Deuteronomy 31

Succession, Deposition, and Recitation of Text

1 And Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. 2 And he said to them, "I am a hundred and twenty years old today;*Literally "the day" I am not able to go out and to come in any longer, and Yahweh said to me, ‘You may not cross this Jordan.’ 3 Yahweh your God is about to cross before you;*Literally "to the face of you" he will destroy these nations before you,*Literally "to the face of you" and you shall dispossess them. Joshua will be crossing before you,*Literally "to the face of you" just as Yahweh promised.*Literally "spoke"4 And Yahweh will do to them just as he did to Sihon and to Og, kings of the Amorites, and to their land, which he destroyed with them. 5 And Yahweh will deliver them to you before you,*Literally "will give them Yahweh to the face of you" and you shall do to them according to every commandment that I have commanded you. 6 Be strong and be courageous; you should not be afraid, and you should not be in dread from their presence,*Literally "not you should dread from their face" for Yahweh your God is the one going with you; he will not leave you alone and he will not forsake you."

7 Then Moses summoned Joshua, and he said to him in the presence of all Israel,*Literally "before the eyes of all Israel" "Be strong and be courageous, for you will go with this people into the land that Yahweh swore to their ancestors*Or "their fathers" to give to them, and you will give it to them as an inheritance. 8 Yahweh is the one going before you;*Literally "to the face of you" he will be with you, and he will not leave you alone, and he will not forsake you; you shall not be afraid, and you shall not be discouraged." 9 So Moses wrote this law, and he gave it to the priests, the descendants*Or "sons" of Levi, the ones carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, and to all the elders of Israel.

10 Then Moses commanded them, saying,*Literally "to say" "At the end of seven years, in the time of the year for canceling debts during the Feast of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before*Literally "at/in the coming of all of Israel to see" Yahweh their God at the place that he will choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing.*Literally "in their ears"12 Assemble the people, the men and the women and the little children and your aliens that are in your towns,*Literally "gates" so that they may hear and so that they may learn and they may revere Yahweh your God, and they shall diligently observe*Literally "they shall keep to do" all the words of this law. 13 And then their children,*Hebrew "child" who have not known, they too may hear, and they may learn to revere Yahweh their God all the days that you live*Literally "that you are alive" on the land that you are crossing the Jordan to get there*Literally "there" to take possession of it."

14 Then Yahweh said to Moses, "Look, you are about to die;*Literally "are near your days to die" call Joshua and present yourselves in the tent of assembly,*Or "meeting" so that I may instruct him." So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in*Or "at" the tent of assembly.*Or "meeting"15 And Yahweh appeared in the tent in a column of cloud, and the column of the cloud stood at the entrance of the tent. 16 And Yahweh said to Moses, "Look, you are about to lie down with your ancestors,*Or "fathers" and this people will arise and they*Hebrew "he" will play the prostitute after the foreign gods*Literally "the gods of the foreigner/foreign person of the land" of the land to which they are going.*Literally "which he is going to"17 And my anger shall flare up against them*Literally "shall become my nose against it/him" on that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they*Hebrew "he" shall become as prey, and disasters and troubles shall find*Or "encounter" them,*Hebrew "him" and they*Hebrew "he" shall say on that day, ‘Is it not because our*Hebrew "my" but represents all the people God is not in our*Hebrew "my" midst that these disasters have found*Or "encountered" us?’*Hebrew "me"18 But I will certainly hide my face on that day, because of all of the evil that they*Hebrew "he" did because they*Hebrew "he" turned to other gods.

19 "And so then write this song for yourselves and teach it to the Israelites;*Literally "sons/children of Israel" put it in their mouth, so that this song may be for me as a witness against the Israelites.*Literally "sons/children of Israel"20 For when I bring them*Hebrew "him," referring to the people into the land that I swore to their*Hebrew "his" ancestors,*Or "fathers" a land flowing with milk and honey, they will eat their fill,*Literally "he will eat and he will be satisfied" and they*Hebrew "he" will become fat, and then they*Hebrew "he" will turn to other gods, and they will serve them, and they will spurn me, and they*Hebrew "he" will break my covenant. 21 And then*Literally "And it shall happen" many disasters and troubles will come upon them,*Hebrew "him" and this song will give evidence before them*Hebrew "him" as a witness, because it will not be forgotten from out of the mouth of their descendants,*Hebrew "his offspring/descendant" for I know their*Hebrew "his" inclination that they*Hebrew "he" are having today*Literally "the day" before I have brought them*Hebrew "him" into the land that I swore." 22 And Moses wrote this song on that day and taught it to the Israelites.*Literally "sons/children of Israel"

23 Then he*That is, Yahweh told Joshua the son of Nun, and said to him, "Be strong and be courageous, for you shall bring the Israelites*Literally "sons/children of Israel" into the land that I swore to them, and I will be with you."

24 And then when Moses finished writing*Literally "And it happened as/when to finish Moses to write" the words of this law on the scroll until they were complete,*Literally "until their to be complete/"25 then Moses commanded the Levites carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, saying,*Literally "to say"26 "Take the scroll of this law and put it at the side of the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God, and it will be there as a witness against you. 27 For I know your rebellion and your stiff neck even now while I am still alive with you today,*Literally "the day" rebelling against Yahweh, and how much more*Literally "and also for/indeed" after my death. 28 Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officials, so that I may speak in their ears these words, and that I may call as witness against them heaven and earth. 29 For I know that after my death you will certainly act corruptly, and you will turn aside from the way that I have commanded you, and the disaster in the future days will befall you, because you will do evil*Hebrew "the evil"; the definite article indicates the general concept of evil in the eyes of Yahweh, provoking him with the work of your hands."*Literally "to provoke him with/by the work of your hands"30 So Moses spoke into the ears of the assembly of Israel the words of this song until they were complete.*Literally "until their to be complete"