Immerse: Beginnings Full Volume - Flipbook - Page 293
4:35–5:5
D e u teronom y
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a powerful arm, and terrifying acts? Yet that is what the Lord your God
did for you in Egypt, right before your eyes.
“He showed you these things so you would know that the Lord is God
and there is no other. He let you hear his voice from heaven so he could
instruct you. He let you see his great fire here on earth so he could speak
to you from it. Because he loved your ancestors, he chose to bless their descendants, and he personally brought you out of Egypt with a great display
of power. He drove out nations far greater than you, so he could bring you
in and give you their land as your special possession, as it is today.
“So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The Lord is God both
in heaven and on earth, and there is no other. If you obey all the decrees
and commands I am giving you today, all will be well with you and your
children. I am giving you these instructions so you will enjoy a long life in
the land the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”
Then Moses set apart three cities of refuge east of the Jordan River. Anyone who killed another person unintentionally, without previous hostility,
could flee there to live in safety. These were the cities: Bezer on the wilderness plateau for the tribe of Reuben; Ramoth in Gilead for the tribe of
Gad; Golan in Bashan for the tribe of Manasseh.
This is the body of instruction that Moses presented to the Israelites. These
are the laws, decrees, and regulations that Moses gave to the people of Israel when they left Egypt, and as they camped in the valley near B
eth-peor
east of the Jordan River. (This land was formerly occupied by the Amorites
under King Sihon, who ruled from Heshbon. But Moses and the Israelites
destroyed him and his people when they came up from Egypt. Israel took
possession of his land and that of King Og of B
ashan—the two Amorite
kings east of the Jordan. So Israel conquered the entire area from Aroer
at the edge of the Arnon Gorge all the way to Mount Sirion, also called
Mount Hermon. And they conquered the eastern bank of the Jordan River
as far south as the Dead Sea, below the slopes of Pisgah.)
Moses called all the people of Israel together and said, “Listen carefully,
Israel. Hear the decrees and regulations I am giving you today, so you may
learn them and obey them!
“The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Mount Sinai. The
Lord did not make this covenant with our ancestors, but with all of us
who are alive today. At the mountain the Lord spoke to you face to face
from the heart of the fire. I stood as an intermediary between you and
