Nine hours sleep and *bam*...
I'm feeling strong again.
Hadn't eaten since early breakfast yesterday and was struggling with an afternoon work project.
Told my boss I needed to eat lunch before I tried tackling it again...
So I ate something, and *bam*, figured out the problem and finished the project early.
Too many of us neglect or don't prioritize sleep & nutrition, not to mention a healthy, two-way faith life. Pray. Not a long list of wishes, but be still & listen for answers to your concerns and the guidance God freely gives.
The more you do this, the more you'll recognize God's voice deep inside your spirit.
A fuel-empty, unserviced car won't move forward, y'all (unless you're careening down an embankment, out of control).
/1
I'm feeling strong again.
Hadn't eaten since early breakfast yesterday and was struggling with an afternoon work project.
Told my boss I needed to eat lunch before I tried tackling it again...
So I ate something, and *bam*, figured out the problem and finished the project early.
Too many of us neglect or don't prioritize sleep & nutrition, not to mention a healthy, two-way faith life. Pray. Not a long list of wishes, but be still & listen for answers to your concerns and the guidance God freely gives.
The more you do this, the more you'll recognize God's voice deep inside your spirit.
A fuel-empty, unserviced car won't move forward, y'all (unless you're careening down an embankment, out of control).
/1
CHRONOLOGICAL YEAR THROUGH THE BIBLE
with Daily Grace
Reminder: before you begin reading, pause for a moment to pray that God will help you know Him more today than yesterday. As you read today’s chapters, consider these questions:
1. What attributes of God’s character are revealed in the passage?
Consider places where the text directly states the character of God, as well as how His character is revealed through His words and actions.
2. How does the passage point to Jesus?
Consider how the passage reveals the problem of sin and the forgiveness of sins offered through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. What do I learn about myself in light of who God is?
3. How should the truth of this passage change me?
Consider how you fall short of God’s character, how the text reveals your sin nature, and what it says about your new identity in Christ.
Consider how you might pray for God to change your heart or what practical steps you can take toward cultivating habits of holiness.
4. How do the events of today's reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
/2
with Daily Grace
Reminder: before you begin reading, pause for a moment to pray that God will help you know Him more today than yesterday. As you read today’s chapters, consider these questions:
1. What attributes of God’s character are revealed in the passage?
Consider places where the text directly states the character of God, as well as how His character is revealed through His words and actions.
2. How does the passage point to Jesus?
Consider how the passage reveals the problem of sin and the forgiveness of sins offered through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. What do I learn about myself in light of who God is?
3. How should the truth of this passage change me?
Consider how you fall short of God’s character, how the text reveals your sin nature, and what it says about your new identity in Christ.
Consider how you might pray for God to change your heart or what practical steps you can take toward cultivating habits of holiness.
4. How do the events of today's reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
/2
DEUTERONOMY 28
BLESSINGS FOR OBEDIENCE
Deuteronomy 28:1-24 NLT
[1] “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. [2] You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God: [3] Your towns and your fields will be blessed. [4] Your children and your crops will be blessed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be blessed. [5] Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be blessed. [6] Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be blessed. [7] “The Lord will conquer your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven! [8] “The Lord will guarantee a blessing on everything you do and will fill your storehouses with grain. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. [9] “If you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways, the Lord will establish you as his holy people as he swore he would do. [10] Then all the nations of the world will see that you are a people claimed by the Lord, and they will stand in awe of you. [11] “The Lord will give you prosperity in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you, blessing you with many children, numerous livestock, and abundant crops. [12] The Lord will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do. You will lend to many nations, but you will never need to borrow from them. [13] If you listen to these commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, and if you carefully obey them, the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom. [14] You must not turn away from any of the commands I am giving you today, nor follow after other gods and worship them.
CURSES FOR DISOBEDIENCE
[15] “But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you: [16] Your towns and your fields will be cursed. [17] Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be cursed. [18] Your children and your crops will be cursed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be cursed. [19] Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be cursed. [20] “The Lord himself will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and abandoning me. [21] The Lord will afflict you with diseases until none of you are left in the land you are about to enter and occupy. [22] The Lord will strike you with wasting diseases, fever, and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, and with blight and mildew. These disasters will pursue you until you die. [23] The skies above will be as unyielding as bronze, and the earth beneath will be as hard as iron. [24] The Lord will change the rain that falls on your land into powder, and dust will pour down from the sky until you are destroyed.
