Deuteronomy 31

1 When Moses/I finished saying all that to the Israeli people,

Then Moses went and spake these wordes vnto all Israel,

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].

And said vnto them, I am an hundreth and twentie yeere olde this day: I can no more goe out and in: also the Lord hath saide vnto me, Thou shalt not goe ouer this Iorden.

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.

The Lord thy God he will go ouer before thee: he will destroy these nations before thee, and thou shalt possesse them. Ioshua, he shall goe before thee, as the Lord hath said.

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].

And the Lord shall doe vnto them, as he did to Sihon and to Og Kings of the Amorites: and vnto their lande whome 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.

And the Lord shall giue them before you that ye may do vnto them according vnto euery commandement, which I haue comanded 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.”

Plucke vp your hearts therefore, and be strong: dread not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God him selfe doeth goe with thee: he will not faile thee, nor forsake thee.

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.

And Moses called Ioshua, and said vnto him in the sight of all Israel, Be of a good courage and strong: for thou shalt go with this people vnto the lande which the Lord hath sworne vnto their fathers, to giue them, and thou shalt giue it them to inherite.

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.”

And the Lord him selfe doeth go before thee: he will be with thee: he will not faile thee, neither forsake thee: feare not therefore, nor be discomforted.

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.

And Moses wrote this Lawe, and deliuered it vnto the Priestes the sonnes of Leui (which bare the Arke of the couenant of the Lord) and vnto all the Elders of Israel,

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.

And Moses commanded them, saying, Euery seuenth yeere when the yeere of freedome shalbe in the feast of the Tabernacles:

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 shall come to appeare before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall chuse, thou shalt reade this Lawe before all Israel that they may heare it.

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.

Gather the people together: men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may heare, and that they may learne, and feare the Lord your God, and keepe and obserue all the wordes of this Lawe,

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 which haue not knowen it, may heare it, and learne to feare the Lord your God, as long as ye liue in the lande, whither ye goe ouer Iorden to possesse 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.

Then the Lord saide vnto Moses, Beholde, thy dayes are come, that thou must die: Call Ioshua, and stande ye in the Tabernacle of the Congregation that I may giue him a charge. So Moses and Ioshua went, and stoode in the Tabernacle of the Congregation.

15 There Yahweh appeared to them/us in a pillar of cloud, and that cloud was close to the door of the tent.

And the Lord appeared in the Tabernacle, in the pillar of a cloude: and the pillar of the cloude stoode ouer the doore of the Tabernacle.

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.

And the Lord said vnto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleepe with thy fathers, and this people will rise vp, and goe a whoring after the gods of a strange land (whither they goe to dwell therein) and will forsake me, and breake my couenant which I haue 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.’

Wherefore my wrath will waxe hote against them at that day, and I will forsake them, and will hide my face from them: then they shalbe consumed, and many aduersities and tribulations shall come vpon them: so then they will say, Are not these troubles come vpon me, because God is not with me?

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.

But I will surely hide my face in that day, because of all the euill, which they shall commit, in that they are turned vnto other gods.

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 ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouthes, that this song may be my witnesse against the children of Israel.

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 I will bring them into the land (which I sware vnto their fathers) that floweth with milke and honie, and they shall eate, and fil them selues, and waxe fat: then shall they turne vnto other gods, and serue them, and contemne me, and breake my couenant.

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].”

And then when many aduersities and tribulations shall come vpon them, this song shall answere them to their face as a witnesse: for it shall not be forgotte out of the mouthes of their posteritie: for I knowe their imagination, which they goe about euen now, before I haue brought them into the lande which I sware.

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.

Moses therefore wrote this song the same day and taught it the children of Israel.

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.”

And God gaue Ioshua the sonne of Nun a charge, and said, Be strong, and of a good courage: for thou shalt bring the children of Israel into the lande, which I sware vnto them, and I will be with thee.

24 Then Moses/I finished writing on a scroll all the laws that Yahweh had told to him/me.

And when Moses had made an ende of writing the wordes of this Lawe in a booke vntill he had finished them,

25 Then Moses/I told the descendants of Levi, who were carrying the Sacred Chest that contained the Ten Commandments,

Then Moses commanded the Leuites, which bare the Arke of the couenant of the Lord, 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 the booke of this Lawe, and put ye it in the side of the Arke of the couenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for a witnes against thee.

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 knowe thy rebellion and thy stiffe necke: beholde, I being yet aliue with you this day, ye are rebellious against the Lord: howe much more then 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.

Gather vnto me all the Elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speake these wordes in their audience, and call heauen and earth to recorde 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 am sure that after my death ye will vtterly be corrupt and turne from the way, which I haue commanded you: therefore euill will come vpon you at the length, because ye will comit euill in the sight of the Lord, by prouoking him to anger through the worke of your hands.

30 Then, while all the Israeli people listened, Moses/I sang/recited this entire song to them:

Thus Moses spake in the audience of all the congregation of Israel the wordes of this song, vntill he had ended them.