Deuteronomy 31-32New King James Version (NKJV)
Joshua the New Leader of Israel
31 Then Moses went and spoke these words to all
Israel. 2 And he said to them: “I am one
hundred and twenty years old today. I can no longer go out and come in. Also
the Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross over this
Jordan.’ 3 The Lord your God Himself
crosses over before you; He will destroy these nations from before you, and you
shall dispossess them. Joshua himself crosses over before you, just as
the Lord has said. 4 And
the Lord will do to them as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the
Amorites and their land, when He destroyed them. 5 The Lord will
give them over to you, that you may do to them according to every commandment
which I have commanded you. 6 Be strong and of good
courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God,
He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor
forsake you.”
7 Then Moses called Joshua and said
to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and of good courage, for you must
go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their
fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. 8 And
the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be
with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
The Law to Be Read Every Seven Years
9 So Moses wrote this law and
delivered it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who bore the ark of the covenant
of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 And
Moses commanded them, saying: “At the end of every seven
years, at the appointed time in the year of release, at the Feast of
Tabernacles, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before
the Lord your God in the place which He chooses, you shall read this
law before all Israel in their hearing. 12 Gather
the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within
your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear
the Lord your God and carefully observe all the words of this
law, 13 and that their children,
who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God
as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess.”
Prediction of Israel’s Rebellion
14 Then the Lord said to
Moses, “Behold, the days approach when you must die; call Joshua, and present
yourselves in the tabernacle of meeting, that I may inaugurate him.”
So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tabernacle
of meeting. 15 Now the Lord appeared at
the tabernacle in a pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud stood above the
door of the tabernacle.
16 And the Lord said to
Moses: “Behold, you will rest with your fathers; and this people will rise and
play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they
go to be among them, and they will forsake Me and break My
covenant which I have made with them. 17 Then My
anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I
will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and
troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, ‘Have not these
evils come upon us because our God is not among us?’ 18 And
I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have
done, in that they have turned to other gods.
19 “Now therefore, write down this
song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel; put it in their
mouths, that this song may be a witness for Me against the children of
Israel. 20 When I have brought them to the land
flowing with milk and honey, of which I swore to their fathers, and they have
eaten and filled themselves and grown fat, then they will turn to other gods
and serve them; and they will provoke Me and break My covenant. 21 Then
it shall be, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song
will testify against them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten in the
mouths of their descendants, for I know the inclination of their behavior
today, even before I have brought them to the land of which I swore to
give them.”
22 Therefore Moses wrote this song
the same day, and taught it to the children of Israel. 23 Then
He inaugurated Joshua the son of Nun, and said, “Be strong and of good courage;
for you shall bring the children of Israel into the land of which I swore to
them, and I will be with you.”
24 So it was, when Moses had
completed writing the words of this law in a book, when they were
finished, 25 that Moses commanded the Levites, who
bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying: 26 “Take
this Book of the Law, and put it beside the ark of the covenant of
the Lord your God, that it may be there as a witness against
you; 27 for I know your rebellion and your stiff
neck. If today, while I am yet alive with you, you have been
rebellious against the Lord, then how much more after my death? 28 Gather
to me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these
words in their hearing and call heaven and earth to witness against them. 29 For
I know that after my death you will become utterly corrupt, and turn aside from
the way which I have commanded you. And evil will befall you in the latter
days, because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to
anger through the work of your hands.”
The Song of Moses
30 Then Moses spoke in the hearing of
all the assembly of Israel the words of this song until they were ended:
32 “Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
And hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching drop as the rain,
My speech distill as the dew,
As raindrops on the tender herb,
And as showers on the grass.
3 For I proclaim the name of the Lord:
Ascribe greatness to our God.
4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect;
For all His ways are justice,
A God of truth and without injustice;
Righteous and upright is He.
5 “They have corrupted themselves;
They are not His children,
Because of their blemish:
A perverse and crooked generation.
6 Do you thus deal with the Lord,
O foolish and unwise people?
Is He not your Father, who bought you?
Has He not made you and established you?
And hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching drop as the rain,
My speech distill as the dew,
As raindrops on the tender herb,
And as showers on the grass.
3 For I proclaim the name of the Lord:
Ascribe greatness to our God.
4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect;
For all His ways are justice,
A God of truth and without injustice;
Righteous and upright is He.
5 “They have corrupted themselves;
They are not His children,
Because of their blemish:
A perverse and crooked generation.
6 Do you thus deal with the Lord,
O foolish and unwise people?
Is He not your Father, who bought you?
Has He not made you and established you?
7 “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:
8 When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations,
When He separated the sons of Adam,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the children of Israel.
9 For the Lord’s portion is His people;
Jacob is the place of His inheritance.
Consider the years of many generations.
Ask your father, and he will show you;
Your elders, and they will tell you:
8 When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations,
When He separated the sons of Adam,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the children of Israel.
9 For the Lord’s portion is His people;
Jacob is the place of His inheritance.
10 “He found him in a desert land
And in the wasteland, a howling wilderness;
He encircled him, He instructed him,
He kept him as the apple of His eye.
11 As an eagle stirs up its nest,
Hovers over its young,
Spreading out its wings, taking them up,
Carrying them on its wings,
12 So the Lord alone led him,
And there was no foreign god with him.
And in the wasteland, a howling wilderness;
He encircled him, He instructed him,
He kept him as the apple of His eye.
11 As an eagle stirs up its nest,
Hovers over its young,
Spreading out its wings, taking them up,
Carrying them on its wings,
12 So the Lord alone led him,
And there was no foreign god with him.
13 “He made him ride in the heights
of the earth,
That he might eat the produce of the fields;
He made him draw honey from the rock,
And oil from the flinty rock;
14 Curds from the cattle, and milk of the flock,
With fat of lambs;
And rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats,
With the choicest wheat;
And you drank wine, the blood of the grapes.