/3
BLESSINGS FOR OBEDIENCE
Deuteronomy 28:1-24 NLT
[1] “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. [2] You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God: [3] Your towns and your fields will be blessed. [4] Your children and your crops will be blessed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be blessed. [5] Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be blessed. [6] Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be blessed. [7] “The Lord will conquer your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven! [8] “The Lord will guarantee a blessing on everything you do and will fill your storehouses with grain. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. [9] “If you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways, the Lord will establish you as his holy people as he swore he would do. [10] Then all the nations of the world will see that you are a people claimed by the Lord, and they will stand in awe of you. [11] “The Lord will give you prosperity in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you, blessing you with many children, numerous livestock, and abundant crops. [12] The Lord will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do. You will lend to many nations, but you will never need to borrow from them. [13] If you listen to these commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, and if you carefully obey them, the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom. [14] You must not turn away from any of the commands I am giving you today, nor follow after other gods and worship them.
CURSES FOR DISOBEDIENCE
[15] “But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you: [16] Your towns and your fields will be cursed. [17] Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be cursed. [18] Your children and your crops will be cursed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be cursed. [19] Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be cursed. [20] “The Lord himself will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and abandoning me. [21] The Lord will afflict you with diseases until none of you are left in the land you are about to enter and occupy. [22] The Lord will strike you with wasting diseases, fever, and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, and with blight and mildew. These disasters will pursue you until you die. [23] The skies above will be as unyielding as bronze, and the earth beneath will be as hard as iron. [24] The Lord will change the rain that falls on your land into powder, and dust will pour down from the sky until you are destroyed.
/3
DEUTERONOMY 28 (continued)
CURSES FOR DISOBEDIENCE (continued)
Deuteronomy 28:25-48 NLT
[25] “The Lord will cause you to be defeated by your enemies. You will attack your enemies from one direction, but you will scatter from them in seven! You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. [26] Your corpses will be food for all the scavenging birds and wild animals, and no one will be there to chase them away. [27] “The Lord will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, scurvy, and the itch, from which you cannot be cured. [28] The Lord will strike you with madness, blindness, and panic. [29] You will grope around in broad daylight like a blind person groping in the darkness, but you will not find your way. You will be oppressed and robbed continually, and no one will come to save you. [30] “You will be engaged to a woman, but another man will sleep with her. You will build a house, but someone else will live in it. You will plant a vineyard, but you will never enjoy its fruit. [31] Your ox will be butchered before your eyes, but you will not eat a single bite of the meat. Your donkey will be taken from you, never to be returned. Your sheep and goats will be given to your enemies, and no one will be there to help you. [32] You will watch as your sons and daughters are taken away as slaves. Your heart will break for them, but you won’t be able to help them. [33] A foreign nation you have never heard about will eat the crops you worked so hard to grow. You will suffer under constant oppression and harsh treatment. [34] You will go mad because of all the tragedy you see around you. [35] The Lord will cover your knees and legs with incurable boils. In fact, you will be covered from head to foot. [36] “The Lord will exile you and your king to a nation unknown to you and your ancestors. There in exile you will worship gods of wood and stone! [37] You will become an object of horror, ridicule, and mockery among all the nations to which the Lord sends you. [38] “You will plant much but harvest little, for locusts will eat your crops. [39] You will plant vineyards and care for them, but you will not drink the wine or eat the grapes, for worms will destroy the vines. [40] You will grow olive trees throughout your land, but you will never use the olive oil, for the fruit will drop before it ripens. [41] You will have sons and daughters, but you will lose them, for they will be led away into captivity. [42] Swarms of insects will destroy your trees and crops. [43] “The foreigners living among you will become stronger and stronger, while you become weaker and weaker. [44] They will lend money to you, but you will not lend to them. They will be the head, and you will be the tail! [45] “If you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and to obey the commands and decrees he has given you, all these curses will pursue and overtake you until you are destroyed. [46] These horrors will serve as a sign and warning among you and your descendants forever. [47] If you do not serve the Lord your God with joy and enthusiasm for the abundant benefits you have received, [48] you will serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you. You will be left hungry, thirsty, naked, and lacking in everything. The Lord will put an iron yoke on your neck, oppressing you harshly until he has destroyed you.
