Deuteronomy 4

Chapter 4

Moses Urges Israel to Obey

1 “And now, Israel, listen carefully to these decrees and regulations that I am about to teach you. Obey them so that you may live, so you may enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you.

2 Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you.
3 “You saw for yourself what the LORD did to you at Baal-peor. There the LORD your God destroyed everyone who had worshiped Baal, the god of Peor.

4 But all of you who were faithful to the LORD your God are still alive today—every one of you.
5 “Look, I now teach you these decrees and regulations just as the LORD my God commanded me, so that you may obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy.6 Obey them completely, and you will display your wisdom and intelligence among the surrounding nations. When they hear all these decrees, they will exclaim, ‘How wise and prudent are the people of this great nation!’7 For what great nation has a god as near to them as the LORD our God is near to us whenever we call on him?

8 And what great nation has decrees and regulations as righteous and fair as this body of instructions that I am giving you today?
9 “But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren.

10 Never forget the day when you stood before the LORD your God at Mount Sinai,t where he told me, ‘Summon the people before me, and I will personally instruct them. Then they will learn to fear me as long as they live, and they will teach their children to fear me also.’
11 “You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while flames from the mountain shot into the sky. The mountain was shrouded in black clouds and deep darkness.12 And the LORD spoke to you from the heart of the fire. You heard the sound of his words but didn’t see his form; there was only a voice.13 He proclaimed his covenant—the Ten Commandmentst—which he commanded you to keep, and which he wrote on two stone tablets.

14 It was at that time that the LORD commanded me to teach you his decrees and regulations so you would obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy.

A Warning against Idolatry

15 “But be very careful! You did not see the LORD’s form on the day he spoke to you from the heart of the fire at Mount Sinai.16 So do not corrupt yourselves by making an idol in any form—whether of a man or a woman,17 an animal on the ground, a bird in the sky,18 a small animal that scurries along the ground, or a fish in the deepest sea.19 And when you look up into the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars—all the forces of heaven—don’t be seduced into worshiping them. The LORD your God gave them to all the peoples of the earth.

20 Remember that the LORD rescued you from the iron-smelting furnace of Egypt in order to make you his very own people and his special possession, which is what you are today.
21 “But the LORD was angry with me because of you. He vowed that I would not cross the Jordan River into the good land the LORD your God is giving you as your special possession.22 You will cross the Jordan to occupy the land, but I will not. Instead, I will die here on the east side of the river.23 So be careful not to break the covenant the LORD your God has made with you. Do not make idols of any shape or form, for the LORD your God has forbidden this.

24 The LORD your God is a devouring fire; he is a jealous God.

25 “In the future, when you have children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time, do not corrupt yourselves by making idols of any kind. This is evil in the sight of the LORD your God and will arouse his anger.
26 “Today I call on heaven and earth as witnesses against you. If you break my covenant, you will quickly disappear from the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. You will live there only a short time; then you will be utterly destroyed.27 For the LORD will scatter you among the nations, where only a few of you will survive.28 There, in a foreign land, you will worship idols made from wood and stone—gods that neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.

29 But from there you will search again for the LORD your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.
30 “In the distant future, when you are suffering all these things, you will finally return to the LORD your God and listen to what he tells you.

31 For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the solemn covenant he made with your ancestors.

There Is Only One God

32 “Now search all of history, from the time God created people on the earth until now, and search from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything as great as this ever been seen or heard before?33 Has any nation ever heard the voice of Godt speaking from fire—as you did—and survived?

34 Has any other god dared to take a nation for himself out of another nation by means of trials, miraculous signs, wonders, war, a strong hand, a powerful arm, and terrifying acts? Yet that is what the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, right before your eyes.
35 “He showed you these things so you would know that the LORD is God and there is no other.36 He let you hear his voice from heaven so he could instruct you. He let you see his great fire here on earth so he could speak to you from it.37 Because he loved your ancestors, he chose to bless their descendants, and he personally brought you out of Egypt with a great display of power.

38 He drove out nations far greater than you, so he could bring you in and give you their land as your special possession, as it is today.
39 “So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The LORD is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other.

40 If you obey all the decrees and commands I am giving you today, all will be well with you and your children. I am giving you these instructions so you will enjoy a long life in the land the LORD your God is giving you for all time.”

Eastern Cities of Refuge

41 Then Moses set apart three cities of refuge east of the Jordan River.42 Anyone who killed another person unintentionally, without previous hostility, could flee there to live in safety.

43 These were the cities: Bezer on the wilderness plateau for the tribe of Reuben; Ramoth in Gilead for the tribe of Gad; Golan in Bashan for the tribe of Manasseh.

Introduction to Moses’ Second Address

44 This is the body of instruction that Moses presented to the Israelites.45 These are the laws, decrees, and regulations that Moses gave to the people of Israel when they left Egypt,46 and as they camped in the valley near Beth-peor east of the Jordan River. (This land was formerly occupied by the Amorites under King Sihon, who ruled from Heshbon. But Moses and the Israelites destroyed him and his people when they came up from Egypt.47 Israel took possession of his land and that of King Og of Bashan—the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan.48 So Israel conquered the entire area from Aroer at the edge of the Arnon Gorge all the way to Mount Sirion,t also called Mount Hermon.

