Chapter 32

The Song of Moses

1 “aGive ear, O heavens, and let me speak;

And let the earth hear the words of my mouth.

2 “aLet my teaching drop as the rain,

My speech distill as the dew,

bAs the droplets on the fresh grass

And as the showers on the herb.

3 “aFor I proclaim the name of the Lord;

bAscribe greatness to our God!

4 “aThe Rock! His work is perfect,

bFor all His ways are 1just;

cA God of faithfulness and without injustice,

Righteous and upright is He.

5 “1aThey have acted corruptly toward Him,

They are not His children, because of their defect;

bBut are a perverse and crooked generation.

6 “Do you thus arepay the Lord,

bO foolish and unwise people?

cIs not He your Father who has bought you?

dHe has made you and established you.

7 “Remember the days of old,

Consider the years of all generations.

aAsk your father, and he will inform you,

Your elders, and they will tell you.

8 “aWhen the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,

When He separated the sons of 1man,

He set the boundaries of the peoples

bAccording to the number of the sons of Israel.

9 “aFor the Lord’s portion is His people;

Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance.

10 “aHe found him in a desert land,

And in the howling waste of a wilderness;

He encircled him, He cared for him,

He guarded him as bthe pupil of His eye.

11 “aLike an eagle that stirs up its nest,

That hovers over its young,

bHe spread His wings and caught them,

He carried them on His pinions.

12 “aThe Lord alone guided him,

bAnd there was no foreign god with him.

13 “aHe made him ride on the high places of the earth,

And he ate the produce of the field;

bAnd He made him suck honey from the rock,

And coil from the flinty rock,

14 Curds of cows, and milk of the flock,

With fat of lambs,

And rams, the breed of Bashan, and goats,

aWith the finest of the wheat—

And of the bblood of grapes you drank wine.

15 “aBut 1Jeshurun grew fat and kicked—

You are grown fat, thick, and sleek—

bThen he forsook God cwho made him,

And scorned dthe Rock of his salvation.

16 “aThey made Him jealous with strange gods;

bWith abominations they provoked Him to anger.

17 “aThey sacrificed to demons who were not God,

bTo gods whom they have not known,

cNew gods who came lately,

Whom your fathers did not dread.

18 “You neglected athe Rock who begot you,

bAnd forgot the God who gave you birth.

19 “aThe Lord saw this, and spurned them

bBecause of the provocation of His sons and daughters.

20 “Then He said, ‘I will hide My face from them,

aI will see what their end shall be;

bFor they are a perverse generation,

cSons in whom is no faithfulness.

21 ‘aThey have made Me jealous with what is not God;

They have provoked Me to anger with their 1bidols.

cSo I will make them jealous with those who are not a people;

I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation,

22 aFor a fire is kindled in My anger,

And burns to the lowest part of 1Sheol,

bAnd consumes the earth with its yield,

And sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.

23 ‘aI will heap misfortunes on them;

bI will use My arrows on them.

24 ‘aThey will be wasted by famine, and consumed by 1plague

bAnd bitter destruction;

cAnd the teeth of beasts I will send upon them,

dWith the venom of crawling things of the dust.

25 ‘aOutside the sword will bereave,

And inside terror—

bBoth young man and virgin,

The nursling with the man of gray hair.

26 ‘I would have said, “aI will cut them to pieces,

bI will remove the memory of them from men,”

27 Had I not feared the provocation by the enemy,

That their adversaries would misjudge,

That they would say, “aOur hand is 1triumphant,

And the Lord has not done all this.” ’

28 “aFor they are a nation 1lacking in counsel,

And there is no understanding in them.

29 “aWould that they were wise, that they understood this,

bThat they would discern their 1future!

30 “aHow could one chase a thousand,

And two put ten thousand to flight,

Unless their bRock had sold them,

And the Lord had given them up?

31 “Indeed their rock is not like our Rock,

aEven our enemies 1themselves judge this.

