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The Song of Moses

30 Then Moses spoke the words of this song until they were finished, in the ears of all the assembly of Israel:

32 “Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
    and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
May my teaching drop as the rain,
    my speech distil as the dew,
as the gentle rain upon the tender grass,
    and as the showers upon the herb.
For I will proclaim the name of the Lord.
    Ascribe greatness to our God!

“The Rock, his work is perfect;
    for all his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness and without iniquity,
    just and right is he.
They have dealt corruptly with him,
    they are no longer his children because of their blemish;
    they are a perverse and crooked generation.
Do you thus requite the Lord,
    you foolish and senseless people?
Is not he your father, who created you,
    who made you and established you?
Remember the days of old,
    consider the years of many generations;
ask your father, and he will show you;
    your elders, and they will tell you.
When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
    when he separated the sons of men,
he fixed the bounds of the peoples
    according to the number of the sons of God.[a]
For the Lord’s portion is his people,
    Jacob his allotted heritage.

10 “He found him in a desert land,
    and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
he encircled him, he cared for him,
    he kept him as the apple of his eye.
11 Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
    that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
    bearing them on its pinions,
12 the Lord alone did lead him,
    and there was no foreign god with him.
13 He made him ride on the high places of the earth,
    and he ate the produce of the field;
and he made him suck honey out of the rock,
    and oil out of the flinty rock.
14 Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
    with fat of lambs and rams,
    herds of Bashan and goats,
with the finest of the wheat—
    and of the blood of the grape you drank wine.

15 “But Jesh′urun waxed fat, and kicked;
    you waxed fat, you grew thick, you became sleek;
then he forsook God who made him,
    and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.
16 They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
    with abominable practices they provoked him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons which were no gods,
    to gods they had never known,
to new gods that had come in of late,
    whom your fathers had never dreaded.
18 You were unmindful of the Rock that begot[b] you,
    and you forgot the God who gave you birth.

19 “The Lord saw it, and spurned them,
    because of the provocation of his sons and his daughters.
20 And he said, ‘I will hide my face from them,
    I will see what their end will be,
For they are a perverse generation,
    children in whom is no faithfulness.
21 They have stirred me to jealousy with what is no god;
    they have provoked me with their idols.
So I will stir them to jealousy with those who are no people;
    I will provoke them with a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled by my anger,
    and it burns to the depths of Sheol,
devours the earth and its increase,
    and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.

23 “‘And I will heap evils upon them;
    I will spend my arrows upon them;
24 they shall be wasted with hunger,
    and devoured with burning heat
    and poisonous pestilence;
and I will send the teeth of beasts against them,
    with venom of crawling things of the dust.
25 In the open the sword shall bereave,
    and in the chambers shall be terror,
destroying both young man and virgin,
    the sucking child with the man of gray hairs.
26 I would have said, “I will scatter them afar,
    I will make the remembrance of them cease from among men,”
27 had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
    lest their adversaries should judge amiss,
lest they should say, “Our hand is triumphant,
    the Lord has not wrought all this.”’

28 “For they are a nation void of counsel,
    and there is no understanding in them.
29 If they were wise, they would understand this,
    they would discern their latter end!
30 How should one chase a thousand,
    and two put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock had sold them,
    and the Lord had given them up?
31 For their rock is not as our Rock,
    even our enemies themselves being judges.
32 For their vine comes from the vine of Sodom,
    and from the fields of Gomor′rah;
their grapes are grapes of poison,
    their clusters are bitter;
33 their wine is the poison of serpents,
    and the cruel venom of asps.

34 “Is not this laid up in store with me,
    sealed up in my treasuries?
35 Vengeance is mine, and recompense,
    for the time when their foot shall slip;
for the day of their calamity is at hand,
    and their doom comes swiftly.
36 For the Lord will vindicate his people
    and have compassion on his servants,
when he sees that their power is gone,
    and there is none remaining, bond or free.
37 Then he will say, ‘Where are their gods,
    the rock in which they took refuge,
38 who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
    and drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise up and help you,
    let them be your protection!

39 “‘See now that I, even I, am he,
    and there is no god beside me;
I kill and I make alive;
    I wound and I heal;
    and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
40 For I lift up my hand to heaven,
    and swear, As I live for ever,
41 if I whet my glittering sword,[c]
    and my hand takes hold on judgment,
I will take vengeance on my adversaries,
    and will requite those who hate me.
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
    and my sword shall devour flesh—
with the blood of the slain and the captives,
    from the long-haired heads of the enemy.’

43 “Praise his people, O you nations;
    for he avenges the blood of his servants,
and takes vengeance on his adversaries,
    and makes expiation for the land of his people.”[d]

44 Moses came and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and Joshua[e] the son of Nun. 45 And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, “Lay to heart all the words which I enjoin upon you this day, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. 47 For it is no trifle for you, but it is your life, and thereby you shall live long in the land which you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 32:8 Compare Gk: Heb Israel
  2. Deuteronomy 32:18 Or bore
  3. Deuteronomy 32:41 Heb the lightning of my sword
  4. Deuteronomy 32:43 Gk Vg: Heb his land his people
  5. Deuteronomy 32:44 Gk Syr Vg: Heb Hoshea

