Deuteronomy 29:9-15
New English Translation
The Present Covenant Setting
9 “Therefore, keep the terms[a] of this covenant and obey them so that you may be successful in everything you do. 10 You are standing today, all of you, before the Lord your God—the heads of your tribes,[b] your elders, your officials, every Israelite man, 11 your infants, your wives, and the[c] resident foreigners[d] living in your encampment, those who chop wood and those who carry water— 12 so that you may enter by oath into the covenant the Lord your God is making with you today.[e] 13 Today he will affirm that you are his people and that he is your God,[f] just as he promised you and as he swore by oath to your ancestors[g] Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 14 It is not with you alone that I am making this covenant by oath, 15 but with whoever stands with us here today before the Lord our God as well as those not with us here today.[h]
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- Deuteronomy 29:9 tn Heb “words.”
- Deuteronomy 29:10 tc Heb “your heads, your tribes.” The Syriac presupposes either “heads of your tribes” or “your heads, your judges,” etc. (reading שֹׁפְטֵכֶם [shofetekhem] for שִׁבְטֵיכֶם [shivtekhem]). Its comparative difficulty favors the originality of the MT reading. Cf. KJV “your captains of your tribes”; NRSV “the leaders of your tribes”; NLT “your tribal leaders.”
- Deuteronomy 29:11 tn Heb “your.”
- Deuteronomy 29:11 sn The ger (גֵּר) “foreign resident” here enters into the covenant with the community if Israel. Elsewhere in Mosaic Law the ger make sacrifices to the Lord (Lev 17:8; 22:18; Num 15:14) and participate in Israel’s religious festivals: Passover Exod 12:48; Day of Atonement Lev 16:29; Feast of Weeks Deut 16:10-14; Feast of Tabernacles/Temporary Shelters Deut 31:12. Several passages emphasize equal standing under Mosaic Law (Exod 12:49; Lev 24:22; Num 9:14; 15:15, 16, 26, 29; 19:10; 35:15; Deut 1:16 or similar obligations Exod 20:10; 23:12; Lev 16:29; 17:10, 12, 13; 18:26; 24:16; Num 15:14. In many respects these ger (גֵּר) appear to be naturalized citizens who could not own land (land was allotted by tribe).
- Deuteronomy 29:12 tn Heb “for you to pass on into the covenant of the Lord your God and into his oath, which the Lord your God is cutting with you today.”
- Deuteronomy 29:13 tn Heb “in order to establish you today to him for a people and he will be to you for God.” Verses 10-13 are one long sentence in Hebrew. The translation divides this into two sentences for stylistic reasons.
- Deuteronomy 29:13 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 25).
- Deuteronomy 29:15 tn This is interpreted by some English versions as a reference to generations not yet born (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT).
Deuteronomy 29:9-15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
9 Therefore observe the words of this covenant and perform them, in order that you may succeed[a] in everything that you do.(A)
10 “You stand assembled today, all of you, before the Lord your God—the leaders of your tribes,[b] your elders, and your officials, all the men of Israel, 11 your children, your women, and the aliens who are in your camp, both those who cut your wood and those who draw your water(B)— 12 to enter into the covenant of the Lord your God, sworn by an oath, which the Lord your God is making with you today, 13 in order that he may establish you today as his people and that he may be your God, as he promised you and as he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.(C) 14 I am making this covenant, sworn by an oath, not only with you 15 who stand here with us today before the Lord our God but also with those who are not here with us today.
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