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'Come,' he said, 'put a curse on Jacob for me; come and denounce Israel!' 8 How can I curse what God has not cursed? How can I denounce what the LORD has not denounced? 9 For I see them from atop the rocky cliffs, and I watch them from the hills. Behold, a people dwelling apart, not reckoning themselves among the nations. 10 Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous; let my end be like theirs!” 11 Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I brought you here to curse my enemies, and behold, you hav e only blessed them!” 12 But Balaam replied, “Should I not speak ex-actly what the LORD puts in my mouth?” Balaam's Second Oracle 13 Then Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place where you can see them. You will only see the outskirts of t heir camp — not all of them. And from there, curse them for me. ” 14 So Balak took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, where he built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 15 Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your burn t offering while I meet the LORD over there. ” 16 And the LORD met with Balaam and put a message in his mouth, saying, “Return to Balak and speak what I tell you. ” 17 So he returned to Balak, who was standing there by his burnt offering with the princes of Moab. “What did the LORD say?” Balak asked. 18 Then Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Arise, O Balak, and listen; gi ve ear to me, O son of Zippor. 19 God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Do es He promise and not fulfill? 20 I have indeed received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot change it. 21 He considers no di saster for Jacob; He sees no trouble for Israel. The LORD their God is with them, an d the shout of the King is among them. 22 God brought them out of Egypt with strength like a wild ox. 23 For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination agai nst Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, 'W hat great things God has done!' 24 Behold, the people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion, not resting until they devour their prey an d drink the blood of the slain. ” 25 Now Balak said to Balaam, “Then neither curse them at all nor bless them at all!” 26 But Balaam replied, “Did I not tell you that whatever the LORD says, I must do?” 27 “Please come,” said Balak, “I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you curse them for me from there. ” 28 And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the wasteland. a   29 Then Balaam said, “Build for me seven al-tars here, and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams. ” Numbers 23:2 9 | 193 a 28 Or Jeshimon  

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30 So Balak did as Balaam had instructed, and he offered a bull and a ram on each altar. Balaam's Third Oracle And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not resort to sorcery as on previous occasions, but he turned his face toward the wilderness. 2 When Balaam looked up and saw Israel en-camped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon h im, 3 and he lifted up an oracle, saying: “This is the prophecy of Balaam son of Beor, the prophecy of a man whose eyes are open, 4 the prophecy of one who hears the words of God, who sees a vision from the Almighty,a   who bows down with eyes wide open: 5 How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, your dwellings, O Israel! 6 They spread out like palm groves,b like gardens beside a stream, like aloes the LORD has planted, like cedars beside the waters. 7 Water will flow from his buckets, and his seed will have abundant water. His king will be greater than Agag, and his kingdom will be exalted. 8 God brought him out of Egypt with stre ngth like a wild ox, to devour hostile nations and crush their bones, to pierce them with arrows. 9 He crouches, he lies down like a lion; like a lioness, who dares to rouse him? Blessed are those who bless you and cursed are those who curse you. ” Balak Dismisses Balaam 10 Then Balak's anger burned against Balaam, and he struck his hands together and said to Balaam, “I summoned you to curse my ene-mies, but behold, you have persisted in bless-ing them these three times. 11 Therefore, flee at once to your home! I said I would r ichly re-ward you, but instead the LORD has denied your reward. ” 12 Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not already tell the messengers you sent me 13 that even if Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the com-mand of the LORD? I will speak whatever the LORD says. 14 Now I am going back to my peo-ple, but come, let me warn you what this peo-ple will do to your people in the days to come. ” Balaam's Fourth Oracle 15 Then Balaam lif ted up an oracle, saying, “This is the prophecy of Balaam son of Be or, the prophecy of a man whose eyes are open, 16 the prophecy of one who hears the words of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, who sees a vision from the Almighty, wh o bows down with eyes wide open: 17 I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come forth from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel. He will crush the skulls c   of Moab and strike down all the sons of Sheth. 24 194 | Numbers 23: 30 a 4 Hebrew Shaddai  ; also in verse 16 b 6 Or like valleys   c 17 SP foreheads  ; Hebrew corners (of the head)  ; LXX princes  

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18 Edom will become a possession, as will Seir, his enemy; but Israel will perform with valor. 19 A ruler will come from Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city. ” Balaam's Final Three Oracles 20 Then Balaam saw Amalek and lifted up an oracle, saying: “Amalek was first among the nations, bu t his end is destruction. ” 21 Next he saw the Kenites and lifted up an oracle, saying: “Your dwelling place is secure, an d your nest is set in a cliff. 22 Yet Kain will be destroyed when Asshur a   takes you captive. ” 23 Once more Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Ah, who can live un less God has ordained it? 24 Ships will come from the coasts of Cyprus; b they will subdue Asshur and Eber, but they too will perish forever. ” 25 Then Balaam arose and returned to his homeland, and Balak also went on his way. Moab Seduces Israel (1 Corinthians 10:1-13) While Israel was staying in Shittim,c   the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with the daughters of Moab, 2 who also invited them to the sacrifices for their gods. And the people ate and bowed down to these gods. 3 So Israel joined in worshiping Baal of Peor, and the anger of the LORD burned against them. 4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the LORD, so that His fierce anger may turn away from Israel. ” 5 So Moses told the judges of Israel, “Each of you must kill all of his men who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor. ” The Zeal of Phinehas 6 Just then an Israelite man brought to his fam-ily a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the whole congregation of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 7 On seeing this, Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand, 8 followed the Israelite into his tent, and drove the spear through both of them —th rough the Israelite and on through the belly of the woman. So the plague against the Israelites was halted, 9 but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000. 10 Then the LORD said to Moses, 11 “Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned My wrath away from the Israelites; for he was zealous for My sake among them, so that I did not consume the Israelites in My zeal. 12 Declare, therefore, that I am granting him My covenant of peace. 13 It will be a cove-nant of permanent priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites. ” 14 The name of the Israelite who was slain with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family. 15 And the name of the slain Midianite woman was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family. 25 a 22 Or Assyria  ; also in verse 24 b 24 Hebrew Kittim   c 1 Or Acaci a Grove   Numbers 25:1 5 | 195

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16 And the LORD said to Moses, 17 “Attack the Midianites and strike them dead. 18 For they assailed you deceitfully when they seduced you in the matter of Peor and their sister Cozbi, the daughter of the Midianite leader, the woman who was killed on the day the plague came because of Peor. ” The Second Census of Israel (Numbers 1:1-4) After the plague had ended, the LORD said to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, 2 “Take a census of the whole congregation of Israel by the houses of their fathers—all those twenty years of age or older who can serve in the army of Israel. ” 3 So on the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho, Moses and Eleazar the priest issued the instruction, 4 “Take a census of the men twenty years of age or older,a   as the LORD has commanded Moses. ” And these were the Israel ites who came out of the land of Egypt: The Tribe of Reuben 5 Reuben was the firstborn of Israel. These were the descendants of Reuben: The Hanochite clan from Hanoch, the Palluite clan from Pallu, 6 the Hezronite clan from Hezron, and the Carmite clan from Carmi. 7 These were the clans of Reuben, and their registration numbered 43,730. 8 Now the son of Pallu was Eliab, 9 and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. It was Dathan and Abiram, chosen by the con-gregation, who fought against Moses and Aa-ron with the followers of Korah who rebelled against the LORD. 10 And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign. 11 However, the line of Korah did not die out. The Trib e of Simeon 12 These were the descendants of Simeon by their clans: The Nemuelite clan from Nemue l,b the Jaminite clan from Jamin, the Jachinite clan from Jachin, 13 the Zerahite clan from Zerah,c   and the Shaulite clan from Shaul. 14 These were the clans of Simeon, and there were 22,200 men. The Trib e of Gad 15 These were the descendants of Gad by their clans: The Zephonite clan from Zephon, the Haggite clan from Haggi, the Shunite clan from Shuni, 16 the Oznite clan from Ozni, the Erite clan from Eri, 17 the Arodite clan from Arod,d   and the Arelite clan from Areli. 18 These were the clans of Gad, and their reg-istration numbered 40,500. 26 196 | Numbers 25: 16 a 4 Take a census of the men is implied but not included in the Hebrew; see verse 2. b 12 Nemuel is another name for Jemuel  ; see Genesis 46:10. c 13 Zerah is a variant of Zohar  ; see Genesis 46:10 and Exodus 6:15. d 17 SP and Syriac Arodi  ; see Genesis 46:16.

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The Trib e of Judah 19 The sons of Judah were Er and Onan, but they died in the land of Canaan. 20 These were the descendants of Judah by their clans: The Shelanite clan from Shelah, the Perezite clan from Perez, and the Zerahite clan from Zerah. 21 And these were the descen dants of Perez: the Hezronite clan from Hezron and the Hamulite clan from Hamul. 22 These were the clans of Judah, and their reg-istration numbered 76,500. The Trib e of Issachar 23 These were the descendants of Issachar by their clans: The Tolaite clan from Tola, the Punite clan from Puvah,a   24 the Jashubite clan from Jashub,b and the Shimronite clan from Shimron. 25 These were the clans of Issachar, and their registration numbered 64,300. The Trib e of Zebulun 26 These were the descendants of Zebulun by their clans: The Seredite clan from Sered, the Elonite clan from Elon, and the Jahleelite clan from Jahleel. 27 These were the clans of Zebulun, and their registration numbered 60,500. The Tribe of Manasseh 28 The descendants of Joseph included the clans of Manasseh and Ephraim. 29 These were the descendants of Manasseh: The Machirite clan from Machir, the father of Gilead, and the Gileadite clan from Gilead. 30 These were the descendants of Gilead: the Iezerite clan from Iezer,c   the Helekite clan from Helek, 31 the Asrielite clan from Asriel, the Shechemite clan from Shechem, 32 the Shemidaite clan from Shemida, and the Hepherite clan from Hepher. 33 Now Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons but only daughters. The names of his daughters were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 34 These were the clans of Manasseh, and thei r registration numbered 52,700. The Trib e of Ephraim 35 These were the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The Shuthelahite clan from Shuthelah, the Becherite clan from Becher, and the Tahanite clan from Tahan. 36 And the descendants of Shuthelah w ere the Eranite clan from Eran. 37 These were the clans of Ephraim, and their registration numbered 32,500. These clans were the descendants of Joseph. Numbers 26:3 7 | 197 a 23 SP, LXX, Vulgate, and Syriac the Puit e clan from Puah  ; see 1 Chronicles 7:1. b 24 Jashub is a variant of Job  ; see Genesis 46:13. c 30 Iezer is a variant of Abiezer  ; see Joshua 17:2.

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The Trib e of Benjamin 38 These were the descendants of Benjamin by their clans: The Belaite clan from Bela, the Ashbelite clan from Ashbel, the Ahiramite clan from Ahiram, 39 the Shuphamite clan from Shupham,a   and the Huphamite clan from Hupham. 40 And the descendants of Bela from Ard and Naaman were the Ardite clan from Ard b   and the Naamite clan from Naaman. 41 These were the clans of Benjamin, and their registration numbered 45,600. The Trib e of Dan 42 These were the descendants of Dan by their clans: The Shuhamite clan from Shuham. These were the clans of Dan. 43 All of them were Shuhamite clans, and their r egistration numbered 64,400. The Trib e of Asher 44 These were the descendants of Asher by their clans: The Imnite clan from Imnah, the Ishvite clan from Ishvi, and the Beriite clan from Beriah. 45 And these were the descendants of Beriah: the Heberite clan from Heber and the Malchielite clan from Malchiel. 46 And the name of Asher's daughter was Serah. 47 These were the clans of Asher, and their registration numbered 53,400. The Trib e of Naphtali 48 These were the descendants of Naphtali by their clans: The Jahzeelite clan from Jahzeel, the Gunite clan from Guni, 49 the Jezerite clan from Jezer, and the Shillemite clan from Shillem. 50 These were the clans of Naphtali, and their registration numbered 45,400. 51 These men of Israel numbered 601,730 in all. Inheritance by Lot 52 Then the LORD said to Moses, 53 “The land is to be divided among the tribes as an inher-itance, according to the number of names. 54 Increase the inheritance for a large tr ibe and decrease it for a small one; each tribe is to receive its inheritance according to the num-ber of those registered. 55 Indeed, the land must be divided by lot; they shall receive their inheritance according to the names of the tribes of their fathers. 56 Each inheritance is to be divided by lot among the larger and smaller tribes. ” The Levites Numbered 57 Now these were the Levites numbered by their clans: The Gershonite clan from Gershon, the Kohathite clan from Kohath, and the Merarite clan from Merari. 198 | Numbers 26: 38 a 39 A few MT manuscripts, SP, Vulgate, and Syriac (see also LXX); most MT manuscripts Shephupham b 40 SP and Vulgate (see also LXX); MT does not include from Ard  .

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58 These were the families of the Levites: The Libnite clan, the Hebronite clan, the Mahlite clan, the Mushite clan, and the Korahite clan. Now Kohath was the father of Amram, 59 and Amram's wife was named Jochebed. She was also a daughter of Levi, born to Levi in Egypt. To Amram she bore Aaron, Moses, and their sister Miriam. 60 Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar were born to Aaron, 61 but Nadab and Abihu died when they offered unauthorized a   fire before the LORD. 62 The registration of the Levites totaled 23,000, every male a month old or more; they were not numbered among the other Israel-ites, because no inheritance was given to them among the Israelites. Only Caleb and Joshua Remain 63 These were the ones numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest when they counted the Israelites on the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho. 64 Among all these, however, there was not one who had been numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest when they counted the Isra-elites in the Wilderness of Sinai. 65 For the LORD had told them that they would surely die in the wilderness. Not one was left except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. The Daughters of Zelophehad (Numbers 36: 1-13) Now the daughters of Zelophehad son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, belonged to the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph. These were the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. They ap-proached 2 the entrance to the Tent of Meet-ing, stood before Moses, Eleazar the priest, the leaders, and the whole congregation, and said, 3 “Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the followers of Korah who gathered together against the LORD. Instea d, he died because of his own sin, and he had no sons. 4 Why should the name of our father disappear from his clan because he had no sons? Give us property among our father's brothers. ” 5 So Moses brought their case before the LORD, 6 and the LORD answer ed him, 7 “The daughters of Zelophehad speak correctly. You certainly must give them property as an inher-itance among their father's brothers, and transfer their father's inheritance to them. 8 Furthermore, you shall say to the Israelites, 'If a man dies and leaves no son, you are to transfer his inheritance to his daughter. 9 If he has no daughter, give his inheritance to his brothers. 10 If he has no brothers, give his inheritance to his father's brothers. 11 And if his father has no brothers, give his inheritance to the next of kin from his clan, that he may take possession of it. This is to be a statutory ordinance for the Israelites, as the LORD has commanded Moses. '  ” Mose s Request s a S uccessor (Deuteronomy 3:23-29) 12 Then the LORD said to Moses, “ Go up this mountain of the Abarim range b   and see the land that I have given the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was; 14 for when the congregation contended in the Wil-derness of Zin, both of you rebelled against My 27 Numbers 27:1 4 | 199 a 61 Or strange   b 12 LXX Go up Mount Nebo beyond the Jordan

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command to show My holiness in their sight regarding the waters. ” Those were the waters of Meribah a   in Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Zin. 15 So Moses appealed to the LORD, 16 “May the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, ap-point a man over the congregation 17 who will go out and come in before them, and who will lead them out and bring them in, so that the congregation of the LORD will not be like sheep without a shepherd. ” Joshua to Succeed Moses (Deuteronomy 31: 1-8) 18 And the LORD replied to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man with the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him. 19 Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, and commission him in their sight. 20 Confer on him some of your author ity, so that the whole congregation of Israel will obey him. 21 He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who will seek counsel for him before the LORD by the judgment of the Urim. b   At his command, he and all the Israelites with him — the entire congregation —will go out and come in. ” 22 Moses did as the LORD had commanded him. He took Joshua, had him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, 23 and laid his hands on him and commis-sioned him, as the LORD had instructed through Moses. The Dail y Offerings (Exodus 29:3 8-44) Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Com-mand the Israelites and say to them: See that you present to Me at its appointed time the food for My offerings by fire, as a pleasing aroma to Me. 3 And tell them that this is the offering made by fire you are to present to the LORD as a reg-ular burn t offering each day: two unblemished year-old male lambs. 4 Offer one lamb in the morning and the other at twilight,c   5 along with a tenth of an ephah of fine flour d   as a grain offering, mixed with a quarter hin of oil from pressed olives. e 6 This is a regular burnt offering established at Mount Sinai as a pleasing aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. 7 The drink offering accompanying e ach lamb shall be a quarter hin. Pour out the offering of fermented drink to the LORD in the sanctuary area. 8 And offer the second lamb at twilight, with the same grain offering and drink offering as in the morning. It is an offering made by fire, a pleas-ing aroma to the LORD. The Sabbath Offerings 9 On the Sabbath day, present two unblem-ished year-old male lambs, accompanied by a grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour f  mixed with oil, as well as a drink offering. 10 This is the burnt offering for every Sabbath, in addition to the regular burnt offering and its drink offering. The Monthl y Offerings 11 At the beginning of every month, you are to present to the LORD a burnt offering of two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 12 along with three-28 200 | Numbers 27: 15 a 14 Meribah means quarreling  ; see Exodus 17:7. b 21 Literally the Lights   c 4 Hebrew between the two evenings  ; also in verse 8 d 5 A tenth of an ephah is approximately 2 dry quarts or 2. 2 liters (probably about 2. 6 pounds or 1. 2 kilo-grams of flour); also in verses 13, 21, and 29. e 5 Or a quarter hin of pure olive oil  ; Hebrew a quarter hin of pressed oil  ; that is, approximately 0. 97 quarts or 0. 92 liters; similarly in verses 7 and 14 f 9 Two-tenths of an ephah is approxi-mately 4 dry quarts or 4. 4 liters (probably about 5. 1 pounds or 2. 3 kilograms of flour); also in verses 12, 20, and 28.

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tenths of an ephah of fine flour a   mixed with oil as a grain offering with each bull, two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering with the ram, 13 and a tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering with each lamb. This is a burnt offer-ing, a pleasing aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. 14 Their drink offerings shall be half a hin of wine b   with each bull, a third of a hin c   with the ram, and a quarter hin with each lamb. This is the monthly burnt offering to be made at each new moon throughout the year. 15 In addition to the regular burnt offering with its drink offering, one male goat is to be presented to the LORD as a si n offering. Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:1 4-28 ; Leviticus 23:4-8 ; Deut eronomy 16:1-8) 16 The fourteenth day of the first month is the LORD's Passover. 17 On the fifteenth day of this month, there shall be a feast; for seven days unleavened bread is to be eaten. 18 On the first day there is to be a sacred as-sembly; you must not do any regular work. 19 Present to the LORD an offering made by fire, a burnt offering of two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, all un-blemished. 20 The grain offering shal l consist of fine flour mixed with oil; offer three-tenths of an ephah with each bull, two-tenths of an ephah with the ram, 21 and a tenth of an ephah with each of the seven lambs. 22 Include one male goat as a sin offering to make atonement for you. 23 You are to present these in addition to the regular morning burnt offering. 24 Offer the same food each day for seven days as an offer-ing made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD. It is to be offered with its drink offering and the regular burnt offering. 25 On the seventh day you shall hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work. The Feast of Weeks (Deuteronomy 16: 9-12) 26 On the day of firstfruits, when you present an offering of new grain to the LORD during the Feast of Weeks, d   you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work. 27 Present a burnt offering of two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old as a pleasing aroma to the LORD, 28 together with their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with oil—three-tenths of an ephah with each bull, two-tenths of an ephah with the ram, 29 and a tenth of an ephah with each of the seven lambs. 30 Include one male goat to make atonement for you. 31 Offer them with their drink offer-ings in addition to the regular burnt offering and its grain offering. The animals must be un-blemishe d. The Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23:2 3-25) “On the first day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly, and you must not do any regular work. This will be a day for you to sound the trumpets. 29Numbers 29: 1 | 201 a 12 Three-tenths of an ephah is approximately 6 dry quarts or 6. 6 liters (probably about 7. 6 pounds or 3. 5 kilo-grams of flour); also in verses 20 and 28. b 14 Half a hin is approximately 1. 9 quarts or 1. 8 liters of wine. c 14 A third of a hin is approximately 1. 3 quarts or 1. 2 liters of wine. d 26 That is, Shavuot, the late spring feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is also known as the Feast of Harvest (see Exodus 23:16) or the Feast of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1).

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2 As a pleasing aroma to the LORD, you are to present a burnt offering of one young bull, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 3 together with their grain offer-ings of fine flour mixed with oil —three-tenths of an ephah a   with the bull, two-tenths of an ephah b   with the ram, 4 and a tenth of an ephah c   with each of the seven male lambs. 5 Include one male goat as a sin offering to make atonement for you. 6 These are in addi-tion to the monthly and daily burnt offerings with their prescribed grain offerings and drink offerings. The y are a pleasing aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. The Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16: 1-34 ; Leviticus 23:2 6-32) 7 On the tenth day of this seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly, and you shall humble yourselves;  d   you must not do any work. 8 Present as a pleasing aroma to the LORD a burnt offering of one young bull, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 9 together with their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with oil —three-tenths of an ephah with the bull, two-tenths of an ephah with the ram, 10 and a tenth of an ephah with each of the seven lambs. 11 Include one male goat for a sin offering, in addition to the sin offering of atonement and the regular burnt offering with its grain offer-ing and drink offerings. The Feas t of Tabernacles (Deuteronomy 16:1 3-17) 12 On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work, and you shall ob-serve a feast to the LORD for seven days. 13 As a pleasing aroma to the LORD, you are to present an offering made by fire, a burnt offering of thirteen young bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblem-ished, 14 along with the grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil with each of the thirte en bulls, two-tenths of an ephah with each of the two rams, 15 and a tenth of an ephah with each of the fourteen lambs. 16 Include one male goat as a sin offer-ing, in addition to the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering. 17 On the second day you are to present twelve young bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 18 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number prescribed. 19 Include one male goat as a sin offering, in addition to the regular burnt offer-ing with its grain offering and drink offering. 20 On the third day you are to present eleven bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 21 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number pre-scribed. 22 Include one male goat as a sin offer-ing, in addition to the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering. 23 On the fourth day you are to present ten bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 24 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number pre-scribed. 25 Include one male goat as a sin 202 | Numbers 29: 2 a 3 Three-tenths of an ephah is approximately 6 dry quarts or 6. 6 liters (probably about 7. 6 pounds or 3. 5 kilo-grams of flour); also in verses 9 and 14. b 3 Two-tenths of an ephah is approximately 4 dry quarts or 4. 4 liters (probably about 5. 1 pounds or 2. 3 kilograms of flour); also in verses 9 and 14. c 4 A tenth of an ephah is approxi-mately 2 dry quarts or 2. 2 liters (probably about 2. 6 pounds or 1. 2 kilograms of flour); also in verses 10 and 15. d 7 Or afflict your souls or deny yours elves 

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offering, in addition to the regular burnt offer-ing with its grain offering and drink offering. 26 On the fifth day you are to present nine bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 27 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number pre-scribed. 28 Include one male goat as a sin offer-ing, in addition to the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering. 29 On the sixth day you are to present eight bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 30 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number pre-scribed. 31 Include one male goat as a sin offer-ing, in addition to the regula r burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering. 32 On the seventh day you are to present seven bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 33 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, a ccording to the number pre-scribed. 34 Include one male goat as a sin offer-ing, in addition to the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering. 35 On the eighth day you are to hold a solemn assembly; you must not do any regular work. 36 As a pleasing aroma to the LORD, you are to present an offering made by fire, a burnt offer-ing of one bull, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, all unblemished, 37 along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number prescribed. 38 Include one male goat as a sin offering, in addition to the regular burnt offer-ing with its grain offering and drink offering. 39 You are to present these offerings to the LORD at your appointed times, in addition to your vow and freewill offerings, whether burnt offerings, grain offerings, drink offer-ings, or peace offerings. ” 40 So Moses spoke all this to the Israelites just as th e LORD had commanded him. Laws about Vows (Matthew 5:3 3-37) Then Moses said to the heads of the tribes of Israel, “This is what the LORD has commanded: 2 If a man makes a vow to the LORD or swears an oath to obligate him-self by a pledge, he must not break his word; he must do everything he has promised. a   3 And if a woman in her father's house during her youth makes a vow to the LORD or obli-gates herself by a pledge, 4 and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says noth-ing to her, then all the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. 5 But if her father prohibits her on the day he hears about it, then none of the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. The LORD will absolve her because her father has prohibited her. 6 If a woman marries while under a vow or rash p romise by which she has bound herself, 7 and her husband hears of it but says nothing to her on that day, then the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. 8 But if her husband prohibits her when he hears of it, he nullifies the vow that binds her or the rash promise she has made, and the LORD will absolve her. 9 Every vow a widow or divorced woman pledges to fulfill is binding on her. 10 If a woman in her husband's house has made a vow or put herself under an obligation with an oath, 11 and her husband hears of it 30 Numbers 30:11 | 203 a 2 Cited in Matthew 5:33

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but says nothing to her and does not prohibit her, then all the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. 12 But if her hus-band nullifies them on the day he hears of them, then nothing that came from her lips, whether her vows or pledges, shall stand. Her husband has nullified them, and the LORD will absolve her. 13 Her husband may confirm or nullify any vow or any sworn pledge to deny herself. a   14 But if her husband says nothing to her from day to day, then he confirms all the vows and pledges that bind her. He has confirmed them, because he said nothing to her on the day he heard about th em. 15 But if he nullifies them after he hears of them, then he will bear her iniquity. ” 16 These are the statutes that the LORD com-manded Moses concerning the relationship between a man and his wife, and between a fa-ther and a young daughter still in his home. Vengeance on Midian And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Take vengeance on the Midianites for the Israelites. After that, you will be gathered to your people. ” 3 So Moses told the people, “Arm some of your men for war, that they may go against the Mid-ianites and execute the LORD's vengeance on them. 4 Send int o battle a thousand men from each tribe of Israel. ” 5 So a thousand men were recruited from each tribe of Israel —twelve thousand armed for war. 6 And Moses sent the thousand from each tribe into battle, along with Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, who took with him the vessels of the sanctuary and the trum pets for signaling. 7 Then they waged war against Midian, as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they killed every male. 8 Among the slain were Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba —the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword. 9 The Israelites captured the Midianite women and their children, and they plundered all their herds, flocks, and goods. 10 Then they burned all the cities where the Midianites had lived, as well as all their encampments, 11 and carried away all the plunder and spoils, both people and animals. 12 They brought the captives, spoils, and plun-der to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the congregation of Israel at the camp on the plains of Moab, by the Jordan across from Jer-icho. 13 And Moses, Eleazar the pries t, and all the leaders of the congregation went to meet them outside the camp. 14 But Moses was angry with the officers of the army—the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds —who were return-ing from the battle. 15 “Have you spared all the wome n?” he asked them. 16 “Look, these women caused the sons of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to turn unfaithfully against the LORD at Peor, so that the plague struck the congregation of the LORD. 17 So now, kill all the boys, as well as every woman w ho has had relations with a man, 18 but spare for your-selves every girl who has never had relations with a man. 19 All of you who have killed a person or touched the dead are to remain outside the camp for seven days. On the third day and the seventh day you are to purify both yourselves and your captives. 20 And purify every gar-ment and leather good, everything made of goat's hair, and every article of wood. ” 31 204 | Numbers 30:12 a 13 Or to fast  