30 And Moses spake in the ears of all the assembly of Israel the words of this song, until they were finished.

32 Give ear, ye heavens, and I will speak;
And let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
My doctrine shall drop as the rain;
My speech shall distil as the dew,
As the small rain upon the tender grass,
And as the showers upon the herb.
For I will proclaim the name of Jehovah:
Ascribe ye greatness unto our God.
The Rock, his work is perfect;
For all his ways are justice:
A God of faithfulness and without iniquity,
Just and right is he.
They have [a]dealt corruptly with him, they are not his children, [b]it is their blemish;
They are a perverse and crooked generation.
Do ye thus requite Jehovah,
O foolish people and unwise?
Is not he thy father that hath [c]bought thee?
He hath made thee, and established thee.
Remember the days of old,
Consider the years of many generations:
Ask thy father, and he will show thee;
Thine elders, and they will tell thee.
When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
When he separated the children of men,
He set the bounds of the peoples
According to the number of the children of Israel.
For Jehovah’s portion is his people;
Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
10 He found him in a desert land,
And in the waste howling wilderness;
He compassed him about, he cared for him,
He kept him as the apple of his eye.
11 As an eagle that stirreth up her nest,
That fluttereth over her young,
[d]He spread abroad his wings, he took them,
He bare them on his pinions.
12 Jehovah alone did lead him,
And there was no foreign god with him.
13 He made him ride on the high places of the earth,
And he did eat the increase of the field;
And he made him to suck honey out of the rock,
And oil out of the flinty rock;
14 Butter of the herd, and milk of the flock,
With fat of lambs,
And rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats,
With the [e]finest of the wheat;
And of the blood of the grape thou drankest wine.
15 But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked:
Thou art waxed fat, thou art grown thick, thou art become sleek;
Then he forsook God who made him,
And lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
16 They moved him to jealousy with strange gods;
With abominations provoked they him to anger.
17 They sacrificed unto demons, which were no God,
To gods that they knew not,
To new gods that came up of late,
Which your fathers dreaded not.
18 Of the Rock that [f]begat thee thou art unmindful,
And hast forgotten God that gave thee birth.
19 And Jehovah saw it, and abhorred them,
Because of the provocation of his sons and his daughters.
20 And he said, I will hide my face from them,
I will see what their end shall be:
For they are a very perverse generation,
Children in whom is no faithfulness.
21 They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God;
They have provoked me to anger with their vanities:
And I will move them to jealousy with those that are not a people;
I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled in mine anger,
And burneth unto the lowest Sheol,
And devoureth the earth with its increase,
And setteth on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23 I will heap evils upon them;
I will spend mine arrows upon them:
24 They shall be wasted with hunger, and devoured with [g]burning heat
And bitter destruction;
And the teeth of beasts will I send upon them,
With the poison of crawling things of the dust.
25 Without shall the sword bereave,
And in the chambers terror;
It shall destroy both young man and virgin,
The suckling with the man of gray hairs.
26 I said, I would scatter them afar,
I would make the remembrance of them to cease from among men;
27 Were it not that I feared the provocation of the enemy,
Lest their adversaries should judge amiss,
Lest they should say, Our hand is exalted,
And Jehovah hath not done all this.
28 For they are a nation void of counsel,
And there is no understanding in them.
29 Oh that they were wise, that they understood this,
That they would consider their latter end!
30 How should one chase a thousand,
And two put ten thousand to flight,
Except their Rock had sold them,
And Jehovah had delivered them up?
31 For their rock is not as our Rock,
Even our enemies themselves being judges.
32 For their vine is of the vine of Sodom,
And of the fields of Gomorrah:
Their grapes are grapes of gall,
Their clusters are bitter:
33 Their wine is the poison of serpents,
And the cruel venom of asps.
34 Is not this laid up in store with me,
Sealed up [h]among my treasures?
35 Vengeance is mine, and recompense,
At the time when their foot shall slide:
For the day of their calamity is at hand,
And the things that are to come upon them shall make haste.
36 For Jehovah will judge his people,
And repent himself for his servants;
When he seeth that their power is gone,
And there is none remaining, shut up or left at large.
37 And he will say, Where are their gods,
The rock in which they took refuge;
38 Which did eat the fat of their sacrifices,
And drank the wine of their drink-offering?
Let them rise up and help you,
Let them be your protection.
39 See now that I, even I, am he,
And there is no god with me:
I kill, and I make alive;
I wound, and I heal;
And there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
40 For I lift up my hand to heaven,
And say, As I live for ever,
41 If I whet [i]my glittering sword,
And my hand take hold on judgment;
I will render vengeance to mine adversaries,
And will recompense them that hate me.
42 I will make mine arrows drunk with blood,
And my sword shall devour flesh;
With the blood of the slain and the captives,
[j]From [k]the head of the leaders of the enemy.
43 [l]Rejoice, O [m]ye nations, with his people:
For he will avenge the blood of his servants,
And will render vengeance to his adversaries,
And will make expiation for his land, for his people.

44 And Moses came and spake all the words of this song in the ears of the people, he, and Hoshea the son of Nun. 45 And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel; 46 and he said unto them, Set your heart unto all the words which I testify unto you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, even all the words of this law. 47 For it is no vain thing for you; because it is your life, and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over the Jordan to possess it.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 32:5 Or, corrupted themselves, they etc.
  2. Deuteronomy 32:5 Or, but a blot upon them
  3. Deuteronomy 32:6 Or, possessed. Or, gotten
  4. Deuteronomy 32:11 Or, Spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her pinions.
  5. Deuteronomy 32:14 Hebrew fat of kidneys of wheat.
  6. Deuteronomy 32:18 Or, bare
  7. Deuteronomy 32:24 Hebrew burning coals. See Hab. 3:5.
  8. Deuteronomy 32:34 Or, in my treasuries
  9. Deuteronomy 32:41 Hebrew the lightning of my sword.
  10. Deuteronomy 32:42 Or, From the beginning of revenges upon the enemy
  11. Deuteronomy 32:42 Or, the hairy head of the enemy
  12. Deuteronomy 32:43 Or, Praise his people, ye nations
  13. Deuteronomy 32:43 Or, ye nations, his people