Deuteronomy 31
1 When Moses/I finished saying all that to the Israeli people,
Moses [Drawn out] went and spoke these words to all Israel [God prevails].
2 he/I said to them, “Now I am 120 years old. I am no longer able to go everywhere [that you go] (OR, to be your leader). Furthermore, Yahweh has told me that I will not cross the Jordan [River].
He said to them, “I am one hundred twenty years old today. I can no more go out and come in. Adonai has said to me, ‘You shall not go over this Jordan [Descender].’
3 But Yahweh our God will go ahead of you. He will [enable you to] destroy the nations that are living there, in order that you can occupy their land. Joshua will be your leader, which is what Yahweh already told me.
Adonai your God himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations from before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua [Yah Salvation] will go over before you, as Adonai has spoken.
4 Yahweh will do to those nations what he did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amor people-group when he destroyed their armies [MTY].
Adonai will do to them as he did to Sihon and to Og, the kings of the Amorites [Descendants of Talkers], and to their land; whom he destroyed.
5 Yahweh will enable you to conquer those nations, but you must [kill all of the people of those nations, which is] what I have commanded you to do.
Adonai will deliver them up before you, and you shall do to them according to all the mitzvot ·instructions· I have enjoined you.
6 Be brave and confident. Do not be afraid of those people. [Do not forget that] it is Yahweh our God who will go with you. He will always help [LIT] you and never abandon you.”
Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid or scared of them; for Adonai your God himself is who goes with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you.”
7 Then Moses/I summoned Joshua, and while all the Israeli people were listening, he/I said to him, “Be brave and confident. You are the one who will lead these people into the land that Yahweh promised to our ancestors that he would give to them, and you will enable them to occupy it.
Moses [Drawn out] called to Joshua [Yah Salvation], and said to him in the sight of all Israel [God prevails], “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which Adonai has sworn to their fathers to give them; and you shall cause them to inherit it.
8 It is Yahweh who will go ahead of you. He will be with you. He will always help [LIT] you. He will never abandon you. So do not be afraid or dismayed.”
Adonai himself is who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be discouraged.”
9 Moses/I wrote down all these laws [on two scrolls] and gave [one scroll] to the priests, who carried the chest containing the Ten Commandments, and [gave the other scroll] to the Israeli elders.
Moses [Drawn out] wrote this Torah ·Teaching·, and delivered it to the priests the sons of Levi [United with], who bore the ark of Adonai’s covenant, and to all the elders of Israel [God prevails].
10 Moses/I told them, “At the end of every seven years, at the time that all debts are canceled, [read this to the people] during the Festival of [Living in Temporary] Shelters.
Moses [Drawn out] enjoined them, saying, “At the end of every seven years, in the set time of the year of release, in the festival of Sukkot ·Booths·,
11 Read it to all the Israeli people when they gather at the place that Yahweh chooses for them to worship him.
when all Israel [God prevails] has come to appear before Adonai your God in the place which he will choose, you shall read this Torah ·Teaching· before all Israel [God prevails] in their hearing.
12 Gather together everyone—men, women, children, even the foreigners [who are living] in your towns—in order that they may hear [these laws] and learn to revere Yahweh our God, and to faithfully obey everything that is written in these laws.
Assemble the people, the men and the women and the little ones, and the foreigners who are within your gates, that they may sh'ma ·hear obey·, and that they may learn, and fear Adonai your God, and observe to do all the words of this Torah ·Teaching·;
13 [If they do that], your descendants who have never known these laws will hear them and will also learn to revere Yahweh our God, during all the years that they live in the land that you are about to cross the Jordan [River] to occupy.”
and that their children, who have not known, may sh'ma ·hear obey·, and learn to fear Adonai your God, as long as you live in the land where you go over the Jordan [Descender] to possess it.”
14 Then Yahweh said to Moses/me, “Listen carefully. You will soon die. Summon Joshua, and you go to the Sacred Tent with him, in order that I may appoint him [to be the new leader].” So Joshua and Moses/I went to the Sacred Tent.
Adonai said to Moses [Drawn out], “Behold, your days approach that you must die. Call Joshua [Yah Salvation], and present yourselves in the Tent of Meeting, that I may enjoin him.” Moses [Drawn out] and Joshua [Yah Salvation] went, and presented themselves in the Tent of Meeting.
15 There Yahweh appeared to them/us in a pillar of cloud, and that cloud was close to the door of the tent.
Adonai appeared in the Tent in a pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud stood over the Tent’s door.
