Deu 31-34 | ESV | STEP | So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel .

1 So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel. 2 And he said to them, “I am ^a120 years old today. I am no longer able to ^bgo out and come in. The Lord has said to me, ^c‘You shall not go over this Jordan.’ 3 The Lord your God ^dhimself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them, and Joshua will go over at your head, ^eas the Lord has spoken. 4 And the Lord will do to them ^fas he did to Sihon ^gand Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. 5 And the Lord will give them over to you, and you shall do to them ^haccording to the whole commandment that I have commanded you. 6 ⁱBe strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, ^jfor it is the Lord your God who goes with you. ^kHe will not leave you or forsake you.”

7 Then ^lMoses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, ^m“Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it. 8 It is the Lord ⁿwho goes before you. He will be with you; ^ohe will not leave you or forsake you. ^pDo not fear or be dismayed.”

The Reading of the Law

9 Then Moses ^qwrote this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, ^rwho carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 And Moses commanded them, ^s“At the end of every seven years, at the set time in the year of release, at ^tthe Feast of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes ^uto appear before the Lord your God at the place that he will choose, ^vyou shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 12 ^wAssemble the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, and be careful to do all the words of this law, 13 and that their children, ^xwho have not known it, ^ymay hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, ^zas long as you live in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Joshua Commissioned to Lead Israel

14 And the Lord said to Moses, ^aa“Behold, the days approach when you must die. Call Joshua and present yourselves in the tent of meeting, that ^abI may commission him.” And Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tent of meeting. 15 And ^acthe Lord appeared in the tent in a pillar of cloud. And the pillar of cloud stood over the entrance of the tent.

16 And the Lord said to Moses, ^ad“Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise and ^aewhore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will ^afforsake me and ^agbreak my covenant that I have made with them. 17 Then my anger will be kindled against them in that day, and ^ahI will forsake them and ^aihide my face from them, and they will be devoured. And many evils and troubles will come upon them, so that they will say in that day, ^aj‘Have not these evils come upon us because ^akour God is not among us?’ 18 And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil that they have done, because ^althey have turned to other gods.

19 “Now therefore write ^amthis song and ^anteach it to the people of Israel. Put it in their mouths, that this song may be ^aoa witness for me against the people of Israel. 20 For when I have brought them into the land ^apflowing with milk and honey, which I swore to give to their fathers, and they have eaten and are full and ^aqgrown fat, ^arthey will turn to other gods and serve them, and ^asdespise me and ^atbreak my covenant. 21 And when many evils and troubles have come upon them, this song shall confront them as ^aua witness (for it will live unforgotten in the mouths of their offspring). For ^avI know what they are inclined to do even today, before I have brought them into the land that I swore to give.” 22 So Moses wrote this song the same day and taught it to the people of Israel.

23 ^awAnd the Lord ^{▼▼Hebrew he} commissioned Joshua the son of Nun and said, ^ay“Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the people of Israel into the land that I swore to give them. ^azI will be with you.”

24 When Moses had finished ^bawriting the words of this law in a book to the very end, 25 Moses commanded ^bbthe Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, 26 “Take this Book of the Law ^bcand put it by the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for ^bda witness against you. 27 For I know how rebellious and ^bestubborn you are. Behold, even today while I am yet alive with you, ^bfyou have been rebellious against the Lord. How much more after my death! 28 Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, that I may speak ^bgthese words in their ears and ^bhcall heaven and earth to witness against them. 29 For I know that after my death ^biyou will surely act corruptly and turn aside from the way that I have commanded you. And ^bjin the days to come ^bkevil will befall you, because you will do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, ^blprovoking him to anger through the work of your hands.”

