Deuteronomy 4
1 People of Israel, pay attention to the rules and regulations I'm teaching you to observe. That way you can stay alive, and go in and take over the country the Lord, the God of your forefathers, is giving you.
Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which YHWH Elohim of your fathers giveth you.
2 You are not to add to or take away from what I'm telling you, so that you can keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I'm ordering you to follow.
Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of YHWH your Elohim which I command you.
3 You've seen for yourselves what the Lord did at Baal-peor where the Lord your God killed everyone among you who worshiped Baal of Peor.
Your eyes have seen what YHWH did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, YHWH thy Elohim hath destroyed them from among you.
4 Those of you who were faithful to the Lord your God are still alive today, every one of you.
But ye that did cleave unto YHWH your Elohim are alive every one of you this day.
5 Listen, I have taught you the rules and regulations just as the Lord my God ordered me to do, so you can follow them in the country that you are about to enter and take over.
Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as YHWH my Elohim commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
6 Be careful to observe them, because this will demonstrate your wisdom and insight to the other people living there who are watching. They will find out about all these rules and say, “The people of this great nation are very wise and have good insight.”
Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7 What nation is as great as us, having a god so close to them as the Lord our God is to us whenever we call on him?
For what nation is there so great, who hath Elohim so nigh unto them, as YHWH our Elohim is in all things that we call upon him for?
8 What nation is as great as us, having such good rules and regulations like all these laws that I'm placing before you today?
And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
9 Just make sure to be very careful, and really watch what you do, so you don't forget the things you've have seen. Keep them in mind as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren.
Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;
10 That day when you stood in the presence of the Lord your God at Horeb, the Lord told me, “Have the people come to me and to hear what I have to say, so they may learn to have respect for me throughout their lives here on earth, and so they may teach this to their children.”
Specially the day that thou stoodest before YHWH thy Elohim in Horeb, when YHWH said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.
11 You gathered and stood at the foot of the mountain. The mountain was on fire, shooting out flames into the sky and producing thick dark clouds.
And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness.
12 The Lord spoke to you from the fire. You heard the words, but you didn't see the form of anyone speaking—there was just a voice.
And YHWH spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.
13 He explained to you his agreement, the Ten Commandments, which he ordered you to follow. He wrote them down on two tablets of stone.
And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.
14 This was the time that the Lord ordered me to teach you the rules and regulations that you are to follow when you arrive in the country you're going to own once you've crossed the Jordan.
And YHWH commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.
15 You didn't see any form when the Lord spoke to you from the fire at Horeb, so be very careful
Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that YHWH spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 that you don't spoil your relationship with the Lord by making an idol for yourselves in any shape or form, whether it looks like a male or female,
Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 or any land animal or bird that flies,
The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,
18 or of any animal that crawls on the ground or any fish in the deep sea.
The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 When you look up at the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars—all the heavenly bodies—don't be tempted to bow down to them. Don't worship them like all the other nations on earth in the way that the Lord has allowed.
And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which YHWH thy Elohim hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
20 Remember that the Lord took you and led you out of the iron furnace which was Egypt to be his own people, just as you are today.
But YHWH hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.
21 But the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he vowed that I wouldn't cross the Jordan to enter the good land that the Lord your God is giving you to own.
Furthermore YHWH was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which YHWH thy Elohim giveth thee for an inheritance:
22 So I will not be crossing the Jordan, because I have to die here in this land. But you will cross over and occupy that good land.
But I must die in this land, I must not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.
23 However, be careful not to forget the agreement of the Lord your God that he made with you. Don't make an idol for yourselves in the form of anything, because he has forbidden you to do this.
Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of YHWH your Elohim, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which YHWH thy Elohim hath forbidden thee.
24 For the Lord your God is a fire that burns everything up. He is an exclusive God.
For YHWH thy Elohim is a consuming fire, even a jealous El.
25 After you have been living in the country for a long time and have had children and grandchildren, if you then spoil the relationship you have with the Lord and make an idol in any form. The Lord your God sees this as evil makes him angry.
