Deuteronomy 30-31; Psalms 63 - Prayer Tents

A Call to Return to the Lord

30"In the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you, and when you are living among the nations to which the LORD your God has exiled you, take to heart all these instructions.H1697H935H1293H7045H5414H6440H7725H3824H1471H3068H430H5080 2If at that time you and your children return to the LORD your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today,H7725H3068H430H8085H6963H6680H3117H1121H3824H5315 3then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you.H3068H430H7725H7622H7355H7725H6908H5971H3068H430H6327 4Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the LORD your God will gather you from there and bring you back again.H5080H7097H8064H3068H430H6908H3947 5The LORD your God will return you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will possess that land again. Then he will make you even more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors!H3068H430H935H776H1H3423H3423H3190H7235H1 6"The LORD your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live!H3068H430H4135H3824H3824H2233H157H3068H430H3824H5315H2416 7The LORD your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate and persecute you.H3068H430H5414H423H341H8130H7291 8Then you will again obey the LORD and keep all his commands that I am giving you today.H7725H8085H6963H3068H6213H4687H6680H3117 9"The LORD your God will then make you successful in everything you do. He will give you many children and numerous livestock, and he will cause your fields to produce abundant harvests, for the LORD will again delight in being good to you as he was to your ancestors.H3068H430H3498H4639H3027H6529H990H6529H929H6529H127H2896H3068H7725H7797H2896H7797H1 10The LORD your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and soul.H8085H6963H3068H430H8104H4687H2708H3789H5612H8451H7725H3068H430H3824H5315

The Choice of Life or Death

11"This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach.H4687H6680H3117H6381H7350 12It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, 'Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?'H8064H559H5927H8064H3947H8085H6213 13It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, 'Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?'H5676H3220H559H5674H5676H3220H3947H8085H6213 14No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.H1697H3966H7138H6310H3824H6213 15"Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster.H7200H5414H6440H3117H2416H2896H4194H7451 16For I command you this day to love the LORD your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy.H6680H3117H157H3068H430H3212H1870H8104H4687H2708H4941H2421H7235H3068H430H1288H776H935H3423 17"But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods,H3824H6437H8085H5080H7812H312H430H5647 18then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.H5046H3117H6H6H748H3117H127H5674H3383H935H3423 19"Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!H5749H8064H776H5749H3117H5414H6440H2416H4194H1293H7045H977H2416H2233H2421 20You can make this choice by loving the LORD your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the LORD, you will live long in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."H157H3068H430H8085H6963H1692H2416H753H3117H3427H127H3068H7650H1H85H3327H3290H5414

Joshua Becomes Israel’s Leader

31When Moses had finished giving these instructions to all the people of Israel,H4872H3212H1696H1697H3478 2he said, "I am now 120 years old, and I am no longer able to lead you. The LORD has told me, 'You will not cross the Jordan River.'H559H3967H6242H8141H1121H3117H3201H3318H935H3068H559H5674H3383 3But the LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy the nations living there, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua will lead you across the river, just as the LORD promised.H3068H430H5674H6440H8045H1471H6440H3423H3091H5674H6440H3068H1696 4"The LORD will destroy the nations living in the land, just as he destroyed Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites.H3068H6213H6213H5511H5747H4428H567H776H8045 5The LORD will hand over to you the people who live there, and you must deal with them as I have commanded you.H3068H5414H6440H6213H4687H6680 6So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you."H2388H553H3372H6206H6440H3068H430H1980H7503H5800 7Then Moses called for Joshua, and as all Israel watched, he said to him, "Be strong and courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that the LORD swore to their ancestors he would give them. You are the one who will divide it among them as their grants of land.H4872H7121H3091H559H5869H3478H2388H553H935H5971H776H3068H7650H1H5414H5157 8Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you."H3068H1980H6440H7503H5800H3372H2865

Public Reading of the Book of Instruction

9So Moses wrote this entire body of instruction in a book and gave it to the priests, who carried the Ark of the LORD's Covenant, and to the elders of Israel.H4872H3789H8451H5414H3548H1121H3878H5375H727H1285H3068H2205H3478 10Then Moses gave them this command: "At the end of every seventh year, the Year of Release, during the Festival of Shelters,H4872H6680H559H7093H7651H8141H4150H8141H8059H2282H5521 11you must read this Book of Instruction to all the people of Israel when they assemble before the LORD your God at the place he chooses.H3478H935H7200H6440H3068H430H4725H977H7121H8451H3478H241 12Call them all together—men, women, children, and the foreigners living in your towns—so they may hear this Book of Instruction and learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully obey all the terms of these instructions.H6950H5971H6950H582H802H2945H1616H8179H8085H3925H3372H3068H430H8104H6213H1697H8451 13Do this so that your children who have not known these instructions will hear them and will learn to fear the LORD your God. Do this as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy."H1121H3045H8085H3925H3372H3068H430H3117H2416H127H5674H3383H3423