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:

Deuteronomy 32

1 “Give ear, ^bmO heavens, and I will speak,
and let ^bnthe earth hear the words of my mouth.
2 May ^bomy teaching drop as the rain,
my speech distill as the dew,
like gentle rain upon the tender grass,
and ^bplike showers upon the herb.
3 For I will proclaim the name of the Lord;
ascribe ^bqgreatness to our God!
4 ^br“The Rock, ^bshis work is perfect,
for ^btall his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness and ^buwithout iniquity,
just and upright is he.
5 They have dealt corruptly with him;
they are no longer his children ^bvbecause they are blemished;
they are ^bwa crooked and twisted generation.
6 Do you thus repay the Lord,
you foolish and senseless people?
Is not he ^bxyour father, who ^bycreated you,
who ^bzmade you and established you?
7 ^caRemember the days of old;
consider the years of many generations;
^cbask your father, and he will show you,
your elders, and they will tell you.
8 When the Most High ^ccgave to the nations their inheritance,
when he ^cddivided mankind,
he fixed the borders ^{▼▼Or territories} of the peoples
according to the number of the sons of God. ^{▼▼Compare Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text sons of Israel}
9 But the Lord’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted heritage.
10 “He found him ^cgin a desert land,
and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
he ^chencircled him, he cared for him,
he ^cikept him as the apple of his eye.
11 ^cjLike an eagle that stirs up its nest,
that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
bearing them on its pinions,
12 ^ckthe Lord alone guided him,
^clno foreign god was with him.
13 ^cmHe made him ride on the high places of the land,
and he ate the produce of the field,
and he suckled him with ^cnhoney out of the rock,
and ^cooil out of ^cpthe flinty rock.
14 Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
with fat ^{▼▼That is, with the best} of lambs,
rams of Bashan and goats,
with the very finest ^{▼▼Hebrew with the kidney fat} of the wheat—
and you drank foaming wine made from ^csthe blood of the grape.
15 “But ^ctJeshurun grew fat, and ^cukicked;
^cvyou grew fat, stout, and sleek;
^cwthen he forsook God ^cxwho made him
and scoffed at ^cythe Rock of his salvation.
16 ^czThey stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
with abominations they provoked him to anger.
17 ^daThey sacrificed to demons that were no gods,
to gods they had never known,
to ^dbnew gods that had come recently,
whom your fathers had never dreaded.
18 You were unmindful of ^dcthe Rock that bore ^{▼▼Or fathered} you,
and you ^deforgot the God who gave you birth.
19 ^df“The Lord saw it and spurned them,
because of the provocation of ^dghis sons and his daughters.
20 And he said, ^dh‘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 ^diThey have made me jealous with what is no god;
they have provoked me to anger ^djwith their idols.
So ^dkI will make them jealous with those who are no people;
I will provoke them to anger with ^dla foolish nation.
22 For ^dma fire is kindled by my anger,
and it burns to ^dnthe depths of Sheol,
devours the earth and its increase,
and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23 “‘And I will heap disasters upon them;
^doI will spend my arrows on them;
24 they shall be wasted with hunger,
and devoured by plague
and poisonous pestilence;
I will send ^dpthe teeth of beasts against them,
with the venom of ^dqthings that crawl in the dust.
25 ^drOutdoors the sword shall bereave,
and indoors terror,
for young man and woman alike,
the nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 ^dsI would have said, “I will cut them to pieces;
^dtI will wipe them from human memory,”
27 had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
lest they should say, ^du“Our hand is triumphant,
it was not the Lord who did all this.”’
28 “For they are a nation void of counsel,
and there is ^dvno understanding in them.
29 ^dwIf they were wise, they would understand this;
they would ^dxdiscern their latter end!
30 How could ^dyone have chased a thousand,
and two have put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock ^dzhad sold them,
and the Lord had given them up?
31 For ^eatheir rock is not as our Rock;
^ebour enemies are by themselves.
32 For their vine ^eccomes from the vine of Sodom
and from the fields of Gomorrah;
their grapes are grapes of ^edpoison;
their clusters are bitter;
33 their wine is the poison of ^eeserpents
and the cruel venom of asps.
34 “‘Is not this laid up in store with me,
^efsealed up in my treasuries?
35 ^egVengeance is mine, and recompense, ^{▼▼Septuagint and I will repay}
^eifor the time when their foot shall slip;
for ^ejthe day of their calamity is at hand,
and their doom comes swiftly.’
36 For ^ekthe Lord will vindicate ^{▼▼Septuagint judge} his people
^emand have compassion on his servants,
when he sees that their power is gone
and there is none remaining, ^enbond or free.
37 Then he will say, ^eo‘Where are their gods,
^epthe 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 ^eqI, even I, am he,
and there is no god beside me;
^erI kill and I make alive;
^esI wound and I heal;
and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
40 For ^etI lift up my hand to heaven
and swear, As I live forever,
41 if I ^eusharpen my flashing sword ^{▼▼Hebrew the lightning of my sword}
and my hand takes hold on judgment,
I will take vengeance on my adversaries
and will repay those who hate me.
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
and ^ewmy sword shall devour flesh—
with the blood of the slain and the captives,
from the ^exlong-haired heads of the enemy.’
43 ^ey“Rejoice with him, O heavens; ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text Rejoice his people, O nations}
bow down to him, all gods, ^{▼▼Masoretic Text lacks bow down to him, all gods}
for he ^fbavenges the blood of his children ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text servants}
and takes vengeance on his adversaries.
He repays those who hate him ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text lacks He repays those who hate him}
and cleanses ^{▼▼Or atones for} his people’s land.” ^{▼▼Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew his land his people}
44 Moses came and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and ^fgJoshua ^{▼▼Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew Hoshea} the son of Nun. 45 And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, ^fi“Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, ^fjthat 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 empty word for you, ^fkbut your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Moses’ Death Foretold