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21 Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone into battle, “This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses: 22 Only the gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead — 23 everything that can with-stand the fire —must be put through the fire, and it will be clean. But it must still be purified with the water of purification. And everything that cannot withstand the fire must pass through the water. 24 On the seventh day you are to wash your clothes, and you will be clean. After that you may enter the camp. ” Division of the Spoils 25 The LORD said to Moses, 26 “You and Eleazar the priest and the family heads of the congregation are to take a count of what was captured, both of man and beast. 27 Then divide the captives between the troops who went out to battle and the rest of the congre-gation. 28 Set aside a tribute for the LORD from what belongs to the soldiers who went into battle: one out of every five hun dred, whether per-sons, cattle, donkeys, or sheep. 29 Take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the LORD. 30 From the Israelites' half, take one out of every fifty, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, or other animals, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the LORD. ” 31 So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD had commanded Moses, 32 and this plunder remained from the spoils the soldiers had taken: 675,000 sheep, 33 72,000 cattle, 34 61,000 donkeys, 35 and 32,000 women who had not slept with a man. 36 This was the half portion for those who had gone to war: 337,500 sheep, 37 including a tribute to the LORD of 675, 38 36,000 cattle, including a tribute to the LORD of 72, 39 30,500 donkeys, including a tribute to the LORD of 61, 40 and 16,000 people, including a tribute to the LORD of 32. 41 Moses gave the tribute to Eleazar the priest as an offering for the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses. 42 From the Isr aelites' half, which Moses had set apart from the men who had gone to war, 43 this half belonged to the congregation: 337,500 sheep, 44 36,000 cattle, 45 30,500 donkeys, 46 and 16,000 people. 47 From the Israelites' half, Moses took one out of every f ifty persons and animals and gave them to the Levites who kept charge of the tabernacle of the LORD, as the LORD had com-manded him. The Voluntary Offering 48 Then the officers who were over the units of the army —the commanders of thousands and of hundreds —approached Moses 49 and said, “Your servants have counted the soldiers under our command, and not one of us is miss-ing. 50 So we have brought to the LORD an offering of the gold articles each man acquired —armlets, bracelets, rings, earrings, and neckla ces—to make atonement for our-selves before the LORD. ” Numbers 31:5 0 | 205

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51 So Moses and Eleazar the priest received from them all the articles made out of gold. 52 All the gold that the commanders of thou-sands and of hundreds presented as an offer-ing to the LORD weighed 16,750 shekels. a   53 Each of the soldi ers had taken plunder for himself. 54 And Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds and brought it into the Tent of Meeting as a memorial for the Isra-elites before the LORD. The Tribes East of the Jord an (Deuteronomy 3:1 2-22 ; Joshua 13:8-14) Now the Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, surveyed the lands of Jazer and Gilead, and they saw that the region was suitable for live-stock. 2 So the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the congregation, and said, 3 “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam,b Nebo, and Beon, 4 which the LORD conquered before the congregation of Israel, are suitable for livestock —and your servants have live-stock. ” 5 “If we have found favor in your sight,” they said, “let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not make us cross t he Jor-dan. ” 6 But Moses asked the Gadites and Reubenites, “Shall your brothers go to war while you sit here? 7 Why are you discouraging the Israel-ites from crossing into the land that the LORD has given them? 8 This is what your fathers did when I sent th em from Kadesh-barnea to in-spect the land. 9 For when your fathers went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land that the LORD had given them. 10 So the anger of the LORD was kindled that day, and He swore an oath, saying, 11 'Because they di d not follow Me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years of age or older who came out of Egypt will see the land that I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — 12 not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun —because the y did follow the LORD wholeheartedly. ' 13 The anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He made them wan-der in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation who had done evil in His sight was gone. 14 Now behold, you, a brood of sinners, have risen up in place of your fathers to further stoke the burning anger of the LORD against Israel. 15 For if you turn away from following Him, He will once again leave this people in the wilderness, and you will be the cause of their destruction. ” 16 Then t he Gadites and Reubenites ap-proached Moses and said, “We want to build sheepfolds here for our livestock and cities for our little ones. 17 But we will arm ourselves and be ready c   to go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them into their place. Meanwhile, our little ones will remain in the fortified cities for protection from the inhabit-ants of the land. 18 We will not return to our homes until every Israelite has taken posses-sion of his inheritance. 19 Yet we will not have an inheritance with them across the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Jordan. ” 20 Moses replied, “If you will do this —if you will arm yourselves before the LORD for bat-tle, 21 and if e very one of your armed men crosses the Jordan before the LORD, until He has driven His enemies out before Him, 22 then 32 a 52 16,75 0 shekels is approximately 420. 8 pounds or 190. 9 kilograms. b 3 Hebrew; see verse 38, and similarly in SP and LXX Sibmah   c 17 LXX we will arm ourselves for battle   206 | Numbers 31: 51

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when the land is subdued before the LORD, you may return and be free of obligation to the LORD and to Israel. And this land will belong to you as a possession before the LORD. 23 But if you do not do this, you will certainly sin against the LORD —and be ass ured that your sin will find you out. 24 Build cities for your lit-tle ones and folds for your flocks, but do what you have promised. ” 25 The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, “Your servants will do just as our lord com-mands. 26 Our children, our wives, our live-stock, and all our animals will remain here in the cities of Gilead. 27 But your servants are equipped for war, and every man will cross over to the battle before the LORD, just as our lord says. ” 28 So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the family leaders of the tribes of Israel. 29 And Moses said to them, “If the Gadites and Reu-benites cross the Jordan with you, with every man armed for battle before the LORD, and the land is subdued before you, then you are to give them the land of Gilead as a possession. 30 But if they do not arm themselves and go across with you, then they must accept their possession among you in the land of Canaan. ” 31 The Gadites an d Reubenites replied, “As the LORD has spoken to your servants, so we will do. 32 We will cross over into the land of Ca-naan armed before the LORD, that we may have our inheritance on this side of the Jor-dan. ” 33 So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reu-benites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them. 34 And the Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, 35 Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, 36 Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran as fortified cities, and they built folds for their flocks. 37 The Reubenites built up Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, 38 as well as Nebo and Baal-meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt. 39 The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it, and drove out the Amorites who were there. 40 So Moses gave Gilead to the clan of Machir son of Ma nasseh, and they settled there. 41 Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, went and captured their villages and called them Havvoth-jair. a   42 And Nobah went and captured Kenath and its villages and called it Nobah, after his own name. Forty-Two Journeys of the Israelites These are the journeys of the Israel-ites when they came out of the land of Egypt by their divisions under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. 2 At the LORD's com-mand, Moses recorded the stages of their jour-ney. These are the stages listed by their starting points: 3 On the fifteenth day of the first month, on the day after the Passover, the Israelites set out from Rameses. They marched out defiantly b   in full view of all the Egyptians, 4 who were burying all their firstborn, whom the LORD had struck down among them; for the LORD had executed judg-ment against their gods. 5 The Israelites set out from Rameses and camped at Suc-coth. 6 They set out from Succoth and camped at Etham, on the edg e of the wilderness. 33 Numbers 33: 6 | 207 a 41 Havvoth-jair means the villages of Jair  . b 3 Or marched out boldly  ; literally marche d out with an upraise d hand  

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7 They set out from Etham and turned back to Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon, and they camped near Migdol. 8 They set out from Pi-hahiroth a   and crossed through the sea, into the wilder-ness, and they journeyed three days into the Wi lderness of Etham and camped at Marah. 9 They set out from Marah and came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there. 10 They set out from Elim and camped by the Red Sea. b 11 They set out from the Red Sea and camped in the Desert of Sin. c   12 They set out from the Desert of Sin and camped at Dophkah. 13 They set out from Dophkah and camped at Alush. 14 They set out from Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink. 15 They set out from Rephidim and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai. 16 They set out from the Wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah. 17 They set out from Kibroth-hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth. 18 They set out from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah. 19 They set out from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon-perez. 20 They set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah. 21 They set out from Libnah and camped at Rissah. 22 They set out from Rissah and camped at Kehelathah. 23 They set out from Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher. 24 They set out fro m Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah. 25 They set out from Haradah and camped at Makheloth. 26 They set out from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. 27 They set out from Tahath and camped at Terah. 28 They set out from Terah and camped at Mithkah. 29 They set out from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah. 30 They set out from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth. 31 They set out from Moseroth and camped at Bene-jaakan. 32 They set out from Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad. 33 They set out from Hor-haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah. 34 They set out from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. 35 They set out from Abronah and camped at Ezion-geber. 36 They set out from Ezion-geber and camped at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin. a 8 Some Hebrew manuscripts, SP, and Vulgate; see verse 7; most MT manuscripts Hahiroth b 10 Or the Sea of Reeds  ; also in verse 11 c 11 The geographical name Sin is related to Sinai and should not be mistaken for the Eng-lish word sin  ; also in verse 12. 208 | Numbers 33: 7

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37 They set out from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, on the outskirts of the land of Edom. 38 At the LORD's command, Aa-ron the priest climbed Mount H or and died there on the first day of the fifth month, in the fortieth year after the Isra-elites had come out of the land of Egypt. 39 Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor. 40 Now the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Canaan, heard that the Israelites were coming. 41 And the Israelites set out from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah. 42 They set out from Zalmonah and camped at Punon. 43 They set out from Punon and camped at Oboth. 44 They set out from Oboth and cam ped at Iye-abarim on the border of Moab. 45 They set out from Iyim a   and camped at Dibon-gad. 46 They set out from Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim. 47 They set out from Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim b facing Nebo. 48 They set out from the mountains of Abarim and camped on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho. 49 And there on the plains of Moab they camped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim. c   Instructions for Occupying Canaan 50 On the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, the LORD said to Moses, 51 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 52 you must drive out before you all the inhab-itants of the land, destroy all their carved im-ages and cast idols, and demolish all their high places. 53 You are to take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to pos-sess. 54 And you are to divide the land by lot according to your clans. Give a larger inheritance to a larger clan and a smaller in-heritance to a smaller one. Whatever fall s to each one by lot will be his. You will receive an inheritance according to the tribes of your fathers. 55 But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides; they will harass you in the land where you settle. 56 And then I will do to you what I had planned to do to them. ” The Boundaries of Canaan (Genesis 15:8-21) Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Com-mand the Israelites and say to them: When you enter the land of Canaan, it will be allotted to you as an inheritance with these boundaries: 3 Your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. On the east, your southern border will run from the end of the Salt Sea, d   34 a 45 Iyim is another name for Iye-abarim  ; see verse 44. b 47 Or the mountains beyond the river  ; also in verse 48 c 49 Or the Meadow of the Acacias  ; that is, an area in the lowlands of Moab d 3 That is, the Dead Sea; also in verse 12 Numbers 34: 3 | 209

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4 cross south of the Ascent of Akrabbim,a   continue to Zin, and go south of Kadesh-barnea. Then it will go on to Hazar-addar and proceed to Azmon, 5 where it will turn from Azmon, join the Brook of Egypt, and end at the Sea. b 6 Your western border will be the coast-line of the Great Sea; this will be your boundary on the west. 7 Your northern border will run from the Great Sea directly to Mount Hor, 8 and from Mount Hor to Lebo-hamath, then ex-tend to Zedad, 9 continue to Ziphron, and end at Hazar-enan. This will be your boun dary on the north. 10 And your eastern border will run straight from Hazar-enan to Shepham, 11 then go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain and continue along the slopes east of the Sea of Chinnereth. c   12 Then the border will go down along the Jordan and end at the Salt Sea. This will be your land, defined by its borders on all sides. ” 13 So Moses commanded the Israelites, “Ap-portion this land by lot as an inheritance. The LORD has commanded that it be given to the nine and a half tribes. 14 For the tribes of the Reubenites and Gadites, along with the half-tribe of Manasseh, have already received their inheritance. 15 These two and a half tribes have received their inheritance across the Jordan from Jericho, toward t he sunrise. ” Leaders to Divide the Land 16 Then the LORD said to Moses, 17 “These are the names of the men who are to assign the land as an inheritance for you: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun. 18 Appoint one leader from each tribe to distribute the land. 19 These are their names: Caleb s on of Jephunneh from the tribe of Judah; 20 Shemuel son of Ammihud from the tribe of Simeon; 21 Elidad son of Chislon from the tribe of Benjamin; 22 Bukki son of Jogli, a leader from the tribe of Dan; 23 Hanniel son of Ephod, a leader from the tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph; 24 Kemuel son of Shiphtan, a leader from the tribe of Ephraim; 25 Eli-zaphan son of Parnach, a leader from the tribe of Zebulun; 26 Paltiel son of Azzan, a leader from the tribe of Issachar; 27 Ahihud son of Shelomi, a leader f rom the tribe of Asher; 28 and Pedahel son of Ammihud, a leader from the tribe of Naphtali. ” 29 These are the ones whom the LORD com-manded to apportion the inheritance to the Is-raelites in the land of Canaan. Forty-Eight Cities for the Levites (Joshua 21:1-45 ; 1 Chronicles 6:54-81) Again the LORD spoke to Moses on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho: 2 “Command the Israelites to give, from the inheritance they will possess, cities for the Levites to live in and pasture- lands around the cities. 3 The cities will be for them to live in, and the pasturelands will be for their herds, their flocks, and all their other livestock. 35 210 | Numbers 34: 4 a 4 Or the Ascent of Scorpions or Scorpi on Pass   b 5 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea; also in verses 6 and 7 c 11 That is, the Sea of Galilee

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4 The pasturelands around the cities you are to give the Levites will extend a thousand cubits a   from the wall on every side. 5 You are also to measure two thousand cubits b   outside the city on the east, two thousand on the south, two thousand on the west, and two thousand on the north, with the city in the center. These areas will serve as larger pasturelands for the cities. 6 Six of the cities you give the Levites are to b e appointed as cities of refuge, to which a manslayer may flee. In addition to these, give the Levites forty-two other cities. 7 The total number of cities you give the Levites will be forty-eight, with their corresponding pas-turelands. 8 The cities that you apportion from the territory of the Israelites should be given to the Levites in proportion to the inheritance of each tribe: more from a larger tribe and less from a smaller one. ” Six Cities of Refuge (Deuteronomy 4:4 1-43 ; Deu teronomy 19:1-14 ; Joshua 20:1-9) 9 Then the LORD said to Moses, 10 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 11 desig-nate cities to serve as your cities of refuge, so that a person who kills someone unintention-ally may flee t here. 12 You are to have these cities as a refuge from the avenger, so that the manslayer will not die until he stands trial before the assembly. 13 The cities you select will be your six cities of refuge. 14 Select three cities across the Jordan and three in the land of Canaan as cities of ref-uge. 15 These six cities will serve as a refuge for the Israelites and for the foreigner or stranger among them, so that anyone who kills a person unintentionally may flee there. 16 If, however, anyone strikes a person with an iron object and kills him, he is a murderer; the murderer must surely be put to death. 17 Or if anyone has in his hand a stone of deadly size, and he strikes and kills another, he is a mur-derer; the murderer must surely be put to death. 18 If anyone has in his hand a deadly ob-ject of wood, and he strikes and kills another, he is a murderer; the murderer must surely be put to death. 19 The avenger of blood is to put the murderer to death; when he fin ds him, he is to kill him. 20 Likewise, if anyone maliciously pushes another or intentionally throws an object at him and kills him, 21 or if in hostility he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must surely be put to death; he is a murderer. When the avenger of blood finds the murderer, he is to kill him. 22 But if anyone pushes a person suddenly, without hostility, or throws an object at him unintentionally, 23 or without looking drops a heavy stone that kills him, but he was no t an enemy and did not intend to harm him, 24 then the congregation must judge between the slayer and the avenger of blood according to these ordinances. 25 The assembly is to pro-tect the manslayer from the hand of the avenger of blood. Then the assembly w ill return him to the city of refuge to which he fled, and he must live there until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil. 26 But if the manslayer ever goes outside the limits of the city of refuge to which he fled 27 and the a venger of blood finds him outside of his city of refuge and kills him, then the avenger will not be guilty of bloodshed 28 be-cause the manslayer must remain in his city of Numbers 35:2 8 | 211 a 4 1,000 cubits is approximately 1,500 feet or 457. 2 meters. b 5 2,000 cubits is approximately 3,000 feet or 914. 4 meters.

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refuge until the death of the high priest. Only after the death of the high priest may he re-turn to the land he owns. 29 This will be a stat-utory ordinance for you for the generations to come, wherever you live. 30 If anyone kills a person, the murderer i s to be put to death on the testimony of the wit-nesses. But no one is to be put to death based on the testimony of a lone witness. 31 You are not to accept a ransom for the life of a murderer who deserves to die; he must surely be put to death. 32 Nor sho uld you ac-cept a ransom for the person who flees to a city of refuge and allow him to return and live on his own land before the death of the high priest. 33 Do not pollute the land where you live, for bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atone-ment can be made for the land on which the blood is shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. 34 Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell. For I, the LORD, dwell among the Israelites. ” Zelophehad's Daughters Marry (Numbers 27:1-11) Now the f amily heads of the clan of Gilead son of Machir son of Manas-seh, one of the clans of Joseph, approached Moses and the leaders who were the heads of the Israelite families and addressed them, 2 saying, “When the LORD commanded my lord to give the land as an inheritance to the Israelites by lot, He also commanded him to give the inheritance of our brother Zelo-phehad to his daughters. 3 But if they marry any of the men from the other tribes of Isra el, th eir inheritance will be withdrawn from the portion of our fathers and added to the tribe into which they marry. So our allotted inher-itance would be taken away. 4 And when the Jubilee for the Israelites comes, their inher-itance will be added to th e tribe into which they marry and taken away from the tribe of our fathers. ” 5 So at the word of the LORD, Moses com-manded the Israelites: “The tribe of the sons of Joseph speaks correctly. 6 This is what the LORD has commanded concerning the daugh-ters of Zelophehad: They may marry anyone they please, provided they marry within a clan of the tribe of their father. 7 No inheritance in Israel may be transferred from tribe to tribe, because each of the Israelites is to retain the inheritance of the tribe of h is fathers. 8 Every daughter who possesses an inheritance from any Israelite tribe must marry within a clan of the tribe of her father, so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of his fathers. 9 No inheritance may be transferred from one tribe to another, for each tribe of Israel must retain its inheritance. ” 10 So the daughters of Zelophehad did as the LORD had commanded Moses. 11 Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Noah, the daugh-ters of Zelophehad, were married to cousins on their father's side. 12 They married within the clans of the descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, and their inheritance remained within the tribe of their father's clan. 13 These are the commandments and ordi-nances that the LORD gave the Israelites through Moses on th e plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho. 36 212 | Numbers 35: 29

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The Command to Leave Horeb (Exodus 33:1-6) These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan —in the Arabah opposite Suph — between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. 2 It is an eleven-day journey from Horeb a   to Kadesh-barnea by way of Mount Seir. 3 In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the LORD had commanded him concern-ing them. 4 This was after he had defeated Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and then at Edrei had defeated Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth. 5 On the east side of the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying: b 6 The LORD our God said to us at Horeb: “You have stayed at this mountain long enough. 7 Resume your journey and go to the hill coun-try of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the foothills,c   in the Negev, and along the seacoast to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great River Euphrates. 8 See, I have placed the land before you. Enter and possess the land that the LORD swore He would give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to their descendants after them. ” Moses Appoints Leaders (Exodus 18:1 3-27) 9 At that time I said to you, “I cannot carry the burden for you alone. 10 The LORD your God has multiplied you, so that today you are as numerous as the stars in the sky. 11 May the LORD, the God of your fathers, increase you a thousand times over and bless you as He has promised. 12 But how can I bear your troubles, burdens, and disputes all by myself? 13 Choose for yourselves wise, understanding, and re-spected men from each of your tribes, and I will appoint them as your leaders. ” 14 And you answered me and said, “What you propose to do is good. ” 15 So I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and respected men, and appointed them as leaders over you —as commanders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens, and as officers for your tribes. 16 At that time I charged your judges: “Hear the disputes between your brothers, and judge fairly between a man and his brother or a foreign resident. 17 Show no partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. And bring to m e any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it. ” 1Deuteronomy a 2 That is, Mount Sinai, or possibly a mountain in the range containing Mount Sinai; also in verses 6 and 19 b 5 Note that Deuteronomy 1:6 through Deuteronomy 4:40 may be presented as a continuous section of unbroken speech by Moses. In place of multiple levels of nested quotes, this section has been set apart with a double space. c 7 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea

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18 And at that time I commanded you all the things you were to do. Twelv e Spies Sent Out (Numbers 13:1-33) 19 And just as the LORD our God had com-manded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites, through all the vast and terrifying wilderness you have seen. When we reached Kadesh- barnea, 20 I said: “You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving u s. 21 See, the LORD your God has placed the land before you. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not be afraid or discouraged. ” 22 Then all of you approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us to search out the land and bring us word of what route to follow and which cities to enter. ” 23 The plan seemed good to me, so I selected twelve men from among you, one from each tribe. 24 They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied out the land. 25 They took some of the fruit of the land in their hands, carried it down to us, and brought us word: “It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us. ” Israel's Rebellion (Numbers 14:1-12) 26 But you were unwilling to go up; you re-belled against the command of the LORD your God. 27 You grumbled in your tents and said, “Because the LORD hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to be annihilated. 28 Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying: 'The people are l arger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the heavens. We even saw the descendants of the Anakim there. '  ” 29 So I said to you: “Do not be terrified or afraid of them! 30 The LORD your God, who goes before you, will fight for yo u, just as you saw Him do for you in Egypt 31 and in the wil-derness, where the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way by which you traveled until you reached this place. ” 32 But in spite of all this, you did not trust the LORD yo ur God, 33 who went before you on the journey, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day, to seek out a place for you to camp and to show you the road to travel. Israel's Penalty (Numbers 14:2 0-35) 34 When the LORD heard your words, He grew angry and s wore an oath, saying, 35 “Not one of the men of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your fathers, 36 ex-cept Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land on which he has set foot, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly. ” 37 The LORD was also angry with me on your account, and He said, “Not even you shall enter the land. 38 Joshua son of Nun, who stands before you, will enter it. Encourage him, for he will enable Israel to inherit the land. 39 And the little ones you said would become captives — your children who on that day did not know good from evil —will enter the land that I will give them, and they will possess it. 40 But you are to turn back and head for the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea. a  ” 214 | Deuteronomy 1:18 a 40 Or the Sea of Reeds  

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The Defeat at Hormah (Numbers 14:4 0-45) 41 “We have sinned against the LORD,” you re-plied. “We will go up and fight, as the LORD our God has commanded us. ” Then each of you put on his weapons of war, thinking it easy to go up into the hill country. 42 But the LORD said to me, “Tell them not to go up and fight, for I am not with you to keep you from defeat by your enemies. ” 43 So I spoke to you, but you would not listen. You rebelled against the command of the LORD and presumptuously went up into the hill country. 44 Then the Amorites who lived in the hills came out against you and chased you like a swarm of bees. They routed you from Seir all the way to Hormah. 45 And you returned and wept before the LORD, but He would not listen to your voice or give ear to you. 46 For this reason you stayed in Kadesh for a long time —a very long time. Wanderings in the Wilderness Then we turned back and headed for the wilderness by way of the Red Sea,a   as the LORD had instructed me, and for many days we wandered around Mount Seir. 2 At this time the LORD said to me, 3 “You have been wandering around this hill country long enough; turn to the north 4 and command the people: 'You will pass through the territory of your brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, so you must be very careful. 5 Do not provoke them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as his possession. 6 You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the wa-ter you drink. '  ” 7 Indeed, the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilder-ness. The LORD your God has been with you these forty years, and you have lacked noth-ing. 8 So we passed by our brothers, the descen- dants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road, which comes up from Ela th and Ezion-geber, and traveled along the road of the Wilderness of Moab. 9 Then the LORD said to me, “Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as their posses-sion. ” 10 (The Emites used to live there, a people great and many, as tall as the Anakites. 11 Like the Anakites, they were also regarded as Rephaim, though the Moabites called them Emites. 12 The Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land that the LORD gave them as their possession. ) 13 “Now arise and cross over the Brook of Zered. ” So we crossed over the Brook of Zered. 14 The time we spent traveling from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Brook of Zered was thirty-eight years, until that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them. 15 Indeed, the LORD's hand was against them, to eliminate them from the camp, until they had all perished. 16 Now when all the fighting men among the people had died, 17 the LORD said to me, 18 “Today you are going to cross the border of 2 Deuteronomy 2:18 | 215 a 1 Or the Sea of Reeds  

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Moab at Ar. 19 But when you get close to the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them, for I will not give you any of the land of the Ammonites. I have given it to the descen- dants of Lot as their possession. ” 20 (That too was regarded a s the land of the Rephaim, who used to live there, though the Ammonites called them Zamzummites. 21 They were a people great and many, as tall as the Anakites. But the LORD destroyed them from before the Ammonites, who drove them out and settled in their place, 22 just as He had done for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day. 23 And the Avvim, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, were dest royed by the Caphtorites, who came out of Caphtor  a   and settled in their place. ) The Defeat of Sihon (Numbers 21:2 1-30) 24 “Arise, set out, and cross the Arnon Valley. See, I have delivered into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle. 25 This very day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upo n all the nations under heaven. They will hear the reports of you and tremble in anguish because of you. ” 26 So from the Wilderness of Kedemoth I sent messengers with an offer of peace to Sihon king of Heshbon, saying, 27 “Let us pass through your land; we will stay on the main road. We will not turn to the right or to the left. 28 You can sell us food to eat and water to drink in exchange for silver. Only let us pass through on foot, 29 just as the descendants of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for us, until we cross the Jordan into the land that the LORD our God is giving us. ” 30 But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obsti-nate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as is the case this day. 31 Then the LORD said to me, “See, I have be-gun to deliver Sihon and his land over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land. ” 32 So Sihon and his whole army came out for battle against us at Jahaz. 33 And the LORD our God delivered him over to us, and we defeated him and his sons and his whole army. 34 At that time we captured all his cities and devoted to destruction b   the people of every city, including women and children. We left no survivors. 35 We carried off for ourselves only the livestock and the plunder from the cities we captured. 36 From Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the valley, even as far as Gilead, not one city had walls too high for us. The LORD our God gave us all of them. 37 But you did not go near the land of the Ammonites, or the land along the banks of the Jabbok River, or the cities of the hill country, or an y place that the LORD our God had forbidden. The Defeat of Og (Numbers 21:3 1-35) Then we turned and went up the road to Bashan, and Og king of Bashan and his whole army came out to meet us in battle at Edrei. 2 But the LORD said to me, “Do not fear him, for I have delivered him into your hand, along with all his people and his land. Do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. ” 3 216 | Deute ronomy 2:19 a 23 That is, Crete b 34 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.

