29 The Lord commanded Moses to tell the Israelites the words of his covenant with them. He made this covenant with them in Moab's country, as well as the covenant that he had made with them at Sinai. 2 This is what Moses said to all the Israelites when they met together:
You have seen everything that the Lord did in Egypt. You saw how he punished Egypt's king, his officers and his whole country. 3 You saw the miracles which the Lord did to show his great power. 4 But until now the Lord has not let you understand why he did that. You saw and you heard those things, but you did not understand. 5 The Lord says, ‘I led you through this desert for 40 years. In all that time, your clothes and your shoes have not become spoiled. 6 You did not eat any bread. You did not drink any wine or beer. I helped you so that you would know that I am the Lord your God.’
7 When we arrived here, King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan attacked us. But we won against them. 8 We took their land and we gave it to the tribes of Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh. That would be their new home. [ a ]
9 So be careful to obey the words of this covenant. If you are faithful, everything that you do will go well.
10 The Lord your God sees all of you today as you stand here. He sees your leaders, your important men, your officers and all Israelite men. 11 He sees your children and your wives. He sees the foreign people who live among you and who cut wood and carry water for you. 12 You are standing here to agree to the covenant that the Lord your God is making with you today. You must promise to obey it. 13 By this covenant, the Lord says again today that you are his people and he is your God. He has already made that promise to you and to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 14-15 The Lord our God is making this strong covenant with you people who are standing here with him today. But it is not only with you. He also makes this covenant with those people who are not here today. [ b ]
16 You remember how we lived when we were in Egypt. You remember how we travelled through other countries as we came here. 17 You saw the useless gods that people of other nations worship. They worship idols that they make from wood, stone, silver and gold. 18 So be very careful that you do not turn away from the Lord our God to worship the gods of those nations. No man, woman, clan or tribe among you must ever want to do that. That would be like the root of a plant that gives fruits which are full of poison.
19 Nobody who hears the message of this covenant should think that they can go against it. Someone might say to himself, ‘I do not have to obey this covenant. I will be safe, whatever happens. God will still bless me.’ A person who thinks like that will bring trouble on everyone and on everything. 20 The Lord will never forgive that person. He will be very angry with him. The Lord will punish him in all the terrible ways that are written in this book. The Lord will destroy him completely so that his family name comes to an end. 21 The Lord will make that person separate from all the Israelite tribes and he will punish him very much. All the troubles that the Lord promises in this covenant will happen to that person, as this book of God's Law says.
22 Then, in future years, your descendants will see that many troubles have come to your land. They will see that the Lord has made people very ill. Foreign people who come from countries far away will also see what has happened. 23 The whole land will become spoiled with salt and sulphur. No one will plant seed in it, because nothing will grow there. Even grass will not grow on it. The land will be useless, like the cities that the Lord destroyed when he was very angry with them. Those cities were Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim.
24 The people of all other nations who see this will ask, ‘Why has the Lord destroyed this land? Why was he so angry with the people who lived there?’ 25 People will answer, ‘Because these people turned away from the covenant that the Lord had made with them. He is the God that their ancestors worshipped. He made a covenant with them when he brought them out of Egypt. 26 But they turned away from him and they worshipped other gods. They served gods that they had not known before. They were gods that the Lord did not give them to worship. 27 So the Lord was angry with the people in this land. He punished them with all the terrible troubles that are written in this book. 28 That is why the Lord removed them from their land. He was very angry with them. So he threw them out to a foreign country. We see that they are still there today.’
29 Some secret things belong to the Lord our God. He does not let us understand everything. But he has shown us many things clearly. Those things belong to us and to our descendants for all time. They are the words of his Law that we need to obey.
29 The Lord made an agreement with the Israelites at Mount Horeb. In addition to that agreement, he also commanded Moses to make another agreement with them while they were in Moab. This is that agreement.
2 Moses called together all the Israelites. He said to them, “You saw everything the Lord did in the land of Egypt. You saw what he did to Pharaoh, to Pharaoh’s officers, and to his whole country. 3 You saw the great troubles he gave them. You saw the miracles and amazing things he did. 4 But even today, you still don’t understand what happened. The Lord has not let you really understand what you saw and heard. 5 He led you through the desert for 40 years, and in all that time, your clothes and sandals did not wear out. 6 You did not have any food with you. You did not have any wine or anything else to drink. But he took care of you so that you would understand that he is the Lord your God.
7 “You came to this place, and King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan came out to fight against us. But we defeated them. 8 Then we took their land and gave it to the people in the tribes of Reuben and Gad and to half the tribe of Manasseh. 9 If you obey all the commands in this agreement, you will continue to succeed in everything you do.