48 That very day the Lord spoke to Moses, 49 “Go up ^flthis mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, opposite Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel for a possession. 50 And die on the mountain which you go up, and be gathered to your people, as ^fmAaron your brother died in Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, 51 ^fnbecause you broke faith with me in the midst of the people of Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin, and because you did not treat me as holy in the midst of the people of Israel. 52 For ^foyou shall see the land before you, but you shall not go there, into the land that I am giving to the people of Israel.”

Deuteronomy 33

Moses’ Final Blessing on Israel

1 This is the blessing with which Moses ^fpthe man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death. 2 He said,

^fq“The Lord came from Sinai
and dawned from Seir upon us; ^{▼▼Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew them}
he shone forth from Mount Paran;
he came ^fsfrom the ten thousands of holy ones,
with flaming fire ^{▼▼The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain} at his right hand.
3 Yes, ^fuhe loved his people, ^{▼▼Septuagint; Hebrew peoples}
^fwall his holy ones were in his ^{▼▼Hebrew your} hand;
^fyso they followed ^{▼▼The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain} in your steps,
receiving direction from you,
4 when ^gaMoses commanded us a law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.
5 Thus the Lord ^{▼▼Hebrew Thus he} ^gcbecame king in ^gdJeshurun,
when the heads of the people were gathered,
all the tribes of Israel together.
6 ^ge“Let Reuben live, and not die,
but let his men be few.”
7 And this he said of Judah:

“Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah,
and bring him in to his people.
With your hands contend ^{▼▼Probable reading; Hebrew With his hands he contended} for him,
and be a help against his adversaries.”
8 And ^ggof Levi he said,

“Give to Levi ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text lacks Give to Levi} ^giyour Thummim,
and your Urim to your godly one,
^gjwhom you tested at Massah,
with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah;
9 who said of his father and mother,
‘I regard them not’;
^gkhe disowned his brothers
and ignored his children.
For ^glthey observed your word
and kept your covenant.
10 ^gmThey shall teach Jacob your rules
and Israel your law;
^gnthey shall put incense before you
and ^gowhole burnt offerings on your altar.
11 Bless, O Lord, his substance,
and ^gpaccept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”
12 ^gqOf Benjamin he said,

