CALL TO OBEDIENCE

4 “Now, Israel, listen to the statutes and ordinancesk I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live,l enter, and take possession of the land the Lord, the God of your ancestors,m is giving you. 2 You must not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it,n so that you may keep the commands of the Lord your God I am giving you. 3 Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed every one of you who followed Baal of Peor.o 4 But you who have remained faithfulB to the Lord your God are all alive today. 5 Look, I have taught you statutes and ordinances as the Lord my God has commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to possess. 6 Carefully follow them, for this will show your wisdom and understanding in the eyes of the peoples. When they hear about all these statutes, they will say, ‘This great nation is indeed a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god near to it as the Lord our God is to us whenever we call to him?p 8 And what great nation has righteous statutes and ordinances like this entire law I set before you today?q

9 “Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves,r so that you don’t forgets the things your eyes have seen and so that they don’t slip from your mindC as long as you live. Teach them to your children and your grandchildren.t 10 The day you stood before the Lord your Godu at Horeb, the Lord said to me, ‘Assemble the people before me, and I will let them hear my words, so that they may learn to fear mea all the days they live on the earth and may instruct their children.’ 11 You came near and stood at the base of the mountain,b a mountain blazing with firec into the heavens and enveloped in a totally black cloud.d 12 Then the Lord spoke to you from the fire.e You kept hearing the sound of the words, but didn’t see a form; there was only a voice.f 13 He declared his covenantg to you. He commanded you to follow the Ten Commandments,h which he wrote on two stone tablets.i 14 At that time the Lord commanded me to teach you statutes and ordinances for you to follow in the land you are about to cross into and possess.

WORSHIPING THE TRUE GOD

15 “Diligently watch yourselves—because you did not see any form on the day the Lord spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb—16 so you don’t act corruptly and make an idol for yourselves in the shape of any figure: a male or female form, 17 or the form of any animal on the earth, any winged creature that flies in the sky, 18 any creature that crawls on the ground, or any fish in the waters under the earth. 19 When you look to the heavens and see the sun, moon, and stars—all the stars in the sky—do not be led astray to bow in worship to them and serve them.j The Lord your God has provided them for all people everywhere under heaven.k 20 But the Lord selected you and brought you out of Egypt’s iron furnacel to be a people for his inheritance, as you are today.

21 “The Lord was angry with me on your account.m He swore that I would not cross the Jordan and enter the good landn the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.o 22 I won’t be crossing the Jordan because I am going to die in this land.p But you are about to cross over and take possession of this good land. 23 Be careful not to forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he made with you, and make an idol for yourselves in the shape of anything he has forbidden you. 24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire,q a jealous God.r

25 “When you have children and grandchildren and have been in the land a long time, and if you act corruptly, make an idol in the form of anything, and do what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, angering him, 26 I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will quickly perishs from the land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not live long there, but you will certainly be destroyed. 27 The Lord will scatter you among the peoples,t and you will be reduced to a few survivorsA among the nations where the Lord your God will drive you. 28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see, hear, eat, or smell. 29 But from there, you will search for the Lord your God, and you will find him when you seek him with all your heart and all your soul.u 30 When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, in the future you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. 31 He will not leave you, destroy you, or forget the covenantv with your ancestors that he swore to them by oath, because the Lord your God is a compassionate God.w

32 “Indeed, ask about the earlier days that preceded you, from the day God created mankindB on the earth and from one end of the heavens to the other: Has anything like this great event ever happened, or has anything like it been heard of? 33 Has a people heard God’s voice speaking from the fire as you have, and lived? 34 Or has a god attempted to go and take a nation as his own out of another nation, by trials, signs, wonders, and war, by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, by great terrors, as the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 You were shown these things so that you would know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him.x 36 He let you hear his voice from heaven to instruct you.y He showed you his great fire on earth, and you heard his words from the fire.z 37 Because he lovedaa your ancestors, he chose their descendants after them and brought you out of Egypt by his presence and great power, 38 to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you in and give you their land as an inheritance,ab as is now taking place. 39 Today, recognize and keep in mind that the Lord is God in heaven above and on earth below; there is no other. 40 Keep his statutes and commands, which I am giving you today, so that you and your children after you may prosper and so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”

CITIES OF REFUGE

41 Then Moses set apart three cities across the Jordan to the east. 42 Someone could flee there who committed manslaughter, killing his neighbor accidentally without previously hating him. He could flee to one of these cities and stay alive: 43 Bezer in the wilderness on the plateau land, belonging to the Reubenites; Ramoth in Gilead, belonging to the Gadites; or Golan in Bashan, belonging to the Manassites.a

INTRODUCTION TO THE LAW

44 This is the law Moses gave the Israelites. 45 These are the decrees, statutes, and ordinances Moses proclaimed to them after they came out of Egypt, 46 across the Jordan in the valley facing Beth-peor in the land of King Sihon of the Amorites. He lived in Heshbon, and Moses and the Israelites defeated him after they came out of Egypt. 47 They took possession of his land and the land of Og king of Bashan, the two Amorite kings who were across the Jordan to the east, 48 from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley as far as Mount Sion (that is, Hermon) 49 and all the Arabah on the east side of the Jordan as far as the Dead Sea below the slopes of Pisgah.

