Deuteronomy 31:1-29

1 And Moses went and spake these wordes vnto all Israel

2 and sayed vnto them I am an hundred ad .xx. yere olde this daye, ad can nomoare goo out and in. Also the Lorde hath sayed vnto me, thou shalt not go ouer this Iordayne.

3 The Lord youre God he will go ouer before the ad he will destroye these nacions before the, ad thou shalt coquere the. And Iosua he shall goo ouer before the, as the Lorde hath sayed.

4 And the Lorde shall doo vnto them, as he dyd to Sihon ad Og kynges of the Amorites ad vnto their landes which kinges he destroyed.

5 And when the Lorde hath delyuered them to the, se that ye doo vnto them acordynge vnto all the comaundmentes which I haue comaunded you.

6 Plucke vpp youre hartes and be stronge, dreade not nor be aferde of them: for the Lorde thi God him selfe will goo with the, and wil nether let the goo nor forsake the:

7 And Moses called vnto Iosua and sayed vnto him in the sighte of all Israel: Be stroge and bolde, for thou must goo with this people vnto the londe which the Lorde hath sworne vnto their fathers to geue them, and thou shalt geue it them to enheret.

8 And the Lorde he shall goo before the ad he shall be with the, and wil not let the goo nor forsake the, feare not therfore nor be discomforted.

9 And Moses wrote this lawe and delyuered it vnto the preastes the sonnes of Leui which bare the arke of the testament of the Lorde, and vnto all the elders of Israel,

10 and commaunded them sayenge: At the ende of .vij. yere, in the tyme of the fre yere, in the fest of the tabernacles,

11 when all Israel is come to appere before the Lorde thi God, in the place which he hath chosen: se that thou reade this lawe before all Israel in their eares

12 Gather the people together: both men, wemen and childern and the straungers that are in thi cities, that they maye heare, lerne and feare the Lorde youre God, and be diligent to kepe all the wordes of this lawe,

13 and that theyr childern which knowe nothinge maye heare and lerne to feare the Lorde youre God, as longe as ye lyue in the londe whother ye goo ouer Iordayne to possesse it.

14 And the Lorde sayed vnto Moses: Beholde thy dayes are come, that thou must dye. Call Iosua and come and stonde in the tabernacle of witnesse, that I maye geue him a charge. And Moses and Iosua went and stode in the tabernacle off witnesse.

15 And the Lorde apeared in the tabernacle: euen in the pyler off the cloude. And the piler of the cloude stode ouer the dore of the tabernacle.

16 And the Lorde sayed vnto Moses: beholde, thou must slepe with thi fathers, and this people will goo a whorynge after straunge goddes off the londe whother they goo and will forsake me and breake the appoyntement which I haue made with them.

17 And then my wrath will waxe whote agenst them, and I will forsake them and will hyde my face from them, and they shalbe consumed. And when moch aduersyte and tribulacion is come vppon them, then they will saye: because oure God is not amonge us,

18 these tribulacions are come vppon us. But I wil hyde my face that same tyme for all the euels sake which they shall haue wrought, in that they are turned vnto straunge goddes.

19 Now therfore write ye this songe, and teach it the childern of Israel and put it in their mouthes that this songe maye be my witnesse vnto the childern of Israel.

20 For when I haue brought them in to the londe whiche I sware vnto their fathers that runneth with mylke ad honye, then they will eate and fyll them selues and waxe fatt and turne vnto straunge goddes and serue them and rayle on me and breake my testament.

21 And then when moch myschefe and tribulacion is come vppon them, this songe shall answere before them, and be a witnesse. It shall not be forgetten out of the mouthes of their seed: for I knowe their imaginacyon whiche they goo aboute euen now before I haue broughte them in to the londe which I sware.

22 And Moses wrote this songe the same season, and taught it the childern of Israel.

23 And the Lorde gaue Iosua the sonne off Nun a charge and sayed: be bolde and stronge for thou shalt brynge the childern of Israel in to the lond which I sware vnto them, ad I will be with the.

24 When Moses had made an ende of wrytynge out the wordes of this lawe in a boke vnto the ende

25 of them he commaunded the Leuites which bare the arcke of the testamet of the Lorde sayenge:

26 take the boke off thys lawe and put it by the syde of the arcke of the testament of the Lorde youre God, and let it be there for a witnesse vnto the.

27 I For knowe thi stubernesse and thi stiffe necke: beholde, while I am yet a lyue with you this daye, ye haue bene dishobedient vnto the Lorde: ad how moch moare after my deeth.

28 Gather vnto me al the elders of youre trybes and youre officers, that I maye speake these wordes in their eares and call heaue ad erth to recorde agenst them.

29 For I am sure that after my deeth, they will vtterly marre them selues and turne from the waye which I commaunded you, and tribulacion will come vppon you in the later dayes, when ye haue wrought welkednesse in the sight of the Lorde to prouoke him with the workes of youre handes.

Deuteronomy 31:1-29 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 31

Moses being old, and knowing he should quickly die, and must not go over Jordan with the people of Israel, acquaints them with it, and encourages them and Joshua to go over notwithstanding, and not be afraid of their enemies, since the Lord would go with them, and deliver them into their hands, De 31:1-8; and having written the law, he delivered it to the priests, and ordered that it should be read at the end of every seven years before all the people, that they and theirs might learn it, and fear the Lord, De 31:9-13; and whereas the death of Moses was very near, and the Lord foreseeing the people would quickly fall into idolatry, which would bring great calamities upon them, he directed Moses to write a song, which should be a witness for him, and against them, in ages to come; which Moses accordingly did, De 31:14-22; and Moses having given a charge to Joshua, and finished the writing of the law in a book, gave it to the Levites to put it in the side of the ark, De 31:23-27; and then ordered the chief of the tribes to be gathered together, that he might deliver the song, which by the direction and under the inspiration of God he had written, De 31:28-30; which song is recorded in De 32:1-43.