32 “For their vine is from the vine of Sodom,

And from the fields of Gomorrah;

Their grapes are grapes of apoison,

Their clusters, bitter.

33 “Their wine is the venom of 1serpents,

And the 2deadly poison of cobras.

34 ‘aIs it not laid up in store with Me,

Sealed up in My treasuries?

35 ‘aVengeance is Mine, and retribution,

bIn due time their foot will slip;

cFor the day of their calamity is near,

And the impending things are hastening upon them.’

36 “aFor the Lord will vindicate His people,

bAnd will have compassion on His servants,

When He sees that their 1strength is gone,

And there is none remaining, bond or free.

37 “And He will say, ‘aWhere are their gods,

The rock in which they sought refuge?

38 ‘aWho ate the fat of their sacrifices,

And drank the wine of their drink offering?

bLet them rise up and help you,

Let them be your hiding place!

39 ‘aSee now that I, I am He,

bAnd there is no god besides Me;

cIt is I who put to death and give life.

dI have wounded and it is I who heal,

eAnd there is no one who can deliver from My hand.

40 ‘Indeed, aI lift up My hand to heaven,

And say, as I live forever,

41 aIf I sharpen My 1flashing sword,

And My hand takes hold on justice,

bI will render vengeance on My adversaries,

And I will repay those who hate Me.

42 ‘aI will make My arrows drunk with blood,

bAnd My sword will devour flesh,

With the blood of the slain and the captives,

From the long-haired 1leaders of the enemy.’

43 “aRejoice, O nations, with His people;

bFor He will avenge the blood of His servants,

cAnd will render vengeance on His adversaries,

dAnd will atone for His land and His people.”

44 Then Moses came and spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he, with 1aJoshua the son of Nun.

45 When Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel,

46 he said to them, “aTake to your heart all the words with which I am warning you today, which you shall command byour sons to observe 1carefully, even all the words of this law.

47 “For it is not an idle word for you; indeed ait is your life. And bby this word you will prolong your days in the land, 1which you are about to cross the Jordan to 2possess.”

48 aThe Lord spoke to Moses that very same day, saying,

49 “aGo up to this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab 1opposite Jericho, and look at the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the sons of Israel for a possession.

50 “Then die on the mountain where you ascend, and be agathered to your people, as Aaron your brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people,

51 abecause you broke faith with Me in the midst of the sons of Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the bwilderness of Zin, because you did not treat Me as holy in the midst of the sons of Israel.

52 “aFor you shall see the land at a distance, but byou shall not go there, into the land which I am giving the sons of Israel.”

Chapter 33

The Blessing of Moses

1 Now this is the blessing with which Moses athe man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death.

2 He said,

“aThe Lord came from Sinai,

bAnd 1dawned on them from Seir;

cHe shone forth from Mount Paran,

And He came from dthe 2midst of ten thousand holy ones;

eAt His right hand there was 3flashing lightning for them.

3 “aIndeed, He loves 1the people;

bAll 2Your holy ones are in Your hand,

cAnd they 3followed in Your steps;

Everyone receives of Your words.

4 “aMoses charged us with a law,

bA possession for the assembly of Jacob.

5 “aAnd He was king in Jeshurun,

When the heads of the people were gathered,

The tribes of Israel together.

6 “aMay Reuben live and not die,

Nor his men be few.”

7 aAnd this regarding Judah; so he said,

“Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah,

And bring him to his people.

With his hands he contended for 1them,

And may You be a help against his adversaries.”

8 Of Levi he said,

“Let Your aThummim and Your Urim belong to 1Your bgodly man,

cWhom You proved at Massah,

With whom You contended at the waters of Meribah;

9 aWho said of his father and his mother,

‘I did not consider them’;

And he did not acknowledge his brothers,

Nor did he regard his own sons,

For bthey observed Your word,

And kept Your covenant.