16 Yahweh said to Moses/me, “You will soon die [EUP]. Then these people will become unfaithful [MET] to me. They will abandon me and (break/stop obeying) the agreement that I made with them. They will begin to worship the foreign/pagan gods [that are worshiped by the people] of the land that they will enter.
Adonai said to Moses [Drawn out], “Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers. This people will rise up, and play the prostitute after the strange deities of the land, where they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant ·binding contract between two or more parties· which I have made with them.
17 When that happens, I will become very angry with them. I will abandon them [DOU] and I will no longer help them [IDM], and I will destroy them {they will be destroyed}. Many terrible things will happen to them, with the result that they will say, ‘[We are certain that] [RHQ] these things are happening to us because our God is no longer with us.’
Then my anger shall be kindled 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 come on them; so that they will say in that day, ‘Haven’t these evils come on us because our God is not among us?’
18 And because of all the evil things that they will have done, and [especially because] they will have started to worship other gods, I will refuse to help [IDM] them.
I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other deities.
19 “So, [I am going to give you] a song. Write it [on a scroll] and teach it to the Israeli people and cause them to memorize it. It will be like a witness that accuses them.
“Now therefore write this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel [God prevails]. Put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel [God prevails].
20 I am about to take them into a very fertile [IDM] land, a land that I solemnly promised their ancestors that I would give to them. There they will have plenty to eat, with the result that their [stomachs] will [always] be full and they will become fat. But then they will turn to other gods and start to worship them, and they will despise me and (break/stop obeying) the agreement that I made with them.
For when I have brought them into the land which I swore to their fathers, flowing with milk and honey, and they have eaten and filled themselves, and grown fat; then they will turn to other deities, and abad ·serve· them, and despise me, and break my covenant.
21 And they will experience many terrible disasters. After that happens, their descendants will never forget this song, and it will be like a witness [that says, ‘Now you know why Yahweh punished your ancestors].’ I will soon take them into the land that I vowed that I would give to them; but now, before I do that, I know what they are thinking [that they will do when they are living there].”
It will happen, when many evils and troubles have come on them, that this song will testify before them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten out of the mouths of their descendants; for I know their ways and what they are doing today, before I have brought them into the land which I swore.”
22 So on the day that [Yahweh gave Moses/me this song], he/I wrote it down, and he/I taught it to the Israeli people.
So Moses [Drawn out] wrote this song the same day, and taught it the children of Israel [God prevails].
23 Then Yahweh (appointed/set apart) Joshua and said to him, “Be brave and confident, because you will lead the Israeli people into the land that I vowed that I would give to them. And I will be with you.”
He enjoined Joshua [Yah Salvation] the son of Nun, and said, “Be strong and courageous; for you shall bring the children of Israel [God prevails] into the land which I swore to them. I will be with you.”
24 Then Moses/I finished writing on a scroll all the laws that Yahweh had told to him/me.
When Moses [Drawn out] had finished writing the words of this Torah ·Teaching· in a book, until they were finished,
25 Then Moses/I told the descendants of Levi, who were carrying the Sacred Chest that contained the Ten Commandments,
Moses [Drawn out] enjoined the Levites [Descendants of United with], who bore the ark of Adonai’s covenant, saying,
26 “Take this scroll on which these laws [are written], and place it beside the Sacred Chest that contains the agreement that Yahweh our God made with you, in order that it may remain there to testify [about what Yahweh will do] to the people [if they disobey him].
“Take this book of the Torah ·Teaching·, and put it by the side of the ark of Adonai’s covenant your God, that it may be there for a witness against you.
27 [I say this] because I know that these people are very stubborn [DOU]. They have rebelled against Yahweh all during the time that I have been [with them], and they will rebel much more after I die!
For I know your rebellion, and your stiff neck. Behold, while I am yet alive with you today, you have been rebellious against Adonai. How much more after my death?
28 So gather all the elders of the tribes and your officials, in order that I can tell them the words [of this song], and request all those who are in heaven and on the earth to be witnesses to testify against these people.
Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their ears, and call heaven and earth to witness against them.
29 I say that because I know that after I die, the people will become very wicked. They will turn away from doing everything that I have commanded them to do. And in the future, because of all the evil things that they will do, they will cause Yahweh to become angry with them. And he will cause them to experience disasters.”
For I know that after my death you will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which I have enjoined you; and evil will happen to you in the latter days; because you will do what Adonai sees as evil and provoke him to anger by your deeds.”
30 Then, while all the Israeli people listened, Moses/I sang/recited this entire song to them:
Moses [Drawn out] spoke in the ears of all the assembly of Israel [God prevails] the words of this song, until they were finished.