/4
CURSES FOR DISOBEDIENCE (continued)
Deuteronomy 28:25-48 NLT
[25] “The Lord will cause you to be defeated by your enemies. You will attack your enemies from one direction, but you will scatter from them in seven! You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. [26] Your corpses will be food for all the scavenging birds and wild animals, and no one will be there to chase them away. [27] “The Lord will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, scurvy, and the itch, from which you cannot be cured. [28] The Lord will strike you with madness, blindness, and panic. [29] You will grope around in broad daylight like a blind person groping in the darkness, but you will not find your way. You will be oppressed and robbed continually, and no one will come to save you. [30] “You will be engaged to a woman, but another man will sleep with her. You will build a house, but someone else will live in it. You will plant a vineyard, but you will never enjoy its fruit. [31] Your ox will be butchered before your eyes, but you will not eat a single bite of the meat. Your donkey will be taken from you, never to be returned. Your sheep and goats will be given to your enemies, and no one will be there to help you. [32] You will watch as your sons and daughters are taken away as slaves. Your heart will break for them, but you won’t be able to help them. [33] A foreign nation you have never heard about will eat the crops you worked so hard to grow. You will suffer under constant oppression and harsh treatment. [34] You will go mad because of all the tragedy you see around you. [35] The Lord will cover your knees and legs with incurable boils. In fact, you will be covered from head to foot. [36] “The Lord will exile you and your king to a nation unknown to you and your ancestors. There in exile you will worship gods of wood and stone! [37] You will become an object of horror, ridicule, and mockery among all the nations to which the Lord sends you. [38] “You will plant much but harvest little, for locusts will eat your crops. [39] You will plant vineyards and care for them, but you will not drink the wine or eat the grapes, for worms will destroy the vines. [40] You will grow olive trees throughout your land, but you will never use the olive oil, for the fruit will drop before it ripens. [41] You will have sons and daughters, but you will lose them, for they will be led away into captivity. [42] Swarms of insects will destroy your trees and crops. [43] “The foreigners living among you will become stronger and stronger, while you become weaker and weaker. [44] They will lend money to you, but you will not lend to them. They will be the head, and you will be the tail! [45] “If you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and to obey the commands and decrees he has given you, all these curses will pursue and overtake you until you are destroyed. [46] These horrors will serve as a sign and warning among you and your descendants forever. [47] If you do not serve the Lord your God with joy and enthusiasm for the abundant benefits you have received, [48] you will serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you. You will be left hungry, thirsty, naked, and lacking in everything. The Lord will put an iron yoke on your neck, oppressing you harshly until he has destroyed you.
/4
DEUTERONOMY 28 (continued)
CURSES FOR DISOBEDIENCE (continued)
Deuteronomy 28:49-68 NLT
[49] “The Lord will bring a distant nation against you from the end of the earth, and it will swoop down on you like a vulture. It is a nation whose language you do not understand, [50] a fierce and heartless nation that shows no respect for the old and no pity for the young. [51] Its armies will devour your livestock and crops, and you will be destroyed. They will leave you no grain, new wine, olive oil, calves, or lambs, and you will starve to death. [52] They will attack your cities until all the fortified walls in your land—the walls you trusted to protect you—are knocked down. They will attack all the towns in the land the Lord your God has given you. [53] “The siege and terrible distress of the enemy’s attack will be so severe that you will eat the flesh of your own sons and daughters, whom the Lord your God has given you. [54] The most tenderhearted man among you will have no compassion for his own brother, his beloved wife, and his surviving children. [55] He will refuse to share with them the flesh he is devouring—the flesh of one of his own children—because he has nothing else to eat during the siege and terrible distress that your enemy will inflict on all your towns. [56] The most tender and delicate woman among you—so delicate she would not so much as touch the ground with her foot—will be selfish toward the husband she loves and toward her own son or daughter. [57] She will hide from them the afterbirth and the new baby she has borne, so that she herself can secretly eat them. She will have nothing else to eat during the siege and terrible distress that your enemy will inflict on all your towns. [58] “If you refuse to obey all the words of instruction that are written in this book, and if you do not fear the glorious and awesome name of the Lord your God, [59] then the Lord will overwhelm you and your children with indescribable plagues. These plagues will be intense and without relief, making you miserable and unbearably sick. [60] He will afflict you with all the diseases of Egypt that you feared so much, and you will have no relief. [61] The Lord will afflict you with every sickness and plague there is, even those not mentioned in this Book of Instruction, until you are destroyed. [62] Though you become as numerous as the stars in the sky, few of you will be left because you would not listen to the Lord your God. [63] “Just as the Lord has found great pleasure in causing you to prosper and multiply, the Lord will find pleasure in destroying you. You will be torn from the land you are about to enter and occupy. [64] For the Lord will scatter you among all the nations from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship foreign gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods made of wood and stone! [65] There among those nations you will find no peace or place to rest. And the Lord will cause your heart to tremble, your eyesight to fail, and your soul to despair. [66] Your life will constantly hang in the balance. You will live night and day in fear, unsure if you will survive. [67] In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were night!’ And in the evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’ For you will be terrified by the awful horrors you see around you. [68] Then the Lord will send you back to Egypt in ships, to a destination I promised you would never see again. There you will offer to sell yourselves to your enemies as slaves, but no one will buy you.”
