Joshua Becomes Moses' Successor
1 Moses continued speaking to the people of Israel, 2 and said, “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and am no longer able to be your leader. And besides this, the Lord has told me that I will not cross the Jordan. 3 The Lord your God himself will go before you and destroy the nations living there, so that you can occupy their land; and Joshua will be your leader, as the Lord has said. 4 The Lord will destroy those people, just as he defeated Sihon and Og, kings of the Amorites, and destroyed their country. 5 The Lord will give you victory over them, and you are to treat them exactly as I have told you. 6 Be determined and confident. Do not be afraid of them. Your God, the Lord himself, will be with you. He will not fail you or abandon you.”
7 Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the presence of all the people of Israel, “Be determined and confident; you are the one who will lead these people to occupy the land that the Lord promised to their ancestors. 8 The Lord himself will lead you and be with you. He will not fail you or abandon you, so do not lose courage or be afraid.”
The Law Is to Be Read Every Seven Years
9 So Moses wrote down God's Law and gave it to the levitical priests, who were in charge of the Lord's Covenant Box, and to the leaders of Israel. 10 He commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, when the year that debts are canceled comes around, read this aloud at the Festival of Shelters. 11 Read it to the people of Israel when they come to worship the Lord your God at the one place of worship. 12 Call together all the men, women, and children, and the foreigners who live in your towns, so that everyone may hear it and learn to honor the Lord your God and to obey his teachings faithfully. 13 In this way your descendants who have never heard the Law of the Lord your God will hear it. And so they will learn to obey him as long as they live in the land that you are about to occupy across the Jordan.”
The Lord's Last Instructions to Moses
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “You do not have much longer to live. Call Joshua and bring him to the Tent, so that I may give him his instructions.” Moses and Joshua went to the Tent, 15 and the Lord appeared to them there in a pillar of cloud that stood by the door of the Tent.
16 The Lord said to Moses, “You will soon die, and after your death the people will become unfaithful to me and break the covenant that I made with them. They will abandon me and worship the pagan gods of the land they are about to enter. 17 When that happens, I will become angry with them; I will abandon them, and they will be destroyed. Many terrible disasters will come upon them, and then they will realize that these things are happening to them because I, their God, am no longer with them. 18 And I will refuse to help them then, because they have done evil and worshiped other gods.
19 “Now, write down this song. Teach it to the people of Israel, so that it will stand as evidence against them. 20 I will take them into this rich and fertile land, as I promised their ancestors. There they will have all the food they want, and they will live comfortably. But they will turn away and worship other gods. They will reject me and break my covenant, 21 and many terrible disasters will come on them. But this song will still be sung, and it will stand as evidence against them. Even now, before I take them into the land that I promised to give them, I know what they are thinking.”
22 That same day Moses wrote down the song and taught it to the people of Israel.
23 Then the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun and told him, “Be confident and determined. You will lead the people of Israel into the land that I promised them, and I will be with you.”
24 Moses wrote God's Law in a book, taking care not to leave out anything. 25 When he finished, he said to the levitical priests, who were in charge of the Lord's Covenant Box, 26 “Take this book of God's Law and place it beside the Covenant Box of the Lord your God, so that it will remain there as a witness against his people. 27 I know how stubborn and rebellious they are. They have rebelled against the Lord during my lifetime, and they will rebel even more after I am dead. 28 Assemble all your tribal leaders and officials before me, so that I can tell them these things; I will call heaven and earth to be my witnesses against them. 29 I know that after my death the people will become wicked and reject what I have taught them. And in time to come they will meet with disaster, because they will have made the Lord angry by doing what he has forbidden.”