10 “aThey shall teach Your ordinances to Jacob,

And Your law to Israel.

bThey shall put incense 1before You,

And cwhole burnt offerings on Your altar.

11 “O Lord, bless his substance,

And accept the work of his hands;

Shatter the loins of those who rise up against him,

And those who hate him, so that they will not rise again.”

12 Of Benjamin he said,

“aMay the beloved of the Lord dwell in security by Him,

bWho shields him all the day,

cAnd he dwells between His shoulders.”

13 Of Joseph he said,

“aBlessed of the Lord be his land,

With the choice things of heaven, with the dew,

And from the deep lying beneath,

14 And with the choice yield of the sun,

And with the choice produce of the months.

15 “And with the 1best things of athe ancient mountains,

And with the choice things of the everlasting hills,

16 And with the choice things of the earth and its fullness,

And the favor aof Him who dwelt in the bush.

Let it come to the head of Joseph,

And to the crown of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.

17 “As the firstborn of his ox, majesty is his,

And his horns are the horns of athe wild ox;

With them he will bpush the peoples,

All 1at once, to the ends of the earth.

And those are the ten thousands of Ephraim,

And those are the thousands of Manasseh.”

18 aOf Zebulun he said,

“Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going forth,

And, Issachar, in your tents.

19 “aThey will call peoples to the mountain;

There they will offer brighteous sacrifices;

For they will 1draw out cthe abundance of the seas,

And the hidden treasures of the sand.”

20 aOf Gad he said,

“Blessed is the one who enlarges Gad;

He lies down bas a 1lion,

And tears the arm, also the crown of the head.

21 “aThen he 1provided the first part for himself,

bFor there the ruler’s portion was 2reserved;

cAnd he came with the leaders of the people;

dHe executed the justice of the Lord,

And His ordinances with Israel.”

22 aOf Dan he said,

“Dan is ba lion’s whelp,

That leaps forth from Bashan.”

23 Of Naphtali he said,

“aO Naphtali, satisfied with favor,

And full of the blessing of the Lord,

Take possession of the sea and the south.”

24 aOf Asher he said,

“More blessed than sons is Asher;

May he be favored by his brothers,

bAnd may he dip his foot in oil.

25 “aYour locks will be iron and bronze,

bAnd according to your days, so will your leisurely walk be.

26 “aThere is none like the God of 1Jeshurun,

bWho rides the heavens 2to your help,

And through the skies in His majesty.

27 “aThe eternal God is a 1dwelling place,

bAnd underneath are the everlasting arms;

cAnd He drove out the enemy from before you,

dAnd said, ‘Destroy!’

28 “aSo Israel dwells in security,

bThe fountain of Jacob secluded,

cIn a land of grain and new wine;

dHis heavens also drop down dew.

29 “aBlessed are you, O Israel;

bWho is like you, a people saved by the Lord,

cWho is the shield of your help

dAnd the sword of your majesty!

eSo your enemies will cringe before you,

fAnd you will tread upon their high places.”

Chapter 34

The Death of Moses

1 aNow Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho. And the Lord bshowed him all the land, Gilead as far as Dan,

2 and all Naphtali and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah as far as the 1awestern sea,

3 and the 1Negev and the plain in the valley of Jericho, athe city of palm trees, as far as Zoar.

4 Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land which aI swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your 1descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not go over there.”

5 So Moses athe servant of the Lord bdied there in the land of Moab, according to the 1word of the Lord.

6 And He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab, aopposite Beth-peor; but bno man knows his burial place to this day.

7 Although Moses was aone hundred and twenty years old when he died, bhis eye was not dim, nor his vigor abated.

8 So the sons of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses came to an end.

9 Now Joshua the son of Nun was afilled with the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him; and the sons of Israel listened to him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.

10 Since that time ano prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom bthe Lord knew face to face,

11 for all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt against Pharaoh, all his servants, and all his land,

12 and for all the mighty 1power and for all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.