are, as the Lord commanded me.”

6 (The people of Israel (L)journeyed from Beeroth Bene-jaakan[b] to Moserah. (M)There Aaron died, and there he was buried. And his son Eleazar ministered as priest in his place. 7 (N)From there they journeyed to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land with brooks of water. 8 At that time (O)the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi (P)to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord (Q)to stand before the Lord to minister to him and (R)to bless in his name, to this day. 9 (S)Therefore Levi has no portion or inheritance with his brothers. The Lord is his inheritance, as the Lord your God said to him.)

10 (T)“I myself stayed on the mountain, as at the first time, forty days and forty nights, (U)and the Lord listened to me that time also. The Lord was unwilling to destroy you. 11 (V)And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise, go on your journey at the head of the people, so that they may go in and possess the land, which I swore to their fathers to give them.’

Circumcise Your Heart

12 “And now, Israel, (W)what does the Lord your God require of you, but (X)to fear the Lord your God, (Y)to walk in all his ways, (Z)to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and (AA)to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today (AB)for your good? 14 Behold, (AC)to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, (AD)the earth with all that is in it. 15 Yet (AE)the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. 16 Circumcise therefore (AF)the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer (AG)stubborn. 17 For the Lord your God is (AH)God of gods and (AI)Lord of lords, (AJ)the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is (AK)not partial and takes no bribe. 18 (AL)He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 19 (AM)Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 20 (AN)You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and (AO)hold fast to him, and (AP)by his name you shall swear. 21 (AQ)He is your praise. He is your God, (AR)who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. 22 Your fathers went down to Egypt (AS)seventy persons, and now the Lord your God has made you (AT)as numerous as the stars of heaven.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:4 Hebrew the ten words
  2. Deuteronomy 10:6 Or the wells of the Bene-jaakan
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