/5
CURSES FOR DISOBEDIENCE (continued)
Deuteronomy 28:49-68 NLT
[49] “The Lord will bring a distant nation against you from the end of the earth, and it will swoop down on you like a vulture. It is a nation whose language you do not understand, [50] a fierce and heartless nation that shows no respect for the old and no pity for the young. [51] Its armies will devour your livestock and crops, and you will be destroyed. They will leave you no grain, new wine, olive oil, calves, or lambs, and you will starve to death. [52] They will attack your cities until all the fortified walls in your land—the walls you trusted to protect you—are knocked down. They will attack all the towns in the land the Lord your God has given you. [53] “The siege and terrible distress of the enemy’s attack will be so severe that you will eat the flesh of your own sons and daughters, whom the Lord your God has given you. [54] The most tenderhearted man among you will have no compassion for his own brother, his beloved wife, and his surviving children. [55] He will refuse to share with them the flesh he is devouring—the flesh of one of his own children—because he has nothing else to eat during the siege and terrible distress that your enemy will inflict on all your towns. [56] The most tender and delicate woman among you—so delicate she would not so much as touch the ground with her foot—will be selfish toward the husband she loves and toward her own son or daughter. [57] She will hide from them the afterbirth and the new baby she has borne, so that she herself can secretly eat them. She will have nothing else to eat during the siege and terrible distress that your enemy will inflict on all your towns. [58] “If you refuse to obey all the words of instruction that are written in this book, and if you do not fear the glorious and awesome name of the Lord your God, [59] then the Lord will overwhelm you and your children with indescribable plagues. These plagues will be intense and without relief, making you miserable and unbearably sick. [60] He will afflict you with all the diseases of Egypt that you feared so much, and you will have no relief. [61] The Lord will afflict you with every sickness and plague there is, even those not mentioned in this Book of Instruction, until you are destroyed. [62] Though you become as numerous as the stars in the sky, few of you will be left because you would not listen to the Lord your God. [63] “Just as the Lord has found great pleasure in causing you to prosper and multiply, the Lord will find pleasure in destroying you. You will be torn from the land you are about to enter and occupy. [64] For the Lord will scatter you among all the nations from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship foreign gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods made of wood and stone! [65] There among those nations you will find no peace or place to rest. And the Lord will cause your heart to tremble, your eyesight to fail, and your soul to despair. [66] Your life will constantly hang in the balance. You will live night and day in fear, unsure if you will survive. [67] In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were night!’ And in the evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’ For you will be terrified by the awful horrors you see around you. [68] Then the Lord will send you back to Egypt in ships, to a destination I promised you would never see again. There you will offer to sell yourselves to your enemies as slaves, but no one will buy you.”
/5
DEUTERONOMY 29
Deuteronomy 29:1-23 NLT
[1] These are the terms of the covenant the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites while they were in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Mount Sinai.