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

5 Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “Israel, listen to the statutes and ordinances I am proclaiming as you hear them today. Learn and follow them carefully. 2 The Lord our God made a covenantb with us at Horeb. 3 He did not make this covenant with our ancestors,c but with all of us who are alive here today. 4 The Lord spoke to you face to face from the fire on the mountain. 5 At that time I was standing between the Lord and you to report the wordA of the Lord to you, because you were afraid of the fire and did not go up the mountain. And he said:

6 I am the Lord your God,d who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.e

7 Do not have other gods besides me.

8 Do not make an idol for yourself in the shape of anything in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters under the earth. 9 Do not bow in worship to them, and do not serve them, because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, bringing the consequences of the fathers’ iniquity on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me,f 10 but showing faithful love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commands.

11 Do not misuse the nameg of the Lord your God, because the Lord will not leave anyone unpunished who misuses his name.

12 Be careful to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 You are to labor six days and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. Do not do any work—you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your ox or donkey, any of your livestock, or the resident alien who lives within your city gates, so that your male and female slaves may rest as you do.

15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out of there with a strong hand and an outstretched arm. That is why the Lord your God has commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

16 Honor your father and your mother,h as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and so that you may prosper in the land the Lord your God is giving you.i

17 Do not murder.j

18 Do not commit adultery.k

19 Do not steal.

20 Do not give dishonest testimony against your neighbor.l

21 Do not covet your neighbor’s wife or desire your neighbor’s house, his field, his male or female slave, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.m

THE PEOPLE’S RESPONSE

22 “The Lord spoke these commands in a loud voice to your entire assembly from the fire, cloud, and total darkness on the mountain; he added nothing more. He wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me. 23 All of you approached me with your tribal leaders and elders when you heard the voice from the darkness and while the mountain was blazing with fire. 24 You said, ‘Look, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice from the fire. Today we have seen that God speaks with a person, yet he still lives. 25 But now, why should we die? This great fire will consume us and we will die if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any longer. 26 For who out of all humanity has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the fire, as we have, and lived? 27 Go near and listen to everything the Lord our God says. Then you can tell us everything the Lord our God tells you; we will listen and obey.’a

28 “The Lord heard yourA words when you spoke to me. He said to me, ‘I have heard the words that these people have spoken to you. Everything they have said is right. 29 If only they had such a heart to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that they and their children would prosper forever. 30 Go and tell them: Return to your tents. 31 But you stand here with me, and I will tell you every command—the statutes and ordinances—you are to teach them, so that they may follow them in the land I am giving them to possess.’

32 “Be careful to do as the Lord your God has commanded you; you are not to turn aside to the right or the left. 33 Follow the whole instruction the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live, prosper, and have a long life in the land you will possess.

THE GREATEST COMMAND

6 “This is the command—the statutes and ordinances—the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, so that you may follow them in the land you are about to enter and possess.b 2 Do this so that you may fearc the Lord your Godd all the days of your lifee by keeping all his statutes and commands I am giving you, your son, and your grandson, and so that you may have a long life.f 3 Listen, Israel, and be careful to follow them, so that you may prosper and multiply greatly, because the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you a land flowing with milk and honey.g

4 “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.B,h 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.i 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.j 7 Repeat them to your children.k Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol* on your forehead.D,l 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

REMEMBERING GOD THROUGH OBEDIENCE

10 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give you—a land with large and beautiful cities that you did not build, 11 houses full of every good thing that you did not fill them with, cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you did not plantm—and when you eat and are satisfied,n 12 be careful not to forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.o 13 Fear the Lord your God, worship him, and take your oaths in his name.p 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you, 15 for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God.q Otherwise, the Lord your God will become angry with you and obliterate you from the face of the earth. 16 Do not testr the Lord your God as you tested him at Massah.s 17 Carefully observe the commands of the Lord your God, the decrees and statutes he has commanded you. 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that you may prosper and so that you may enter and possess the good landt the Lord your God swore to give your ancestors,u 19 by driving out all your enemies before you, as the Lord has said.v

20 “When your son asks you in the future, ‘What is the meaningw of the decrees, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God has commanded you?’ 21 tell him, ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand.x 22 Before our eyes the Lord inflicted great and devastating signs and wonders on Egypt,y on Pharaoh, and on all his household, 23 but he brought us from there in order to lead us in and give us the land that he swore to our ancestors. 24 The Lord commanded us to follow all these statutes and to fear the Lord our God for our prosperity always and for our preservation, as it is today. 25 Righteousness will be ours if we are careful to follow every one of these commands before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us.’