49 And they conquered the eastern bank of the Jordan River as far south as the Dead Sea,t below the slopes of Pisgah.)

DEUTERONOMY 4

Israel Must Obey God

Moses said:

1 Israel, listen to these laws and teachings! If you obey them, you will live, and you will go in and take the land that the [Lord] is giving you. He is the God your ancestors worshiped,

2 t and now he is your God. I am telling you everything he has commanded, so don't add anything or take anything away.
3  t You saw how he killed everyone who worshiped the god Baal Peor.t

4 But all of you that were faithful to the [Lord] your God are still alive today.

5-8  t No other nation has laws that are as fair as the ones the Lord my God told me to give you. If you faithfully obey them when you enter the land, you will show other nations how wise you are. In fact, everyone that hears about your laws will say, “That great nation certainly is wise!” And what makes us greater than other nations? We have a God who is close to us and answers our prayers.
9 You must be very careful not to forget the things you have seen God do for you. Keep reminding yourselves, and tell your children and grandchildren as well.

10 Do you remember the day you stood in the [Lord]'s presence at Mount Sinai?t The [Lord] said, “Moses, bring the people of Israel here. I want to speak to them so they will obey me as long as they live, and so they will teach their children to obey me too.”
11  t Mount Sinait was surrounded by deep dark clouds, and fire went up to the sky. You came to the foot of the mountain, 12 and the [Lord] spoke to you from the fire. You could hear him and understand what he was saying, but you couldn't see him.

13 t The [Lord] said he was making an agreement with you, and he told you that your part of the agreement is to obey the Ten Commandments. Then the [Lord] wrote these Commandments on two flat stones.

14  t That's when the [Lord] commanded me to give you the laws and teachings you must obey in the land that you will conquer west of the Jordan River.

Don't Worship Idols

Moses said to Israel:

20 t But you are the [Lord]'s people, because he rescued you from Egypt, that fiery furnace.
21  t The [Lord] was angry with me because of what you said, t and he told me that he would not let me cross the Jordan River into the good land that he is giving you.t

22 So I must stay here and die on this side of the Jordan, but you will cross the river and take the land.
23 Always remember the agreement that the [Lord] your God made with you, and don't make an idol in any shape or form.

24 t The [Lord] will be angry if you worship other gods, and he can be like a fire destroying everything in its path.
25-26 Soon you will cross the Jordan River and settle down in the land. Then in the years to come, you will have children, and they will give you grandchildren. After many years, you might lose your sense of right and wrong and make idols, even though the [Lord] your God hates them. So I am giving you fair warning today, and I call the earth and the sky as witnesses. If you ever make idols, the [Lord] will be angry, and you won't have long to live, because the [Lord] will let you be wiped out. 27 t Only a few of you will survive, and the [Lord] will force you to leave the land and will scatter you among the nations.

28 There you will have to worship gods made of wood and stone, and these are nothing but idols that can't see or hear or eat or smell.
29-30  t In all of your troubles, you may finally decide that you want to worship only the [Lord]. And if you turn back to him and obey him completely, he will again be your God.

31 The [Lord] your God will have mercy—he won't destroy you or desert you. The [Lord] will remember his promise, and he will keep the agreement he made with your ancestors.

32-34 When the [Lord] your God brought you out of Egypt, you saw how he fought for you and showed his great power by performing terrifying miracles. You became his people, and at Mount Sinai you heard him talking to you out of fiery flames. And yet you are still alive! Has anything like this ever happened since the time God created humans? No matter where you go or who you ask, you will get the same answer. No one has ever heard of another god even trying to do such things as the [Lord] your God has done for you.

35-36  t The [Lord] wants you to know he is the only true God, and he wants you to obey him. That's why he let you see his mighty miracles and his fierce fire on earth, and why you heard his voice from that fire and from the sky.
37 The [Lord] loved your ancestors and decided that you would be his people. So the [Lord] used his great power to bring you out of Egypt.

38 Now you face other nations more powerful than you are, but the [Lord] has already started forcing them out of their land and giving it to you.
39 So remember that the [Lord] is the only true God, whether in the sky above or on the earth below.

40 Today I am explaining his laws and teachings. And if you always obey them, you and your descendants will live long and be successful in the land the [Lord] is giving you.

Safe Towns

41-43  t Moses said, “People of Israel, you must set aside the following three towns east of the Jordan River as Safe Towns: Bezer in the desert highlands belonging to the Reuben tribe; Ramoth in Gilead, belonging to the Gad tribe; and Golan in Bashan, belonging to the Manasseh tribe. If you kill a neighbor without meaning to, and if you had not been angry with that person, you can run to one of these towns and find safety.”t

The Second Speech: //Moses Tells What the Lord Demands

Israel at Beth-Peor