Deuteronomii 4
1 Et nunc Israel audi præcepta et iudicia, quæ ego doceo te: ut faciens ea, vivas, et ingrediens possideas Terram, quam Dominus Deus patrum vestrorum daturus est vobis.
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.
2 Non addetis ad verbum, quod vobis loquor, nec auferetis ex eo: custodite mandata Domini Dei vestri quæ ego præcipio vobis.
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.
3 Oculi vestri viderunt omnia quæ fecit Dominus contra Beelphegor, quomodo contriverit omnes cultores eius de medio vestri.
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.
4 Vos autem qui adhæretis Domino Deo vestro, vivitis universi usque in præsentem diem.
Those of you who were faithful to the Lord your God are still alive today, every one of you.
5 Scitis quod docuerim vos præcepta atque iustitias, sicut mandavit mihi Dominus Deus meus: sic facietis ea in Terra, quam possessuri estis:
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.
6 et observabitis et implebitis opere. Hæc est enim vestra sapientia, et intellectus coram populis, ut audientes universa præcepta hæc, dicant: En populus sapiens et intelligens, gens magna.
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.”
7 Nec est alia natio tam grandis, quæ habeat deos appropinquantes sibi, sicut Deus noster adest cunctis obsecrationibus nostris.
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?
8 Quæ est enim alia gens sic inclyta ut habeat ceremonias, iustaque iudicia, et universam legem, quam ego proponam hodie ante oculos vestros?
What nation is as great as us, having such good rules and regulations like all these laws that I'm placing before you today?
9 Custodi igitur temetipsum, et animam tuam solicite. Ne obliviscaris verborum, quæ viderunt oculi tui, et ne excidant de corde tuo cunctis diebus vitæ tuæ. Docebis ea filios ac nepotes tuos,
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.
10 a die in quo stetisti coram Domino Deo tuo in Horeb, quando Dominus locutus est mihi dicens: Congrega ad me populum, ut audiant sermones meos, et discant timere me omni tempore quo vivunt in terra, doceantque filios suos.
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.”
11 Et accessistis ad radices montis, qui ardebat usque ad cælum: erantque in eo tenebræ, et nubes, et caligo.
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.
12 Locutusque est Dominus ad vos de medio ignis. Vocem verborum eius audistis, et formam penitus non vidistis.
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.
13 Et ostendit vobis pactum suum, quod præcepit ut faceretis, et decem verba, quæ scripsit in duabus tabulis lapideis.
He explained to you his agreement, the Ten Commandments, which he ordered you to follow. He wrote them down on two tablets of stone.
14 Mihique mandavit in illo tempore ut docerem vos ceremonias et iudicia, quæ facere deberetis in Terra, quam possessuri estis.
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.
15 Custodite igitur solicite animas vestras. Non vidistis aliquam similitudinem in die, qua locutus est vobis Dominus in Horeb de medio ignis:
You didn't see any form when the Lord spoke to you from the fire at Horeb, so be very careful
16 ne forte decepti faciatis vobis sculptam similitudinem, aut imaginem masculi vel feminæ,
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,
17 similitudinem omnium iumentorum, quæ sunt super terram, vel avium sub cælo volantium,
or any land animal or bird that flies,
18 atque reptilium, quæ moventur in terra, sive piscium qui sub terra morantur in aquis:
or of any animal that crawls on the ground or any fish in the deep sea.
19 ne forte elevatis oculis ad cælum, videas Solem et Lunam, et omnia astra cæli, et errore deceptus adores ea et colas quæ creavit Dominus Deus tuus in ministerium cunctis gentibus, quæ sub cælo sunt.
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.
20 Vos autem tulit Dominus, et eduxit de fornace ferrea Ægypti, ut haberet populum hereditarium, sicut est in præsenti die.
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.
21 Iratusque est Dominus contra me propter sermones vestros, et iuravit ut non transirem Iordanem, nec ingrederer Terram optimam, quam daturus est vobis.
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.
22 Ecce morior in hac humo, non transibo Iordanem: vos transibitis, et possidebitis terram egregiam.
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.
23 Cave ne quando obliviscaris pacti Domini Dei tui, quod pepigit tecum: et facias tibi sculptam similitudinem eorum, quæ fieri Dominus prohibuit:
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.
24 quia Dominus Deus tuus ignis consumens est, Deus æmulator.
For the Lord your God is a fire that burns everything up. He is an exclusive God.
25 Si genueritis filios ac nepotes, et morati fueritis in Terra, deceptique feceritis vobis aliquam similitudinem, patrantes malum coram Domino Deo vestro, ut eum ad iracundiam provocetis:
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.