When thou shalt beget children, and children's children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of YHWH thy Elohim, to provoke him to anger:
26 If you do this, I call on heaven and earth to be witnesses against you today that you will be completely wiped out from the country that you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. You will not live long there—you will be totally destroyed.
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.
27 The Lord will scatter you among the other nations, and not many of you will survive in the countries where the Lord has exiled you.
And YHWH shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither YHWH shall lead you.
28 There you will worship gods of wood and stone made by human beings. These idols can't see or hear or eat or smell.
And there ye shall serve elohim, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 However, if while you're there you decide to come to the Lord your God, you will find him if you come to him whole-heartedly, with complete commitment.
But if from thence thou shalt seek YHWH thy Elohim, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
30 When you are in trouble, after you've experienced all these things, then eventually you will return to the Lord your God and do what he says.
When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to YHWH thy Elohim, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;
31 The Lord your God is a merciful God. He won't abandon you or destroy you or forget the agreement he made with your forefathers, confirmed by a solemn promise.
(For YHWH thy Elohim is a merciful El; ) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.
32 Think about it! Examine the whole of history from the beginning of time, long before you existed, when God made human beings, right up until now. Ask this question anywhere, from one end of the earth to the other: Has anything as amazing as this ever happened before; has anyone ever heard anything like this?
For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that Elohim created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?
33 Has a people ever heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire, like you have, and survived?
Did ever people hear the voice of Elohim speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?
34 Has any god tried to take a nation out of another nation and make them his own, using tests and signs and miracles and war—with his great power and incredible strength and terrifying actions—like the Lord your God did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes?
Or hath Elohim assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that YHWH your Elohim did for you in Egypt before your eyes?
35 You were shown all this so you could be certain that the Lord is God and there is no one like him.
Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that YHWH he is Elohim; there is none else beside him.
36 He made you hear his voice from heaven so you would obey him. On earth he revealed himself though blazing fire, and you heard him speak to you from the fire.
Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.
37 Because he loved your forefathers, he chose you, their descendants. He himself led you out of Egypt by his great power,
And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt;
38 driving out ahead of you nations that were greater and stronger than you, in order to lead you to their land and give it to you as yours to own, just as you do today.
To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.
39 So today be sure about this and never forget: the Lord is the only God in heaven above and on the earth below.
Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that YHWH he is Elohim in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.
40 Observe his rules and regulations that I'm giving you right now, so that you and your children will do well, and that you may have long lives in the country that the Lord your God is giving you for all time.
Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which YHWH thy Elohim giveth thee, for ever.
41 Then Moses assigned three sanctuary towns to the east of the Jordan
Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;
42 where a person could run to after accidentally killing someone without deliberate hatred. To save their life they could run to one of these towns:
That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:
43 Bezer in the desert plain belonging to the tribe of Reuben; Ramoth in Gilead belonging to the tribe of Gad, or Golan in Bashan belonging to the tribe of Manasseh.
Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.
44 This is the law that Moses placed before the Israelites.
And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:
45 These are the laws, rules, and regulations Moses gave them after they had come out of Egypt.
These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt.
46 This was when they were in the valley to the east of the Jordan near Beth-peor in the country of Sihon king of the Amorites. He had ruled from Heshbon and had been defeated by Moses and the Israelites after they had left Egypt.
On this side Jordan, in the valley over against Bethpeor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they were come forth out of Egypt:
47 They took over his country and the country of Og king of Bashan. (They were the two kings of the Amorites who previously ruled on the east side of the Jordan.)
And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, which were on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;
48 The territory went from the town of Aroer on the edge of the Arnon Valley all the way to Mount Sirion, otherwise known as Mount Hermon,
From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto mount Sion, which is Hermon,
49 and included all the Arabah to the east of the Jordan down as far as the Dead Sea beside the slopes of Mount Pisgah.
And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the springs of Pisgah.
