Deuteronomy 31:2–8

²I said, “I am now 120 years old. I’m not able to lead you anymore. The Lord has said to me, ‘You will not go across the Jordan River.’

³“The Lord your God himself will go across ahead of you. He’ll destroy the nations that are there in order to make room for you. You will take over their land. Joshua will also go across ahead of you, just as the Lord said he would.

⁴“The Lord will do to those nations what he did to Sihon and Og. He destroyed those Amorite kings along with their land. ⁵The Lord will hand those nations over to you. Then you must do to them everything I’ve commanded you to do.

⁶“Be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid of them. Don’t be terrified because of them. The Lord your God will go with you. He will never leave you. He’ll never desert you.”

⁷Then I sent for Joshua. I spoke to him in front of all of the people of Israel. I said, “Be strong and brave. You must go with these people. They are going into the land the Lord promised with an oath to give to their fathers. You must divide it up among them. They will each receive their share. ⁸The Lord himself will go ahead of you. He will be with you. He will never leave you. He’ll never desert you. So don’t be afraid. Don’t lose hope.”