Deuteronomy 4

Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you.

Listen closely, Israel, to the laws and decisions I'm teaching you. Follow them so you can thrive and take over the land that the Lord, your ancestors' God, is giving you.

Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.

Don't change or omit anything from the instructions I've given you, so you can faithfully follow God's commands.

Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you.

You've seen with your own eyes what God did at Baalpeor: He destroyed from among you every man who followed Baal of Peor.

But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day.

But all of you who have held tightly to your faith in the Lord are still here today, full of life and spirit.

Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.

Look, I've shared with you God's rules and decisions, just as He instructed me. Please follow them wherever you go to make it your home.

Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

Follow and practice these teachings; they are your wisdom and insight. When other nations hear of these laws, they'll surely say, 'What a wise and insightful people this great nation is.'

For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?

What other nation is as blessed as we are? God is always close to us, ready to help whenever we call on Him.

And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?

What other nation is as blessed as ours, with laws and principles as just and fair as those I present to you today?

Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;

Be mindful of your actions and guard your spirit with care. Don't let the lessons you've learned and the sights you've seen slip from your memory. Keep them in your heart always. Share these lessons with your children and grandchildren.

Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.

Remember that profound day when you stood in God's presence at Horeb? God asked me to gather everyone, promising to let them hear His words. He wanted them to respect Him throughout their lives on earth and pass this reverence to their children.

And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness.

You all approached and stood beneath the towering mountain, which blazed fiercely, reaching up to the sky. It was shrouded in darkness, enveloped by heavy clouds and intense obscurity.

And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.

God spoke to you from within the flames. You heard His words, but saw no form; you only heard a voice.

And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.

He revealed to you His sacred promise, His ten essential rules for life, etched deeply into two stone tablets.

And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.

At that moment, God instructed me to guide you in understanding His laws and decisions, so you could follow them in the new land you were about to make your own.

Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:

Be very careful with yourselves; remember, you didn't see any form when God spoke to you at Horeb from the fire.

Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,

Avoid damaging your soul by creating and worshiping idols, whether they resemble a man or a woman.

The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,

Don't make one in the shape of any animal that roams the earth, or any bird that soars in the sky,

The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:

The image of any creature that crawls on the earth, the image of any fish that swims in the waters below:

And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.

Don't be tempted to worship the sun, moon, or stars when you gaze upon the sky. Remember, these celestial bodies, though beautiful, are simply creations of God, given to all people across the world.

But the LORD hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.

But God has taken you and brought you out of Egypt, that furnace for smelting iron, to be His very own people, just as you are today.

Furthermore the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance:

God was angry with me because of you, and He swore that I wouldn't cross the Jordan or enter the beautiful land He's giving you as your inheritance.

But I must die in this land, I must not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.

I am destined to perish here, unable to cross the Jordan. Yet, you will cross it, embracing the blessings of that beautiful land.

Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the LORD thy God hath forbidden thee.

Be careful not to forget the covenant God made with you. Don't create any physical representation of anything that God has prohibited.

For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.

Your God, the LORD, is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

When thou shalt beget children, and children’s children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of the LORD thy God, to provoke him to anger:

When you have kids and grandkids, and you've lived in the land a long time, if you then turn corrupt and make an idol in any shape, doing evil in God's eyes and provoking Him to anger,

I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

I call heaven and earth to witness against you today: you will soon perish from the land you're crossing the Jordan to claim. Your time there will be short, and you will be completely destroyed.

And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.

God will disperse you among different countries, and only a handful of you will remain among the foreigners, wherever God guides you.

And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

There, you'll worship man-made idols, crafted from wood and stone. But remember, they can't see, hear, eat, or smell.

But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

If you truly search for God with every fiber of your being, with all your heart and soul, you will undoubtedly find Him.

When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;

When you're in deep distress, feeling the weight of the world on your shoulders, remember, even in your darkest hours, if you seek God and listen to His guidance, He will be there for you.

(For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.

Your God is full of mercy and compassion. He won't abandon you, harm you, or forget the promises He made to your ancestors.

For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?

Reflect on the history of humanity, from the moment God breathed life into us, and search the vast expanse of the heavens. Has there ever been anything as incredible as this, or has anything like it ever been heard of?

Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?

Has anyone ever heard God's voice, as you have, speaking from the heart of a blazing fire and yet survived?

Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

Has God ever tried to form a nation from another, using trials, miracles, battles, immense power, and terrifying events, just like He did for you in Egypt?

Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him.

It was revealed to you, so you could understand, the LORD is the only God; there's no one else but Him.

Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.

From the heavens, God spoke to you, guiding you. On earth, He revealed His mighty power like a blazing fire, and you heard His words from within this flame.

And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt;

Because of His deep love for your ancestors, He chose you, their descendants. With His immense strength, He personally led you out of Egypt.

To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.

To courageously conquer stronger nations before you, welcoming you into their lands as your own inheritance, just as it is happening today.

Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.

Understand deeply today, and feel it in your heart, that the LORD is the only God, ruling both heaven and earth. There is no other.

Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, for ever.

Follow God's rules and commands that I'm sharing with you today. It's for your own good and your children's future. It will help you live a long, blessed life on this earth that God has given you, forever.

Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;

Then Moses set apart three cities east of the Jordan, where the sun rises.

That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:

So that the person who accidentally kills his neighbor, without any previous hatred, may run to one of these cities and find refuge, and thus, continue to live.

Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.

In the barren wilderness, Bezer stands, a sanctuary for the Reubenites. Ramoth in Gilead, a refuge for the Gadites, breathes amidst the hills. And Golan in Bashan, a haven for the Manassites, rests in the lush greenery.

And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:

This is the rule that Moses lovingly laid out for the people of Israel:

These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt.

These are the sacred teachings, rules, and decisions that Moses shared with the people of Israel, once they were freed from Egypt.

On this side Jordan, in the valley over against Bethpeor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they were come forth out of Egypt:

In the valley across from Bethpeor, near the Jordan River, in the territory of Sihon, the Amorite king who lived in Heshbon, Moses and the Israelites, fresh from their escape from Egypt, defeated him.

And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, which were on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;

They took over his land and the land of Og, the king of Bashan, the two Amorite kings who ruled east of the Jordan, where the sun rises.

From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto mount Sion, which is Hermon,

From the riverbanks of Aroer to the towering heights of Mount Sion, known as Hermon, with its breathtaking views.

And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the springs of Pisgah.

Across the Jordan to the east, stretching to the sea, beneath the springs of Pisgah, the plain lay vast and serene.