10 “Today all of you are standing here before the Lord your God. Your leaders, your officials, your elders, and all the other men are here. 11 Your wives and children are here and also the foreigners living among you—the people who cut your wood and bring you water. 12 You are all here to enter into an agreement with the Lord your God. The Lord your God is making this agreement with you today. 13 With this agreement he is making you his own special people, and he himself will become your God. He told you this. He promised this to your ancestors—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 14 The Lord is making this agreement with its promises with you people, but not only with you. 15 Yes, he is making this agreement with all of you who stand here with us today before the Lord our God. But this agreement is also for our descendants who are not here with us today. 16 You remember how we lived in the land of Egypt. And you remember how we traveled through the countries that were on our way here. 17 You saw their hated things—the idols they had made from wood, stone, silver, and gold. 18 Be sure that there is no man, woman, family or tribe here today who turns away from the Lord our God. No one should go and serve the gods of the other nations. People who do that are like a plant that grows bitter and poisonous fruit.
19 “Some people might hear these curses and comfort themselves by saying, ‘I will continue doing what I want. Nothing bad will happen to me.’ But that attitude will bring total disaster. 20-21 The Lord will not forgive them for that. No, the Lord will be angry and upset with them and punish them. The Lord will separate them from the tribes of Israel. He will completely destroy them. All the curses that are written in this book will happen to them. They are a part of the agreement that is written in this Book of Teachings .
22 “In the future, your descendants and foreigners from faraway countries will see how the land has been ruined. They will see the diseases that the Lord has brought to it. 23 All the land will be useless—destroyed by burning sulfur and covered with salt. The land will have nothing planted in it. Nothing will be growing—not even weeds. The land will be destroyed like Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, the cities the Lord destroyed when he was very angry.
24 “All the other nations will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do this to this land? Why was he so angry?’ 25 The answer will be, ‘This happened because the Israelites left the agreement of the Lord , the God of their ancestors. They stopped following the agreement he made with them when he brought them out of Egypt. 26 The Israelites started serving other gods—gods they never worshiped before. The Lord told his people not to worship those gods. 27 That is why the Lord became very angry with the people of this land. So he brought to them all the curses that are written in this book. 28 The Lord became very angry and upset with them. So he took them out of their land. He put them in another land, where they are today.’
29 “There are some things that the Lord our God has kept secret. Only he knows these things. But he told us about some things. And these teachings are for us and our descendants forever. And we must obey all the commands in that law.
29 These are the words of the covenant, which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, beside the covenant which he made with them in Horeb.
2 And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, Ye have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt unto Pharaoh, and unto all his servants, and unto all his land;
3 The great temptations which thine eyes have seen, the signs, and those great miracles:
4 Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.
5 And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot.
6 Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink: that ye might know that I am the Lord your God.
7 And when ye came unto this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, came out against us unto battle, and we smote them:
8 And we took their land, and gave it for an inheritance unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half tribe of Manasseh.
9 Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do.
10 Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, with all the men of Israel,
11 Your little ones, your wives, and thy stranger that is in thy camp, from the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water:
12 That thou shouldest enter into covenant with the Lord thy God, and into his oath, which the Lord thy God maketh with thee this day:
13 That he may establish thee to day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God, as he hath said unto thee, and as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
14 Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath;
15 But with him that standeth here with us this day before the Lord our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day:
16 (For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt; and how we came through the nations which ye passed by;
17 And ye have seen their abominations, and their idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, which were among them:)
18 Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the Lord our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood;
19 And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst:
20 The Lord will not spare him, but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven.
21 And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law:
22 So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses which the Lord hath laid upon it;
23 And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the Lord overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:
24 Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this land? what meaneth the heat of this great anger?
25 Then men shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt:
26 For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them:
27 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against this land, to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book:
28 And the Lord rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day.
29 The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.
29 [ a ] ( A ) These are the words of the covenant which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the ( B ) covenant which He had made with them at Horeb.
2 [ b ] And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “You have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants, and to all his land; 3 ( C ) the great trials which your eyes have seen, those great signs and wonders. 4 Yet to this day ( D ) the Lord has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear. 5 And I have led you in the wilderness for forty years; ( E ) your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandal has not worn out on your foot. 6 ( F ) You have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or other strong drink, in order that you might know that I am the Lord your God. 7 ( G ) When you [ c ] reached this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan came out to meet us for battle, but we [ d ] defeated them; 8 and we took their land and ( H ) gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of the Manassites. 9 ( I ) So you will keep the words of this covenant and do them, ( J ) in order that you may be successful in everything that you do.
10 “You stand today, all of you, before the Lord your God: your heads, your tribes, your elders and your officers, that is , all the men of Israel, 11 your little ones, your wives, and the stranger who is within your camps, from ( K ) the one who gathers your firewood to the one who draws your water, 12 so that you may enter into the covenant with the Lord your God, and into His oath which the Lord your God is making with you today, 13 in order that He may establish you today as His people, and that ( L ) He may be your God, just as He spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
14 “Now it is not with you alone that I am ( M ) making this covenant and this oath, 15 ( N ) but both with those who stand here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God, and with those who are not with us here today 16 (for you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we passed through the midst of the nations through which you passed; 17 moreover, you have seen their abominations and their idols made of ( O ) wood and stone, silver and gold, which they had with them); 18 ( P ) so that there will not be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the Lord our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; that there will not be among you ( Q ) a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood. 19 And it shall be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will consider himself fortunate in his heart, saying, ‘I will do well though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order [ e ] to destroy the watered land along with the dry.’ 20 The Lord will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the Lord and ( R ) His wrath will [ f ] ( S ) burn against that person, and every curse that is written in this book will lie upon him, and the Lord will ( T ) wipe out his name from under heaven. 21 Then the Lord will single him out for disaster from all the tribes of Israel, in accordance with all the curses of the covenant ( U ) which is written in this Book of the Law.