26 testes invoco hodie cælum et terram, cito perituros vos esse de Terra, quam transito Iordane possessuri estis. non habitabitis in ea longo tempore, sed delebit vos Dominus,
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.
27 atque disperget in omnes gentes, et remanebitis pauci in nationibus, ad quas vos ducturus est Dominus.
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.
28 ibique servietis diis, qui hominum manu fabricati sunt, ligno et lapidi qui non vident, nec audiunt, nec comedunt, nec odorantur.
There you will worship gods of wood and stone made by human beings. These idols can't see or hear or eat or smell.
29 Cumque quæsieris ibi Dominum Deum tuum, invenies eum: si tamen toto corde quæsieris, et tota tribulatione animæ tuæ.
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.
30 Postquam te invenerint omnia quæ prædicta sunt, novissimo tempore reverteris ad Dominum Deum tuum, et audies vocem eius.
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.
31 Quia Deus misericors Dominus Deus tuus est: non dimittet te, nec omnino delebit, neque obliviscetur pacti, in quo iuravit patribus tuis.
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.
32 Interroga de diebus antiquis, qui fuerunt ante te ex die quo creavit Deus hominem super terram, a summo cælo usque ad summum eius, si facta est aliquando huiuscemodi res, aut umquam cognitum est,
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?
33 ut audiret populus vocem Dei loquentis de medio ignis, sicut tu audisti, et vixisti:
Has a people ever heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire, like you have, and survived?
34 si fecit Deus ut ingrederetur, et tolleret sibi Gentem de medio nationum, per tentationes, signa, atque portenta, per pugnam, et robustam manum, extentumque brachium, et horribiles visiones iuxta omnia, quæ fecit pro vobis Dominus Deus vester in Ægypto, videntibus oculis tuis:
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?
35 ut scires quoniam Dominus ipse est Deus, et non est alius præter eum.
You were shown all this so you could be certain that the Lord is God and there is no one like him.
36 De cælo te fecit audire vocem suam, ut doceret te, et in terra ostendit tibi ignem suum maximum, et audisti verba illius de medio ignis,
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.
37 quia dilexit patres tuos, et elegit semen eorum post eos. Eduxitque te præcedens in virtute sua magna ex Ægypto,
Because he loved your forefathers, he chose you, their descendants. He himself led you out of Egypt by his great power,
38 ut deleret nationes maximas et fortiores te in introitu tuo: et introduceret te, daretque tibi terram earum in possessionem, sicut cernis in præsenti die.
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.
39 Scito ergo hodie, et cogitato in corde tuo quod Dominus ipse sit Deus in cælo sursum, et in terra deorsum, et non sit alius.
So today be sure about this and never forget: the Lord is the only God in heaven above and on the earth below.
40 Custodi præcepta eius atque mandata, quæ ego præcipio tibi: ut bene sit tibi, et filiis tuis post te, et permaneas multo tempore super Terram, quam Dominus Deus tuus daturus est tibi.
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.
41 Tunc separavit Moyses tres civitates trans Iordanem ad Orientalem plagam,
Then Moses assigned three sanctuary towns to the east of the Jordan
42 ut confugiat ad eas qui occiderit nolens proximum suum, nec sibi fuerit inimicus ante unum et alterum diem, et ad harum aliquam urbium possit evadere:
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:
43 Bosor in solitudine, quæ sita est in terra campestri de tribu Ruben: et Ramoth in Galaad, quæ est in tribu Gad: et Golan in Basan, quæ est in tribu Manasse.
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.
44 Ista est lex, quam proposuit Moyses coram filiis Israel,
This is the law that Moses placed before the Israelites.
45 et hæc testimonia et ceremoniæ atque iudicia, quæ locutus est ad filios Israel, quando egressi sunt de Ægypto,
These are the laws, rules, and regulations Moses gave them after they had come out of Egypt.
46 trans Iordanem in valle contra fanum Phogor in terra Sehon regis Amorrhæi, qui habitavit in Hesebon, quem percussit Moyses. Filii quoque Israel egressi ex Ægypto
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.
47 possederunt terram eius, et terram Og regis Basan, duorum regum Amorrhæorum, qui erant trans Iordanem ad solis ortum:
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.)
48 Ab Aroer, quæ sita est super ripam torrentis Arnon, usque ad montem Sion, qui est et Hermon,
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,
49 omnem planitiem trans Iordanem ad Orientalem plagam, usque ad mare solitudinis, et usque ad radices montis Phasga.
and included all the Arabah to the east of the Jordan down as far as the Dead Sea beside the slopes of Mount Pisgah.
