Category: Deuteronomy

[8:11] “Make certain that you do not forget the Lord your God; do not fail to obey any of his laws that I am giving you today.

[8:12] When you have all you want to eat and have built good houses to live in

[8:13] and when your cattle and sheep, your silver and gold, and all your other possessions have increased,

[8:14] be sure that you do not become proud and forget the Lord your God who rescued you from Egypt, where you were slaves.

[8:15] He led you through that vast and terrifying desert where there were poisonous snakes and scorpions. In that dry and waterless land he made water flow out of solid rock for you.

[8:16] In the desert he gave you manna to eat, food that your ancestors had never eaten. He sent hardships on you to test you, so that in the end he could bless you with good things.

[8:17] So then, you must never think that you have made yourselves wealthy by your own power and strength.

[8:18] Remember that it is the Lord your God who gives you the power to become rich. He does this because he is still faithful today to the covenant that he made with your ancestors.

[8:19] Never forget the Lord your God or turn to other gods to worship and serve them. If you do, then I warn you today that you will certainly be destroyed.

[8:20] If you do not obey the Lord, then you will be destroyed just like those nations that he is going to destroy as you advance.

[9:1] “Listen, people of Israel! Today you are about to cross the Jordan River and occupy the land belonging to nations greater and more powerful than you. Their cities are large, with walls that reach the sky.

[9:2] The people themselves are tall and strong; they are giants, and you have heard it said that no one can stand against them.

[9:3] But now you will see for yourselves that the Lord your God will go ahead of you like a raging fire. He will defeat them as you advance, so that you will drive them out and destroy them quickly, as he promised.

[9:4] “After the Lord your God has driven them out for you, do not say to yourselves that he brought you in to possess this land because you deserved it. No, the Lord is going to drive these people out for you because they are wicked.

[9:5] It is not because you are good and do what is right that the Lord is letting you take their land. He will drive them out because they are wicked and because he intends to keep the promise that he made to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

[9:6] You can be sure that the Lord is not giving you this fertile land because you deserve it. No, you are a stubborn people.

[9:7] “Never forget how you made the Lord your God angry in the desert. From the day that you left Egypt until the day you arrived here, you have rebelled against him.

[9:8] Even at Mount Sinai you made the Lord angry—angry enough to destroy you.

[9:9] I went up the mountain to receive the stone tablets on which was written the covenant that the Lord had made with you. I stayed there forty days and nights and did not eat or drink anything.

[9:10] Then the Lord gave me the two stone tablets on which he had written with his own hand what he had said to you from the fire on the day that you were gathered there at the mountain.

[9:11] Yes, after those forty days and nights the Lord gave me the two stone tablets on which he had written the covenant.

[9:12] “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go down the mountain at once, because your people, whom you led out of Egypt, have become corrupt and have done evil. They have already turned away from what I commanded them to do, and they have made an idol for themselves.’

[9:13] “The Lord also said to me, ‘I know how stubborn these people are.

[9:14] Don't try to stop me. I intend to destroy them so that no one will remember them any longer. Then I will make you the father of a nation larger and more powerful than they are.’

[9:15] “So I turned and went down the mountain, carrying the two stone tablets on which the covenant was written. Flames of fire were coming from the mountain.

[9:16] I saw that you had already disobeyed the command that the Lord your God had given you, and that you had sinned against him by making yourselves a metal idol in the form of a bull-calf.

[9:17] So there in front of you I threw the stone tablets down and broke them to pieces.

[9:18] Then once again I lay face downward in the Lord's presence for forty days and nights and did not eat or drink anything. I did this because you had sinned against the Lord and had made him angry.

[9:19] I was afraid of the Lord's fierce anger, because he was furious enough to destroy you; but once again the Lord listened to me.

[9:20] The Lord was also angry enough with Aaron to kill him, so I prayed for Aaron at the same time.

[9:21] I took that sinful thing that you had made—that metal bull-calf—and threw it into the fire. Then I broke it in pieces, ground it to dust, and threw the dust into the stream that flowed down the mountain.

