11 1 An exhortation to love God, and keep his law. 10 The praises of Canaan. 18 To meditate continually the word of God. 19 To teach it unto the children. 26 Blessing and cursing.

Therefore thou shalt love the Lord thy God and shalt keep that, which he commandeth to be kept: that is, his ordinances, and his laws and his commandments always.

And [a]consider this day (for I speak not to your children, which have neither known nor seen) the chastisements of the Lord your God, his greatness, his mighty hand, and his stretched out arm,

And his signs, and his acts, which he did in the midst of Egypt, unto Pharaoh the King of Egypt and unto all his land:

And what he did unto the host of the Egyptians, unto their horses, and to their chariots, when he caused the waters of the red Sea to overflow them, as they pursued after you, and the Lord destroyed them unto this day:

And [b]what he did unto you in the wilderness, until ye came unto this place:

And what he did unto Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab the son of Reuben, when the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them with their households, and their tents, and all their substance that [c]they had in the midst of all Israel.

For your eyes have seen all the great acts of the Lord which he did.

Therefore shall ye keep [d]all the commandments, which I command you this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the land whither ye go to possess it:

Also that ye may prolong your days in the land, which the Lord sware unto your fathers, to give unto them and to their seed, even a land that floweth with milk and honey.

10 ¶ For the land whither thou goest to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy [e][f]feet as a garden of herbs:

11 But the land whither ye go to possess it, is a land of mountains and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven.

12 This land doth the Lord thy God care for: the eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year, even unto the end of the year.

13 ¶ If ye shall hearken therefore unto my commandments, which I command you this day, that ye love the Lord your God and serve him with all your heart, and with all your soul,

14 I also will give rain unto your land in due time, [g]the first rain and the latter, that thou mayest gather in thy wheat, and thy wine, and thine oil.

15 Also I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat, and have enough.

16 But beware lest your heart [h]deceive you, and lest ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them.

17 And so the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that your land yield not her fruit, and ye perish quickly from the good land, which the Lord giveth you.

18 ¶ Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and (A)bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as a frontlet between your eyes,

19 And ye shall (B)teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

20 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thine house, and upon thy gates,

21 That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers to give them, as long as [i]the heavens are above the earth.

22 ¶ For if ye keep diligently all these Commandments, which I command you to do: that is, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him,

23 Then will the Lord cast out all these nations before you, and ye shall possess great nations and mightier than you.

24 (C)All the places whereon the soles of [j]your feet shall tread, shall be yours: your coast shall be from the wilderness and from Lebanon, and from the River even the river Perath, unto the uttermost [k]Sea.

25 No man shall stand against you: for the Lord your God shall cast the fear and dread of you upon all the land that ye shall tread upon, as he hath said unto you.

26 ¶ Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse:

27 (D)The blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day:

28 And the (E)curse, if ye will not obey the Commandments of the Lord your God, but turn out of the way, which I command you this day, to go after other gods which ye have not [l]known.

29 ¶ When the Lord thy God therefore hath brought thee into the land, whither thou goest to possess it, then thou shalt put the (F)blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal.

30 Are they not beyond Jordan on that part, [m]where the Sun goeth down in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the plain over against Gilgal, beside [n]the grove of Moreh?

31 For ye shall pass over Jordan, to go in to possess that land which the Lord your God giveth you, and ye shall possess it, and dwell therein.

32 Take heed therefore that ye (G)do all the commandments and the laws, which I set before you this day.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 11:2 Ye, which have seen God’s graces with your eyes, ought rather to be moved, than your children, which have only heard of them.
  2. Deuteronomy 11:5 As well concerning his benefits, as his corrections.
  3. Deuteronomy 11:6 Hebrew, was at their feet.
  4. Deuteronomy 11:8 Because ye have felt both his chastisements and his benefits.
  5. Deuteronomy 11:10 Or, labor.
  6. Deuteronomy 11:10 As by making gutters for the waters to come out of the river Nile to water the land.
  7. Deuteronomy 11:14 In the seed time, and toward harvest.
  8. Deuteronomy 11:16 By devising to yourselves foolish devotions according to your own fantasies.
  9. Deuteronomy 11:21 As long as the heavens endure, 2 Pet. 3:10,12.
  10. Deuteronomy 11:24 This was accomplished in David’s and Solomon’s time.
  11. Deuteronomy 11:24 Called Mediterranean.
  12. Deuteronomy 11:28 He reproveth the malice of men which leave that which is certain to follow that which is uncertain.
  13. Deuteronomy 11:30 Meaning, in Samaria.
  14. Deuteronomy 11:30 Or, plain.

Love and Obey the Lord

11 Love(A) the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always.(B) Remember today that your children(C) were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the Lord your God:(D) his majesty,(E) his mighty hand, his outstretched arm;(F) the signs he performed and the things he did in the heart of Egypt, both to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his whole country;(G) what he did to the Egyptian army, to its horses and chariots,(H) how he overwhelmed them with the waters of the Red Sea[a](I) as they were pursuing you, and how the Lord brought lasting ruin on them. It was not your children who saw what he did for you in the wilderness until you arrived at this place, and what he did(J) to Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened(K) its mouth right in the middle of all Israel and swallowed them up with their households, their tents and every living thing that belonged to them. But it was your own eyes that saw all these great things the Lord has done.(L)

Observe therefore all the commands(M) I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess,(N) and so that you may live long(O) in the land the Lord swore(P) to your ancestors to give to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey.(Q) 10 The land you are entering to take over is not like the land of Egypt,(R) from which you have come, where you planted your seed and irrigated it by foot as in a vegetable garden. 11 But the land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys(S) that drinks rain from heaven.(T) 12 It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes(U) of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end.

13 So if you faithfully obey(V) the commands I am giving you today—to love(W) the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul(X) 14 then I will send rain(Y) on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains,(Z) so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. 15 I will provide grass(AA) in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.(AB)

16 Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them.(AC) 17 Then the Lord’s anger(AD) will burn against you, and he will shut up(AE) the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce,(AF) and you will soon perish(AG) from the good land the Lord is giving you. 18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.(AH) 19 Teach them to your children,(AI) talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.(AJ) 20 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates,(AK) 21 so that your days and the days of your children may be many(AL) in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.(AM)

22 If you carefully observe(AN) all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love(AO) the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to hold fast(AP) to him— 23 then the Lord will drive out(AQ) all these nations(AR) before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you.(AS) 24 Every place where you set your foot will be yours:(AT) Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River(AU) to the Mediterranean Sea. 25 No one will be able to stand against you. The Lord your God, as he promised you, will put the terror(AV) and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go.(AW)

26 See, I am setting before you today a blessing(AX) and a curse(AY) 27 the blessing(AZ) if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; 28 the curse if you disobey(BA) the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods,(BB) which you have not known. 29 When the Lord your God has brought you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim(BC) the blessings, and on Mount Ebal(BD) the curses.(BE) 30 As you know, these mountains are across the Jordan, westward, toward the setting sun, near the great trees of Moreh,(BF) in the territory of those Canaanites living in the Arabah in the vicinity of Gilgal.(BG) 31 You are about to cross the Jordan to enter and take possession(BH) of the land the Lord your God is giving(BI) you. When you have taken it over and are living there, 32 be sure that you obey all the decrees and laws I am setting before you today.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 11:4 Or the Sea of Reeds