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3 So the LORD our God also delivered Og king of Bashan and his whole army into our hands. We struck them down until no survivor was left. 4 At that time we captured all sixty of his cities. There was not a single city we failed to take—the entire region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 5 All these cities were fortified with high walls and gates and bars, and there were many more unwalled villages. 6 We devoted them to destruction,a   as we had done to Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and childr en of every city. 7 But all the livestock and plunder of the cities we carried off for ourselves. 8 At that time we took from the two kings of the Amorites the land across the Jordan, from the Arnon Valley as far as Mount Hermon — 9 which the Sidonians ca ll Sirion but the Amo-rites call Senir — 10 all the cities of the plateau, all of Gilead, and all of Bashan as far as the cit-ies of Salecah and Edrei in the kingdom of Og. 11 (For only Og king of Bashan had remained of the remnant of the Rephaim. His bed of iron, nine cubits long and four cubits wide,b   is still in Rabbah of the Ammonites. ) Land Division East of the Jordan (Numbers 32: 1-42 ; Joshua 13:8-14) 12 So at that time we took possession of this land. To the Reubenites and Gadites I gave the land beyond Aroer along the Arnon Valley, and half the hill country of Gilead, along with its cities. 13 To the half-tribe of Manasseh I gave the rest of Gilead and all of Bashan, the kingdom of Og. (The entire region of Argob, the whole terri-tory of Bashan, used to be called the land of the Rephaim. ) 14 Jair, a descendant of Manas-seh, took the whole region of Argob as far as the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites. He renamed Bashan after himself, Havvoth-jair, c   by which it is called to this day. 15 To Machir I gave Gilead, 16 and to the Reu-benites and Gadites I gave the territory from Gilead to the Arnon Valley (the middle of the valley was the border) and up to the Jabbok River, the border of the Ammonites. 17 The Jordan River in the Arabah bordered it from Chinnereth to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea  d  ) with the slopes of Pisgah to the east. 18 At that time I commanded you: “The LORD your God has given you this land to possess. All your men of valor are to cross over, armed for battle, ahead of your brothers, the Israel-ites. 19 But your wives, your children, and your livestock —I know that you have much livestock —may remain in the cities I have given you, 20 until the LORD gives rest to your brothers as He has to you, and they too have taken possession of the land that the LORD your God is giving them across the Jordan. Then each of you may return to the possession I have given you. ” 21 And at that time I commanded Joshua: “Your own eyes have seen all that the LORD your God has done to these two kings. The LORD will do the same to all the kingdoms you are about to enter. 22 Do not be afraid of them, for the LORD your God Himself will fight for you. ” Moses Forbidden to Cross the Jordan (Numbers 27:1 2-17) 23 At that time I also pleaded with the LORD: 24 “O Lord GOD, You have begun to show Your greatness and power to Your servant. For Deuteronomy 3:24 | 217 a 6 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering. b 11 Og's bed was approximately 14 feet long and 6 feet wide (4. 3 meters long and 1. 8 meters wide). c 14 Or the villages of Jair   d 17 That is, the Dead Sea

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what god in heaven or on earth can perform such works and mighty acts as Yours? 25 Please let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan —that pleasant hill country as well as Lebanon!” 26 But the LORD was angry with me on account of you, and He would not listen to me. “That is enough,” the LORD said to me. “Do not speak to Me again about this matter. 27 Go to the top of Pisgah and look to the west and north and south and east. See the land with your own eyes, for you will not cross this Jordan. 28 But commission Joshua, encourage him, and strengthen him, for he will cross over ahead of the people and enable them to inherit the land that you will see. ” 29 So we stayed in the valley opposite Beth-peor. An Exhortation to Obedience (Deuteronomy 11: 1-7) Hear now, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live and may enter and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. 2 You must not add to or subtract from what I command you, so that you may keep the commandmen ts of the LORD your God that I am giving you. 3 Your eyes have seen what the LORD did at Baal-peor, for the LORD your God destroyed from among you all who followed Baal of Peor. 4 But you who held fast to the LORD your God are alive to this day, every one of you. 5 See, I have taught you statutes and ordi-nances just as the LORD my God has com-manded me, so that you may follow them in the land that you are about to enter and possess. 6 Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding in the sight of the peoples, who will hear of all these statutes and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. ” 7 For what nation is great enough to have a god as near to them as the LORD our God is to us whenever we call on Him? 8 And what nation is great enough to have righteous statutes and ordinances like this entire law I set before you today? 9 Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen, and so that they do n ot slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grand- children. 10 The day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb,a   the LORD said to me, “Gather the people before Me to hear My words, so that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach them to their children. ” 11 You came near and stood at the base of the mountain, a mountain blazing with fire to the heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness. 12 And the LORD spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; there was only a voice. 13 He declared to you His covenant, which He commanded you to follow —the Ten Commandments b   that He wrote on two tablets of stone. 14 At that time the LORD commanded me to teach you the statutes and ordinances you are to follow in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. A Warning against Idolatry (Deuteronomy 12:2 9-32 ; Ezekiel 6:1-7) 15 So since you saw no form of any kind on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the fire at 4 a 10 That is, Mount Sinai, or possibly a mountain in the range containing Mount Sinai; also in verse 15 b 13 Hebrew the Ten Words  218 | Deuteronomy 3:25

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Horeb, be careful 16 that you do not act cor-ruptly and make an idol for yourselves of any form or shape, whether in the likeness of a male or female, 17 of any beast that is on the earth or bird that flies in the air, 18 or of any creature that crawls on the ground or fish tha t is in the waters below. 19 When you look to the heavens and see the sun and moon and stars —all the host of heaven —do not be enticed to bow down and worship what the LORD your God has appor-tioned to all the nations under heaven. 20 Yet the LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be the peo-ple of His inheritance, as you are today. 21 The LORD, however, was angry with me on account of you, and He swore that I would not cross the Jordan to enter the good land that the LO RD your God is giving you as an inher-itance. 22 For I will not be crossing the Jordan, because I must die in this land. But you shall cross over and take possession of that good land. 23 Be careful that you do not forget the cove-nant of the LORD your God that He made with you; do not make an idol for yourselves in the form of anything He has forbidden you. 24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire,a   a jeal-ous God. 25 After you have children and grandchildren and you have been in the land a long time, if you then act corruptly and make an idol of any form —doing evil in the sight of the LORD your God and provoking Him to anger — 26 I call heaven and earth as witnesses aga inst you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to pos-sess. You will not live long upon it, but will be utterly destroyed. 27 Then the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the LORD will drive you. 28 And there you will serve man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell. 29 But if from there you will seek the LORD your God, you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the LORD your God and listen to His voice. 31 For the LORD your God is a merciful God; He will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers, which He swore to them by oath. The LORD Alone Is God 32 Indeed, ask now from one end of the heav-ens to the other about the days that long pre-ceded you, from the day that God created man on earth: Has anything as great as this ever happened or been reported? 33 Has a people ever heard the voice of God b   speaking out of the fire, as you have, and lived? 34 Or has any god tried to take as his own a nation out of another nation—by trials, signs, wonders, and war, by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors —as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, before your eyes? 35 You were shown these things so that you would know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides Him. 36 He let you hear His voice from heaven to discipline you, and on earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the fire. 37 Because He loved your fathers, He chose their descendants after them and brought you out of Egypt by His presenc e and great power, 38 to drive out before you nations greater and mightier than you, and to bring you into their land and give it to you for your inheritance, as it is this day. Deuteronomy 4:38 | 219 a 24 Cited in Hebrews 12:29 b 33 Or of a god

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39 Know therefore this day and take to heart that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other. 40 Keep His statutes and commandments, which I am giv-ing you today, so that you and your children after you may prosper, and that you may live long in the land that the LORD yo ur God is giving you for all time. Cities of Refuge (Numbers 35: 9-34 ; Deuteronomy 19:1-14 ; Joshua 20:1-9) 41 Then Moses set aside three cities across the Jordan to the east 42 to which a manslayer could flee after killing his neighbor uninten-tionally without prior malice. To save one 's own life, he could flee to one of these cities: 43 Bezer in the wilderness on the plateau belonging to the Reubenites, Ramoth in Gilead belongin g to the Gadites, or Golan in Bashan belonging to the Manassites. Introduction to the Law 44 This is the law that Moses set before the Is-raelites. 45 These are the testimonies, statutes, and ordinances that Moses proclaimed to them after they had come out of Egypt, 46 while they were in the valley across the Jordan facing Beth-peor in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon and was defeated by Moses and the Israelites after they had come out of Egypt. 47 They took possession of the land belonging to Sihon and to Og king of Bashan —the two Amorite kings across the Jordan to the east— 48 extending from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley as far as Mount Siyon a   (that is, Hermon), 49 including all the Arabah on the east side of the Jordan and as far as the Sea of the Arabah, b   below the slopes of Pisgah. The Covenan t at Horeb Then Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: c   Hear, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances that I declare in your hearing this day. Learn them and observe them carefully. 2 The LORD our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. d   3 He did not make this covena nt with our fathers, but with all of us who are alive here today. 4 The LORD spoke with you face to face out of the fire on the mountain. The Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) 5 At that time I was standing between the LORD and you to declare to you the word of the LORD, because you were afraid of the fire and would not go up the mountain. And He said: 6 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 7 You shall have no other gods before Me. e 8 You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters be-neath. 9 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 10 but showing loving devotion to a thousand generations f  of those who love Me and keep My commandments. 5 220 | Deuteronomy 4:39 a 48 Or Sion  ; Syriac Sirion   b 49 That is, the Dead Sea c 1 Note that Deuteronomy 5:1 through Deuteronomy 26:19 may be presented as a continuous section of unbroken speech by Moses. In place of multiple levels of nested quotes, this section has been set apart with a double space. d 2 That is, Mount Sinai, or possibly a mountain in the range containing Mount Sinai e 7 Or besides Me   f 10 Hebrew loving devotion to thousands  ; forms of the Hebrew chesed are translated here and in most cases throughout the Scriptures as loving devotion  ; the range of meaning includes love  , goodness  , kindness  , faithfulness  , and mercy  , as well as loyalty to a covenant  .

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11 You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave anyone unpunished who takes His name in vain. 12 Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has com-manded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work —neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox or donkey or any of your livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest as you do. 15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. That is why the LORD your God has commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. 16 Honor your father and your mot her, as the LORD your God has commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. a   17 You shall not murder. b 18 You shall not commit adultery. c   19 You shall not steal. d   20 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. e 21 You shall not covet f  your neighbor's wife. You shall not covet your neighbor's house or field, or his manservant or maid-servant, or his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. ” Moses Intercedes for the People (Exodus 20:1 8-21 ; Hebrews 12:1 8-29) 22 The LORD spoke these commandments in a loud voice to your whole assembly out of the fire, the cloud, and the deep darkness on the mountain; He added nothing more. And He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. 23 And when you heard the voi ce out of the darkness while the mountain was blazing with fire, all the heads of your tribes and your el-ders approached me, 24 and you said, “Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His glory and greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the fire. Today we have seen that a man can live even if God speaks with him. 25 But now, why should we die? For this great fire will con-sume us, and we will die, if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any longer. 26 For who of all flesh has heard the voice of the livi ng God speaking out of the fire, as we have, and sur-vived? 27 Go near and listen to all that the LORD our God says. Then you can tell us everything the LORD our God tells you; we will listen and obey. ” 28 And the LORD heard the words you spoke to me, and He said to me, “I have heard the words that these people have spoken to you. They have done well in all that they have spoken. 29 If only they had such a heart to fear Me and keep all My commandments always, so that it might be well with them and with the ir chil-dren forever. 30 Go and tell them: 'Return to your tents. ' 31 But you stand here with Me, that I may speak to you all the commandments and statutes and ordinances you are to teach them to follow in the land that I am giving them to possess. ” Deuteronomy 5:31 | 221 a 16 Cited in Matthew 15:4, Matthew 19:19, Mark 7:10, Luke 18:20, and Ephesians 6: 2-3 b 17 Cited in Matthew 5:21, Matthew 19:18, Mark 10:19, Luke 18:20, Romans 13:9, and James 2:11 c 18 Cited in Matthew 5:27, Mat-thew 19:18, Mark 10:19, Luke 18:20, Romans 13:9, and James 2:11 d 19 Cited in Matthew 19:18, Mark 10:19, Luke 18:20, and Romans 13:9 e 20 Cited in Matthew 19:18, Mark 10:19, and Luke 18:20 f 21 Cited in Romans 7:7 and Romans 13:9

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32 So be careful to do as the LORD your God has commanded you; you are not to turn aside to the right or to the left. 33 You must walk in all the ways that the LORD your God has com-manded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess. The Greatest Commandment (Matthew 22:3 4-40 ; Mark 12:2 8-34) These are the commandments and stat-utes and ordinances that the LORD your God has instructed me to teach you to follow in the land that you are about to enter and possess, 2 so that you and your children and grandchildren may fear the LORD your God all the days of your lives by keeping all His stat-utes and commandments that I give you, and so that your days may be prolonged. 3 Hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe them, so that you may prosper and multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you. 4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One. a   5 And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. b   6 These words I am commanding you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 And you shall teach them diligently to your children and speak of them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your fore-heads. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates. 10 And when the LORD your God brings you into the land He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that He would give you—a land wi th great and splendid cities that you did not build, 11 with houses full of every good thing with which you did not fill them, with wells that you did not dig, and with vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant —and when you eat and are satisfied, 12 be careful not to forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 13 Fear the LORD your God, serve Him only, and take your oaths in His name. c   14 Do not fol-low other gods, the gods of the peoples around you. 15 For the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God. Otherwise the anger of the LORD your God will be kindled against you, and He will wipe you off the face of the earth. 16 Do not tes t the LORD your God as you tested Him at Massah. d   17 You are to diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God and the testimonies and statutes He has given you. 18 Do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, so that i t may be well with you and that you may enter and possess the good land that the LORD your God swore to give your fathers, 19 driving out all your enemies before you, as the LORD has said. Teach Your Children 20 In the future, when your son asks, “What is the meaning of the decrees and statutes and ordinances that the LORD our God has com-manded you?” 21 then you are to tell him, “We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 6222 | Deuteronomy 5:32 a 4 Or The LORD our God is One LORD or The LORD is our God, the LORD is One or The LORD is our God, the LORD alone  ; cited in Mark 12:29 b 5 Cited in Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, and Luke 10:27 c 13 Or serve Him, and take your oaths only in His name  ; cited in Matthew 4:10 and Luke 4:8 d 16 Massah means testing  ; see Exodus 17:7; cited in Matthew 4:7 and Luke 4:12.

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22 Before our eyes the LORD inflicted great and devastating signs and wonders on Egypt, on Pharaoh, and on all his household. 23 But He brought us out from there to lead us in and give us the land that He had sworn to our fa-thers. 24 And the LORD commanded u s to observe all these statutes and to fear the LORD our God, that we may always be prosperous and preserved, as we are to this day. 25 And if we are careful to observe every one of these commandments before the LORD our God, as He has commanded us, then that will be our righteousness. ” Drive Out the Nations When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to possess, and He drives out before you many nations — the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, seven na-tions larger and stronger than you — 2 and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you to defeat them, then you must de-vote them to complete destruction. a   Make no treaty b   with them and show them no mercy. 3 Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, 4 because they will turn your sons away from following Me to serve other gods. Then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and He will swiftly de-stroy you. 5 Instead, this is what you are to do to them: tear down their altars, smash their sacred pil-lars, cut down their Asherah poles, and burn their idols in the fire. 6 For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a peop le for His prized possession out of all peoples on the face of the earth. 7 The LORD did not set His affection on you and choose you because you were more nu-merous than the other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. 8 But because the LORD love d you and kept the oath He swore to your fathers, He brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9 Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His cov enant of loving devotion for a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His com-mandments. 10 But those who hate Him He repays to their faces with destruction; He will not hesitate to repay to his face the one who hates Him. 11 So keep the comm andments and statutes and ordinances that I am giving you to follow this day. The Promises of God (Exodus 23:2 0-33) 12 If you listen to these ordinances and keep them carefully, then the LORD your God will keep His covenant and the loving devotion that He swore to your fathers. 13 He will love you and bless you and multiply you. He will bless the fruit of your womb and the produce of your land —your grain, new wine, and oil, the young of your herds and the lambs of your flocks —in the land that He swore to your fa-thers to give you. 14 You will be blessed above all peoples; among you there will be no barren man or woman or liv estock. 15 And the LORD will remove from you all sick-ness. He will not lay upon you any of the 7 Deuteronomy 7:15 | 223 a 2 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also twice in verse 26. b 2 Forms of the Hebrew berit are translated in most passages as covenant  .

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terrible diseases you knew in Egypt, but He will inflict them on all who hate you. 16 You must destroy all the peoples the LORD your God will deliver to you. Do not look on them with pity. Do not worship their gods, for that will be a snare to you. 17 You may say in your heart, “These nations are greater than we are; how can we drive them out?” 18 But do not be afraid of them. Be sure to remember what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt: 19 the great trials that you saw, the signs and wonders, a nd the mighty hand and outstretched arm by which the LORD your God brought you out. The LORD your God will do the same to all the peo-ples you now fear. 20 Moreover, the LORD your God will send the hornet against them until even the survivors hiding from y ou have perished. 21 Do not be terrified by them, for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God. 22 The LORD your God will drive out these na-tions before you little by little. You will not be enabled to eliminate them all at once, or the wild animals would multiply around you. 23 But the LORD your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion, until they are destroyed. 24 He will hand their kings over to you, and you will wipe out their names from under heaven. No one will be able to stand against you; you will annihilate them. 25 You must burn up the images of their gods; do not covet the silver and gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, or you will be en-snared by it; for it is detestable to the LORD your God. 26 And you must not bring any detestable thing into your house, or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. You are to utterly detest and abhor it, because it is set apart for destruction. Remember the LORD Your God You must carefully follow every com-mandment I am giving you today, so that you may live and multiply, and enter and possess the land that the LORD swore to give your fathers. 2 Remember that these forty years the LORD your God led you all the way in the w ilderness, so that He might humble you and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commandments. 3 He humbled you, and in your hunger He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so th at you might under-stand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. a   4 Your clothing did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. 5 So know in your heart that just as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God dis-ciplines you. 6 Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, walk-ing in His ways and fearing Him. 7 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks and fountains and springs that flow through the valleys and hills; 8 a land of wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey; 9 a land where you will eat food without scar-city, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and whose hills are ready to be mined for copper. 10 When you eat and are satisfied, you are to bless the LORD your God for the good land that He has given you. 11 Be careful not to forget the LORD your God by failing to keep His commandments and or-dinances and statutes, which I am giving you this day. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are 8 a 3 Cited in Matthew 4:4 and Luke 4:4 224 | Deuteronomy 7:16

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satisfied, when you build fine houses in whi ch to dwell, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all that you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud, and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of th e house of slavery. 15 He led you through the vast and terrifying wilderness with its venomous snakes and scorpions, a thirsty and waterless land. He brought you water from the rock of flint. 16 He fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers ha d not known, in order to hum-ble you and test you, so that in the end He might cause you to prosper. 17 You might say in your heart, “The power and strength of my hands have made this wealth for me. ” 18 But remember that it is the LORD your God who gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers even to this day. 19 If you ever forget the LORD your God and go after other gods to worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely perish. 20 Like the nations that the LORD has destroyed before you, so you will perish if you do not obey the LORD your God. Assurance of Victory Hear, O Israel: Today you are about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities fortified to the heavens. 2 The peo-ple are strong and tall, the descendants of the Anakim. You know about them, and you have heard it said, “Who can stand up to the sons of Anak?” 3 But understand that today the LORD your God goes across ahead of you as a con-suming fire; He will destroy them and subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them swiftly, as the LORD has promised you. 4 When the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say in your heart, “Be-cause of my righteousness the LORD has brought me in to possess this land. ” Rather, the LORD is driving out these nations before you because of their wickedness. 5 It is not because of your righteou sness or uprightness of heart that you are going in to possess their land, but it is because of their wickedness that the LORD your God is driving out these nations before you, to keep the promise He swore to your fathers, to Abra-ham, Isaac, and Jacob. 6 Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people. The Golden Calf (Exodus 32:1-35 ; Acts 7:39-43) 7 Remember this, and never forget how you provoked the LORD your God in the wilder-ness. From the day you left the land of Egypt until you reached this place, you have been rebelling against the LORD. 8 At Horeb a   you provoked the LORD, and He was angry enough to destroy you. 9 When I went up on the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant that the LORD made with you, I stayed on the moun-tain forty days and forty nights. I ate no bread and drank no water. 10 Then the LORD gave me the two stone tab-lets, inscribed by the finger of God with the exact words that the LORD spoke to you out of the fire on the mountain on the day of the as-sembly. 11 And at the end of forty days and forty night s, the LORD gave me the two stone 9 Deuteronomy 9:11 | 225 a 8 That is, Mount Sinai, or possibly a mountain in the range containing Mount Sinai

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tablets, the tablets of the covenant. 12 And the LORD said to me, “Get up and go down from here at once, for your people, whom you brought out of Egypt, have corrupted them-selves. How quickly they have turned aside from the way that I commanded them! They have made for themselves a molten image. ” 13 The LORD also said to me, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people. 14 Leave Me alone, so that I may de-stroy them and blot out their name from under heaven. Then I will make you into a na-tion mightier and greater than they are. ” 15 So I went back down the mountain while it was blazing with fire, with the two tablets of the covenant in my hands. 16 And I saw how you had sinned against the LORD your God; you had made for yourselves a molten calf. You had turned aside quickly from the way that the LORD had commanded you. 17 So I took the two tablets and threw them out of my hands, shattering them before your eyes. 18 Then I fell down before the LORD for forty days and forty nights, as I had done the first time. I did not eat bread or drink water be-cause of all the sin you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD and pro-voking Him to anger. 19 For I was afraid a   of the anger and wrath that the LORD had directed against you, enough to destroy you. But the LORD listened to me this time as well. 20 The LORD was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him, but at that time I also prayed for Aaron. 21 And I took that sinful thing, the calf you had made, and burned it in the fire. Then I crushed it and ground it to powder as fine as dust, and I cast it into the stream that came down from the mountain. 22 You continued to provoke the LORD at Taberah,b   at Massah,c   and at Kibroth-hattaavah. d   23 And when the LORD sent you out from Kadesh-barne a, He said, “Go up and possess the land that I have given you. ” But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. You neither believed Him nor obeyed Him. 24 You have been rebelling against the LORD since the day I came to know you. 25 So I fell down before the LORD for forty days and forty nights, because the LORD had said He would destroy you. 26 And I prayed to the LORD and said, “O Lord GOD, do not destroy Your people, Your inher-itance, whom You redeemed through Your greatness and b rought out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 27 Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Overlook the stub-bornness of this people and the wickedness of their sin. 28 Otherwise, those in the land from which You brought us out will say, 'Because the LORD was not able to bring them into the land He had promised them, and because He hated them, He has brought them out to kill them in the wilderness. ' 29 But they are Your people, Your inheritance, whom You brought out by Your great power and outstretched arm. ” New Ston e Tablets (Exodus 34:1-9) At that time the LORD said to me, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the originals, come up to Me on the mountain, and make an ark of wood. 2 And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tab-lets, which you broke; and you are to place them in the ark. ” 10 226 | Deuteronomy 9:12 a 19 LXX And I am greatly terrified  ; cited in Hebrews 12:21 b 22 Taberah means burning  ; see Numbers 11:3. c 22 Massah means testing  ; see Exodus 17:7. d 22 Kibroth-hattaavah means graves of craving  ; see Numbers 11:34.

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3 So I made an ark of acacia wood, chiseled out two stone tablets like the originals, and went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hands. 4 And the LORD wrote on the tablets what had been written previously, the Ten Commandments a   that He had s poken to you on the mountain out of the fire on the day of the assembly. The LORD gave them to me, 5 and I went back down the mountain and placed the tablets in the ark I had made, as the LORD had commanded me; and there they have remained. 6 The Israelit es traveled from Beeroth Bene-jaakan b   to Moserah, where Aaron died and was buried, and Eleazar his son succeeded him as priest. 7 From there they traveled to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land with streams of water. 8 At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name, as they do to this day. 9 That is why Levi has no portion or inheritance among his brothers; the LORD is his inheritance, as the LORD your God promised him. 10 I stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights, like the first time, and that time the LORD again listened to me and agreed not to destroy you. 11 Then the LORD said to me, “Get up. Continue your journey ahead of the people, that they may enter and possess the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. ” A Call to Obedience (Joshua 24:1 4-28) 12 And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God by walking in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the com-mandments and statutes of the LORD that I am giving you this day for your own good? 14 Behold, to the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, and the earth and everything in it. 15 Yet the LORD has set His affection on your fathers and loved them. And He has chosen you, their descen- dants after them, above all the peoples, even to this day. 16 Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and stiffen your necks no more. 17 For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awesome God, showing no part iality and accepting no bribe. 18 He exe-cutes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing. 19 So you also must love the for-eigner, since you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt. 20 You are to fear the LORD your God and serve Him. Hold fast to Him and take your oaths in His name. 21 He is your praise and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome wonders that your eyes have seen. 22 Your fathers went down to Egypt, sev-enty in a ll, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky. Obedience and Discipline (Deuteronomy 4: 1-14) You shall therefore love the LORD your God and always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments. 2 Know this day that it is not your children who have known and seen the discipline of the LORD your God: His greatness, His mighty hand, and His outstretched arm; 3 the signs 11 Deuteronomy 11: 3 | 227 a 4 Hebrew the Ten Words   b 6 Or from the wells of the Bene-jaakan

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and works He did in Egypt to Pharaoh king of Egyp t and all his land; 4 what He did to the Egyptian army and horses and chariots when He made the waters of the Red Sea a   engulf them as they pursued you, and how He de-stroyed them completely, even to this day; 5 what He did for you in the wilderness until you reached this place; 6 and what He did in the midst of all the Israelites to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, their tent s, and every living thing that belonged to them. 7 For it is your own eyes that have seen every great work that the LORD has done. God's Great Blessings (Joshua 1: 1-9) 8 You shall therefore keep every command-ment I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and possess the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, 9 and so that you may live long in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 For the l and that you are entering to possess is not like the land of Egypt, from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and irrigated on foot, like a vegetable garden. 11 But the land that you are crossing the Jor-dan to possess is a land of mountains and v al-leys that drinks in the rain from heaven. 12 It is a land for which the LORD your God cares; the eyes of the LORD your God are always on it, from the beginning to the end of the year. 13 So if you carefully obey the commandments I am giving you today, to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14 then I will provide b   rain for your land in season, the autumn and spring rain s, that you may gather your grain, new wine, and oil. 15 And I will provide grass in the fields for your livestock, and you will eat and be satisfied. 16 But be careful that you are not enticed to turn aside to worship and bow down to other gods, 17 or th e anger of the LORD will be kin-dled against you. He will shut the heavens so that there will be no rain, nor will the land yield its produce, and you will soon perish from the good land that the LORD is giving you. Remember God's Words 18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 19 Teach them to your children, speaking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 20 Writ e them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates, 21 so that as long as the heavens are above the earth, your days and those of your children may be multi-plied in the land that the LORD swore to give your fathers. 22 For if you carefully keep all these command-ments I am giving you to follow —to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him — 23 then the LORD will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations greater an d stronger than you. 24 Every place where the sole of your foot treads will be yours. Your territory will extend from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Western Sea. c   25 No man will be able to stand against you; the LORD your God will put the fear and dread of you upon all the land, wherever you set foot, as He has promised you. 228 | Deuteronomy 11:4 a 4 Or the Sea of Reeds   b 14 Hebrew; SP, LXX, and Vulgate He will provide  ; also in verse 15 c 24 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea

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A Blessing and a Curse 26 See, today I am setting befor e you a blessing and a curse — 27 a blessing if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I am giving you today, 28 but a curse if you dis- obey the commandments of the LORD your God and turn aside from the path I command you today by following ot her gods, which you have not known. 29 When the LORD your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal. 30 Are not these mountains across the Jordan, west of the road toward the sunset, in the land of the Canaan-ites who live in the Arabah opposite Gilgal near the Oak  a   of Moreh? 31 For you are about to cross the Jordan to en-ter and possess the land that the LORD your God is giving you. When you take possession of it and settle in it, 32 be careful to follow all the statutes and ordinances that I am setting before you today. One Place for Worship These are the statutes and ordi-nances you must be careful to follow all the days you live in the land that the LORD, the God of your fat hers, has given you to pos-sess. 2 Destroy completely all the places where the nations you are dispossessing have served their gods —atop the high mountains, on the hills, and under every green tree. 3 Tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, burn up their Asherah poles, cut down the idols of their gods, and wipe out their names from every place. 4 You shall not worship the LORD your God in this way. 5 Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go. 6 To that place you are to bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and heave offerings, your vow of-ferings and freewill offerings, as well as the firstborn of your herds and flocks. 7 There, in the presence of the LOR D your God, you and your households shall eat and rejoice in all you do, because the LORD your God has blessed you. 8 You are not to do as we are doing here today, where everyone does what seems right in his own eyes. 9 For you have not yet come to the resting place and the inheritance that the LORD your God is giving you. 10 When you cross the Jordan and live in the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, and He gives you rest from all the enemies around you and you dwell se-curely, 11 then the LORD your God will choose a dwelling for His Name. And there yo u are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and spe-cial gifts, and all the choice offerings you vow to the LORD. 12 And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God —you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidser-vants, and the Levite within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you. 13 Be careful not to offer your burnt offerings in just any place you see; 14 you must offer them only in the place the LORD will choose in one of your tribal territories, and there you shall do all that I command you. 15 But whenever you want, you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your gates, accord-ing to the blessing the LORD your God has 12 Deuteronomy 12: 15 | 229 a 30 SP, LXX, and Syriac (see Genesis 12:6); Hebrew Oaks or Terebinths or Great Trees  

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given you. Both the cerem onially clean and unclean may eat it as they would a gazelle or deer, 16 but you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. 17 Within your gates you must not eat the tithe of your grain or new wine or oil, the firstborn of your herds or flo cks, any of the offerings that you have vowed to give, or your freewill offerings or special gifts. 18 Instead, you must eat them in the presence of the LORD your God at the place the LORD your God will choose — you, your sons and daughters, your menser-vants and maidservants, and the Levite within your gates. Rejoice before the LORD your God in all you do, 19 and be careful not to neglect the Levites as long as you live in your land. 20 When the LORD your God expands your ter-ritory as He has promised, and you crave meat and say, “I want to eat meat,” you may eat it whenever you want. 21 If the place where the LORD your God chooses to put His Name is too far from you, then you may slaughter any of the herd or flock He has given you, as I have commanded you, and you may eat it within your gates whenever you want. 22 Indeed, you may eat it as you would eat a gaze lle or deer; both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it. 23 Only be sure not to eat the blood, because the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat. 24 You must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. 25 Do no t eat it, so that it may go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is right in the eyes of the LORD. 26 But you are to take your holy things and your vow offerings and go to the place the LORD will choose. 27 Present the meat and blood of your burnt offerings on the altar of the LORD your God. The blood of your other sacrifices must be poured out beside the altar of the LORD your God, but you may eat the meat. 28 Be careful to obey all these things I command you, so that it may always go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the LORD your God. A Warning agains t Idolatry (Deuteronomy 4:15-31 ; Ezekie l 6:1-7) 29 When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations you are entering to dispos-sess, and you drive them out and live in their land, 30 be careful not to be ensnared by their ways after they have been destroyed before you. Do not inquire about their gods, asking, “How do these nations serve their gods? I will do likewise. ” 31 You must not worship the LORD your God in this way, because they practice for their gods every abomination which the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daugh-ters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods. 32 See that you do everything I command you; do not add to it or subtract from it. Idolaters to Be Put to Death If a prophet or dreamer of dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you, 2 and if the sign or won-der he has spoken to you comes about, but he says, “Let us follow other gods (which you have not known) and let us worship them,” 3 you must n ot listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. For the LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love Him with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 You are to follow the LORD your God and fear Him. Keep His commandments and listen to His voice; serve Him and hold fast to Him. 5 Such a prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he has advocated rebellion against the LORD your God, who brought you 13 230 | Deuteronomy 12:16

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out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery; he has tried to turn you from the way in which the LORD your God has commanded you to walk. So you must purge the evil from among you. a   6 If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you embra ce,b   or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (which neither you nor your fathers have known, 7 the gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, whether from one end of the earth or the other), 8 you must not yield to him or listen to him. Show him no pity, and do not spare him or shield him. 9 Instead, you must surely kill him. Your hand must be the first against him to put him to death, and then the hands of all the people. 10 Stone him to death for trying to turn you away from the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 11 Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such a wicked thing among you. Idolatrous Cities to Be Destroyed 12 If, regarding one of the cities the LORD your God is giving you to inhabit, you hear it said 13 that wicked men have arisen from among you and have led the people of their city astray, saying, “Let us go and serve other gods” (which you have not known), 14 then you must inquire, investigate, and interrogate thoroughly. And if it is established with cer-tainty that this abomination has been commit-ted among you, 15 you must surely put the inhabitants of that city to the sword. Devote to destruction  c   all its people and livestock. 16 And you are to gather all its plunder in the middle of the public square, and completely burn the city and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God. The city must remain a mound of ruin s forever, never to be rebuilt. 17 Nothing devoted to destruction shall cling to your hands, so that the LORD will turn from His fierce anger, grant you mercy, show you compassion, and multiply you as He swore to your fathers, 18 because you obey the LORD your God, keeping all His commandments I am giving you today and doing what is right in the eyes of the LORD your God. Clean and Unclean Animals (Leviticus 11: 1-47 ; Acts 10:9-16) You are sons of the LORD your God; do not cut yourselves or shave your foreheads on behalf of the dead, 2 for you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD has chosen you to be a people for His prized possession out of all the peoples on the face of the earth. 3 You must not eat any detestable thing. 4 These are the animals that you may eat: d   The ox, the sheep, the goat, 5 the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain sheep. 6 You may eat any animal that has a split hoof divided in two and that chews the cud. 7 But of those that chew the cud or have a com-pletely divided hoof, you are not to eat the following: 14 Deuteronomy 14: 7 | 231 a 5 Cited in 1 Corinthians 5:13 b 6 Hebrew the wife of your bosom   c 15 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; similarly in verse 17. d 4 The precise identification of some of the birds and animals in this chapter is uncertain.

