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Ceremonies

27 Then Moses and the elders of Israel charged the people, saying,[a] “Keep all of the commandment that I am commanding you today.[b] And then on the day that you cross the Jordan to the land that Yahweh your God is giving to you, then you shall set up for yourselves[c] large stones, and you shall paint[d] them with lime, and you shall write on them all the words of this law at your crossing, so that you may come into the land that Yahweh your God is giving to you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as Yahweh, the God of your ancestors,[e] promised[f] to you. And when you cross the Jordan,[g] you shall set up these stones that I am commanding you about today[h] on Mount Ebal, and you shall paint[i] them with lime. And you shall build an altar there for Yahweh your God, an altar of stone, but[j] you shall not use an iron tool to shape the stones.[k] You must build the altar of your God with unhewn stones, and you shall sacrifice on it burnt offerings to Yahweh your God. And you shall sacrifice fellowship offerings, and you shall eat them there, and you shall rejoice before[l] Yahweh your God. You shall write on the stone all of the words of this law very clearly.”

Then Moses and the priests, the Levites, spoke to all Israel, saying,[m] “Be silent and hear, Israel, for this day you have become a people[n] for Yahweh your God. 10 And listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, and observe his commandments and his rules that I am commanding you today.”[o]

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 27:1 Literally “to say”
  2. Deuteronomy 27:1 Literally “the day”
  3. Deuteronomy 27:2 Literally “for you”
  4. Deuteronomy 27:2 Or “coat/cover them”
  5. Deuteronomy 27:3 Or “fathers”
  6. Deuteronomy 27:3 Literally “spoke”
  7. Deuteronomy 27:4 Literally “at/in your crossing the Jordan”
  8. Deuteronomy 27:4 Literally “the day”
  9. Deuteronomy 27:4 Or “coat/cover”
  10. Deuteronomy 27:5 Or “and”
  11. Deuteronomy 27:5 Literally “and you shall not wave to and fro over them an iron tool”
  12. Deuteronomy 27:7 Literally “to the face of”
  13. Deuteronomy 27:9 Literally “to say”
  14. Deuteronomy 27:9 Literally “for a people”
  15. Deuteronomy 27:10 Literally “the day”

The Assembly at Shechem

27 Then Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people: “Pay attention to all the commandments[a] I am giving[b] you today. When you cross the Jordan River[c] to the land the Lord your God is giving you, you must erect great stones and cover[d] them with plaster. Then you must inscribe on them all the words of this law when you cross over, so that you may enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors,[e] said to you. So when you cross the Jordan you must erect on Mount Ebal[f] these stones about which I am commanding you today, and you must cover them with plaster. Then you must build an altar there to the Lord your God, an altar of stones—do not use an iron tool on them. You must build the altar of the Lord your God with whole stones and offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God. Also you must offer fellowship offerings and eat them there, rejoicing before the Lord your God. You must inscribe on the stones all the words of this law, making them clear.”

Then Moses and the Levitical priests spoke to all Israel: “Be quiet and pay attention, Israel. Today you have become the people of the Lord your God. 10 You must obey him[g] and keep his commandments and statutes that I am giving you today.”

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 27:1 tn Heb “the whole commandment.” See note at 5:31.
  2. Deuteronomy 27:1 tn Heb “commanding”; NAB “which I enjoin on you today” (likewise in v. 10).
  3. Deuteronomy 27:2 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
  4. Deuteronomy 27:2 tn Heb “plaster” (so KJV, ASV; likewise in v. 4). In the translation “cover” has been used for stylistic reasons.
  5. Deuteronomy 27:3 tn Heb “fathers.”
  6. Deuteronomy 27:4 tc Smr reads “Mount Gerizim” for the MT reading “Mount Ebal” to justify the location of the Samaritan temple there in the postexilic period. This reading is patently self-serving and does not reflect the original. In the NT when the Samaritan woman of Sychar referred to “this mountain” as the place of worship for her community she obviously had Gerizim in mind (cf. John 4:20).
  7. Deuteronomy 27:10 tn Heb “listen to the voice of the Lord your God.” Here “listen” (NAB “hearken”) means “obey” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB). The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.