That he might eat the produce of the fields;
He made him draw honey from the rock,
And oil from the flinty rock;
14 Curds from the cattle, and milk of the flock,
With fat of lambs;
And rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats,
With the choicest wheat;
And you drank wine, the blood of the grapes.
15 “But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked;
You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he forsook God who made him,
And scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
16 They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods;
With abominations they provoked Him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons, not to God,
To gods they did not know,
To new gods, new arrivals
That your fathers did not fear.
18 Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful,
And have forgotten the God who fathered you.
You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he forsook God who made him,
And scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
16 They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods;
With abominations they provoked Him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons, not to God,
To gods they did not know,
To new gods, new arrivals
That your fathers did not fear.
18 Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful,
And have forgotten the God who fathered you.
19 “And when
the Lord saw it, He 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 faith.
21 They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God;
They have moved Me to anger by their foolish idols.
But I will provoke them to jealousy by those who are not a nation;
I will move them to anger by a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled in My anger,
And shall burn to the lowest hell;
It shall consume the earth with her increase,
And set on fire the foundations of the mountains.
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 faith.
21 They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God;
They have moved Me to anger by their foolish idols.
But I will provoke them to jealousy by those who are not a nation;
I will move them to anger by a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled in My anger,
And shall burn to the lowest hell;
It shall consume the earth with her increase,
And set on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23 ‘I will heap disasters on them;
I will spend My arrows on them.
24 They shall be wasted with hunger,
Devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction;
I will also send against them the teeth of beasts,
With the poison of serpents of the dust.
25 The sword shall destroy outside;
There shall be terror within
For the young man and virgin,
The nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 I would have said, “I will dash them in pieces,
I will make the memory of them to cease from among men,”
27 Had I not feared the wrath of the enemy,
Lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
Lest they should say, “Our hand is high;
And it is not the Lord who has done all this.”’
I will spend My arrows on them.
24 They shall be wasted with hunger,
Devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction;
I will also send against them the teeth of beasts,
With the poison of serpents of the dust.
25 The sword shall destroy outside;
There shall be terror within
For the young man and virgin,
The nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 I would have said, “I will dash them in pieces,
I will make the memory of them to cease from among men,”
27 Had I not feared the wrath of the enemy,
Lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
Lest they should say, “Our hand is high;
And it is not the Lord who has done all this.”’
28 “For they are a
nation void of counsel,
Nor is there any understanding in them.
29 Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this,
That they would consider their latter end!
30 How could one chase a thousand,
And two put ten thousand to flight,
Unless their Rock had sold them,
And the Lord had surrendered them?
31 For their rock is not like 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 cobras.
Nor is there any understanding in them.
29 Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this,
That they would consider their latter end!
30 How could one chase a thousand,
And two put ten thousand to flight,
Unless their Rock had sold them,
And the Lord had surrendered them?
31 For their rock is not like 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 cobras.
34 ‘Is this not laid up
in store with Me,
Sealed up among My treasures?
35 Vengeance is Mine, and recompense;
Their foot shall slip in due time;
For the day of their calamity is at hand,
And the things to come hasten upon them.’
Sealed up among My treasures?
35 Vengeance is Mine, and recompense;
Their foot shall slip in due time;
For the day of their calamity is at hand,
And the things to come hasten upon them.’
36 “For the Lord will judge
His people
And have compassion on His servants,
When He sees that their power is gone,
And there is no one remaining, bond or free.
37 He will say: ‘Where are their gods,
The rock in which they sought refuge?
38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
And drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise and help you,
And be your refuge.
And have compassion on His servants,
When He sees that their power is gone,
And there is no one remaining, bond or free.
37 He will say: ‘Where are their gods,
The rock in which they sought refuge?
38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
And drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise and help you,
And be your refuge.
39 ‘Now see that I, even I, am He,
And there is no God besides Me;
I kill and I make alive;
I wound and I heal;
Nor is there any who can deliver from My hand.
40 For I raise My hand to heaven,
And say, “As I live forever,
41 If I whet My glittering sword,
And My hand takes hold on judgment,
I will render vengeance to My enemies,
And repay 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 heads of the leaders of the enemy.”’
And there is no God besides Me;
I kill and I make alive;
I wound and I heal;
Nor is there any who can deliver from My hand.
40 For I raise My hand to heaven,
And say, “As I live forever,
41 If I whet My glittering sword,
And My hand takes hold on judgment,
I will render vengeance to My enemies,
And repay 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 heads of the leaders of the enemy.”’
43 “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His
people;[a]
For He will avenge the blood of His servants,
And render vengeance to His adversaries;
He will provide atonement for His land and His people.”
For He will avenge the blood of His servants,
And render vengeance to His adversaries;
He will provide atonement for His land and His people.”
44 So Moses came with Joshua[b] the son of Nun and
spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people. 45 Moses
finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 and
he said to them: “Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you
today, which you shall command your children to be careful to observe—all the
words of this law. 47 For it is not
a futile thing for you, because it is your life, and by this
word you shall prolong your days in the land which you cross
over the Jordan to possess.”
Moses to Die on Mount Nebo
48 Then the Lord spoke to
Moses that very same day, saying: 49 “Go up this
mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of
Moab, across from Jericho; view the land of Canaan, which I give to the
children of Israel as a possession; 50 and die on
the mountain which you ascend, and be gathered to your people, just as Aaron your
brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people; 51 because
you trespassed against Me among the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah
Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Zin, because you did not hallow Me in the midst of
the children of Israel. 52 Yet you shall see the
land before you, though you shall not go there, into the land
which I am giving to the children of Israel.”
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