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the camel, the rabbit, or the rock badger. a   Although they chew the cud, they do not have a divided hoof. They are unclean for you, 8 as well as the pig; though it has a divided hoof, it does not chew the cud. It is unclean for you. You must not eat its meat or touch its carcass. 9 Of all the creatures that live in the water, you may eat anything with fins and scales, 10 but you may not eat anything that does not have fins and scales; it is unclean for you. 11 You may eat any clean bird, 12 but these you may not eat: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, 13 the red kite, the falcon, any kind of kite, 14 any kind of raven, 15 the ostrich,b   the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, 16 the little owl, the great owl, the white owl, 17 the desert owl, the osprey, the cormorant, 18 the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe, or the bat. 19 All flying insects are unclean for you; they may not be eaten. 20 But you may eat any clean bird. 21 You are not to eat any carcass; you may give it to the foreigner residing within your gates, and he may eat it, or you may sell it to a foreigner. For you are a holy people belonging to the LORD your God. You must not cook a young goat in its mother's milk. Giving Tithes (Leviticus 27:3 0-34 ; Deuteronomy 26:1-15 ; Nehemiah 13:1 0-14) 22 You must be sure to set aside a tenth of all the produce brought forth each year from your fields. 23 And you are to eat a tenth of your grain, new wine, and oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks, in the pres-ence of the LORD your God at the place He will choose as a dwelling for His Name, so that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always. 24 But if the distance is too great for you to carry that with which the LORD your God has blessed you, because the place where the LORD your God will choo se to put His Name is too far away, 25 then exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place the LORD your God will choose. 26 Then you may spend the money on anything you desire: cattle, sheep, wine, strong drink, or anything you wish. You are to feast there in the presence of the LORD your God and rejoice with your household. 27 And do not neglect the Levite within your gates, since he has no por-tion or inheritance among you. 28 At the end of every three years, bring a tenth of all your produce for that year and lay it up within your gates. 29 Then the Levite (because he has no portion or inheritance among you), the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow within your gat es may come and eat and be satisfied. And the LORD your God will bless you in all the work of your hands. 232 | Deuteronomy 14:8 a 7 Or the coney or the hyrax   b 15 Literally the daughter of the ostrich or the daughter of the owl

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The Seventh Year (Exodus 23:1 0-13 ; Leviticus 25:1-7) At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. 2 This is the man-ner of remission: Every creditor shall cancel what he has loaned to his neighbor. He is not to collect anything from his neighbor or brother, because the LORD's time of release has been proclaimed. 3 You may collect some-thing from a foreigner, but you must forgive whatever your brother owes you. 4 There will be no poor among you, however, because the LORD will surely bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, 5 if only you obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commandments I am giving you to-day. 6 When the LORD your God blesses you as He has promised, you will lend to many nations but borrow from none; you will rule over many nations but be ruled by none. Generosity in Lending and Giving (Matthew 6: 1-4) 7 If there is a poor man among your brothers within any of the gates in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, then you are not to harden a   your heart or shut your hand from your poor brother. 8 Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him what-ever he needs. 9 Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought in your heart: “The seventh year, the year of release, is near,” so that you look upon your poor brother begrudgingly and give him noth-ing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin. 10 Give generously to him, and do not let your heart be grieved when you do so. And because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything to which you put your hand. 11 For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is w hy I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land. Hebrew Servants (Exodus 21:1-11) 12 If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, is sold b   to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you must set him free. 13 And when you release him, do not send him away empty-handed. 14 You are to furnish him liberally from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. You shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you. 15 Remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; that is why I am giving you this command today. 16 But if your servant says to you, 'I do not want to leave you,' because he loves you and your household and is well o ff with you, 17 then take an awl and pierce it through his ear into the door, and he will become your servant for life. And treat your maidservant the same way. 18 Do not regard it as a hardship to set your servant free, because his six years of service were worth twice the wages of a hired hand. And the LORD your God will bless you in all you do. Firstborn Animals (Exodus 13: 1-16) 19 You must set apart to the LORD your God every firstborn male produced by your herds and flocks. You are not to put the firstborn of your oxen to work, nor are you to shear the firstborn of your flock. 20 Each year you and 15 Deuteronomy 15: 20 | 233 a 7 Or make strong or make courageous   b 12 Or sells himself

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your household are to eat it before the LORD your God in the place the LORD will choose. 21 But if an animal has a defect, is lame or blind, or has any serious flaw, you must not sacrifice it to the LORD your God. 22 Eat it within your gates; both the ceremonially un-clean and clean may eat it as they would a gazelle or a deer. 23 But you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:1 4-28 ; Leviticus 23:4-8 ; Numbers 28:1 6-25) Observe the month of Abib a   and cel-ebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, because in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you out of Egypt by night. 2 You are to offer to the LORD your God the Passover sacrifice from the herd or flock in the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for His Name. 3 You must not eat leavened bread with it; for seven days you are to eat with it unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, be-cause you left the land of Egypt in haste— so that you may remember for the rest of your life the day you left the land of Egypt. 4 No leaven is to be found in all your land for seven days, and none of the meat you sacrifice in the evening of the first day shall remain until morning. 5 You are not to sacrifice the Passover animal in any of the towns that the LORD your God is giving you. 6 You must only offer the Passover sacrifice at the place the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for His Name. Do this in the evening as the sun sets, at the same time you departed from Egypt. 7 And you shall roast it and eat it in the place the LORD your God will choose, and in the morning you shall re-turn to your tents. 8 For six days you must eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day you shall hold a sol-emn assembly to the LORD your God, and you must not do any work. The Feas t of Weeks (Numbers 28:2 6-31) 9 You are to count off seven weeks from the time you first put the sickle to the standing grain. 10 And you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks b   to the LORD your God with a freewill offering that you give in proportion to how the LORD your God has blessed you, 11 and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God in the place He will choose as a dwelling for His Name —you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Le-vite within your gates, as well as the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widows among you. 12 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and carefully follow these statutes. The Feast of Tabernacles (Numbers 29:1 2-40) 13 You are to celebrate the Feast of Taber- nacles c   for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress. 14 And you shall rejoice in your feast —you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levite, as well as the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widows among you. 15 For seven days you shall celebrate a feast to the LORD your God in the place He will choose, because the LORD your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that your joy will be complete. 16 234 | Deuteronomy 15:21 a 1 Abib was the first month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar, usually occurring within the months of March and April; twice in this verse. b 10 That is, Shavuot; see footnote s for verse 16. c 13 Or Booths or Shelters  ; see footnotes for verse 16.

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16 Three times a year all your men are to ap-pear before the LORD your God in the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread,a   the Feast of Weeks,b   and the Feast of Tabernacles. c   No one should appear before the LORD empty-han ded. 17 Everyone must appear with a gift as he is able, according to the blessing the LORD your God has given you. Judges and Justice 18 You are to appoint judges and officials for your tribes in every town that the LORD your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment. 19 Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. 20 Pursue justice, and justice alone, so that you may live, and you may possess the land that the LORD your God is giving you. Forbidden Forms of Worship 21 Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole next to the altar you will build for the LORD your God, 22 and do not set up for yourselves a sacred pillar, which the LORD your God hates. Detestable Sacrifices You shall not sacrifice to the LORD your God an ox or a sheep with any defect or serious flaw, for that is detestable to the LORD your God. Purge the Id olater 2 If a man or woman among you in one of the towns that the LORD your God gives you is found doing evil in the sight of the LORD your God by transgressing His covenant 3 and going to worship other gods, bowing down to them or to the sun or moon or any of the host of heaven —which I have forbidden — 4 and if it is reported and you hear about it, you must in-vestigate it thoroughly. If the report is true and such an abomination has happened in Israel, 5 you must bring out to your gates the man or woman who has don e this evil thing, and you must stone that person to death. 6 On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but he shall not be executed on the testimony of a lone witness. 7 The hands of the witnesses shall be the first in puttin g him to death, and after that, the hands of all the people. So you must purge the evil from among you. d   Courts of Law 8 If a case is too difficult for you to judge, whether the controversy within your gates is regarding bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults, you must go up to the place the LORD your God will choose. 9 You are to go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who presides at that time. Inquire of them, and they will give you a verdict in the case. 10 You must abide by the verdict they give you at the place the LORD will choose. Be careful to do everything they instruct you, 11 accord-ing to the terms of law they give and the ver-dict they proclaim. Do not turn aside to the right or to the left from the decision they declare to you. 12 But the man who acts presumptuously, re-fusing to listen either to the priest who stands there to serve the LORD your God, or to the 17 Deuteronomy 17: 12 | 235 a 16 That is, the seven-day period after the Passover during which no leaven may be eaten; see Exodus 12:14-20. b 16 That is, Shavuot, the late spring feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is also known as the Feast of Harvest (see Exodus 23:16) or the Feast of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1). c 16 That is, Sukkot, the autumn feast of pilgrimage to Je-rusalem; also translated as the Feast of Booths or the Feast of Shelters and originally called the Feast of Ingathering (see Exodus 23:16 and Exodus 34:22). d 7 Cited in 1 Corinthians 5:13

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judge, must be put to death. You must purge the evil from Israel. 13 Then all the people will hear and be afraid, and will no longer behave arrogantly. Guidelines for a King (1 Samuel 8: 1-9) 14 When you enter the land that the LORD your God is giving you and have taken posses-sion of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” 15 you are to appoint over yourselves the king whom the LORD your God shall choose. Appoint a king from among your brothers; you are not to set over yourselves a foreigner who is not one of your brothers. 16 But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the LORD has said, 'You are never to go back that way again. ' 17 He must not take many wives for himself, lest his heart go astray. He must not accumulate for himself large amounts of silver and gold. 18 When he is seated on his royal throne, he must write for himself a copy of this instruc-tion on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. 19 It is to remain with him, and he is to read from it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the LORD his God by care-fully observing all the words of this instruc-tion and these statutes. 20 Then his heart wil l not be exalted above his countrymen, and he will not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or to the left, in order that he and his sons may reign many years over his kingdom in Israel. Provision for Priests and Levites (1 Corinthians 9:1-18) The Levitical priests —indeed the whole tribe of Levi —shall have no portion or inheritance with Israel. They are to eat the offerings made by fire to the LORD; that is their inheritance. 2 Although they have no inheritance among their brothers, the LORD is their inheritance, as He promised them. 3 This shall be the priests' share from the peo-ple who offer a sacrifice, whether a bull or a sheep: the priests are to be given the shoulder, the jowls, and the stomach. 4 You are to give them the firstfruits of your grain, new wine, and oil, and the first wool sheared from your flock. 5 For the LORD your God has chosen Levi and his sons out of all your tribes to stand and minister in His name for all time. 6 Now if a Levite moves from any town of resi-dence through out Israel and comes in all ear-nestness to the place the LORD will choose, 7 then he shall serve in the name of the LORD his God like all his fellow Levites who stand there before the LORD. 8 They shall eat equal portions, even though he has received money from the sale of his father's estate. Sorcery Forbidden (Acts 8: 9-25) 9 When you enter the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. 10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or dau ghter in the fire,a   practices divination or conjury, interprets omens, practices sorcery, 11 casts spells, consults a medium or spiritist, or inquires of the dead. 12 For whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD. And be-cause of these detestable things, the LORD your God is driving out the nations before you. 13 You must be blameless before the LORD your God. 14 Though these nations, which you will dispossess, listen to conjurers and divin-ers, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so. 18 a 10 Literally make s his son or his daughter pass through the fire   236 | Deuteronomy 17:13

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A Prophet Lik e Moses (Acts 3:11-26) 15 The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to him. a   16 This is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb b   on the day of the assembly, when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God or see this great fire anymore, so that we will not die!” 17 Then the LORD said to me, “They have spo-ken well. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from a mong their brothers. I will put My words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. 19 And I will hold accountable anyone who does not listen to My words that the prophet speaks in My name. c   20 But if any prophet d ares to speak a message in My name that I have not commanded him to speak, or to speak in the name of other gods, that prophet must be put to death. ” 21 You may ask in your heart, “How can we rec-ognize a message that the LORD has not spo-ken?” 22 When a pr ophet speaks in the name of the LORD and the message does not come to pass or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken pre-sumptuously. Do not be afraid of him. Cities of Refuge (Numbers 35:9-34 ; Deuteronomy 4:41-43 ; Joshua 20: 1-9) Whe n the LORD your God has cut off the nations whose land He is giving you, and when you have driven them out and settled in their cities and houses, 2 then you are to set apart for yourselves three cities within the land that the LORD your God is giv-ing you to possess. 3 You are to build roads for yourselves d   and divide into three regions the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that any manslayer can flee to these cities. 4 Now this is the situation regarding the manslayer who flees to one of these cities to save his life, having killed his neighbor acci-dentally, without intending to harm him: 5 If he g oes into the forest with his neighbor to cut timber and swings his axe to chop down a tree, but the blade flies off the handle and strikes and kills his neighbor, he may flee to one of these cities to save his life. 6 Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pur-sue the manslayer in a rage, overtake him if the distance is great, and strike him dead though he did not deserve to die, since he did not intend any harm. 7 This is why I am com-manding you to set apart for yourselves three cities. 8 And if the LORD y our God enlarges your ter-ritory, as He swore to your fathers, and gives you all the land He promised them, 9 and if you carefully keep all these commandments I am giving you today, loving the LORD your God and walking in His ways at all times, then you are to add three more cities to these three. 10 Thus innocent blood will not be shed in the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that you will not be guilty of bloodshed. 11 If, however, a man hates his neighbor and lies in wait, attacks him and kills him, and then flees to one of these cities, 12 the elders of his city must send for him, bring him back, and hand him over to the avenger of blood to die. 13 You must show him no pity. You are to purge from Israel the guilt of shedding inno-cent blood, that it may go well with you. 19 Deuteronomy 19: 13 | 237 a 15 Cited in Acts 3:22 b 16 That is, Mount Sinai, or possibly a mountain in the range containing Mount Sinai c 19 See Acts 3:23. d 3 Or You are to survey the way

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14 You must not move your neighbor's bound-ary marker, which was set up by your ances-tors to mark the inheritance you shall receive in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess. The Testimony of Two or Three Witnesses (Matthew 18:15-20) 15 A lo ne witness is not sufficient to establish any wrongdoing or sin against a man, regard-less of what offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. a   16 If a false witness testifies against someone, accusing him of a crime, 17 both parties to the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD, before the priests and judges who are in office at that time. 18 The judges shall inves-tigate thoroughly, and if t he witness is proven to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother, 19 you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. So you must purge the evil from among you. b   20 Then the rest of the peo-ple will hear and be afraid, and they will never again do anything so evil among you. 21 You must show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, c   hand for hand, and foot for foot. Laws of Warfare When you go out to war against your enemies and see horses, chariots, and an army larger than yours, do not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, who brought you ou t of the land of Egypt, is with you. 2 When you are about to go into battle, the priest is to come forward and address the army, 3 saying to them, “Hear, O Israel, today you are going into battle with your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not be alarmed or terrified because of them. 4 For the LORD your God goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory. ” 5 Furthermore, the officers are to address the army, saying, “Has any man built a new house and not dedicated it? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man dedicate it. 6 Has any man planted a vineyard and not begun to enjo y its fruit? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man enjoy its fruit. 7 Has any man become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man marry her. ” 8 Then the officers shall speak further to the army, saying, “Is any man afraid or faint-hearted? Let him return home, so that the hearts of his brothers will not melt like his own. ” 9 When the officers have finished addressing the army, they are to appoint commanders to lead it. 10 When you approach a city to fight against it, you are to make an offer of peace. 11 If they ac-cept your offer of peace and open their gates, all the people there will become forced labor-ers to serve you. 12 But if they refuse to make peace with you and wage war against you, lay siege to that city. 13 When the LORD your God has delivered it into your hand, you must put every male to the sword. 14 But the women, children, live-stock, and whatever else is in the city—all its spoil —you may take as plunder, and you shall use the spoil of your enemies that the LORD your God gives you. 15 This is how you are to treat all the cities that are far away from you and do not belong to the nations nearby. 16 However, in the cities of the nations that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, 20 238 | Deuteronomy 19:14 a 15 Cited in Matthew 18:16 and 2 Corinthians 13:1 b 19 Cited in 1 Corinthians 5:13 c 21 Cited in Matthew 5:38

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you must not leave alive anything that breathes. 17 For you must devote them to com-plete destruction a  —the Hittites, Amorites, Ca-naanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites —as the LORD your God has commanded you, 18 so that they cannot teach you to do all the detest-able things they do for their gods, and so cause you to sin against the LORD your God. 19 When you lay siege to a city for an extended time while fighting against it to capture it, you must not destroy its trees by putting an axe to them, because you can eat their fruit. You must not cut them down. Are the trees of the field human, that you sho uld besiege them? 20 But you may destroy the trees that you know do not produce fruit. Use them to build siege works against the city that is waging war against you, until it falls. Atonement for an Unsolved Murder If one is found slain, lying in a field in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess, and it is not known who killed him, 2 your elders and judges must come out and measure the distance from the victim to the neighboring cities. 3 Then the elders of the city nearest the victim shall take a heifer that has never been yoked or used for work, 4 bring the heifer to a valley with running water that has not been plowed or sown, and break its neck there by the stream. 5 And the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come forward, for the LORD your God has chosen them to serve Him and pronounce blessings in His name and to give a ruling in every dispute and case of assault. 6 Then all the elders of the city nearest the victim sh all wash their hands by the stream over the heifer whose neck has been broken, 7 and they shall declare, “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it. 8 Accept this atonement, O LORD, for Your people Israel whom You have redeemed, and do not hold the shedding of innocent blood against them. ” And the bloodshed will be atoned for. 9 So you shall purge from among you the guilt of shed-ding innocent blood, since you have done what is right in the eyes of the LORD. Marrying a Captive Woman 10 When you go to war against your enemies and the LORD your God delivers them into your hand and you take them captive, 11 if you see a beautiful woman among them, and you desire her and want to take her as your wife, 12 then you shall bring her into your ho use. She must shave her head, trim her nails, 13 and put aside the clothing of her captivity. After she has lived in your house a full month and mourned her father and mother, you may have relations with her and be her husband, and she shall be your wife. 14 And if you are not pleased with her, you are to let her go wherever she wishes. But you must not sell her for money or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her. Inheritance Rights of the Firstborn 15 If a man has two wives, one beloved and the other unloved, and both bear him sons, but the unloved wife has the firstborn son, 16 when that man assigns his inheritance to his sons he must not appoint the son of the beloved wife as the firstborn over the son of the unloved wife. 17 Instead, he m ust acknowledge the firstborn, the son of his unloved wife, by giving him a 21 Deuteronomy 21: 17 | 239 a 17 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.

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double portion of all that he has. For that son is the firstfruits of his father's strength; the right of the firstborn belongs to him. A Rebe llious Son (Luke 15:1 1-32) 18 If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and does not listen to them when disciplined, 19 his father and mother are to lay hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown, 20 and sa y to the elders, “This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he does not obey us. He is a glutton and a drunkard. ” 21 Then all the men of his city will stone him to death. So you must purge the evil from among you, a   and all Israel will hear and be afraid. Cursed Is Anyone Hung on a Tree 22 If a man has committed a sin worthy of death, and he is executed, and you hang his body on a tree,b   23 you must not leave the body on the tree overnight, but you must be sure to bury him that day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse. c   You must not defile the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance. Various Laws If you see your brother's ox or sheep straying, you must not ignore it;  d   be sure to return it to your brother. 2 If your brother does not live near you, or if you do not know who he is, you are to take the animal home to remain with you until your brother comes seeking it; then you can return it to him. 3 And you shall do the same for his donkey, his cloak, or anythi ng your brother has lost and you have found. You must not ignore it. 4 If you see your brother's donkey or ox fallen on the road, you must not ignore it; you must help him lift it up. 5 A woman must not wear men's clothing, and a man must not wear women's clothing, for whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD your God. 6 If you come across a bird's nest with chicks or eggs, either in a tree or on the ground along the road, and the mother is sitting on the chicks or eggs, you must not take the mother along with the young. 7 You may take the young, but be sure to let the mother go, so that it may be well with you and that you may pro-long your days. 8 If you build a new house, you are to construct a railing around your roof, so that you do not bring bloodguilt on your house if someone falls from it. 9 Do not plant y our vineyard with two types of seed; if you do, the entire harvest will be defiled e  —both the crop you plant and the fruit of your vineyard. 10 Do not plow with an ox and a donkey yoked together. 11 Do not wear clothes of wool an d linen wo-ven together. 12 You are to make tassels on the four corners of the cloak you wear. Marriage Violations 13 Suppose a man marries a woman, has rela-tions with her, and comes to hate her, 14 and he then accuses her of shameful conduct and gives her a bad name, saying, “I married this woman and had relations with her, but I dis-covered she was not a virgin. ” 22 240 | Deuteronomy 21: 18 a 21 Cited in 1 Corinthians 5:13 b 22 Or impale his body on a pole  ; similarly in verse 23 c 23 LXX; Hebrew anyone who is hanged is under God's curse  ; cited in Galatians 3:13 d 1 Or you must not hide yourself   e 9 Or will be for-feited to the sanctuary

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15 Then the young woman's father and mother shall bring the proof of her virginity to the city elders at the gate 16 and say to the elders, “I gave my daughter in marriage to this man, but he has come to hate her. 17 And now he has accused her of shameful conduct, saying, 'I dis-covered that your daughter was not a virgin. ' But here is the proof of her virginity. ” And they shall spread out the cloth before the city elders. 18 Then the elders of that city shall take the man and punish him. 19 They are also to fine him a hundred shekels of silver a   and give them to the young woman's father, because this man has given a virgin of Israel a bad name. And she shall remain his wife; he must not divorce her as long as he lives. 20 If, however, this accusation is true, and no proof of the young woman's vi rginity can be found, 21 she shall be brought to the door of her father's house, and there the men of her city will stone her to death. For she has com-mitted an outrage in Israel by being promiscu-ous in her father's house. So you must purge the evil from among you. b 22 If a man is found lying with another man's wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel. 23 If there is a virgin pledged in marriage to a man, and another man encounters her in the city and sleeps with her, 24 you must take both of them out to the gate of that city and stone them to death —the young woman because she did not cry out in the city, and the man because he has violated his neighbor's wife. So you must purge the evil from among you. 25 But if the man encounters a betrothed woman in the open country, and he overpow-ers her and lies with her, only the man who has done this must die. 26 Do nothing to the young woman, because she has committed no sin worthy of death. This case is just like one in which a man attacks his neighbor and mur-ders him. 27 When he found her in the field, the betrothed woman cried out, but there was no one to save her. 28 If a man encounters a virgin who is not pledged in marriage, and he seizes her and lies with her, and they are discovered, 29 then the man who lay with her must pay the young woman's father fifty shekels of silver,c   and she must become his wife because he has violated her. He must not divorce her as long as he lives. 30 A man is not to marry his father's wife, so that he will not dishonor his father's marriage bed. d   Exclusion from the Congreg ation No man with crushed or severed genitals may enter the assembly of the LORD. 2 No one of illegitimate birth may enter the assembly of the LORD, nor may any of his descendants, even to the tenth generation. 3 No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their de-scendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even to the tenth generation. 4 For they did not meet you with food and water on your way out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram-naharaim  e   to curse you. 5 Yet the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam, and the LORD your God 23Deuteronomy 23: 5 | 241 a 19 100 shekels is approximately 2. 5 pounds or 1. 1 kilograms of silver. b 21 Here and in verse 24; c ited in 1 Co-rinthians 5:13 c 29 50 shekels is approximately 1. 26 pounds or 569. 8 grams of silver. d 30 Or uncover his father's skirt   e 4 That is, Mesopota mia; Aram-naharaim means Aram of the two rivers  , likely the region between the Eu-phrates and Balih Rivers in northwestern Mesopotamia.