The Song of Moses
30 Then Moses recited the entire song while all the people of Israel listened.
1 Then Moses went and spake these wordes vnto all Israel, 2 And said vnto them, I am an hundreth and twentie yeere olde this day: I can no more goe out and in: also the Lord hath saide vnto me, Thou shalt not goe ouer this Iorden. 3 The Lord thy God he will go ouer before thee: he will destroy these nations before thee, and thou shalt possesse them. Ioshua, he shall goe before thee, as the Lord hath said. 4 And the Lord shall doe vnto them, as he did to Sihon and to Og Kings of the Amorites: and vnto their lande whome he destroyed. 5 And the Lord shall giue them before you that ye may do vnto them according vnto euery commandement, which I haue comanded you. 6 Plucke vp your hearts therefore, and be strong: dread not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God him selfe doeth goe with thee: he will not faile thee, nor forsake thee. 7 And Moses called Ioshua, and said vnto him in the sight of all Israel, Be of a good courage and strong: for thou shalt go with this people vnto the lande which the Lord hath sworne vnto their fathers, to giue them, and thou shalt giue it them to inherite. 8 And the Lord him selfe doeth go before thee: he will be with thee: he will not faile thee, neither forsake thee: feare not therefore, nor be discomforted. 9 And Moses wrote this Lawe, and deliuered it vnto the Priestes the sonnes of Leui (which bare the Arke of the couenant of the Lord) and vnto all the Elders of Israel, 10 And Moses commanded them, saying, Euery seuenth yeere when the yeere of freedome shalbe in the feast of the Tabernacles: 11 When all Israel shall come to appeare before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall chuse, thou shalt reade this Lawe before all Israel that they may heare it. 12 Gather the people together: men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may heare, and that they may learne, and feare the Lord your God, and keepe and obserue all the wordes of this Lawe, 13 And that their children which haue not knowen it, may heare it, and learne to feare the Lord your God, as long as ye liue in the lande, whither ye goe ouer Iorden to possesse it. 14 Then the Lord saide vnto Moses, Beholde, thy dayes are come, that thou must die: Call Ioshua, and stande ye in the Tabernacle of the Congregation that I may giue him a charge. So Moses and Ioshua went, and stoode in the Tabernacle of the Congregation. 15 And the Lord appeared in the Tabernacle, in the pillar of a cloude: and the pillar of the cloude stoode ouer the doore of the Tabernacle. 16 And the Lord said vnto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleepe with thy fathers, and this people will rise vp, and goe a whoring after the gods of a strange land (whither they goe to dwell therein) and will forsake me, and breake my couenant which I haue made with them. 17 Wherefore my wrath will waxe hote against them at that day, and I will forsake them, and will hide my face from them: then they shalbe consumed, and many aduersities and tribulations shall come vpon them: so then they will say, Are not these troubles come vpon me, because God is not with me? 18 But I will surely hide my face in that day, because of all the euill, which they shall commit, in that they are turned vnto other gods. 19 Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouthes, that this song may be my witnesse against the children of Israel. 20 For I will bring them into the land (which I sware vnto their fathers) that floweth with milke and honie, and they shall eate, and fil them selues, and waxe fat: then shall they turne vnto other gods, and serue them, and contemne me, and breake my couenant. 21 And then when many aduersities and tribulations shall come vpon them, this song shall answere them to their face as a witnesse: for it shall not be forgotte out of the mouthes of their posteritie: for I knowe their imagination, which they goe about euen now, before I haue brought them into the lande which I sware. 22 Moses therefore wrote this song the same day and taught it the children of Israel. 23 And God gaue Ioshua the sonne of Nun a charge, and said, Be strong, and of a good courage: for thou shalt bring the children of Israel into the lande, which I sware vnto them, and I will be with thee. 24 And when Moses had made an ende of writing the wordes of this Lawe in a booke vntill he had finished them, 25 Then Moses commanded the Leuites, which bare the Arke of the couenant of the Lord, saying, 26 Take the booke of this Lawe, and put ye it in the side of the Arke of the couenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for a witnes against thee. 27 For I knowe thy rebellion and thy stiffe necke: beholde, I being yet aliue with you this day, ye are rebellious against the Lord: howe much more then after my death? 28 Gather vnto me all the Elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speake these wordes in their audience, and call heauen and earth to recorde against them. 29 For I am sure that after my death ye will vtterly be corrupt and turne from the way, which I haue commanded you: therefore euill will come vpon you at the length, because ye will comit euill in the sight of the Lord, by prouoking him to anger through the worke of your hands. 30 Thus Moses spake in the audience of all the congregation of Israel the wordes of this song, vntill he had ended them.