“The beloved of the Lord dwells in safety.
The High God ^{▼▼Septuagint; Hebrew dwells in safety by him. He} surrounds him all day long,
and dwells between his shoulders.”
13 And ^gsof Joseph he said,

^gt“Blessed by the Lord be his land,
with the choicest gifts of heaven ^guabove, ^{▼▼Two Hebrew manuscripts and Targum; Hebrew with the dew}
and of the deep that crouches beneath,
14 with the choicest fruits of the sun
and the rich yield of the months,
15 with the finest produce of the ancient mountains
and the abundance of ^gwthe everlasting hills,
16 with the best gifts of the earth and ^gxits fullness
and the favor of ^gyhim who dwells in the bush.
May these rest on the head of Joseph,
on the pate of him who is prince among his brothers.
17 ^gzA firstborn bull ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Samaritan; Masoretic Text His firstborn bull}—he has majesty,
and his horns are the horns of a ^hbwild ox;
with them ^hche shall gore the peoples,
all of them, to the ends of the earth;
^hdthey are the ten thousands of Ephraim,
and they are the thousands of Manasseh.”
18 And of Zebulun he said,

^he“Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out,
and Issachar, in your tents.
19 They shall call peoples ^hfto their mountain;
there they offer ^hgright sacrifices;
for they draw from the abundance of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.”
20 And ^hhof Gad he said,

“Blessed be he who enlarges Gad!
Gad crouches ^hilike a lion;
he tears off arm and scalp.
21 ^hjHe chose the best of the land for himself,
for there a commander’s portion was reserved;
and ^hkhe came with the heads of the people,
with Israel he executed the justice of the Lord,
and his judgments for Israel.”
22 And ^hlof Dan he said,

^hm“Dan is a lion’s cub
^hnthat leaps from Bashan.”
23 And ^hoof Naphtali he said,

“O Naphtali, sated with favor,
and full of the blessing of the Lord,
^hppossess the lake ^{▼▼Or west} and the south.”
24 And ^hrof Asher he said,

“Most blessed of sons be Asher;
let him be the favorite of his brothers,
and let him ^hsdip his foot in oil.
25 Your bars shall be iron and bronze,
and as your days, so shall your strength be.
26 ^ht“There is none like God, O ^huJeshurun,
^hvwho rides through the heavens to your help,
through the skies in his majesty.
27 The eternal God is your ^hwdwelling place, ^{▼▼Or a dwelling place}
and underneath are the everlasting arms. ^{▼▼Revocalization of verse 27 yields He subdues the ancient gods, and shatters the forces of old}
And he thrust out the enemy before you
and said, ‘Destroy.’
28 So Israel lived in safety,
^hzJacob lived ^iaalone, ^{▼▼Hebrew the abode of Jacob was alone}
in a land of grain and wine,
whose heavens drop down dew.
29 Happy are you, O Israel! ^icWho is like you,
a people ^idsaved by the Lord,
^iethe shield of your help,
and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you,
and you shall tread upon their backs.”

Deuteronomy 34

The Death of Moses

1 Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab ^ifto Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land, Gilead as far as Dan, 2 all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah ^igas far as the western sea, 3 ^ihthe Negeb, and ⁱⁱthe Plain, that is, the Valley of Jericho ^ijthe city of palm trees, as far as ^ikZoar. 4 And the Lord said to him, ^il“This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, ‘I will give it to your offspring.’ ^imI have let you see it with your eyes, but ⁱⁿyou shall not go over there.” 5 So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord, 6 and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but ^iono one knows the place of his burial to this day. 7 ^ipMoses was 120 years old when he died. ^iqHis eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated. 8 And the people of Israel ^irwept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. Then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.

9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of ^isthe spirit of wisdom, for ^itMoses had laid his hands on him. So ^iuthe people of Israel obeyed him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses. 10 And there has not ^ivarisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, ^iwwhom the Lord knew face to face, 11 none like him for all ^ixthe signs and the wonders that the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, 12 and for all the mighty power and all the great deeds of terror that Moses did in the sight of all Israel.