Through the Bible – Day 61

₁The LORD told me to give you these laws and teachings, so you can obey them in the land he is giving you. Soon you will cross the River Jordan and take that land. ₂And if you and your descendants want to live a long time, you must always worship the LORD and obey his laws. ₃Pay attention, Israel! Our ancestors worshipped the LORD, and he promised to give us this land that is rich with milk and honey. Be careful to obey him, and you will become a successful and powerful nation.

₄Listen, Israel! The LORD our God is the only true God! ₅So love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, and strength. ₆Memorize his laws ₇and tell them to your children over and over again. Talk about them all the time, whether you're at home or walking along the road or going to bed at night, or getting up in the morning. ₈Write down copies and tie them to your wrists and foreheads to help you obey them. ₉Write these laws on the door frames of your homes and on your town gates.

₁₀The LORD promised your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give you this land. Now he will take you there and give you large towns, with good buildings that you didn't build, ₁₁and houses full of good things that you didn't put there. The LORD will give you wells that you didn't have to dig, and vineyards and olive orchards that you didn't have to plant. But when you have eaten so much that you can't eat any more, ₁₂don't forget it was the LORD who set you free from slavery and brought you out of Egypt. ₁₃Worship and obey the LORD your God with fear and trembling, and promise that you will be loyal to him.

₁₄Don't have anything to do with gods that are worshipped by the nations around you. ₁₅If you worship other gods, the LORD will be furious and wipe you off the face of the earth. The LORD your God is with you, ₁₆so don't try to make him prove that he can help you, as you did at Massah. ₁₇Always obey the laws that the LORD has given you _18-19and live in a way that pleases him. Then you will be able to go in and take this good land from your enemies, just as he promised your ancestors.

₂₀Some day your children will ask, “Why did the LORD give us these laws and teachings?”

₂₁Then you will answer:

₁People of Israel, the LORD your God will help you take the land of the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. These seven nations have more people and are stronger than Israel, but when you attack them, ₂the LORD will force them out of the land. Then you must destroy them without mercy. Don't make any peace treaties with them, ₃and don't let your sons and daughters marry any of them. ₄If you do, those people will lead your descendants to worship other gods and to turn their backs on the LORD. That will make him very angry, and he will quickly destroy Israel.

₅So when you conquer these nations, tear down the altars where they worship their gods. Break up their sacred stones, cut down the poles that they use in worshipping the goddess Asherah, and throw their idols in the fire.

₆Israel, you are the chosen people of the LORD your God. There are many nations on this earth, but he chose only Israel to be his very own. ₇You were the weakest of all nations, ₈but the LORD chose you because he loves you and because he had made a promise to your ancestors. Then with his mighty arm, he rescued you from the king of Egypt, who had made you his slaves.

₉You know that the LORD your God is the only true God. So love him and obey his commands, and he will faithfully keep his agreement with you and your descendants for a thousand generations. ₁₀But if you turn against the LORD, he will quickly destroy you. ₁₁So be sure to obey his laws and teachings I am giving you today.

₁₂If you completely obey these laws, the LORD your God will be loyal and keep the agreement he made with you, just as he promised our ancestors. ₁₃The LORD will love you and bless you by giving you many children and plenty of food, wine, and olive oil. Your herds of cattle will have many calves, and your flocks of sheep will have many lambs. ₁₄God will bless you more than any other nation—your families will grow and your livestock increase. ₁₅You will no longer suffer with the same horrible diseases that you sometimes had in Egypt. You will be healthy, but the LORD will make your enemies suffer from those diseases.

₁₆When the LORD helps you defeat your enemies, you must destroy them without pity! And don't get trapped into worshipping their gods.

₁₇You may be thinking, “How can we destroy these nations? They are more powerful than we are.” ₁₈But stop worrying! Just remember what the LORD your God did to Egypt and its king. ₁₉You saw how the LORD used his tremendous power to work great miracles and bring you out of Egypt. And he will again work miracles for you when you face these enemies you fear so much. ₂₀Some of them may try to survive by hiding from you, but the LORD will make them panic, and soon they will be dead. ₂₁So don't be frightened when you meet them in battle. The LORD your God is great and fearsome, and he will fight at your side.

₂₂As you attack these nations, the LORD will force them out little by little. He won't let you get rid of them all at once—if he did, there wouldn't be enough people living in the land to keep down the number of wild animals. _23-24But when you attack your enemies, the LORD will make them panic, and you will easily destroy them. You will defeat them one after another until they are gone, and no one will remember they ever lived.

₂₅After you conquer a nation, burn their idols. Don't get trapped into wanting the silver or gold on an idol. Even the metal on an idol is disgusting to the LORD, ₂₆so destroy it. If you bring it home with you, both you and your house will be destroyed. Stay away from those disgusting idols!

₁Israel, do you want to go into the land the LORD promised your ancestors? Do you want to capture it, live there, and become a powerful nation? Then be sure to obey every command I am giving you.

₂Don't forget how the LORD your God has led you through the desert for the past forty years. He wanted to find out if you were truly willing to obey him and depend on him, ₃so he made you go hungry. Then he gave you manna, a kind of food that you and your ancestors had never even heard about. The LORD was teaching you that people need more than food to live—they need every word that the LORD has spoken.

₄Over the past forty years, your clothing hasn't worn out, and your feet haven't swollen. ₅So keep in mind that the LORD has been correcting you, just as parents correct their children. ₆Obey the commands the LORD your God has given you and worship him with fear and trembling.

₇The LORD your God is bringing you into a good land with streams that flow from springs in the valleys and hills. _8-9You can dig for copper in those hills, and the stones are made of iron ore. And you won't go hungry. Wheat and barley fields are everywhere, and so are vineyards and orchards full of fig, pomegranate, and olive trees, and there is plenty of honey.

₁₀After you eat and are full, give praise to the LORD your God for the good land he gave you. ₁₁Make sure that you never forget the LORD or disobey his laws and teachings that I am giving you today. If you always obey them, ₁₂you will have plenty to eat, and you will build good houses to live in. ₁₃You will get more and more cattle, sheep, silver, gold, and other possessions.

₁₄But when all this happens, don't be proud! Don't forget that you were once slaves in Egypt and that it was the LORD who set you free. ₁₅Remember how he led you in that huge and frightening desert where poisonous snakes and scorpions live. There was no water, but the LORD split open a rock, and water poured out so you could drink. ₁₆He also gave you manna, a kind of food your ancestors had never even heard about. The LORD was testing you to make you trust him, so that later on he could be good to you.

₁₇When you become successful, don't say, “I'm rich, and I've earned it all myself.” ₁₈Instead, remember that the LORD your God gives you the strength to make a living. That's how he keeps the promise he made to your ancestors.

_19-20But I'm warning you—if you forget the LORD your God and worship other gods, the LORD will destroy you, just as he destroyed the nations you fought.