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turned the curse into a blessing for you, be-cause the LORD your God loves you. 6 You are not to seek peace or prosperity from them as long as you live. 7 Do not despise an Edomite, for he is your brother. Do not despise an Egyptian, because you lived as a foreigner in his land. 8 The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the LORD. Uncleanness in the Camp (Leviticus 15: 1-12) 9 When you are encamped against your ene-mies, then you shall keep yourself from every wicked thing. 10 If any man among you be-comes unclean because of a nocturnal emis-sion, he must leave the camp and stay outside. 11 When evening approaches, he must wash with water, and when the sun sets he may return to the camp. 12 You must have a place outside the camp to go and relieve yourself. 13 And you must have a digging tool in your equipmen t so that when you relieve yourself you can dig a hole and cover up your excrement. 14 For the LORD your God walks throughout your camp to protect you and deliver your en-emies to you. Your camp must be holy, lest He see anything unclean among you and turn away from you. Miscellaneous Laws 15 Do not return a slave to his master if he has taken refuge with you. 16 Let him live among you wherever he chooses, in the town of his pleasing. Do not oppress him. 17 No daughter or son of Israel is to be a shrine prostitute. 18 You must not bring the wages of a prostitute, whether female or male,a   into the house of the LORD your God to fulfill any vow, because both are detestable to the LORD your God. 19 Do not charge your brother interest on money, food, or any other type of loan. 20 You may charge a foreigner interest, but not your brother, so that the LORD your God may bless you in everything to which you put your hand in the land that you are entering to possess. 21 If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to keep it, because He will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty of sin. 23 Be careful to f ollow through on what comes from your lips, be-cause you have freely vowed to the LORD your God with your own mouth. 24 When you enter your neighbor's vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, but you must not put any in your basket. 25 When you enter yo ur neighbor's grainfield, you may pluck the heads of grain with your hand, but you must not put a sickle to your neighbor's grain. Marriage and Divorce Laws (Matthew 5:3 1-32 ; Luke 16:18) If a man marries a woman, but she becomes displeasing to him because he finds some indecency in her, he may write her a certificate of divorce,b   hand it to her, and send her away from his house. 2 If, after leaving his house, she goes and be-comes another man's wife, 3 and the second man hates her, writes her a certificate of divorce, hands it to her, and sends her away from his house, or if he dies, 4 then the hus-band who divorced her first may not remarry her after she has been defiled, for that is an abomination to the LORD. You must not bring 24 a 18 Hebrew or a dog   b 1 Cited in Matthew 5:31; see also Mark 10:4. 242 | Deuteronomy 23:6

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sin upon the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance. 5 If a man is newly married, he must not be sent to war or be pressed into any duty. For one year he is free to stay at home and bring joy to the wife he has married. Additional Laws 6 Do not take a pair of millstones or even an upper millstone as security for a debt, because that would be taking one's livelihood as secu-rity. 7 If a man is caught kidnapping one of his Isra-elite brothers, whether he treats him as a slave or sells hi m, the kidnapper must die. So you must purge the evil from among you. a   8 In cases of infectious skin diseases,b   be care-ful to diligently follow everything the Levitical priests instruct you. Be careful to do as I have commanded them. 9 Remember what the LORD your God did to Miriam on the journey after you came out of Egypt. 10 When you lend anything to your neighb or, do not enter his house to collect security. 11 You are to stand outside while the man to whom you are lending brings the security out to you. 12 If he is a poor man, you must not go to sleep with the security in your possession; 13 be sure to return it to him by sunset, so that he may sleep in his own cloak and bless you, and this will be credited to you as righteous-ness before the LORD your God. 14 Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a for-eigner residing in one of your towns. 15 You are to pay his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he may cry out to the LORD again st you, and you will be guilty of sin. 16 Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin. c   17 Do not deny justice to the foreigner or the fatherless, and do not take a widow's cloak as security. 18 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you from that place. Therefore I am commanding you to do this. 19 If you are harvesting in your field and forget a sheaf there, do not go back to get it. It is to be left for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. 20 When you beat the olives from your trees, you must not go over the branches again. What remains will be for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. 21 When you gather the grapes of your vine-yard, you must not go over the vines again. What remains will be for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. 22 Remember that you were slaves in the land of E gypt. There-fore I am commanding you to do this. Fairness and Mercy If there is a dispute between men, they are to go to court to be judged, so that the innocent may be acquitted and the guilty condemned. 2 If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall have him lie down and be flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime warrants. 3 He may receive no more than forty lashes, lest your brother be beaten any more than that and be degraded in your sight. 25 Deuteronomy 25: 3 | 243 a 7 Cited in 1 Corinthians 5:13 b 8 Forms of the Hebrew tzaraath, traditionally translated as leprosy, were used for various skin diseases ; see Leviticus 13. c 16 Cited in 2 Kings 14:6 and 2 Chronicles 25:4

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4 Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain. a   Widowhood and Marriage 5 When brothers dwell together and one of them dies without a son, the widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband's brother is to take her as his wife and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law for her. b   6 The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so that his name will not be blot-ted out from Israel. 7 But if the man does not want to marry his brother's widow, she is to go to the el ders at the city gate and say, “My husband's brother refuses to preserve his brother's name in Is-rael. He is not willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me. ” 8 Then the elders of his city shall summon him and speak with him. If he persists and says, “I do not want to marry her,” 9 his brother's widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, remove his sandal, spit in his face, and declare, “This is what is done to the man who will not maintain his brother's line. ” 10 And his family nam e in Israel will be called “The House of the Unsandaled. ” 11 If two men are fighting, and the wife of one steps in to rescue her husband from the one striking him, and she reaches out her hand and grabs his genitals, 12 you are to cut off her hand. You mu st show her no pity. Standard Weights and Measures (Proverbs 11:1-3 ; Ezekie l 45:1 0-12) 13 You shall not have two differing weights in your bag, one heavy and one light. 14 You shall not have two differing measures in your house, one large and one small. 15 You must maintain accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land that the LORD your God is giv-ing you. 16 For everyone who behaves dishon-estly in regard to these things is detestable to the LORD your God. Revenge on the Am alekites 17 Remember what the Amalekites did to you along your way from Egypt, 18 how they met you on your journey when you were tired and weary, and they attacked all your stragglers; they had no fear of God. 19 When the LORD your God gives you rest from the enemies around you in the land that He is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you are to blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget! Offering Firstfruits and Tithes (Leviticus 27:3 0-34 ; Deuteronomy 14:2 2-29 ; Nehemiah 13:1 0-14 ) When you enter the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an in-heritance, and you take possession of it and settle in it, 2 you are to take some of the firstfruits of all your produce from the soil of the land that the LORD your God is giving you and put them in a basket. Then go to the place the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for His Name, 3 to the priest who is serving at that time, and say to him, “I declare today to the LORD your God that I have entered the land that the LORD swore to our fathers to give us. ” 4 Then the priest shall take the basket from your hands and place it before the altar of the LORD your God, 5 and you are to declare be-fore the LORD your God, “My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down to 26 244 | Deuteronomy 25: 4 a 4 Cited in 1 Corinthians 9:9 and 1 Timothy 5:18 b 5 Cited in Matthew 22:24, Mark 12:19, and Luke 20:28

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Egypt few in number and lived there and be-came a great nation, mighty and numerous. 6 But the Egyptians mistreated us and afflicted us, putting us to hard labor. 7 So we called out to the LORD, the God of our fathers; and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, toil, and oppression. 8 Then the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an out-stretched arm, with great terror, signs, and wonders. 9 And He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land that You, O LORD, have given me. ” Then you are to place the basket before the LORD your God and bow down before Him. 11 So you shall rejoice —you, the Levite, and the foreigner dwelling among you —in all the good things the LORD your God has given to you and your household. 12 When you have finished laying aside a tenth of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, you ar e to give it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat and be filled within your gates. 13 Then you shall declare in the presence of the LORD your God, “I have removed from my house the sacred portion and have given it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all the command-ments You have given me. I have not trans-gressed or forgotten Your commandments. 14 I have not eaten any of the sacred portion while in mourning, or removed any of it while unclean, or offered any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the LORD my God; I have done everything You commanded me. 15 Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land You have given us as You swore to our fathers —a land flowing with milk and honey. ” Obey the LORD' s Commands 16 The LORD your God commands you this day to follow these statutes and ordinances. You must be careful to follow them with all your heart and with all your soul. 17 Today you have proclaimed that the LORD is your God and that you will walk in His ways, keep His statutes and commandments and or-dinances, and listen to His voice. 18 And today the LORD has proclaimed that you are His people and treasured possession as He promised, that you are to keep all His commandments, 19 that He will set you high in praise and name and honor above all the nations He has made, and that you will be a holy people to the LORD your God, as He has promised. The Altar on Mount Ebal (Joshua 8:30-35) Then Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people: “Keep all the commandments I am giving you today. 2 And on the day you cross the Jordan into the land that the LORD your God is giving you, set up large stones and coat them with plaster. 3 Write o n them all the words of this law when you have crossed over to enter the land that the LORD your God is giving you, a land flow-ing with milk and honey, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you. 4 And when you have crossed the Jordan, you are to set up these stones on Mount Ebal, as I am commanding you today, and you are to coat them with plaster. 5 Moreover, you are to build there an altar to the LORD your God, an altar of stones. You must not use any iron tool on them. 6 You shall build the altar of the LORD your God with un-cut stones and offer upon it burnt offerings to 27 Deuteronomy 27:6 | 245

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the LORD your God. 7 There you are to sacri-fice your peace offerings, eating them and re-joicing in the presence of the LORD your God. 8 And you shall write distinctly upon these stones all the words of this law. ” 9 Then Moses and the Levitical priests spoke to all Israel: “Be silent, O Israel, and listen! This day you have become the people of the LORD your God. 10 You shall therefore obey the voice of the LORD your God and follow His commandments and statutes I am giving you today. ” Curses Pronounced from Ebal 11 On that day Moses commanded the people: 12 “When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Jo-seph, and Benjamin. 13 And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to deliver the curse: Reu-ben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. 14 Then the Levites shall proclaim in a loud voice to every Israelite: 15 'Cursed is the man who makes a carved idol or molten image —an abomination to the LORD, the work of the hands of a craftsman—and sets it up in secret. ' And let all the peopl e say, 'Amen!' 16 'Cursed is he who dishonors his father or mother. ' And let all the peopl e say, 'Amen!' 17 'Cursed is he who moves his neighbor's boundary stone. ' And let all the peopl e say, 'Amen!' 18 'Cursed is he who lets a blind man wan-der in the road. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 19 'Cursed is he who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 20 'Cursed is he who sleeps with his fa-ther's wife, for he has violated his father's marriage bed. ' a   And l et all the people say, 'Amen!' 21 'Cursed is he who lies with any animal. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 22 'Cursed is he who sleeps with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 23 'Cursed is he who sleeps with his mother-in-law. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 24 'Cursed is he who strikes down his neighbor in secret. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 25 'Cursed is he who accepts a bribe to kill an innocent person. ' And let all the people say, 'Amen!' 26 'Cursed is he who does not put the words of this law into practice. ' b And let all the people say, 'Amen!' The Blessings of Obedience (Leviticus 25:1 8-22) “Now if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God and are careful to follow all His commandments I am giving you today, the LORD your God will set you high abo ve all the nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings will come upon you and 28 246 | Deuteronomy 27: 7 a 20 Or uncovered his father 's skirt   b 26 LXX Cursed is every man who does not continue in all the words of this law  ; cited in Galatians 3:10

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overtake you, if you will obey the voice of the LORD your God: 3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. 4 The fruit of your womb will be blessed, as well as the produce of your land and the offspring of your livestock — the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. 5 Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed. 6 You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. 7 The LORD will cause the enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you. They will march out against you in one direction but flee from you in seven. 8 The LORD will decree a blessing on your barns and on everything to which you put your hand; the LORD your God will bless you in the land He is giving you. 9 The LORD will establish you as His holy people, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways. 10 Then all the peoples of the earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will stand in awe of you. 11 The LORD will make you prosper abun-dantly —in the fruit of your womb, the off-spring of your livestock, and the produce of your land —in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. 12 The LORD will open the heavens, His abun-dant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow from none. 13 The LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you will only move upward and never downward, if you hear and carefully follow the commandments of the LORD your God, which I am giving you today. 14 Do not turn aside to the right or to the left from any of the words I command you today, and do not go af-ter other gods to serve them. The Curses of Disobedience (Leviticus 20: 1-9 ; Leviticus 26:1 4-39) 15 If, however, you do not obey the LORD your God by carefully following all His command-ments and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you: 16 You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country. 17 Your basket and kneading bowl will be cursed. 18 The fruit of your womb will be cursed, as well as the produce of your land, the calves of your herds, and t he lambs of your flocks. 19 You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out. 20 The LORD will send curses upon you, confu-sion and reproof in all to which you put your hand, until you are destroyed and quick ly perish because of the wickedness you have committed in forsaking Him. a   21 The LORD will make the plague cling to you until He has exterminated you from the land that you are entering to possess. 22 The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fe-ver and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought,b   and with blight and mildew; these will pursue you until you perish. 23 The Deuteronomy 28: 23 | 247 a 20 Hebrew Me   b 22 Or sword  

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sky over your head will be bronze, and the earth beneath you iron. 24 The LORD will turn the rain of your land into dust and powder; it will descend on you from the sky until you are destroyed. 25 The LORD will cause you to be defeated be-fore your enemie s. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 26 Your corpses will be food for all the birds of the air and beasts of the earth, with no one to scare them away. 27 The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt, with tumors and scabs and itch from which you cannot be cured. 28 The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness, and confusion of mind, 29 and at noon you will grope about like a blind man i n the darkness. You will not prosper in your ways. Day after day you will be oppressed and plundered, with no one to save you. 30 You will be pledged in marriage to a woman, but another man will violate her. You will build a house but will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard but will not enjoy its fruit. 31 Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will not eat any of it. Your don-key will be taken away and not returned to you. Your flock will be given to your enemies, and no one will save you. 32 Your sons and daughters will be given to an-other nation, while your eyes grow weary looking for them day after day, with no power in your hand. 33 A people you do not know will eat the produce of your land and of all your toil. All your days you will be oppressed and crushed. 34 You will be driven mad by the sights you see. 35 The LORD will afflict you with painful, in-curable boils on your knees and thighs, from the soles of your feet to the top of your head. 36 The LORD will bring you and the king you appoint to a nation neither you nor your fa-thers have known, and there you will worship other gods —gods of wood and stone. 37 You will become an object of horror, scorn, and ridicule among all the nations to which t he LORD will drive you. 38 You will sow much seed in the field but har-vest little, because the locusts will consume it. 39 You will plant and cultivate vineyards, but will neither drink the wine nor gather the grapes, because worms will eat them. 40 You will have olive trees throughout your territory but will never anoint yourself with oil, be-cause the olives will drop off. 41 You will father sons and daughters, but they will not remain yours, because they will go into captivity. 42 Swarms of locusts will consume all your trees and the produce of your land. 43 The foreigner living among you will rise higher and higher above you, while you sink down lower and lower. 44 He will lend to you, but you will not lend to him. He will be the head, and you will be the tail. 45 All these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, since you di d not obey the LORD your God and keep the commandments and statutes He gave you. 46 These curses will be a sign and a wonder upon you and your de-scendants forever. 47 Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart in all your abundance, 48 you will serve your enemies the LORD will send against you in famine, thirst, nakedness, and destitution. He will place an 248 | Deuteronomy 28: 24

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iron yoke on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49 The LORD will bring a natio n from afar, from the ends of the earth, to swoop down upon you like an eagle—a nation whose lan-guage you will not understand, 50 a ruthless nation with no respect for the old and no pity for the young. 51 They will eat the offspring of your livestock and the produce of your land until you are destroyed. They will leave you no grain or new wine or oil, no calves of your herds or lambs of your flocks, until they have caused you to perish. 52 They will besiege all the cities throughout your land, until the hi gh and fortified walls in which you trust have fallen. They will besiege all your cities throughout the land that the LORD your God has given you. 53 Then you will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters whom the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you. 54 The most gentle and refined man among you will begrudge his brother, the wife he em-braces,a   and the rest of his children who have survived, 55 refusing to share with any of them the flesh of his children he will eat because he has nothing left in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you within all your gates. b 56 The most gentle and refined woman among you, so gentle and refined she would not ven-ture to set the sole of her foot on the ground, will begrudge the husband she embraces c   and her son and daughter 57 the afterbirth that comes from between her legs and the children she bears, because she will secretly eat them for lack of anything else in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you within your gates. 58 If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awe-some name —the LORD your God — 59 He will bring upon you and your descendants extraor-dinary disasters, severe and lasting plagues, and terrible and chronic sicknesses. 60 He will afflict you again with all the diseases you dreaded in Egypt, and they will cling to you. 61 The LORD will also bring upon you every sickness and plague not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed. 62 You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky will be left few in number, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God. 63 Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and multiply, so also it will please Him to annihilate you and destroy you. And you will be uprooted from the land you are entering to possess. 64 Then the LORD will scatter you among all the nations, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known. 65 Among those nations you will find no repose, not even a resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will g ive you a trembling heart, fail-ing eyes, and a despairing soul. 66 So your life will hang in doubt before you, and you will be afraid night and day, never certain of survival. 67 In the morning you will say, 'If only it were evening!' and in the eve- ning you will say, 'If only it were morning!' — because of the dread in yo ur hearts of the terrifying sights you will see. Deuteronomy 28: 67 | 249 a 54 Hebrew the wife of his bosom   b 55 Or within all your cities  ; similarly in verse 57 c 56 Hebrew the husband of her bosom

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68 The LORD will return you to Egypt in ships by a route that I said you should never see again. There you will sell yourselves to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you. ” The Covenant in Moab These are the words of the covenant that the LORD commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant He had made with them at Horeb. a   2 Moses summoned all Israel and proclaimed to them, “You have seen with your own eyes everything the LORD did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials, and to all his land. 3 You saw with your own eyes the great trials, and those miraculous signs and wonder s. 4 Yet to this day the LORD has not given you a mind to understand, eyes to see, or ears to hear. 5 For forty years I led you in the wilderness, yet your clothes and sandals did not wear out. 6 You ate no bread and drank no wine or strong drink, so that you might know that I am the LORD your God. 7 When you reached this place, Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan came out against us in battle, but we defeated them. 8 We took their land and gave it as an inher-itance to the Reubenites, the Gadi tes, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. 9 So keep and follow the words of this covenant, that you may pros-per in all you do. 10 All of you are standing today before the LORD your God —you leaders of tribes,b   el-ders, officials, and all the men of Israel, 11 your children and wives, and the foreigners in your camps who cut your wood and draw your water — 12 so that you may enter into the cov-enant of the LORD your God, which He is mak-ing with you today, and into His oath, 13 and so that He may establish you today as His people, and He may be your God as He promised you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 14 I am making this covenant and this oath not only with you, 15 but also with tho se who are standing here with us today in the presence of the LORD our God, as well as with those who are not here today. 16 For you yourselves know how we lived in the land of Egypt and how we passed through the nations on the way here. 17 You saw the abominations and idols among them made of wood and stone, of silver and gold. 18 Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the LORD our God to go and wor-ship the gods of those nations. Make sure there is n o root among you that bears such poisonous and bitter fruit, c   19 because when such a person hears the words of this oath,d   he invokes a blessing on himself, saying, 'I will have peace, even though I walk in the stub-bornness of my own heart. ' This will bring disaster on the watered land as well as the dry. 20 The LORD will never be willing to forgive him. Instead, His anger and jealousy will burn against that man, and every curse written in this book will fall upon him. The LORD will blot out his name from under heaven 21 and single him out from all the tribes of Israel for disaster, according to all the curses of the covenan t written in this Book of the Law. 29 250 | Deuteronomy 28: 68 a 1 That is, Mount Sinai, or possibly a mountain in the range containing Mount Sinai b 10 LXX and Syriac; Hebrew you leaders, tribes   c 18 See Hebrews 12:15 d 19 Or curse  

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22 Then the generation to come —your sons who follow you and the foreigner who comes from a distant land —will see the plagues of the land and the sicknesses the LORD has inflicted on it. 23 All its soil will be a burning waste of sulfur and salt, unsown and u npro-ductive, with no plant growing on it, just like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the LORD over-threw in His fierce anger. 24 So all the nations will ask, 'Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land? Why this great o utburst of anger?' 25 And the people will answer, 'It is because they abandoned the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. 26 They went and served other gods, and they worship ed gods they had not known —gods that the LORD had not given to them. 27 Therefore the anger of the LORD burned against this land, and He brought upon it every curse written in this book. 28 The LORD uprooted them from their land in His anger, rage, and great wrath, and He cast them into another land, where they are today. ' 29 The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, so that we may follow all the words of this law. The Promis e of Restor ation (Nehemiah 1:1-11) “When all these things come upon you—the blessings and curses I have set before you —and you call them to mind in all the nations to which the LORD your God has banished you, 2 and when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey His voice with all your heart and all your soul according to everything I am giving you today, 3 then He will restore you from captiv-ity a   and have compassion on you and gather you from all the nations to which the LORD your God has scattered yo u. 4 Even if you have been banished to the farthest horizon,b   He will gather you and return you from there. c   5 And the LORD your God will bring you into the land your fathers possessed, and you will take possession of it. He will cause you to prosper and multiply more than your fathers. 6 The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descenda nts, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live. 7 Then the LORD your God will put all these curses upon your enemies who hate you and persecute you. 8 And you will again obey the voice of the LORD and follow all His com-mandments I am giving you today. 9 So the LORD your God will make you abound in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your land. Indeed, the LORD will again delight in your go odness, as He de-lighted in that of your fathers, 10 if you obey the LORD your God by keeping His command-ments and statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, and if you turn to Him with all your heart and with all your soul. The Choic e of Life or Death 11 For this commandment I give you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should need to ask, 'Who will ascend into heaven d   to get it for us and proclaim it, that we may obey i t?' 13 And it is not beyond the sea, that you should need to ask, 'Who will cross the sea e   to get it for us and proclaim it, that we may obey it?' 30 Deuteronomy 30: 13 | 251 a 3 Or restore your fortunes   b 4 Or to the extremity of the heavens   c 4 Cited in Nehemiah 1: 8-9 d 12 Cited in Romans 10:6 e 13 See Romans 10:7.

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14 But the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,a   so that you may obey it. 15 See, I have set before you today life and goodness, as well as death and disaster. 16 For I am commanding you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, statutes, and ordinances, so that you may live and increase, a nd the LORD your God may bless you in the land that you are entering to possess. 17 But if your heart turns away and you do not listen, but are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you today that you will surely perish; y ou shall not prolong your days in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. 19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life, so that you and your descendants may live, 20 and that you may love the LORD your God, obey Him, and hold fast to Him. For He is your life, and He will prolong your life in the land that the LORD swore to give to your fa-thers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ” Joshua to Succeed Moses (Numbers 27:1 8-23) When Moses had finished speaking  b these words to all Israel, 2 he said to them, “I am now a hundred and twenty years old; I am no longer able to come and go, and the LORD has said to me, 'You shall not cross the Jordan. ' 3 The LORD your God Himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations be-fore you, and you will dispossess them. Joshua will cross ahead of you, as the LORD has said. 4 And the LORD will do to them as He did to Si-hon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, when He destroyed them along with their land. 5 The LORD will deliver them over to you, and you must do to them exactly as I have com-manded you. 6 Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. ” c   7 Then Moses called for Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will go with this people into the land that the LORD swore t o their fa-thers to give them, and you shall give it to them as an inheritance. 8 The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged. ” The Reading of the Law (Nehemiah 8: 1-8) 9 So Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 Then Moses commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the year of remission of debt, during the Feast of Tabernacles, d   11 when all Israel comes before the LORD your God at the place He will choose, you are to read this law in the hearing of all Israel. 12 Assemble the people —men, women, chil-dren, and the foreigners within your gates — so that they may listen and learn to fear the LORD your God and to follow carefully all the words of this law. 13 Then their children who do not know the law will listen and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as you live in 31 252 | Deuteronomy 30: 14 a 14 Cited in Romans 10:8 b 1 DSS and LXX; MT When Moses went out and spoke   c 6 Cited in Hebrews 13:5; here and in verse 8 d 10 That is, Sukkot, the autumn feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; also translated as the Feast of Booths or the Feast of Shelters and originally called the Feast of Ingathering (see Exodus 23:16 and Exodus 34: 22).

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the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. ” God Commissions Joshua 14 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, the time of your death is near. Call Joshua and pre-sent yourselves at the Tent of Meeting, so that I may commission him. ” So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the Tent of Meeting. 15 Then the LORD appe ared at the tent in a pillar of cloud, and the cloud stood over the entrance to the tent. 16 And the LORD said to Moses, “You will soon rest with your fathers, and these people will rise up and prostitute themselves with the for-eign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake Me and break the covenant I have made with them. 17 On that day My anger will burn against them, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, so that they will be consumed, and many troubles and afflictions will befall them. On that day they will say, 'Have not these dis-asters come upon us because our God is no longer with us?' 18 And on that day I will surely hide My face because of all the evil they have done by turn-ing to other gods. 19 Now therefore, write down for yourselves this song and teach it to the Israelites; have them recite it, so that it may be a witness for Me against them. 20 When I have brought them into the land that I swore to give their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey, they will eat their fill and prosper. Then they will turn to other gods and worship them, and they will reject Me and break My covenant. 21 And when many troubles and afflictions have come upon them, this song will testify against them, be-cause it will not be forgotten from the lips of their descendants. For I know their inclina-tion, even before I bring them into the land that I swore to give them. ” 22 So that very day Moses wrote down this song and taught it to the Israelites. 23 Then the LORD commissioned Joshua son of Nun and said, “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land that I swore to give them, and I will be with you. ” The Law Placed in the Ark 24 When Moses had finished writing in a book the words of th is law from beginning to end, 25 he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD: 26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it be-side the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, so that it may remain there as a witness against you. 27 For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you are already rebel-ling against the LORD while I am still alive, how much more will you rebel after my death! 28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officers so that I may speak these words in their hearing and call heaven and earth to witness against them. 29 For I know that after my death you will become utterly corrupt and turn from the path I have commanded you. And in the days to come, dis-aster will befall you because you will do evil in the sight of the LORD to provoke Him to anger by the work of your hands. ” Mose s Begins His Song 30 Then Moses recited aloud to the whole assembly of Israel the words of this song from beginning to end: Deuteronomy 31: 30 | 253

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The Son g of Moses (Revelation 15:1-4) Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. 2 Let my teaching fall like rain and my speech settle like dew, like gentle rain on new grass, like showers on tender plants. 3 For I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Ascribe greatness to our God! 4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect; all His ways are just. A God of faithfulness without injustice, righteous and upright is He. 5 His people have acted corruptly toward Him; the spot on them is not that of His children, but of a perverse and crooked generation. a   6 Is this h ow you repay the LORD, O foolish and senseless people? Is He not your Father and Creator? Has He not made you and established you? 7 Remember the days of old; consider the years long past. Ask your father, and he will tell you, your elders, and they will inform you. 8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God. b 9 But the LORD's portion is His people, Jacob His allotted inheritance. 10 He found him in a desert land, in a barren, howling wilderness; He surrounded him, He instructed him, He guarded him as the apple c   of His eye. 11 As an eagle stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, He spread His wings to catch them an d carried them on His pinions. d   12 The LORD alone led him, and no foreign god was with him. 13 He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him the produce of the field. He nourished him with honey from the ro ck and oil from the fli nty crag, 14 with curds from the herd and milk from the flock, with the fat of lambs, with rams from Bashan, and goats, wi th the choicest grains of wheat. From the juice of the finest grapes you drank the wine. 15 But Jeshurun e   grew fat and kicked — becoming fat, bloated, and gorged. He abandoned the God who made him an d scorned the Rock of his salvation. 16 They provoked His jealousy with foreign gods; they enraged Him with abominations. 17 They sac rificed to demons, not to God, to gods they had not known, to newly arrived gods, whi ch your fathers did not fear. 18 You ignored the Rock who brought you forth; you forgot the God who gave you birth. 32 254 | Deuteronomy 32: 1 a 5 Cited in Philippians 2:15 b 8 DSS; LXX according to the number of the angels of God  ; MT according to the num-ber of the sons of Israel   c 10 Literally the pupil   d 11 Pinions are the outer parts of a bird's wings, including the flight feathers. e 15 Jeshurun means the upright one  , a term of endearment for Israel.