Israel’s Disobedience Predicted

14Then the LORD said to Moses, "The time has come for you to die. Call Joshua and present yourselves at the Tabernacle, so that I may commission him there." So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the Tabernacle.H3068H559H4872H3117H7126H4191H7121H3091H3320H168H4150H6680H4872H3091H3212H3320H168H4150 15And the LORD appeared to them in a pillar of cloud that stood at the entrance to the sacred tent.H3068H7200H168H5982H6051H5982H6051H5975H6607H168 16The LORD said to Moses, "You are about to die and join your ancestors. After you are gone, these people will begin to worship foreign gods, the gods of the land where they are going. They will abandon me and break my covenant that I have made with them.H3068H559H4872H7901H1H5971H6965H2181H310H430H5236H776H935H7130H5800H6565H1285H3772 17Then my anger will blaze forth against them. I will abandon them, hiding my face from them, and they will be devoured. Terrible trouble will come down on them, and on that day they will say, 'These disasters have come down on us because God is no longer among us!'H639H2734H3117H5800H5641H6440H398H7227H7451H6869H4672H559H3117H7451H4672H430H7130 18At that time I will hide my face from them on account of all the evil they commit by worshiping other gods.H5641H5641H6440H3117H7451H6213H3588H6437H312H430 19"So write down the words of this song, and teach it to the people of Israel. Help them learn it, so it may serve as a witness for me against them.H3789H7892H3925H1121H3478H7760H6310H7892H5707H1121H3478 20For I will bring them into the land I swore to give their ancestors—a land flowing with milk and honey. There they will become prosperous, eat all the food they want, and become fat. But they will begin to worship other gods; they will despise me and break my covenant.H935H127H7650H1H2100H2461H1706H398H7646H1878H6437H312H430H5647H5006H6565H1285 21And when great disasters come down on them, this song will stand as evidence against them, for it will never be forgotten by their descendants. I know the intentions of these people, even now before they have entered the land I swore to give them."H7227H7451H6869H4672H7892H6030H6440H5707H7911H6310H2233H3045H3336H6213H3117H935H776H7650 22So that very day Moses wrote down the words of the song and taught it to the Israelites.H4872H3789H7892H3117H3925H1121H3478 23Then the LORD commissioned Joshua son of Nun with these words: "Be strong and courageous, for you must bring the people of Israel into the land I swore to give them. I will be with you."H3091H1121H5126H6680H559H2388H553H935H1121H3478H776H7650 24When Moses had finished writing this entire body of instruction in a book,H4872H3615H3789H1697H8451H5612H8552 25he gave this command to the Levites who carried the Ark of the LORD's Covenant.H4872H6680H3881H5375H727H1285H3068H559 26"Take this Book of Instruction and place it beside the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD your God, so it may remain there as a witness against the people of Israel.H3947H5612H8451H7760H6654H727H1285H3068H430H5707 27For I know how rebellious and stubborn you are. Even now, while I am still alive and am here with you, you have rebelled against the LORD. How much more rebellious will you be after my death!H3045H4805H7186H6203H2416H3117H4784H3068H310H4194 28"Now summon all the elders and officials of your tribes, so that I can speak to them directly and call heaven and earth to witness against them.H6950H2205H7626H7860H1696H1697H241H5749H8064H776H5749 29I know that after my death you will become utterly corrupt and will turn from the way I have commanded you to follow. In the days to come, disaster will come down on you, for you will do what is evil in the LORD's sight, making him very angry with your actions."H3045H310H4194H7843H7843H5493H1870H6680H7451H7122H319H3117H6213H7451H5869H3068H3707H4639H3027

The Song of Moses

30So Moses recited this entire song publicly to the assembly of Israel.H4872H1696H241H6951H3478H1697H7892H8552

63[A psalm of David, regarding a time when David was in the wilderness of Judah.] O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my hole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water.H4210H1732H4057H3063H430H410H7836H5315H6770H1320H3642H6723H5889H776H1097H4325 2I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory.H7200H5797H3519H2372H6944 3Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you!H2617H2896H2416H8193H7623 4I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer.H1288H2416H5375H3709H8034 5You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy.H5315H7646H2459H1880H6310H1984H7445H8193 6I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night.H2142H3326H1897H821 7Because you are my helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings.H5833H6738H3671H7442 8I cling to you; your strong right hand holds me securely.H5315H1692H310H3225H8551 9But those plotting to destroy me will come to ruin. They will go down into the depths of the earth.H1245H5315H7722H935H8482H776 10They will die by the sword and become the food of jackals.H5064H3027H2719H4521H7776 11But the king will rejoice in God. All who trust in him will praise him, while liars will be silenced.H4428H8055H430H7650H1984H6310H1696H8267H5534