22 “Now the future generation, your sons who rise up after you and ( V ) the foreigner who comes from a distant land, when they see the plagues of that land and the diseases with which the Lord has afflicted it, will say, 23 ‘All its land is ( W ) brimstone and salt, ( X ) burned debris, [ g ] unsown and unproductive, and no grass grows on it, like the overthrow of ( Y ) Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord overthrew in His anger and in His wrath.’ 24 All the nations will say, ‘ ( Z ) Why has the Lord done all this to this land? Why this great [ h ] outburst of anger?’ 25 Then people will say, ‘ It is ( AA ) because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord , the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. 26 And they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they have not known and whom He had not [ i ] assigned to them. 27 Therefore, the anger of the Lord burned against that land, ( AB ) to bring upon it every curse which is written in this book; 28 and ( AC ) the Lord uprooted them from their land in anger, fury, and in great wrath, and hurled them into another land, as it is this day.’
29 “ ( AD ) The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but ( AE ) the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, so that we may [ j ] follow all the words of this Law.
29 [ a ] These are the terms of the covenant the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in Moab, ( A ) in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Horeb. ( B )
2 Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them:
Your eyes have seen all that the Lord did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials and to all his land. ( C ) 3 With your own eyes you saw those great trials, those signs and great wonders. ( D ) 4 But to this day the Lord has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear. ( E ) 5 Yet the Lord says, “During the forty years that I led ( F ) you through the wilderness, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet. ( G ) 6 You ate no bread and drank no wine or other fermented drink. ( H ) I did this so that you might know that I am the Lord your God.” ( I )
7 When you reached this place, Sihon ( J ) king of Heshbon ( K ) and Og king of Bashan came out to fight against us, but we defeated them. ( L ) 8 We took their land and gave it as an inheritance ( M ) to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh. ( N )
9 Carefully follow ( O ) the terms of this covenant, ( P ) so that you may prosper in everything you do. ( Q ) 10 All of you are standing today in the presence of the Lord your God—your leaders and chief men, your elders and officials, and all the other men of Israel, 11 together with your children and your wives, and the foreigners living in your camps who chop your wood and carry your water. ( R ) 12 You are standing here in order to enter into a covenant with the Lord your God, a covenant the Lord is making with you this day and sealing with an oath, 13 to confirm you this day as his people, ( S ) that he may be your God ( T ) as he promised you and as he swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 14 I am making this covenant, ( U ) with its oath, not only with you 15 who are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God but also with those who are not here today. ( V )
16 You yourselves know how we lived in Egypt and how we passed through the countries on the way here. 17 You saw among them their detestable images and idols of wood and stone, of silver and gold. ( W ) 18 Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns ( X ) away from the Lord our God to go and worship the gods of those nations; make sure there is no root among you that produces such bitter poison. ( Y )
19 When such a person hears the words of this oath and they invoke a blessing ( Z ) on themselves, thinking, “I will be safe, even though I persist in going my own way,” ( AA ) they will bring disaster on the watered land as well as the dry. 20 The Lord will never be willing to forgive ( AB ) them; his wrath and zeal ( AC ) will burn ( AD ) against them. All the curses written in this book will fall on them, and the Lord will blot ( AE ) out their names from under heaven. 21 The Lord will single them out from all the tribes of Israel for disaster, ( AF ) according to all the curses of the covenant written in this Book of the Law. ( AG )
22 Your children who follow you in later generations and foreigners who come from distant lands will see the calamities that have fallen on the land and the diseases with which the Lord has afflicted it. ( AH ) 23 The whole land will be a burning waste ( AI ) of salt ( AJ ) and sulfur—nothing planted, nothing sprouting, no vegetation growing on it. It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, ( AK ) Admah and Zeboyim, which the Lord overthrew in fierce anger. ( AL ) 24 All the nations will ask: “Why has the Lord done this to this land? ( AM ) Why this fierce, burning anger?”
25 And the answer will be: “It is because this people abandoned the covenant of the Lord , the God of their ancestors, the covenant he made with them when he brought them out of Egypt. ( AN ) 26 They went off and worshiped other gods and bowed down to them, gods they did not know, gods he had not given them. 27 Therefore the Lord ’s anger burned against this land, so that he brought on it all the curses written in this book. ( AO ) 28 In furious anger and in great wrath ( AP ) the Lord uprooted ( AQ ) them from their land and thrust them into another land, as it is now.”
29 The secret things belong to the Lord our God, ( AR ) but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law. ( AS )