MOSES REVIEWS THE COVENANT
[2] Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them, “You have seen with your own eyes everything the Lord did in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to his whole country— [3] all the great tests of strength, the miraculous signs, and the amazing wonders. [4] But to this day the Lord has not given you minds that understand, nor eyes that see, nor ears that hear! [5] For forty years I led you through the wilderness, yet your clothes and sandals did not wear out. [6] You ate no bread and drank no wine or other alcoholic drink, but he provided for you so you would know that he is the Lord your God. [7] “When we came here, King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan came out to fight against us, but we defeated them. [8] We took their land and gave it to the tribes of Reuben and Gad and to the half-tribe of Manasseh as their grant of land. [9] “Therefore, obey the terms of this covenant so that you will prosper in everything you do. [10] All of you—tribal leaders, elders, officers, all the men of Israel—are standing today in the presence of the Lord your God. [11] Your little ones and your wives are with you, as well as the foreigners living among you who chop your wood and carry your water. [12] You are standing here today to enter into the covenant of the Lord your God. The Lord is making this covenant, including the curses. [13] By entering into the covenant today, he will establish you as his people and confirm that he is your God, just as he promised you and as he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. [14] “But you are not the only ones with whom I am making this covenant with its curses. [15] I am making this covenant both with you who stand here today in the presence of the Lord our God, and also with the future generations who are not standing here today. [16] “You remember how we lived in the land of Egypt and how we traveled through the lands of enemy nations as we left. [17] You have seen their detestable practices and their idols made of wood, stone, silver, and gold. [18] I am making this covenant with you so that no one among you—no man, woman, clan, or tribe—will turn away from the Lord our God to worship these gods of other nations, and so that no root among you bears bitter and poisonous fruit. [19] “Those who hear the warnings of this curse should not congratulate themselves, thinking, ‘I am safe, even though I am following the desires of my own stubborn heart.’ This would lead to utter ruin! [20] The Lord will never pardon such people. Instead his anger and jealousy will burn against them. All the curses written in this book will come down on them, and the Lord will erase their names from under heaven. [21] The Lord will separate them from all the tribes of Israel, to pour out on them all the curses of the covenant recorded in this Book of Instruction. [22] “Then the generations to come, both your own descendants and the foreigners who come from distant lands, will see the devastation of the land and the diseases the Lord inflicts on it. [23] They will exclaim, ‘The whole land is devastated by sulfur and salt. It is a wasteland with nothing planted and nothing growing, not even a blade of grass. It is like the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord destroyed in his intense anger.’
/6
Deuteronomy 29:1-23 NLT
[1] These are the terms of the covenant the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites while they were in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Mount Sinai.
MOSES REVIEWS THE COVENANT
[2] Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them, “You have seen with your own eyes everything the Lord did in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to his whole country— [3] all the great tests of strength, the miraculous signs, and the amazing wonders. [4] But to this day the Lord has not given you minds that understand, nor eyes that see, nor ears that hear! [5] For forty years I led you through the wilderness, yet your clothes and sandals did not wear out. [6] You ate no bread and drank no wine or other alcoholic drink, but he provided for you so you would know that he is the Lord your God. [7] “When we came here, King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan came out to fight against us, but we defeated them. [8] We took their land and gave it to the tribes of Reuben and Gad and to the half-tribe of Manasseh as their grant of land. [9] “Therefore, obey the terms of this covenant so that you will prosper in everything you do. [10] All of you—tribal leaders, elders, officers, all the men of Israel—are standing today in the presence of the Lord your God. [11] Your little ones and your wives are with you, as well as the foreigners living among you who chop your wood and carry your water. [12] You are standing here today to enter into the covenant of the Lord your God. The Lord is making this covenant, including the curses. [13] By entering into the covenant today, he will establish you as his people and confirm that he is your God, just as he promised you and as he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. [14] “But you are not the only ones with whom I am making this covenant with its curses. [15] I am making this covenant both with you who stand here today in the presence of the Lord our God, and also with the future generations who are not standing here today. [16] “You remember how we lived in the land of Egypt and how we traveled through the lands of enemy nations as we left. [17] You have seen their detestable practices and their idols made of wood, stone, silver, and gold. [18] I am making this covenant with you so that no one among you—no man, woman, clan, or tribe—will turn away from the Lord our God to worship these gods of other nations, and so that no root among you bears bitter and poisonous fruit. [19] “Those who hear the warnings of this curse should not congratulate themselves, thinking, ‘I am safe, even though I am following the desires of my own stubborn heart.’ This would lead to utter ruin! [20] The Lord will never pardon such people. Instead his anger and jealousy will burn against them. All the curses written in this book will come down on them, and the Lord will erase their names from under heaven. [21] The Lord will separate them from all the tribes of Israel, to pour out on them all the curses of the covenant recorded in this Book of Instruction. [22] “Then the generations to come, both your own descendants and the foreigners who come from distant lands, will see the devastation of the land and the diseases the Lord inflicts on it. [23] They will exclaim, ‘The whole land is devastated by sulfur and salt. It is a wasteland with nothing planted and nothing growing, not even a blade of grass. It is like the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord destroyed in his intense anger.’