[9:22] “You also made the Lord your God angry when you were at Taberah, Massah, and Kibroth Hattaavah.

[9:23] And when he sent you from Kadesh Barnea with orders to go and take possession of the land that he was giving you, you rebelled against him; you did not trust him or obey him.

[9:24] Ever since I have known you, you have rebelled against the Lord.

[9:25] “So I lay face downward in the Lord's presence those forty days and nights, because I knew that he was determined to destroy you.

[9:26] And I prayed, ‘Sovereign Lord, don't destroy your own people, the people you rescued and brought out of Egypt by your great strength and power.

[9:27] Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and do not pay any attention to the stubbornness, wickedness, and sin of this people.

[9:28] Otherwise, the Egyptians will say that you were unable to take your people into the land that you had promised them. They will say that you took your people out into the desert to kill them, because you hated them.

[9:29] After all, these are the people whom you chose to be your own and whom you brought out of Egypt by your great power and might.’

[10:1] “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Cut two stone tablets like the first ones and make a wooden Box to put them in. Come up to me on the mountain,

[10:2] and I will write on those tablets what I wrote on the tablets that you broke, and then you are to put them in the Box.’

[10:3] “So I made a Box of acacia wood and cut two stone tablets like the first ones and took them up the mountain.

[10:4] Then the Lord wrote on those tablets the same words that he had written the first time, the Ten Commandments that he gave you when he spoke from the fire on the day you were gathered at the mountain. The Lord gave me the tablets,

[10:5] and I turned and went down the mountain. Then, just as the Lord had commanded, I put them in the Box that I had made—and they have been there ever since.” (

[10:6] The Israelites set out from the wells that belonged to the people of Jaakan, and went to Moserah. There Aaron died and was buried, and his son Eleazar succeeded him as priest.

[10:7] From there they went to Gudgodah and then on to Jotbathah, a well-watered place.

[10:8] At that time the Lord appointed the men of the tribe of Levi to be in charge of the Covenant Box, to serve him as priests, and to pronounce blessings in his name. And these are still their duties.

[10:9] That is why the tribe of Levi received no land as the other tribes did; what they received was the privilege of being the Lord's priests, as the Lord your God promised.)

[10:10] “I stayed on the mountain forty days and nights, as I did the first time. The Lord listened to me once more and agreed not to destroy you.

[10:11] Then he told me to go and lead you, so that you could take possession of the land that he had promised to give to your ancestors.

[10:12] “Now, people of Israel, listen to what the Lord your God demands of you: Worship the Lord and do all that he commands. Love him, serve him with all your heart,

[10:13] and obey all his laws. I am giving them to you today for your benefit.

[10:14] To the Lord belong even the highest heavens; the earth is his also, and everything on it.

[10:15] But the Lord's love for your ancestors was so strong that he chose you instead of any other people, and you are still his chosen people.

[10:16] So then, from now on be obedient to the Lord and stop being stubborn.

[10:17] The Lord your God is supreme over all gods and over all powers. He is great and mighty, and he is to be obeyed. He does not show partiality, and he does not accept bribes.

[10:18] He makes sure that orphans and widows are treated fairly; he loves the foreigners who live with our people, and gives them food and clothes.

[10:19] So then, show love for those foreigners, because you were once foreigners in Egypt.

[10:20] Have reverence for the Lord your God and worship only him. Be faithful to him and make your promises in his name alone.

[10:21] Praise him—he is your God, and you have seen with your own eyes the great and astounding things that he has done for you.

[10:22] When your ancestors went to Egypt, there were only seventy of them. But now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky.

[11:1] “Love the Lord your God and always obey all his laws.

[11:2] Remember today what you have learned about the Lord through your experiences with him. It was you, not your children, who had these experiences. You saw the Lord's greatness, his power, his might,

[11:3] and his miracles. You saw what he did to the king of Egypt and to his entire country.

