Moses Commands Obedience

“And now, O Israel, listen to (A)the statutes and the rules[a] that I am teaching you, and do them, (B)that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. (C)You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. Your eyes have seen what the Lord did (D)at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. But you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today. See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. (E)Keep them and do them, for (F)that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For (G)what great nation is there that has (H)a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so (I)righteous as all this law that I set before you today?

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 4:1 Or just decrees; also verses 5, 8, 14, 45

Moses Presents the Privileges of the Covenant

“Now, Israel, listen to the statutes and the ordinances that I’m teaching you to observe so you may live and go in to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, is about to give you. Do not add or subtract a thing to what I’m commanding you. Observe the commands of the Lord your God.[a] You saw with your own eyes what he did in Baal Peor. The Lord your God exterminated from among you every man who followed Baal of Peor. But all of you who are clinging to the Lord your God are alive today. See! I taught you the statutes and the ordinances, just as the Lord God commanded. Therefore, observe them[b] when you enter the land you are about to possess. Observe them carefully, because this will show your wisdom and discernment in the eyes of people who’ll listen to all these decrees. Then they’ll say: ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people.’ For what great nation has a god so near like the Lord our God whenever we call on him? And what great nation has all the decrees and righteous ordinances like all this teaching that I’m giving you today?

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 4:2 Lit. God that I’m commanding you
  2. Deuteronomy 4:5 The Heb. lacks them