Moses’ Last Counsel

31 So Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. And he said to them, “I am (A)120 years old today; (B)I am no longer able to [a]go out and come in, and the Lord has told me, ‘(C)You shall not cross this Jordan.’ (D)It is the Lord your God who is going to cross ahead of you; He Himself will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. (E)Joshua is the one who is going to cross ahead of you, just as the Lord has spoken. And the Lord will do to them just as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when He destroyed them. (F)The Lord will turn them over to you, and you will do to them in accordance with all the commandments which I have commanded you. (G)Be strong and courageous, (H)do not be afraid or in dread of them, for (I)the Lord your God is the One who is going with you. (J)He will not desert you or abandon you.”

Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “(K)Be strong and courageous, for you will go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you will give it to them as an inheritance. And (L)the Lord is the one who is going ahead of you; He will be with you. (M)He will not desert you or abandon you. Do not fear and do not be dismayed.”

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 31:2 I.e., as Israel’s leader

Joshua Becomes Moses’s Successor

31 When Moses had finished speaking all[a] these words to all Israel, he said to them, “I am now one hundred twenty years old. I am no longer able to get about, and the Lord has told me, ‘You shall not cross over this Jordan.’(A) The Lord your God himself will cross over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua also will cross over before you, as the Lord promised.(B) The Lord will do to them as he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. The Lord will give them over to you, and you shall deal with them in full accord with the command that I have given to you.(C) Be strong and bold; have no fear or dread of them, because it is the Lord your God who goes with you; he will not fail you or forsake you.”(D)

Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and bold, for you are the one who will go with this people into the land that the Lord has sworn to their ancestors to give them, and you will put them in possession of it.(E) It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”(F)

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Footnotes

  1. 31.1 Q ms Gk: MT Moses went and spoke