[11:4] You saw how the Lord completely wiped out the Egyptian army, along with their horses and chariots, by drowning them in the Red Sea when they were pursuing you.

[11:5] You know what the Lord did for you in the desert before you arrived here.

[11:6] You recall what he did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab of the tribe of Reuben. In the sight of everyone the earth opened up and swallowed them, along with their families, their tents, and all their servants and animals.

[11:7] Yes, you are the ones who have seen all these great things that the Lord has done.

[11:8] “Obey everything that I have commanded you today. Then you will be able to cross the river and occupy the land that you are about to enter.

[11:9] And you will live a long time in the rich and fertile land that the Lord promised to give your ancestors and their descendants.

[11:10] The land that you are about to occupy is not like the land of Egypt, where you lived before. There, when you planted grain, you had to work hard to irrigate the fields;

[11:11] but the land that you are about to enter is a land of mountains and valleys, a land watered by rain.

[11:12] The Lord your God takes care of this land and watches over it throughout the year.

[11:13] “So then, obey the commands that I have given you today; love the Lord your God and serve him with all your heart.

[11:14] If you do, he will send rain on your land when it is needed, in the autumn and in the spring, so that there will be grain, wine, and olive oil for you,

[11:15] and grass for your livestock. You will have all the food you want.

[11:16] Do not let yourselves be led away from the Lord to worship and serve other gods.

[11:17] If you do, the Lord will become angry with you. He will hold back the rain, and your ground will become too dry for crops to grow. Then you will soon die there, even though it is a good land that he is giving you.

[11:18] “Remember these commands and cherish them. Tie them on your arms and wear them on your foreheads as a reminder.

[11:19] Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you are resting and when you are working.

[11:20] Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.

[11:21] Then you and your children will live a long time in the land that the Lord your God promised to give to your ancestors. You will live there as long as there is a sky above the earth.

[11:22] “Obey faithfully everything that I have commanded you: Love the Lord your God, do everything he commands, and be faithful to him.

[11:23] Then he will drive out all those nations as you advance, and you will occupy the land belonging to nations greater and more powerful than you.

[11:24] All the ground that you march over will be yours. Your territory will extend from the desert in the south to the Lebanon Mountains in the north, and from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west.

[11:25] Wherever you go in that land, the Lord your God will make the people fear you, as he has promised, and no one will be able to stop you.

[11:26] “Today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse—

[11:27] a blessing, if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today;

[11:28] but a curse, if you disobey these commands and turn away to worship other gods that you have never worshiped before.

[11:29] When the Lord brings you into the land that you are going to occupy, you are to proclaim the blessing from Mount Gerizim and the curse from Mount Ebal. (

[11:30] These two mountains are west of the Jordan River in the territory of the Canaanites who live in the Jordan Valley. They are toward the west, not far from the sacred trees of Moreh near the town of Gilgal.)

[11:31] You are about to cross the Jordan River and occupy the land that the Lord your God is giving you. When you take it and settle there,

[11:32] be sure to obey all the laws that I am giving you today.

[12:1] “Here are the laws that you are to obey as long as you live in the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Listen to them!

[12:2] In the land that you are taking, destroy all the places where the people worship their gods on high mountains, on hills, and under green trees.

[12:3] Tear down their altars and smash their sacred stone pillars to pieces. Burn their symbols of the goddess Asherah and chop down their idols, so that they will never again be worshiped at those places.

[12:4] “Do not worship the Lord your God in the way that these people worship their gods.

[12:5] Out of the territory of all your tribes the Lord will choose the one place where the people are to come into his presence and worship him.

[12:6] There you are to offer your sacrifices that are to be burned and your other sacrifices, your tithes and your offerings, the gifts that you promise to the Lord, your freewill offerings, and the first-born of your cattle and sheep.

[12:7] There, in the presence of the Lord your God, who has blessed you, you and your families will eat and enjoy the good things that you have worked for.

[12:8] “When that time comes, you must not do as you have been doing. Until now you have all been worshiping as you please,

[12:9] because you have not yet entered the land that the Lord your God is giving you, where you can live in peace.

