Deuteronomy 30:19

19 testes invoco hodie caelum et terram quod proposuerim vobis vitam et mortem bonum et malum benedictionem et maledictionem elige ergo vitam ut et tu vivas et semen tuum

Deuteronomy 30:19 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 30:19

I call heaven and earth to record this day against you
Either, literally understood, the heavens above him, and the earth on which he stood, those inanimate bodies, which are frequently called upon as witnesses to matters of moment and importance; see ( Deuteronomy 4:26 ) ( 32:1 ) ( Isaiah 1:2 ) ; or figuratively, the inhabitants of both, angels and men:

[that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing;
had plainly told them in express words what would be the consequence of obedience and disobedience to the law of God; long life, and the blessings of it in the land of Canaan, to those that obey it; death, by various means, and dreadful curses, to those that disobey it; of which see at large ( Deuteronomy 28:16-68 ) ;

therefore choose life, that thou and thy seed may live;
that is, prefer obedience to the law, and choose to perform that, the consequence of which is life; that they and their posterity might live comfortably and happily, quietly and safely, and constantly, even to the latest ages, in the land of Canaan.

Deuteronomy 30:19 In-Context

17 sin autem aversum fuerit cor tuum et audire nolueris atque errore deceptus adoraveris deos alienos et servieris eis

18 praedico tibi hodie quod pereas et parvo tempore moreris in terra ad quam Iordane transmisso ingredieris possidendam

19 testes invoco hodie caelum et terram quod proposuerim vobis vitam et mortem bonum et malum benedictionem et maledictionem elige ergo vitam ut et tu vivas et semen tuum

20 et diligas Dominum Deum tuum atque oboedias voci eius et illi adhereas ipse est enim vita tua et longitudo dierum tuorum ut habites in terra pro qua iuravit Dominus patribus tuis Abraham Isaac et Iacob ut daret eam illis