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19 When the LORD saw this, He rejected them, provoked to anger by His sons and daughters. 20 He said: “I will hide My face from them; I will see what will be their end. For they are a perverse generation — chil dren of unfaithfulness. 21 They have provoked My jealousy by that which is not God; they have enraged Me with their worthless idols. So I will make them jealous by those who are n o t a people; a   I will make them angry by a n ation without understanding. b 22 For a fire has been kindled by My anger, and it burns to the depths of Sheol; it consumes the earth and its produce, and sc orches the foundations of the mountains. 23 I will heap disasters upon them; I will spend My arrows against them. 24 They will be wasted from hunger and ravaged by pestilence and bitter plague; I will send the fangs of wild beasts against the m, with the venom of vipers that slither in the dust. 25 Outside, the sword will take their children, and inside, terror will strike the young man and the young woman, the infant and the gray-haired man. 26 I would have said that I would cut them to pieces and blot out their memory from mankind, 27 if I had not dreaded the taunt of the enemy, lest their adversaries misunderstand and say: 'Our own hand has prevailed; it w as not the LORD who did all this. '  ” 28 Israel is a nation devoid of counsel, with no understanding among them. 29 If only they were wise, they would understand it; they would comprehend their fate. 30 How could one man pursue a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unle ss the LORD had given them up? 31 For their rock is not like our Rock, even our enemies concede. c   32 But their vine is from the vine of Sodom and from the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are poisonous; the ir clusters are bitter. 33 Their wine is the venom of serpents, the deadly poison of cobras. 34 “Have I not stored up these things, sealed up within My vaults? 35 Vengeance is Mine; I will repay. d   In due time their foot will slip; for their day of disaster is near, and their doom is coming quickly. ” 36 For the LORD will vindicate His people e and have compassion on His servants when He sees that their strength is gone and n o one remains, slave or free. 37 He will say: “Where are their gods, the rock in which they took refuge, 38 which ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? Let them rise up and help you; let t hem give you shelter! Deuteronomy 32: 38 | 255 a 21 Or not a nation  ; see also LXX. b 21 Cited in Romans 10:19 c 31 Hebrew; LXX but our enemies are void of understanding   d 35 LXX; Hebrew Vengeanc e is Mine, and recompense  ; cited in Romans 12:19 and Hebrews 10:30 e 36 Or will judge His people  ; see also LXX; cited in Hebrews 10:30

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39 See now that I am He; there is no God besides Me. I bring death and I give life; I wo und and I heal, and there is no one wh o can deliver from My hand. 40 For I lift up My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever, 41 when I sharpen My flashing sword, and My hand grasps it in judgment, I will take vengeance on My adversaries and repay those who hate Me. 42 I will make My arrows drunk wi th blood, while My sword devours flesh — the blood of the slain and captives, th e heads of the enemy leaders. ” 43 Rejoice, O heavens, with Him, and let all God's angels worship Him. a   Rejoice, O nations, with His people; b for He will avenge the blood of His children. c   He will take vengeance on His adversaries and repay those who hate Him; d   He will cleanse His land and His people. 44 Then Moses came with Joshua e   son of Nun and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people. 45 When Moses had fin-ished reciting all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, “Take to heart all these words I testify among you today, so that you may com-mand your c hildren to carefully follow all the words of this law. 47 For they are not idle words to you, because they are your life, and by them you will live long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. ” Moses' Death Foretold 48 On that same day th e LORD said to Moses, 49 “Go up into the Abarim Range to Mount Nebo, in the land of Moab across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites as their own possession. 50 And there on the mountain that you climb, you will die and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people. 51 For at the waters of Meribah-kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin, both of you broke faith with Me among the Israelites by failing to treat Me as holy in their presence. 52 Although you shall see from a distance the land that I am giving the Israelites, you shall not enter it. ” Moses Blesses the Twelve Tribes This is the blessing that Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death. 2 He said: “The LORD came from Sinai and dawned upon us f  from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran and came with myriads of holy ones, with flaming fire at His right hand. g 3 Surely You love the people; all the holy ones are in Your hand, and they sit down at Your feet; h each receives Your words — 4 the law that Moses gave us, the possession of the assembly of Jacob. 5 So the LORD became King in Jes hurun i  when the leaders of the people gathered, when the tribes of Israel came together. 33 a 43 See DSS and LXX; MT lacks Rejoice, O heaven s, with Him, and let all God's angel s worship Him. Cited in Hebrews 1:6 b 43 Cited in Romans 15:10 c 43 DSS and LXX; MT servants   d 43 LXX and Vulgate; MT lacks and repay those who hate Him   e 44 LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate; Hebrew Hoshea  , a variant of Joshua   f 2 LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate; Hebrew upon them   g 2 Or with myriads of holy ones from the south, from His mountain slopes   h 3 Or they follow in Your steps   i 5 Jeshurun means the upright one  , a term of endearment for Israel; also in verse 26. 256 | Deuteronomy 32: 39

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6 Let Reuben live and not die, nor a   his men be few. ” 7 And concerning Judah he said: “O LORD, hear the cry of Judah and bring him to his people. With his own hands he defends his cause, but may You be a help against his foes. ” 8 Concerning Levi he said: “Give Your Thummim to Levi and Your Urim to Your g odly one,b whom You tested at Massah c   and contested at the waters of Meribah. d   9 He said of his father and mother, 'I do not consider them. ' He disregarded his brothers and did not know his own sons, for he kept e   Your word and maintained Your covenant. 10 He will teach Your ordinances to Jacob and Your law to Israel; he will set incense before You and whole burn t offerings on Your altar. 11 Bless his substance, O LORD, and accept the work of his hands. Smash the loins of those who rise against him, and of his foes so they can rise no more. ” 12 Concerning Benjamin he said: “May the beloved of the LORD rest secure in Him; God shields f  him all day long, and upon His shoulders he rests. ” 13 Concerning Joseph he said: “May his land be blessed by the LORD wit h the precious dew from heaven above and the deep waters that lie beneath, 14 with the bountiful harvest from the sun and the abundant yield of the seasons, 15 with the best of the ancient mountains and the bounty of the everlasting hills, 16 with the choice gifts of the land and everything in it, and with the favor of Him who dwelt in the burning bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph and c rown the brow of the prince of his brothers. 17 His majesty is like a firstborn bull, and his horns are like those of a wild ox. With them he will gore the nations, even t o the ends of the earth. Such are the myriads of Ephraim, and such are the thousands of Manasseh. ” 18 Concerning Zebulun he said: “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your journeys, and I ssachar, in your tents. 19 They will call the peoples to a mountain; there they will offer sacrifices of righteousness. For they will feast on the abundance of the s eas and the hidden treasures of the sand. ” 20 Concerning Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges the d omain of Gad! He lies down like a lion and tears off an arm or a head. 21 He chose the best land for himself, because a ruler's portion was reserved for him there. Deuteronomy 33: 21 | 257 a 6 Or but let   b 8 DSS and LXX; MT does not include to Levi  ; literally Let Your Perfections and Your Lights be to Your godly one  . c 8 Massah means testing  ; see Exodus 17:7. d 8 Meribah means quarreling  ; see Exodus 17:7. e 9 Hebrew they kept  , most likely referring to Levi in the plural; similarly twice in verse 10 f 12 LXX; Hebrew He shields  

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He came with the leaders of the people; he administered the LORD's justice and His ordinances for Israel. ” 22 Concerning Dan he said: “Dan is a lion's cub, le aping out of Bashan. ” 23 Concerning Naphtali he said: “Naphtali is abounding with favor, f ull of the blessing of the LORD; he shall take possession of the sea a   and the south. ” 24 And concerning Asher he said: “May Asher be the most blessed of sons; ma y he be the most favored among his brothers and dip his foot in oil. 25 May the bolts of your gate be iron and bronze, and may your strength match your days. ” 26 “There is none like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to your aid, and the clouds in His majesty. 27 The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He drives out the enemy before you, gi ving the command, 'Destroy him!' 28 So Israel dwells securel y; the fountain of Jacob lives untroubled in a land of grain and new wine, wh ere even the heavens drip with dew. 29 Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is the shield that protects you, the sword in which yo u boast. Your enemies will cower before you, and you shall trample their high places. ” The Death of Moses Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which faces Jericho. And the LORD showed him the whole land—from Gilead as far as Dan, 2 all of Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea,b   3 the Negev, and the region from the Valley of Jericho (the City of Palms) all the way to Zoar. 4 And the LORD said to him, “This is the land that I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when I said, 'I will give it to your descendants. ' I have let you see it with your own eyes, but you will not cross into it. ” 5 So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, as the LORD had said. 6 And He buried him c   in a valley in the land of Moab facing Beth-peor, and no one to this day knows the location of his grave. 7 Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak, and his vitality had not diminished. 8 The Israelites grieved f or Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days, until the time of weeping and mourning for Moses came to an end. 9 Now Joshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. So the Israelites obeyed him and did as the LORD had commanded Moses. 10 Since that time, no prophet has risen in Is-rael like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face — 11 no prophet who did all the signs and wonders that the LORD sent Moses to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and to all his offici als and all his land, 12 and no prophet who performed all the mighty acts of power and awesome deeds d   that Moses did in the sight of all Israel. 34 a 23 Or the west   b 2 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea c 6 SP and some LXX manuscripts they burie d him   d 12 Or terrifying deeds   258 | Deuteronomy 33:22

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God Instructs Joshua (Deuteronomy 11:8-17) Now after the death of His servant Moses, the LORD spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Mo-ses' assistant, saying, 2 “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore arise, you and all these people, and cross over the Jordan into the land that I am giving to the children of Israel. 3 I have given you every place where the sole of your foot will tread, just as I promised to Moses. 4 Your territory shall extend from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great River Euphrates —all the land of the Hittites —and west as far as the Gr eat Sea. a   5 No one shall stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so will I be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. b 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall give these people the inheritance of the land that I swore to their fathers I would give them. 7 Above all, be strong and very courageous. Be careful to observe all the law that My servant Moses commanded you. Do no t turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may prosper wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. ” Joshua Takes Charge 10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people: 11 “Go through the camp and tell th e people, 'Prepare your provisions, for within three days you will cross the Jordan to go in and take possession of the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess. '  ” 12 But to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said, 13 “Re-member what Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you when he said, 'The LORD your God will give you rest, and He will give you this land. ' 14 Your wives, your young c hil-dren, and your livestock may remain in the land that Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan. But all your mighty men of valor must be armed for battle to cross over ahead of your brothers and help them, 15 until the LORD gives them rest as He has don e for you, and your brothers also possess the land that the LORD your God is giving them. Then you may return to the land of your inheritance and take possession of that which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you on the east side of the Jordan. ” 16 So they answered Joshua, “Everything you have commanded us we will do, and every-where you send us we will go. 17 Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you. And may the LORD your God be with you, 1 Joshua a 4 That is, the Mediterranean Sea b 5 Cited in Hebrews 13:5

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as He was with Moses. 18 Anyone who rebels against your order and does not obey your words, all that you command him, will be put to death. Above all, be strong and coura-geous!” Rahab Welcomes the Spies (Hebrews 11:3 0-31) Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim, a   saying, “Go, inspect the land, especially Jericho. ” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. 2 And it was reported to the king of Jericho: “Behold, some men of Israel have come here tonight to spy out the land. ” 3 So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab and said, “Bring out the men who came to you and en-tered your house, for they have come to spy out the whole land. ” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, “Yes, the men did come to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I do not know which way they went. Pursue them quickly, and you may catch them!” 6 (But Rahab had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among th e stalks of flax that she had laid out there. ) 7 So the king's men set out in pursuit of the spies along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they had gone out, the gate was shut. The Promise to Rahab 8 Before the spies lay down for the night, Ra-hab went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you. 10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea b   before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites across the Jordan, whom you devoted to destruction. c   11 When we heard this, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in the heavens above and on the earth below. 12 Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD that you will indeed show kindness to my fam ily, because I showed kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will deliver us from death. ” 14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men agre ed. “If you do not report our mission, we will show you kindness and faithfulness when the LORD gives us the land. ” 15 Then Rahab let them down by a rope through the window, since the house where she lived was built into the wall of the city. 16 “Go to the hill country,” she said, “so that your pursuers will not find you. Hide your-selves there for three days until they have returned; then go on your way. ” 17 The men said to her, “We will not be bound by this oath you made us swear 18 unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother and brothers and all your family into yo ur house. 19 If anyone goes out the door of your house into the street, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be innocent. But if a hand is laid on anyone with 2 260 | Joshu a 1:18 a 1 Or Acacia Grove   b 10 Or the Sea of Reeds   c 10 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.

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you in the house, his blood will be on our heads. 20 And if you report our mission, we will be released from the oath you made us swear. ” 21 “Let it be as you say,” she replied, and she sent them away. And when they had gone, she tied the scarlet cord in the window. 22 So the spies went out into the hill country and stayed there three days, until their pursu-ers had returned without finding them, having searched all along the road. 23 Then the two men started back, came down from the hill country, and crossed the river. So they came to Joshua son of Nun and reporte d all that had happened to them. 24 “The LORD has surely delivered the entire land into our hands,” they said to Joshua. “Indeed, all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of us. ” Crossing the Jordan Early the next morning Joshua got up and left Shittim  a   with all the Israelites. They went as far as the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2 After three days the officers went through the camp 3 and commanded the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, you are to set out from your positions and follow it. 4 But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits b   between yourselves and the ark. Do not go near it, so that you can see the way to go, since you have never traveled this way before. ” 5 Then Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you. ” 6 And he said to the priests, “Take the ark of the covenant and go on ahead of the people. ” So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the m. 7 Now the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you just as I was with Moses. 8 Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the waters, st and in the Jordan. '  ” 9 So Joshua told the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the LORD your God. ” 10 He continued, “This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that He will surely drive out before you the Canaan-ites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go ahead of you into the Jordan. 12 Now choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 13 When the feet of the priests who carry the ark of the LORD — the Lord of all the earth —touch down in the waters of the Jordan, its flowing waters will be cut off and will stand up in a heap. ” 14 So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carried the ark of the cove-nant ahead of them. 15 Now the Jordan overflows its banks throughout the harvest season. But as soon as the priests carrying the ark reached the Jor-dan and their feet touched the water's edge, 16 the flowing water stood still. It backed up as far upstream as Adam, a city in the area of Zarethan, while the water flowing toward the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea c  ) was com-pletely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while 3 Joshu a 3:1 7 | 261 a 1 Or Acacia Grove   b 4 2,000 cubits is approximately 3,000 feet or 914. 4 meters. c 16 That is, the Dead Sea

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all Israel crossed over the dry ground, until the entire nation had crossed the Jordan. Twelve Stones from the Jordan When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, 2 “Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, 3 and command them: 'Take up for yourselves twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan where the priests were standing, carry them with you, and set them down in the place where you spend the night. '  ” 4 So Joshua summoned the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, 5 and said to them, “Cross over before the ar k of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of Israel, 6 to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask, 'What do these stones mean to yo u?' 7 you are to tell them, 'The waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters were cut off. ' Therefore these stones will be a memorial to the Israelites forever. ” 8 Thus the Israelit es did as Joshua had com-manded them. They took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each tribe of Israel, just as the LORD had told Joshua; and they carried them to the camp, where they set them down. 9 Joshua also set up twelve stones in the mid-dle of the Jordan, a   in the place where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant stood. And the stones are there to this day. 10 Now the priests who carried the ark re-mained standing in the middle of the Jordan until the people had completed everything the LORD had commanded Joshua to tell them, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried across, 11 and after everyone had fin-ished crossing, the priests with the ark of the LORD crossed in the sight of the people. 12 The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over before the Israelites, armed for battle as Moses had instructed them. 13 About 40,000 tr oops armed for battle crossed over before the LORD into the plains of Jericho. 14 On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him all the days of his life, just as they had revered Moses. 15 Then the LORD said to Josh ua, 16 “Command the priests who carry the ark of the Testi-mony b   to come up from the Jordan. ” 17 So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up from the Jordan. ” 18 When the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up out of the Jor-dan and their feet touched the dry land, the waters of the Jordan returned to their course and overflowed all the banks as before. The Camp at Gilgal 19 On the tenth day of the first month the peo-ple went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. 20 And there at Gilgal Joshua set up the twelve stones they had taken from the Jordan. 21 Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the fu-ture, when your children ask their fathers, 'What is the meaning of these stones?' 22 you are to tell them, 'Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground. ' 23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as He did to the Red 4 262 | Joshu a 4:1 a 9 Some translators And Joshua set up the twelv e stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan   b 16 That is, the ark of the covenant

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Sea,a   which He dried up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that a ll the peo-ples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, and so that you may al-ways fear the LORD your God. ” The Circumcision and Passover at Gilgal Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast  b   heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over,c   their hearts melted and their spirits failed for fear of the Israelites. 2 At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel once again. d  ” 3 So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gibeath-haaraloth. e 4 Now this is why Joshu a circumcised them: All those who came out of Egypt—all the men of war —had died on the journey in the wilder-ness after they had left Egypt. 5 Though all who had come out were circumcised, none of those born in the wilderness on the journey from Egypt had been circumcised. 6 For the Israelites had wandered in the wil-derness forty years, until all the nation's men of war who had come out of Egypt had died, since they did not obey the LORD. So the LORD vowed never to let them see the land He had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flow-ing with milk and honey. 7 And Joshua raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones he circumcised. Until this time they were still uncircumcised, since they had not been circumcised along the way. 8 And after all the nation had been circum-cised, they stayed there in the camp until they were healed. 9 Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. ” So that place has been called Gilgal f  to this day. 10 On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while the Israelites were camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, they kept the Passover. 11 The day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate unleavened bread and roasted grain from the produce of the land. 12 And the day after they had eaten from the produce of the land, the manna ceased. There was no more manna for the Israelites, so that year they began to eat the crops of the land of Canaan. The Commander of the LORD's Army 13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in His hand. Joshua approached Him and asked, “Are You for us or for our enemies?” 14 “Neither,” He replied. “I have now come as Commander of the LORD's army. ” Then Joshua fell facedown in reverence g   and asked Him, “What does my Lord have to say to His servant?” 15 The Commander of the LORD's army re-plied, “Take of f your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy. ” And Joshua did so. 5 Joshu a 5:1 5 | 263 a 23 Or the Sea of Reeds   b 1 That is, along the Mediterranean coast; literally along the sea   c 1 Or until we had crossed over   d 2 Literally again the second time   e 3 Gibeath-haaraloth means the hill of the foreskins  . f 9 Gilgal sounds like the Hebrew for roll  . g 14 Or and paid homage or and worshiped  

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The Walls of Jericho Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. 2 And the LORD said to Joshua, “Behold, I have delivered Jericho into your hand, along with its king and its mighty men of valor. 3 March around the city with all the men of war, cir-cling the city one time. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry seven rams' horns in front of the ark. Then on the seventh day, march around the city seven times, while the priests blow the horns. 5 And when there is a long blast of the ram's horn and you hear its sound, have all the people give a mighty shout. Then the wall of the city will collapse  a   and all your people will charge straight into the city. b  ” 6 So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and said, “Take up the ark of the covenant and have seven priests carry seven rams' horns in front of the ark of the LORD. ” 7 And he told the people, “Advance and march around the city, with the armed troops going ahead of the ark of the LORD. ” 8 After Joshua had spoken to the people, seven priests carrying seven rams' horns before the LORD advanced and blew the horns, and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them. 9 While the horns continued to sound, the armed troops marched ahead of the priests who blew the horns, and the rear guard followed the ark. 10 But Joshua had commanded the people: “Do not give a battle cry or let your voice be heard; do not let one word come out of your mouth until the day I tell you to shout. Then you are to shout!” 11 So he had the ark of the LORD carried around the city, circling it once. And the people returned to the camp and spent the night there. 12 Joshua got up early the next morning, and the priests took the ark of the LORD. 13 And the seven priests carrying seven rams' horns kept marching ahead of the ark of the LORD and blowing the horns. The armed troops went in front of them and the rear guard fol-lowed the ark of the LORD, while the horns kept sounding. 14 So on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days. 15 Then on the seventh day, they got up at dawn and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. That was the only day they circled the city seven times. 16 After the seventh time around, the priests blew the horns, and Joshua commanded the people, “Shout! For the LORD has given you the city! 17 Now the city and everything in it must be devoted to the LORD for destruction. c   Only Rahab the prostitute and all those with her in her house will live, because she hid the spies we sent. 18 But keep away from the things devoted to destruction, lest you yourself be set apart for destruction. If you take any of these, you will set apart the camp of Israel for destruction and bring disaster upon it. 19 For all the silver and gold and all the articles of bronze and iron are holy to the LORD; they must go into His treasury. ” 20 So when the rams' horns sounded, the peo-ple shouted. When they heard the blast of the horn, the people gave a great shout, and th e wall collapsed. Then all the people charged straight into the city and captured it. 21 At the edge of the sword they devoted to destruction everything in the city —man and woman, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys. 6 a 5 Or fall unde r itself or fall flat  ; similarly in verse 20 b 5 Literally and the peopl e will go up, every man straight ahead  ; similarly in verse 20 c 17 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in verses 18 and 21. 264 | Joshu a 6:1

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22 Mean while, Joshua told the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the house of the prostitute and bring out the woman and all who are with her, just as you promised her. ” 23 So the young spies went in and brought out Rahab, her father and mother and brot hers, and all who belonged to her. They brought out her whole family and settled them outside the camp of Israel. 24 Then the Israelites burned up the city and everything in it. However, they put the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the LORD's house. 25 And Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her father's household and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent to spy out Jericho. So she has lived among the Israelites to this day. 26 At that time Joshua invoked this solemn oath: “Cursed before the LORD is the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho; at the cost of his firstborn he will lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest he will set up its gates. ” a   27 So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land. The Defeat at Ai The Israelites, however, acted unfaith-fully regarding the things devoted to destruction. b   Achan c   son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi,d   the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of what was set apart. So the anger of the LORD burned against the Israelites. 2 Meanwhile, Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the land. ” So the men went up and spied out Ai. 3 On returning to Joshua, they reported, “There is no need to send all the people; two or three thousand men are enough to go up and attack Ai. S ince the people of Ai are so few, you need not wear out all our people there. ” 4 So about three thousand men went up, but they fled before the men of Ai. 5 And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them, chasing them from the gate as far as the qu ar-ries e   and striking them down on the slopes. So the hearts of the people melted and became like water. 6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown before the ark of the LORD until evening, as did the elders of Israel; and they all sprinkled dust on their heads. 7 “O, Lord GOD,” Joshua said, “why did You ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to be destroyed? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan! 8 O Lord, what can I say, now that Israel h as turned its back and run from its enemies? 9 When the Canaan-ites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will You do for Your great name?” 10 But the LORD said to Joshua, “Stand up! Why have you fallen on your face? 11 Israel has sinned; they have transgressed My covenant that I commanded them, and they have taken some of what was devoted to destruction. In-deed, they have stolen and lied, and they have 7 Joshu a 7:1 1 | 265 a 26 See 1 Kings 16:34. b 1 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in verses 11, 12, 13, and 15. c 1 Achan means trou-bler  ; also called Achar in 1 Chronicles 2:7. d 1 Zabdi is a variant of Z imri  ; also in verses 17 and 18; see LXX and 1 Chronicles 2:6. e 5 Or as far as Shebarim

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put these things with their own possessions. 12 This is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies. They will turn their backs and run from their enemies, because they themselves have been set apart for destruction. I will no longer be with you unless you remove from among you whatever is devoted to destruction. 13 Get up and consecrate the people, saying, 'Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Among you, O Israel, there are things devoted to d estruction. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them. 14 In the morning you must present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe that the LORD selects shall come forward clan by clan, and the clan that the LORD selects shall come forward family by family, and the family that the LORD selects shall come forward man by man. 15 The one who is caught with the things devoted to de-struction must be burned, along with all that belongs to him, because he has transgressed the covenant of the LORD and committed an outrage in Israel. '  ” The Sin of Achan 16 So Joshua arose early the next morning and had Israel come forward tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was selected. 17 He had the clans of Judah come forward, and the clan of the Zerahites was s elected. He had the clan of the Zerahites come forward, and the family of Zabdi was selected. 18 And he had the family of Zabdi come forward man by man, and Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was selected. 19 So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to Him. I urge you to tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me. ” 20 “It is true,” Achan replied, “I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. This is what I did: 21 When I saw among the spoils a beautiful cloak from Shinar,a   two hundred shekels of silver,b   and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels,c   I coveted them and took th em. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath. ” 22 So Joshua sent messengers who ran to the tent, and there it all was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath. 23 They took the things from inside the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites, and spread them out before the LORD. 24 Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the cloak, the bar of gold, his sons and daughter s, his oxen and donkeys and sheep, his tent, and every-thing else he owned, and brought them to the Valley of Achor. 25 “Why have you brought this trouble upon us?” said Joshua. “Today the LORD will bring trouble upon you!” And all Israel stoned him to dea th. Then they stoned the others and burned their bodies. 26 And they heaped over Achan a large pile of rocks that remains to this day. So the LORD turned from His burning an-ger. Therefore that place is called the Valley of Achor  d   to this day. The Conquest of Ai Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. See, I have delivered into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land. 2 And you 8 266 | Joshu a 7:12 a 21 That is, Babylonia b 21 200 shekels is approximately 5 pounds or 2. 3 kilograms of silver. c 21 50 shekels is approximately 1. 26 pounds or 569. 8 grams of gold. d 26 Achor means trouble  .

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shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set up an ambush behind the city. ” 3 So Joshua and the whole army set out to attack Ai. Joshua chose 30,000 mighty m en of valor and sent them out at night 4 with these orders: “Pay attention. You are to lie in am-bush behind the city, not too far from it. All of you must be ready. 5 Then I and all the troops with me will advance on the city. When they come out against us as they did the first time, we will flee from them. 6 They will pursue us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, 'The Israelites are running away from us as they did before. ' So as we flee from them, 7 you are to rise from the amb ush and seize the city, for the LORD your God will deliver it into your hand. 8 And when you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do as the LORD has commanded! See, I have given you orders. ” 9 So Joshua sent them out, and they went to the place of ambush and lay in wait between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai. But Joshua spent that night among the people. 10 Joshua got up early the next morning and mobilized his men, and he and the elders of Is-rael marched before them up to Ai. 11 Then all the troops who were with him marched up and approached the city. They arrived in front of Ai and camped to the north of it, with the valley between them and the city. 12 Now Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set up an ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. 13 So the forces were stationed with the main camp to the north of the city and the rear guard to the west of the city. And that night Joshua went into the valley. 14 When the king of Ai saw the Israelites, he hurried out early in the morning with the men of the city to engage them in battle at an ap-pointed place overlooking the Arabah. But he did not know that an ambush had been set up against him behind the city. 15 Joshua and all Israel let themselves be beaten back before them, and they fled toward the wilderness. 16 Then all the men of Ai were summoned to pursue them, and they followed Joshua and were drawn away from the city. 17 Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel, leaving the city wide open while they pursued Israel. 18 Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Hold out your battle lance a   toward Ai, for into your hand I will deliver the city. ” S o Joshua held out his battle lance toward Ai, 19 and as soon as he did so, the men in ambush rose quickly from their position. They rushed forward, entered the city, captured it, and immediately set it on fire. 20 When the men of Ai turned and looked back, the smoke of the city was rising into the sky. They could not escape in any direction, and the troops who had fled to the wilderness now became the pursuers. 21 When Joshua and all Israel saw that the men in ambush had cap-tured the city and that smoke wa s rising from it, they turned around and struck down the men of Ai. 22 Meanwhile, those in the ambush came out of the city against them, and the men of Ai were trapped between the Israelite forces on both sides. So Israel struck them down until no survivor or fugitive remained. 23 But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua. 24 When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai who had pursued them into the field and wilderness, and when every last one of them Joshu a 8:2 4 | 267 a 18 Or javelin  ; twice in this verse, and also in verse 26

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had fallen by the sword, all the Israelites re-turned to Ai and put it to the sword as well. 25 A total of twelve thousand men and women fell that day —all the people of Ai. 26 Joshua did not draw back the hand that held his battle lance until he had devoted to destruction a   all who lived in Ai. 27 Israel took for themselves only the cattle and plunder of that city, as the LORD had commanded Joshua. 28 So Joshua burned Ai b   and made it a perma-nent heap of ruins, a desolation to this day. 29 He hung the king of Ai on a tree c   until eve- ning, and at sunset Joshua commanded that they take down the body from the tree and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And over it they raised a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day. Joshua Renews the Covenant (Deuteronomy 27:1-10) 30 At that time Joshua built an altar on Mount Ebal to the LORD, the God of Israel, 31 just as Moses the servant of the LORD had com-manded the Israelites. He built it according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Mo-ses: “an altar of uncut stones on w hich no iron tool has been used. ”  d   And on it they offered burnt offerings to the LORD, and they sacri-ficed peace offerings. 32 And there in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua inscribed on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written. 33 All Is-rael, foreigners and citizens alike, with their elders, officers, and judges, stood on both sides of the ark of the cove nant of the LORD facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the LORD had com-manded earlier, to bless the people of Israel. 34 Afterward, Joshua read aloud all the words of the law —the blessings and the curses — according to all that is written in the Book of the Law. 35 There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua failed to read before the whole assembly of Israel, inclu ding the women, the little ones, and the foreigners who lived among them. The Deceit of the Gibeonites Now when news of this reached all the kings west of the Jordan —those in the hill country, the foothills, e   and all along the coast of the Great Sea f  toward Lebanon (the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites) — 2 they came together to wage war against Joshua and Israel. 3 But the people of Gibeon, having hear d what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, 4 acted de-ceptively and set out as envoys, g   carrying on their donkeys worn-out sacks and old wine-skins, cracked and mended. 5 They put worn, patched sandals on their feet and threadbare clothing on their bodies, and their whole sup-ply of bread was dry and moldy. 6 They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant land; please make a treaty  h   with us. ” 7 But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Per-haps you dwell near us. How can we make a treaty with you?” 8 “We are your servants,” they said to Joshua. Then Joshua asked them, “Who are you and where have you come from?” 9 268 | Joshu a 8:25 a 26 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering. b 28 Ai means ruin  . c 29 Or He impaled the king of Ai on a pole   d 31 Exodus 20:25; Deuteronomy 27:5 e 1 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea f 1 That is, the Mediterranean Sea g 4 Or set out with provisions   h 6 Forms of the Hebrew berit are translated in most passages as covenant  ; also in verses 7, 11, 15, and 16.