[12:10] When you cross the Jordan River, the Lord will let you occupy the land and live there. He will keep you safe from all your enemies, and you will live in peace.

[12:11] The Lord will choose a single place where he is to be worshiped, and there you must bring to him everything that I have commanded: your sacrifices that are to be burned and your other sacrifices, your tithes and your offerings, and those special gifts that you have promised to the Lord.

[12:12] Be joyful there in his presence, together with your children, your servants, and the Levites who live in your towns; remember that the Levites will have no land of their own.

[12:13] You are not to offer your sacrifices wherever you choose;

[12:14] you must offer them only in the one place that the Lord will choose in the territory of one of your tribes. Only there are you to offer your sacrifices that are to be burned and do all the other things that I have commanded you.

[12:15] “But you are free to kill and eat your animals wherever you live. You may eat as many as the Lord gives you. All of you, whether ritually clean or unclean, may eat them, just as you would eat the meat of deer or antelope.

[12:16] But you must not eat their blood; you must pour it out on the ground like water.

[12:17] Nothing that you offer to the Lord is to be eaten in the places where you live: neither the tithes of your grain, your wine, or your olive oil, nor the first-born of your cattle and sheep, the gifts that you promise to the Lord, your freewill offerings, or any other offerings.

[12:18] You and your children, together with your servants and the Levites who live in your towns, are to eat these offerings only in the presence of the Lord your God, in the one place of worship chosen by the Lord your God. And you are to be happy there over everything that you have done.

[12:19] Be sure, also, not to neglect the Levites, as long as you live in your land.

[12:20] “When the Lord your God enlarges your territory, as he has promised, you may eat meat whenever you want to.

[12:21] If the one place of worship is too far away, then, whenever you wish, you may kill any of the cattle or sheep that the Lord has given you, and you may eat the meat at home, as I have told you.

[12:22] Anyone, ritually clean or unclean, may eat that meat, just as he would eat the meat of deer or antelope.

[12:23] Only do not eat meat with blood still in it, for the life is in the blood, and you must not eat the life with the meat.

[12:24] Do not use the blood for food; instead, pour it out on the ground like water.

[12:25] If you obey this command, the Lord will be pleased, and all will go well for you and your descendants.

[12:26] Take to the one place of worship your offerings and the gifts that you have promised the Lord.

[12:27] Offer there the sacrifices which are to be completely burned on the Lord's altar. Also offer those sacrifices in which you eat the meat and pour the blood out on the altar.

[12:28] Obey faithfully everything that I have commanded you, and all will go well for you and your descendants forever, because you will be doing what is right and what pleases the Lord your God.

[14:1] “You are the people of the Lord your God. So when you mourn for the dead, don't gash yourselves or shave the front of your head, as other people do.

[14:2] You belong to the Lord your God; he has chosen you to be his own people from among all the peoples who live on earth.

[14:3] “Do not eat anything that the Lord has declared unclean.

[14:4] You may eat these animals: cattle, sheep, goats,

[14:5] deer, wild sheep, wild goats, or antelopes—

[14:6] any animals that have divided hoofs and that also chew the cud.

[14:7] But no animals may be eaten unless they have divided hoofs and also chew the cud. You may not eat camels, rabbits, or rock badgers. They must be considered unclean; they chew the cud but do not have divided hoofs.

[14:8] Do not eat pigs. They must be considered unclean; they have divided hoofs but do not chew the cud. Do not eat any of these animals or even touch their dead bodies.

[14:9] “You may eat any kind of fish that has fins and scales,

[14:10] but anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales may not be eaten; it must be considered unclean.

[14:11] “You may eat any clean bird.

[14:19] “All winged insects are unclean; do not eat them.

[14:20] You may eat any clean insect.

[14:21] “Do not eat any animal that dies a natural death. You may let the foreigners who live among you eat it, or you may sell it to other foreigners. But you belong to the Lord your God; you are his people. “Do not cook a young sheep or goat in its mother's milk.