Israel Urged to Obey God’s Law

4 “Now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the judgments which ^(A)I am teaching you to perform, so that ^(B)you may live and go in and take possession of the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. ^2 (C)You shall not add to the word which ^(D)I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you. ^3 (E)Your eyes have seen what the Lord has done in the case of Baal-peor, for all the men who followed Baal-peor, the Lord your God has destroyed ^[a]them from among you. ⁴ But you who held fast to the Lord your God are alive today, every one of you.

⁵ “See, I have taught you statutes and judgments ^(F)just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do thus in the land where you are entering to possess it. ⁶ So keep and do them, ^(G)for that is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ ⁷ For ^(H)what great nation is there that has a god ^(I)so near to it as is the Lord our God ^(J)whenever we call on Him? ⁸ Or what great nation is there that has ^(K)statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole law which I am setting before you today?

⁹ “Only ^(L)give heed to yourself and keep your soul diligently, so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen and they do not depart from your heart ^(M)all the days of your life; but ^(N)make them known to your sons and your grandsons.

Obey God and Prosper

6 “Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the judgments which the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do them in the land where you are going over to possess it, ² so that you and your son and your grandson might ^(A)fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, ^(B)all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. ³ O Israel, you should listen and ^[a]be careful to do it, that ^(C)it may be well with you and that you may multiply greatly, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in ^(D)a land flowing with milk and honey.

⁴ “^(E)Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the ^(F)Lord is one! ^5 (G)You shall love the Lord your God ^(H)with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. ^6 (I)These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. ^7 (J)You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. ^8 (K)You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as ^[b]frontals ^[c]on your forehead. ^9 (L)You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

¹⁰ “Then it shall come about when the Lord your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, ^(M)great and splendid cities which you did not build, ¹¹ and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and ^(N)you eat and are satisfied, ¹² then watch yourself, that ^(O)you do not forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of ^[d]slavery. ^13 (P)You shall ^[e]fear only the Lord your God; and you shall ^[f]worship Him and ^(Q)swear by His name. ^14 (R)You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you, ¹⁵ for the Lord your God in the midst of you is a ^(S)jealous God; otherwise the anger of the Lord your God will be kindled against you, and He will ^[g]wipe you off the face of the earth.

¹⁶ “^(T)You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, ^(U)as you tested Him at Massah. ^17 (V)You should diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and His testimonies and His statutes which He has commanded you.