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9 “Your servants have come from a very dis-tant land,” they replied, “because of the fame of the LORD your God. For we have heard the reports about Him: all that He did in Egypt, 10 and all that He did to the two kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan —Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth. 11 So the elders and inhabitants of our land told us, 'Take provisions for your journey; go t o meet them and say to them: We are your servants. Please make a treaty with us. ' 12 This bread of ours was warm when we packed it at home on the day we left to come to you. But take a look, it is now dry and moldy. 13 These wineskins were new when we filled them, but look, they are cracked. And these clothes and sandals are worn out from our very long journey. ” 14 Then the men of Israel sampled their provi-sions, but did not seek the counsel of the LORD. 15 And Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to l et them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them. 16 Three days after they had made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites learned that they were neighbors, living among them. 17 So the Israelites set out and on the third day arrived at their cities —Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. 18 But the Israel-ites did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn an oath to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. And the whole congregation grumbled agai nst the leaders. 19 All the leaders answered, “We have sworn an oath to them by the LORD, the God of Israel, and now we cannot touch them. 20 This is how we will treat them: We will let them live, so that no wrath will fall on us because of the oath we swore to them. ” 21 They continued, “Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers for the whole congrega-tion. ” So the leaders kept their promise. 22 Then Joshua summoned the Gibeonites and said, “Why did you deceive us by telling us you live far away from us, wh en in fact you live among us? 23 Now therefore you are under a curse and will perpetually serve as wood- cutters and water carriers for the house of my God. ” 24 The Gibeonites answered, “Your servants were told clearly that the LORD your God had commande d His servant Moses to give you all the land and wipe out all its inhabitants before you. So we greatly feared for our lives because of you, and that is why we have done this. 25 Now we are in your hands. Do to us what-ever seems good and right to you. ” 26 So Joshua did this and delivered them from the hands of the Israelites, and they did not kill the Gibeonites. 27 On that day he made them woodcutters and water carriers, as they are to this day for the congregation of the LORD and for the altar at the pla ce He would choose. The Day the Sun Stood Still Now Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and devoted it to destruction  a  —doing to Ai and its king as he had done to Jericho and its king —and that the people of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were living near them. 2 So Adoni-zedek and his people were greatly alarmed, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were mighty. 3 Therefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram 10 Joshu a 10: 3 | 269 a 1 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in verses 28, 35, 37, 39, and 40.

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king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4 “Come up and help me. We will attack Gibeon, because they have made peace with Joshua and the Israel-ites. ” 5 So the five kings of the Amorites —the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarm uth, Lachish, and Eglon —joined forces and advanced with all their armies. They camped before Gibeon and made war against it. 6 Then the men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal: “Do not abandon your servants. Come quickly and save us! Help us, because all the kings of the Amorites from the hill country have joined forces against us. ” 7 So Joshua and his whole army, including all the mighty men of valor, came from Gilgal. 8 The LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for I have delivered them into your hand. Not one of them shall stand against you. ” 9 After marching all night from Gilgal, Joshua caught them by surprise. 10 And the LORD threw them into confusion befor e Israel, who defeated them in a great slaughter at Gibeon, pursued them along the ascent to Beth-horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 As they fled before Israel along the descent from Beth-horon to Azekah, the LORD cast down on th em large hailstones from the sky, and more of them were killed by the hailstones than by the swords of the Isra-elites. 12 On the day that the LORD gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the LORD in the presence of Israel: “O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon. ” a   13 So the sun stood still and the moon stopped until the nation took vengeance up on its enemies. b Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? c   “So the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down ab out a full day. ” d   14 There has been no day like it before or since, when the LORD listened to the voice of a man, because the LORD fought for Israel. 15 Then Joshua returned with all Israel to the camp at Gilgal. The Victory at Makkedah 16 Now the five kings had fled and hid den in the cave at Makkedah. 17 And Joshua was in-formed: “The five kings have been found; they are hiding in the cave at Makkedah. ” 18 So Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave, and post men there to guard them. 19 But you, do not stop there. Pursue your enemies and attack them from behind. Do not let them reach their cities, for the LORD your God has delivered them into your hand. ” 20 So Joshua and the Israelites continued to in-flict a terrible slaughter until they had finished them off, and the remaining survivors re-treated to the fortified cities. 21 The whole army returned safely to Joshua in the camp at Makkedah, and no one dared to utter a word against the Israelites. 22 Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave and bring those five kings out to me. ” 23 So they brought the five kings out of the 270 | Joshu a 10:4 a 12 See Jasher 88:63. b 13 Or triumphed over its enemies   c 13 Or the Book of the Upright One  , commonly cited as Jasher   d 13 See Jasher 88:64.

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cave —the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. 24 When they had brought the kings to Joshua, he summoned all the men of Israel and said to the army commanders who had accompanied him, “Come here and put your feet on the necks of these kings. ” So the commanders came forward and put their feet on their necks. 25 “Do not be afraid or discouraged,” Joshua said. “Be strong and courageous, for the LORD will do this to all the enemies you fight. ” 26 After this, Joshua struck down and killed the kings, and he hung their bodies on five trees a   and left them there until evening. 27 At sunset Joshua ordered that they be taken down from the trees and thrown into the cave in which they had hidden. Then large stones were placed against the mouth of the cave, and the stones are there to this day. 28 On that day Joshua captured Makkedah a nd put it to the sword, along with its king. He devoted to destruction everyone in the city, leaving no survivors. So he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho. Conquest of the Southern Cities 29 Then Joshua and all Israel wit h him moved on from Makkedah to Libnah and fought against Libnah. 30 And the LORD also deliv-ered that city and its king into the hand of Israel, and Joshua put all the people to the sword, leaving no survivors. And he did to the king of Libnah as he had d one to the king of Jericho. 31 And Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Libnah to Lachish. They laid siege to it and fought against it. 32 And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, and Joshua captured it on the second day. He put all the people to the sword, just as he had done to Libnah. 33 At that time Horam king of Gezer went to help Lachish, but Joshua struck him down along with his people, leaving no survivors. 34 So Joshua moved on from Lachish to Eglon, and all Israel with him. They laid siege to it and fought against it. 35 That day they captured Eglon and put it to the sword, and Joshua de-voted to destruction everyone in the city, just as he had done to Lachish. 36 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron and fought against it. 37 They captured it and put to the sword its king, all its villages, and all the people. Joshua left no survivors, just as he had done at Eglon; he devoted to destruction Hebron and every-one in it. 38 Finally Joshua and all Israel with him turned toward Debi r and fought against it. 39 And they captured Debir, its king, and all its vil-lages. They put them to the sword and devoted to destruction everyone in the city, leaving no survivors. Joshua did to Debir and its king as he had done to Hebron and as he had d one to Libnah and its king. 40 So Joshua conquered the whole region —the hill country, the Negev, the foothills,b   and the slopes, together with all their kings —leaving no survivors. He devoted to destruction every- thing that breathe d, just as the LORD, the God of Israel, had commanded. 41 Joshua con-quered the area from Kadesh-barnea to Gaza, and the whole region of Goshen as far as Gibeon. 42 And because the LORD, the God of Israel, fought for Israel, Joshua captured all these Joshu a 10: 42 | 271 a 26 Or impaled their bodies on five poles  ; similarly in verse 27 b 40 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea

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kings and their land in one campaign. 43 Then Joshua returned with all Israel to the camp at Gilgal. Conquest of the Northern Cities Now when Jabin king of Hazor heard about these things, he sent word to Jobab king of Madon; to the kings of Shimron and Achshaph; 2 to the kings of the north in the mountains, in the Arabah south of Chinnereth, in the foothills,a   and in Naphoth-dor b   to the west; 3 to the Canaanites in the east and west; to the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, and Jebu-sites in the hill country; and to the Hivites at the foot of Hermon in the land of Mizpah. 4 So these kings came out with all their armies, a multitude as numerous as the sand on the seashore, along with a great number of horses and chariots. 5 All these kings joined forces and encamped at the waters of Merom to fight against Israel. 6 Then the LORD said to Jos hua, “Do not be afraid of them, for by this time tomorrow I will deliver all of them slain before Israel. You are to hamstring their horses and burn up their chariots. ” 7 So by the waters of Merom, Joshua and his whole army came upon them suddenly and at-tacked them, 8 and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Israel, who struck them down and pursued them all the way to Greater Sidon and Misrephoth-maim, and eastward as far as the Valley of Mizpeh. They struck them down, leaving no survivors. 9 Joshua tr eated them as the LORD had told him; he hamstrung their horses and burned up their chariots. 10 At that time Joshua turned back and cap-tured Hazor and put its king to the sword, because Hazor was formerly the head of all these kingdoms. 11 The Israelites put every-one in Hazor to the sword, devoting them to destruction. c   Nothing that breathed remained, and Joshua burned down Hazor itself. 12 Joshua captured all these kings and their cit-ies and put them to the sword. He devoted them to destruction, as Moses the LORD's servant had commanded. 13 Yet Israel did not burn any of the cities built on their mounds, except Hazor, which Joshua burned. 14 The Israelites took for themselves all the plunder and livestock of these cities, but they put all the people to the sword until they had completely destroyed them, not sparing anyone who breathed. 15 As the LORD had commanded His servant Moses, so Mose s commanded Joshua. That is what Joshua did, leaving nothing undone of all that the LORD had commanded Moses. Joshu a Takes the Whole Land 16 So Joshua took this entire region: the hill country, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen, the western foothills, the Arabah, and the mountains of Israel and their foothills, 17 from Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir, as far as Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon at the foot of Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and struck them down, putting them to death. 18 Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long period of time. 19 No city made peace with the Israelites except the Hivites living in Gibeon; all others were taken in battle. 20 For it was of the LORD to harden d   their hearts to engage Israel in battle, so that they would be set apart for destruction and would receive no mercy, being annihilated as the LORD had commanded Moses. 11 272 | Joshu a 10:43 a 2 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea; also in verse 16 b 2 Or in the heights of Dor  ; Naphoth-dor is a variant of Naphath-dor  ; see Joshua 12:23. c 11 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giv-ing over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in verses 12, 20, and 21. d 20 Or stiffen or strengthen

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21 At that time Joshua proceeded to eliminate the Anakim from the hill country of Hebron, Debir, and Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah and of Israel. Joshua devoted them to destruction, along with their cities. 22 No Ana-kim were left in the land of the Israelites; only in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod did any survive. 23 So Joshua took the entire land, in keeping with all that the LORD had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to the allotments to their tribes. Then the land had rest from war. The Kings Defeated East of the Jordan Now these are the kings of the land whom the Israelites struck down and whose lands they took beyond the Jordan to the east, from the Arnon Valley to Mount Her-mon, including all the Arabah eastward: 2 Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. He ruled from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along the middle of the valley, up to the Jabbok River (the bor-der of the Ammonites), that is, half of Gil-ead, 3 as well as the Arabah east o f the Sea of Chinnereth a   to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea b  ), eastward through Beth-jeshimoth, and southward below the slopes of Pisgah. 4 And Og king of Bashan,c   one of the rem-nant of the Rephaim, who lived in Ashta-roth and Edrei. 5 He ruled over Mount Hermon, Salecah, all of Bashan up to the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites, and half of Gilead to the border of Sihon king of Heshbon. 6 Moses, the servant of the LORD, and the Isra-elites had struck them down and given their land as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. The Kings Defeated West of the Jordan 7 And these are the kings of the land that Joshua and the Israelites conquered beyond the Jordan to the west, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir (according to the allotments to the tribes of Israel, Joshua gave them as an inheritance 8 the hill country, the foothills,d   the Arabah, the slopes, the wilderness, and the Negev —the lands of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites): 9 the king of Jericho, one; the king of Ai, which is near Bethel, one; 10 the king of Jerusalem, one; the king of Hebron, one; 11 the king of Jarmuth, one; the king of Lachish, one; 12 the king of Eglon, one; the king of Gezer, one; 13 the king of Debir, one; the king of Geder, one; 14 the king of Hormah, one; the king of Arad, one; 15 the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adullam, one; 16 the king of Makkedah, one; the king of Bethel, one; 17 the king of Tappuah, one; the king o f Hepher, one; 18 the king of Aphek, one; the king of Lasharon, one; 12 Joshu a 12: 18 | 273 a 3 That is, the Sea of Galilee b 3 That is, the Dead Sea c 4 LXX; Hebrew And the territory of Og king of Bashan d 8 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea

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19 the king of Madon, one; the king of Hazor, one; 20 the king of Shimron-meron, one; the king of Achshaph, one; 21 the king of Taanach, one; the king of Megiddo, one; 22 the king of Kedesh, one; the king of Jokneam in Carmel, one; 23 the king of Dor in Naphath-dor,a   one; the king of Goiim in Gilgal,b   one; 24 and the king of Tirzah, one. So there were thirty-one kings in all. Lands Yet Unconquered (Judges 1:1-7) Now Joshua was old and well along in years, and the LORD said to him, “You are old and well along in years, but very much of the land remains to be possessed. 2 This is the land that remains: All the territory of the Philistines and the Geshurites, 3 from the Shihor east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north (considered to be Canaanite territory) — that of the five Philistine rulers of Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, as well as that of the Avvites; 4 to the south, all the land of the Canaan-ites, from Mearah c   of the Sidonians to Aphek, as far as the border of the Amorites; 5 the land of the Gebalites; d   and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal-gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo-hamath. 6 All the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth-maim —all the Sidoni-ans—I Myself will drive out before the Israelites. Be sure to divide it by lot as an in-heritance to Israel, as I have commanded you. 7 Now therefore divide this land as an inher-itance to the nine tribes and the half-tribe of Manasseh. ” The Inheritanc e East of the Jordan (Numbers 32:1-42 ; Deuteronomy 3:12-22) 8 The other half of Manasseh, along with the Reubenites and Gadites, had received the in-heritance Moses had given them beyond the Jordan to the east, just as Moses the servant of the LORD had assigned to them: 9 The area from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the middle of the valley, the whole plateau of Medeba as far as Dibon, 10 and all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites who reigned in Heshbon, as far as the border of the Am-monites; 11 also Gilead and the territory of th e Geshurites and Maacathites, all of Mount Hermon, and all Bashan as far as Salecah — 12 the whole kingdom of Og in Bashan, who had reigned in Ashtaroth and Edrei and had remained as a remnant of the Rephaim. Moses had struck them down and dispos-sessed th em, 13 but the Israelites did not drive out the Geshurites or the Maacathites. So Geshur and Maacath dwell among the Israel-ites to this day. 14 To the tribe of Levi, however, Moses had given no inheritance. The offerings made by fire to the LORD, the God of Israel, are their inheritance, just as He had promised them. 13 a 23 Or in the heights of Dor  ; Naphath-dor is a variant of Naphoth-dor  ; see Joshua 11:2. b 23 Hebrew; LXX Goyim in Galilee   c 4 Or Arah   d 5 Or the area of Byblos   274 | Joshu a 12:19

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Reuben's Inheritance 15 This is what Moses had given to the clans of the tribe of Reuben: 16 The territory from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the middle of the valley, to the whole plateau beyond Medeba, 17 to Heshbon and all its cities on the plateau, including Dibon, Bamoth-baal, Beth-baal-meon, 18 Jahaz, Kedemoth, Mephaath, 19 Kiriathaim, Sib-mah, Zereth-shahar on the hill in the val-ley, 20 Beth-peor, the slopes of Pisgah, and Beth-jeshimoth — 21 all the cities of the plateau and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon until Moses killed him and the chiefs of Midian (Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba), the princes of Sihon who lived in the land. 22 The Israelites also killed the diviner Ba-laam son of Beor along with the others they put to the sword. 23 And the border of the Reubenites was the bank of the Jordan. This was the inheritance of the clans of the Reubenites, including the cities and villag es. Gad's Inheritance 24 This is what Moses had given to the clans of the tribe of Gad: 25 The territory of Jazer, all the cities of Gilead, and half the land of the Ammonites as far as Aroer, near Rabbah; 26 the territory from Heshbon to Ramath-mizpeh and Betonim, and from Mahanaim to the border of Debir; a   27 and in the valley, Beth-haram, Beth-nimrah, Succoth, and Zaphon, with the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon (the territory on the east side of the Jordan up to the edge of the Sea of Chinnereth  b  ). 28 This was the inheri tance of the clans of the Gadites, including the cities and villages. Manasseh's Eastern Inheritance 29 This is what Moses had given to the clans of the half-tribe of Manasseh, that is, to half the tribe of the descendants of Manasseh: 30 The territory f rom Mahanaim through all Bashan —all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, including all the towns of Jair that are in Bashan, sixty cities; 31 half of Gilead; and Ashtaroth and Edrei, the royal cities of Og in Bashan. All this was for the clans of the descendants of Machir son of Manasseh, that is, half of the descendants of Machir. 32 These were the portions Moses had given them on the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan, east of Jericho. 33 To the tribe of Levi, however, Moses had given no inheritance. The LORD, the God of Israel, is their inheritance, just as He had promised them. Land Division Wes t of the Jordan Now these are the portions that the Israelites inherited in the land of Canaan, as distributed by Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the fami-lies of the tribes of Israel. 2 Their inheritance was assigned by lot for the nine and a half tribes, as the LORD had commanded through Moses. 3 For Moses had given the inheritance east of the Jordan to the other two and a half tribes. But he granted no inheritance among them to the Levites. 14 Joshu a 14: 3 | 275 a 26 LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate; Hebrew Li-debir  , a variant of Lo-debar  ; see 2 Samuel 9:4, 2 Samuel 17:27, and Amos 6:13. b 27 That is, the Sea of Galilee

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4 The descendants of Joseph beca me two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And no portion of the land was given to the Levites, except for cities in which to live, along with pasturelands for their flocks and herds. 5 So the Israelites did as the LORD had com-manded Moses, and they divided the land. Caleb Requests Hebron 6 Then the sons of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the LORD said to Moses the m an of God at Kadesh-barnea about you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought back to him an honest report. 8 Although my brothers who went with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear, I remained loyal to the LORD my God. 9 On that day Moses swore to me, saying, 'Surely the land on which you have set foot will be an in-heritance to you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God. ' 10 Now behold, as the LORD promised, He has kept me alive these forty-five years since He spoke this word to Moses, while Israel wan-dered in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old, 11 still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. As my strength was then, so it is now for war, for go-ing out, and for coming in. 12 Now therefore give me this hill country that the LORD promised me on that day, for you yourself heard then that the Anakim were there, with great and fortified cities. Perhaps with the LORD's help I will drive them out, as the LORD has spoken. ” 13 Then Jo shua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inher-itance. 14 Therefore Hebron belongs to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite as an inher-itance to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel. 15 (Hebron used to be cal led Kiriath-arba, after Arba, the greatest man among the Anakim. ) Then the land had rest from war. Judah's Inheritance Now the allotment for the clans of the tribe of Judah extended to the border of Edom, to the Wilderness of Zin at the ex-treme southern boundary: 2 Their southern border started at the bay on the southern tip of the Salt Sea,a   3 pro-ceeded south of the Ascent of Akrabbim,b continued on to Zin, went over to the south of Kadesh-barnea, ran past Hezron up to Addar, and curved toward Karka. 4 It proceeded to Azmon, joined the Brook of Egypt, and ended at the Sea. c   This was their d   southern border. 5 The eastern border was the Salt Sea as far as the mouth of the Jordan. The northern border started from the bay of the sea at the mouth of the Jordan, 6 went up to Beth-hoglah, proceeded north of Beth-arabah, and went up to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben. 7 Then the border went up to Debir from the Valley of Achor, turning north to Gilgal, which faces the Ascent of Adummim south of the ra-vine. It continued along the waters of En-shemesh and came out at En-rogel. 8 From there the borde r went up the Val-ley of Hinnom along the southern slope of 15 276 | Joshu a 14:4 a 2 That is, the Dead Sea; also in verse 5 b 3 Or the Ascent of Scorpions or Scorpi on Pass   c 4 That is, the Mediterra-nean Sea, also called the Great Sea; also in verses 11, 12, and 47 d 4 LXX; Hebrew your

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the Jebusites (that is, Jerusalem) and as-cended to the top of the hill that faces the Valley of Hinnom on the west, at the northern end of the Valley of Rephaim. 9 From the hilltop the border curved to the spring of the Waters of Nephtoah, pro-ceeded to the cit ies of Mount Ephron, and then bent around toward Baalah (that is, Kiriath-jearim). 10 The border curled westward from Baalah to Mount Seir, ran along the northern slope of Mount Jearim (that is, Chesalon), went down to Beth-shemesh, and crossed to Timnah. 11 Then it went out to the northern slope of Ekron, curved toward Shikkeron, proceeded to Mount Baalah, went on to Jabneel, and ended at the Sea. 12 And the western border was the coast-line of the Great Sea. These are the boundaries around the clans of the descendants of Judah. Caleb's Portion and Conquest (Judges 1:8-26) 13 According to the LORD's command to him, Joshua gave Caleb son of Jephunneh a portion among the sons of Judah —Kiriath-arba, that is, Hebron. (Arba was the forefather of Anak. ) 14 And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak —the descendants of Shesh ai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak. 15 From there he marched against the inhabi- tants of Debir (formerly known as Kiriath- sepher). 16 And Caleb said, “To the man who strikes down Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give my daughter Acsah in marriage. ” 17 So Othniel son of Caleb's brother Kenaz cap-tured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage. 18 One day Acsah came to Othniel and urged him a   to ask her father for a field. When she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you desire?” 19 “Give me a blessing,” she answered. “Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me springs of water as well. ” So Caleb gave her both the upper and lower springs. The Cities of Judah 20 This is the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Judah. 21 These were the southern-most cities of the tribe of Judah in the Negev toward the border of Edom: Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur, 22 Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah, 23 Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan, 24 Ziph, Telem, Bealoth, 25 Hazor-hadattah, Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor), 26 Amam, Shema, Moladah, 27 Hazar-gaddah, Heshmon, Beth-pelet, 28 Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah, 29 Baalah, Iim, Ezem, 30 Eltolad, Chesil, Hormah, 31 Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah, 32 Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon —twenty-nine cities in all, along with their villages. 33 These were in the foothills: b Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah, 34 Zanoah, En-gannim, Tappuah, Enam, 35 Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah, 36 Shaaraim, Ad-ithaim, and Gederah (or Gederothaim) — fourteen cities, along with their villages. 37 Zenan, Hadashah, Migdal-gad, 38 Dilan, Mizpeh, Joktheel, 39 Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon, 40 Cabbon, Lahmas, Chitlish, 41 Gedero th, Beth-dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah —sixteen cities, along with their villages. Joshu a 15: 41 | 277 a 18 Hebrew and some LXX manuscripts; other LXX manuscripts and he urged her  ; see Judges 1:14. b 33 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea

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42 Libnah, Ether, Ashan, 43 Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib, 44 Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah — nine cities, along with their villages. 45 Ekron, with its towns and villages; 46 from Ekron to the sea, all the cities near Ashdod, along with their villages; 47 Ashdod, with its towns and villages; Gaza, with its towns and villages, as far as the Brook of Egypt and the coastline of the Great Sea. 48 These were in the hill country: Shamir, Jattir, Socoh, 49 Dannah, Kiriath-sannah (that is, Debir), 50 Anab, Eshte moh, Anim, 51 Goshen, Holon, and Giloh —eleven cities, along with their villages. 52 Arab, Dumah, Eshan, 53 Janim, Beth- tappuah, Aphekah, 54 Humtah, Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), and Zior —nine cities, along with their villages. 55 Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah, 56 Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah, 57 Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah —ten cities, along with their villages. 58 Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor, 59 Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltekon —six cities, along with their villages. 60 Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), and Rabbah —two cities, along with their villages. 61 These were in the wilderness: Beth-arabah, Middin, Secacah, 62 Nibshan, the City of Salt, and En-gedi—six cities, along with their villages. 63 But the descendants of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live there among the descendants of Judah. Ephraim's Inheritance The allotment for the descendants of Joseph extended from the Jordan at Jericho to the waters of Jericho on the east, through the wilderness that goes up from Jer-icho into the hill country of Bethel. 2 It went on from Bethel (that is, Luz) a   and proceeded to the border of the Archites in Ataroth. 3 Then it descended westward to the border of the Japhletites as far as the border of Lower Beth-horon and on to Gezer, and it ended at the Sea. b 4 So Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Jo-seph, received their inheritance. 5 This was the territory of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The border of their inheritance went from Ataroth-addar in the east to Upper Beth-horon 6 and out toward the Se a. From Michmethath on the north it turned east-ward toward Taanath-shiloh and passed by it to Janoah on the east. 7 From Janoah it went down to Ataroth and Naarah, and then reached Jericho and came out at the Jordan. 8 From Tappuah the border went westward to the Brook of Kanah and ended at the Sea. This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Ephraim, 9 along with all the cities and villages set apart for the descendants of Ephraim within the inheritance of Manasseh. 10 But they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer. So the Canaanites dwell among the Ephraimites to this day, but they are forced laborers. 16 278 | Joshu a 15:42 a 2 LXX (See also Joshua 18:13); Hebrew from Bethe l to Luz   b 3 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea; also in verses 6 and 8

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Manasseh's Western Inheritance Now this was the allotment for the tribe of Manasseh as Joseph's firstborn son, namely for Machir the firstborn of Manasseh and father of the Gileadites, who had received Gilead and Bashan because Machir was a man of war. 2 So this allotment was for the re st of the descendants of Manasseh —the clans of Abiezer,a   Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These are the other male descendants of the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph. 3 But Zelophehad son of Hepher (the son of Gilead, t he son of Machir, the son of Manasseh) had no sons but only daughters. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 4 They approached Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the leaders, and said, “The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers. ” So Joshua gave them an inheritance among their father's brothers, in keeping with the command of the LORD. 5 Thus ten shares fell to Manasseh, in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan beyond the Jo rdan, 6 because the daughters of Manasseh received an inher-itance among his sons. And the land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the sons of Manasseh. 7 Now the border of Manasseh went from Asher to Michmethath near Shechem, then southward to include the inhabitants of En-tappuah. 8 The region of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself, on the border of Manasseh, belonged to Ephraim. 9 From there the border contin-ued southward to the Brook of Kanah. There were cities belonging to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh, but the bor-der of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Sea. b 10 Ephraim's territory wa s to the south, and Manasseh's was to the north, having the Sea as its border and adjoining Asher on the north and Issachar on the east. 11 Within Issachar and Asher, Manasseh was assigned Beth-shean, Ibleam, Dor (that is, Naphath), Endor, Taanach, and Megiddo, each with their surrounding set-tlements. 12 But the descendants of Manasseh were un-able to occupy these cities, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in this land. 13 However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they put the Canaanites to forced labor; but they failed to drive them out com-pletely. 14 Then the sons of Joseph said to Joshua, “Why have you given us only one portion as an inheritance? We have many people, because the LORD has blessed us abundantly. ” 15 Joshua answered them, “If you have so many people that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go to the forest and clear for yourself an area in the land of the Per-izzites and the Rephaim. ” 16 “The hill country is not enough for us,” they replied, “and all the Canaanites who live in the valley have iron chariots, both in Beth-shean with its towns and in the Valley of Jezreel. ” 17 So Joshua said to the house of Joseph —to Ephraim and Manasseh —“Yo u have many people and great strength. You shall not have just one allotment, 18 because the hill country will be yours as well. It is a forest; clear it, and its farthest limits will be yours. Although the Canaanites have iron chariots and although they are strong, you can drive them out. ” 17 Joshu a 17: 18 | 279 a 2 Abiezer is a variant of Iezer  ; see Numbers 26:30. b 9 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea; also in verse 10