ISRAEL TO DESTROY IDOLATROUS NATIONS

7 “When the Lord your God brings you into the landa you are entering to possess,b and he drives out many nations before you—the Hethites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nationsc more numerous and powerful than youd—2 and when the Lord your God delivers them over to you and you defeat them, you must completely destroye them. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.f 3 You must not intermarry with them, and you must not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons,g 4 because they will turn your sons away from me to worship other gods.h Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you,i and he will swiftly destroy you. 5 Instead, this is what you are to do to them: tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, cut down their Asherah poles,j and burn their carved images. 6 For you are a holy peoplek belonging to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be his own possessionl out of all the peoples on the face of the earth.

7 “The Lord had his heart set on you and chose you, not because you were more numerous than all peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. 8 But because the Lord lovedm you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors, he brought you out with a strong hand and redeemedn you from the place of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9 Know that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps his gracious covenant loyalty for a thousand generations with those who love him and keep his commands.o 10 But he directly pays backA and destroys those who hate him.p He will not hesitate to pay back directlyB the one who hates him. 11 So keep the command—the statutes and ordinances—that I am giving you to follow today.

12 “If you listen to and are careful to keep these ordinances, the Lord your God will keep his covenant loyalty with you, as he swore to your ancestors.q 13 He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will bless your offspring,A,r and the produce of your land—your grain, new wine, and fresh oil—the young of your herds, and the newborn of your flocks, in the land he swore to your ancestors that he would give you. 14 You will be blessed above all peoples; there will be no infertile male or female among you or your livestock. 15 The Lord will remove all sickness from you; he will not put on yous all the terrible diseases of Egypt that you know about, but he will inflict them on all who hate you. 16 You must destroy all the peoples the Lord your God is delivering over to you and not look on them with pity. Do not worship their gods, for that will be a snare to you.

17 “If you say to yourself, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I drive them out?’ 18 do not be afraid of them. Be sure to remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt: 19 the great trials that you saw, the signs and wonders, the strong hand and outstretched arm, by which the Lord your God brought you out. The Lord your God will do the same to all the peoples you fear. 20 The Lord your God will also send hornets against them until all the survivors and those hiding from you perish.t 21 Don’t be terrified of them, for the Lord your God, a great and awesome God, is among you. 22 The Lord your God will drive out these nations before you little by little. You will not be able to destroy them all at once; otherwise, the wild animals will become too numerous for you.u 23 The Lord your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion until they are destroyed. 24 He will hand their kings over to you, and you will wipe out their names under heaven. No one will be able to stand against you; you will annihilate them. 25 Burn up the carved images of their gods. Don’t covet the silver and gold on the images and take it for yourself, or else you will be ensnared by it, for it is detestable to the Lord your God. 26 Do not bring any detestable thing into your house, or you will be set apart for destruction like it. You are to abhor and detest it utterly because it is set apart for destruction.

REMEMBER THE LORD

8 “Carefully follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase, and may enter and take possession of the landv the Lord swore to your ancestors. 2 Remember that the Lord your God led you on the entire journey these forty years in the wilderness, so that he might humble you and test you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. 3 He humbled you by letting you go hungry; then he gave you manna to eat, which you and your ancestors had not known, so that you might learn that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.a 4 Your clothing did not wear out, and your feet did not swell these forty years.b 5 Keep in mind that the Lord your God has been disciplining you just as a man disciplines his son. 6 So keep the commands of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and fearing him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land,c a land with streams, springs, and deep water sources, flowing in both valleys and hills; 8 a land of wheat, barley, vines, figs, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey; 9 a land where you will eat food without shortage, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and from whose hills you will mine copper. 10 When you eat and are full,d you will bless the Lord your God for the good lande he has given you.

11 “Be careful that you don’t forget the Lord your God by failing to keep his commands, ordinances, and statutes that I am giving you today. 12 When you eat and are full, and build beautiful houses to live in, 13 and your herds and flocks grow large, and your silver and gold multiply, and everything else you have increases, 14 be careful that your heart doesn’t become proud and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.f 15 He led you through the great and terrible wilderness with its poisonousA snakes and scorpions, a thirsty land where there was no water. He brought water out of the flint rock for you. 16 He fed you in the wilderness with manna,g which your ancestors had not known, in order to humble and test you, so that in the end he might cause you to prosper. 17 You may say to yourself, ‘My power and my own ability have gained this wealth for me,’ 18 but remember that the Lord your God gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm his covenant he swore to your ancestors,h as it is today. 19 If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods to serve them and bow in worship to them, I testify against you today that you will certainly perish.i 20 Like the nations the Lord is about to destroy before you, you will perish if you do not obey the Lord your God.