Love the Lord Your God

These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear(A) the Lord your God as long as you live(B) by keeping all his decrees and commands(C) that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life.(D) Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey(E) so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly(F) in a land flowing with milk and honey,(G) just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised(H) you.

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a](I) Love(J) the Lord your God with all your heart(K) and with all your soul and with all your strength.(L) These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.(M) Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.(N) Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.(O) Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.(P)

10 When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build,(Q) 11 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig,(R) and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied,(S) 12 be careful that you do not forget(T) the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

13 Fear the Lord(U) your God, serve him only(V) and take your oaths(W) in his name.(X) 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the Lord your God(Y), who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land. 16 Do not put the Lord your God to the test(Z) as you did at Massah. 17 Be sure to keep(AA) the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you.(AB) 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight,(AC) so that it may go well(AD) with you and you may go in and take over the good land the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors, 19 thrusting out all your enemies(AE) before you, as the Lord said.

20 In the future, when your son asks you,(AF) “What is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the Lord our God has commanded you?” 21 tell him: “We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand.(AG) 22 Before our eyes the Lord sent signs and wonders—great and terrible—on Egypt and Pharaoh and his whole household. 23 But he brought us out from there to bring us in and give us the land he promised on oath to our ancestors. 24 The Lord commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear the Lord our God,(AH) so that we might always prosper and be kept alive, as is the case today.(AI) 25 And if we are careful to obey all this law(AJ) before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us, that will be our righteousness.(AK)

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 6:4 Or The Lord our God is one Lord; or The Lord is our God, the Lord is one; or The Lord is our God, the Lord alone

Always Love and Obey God

“These are the commands, the laws, and the rules that the Lord your God told me to teach you. Obey these laws in the land that you are entering to live in. You and your descendants must respect the Lord your God as long as you live. You must obey all his laws and commands that I give you. If you do this, you will have a long life in that new land. Israelites, listen carefully and obey these laws. Then everything will be fine with you. You will have many children, and you will get the land filled with many good things[a]—just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised.

“Listen, people of Israel! The Lord is our God. The Lord is the only God. You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Always remember these commands that I give you today. Be sure to teach them to your children. Talk about these commands when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road. Talk about them when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them on your hands and wear them on your foreheads to help you remember my teachings. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.

10 “The Lord your God made a promise to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He promised to give you this land, and he will give it to you. He will give you great and rich cities that you did not build. 11 He will give you houses full of good things that you did not put there. He will give you wells that you did not dig. He will give you vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant, and you will have plenty to eat.

12 “But be careful! Don’t forget the Lord. You were slaves in Egypt, but he brought you out of the land of Egypt. 13 Respect the Lord your God and serve only him. You must use only his name to make promises. 14 You must not follow other gods. You must not follow the gods of the people who live around you. 15 The Lord your God is always with you, and he hates for his people to worship other gods![b] So if you follow those other gods, the Lord will become very angry with you. He will destroy you from the face of the earth.

16 “You must not test the Lord your God like you tested him at Massah. 17 You must be sure to obey the commands of the Lord your God. You must follow all the teachings and laws he has given you. 18 You must do what is right and good—what pleases the Lord. Then everything will go well for you, and you can go in and take the good land that the Lord promised your ancestors. 19 And you will force out all your enemies, just as the Lord said.

Teach Your Children the Things God Did

20 “In the future, your children might ask you, ‘The Lord our God gave you teachings, laws, and rules. What do they mean?’ 21 Then you will say to them, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his great power. 22 The Lord did great and amazing things. We saw him do these things to the Egyptian people, to Pharaoh, and to the people in Pharaoh’s house. 23 He brought us out of Egypt so that he could give us the land that he promised our ancestors. 24 The Lord commanded us to follow all these teachings. We must respect the Lord our God. Then he will always keep us alive and doing well, as we are today. 25 If we carefully obey the whole law, exactly as the Lord our God told us to, he will say that we have done a very good thing.’[c]

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 6:3 land … things Literally, “land flowing with milk and honey.”
  2. Deuteronomy 6:15 he … gods Or “The Lord your God is El Kanah—the Jealous God.”
  3. Deuteronomy 6:25 Or “The Lord our God will credit us with righteousness if we carefully obey the whole law, exactly as he commanded us.”

A Call for Wholehearted Commitment

“These are the commands, decrees, and regulations that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you. You must obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy, and you and your children and grandchildren must fear the Lord your God as long as you live. If you obey all his decrees and commands, you will enjoy a long life. Listen closely, Israel, and be careful to obey. Then all will go well with you, and you will have many children in the land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.[a] And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

10 “The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. 11 The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, 12 be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. 13 You must fear the Lord your God and serve him. When you take an oath, you must use only his name.

14 “You must not worship any of the gods of neighboring nations, 15 for the Lord your God, who lives among you, is a jealous God. His anger will flare up against you, and he will wipe you from the face of the earth. 16 You must not test the Lord your God as you did when you complained at Massah. 17 You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so all will go well with you. Then you will enter and occupy the good land that the Lord swore to give your ancestors. 19 You will drive out all the enemies living in the land, just as the Lord said you would.

20 “In the future your children will ask you, ‘What is the meaning of these laws, decrees, and regulations that the Lord our God has commanded us to obey?’

21 “Then you must tell them, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand. 22 The Lord did miraculous signs and wonders before our eyes, dealing terrifying blows against Egypt and Pharaoh and all his people. 23 He brought us out of Egypt so he could give us this land he had sworn to give our ancestors. 24 And the Lord our God commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. 25 For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us.’

Footnotes

  1. 6:4 Or The Lord our God is one Lord; or The Lord our God, the Lord is one; or The Lord is our God, the Lord is one.