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The Remainder Divided Then the whole congregation of Is-rael assembled at Shiloh and set up the Tent of Meeting there. And though the land was subdued before them, 2 there were still seven tribes of Israel who had not yet received their inheritance. 3 So Joshua said to the Isra elites, “How long will you put off entering and possessing the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you? 4 Appoint three men from each tribe, and I will send them out to survey the land and map it out, according to the inher-itance of each. Then they will return to me 5 and divide the land into seven portions. Judah shall remain in their territory in the south, and the house of Joseph shall remain in their territory in the north. 6 When you have mapped out the seven portions of land and brought it to me, I will cast lots for you here in the presence of the LORD our God. 7 The Levites, however, have no portion among you, because their inheritance is the priesthood of the LORD. And Ga d, Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh have already re-ceived the inheritance that Moses the servant of the LORD gave them beyond the Jordan to the east. ” 8 As the men got up to go out, Joshua com-manded them to map out the land, saying, “Go and survey t he land, map it out, and return to me. Then I will cast lots for you here in Shiloh in the presence of the LORD. ” 9 So the men departed and went throughout the land, mapping it city by city into seven por-tions. Then they returned with the document to Josh ua at the camp in Shiloh. 10 And Joshua cast lots for them in the pres-ence of the LORD at Shiloh, where he distributed the land to the Israelites according to their divisions. Benjamin's Inheritance 11 The first lot came up for the clans of the tribe of Benjamin. Their allotted territory lay between the tribes of Judah and Joseph: 12 On the north side their border began at the Jordan, went up past the northern slope of Jericho, headed west through the hill country, and came out at the wilder-ness of Beth-aven. 13 From there the bor-der crossed over to the southern slope of Luz (that is, Bethel) and went down to Ataroth-addar on the hill south of Lower Beth-horon. 14 On the west side the border curved southward from the hill facing Beth- horon on the south and came out at Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), a city of the sons of Judah. This was the western side. 15 On the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim and extended w estward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. 16 Then it went down to the foot of the hill that faces the Valley of Hinnom at the northern end of the Val-ley of Rephaim and ran down the Valley of Hinnom toward the southern slope of the Jebusites and down ward to En-rogel. 17 From there it curved northward and proceeded to En-shemesh and on to Geli-loth facing the Ascent of Adummim, and continued down to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben. 18 Then it went on to the north-ern slope of Beth-arabah a   and went down into the valley. 19 The border continued to the northern slope of Beth-hoglah and came out at the northern bay of the Salt Sea,b   at the mouth of the Jordan. This was the southern border. 18 280 | Joshu a 18:1 a 18 LXX; Hebrew slope facing the Arabah   b 19 That is, the Dead Sea

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20 On the east side the border was the Jor-dan. These were the borders around the inher-itance of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin. 21 These were the cities of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin: Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz, 22 Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, 23 Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, 24 Chephar-ammoni, Ophni, and Geba —twelve cities, along with their villages. 25 Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, 26 Mizpeh, Chephirah, Mozah, 27 Rekem, Irpeel, Tara-lah, 28 Zelah, Haeleph, Jebus a   (that is, Jeru-salem), Gibeah,b   and Kiriath-jearim c  — fourteen cities, along with their villages. This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin. Simeon's Inheritance The second lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Simeon: Their inheritance lay within the territory of Judah 2 and included Beersheba (or Sheba), Moladah, 3 Hazar-shual, Balah, Ezem, 4 Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah, 5 Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susah, 6 Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen —thirteen cities, along with their villages. 7 Ain, Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan —four cities, along with their villages, 8 and all the villages surrounding these cities as far as Baalath-beer (Ramah of the Negev). This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Simeon. 9 The inheritance of the Sime-onites was taken from the territory of Judah, because the share for Judah's descendants was too large for them. So the Simeonites re-ceived an inheritance within Judah's portion. Zebulun's Inheritance 10 The third lot came up for the clans of the tribe of Zebulun: The border of their inheritance stretched as far as Sarid. 11 It went up westward to Maralah, reached Dabbesheth, and met the brook east of Jokneam. 12 From Sarid it turned eastward along the border of Chisloth-tabor an d went on to Daberath and up to Japhia. 13 From there it crossed eastward to Gath-hepher and to Eth-kazin; it extended to Rimmon and curved around toward Neah. 14 Then the border circled around the north side of Neah to Hannathon and ended at the Valley of Iphtah-el. 15 It also included Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem. There were twelve cities, along with their villages. 16 This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Zebulun, including these cities and their villages. Issachar's Inheritance 17 The fourth lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Issachar: 18 Their territory included Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem, 19 Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath, 20 Rabbith, Kishion, Ebez, 21 Remeth, En-gannim, En-haddah, and Beth-pazzez. 22 The bo rder reached Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh, and ended at the Jordan. There were sixteen cities, along with their villages. 23 This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Issachar, including these cities and their villages. 19 Joshu a 19: 23 | 281 a 28 LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate; Hebrew the Jebusite   b 28 Hebrew Gibeath c 28 LXX; Hebrew Kiriath

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Asher's Inheritance 24 The fifth lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Asher: 25 Their territory included Helkath, Hali, Beten, Achshaph, 26 Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal. On the west the border touched Carmel and Shihor-libnath, 27 then turned eastward toward Beth-dagon, touched Zebulun and the Valley of Iphtah-el, and went north to Beth-emek and Neiel, passing Cabul on the left. 28 It went on to Ebron,a   Rehob, Hammon, and Kanah, as far as Greater Sidon. 29 The border then turned back toward Ramah as far as the fortified city of Tyre, turned toward Hosah, and came out at the Sea  b   in the region of A chzib, 30 Ummah, Aphek, and Rehob. There were twenty-two cities, along with their villages. 31 This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Asher, including these cities and their villages. Naphtali's Inheritance 32 The sixth lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Naphtali: 33 Their border started at Heleph and the great tree of Zaanannim, passing Adami-nekeb and Jabneel as far as Lakkum and ending at the Jordan. 34 Then the border turned westward to Aznoth-tabor and ran from there to Hukkok, touching Zebulun on the south side, Asher on the west, and Judah at the Jordan  c   on the east. 35 The fortified cities were Ziddim, Zer, Ham-math, Rakkath, Chinnereth, 36 Adamah, Ramah, Hazor, 37 Kedesh, Edrei, En-hazor, 38 Iron, Migdal-el, Horem, Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh. There were nineteen cit-ies, along with their villages. 39 This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Naphtali, including these cities and their villages. Dan's Inheritance 40 The seventh lo t came out for the clans of the tribe of Dan: 41 The territory of their inheritance included Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh, 42 Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah, 43 Elon, Tim-nah, Ekron, 44 Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath, 45 Jehud, Bene-berak, Gath-rimmon, 46 Me-jark on, and Rakkon, including the territory across from Joppa. 47 (Later, when the territory of the Danites was lost to them, they went up and fought against Leshem, captured it, and put it to the sword. So they took possession of Leshem, settled there, and renamed it after their father Dan. ) 48 This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Dan, including these cities and their villages. Joshua's Inheritance 49 When they had finished distributing the land into its territories, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun an inheritance among them, 50 as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the city of Timnath-serah d   in the hill country of Ephraim, as he requested. He re-built the city and settled in it. 51 These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed by lot to the tribes of Is-rael at Shiloh before th e LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So they finished divid-ing up the land. 282 | Joshu a 19:24 a 28 Some Hebrew manuscripts Abdon  ; see Joshua 21:30. b 29 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea c 34 Hebrew; LXX west, and the Jordan   d 50 Timnath-serah is also known as Timnath-heres  ; see Judges 2:9.

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Six Cities of Refuge (Numbers 35:9-34 ; Deuteronomy 4:41-43 ; Deuteronomy 19:1-1 4) Then the LORD said to Joshua, 2 “Tell the Israelites to designate the cities of refuge, as I instructed you through Moses, 3 so that anyone who kills another unintentionally or accidentally may flee there. These will be your refuge from the avenger of blood. 4 When someone flees to one of these cities, stands at the entrance of the city gate, and states his case before its elder s, they are to bring him into the city and give him a place to live among them. 5 Now if the avenger of blood pursues him, they must not surrender the manslayer into his hand, because that man killed his neighbor accidentally without prior malice. 6 He is to stay in that city until he stands trial before the assembly and until the death of the high priest serving at that time. Then the manslayer may return to his own home in the city from which he fled. ” 7 So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah. 8 And beyond the Jordan, east of Jericho, they designated Bezer on the wilderness plateau from the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gil ead from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan from the tribe of Manasseh. 9 These are the cities appointed for all the Is-raelites and foreigners among them, so that anyone who kills a person unintentionally may flee there and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood prior to standing trial before the assembly. For ty-Eight Cities for the Levites (Numbers 35:1-8 ; 1 Chronicles 6:54-81) Now the family heads of the Levites approached Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the other tribes of Israel 2 at Shiloh in the land of Canaan and said to them, “The LORD commanded through Moses that we be given cities in which to live, together with pasturelands for our livestock. ” 3 So by the command of the LORD, the Israel-ites gave the Levites these cities and their pasturelands out of their own inheritance: 4 The first lot came out for the Kohathite clans. The Levites who were descendants of Aaron the priest received thirteen cities by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin. 5 The remaining descendants of Kohath received ten cities by lot from the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and the half-tribe of Manas-seh. 6 The descendants of Gershon received thirteen cities by lot from the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan. 7 And the descendants of Merari received twelve cities from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun. 8 So the Israelites allotted to the Levites these cities, together with their pasturelands, as the LORD had commanded through Moses. 9 From the tribes of Judah and Simeon, they designated these cities by name 10 to the de-scendants of Aaron from the Kohathit e clans of the Levites, because the first lot fell to them: 20 21 Joshu a 21: 10 | 283

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11 They gave them Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), with its surrounding pasture- lands, in the hill country of Judah. (Arba was the father of Anak. ) 12 But they had given the fields and villages around the city to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his pos-session. 13 So to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave these cities, together with their pasturelands: Hebron, a city of ref-uge for the manslayer, Libnah, 14 Jattir, Eshtemoa, 15 Holon, Debir, 16 Ain, Juttah, and Beth-shemesh —nine cities from these two tribes, together with their pasturelands. 17 And from the tribe of Benjamin they gave them Gibeon, Geba, 18 Anathoth, and Almon —four cities, together with their pasture lands. 19 In all, thirteen cities, together with their pasturelands, were given to the priests, the descendants of Aaron. 20 The remaining Kohathite clans of the Le-vites were allotted these cities: From the tribe of Ephraim 21 they were given Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim (a city of refuge for the manslayer), Gezer, 22 Kibzaim, and Beth-horon —four cities, together with their pasturelands. 23 From the tribe of Dan they were given Elteke, Gibbethon, 24 Aijalon, and Gath-rimmon —four cities, together with their pasturelands. 25 And from the half-tribe of Manasseh they were given Taanach and Gath-rimmon —two cities, together with their pasturelands. 26 In all, ten cities, together with their pasturelands, were given to the rest of the Kohathite clans. 27 This is what the Levite c lans of the Gershon-ites were given: From the half-tribe of Manasseh they were given Golan in Bashan, a city of refuge for the manslayer, and Beeshterah —two cities, together with their pasturelands. 28 From the tribe of Issachar they were given Kishion, Daberath, 29 Jarmuth, and En-gannim —four cities, together with their pasturelands. 30 From the tribe of Asher they were given Mishal, Abdon, 31 Helkath, and Rehob — four cities, together with their pasture- lands. 32 And from the tribe of Naphtali they wer e given Kedesh in Galilee (a city of ref-uge for the manslayer), Hammoth-dor, and Kartan —three cities, together with their pasturelands. 33 In all, thirteen cities, together with their pasturelands, were given to the Gershon-ite clans. 34 This is what the Merarite clan (the rest of the Levites) were given: From the tribe of Zebulun they were given Jokneam, Kartah, 35 Dimnah, and Nahalal—four cities, together with their pasturelands. 36 From the tribe of Reuben they were given Bezer, Jahaz, 37 Kedemoth, and Mephaath —four cities, together with their pasturelands. 284 | Joshu a 21:11

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38 And from the tribe of Gad they were given Ramoth in Gilead, a city of refuge for the manslayer, Mahanaim, 39 Heshbon, and Jazer —four cities in all, together with their pasturelands. 40 In all, twelve cities were allotted to the clans of Merari, the remain ing Levite clans. 41 For the Levites, then, there were forty-eight cities in all, together with their pasturelands, within the territory of the Israelites. 42 Each of these cities had its own surrounding pasture- lands; this was true for all the cities. 43 Thus the LORD gave Israel all the land He had sworn to give their fathers, and they took possession of it and settled in it. 44 And the LORD gave them rest on every side, just as He had sworn to their fathers. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the LORD del ivered all their enemies into their hand. 45 Not one of all the LORD's good promises to the house of Israel had failed; everything was fulfilled. The Eastern Tribes Return Home Then Joshua summoned the Reuben- ites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh 2 and told them, “You have done all that Moses the servant of the LORD com-manded you, and you have obeyed my voice in all that I commanded you. 3 All this time you have not deserted your brothers, up to this very day, but have kept the charge give n you by the LORD your God. 4 And now that the LORD your God has given your brothers rest as He promised them, you may return to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you across the Jordan. 5 But be very careful to observe the commandment and the law that Mose s the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul. ” 6 So Joshua blessed them and sent them on their way, and t hey went to their homes. 7 (To the half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given land in Bashan, and to the other half Joshua gave land on the west side of the Jordan among their brothers. ) When Joshua sent them to their homes he blessed them, 8 saying, “Return t o your homes with your great wealth, with immense herds of livestock, with silver, gold, bronze, iron, and very many clothes. Divide with your brothers the spoil of your enemies. ” The Altar of Witness 9 So the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh left the Israelites at Shiloh in the land of Canaan to return to their own land of Gilead, which they had acquired ac-cording to the command of the LORD through Moses. 10 And when they came to Geliloth a   near the Jordan in the land of Canaan, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an imposing altar there by the Jordan. 11 Then the Israelites received the report: “Behold, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar on the border of the land of Canaan, at Geliloth near the Jordan on the Israelite side. ” 12 And when they heard this, the whole congregation of Israel assembled at Shi loh to go to war against them. 22 Joshu a 22: 12 | 285 a 10 Or to the circle of stones or to the region  ; similarly in verse 11

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13 The Israelites sent Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest to the land of Gilead, to the Reuben- ites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manas-seh. 14 With him they sent ten chiefs —one family leader from each tribe of Israel, each the head of a family among the clans of Israel. 15 They went to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the land of Gilead and said to them, 16 “This is what the whole congregation of the LORD says: 'What is this breach of faith you have committed today against the God of Israel by turning away from the LORD and building for yourselves an altar, that you might rebel against the LORD this day? 17 Was not the sin of Peor enough for us, from which we have not cleansed ourselves to this day? It even brought a plague upon the con-gregation of the LORD. 18 And now, would you turn away from the LORD? If you rebel today against the LORD, tomorrow He will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel. 19 If indeed the land of your inheritance is unclean, then cross over to the land of the LORD's possession, where the LORD's taber-nacle stands, and take possession of it among us. But do not rebel against the LORD or against us by building for yourselves an altar other than the altar of the LORD our God. 20 Was not Achan a   son of Zerah unfaithful re-garding what was set apart for destruction,b bringing wrath upon the whole congregation of Israel? Yet it was not only Achan who per-ished because of his sin!'  ” 21 Then the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered the leaders of the clans of Israel: 22 “The LORD, the Mighty One, is God! The LORD, the Mighty One, is God! He knows, and may Israel also know. If this was in rebellion or breach of faith against the LORD, do not spare us today. 23 If we have built for ourselves an altar to turn away from Him and to offer burnt offerings and grain of-ferings on it, or to sacrifice fellowship offer-ings on it, may the LORD Himself hold us ac-countable. 24 But in fact we have done this for fear that in the future your descendants might say to ours, 'What have you to do with the LORD, the God of Israel? 25 For the LORD has made the Jordan a border between us and you Reubenites and Gadites. You have no share in the LORD!' So your descendants could cause ours to stop fearing the LORD. 26 That is why we said, 'Let us take action and build an altar for ourselves, but not for burnt offerings or sacrifices. 27 Rather, let it be a wit-ness between us and you and th e generations to come, that we will worship the LORD in His presence with our burnt offerings, sacrifices, and peace offerings. ' Then in the future, your descendants cannot say to ours, 'You have no share in the LORD!' 28 Therefore we said, 'If they ever say this to us or to our descendants, we will answer: Look at the replica of the altar of the LORD that our fathers made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices, but as a witness between us and you. ' 29 Far be it from us to rebel against the LORD and turn away from Him today by building an altar for burnt offerings, grain offerings, or sacrifices, other than the altar of the LORD our God, which stands before His tabernacle. ” 30 When Phinehas the priest and the chiefs of the congregation —the heads of Israel's clans who were with him —heard what the descen- dants of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh had to 286 | Joshu a 22:13 a 20 Achan means troubler  ; also called Achar in 1 Chronicles 2:7. b 20 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.

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say, they were satisfied. 31 Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest said to the descendants of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh, “Today we know that the LORD is among us, because you have not committed this breach of faith against Him. Consequently, you have delivered the Is-raelites from the hand of the LORD. ” 32 Then Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, to-gether with the other leaders, returned to t he Israelites in the land of Canaan and brought back a report regarding the Reubenites and Gadites in the land of Gilead. 33 The Israelites were satisfied with the report, and they blessed God and spoke no more about going to war against them to destroy th e land where the Reubenites and Gadites lived. 34 So the Reubenites and Gadites named the altar Wit-ness, for they said,a   “It is a witness between us that the LORD is God. ” Joshua's Charge to Leaders A long time after the LORD had given Israel rest from all the enemies around them, when Joshua was old and well along in years, 2 he summoned all Israel, in-cluding its elders, leaders, judges, and officers. “I am old and well along in years,” he said, 3 “and you have seen everything that the LORD your God has done to all these nations for your sake, because it was the LORD your God who fought for you. 4 See, I have allotted as an inheritance to your tribes these remaining nations, including all the nations I have already cut off, from the Jor-dan westward to the Great Sea. b   5 The LORD your God will push them out of your way and drive them out before you, so that you can take possession of their land, as the LORD your God promised you. 6 Be very strong, then, so that you can keep and obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, not turning aside from it to the right or to the left. 7 So you are not to associate with these nations that remain among you. You must not call on the names of thei r gods or swear by them, and you must not serve them or bow down to them. 8 Instead, you shall hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have done to this day. 9 The LORD has driven out great and powerful nations before you, and to this day no one can stand against you. 10 One of you can put a thousand to flight, because the LORD your God fights for you, just as He promised. 11 There-fore watch yourselves carefully, that you love the LORD your God. 12 For if you turn away and cling to the rest of these nations that re-main among you, and if you intermarry and associate with them, 13 know for sure that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become for you a snare and a trap, a scourge in your sides and thorns in yo ur eyes, until you perish from this good land that the LORD your God has given you. 14 Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know with all your heart and soul that not one of the good promises the LORD your God made to you has fai led. Every-thing was fulfilled for you; not one promise has failed. 15 But just as every good thing the LORD your God promised you has come to pass, likewise the LORD will bring upon you the calamity He has threatened, until He has destroyed you from this g ood land He has given you. 16 If you transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from this good land H e has given you. ” 23 Joshu a 23: 16 | 287 a 34 Literally named the altar, for   b 4 That is, the Mediterranean Sea

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Joshua Reviews Israel' s History Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges, and officers of Israel, and they presented themselves before God. 2 And Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'Long ago your fathers, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates a   and worshiped other gods. 3 But I took your f ather Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and led him through all the land of Canaan, and I multiplied his descendants. I gave him Isaac, 4 and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I gave Esau Mount Seir to possess, but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt. 5 Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there, and after-ward I brought you out. 6 When I brought your fathers out of Egypt and you reached the Red Sea,b   the Egyptians pursued them with chari-ots and horsemen as far as the Red Sea. 7 So your fathers cried out to the LORD, and He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, over whom He brought the sea and engulfed them. Your very eyes saw what I did to the Egyptians. Then you lived in the wilderness for a long time. 8 Later, I brought you to the land of the Amo-rites who lived beyond the Jordan. They fought against you, but I delivered them into your hand, that you should possess their land when I destroyed them before you. 9 Then Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, set out to fight against Israel. He sent for Balaam son of Beor to curse you, 10 but I would not listen to Balaam. So he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you from his hand. 11 After this, you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The people of Jericho fought against you, as did the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaan-ites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebu-sites, and I delivered them into your hand. 12 I sent the hornet ahead of you, and it drove out the two Amorite kings before you, but not by your own sword or bow. 13 So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities that you did not build, and now you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant. ' Choose Whom You Will Serve (Deuteronomy 10:1 2-22) 14 Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; cast aside the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!” 16 The people replied, “Far be it from us to for-sake the LORD to se rve other gods! 17 For the LORD our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slav-ery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us throughout our journey and among all the nations through which w e traveled. 18 And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because He is our God!” 19 But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the LORD, for He is a holy God ; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your rebellion or your sins. 20 If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, He will turn and 24 288 | Joshu a 24:1 a 2 Hebrew the River  ; also in verses 3, 14, and 15 b 6 Or the Sea of Reeds  

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bring disaster on you and consume you, even after He has been good to you. ” 21 “No!” replied the people. “We will serve the LORD!” 22 Then Joshua told them, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve the LORD. ” “We are witnesses !” they said. 23 “Now, therefore,” he said, “get rid of the for-eign gods among you and incline your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel. ” 24 So the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the LORD our God and obey His voice. ” 25 On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he established for them a statute and ordinance. 26 Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak  a   that was near the sanc-tuary of the LORD. 27 And Joshua said to all the people, “You see this stone. It will be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words the LORD has spoken to us, and it will be a witness against you if you ever deny your God. ” 28 Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance. Joshua's Death and Burial (Judges 2: 6-9) 29 Some time later, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of 110. 30 And they buried him in the land of his inher-itance, at Timnath-serah b   in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. 31 Israel had served the LORD throughout the days of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced all the works that the LORD had done for Israel. 32 And the bones of Joseph, which the Israel-ites had brought up out of Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the plot of land that Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem's father, for a hundred pieces of silver. c   So it be-came an inheritance for Joseph's descendants. 33 Eleazar son of Aaron also died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which had been given to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim. Joshu a 24: 33 | 289 a 26 Or terebinth   b 30 Timnath-serah is also known as Timnath-heres  ; see Judges 2:9. c 32 Hebrew a hundred kesitahs  ; the value or weight of the kesitah is no longer know n.

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The Conques t of Canaan Proceeds (Joshua 13:1-7) After the death of Joshua, the Israelites inquired of the LORD, “Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?” 2 “Judah shall go up,” answered the LORD. “Indeed, I have delivered the land into their hands. ” 3 Then the men of Judah said to their brothers the Simeonites, “Come up with us to our allot-ted territory, and let us fight against the Canaanites. And we likewise will go with you to your territory. ” So the Simeonites went with them. 4 When Judah attacked, the LORD delivered the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek. 5 And there they found Adoni-bezek and fought against him, striking down the Cana anites and Perizzites. 6 As Adoni-bezek fled, they pursued him, seized him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes. 7 Then Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have gathered the scraps under my table. As I have done to them, so God has repaid me. ” And they brought him to Jerusalem, where he died. The Capture of Jerusalem and Hebron (Joshua 15:1 3-19) 8 Then the men of Judah fought against Jerusa-lem and captured it. They put the city to the sword and set it on fire. 9 Afterward, the men of Judah marched down to fight against the Canaanites living in the hill country, in the Negev, and in the foothills. a   10 Judah also marched against the Canaanites who were living in Hebron (formerly known as Kiriath-arba), and they struck down Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. 11 From there they marched against the inhab-itants of Debir (formerly known as Kiriath- sepher). 12 And Caleb said, “To the man who strikes down Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give my daughter Acsah in marriage. ” 13 So Othniel son of Caleb's younger brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage. 14 One day Acsah came to Othniel and urged him b   to ask her father for a field. When she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you desire?” 15 “Give me a blessing,” she answered. “Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me springs of water as well. ” So Caleb gave her both the upper and lower springs. 16 Now the descendants of Moses' father-in-law, the Kenite, went up with the men of Judah from the City of Palms c   to the Wilderness of Judah in the Negev near Arad. They went to live among the people. 1Judges a 9 Hebrew Shephelah or lowlands  ; that is, the western foothills of Judea b 14 Hebrew; LXX and Vulgate and he urged her  ; see Joshua 15:18. c 16 That is, Jericho

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17 Then the men of Judah went with their brothers the Simeonites, attacked the Canaan-ites living in Zephath, and devoted the city to destruction. a   So it was called Hormah. b   18 And Judah also captured c   Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron —each with its territory. 19 The LORD was with Judah, and they took possession of the hill country; but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the plains because they had chariots of iron. 20 Just as Moses had promised, Judah gave Hebron to Caleb, who drove out the descen- dants of the three sons of Anak. 21 The Benjamites, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live there among the Benjamites. 22 The house of Joseph also attacked Bethel, and the LORD was with them. 23 They sent spies to Bethel (formerly known as Luz), 24 and when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, “Please show us how to get into the city, and we will treat you kindly. ” 25 So the man showed them the entrance to the city, and they p ut the city to the sword but released that man and all his family. 26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called it Luz, which is its name to this day. The Failure to Complete the Conquest 27 At that time Manasseh failed to drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, Megiddo, and their villages; for the Canaanites were determined to dwell in that land. 28 When Israel became stronger, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor, but they never drove them out completely. 29 Ephraim also failed to drive out the Canaan-ites living in Gezer; so the Canaanite s contin-ued to dwell among them in Gezer. 30 Zebulun failed to drive out the inhabitants of Kitron and Nahalol; so the Canaanites lived among them and served as forced laborers. 31 Asher failed to drive out the inhabitants of Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, and Rehob. 32 So the Asherites lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, because they did not drive them out. 33 Naphtali failed to drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath. So the Naphtalites also lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, but the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath served them as forced laborers. 34 The Amorites forced the Danites into the hill country and did not allow them to come down into the plain. 35 And the Amorites were determined to dwell in Mount Heres, Aijalon, and Shaalbim. But when the house of Joseph grew in strength, they pressed the Amorites into forced labor. 36 And the border of the Amorites extended from the Ascent of Akrab-bim d   to Sela and beyond. Israel Rebuked at Bochim Now the angel e   of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bochim and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I had promised to your fathers, and I said, 'I will never break My covenant with you, 2 and you are not to make a covenant with the people o f this land, but you shall tear down their altars. ' Yet you have not obeyed My voice. What is this you have done? 3 So now I tell you that I will 2 Judges 2:3 | 291 a 17 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering. b 17 Hormah means destruction  . c 18 Hebrew; LXX But Judah did not cap-ture   d 36 Or the Ascent of Scorpions or Scorpion Pass   e 1 Or Angel  ; also in verse 4

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not drive out these people before you; they will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a snare to you. ” 4 When the angel of the LORD had spoken these words to all the Israelites, the people lifted up their voices and wept. 5 So they called that place Bochim a   and offered sacrifices there to the LORD. Joshua's Death and Burial (Joshua 24:2 9-33) 6 After Joshua had dismissed the people, the Israelites went out to take possession of the land, each to his own inheritance. 7 And the people served the LORD throughout the days of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him, who had seen all the great works that the LORD had done for Israel. 8 And Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of 110. 9 They buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-heres b   in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. Israel's Unfaithfulness (Isaiah 43:2 2-28 ; Jeremiah 2:23-37) 10 After that whole generation had also been gathered to their fathers, another generation rose up who did not know the LORD or the works that He had done for Israel. 11 And the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals. 12 Thus they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they followed after various gods of the peoples around them. They bowed down to them and provoked the LORD to anger, 13 for they forsook Him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 14 Then the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He delivered them into the hands of those who plundered them. c   He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. 15 Wherever Israel marched out, the hand of the LORD was against them to bring calamity, just as He had sworn to them. So they were greatly distressed. Judge s Raised Up 16 Then the LORD raised up judges,d   who saved them from the hands of those who plun-dered them. 17 Israel, however, did not listen to their judges. Instead, they prostituted themselves with other gods and bowed down to them. They quickly turned from the way of their fathers, who had walked in obedience to the LORD's commandments; they did not do as their fathers had done. 18 Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for the Israelites, He was with that judge and saved them from the hands of their enemies while the judge was still alive; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning under those who oppressed them and afflicted them. 19 But when the judge died, the Israelites became even more corrupt than their fathers, going after other gods to serve them and bow down to them. T hey would not give up their evil practices and stubborn ways. 20 So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He said, “Because this nation has transgressed the covenant I laid down for their fathers and has not heeded My voice, 21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. 22 In this way 292 | Judges 2:4 a 5 Bochim means weepers  . b 9 Timnath-heres is also known as Timnath-serah  ; see Joshua 19:50 and Joshua 24:30. c 14 Literally of plunderers who plundered them   d 16 Or governors or leaders  ; here and throughout the book of Judges

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