Deuteronomy 8

1 All the commandment which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers.

You must take care to follow every commandment I am giving you today, so that you may live and have many descendants, and go in and take over the country the Lord promised to give to your fore fathers.

2 And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God hath led thee these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble thee, to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.

Remember how for these forty years the Lord your God has led you all the way through the desert, humbling you and testing you in order to find out what you were really thinking, and whether or not you would keep his commandments.

3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every thing that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

He humbled you, and when you were hungry he gave you manna to eat, which nobody, including you and your forefathers, had ever had before This was in order to make it clear to you that human beings do not live by only eating bread, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

4 Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.

During these forty years your clothing didn't wear out and your feet didn't swell up.

5 And thou shalt consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee.

So you should realize that just as a parent disciplines their child, so the Lord your God disciplines you.

6 And thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him.

That's why you have to keep the commandments of the Lord your God, following his ways and respecting him.

7 For the LORD thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths, springing forth in valleys and hills;

For the Lord your God is taking you to a good country. It's a land of streams and pools and springs that flow through the valleys and down the hills;

8 a land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig trees and pomegranates; a land of oil olives and honey;

It's a land that produces wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey.

9 a land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass.

It's a land where you won't run out of food, where you will have everything you need; a land whose rocks contain iron ore and whose hills can be mined for copper.

10 And thou shalt eat and be full, and thou shalt bless the LORD thy God for the good land which he hath given thee.

When you eat and are full, make sure you thank the Lord your God for the good land that he's given you.

11 Beware lest thou forget the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day:

Make sure you don't forget the Lord your God by disobeying his commandments and rules and regulations that I'm giving you today.

12 lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein;

For when you eat and are full, when you build beautiful houses to live in,

13 and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;

and when your herds and flocks grow larger, and your silver and gold accumulates, and all your possessions increase,

14 then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage;

then you will become proud, and you will forget the Lord your God who led you out of Egypt, out of the prison-house of slavery.

15 who led thee through the great and terrible wilderness, [wherein were] fiery serpents and scorpions, and thirsty ground where was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;

He guided you through the immense and terrifying desert with its poisonous snakes and scorpions—a dried up, waterless land. He brought water for you out of a flint rock.

16 who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not; that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end:

He fed you in the desert with manna that your forefathers had never known, humbling you and testing you, so that eventually you would do well in the future.

17 and thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

You might think to yourselves, “I became rich through all my hard work.”

18 But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God, for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth; that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as at this day.

But remember it's the Lord your God who gives you the ability to become rich, in order to fulfill his agreement he promised to your forefathers that still exists today.

19 And it shall be, if thou shalt forget the LORD thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.

If you ever forget the Lord your God, and run after other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, I assure you right now that you will definitely die!

20 As the nations which the LORD maketh to perish before you, so shall ye perish; because ye would not hearken unto the voice of the LORD your God.

In the same way the Lord destroyed the nations as you advanced, you will also die if you don't obey the Lord your God.