/6
DEUTERONOMY 29 (cont)
MOSES REVIEWS THE COVENANT (continued)
Deuteronomy 29:24-29
[24] “And all the surrounding nations will ask, ‘Why has the Lord done this to this land? Why was he so angry?’ [25] “And the answer will be, ‘This happened because the people of the land abandoned the covenant that the Lord, the God of their ancestors, made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. [26] Instead, they turned away to serve and worship gods they had not known before, gods that were not from the Lord. [27] That is why the Lord’s anger has burned against this land, bringing down on it every curse recorded in this book. [28] In great anger and fury the Lord uprooted his people from their land and banished them to another land, where they still live today!’ [29] “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.
/8
MOSES REVIEWS THE COVENANT (continued)
Deuteronomy 29:24-29
[24] “And all the surrounding nations will ask, ‘Why has the Lord done this to this land? Why was he so angry?’ [25] “And the answer will be, ‘This happened because the people of the land abandoned the covenant that the Lord, the God of their ancestors, made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. [26] Instead, they turned away to serve and worship gods they had not known before, gods that were not from the Lord. [27] That is why the Lord’s anger has burned against this land, bringing down on it every curse recorded in this book. [28] In great anger and fury the Lord uprooted his people from their land and banished them to another land, where they still live today!’ [29] “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.
/8
DEUTERONOMY 30
A CALL TO RETURN TO THE LORD
Deuteronomy 30:1-20 NLT
[1] “In the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you, and when you are living among the nations to which the Lord your God has exiled you, take to heart all these instructions. [2] If at that time you and your children return to the Lord your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today, [3] then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you. [4] Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the Lord your God will gather you from there and bring you back again. [5] The Lord your God will return you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will possess that land again. Then he will make you even more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors! [6] “The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live! [7] The Lord your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate and persecute you. [8] Then you will again obey the Lord and keep all his commands that I am giving you today. [9] “The Lord your God will then make you successful in everything you do. He will give you many children and numerous livestock, and he will cause your fields to produce abundant harvests, for the Lord will again delight in being good to you as he was to your ancestors. [10] The Lord your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.
THE CHOICE OF LIFE OR DEATH
[11] “This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you, and it is not beyond your reach. [12] It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, ‘Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?’ [13] It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?’ [14] No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it. [15] “Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster. [16] For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy. [17] “But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, [18] then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. [19] “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! [20] You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
/9
A CALL TO RETURN TO THE LORD
Deuteronomy 30:1-20 NLT
[1] “In the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you, and when you are living among the nations to which the Lord your God has exiled you, take to heart all these instructions. [2] If at that time you and your children return to the Lord your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today, [3] then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you. [4] Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the Lord your God will gather you from there and bring you back again. [5] The Lord your God will return you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will possess that land again. Then he will make you even more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors! [6] “The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live! [7] The Lord your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate and persecute you. [8] Then you will again obey the Lord and keep all his commands that I am giving you today. [9] “The Lord your God will then make you successful in everything you do. He will give you many children and numerous livestock, and he will cause your fields to produce abundant harvests, for the Lord will again delight in being good to you as he was to your ancestors. [10] The Lord your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.
THE CHOICE OF LIFE OR DEATH
[11] “This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you, and it is not beyond your reach. [12] It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, ‘Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?’ [13] It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?’ [14] No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it. [15] “Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster. [16] For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy. [17] “But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, [18] then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. [19] “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! [20] You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
/9
DEUTERONOMY 31
JOSHUA BECOMES ISRAEL'S LEADER
Deuteronomy 31:1-22 NLT
[1] When Moses had finished giving these instructions to all the people of Israel, [2] he said, “I am now 120 years old, & I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has told me, ‘You will not cross the Jordan River.’ [3] But the Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy the nations living there, & you will take possession of their land. Joshua will lead you across the river, just as the Lord promised. [4] “The Lord will destroy the nations living in the land, just as he destroyed Sihon & Og, the kings of the Amorites. [5] The Lord will hand over to you the people who live there, & you must deal with them as I have commanded you. [6] So be strong & courageous! Do not be afraid & do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” [7] Then Moses called for Joshua, & as all Israel watched, he said to him, “Be strong & courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors he would give them. You are the one who will divide it among them as their grants of land. [8] Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
PUBLIC READING OF THE BOOK OF INSTRUCTION
[9] So Moses wrote this entire body of instruction in a book & gave it to the priests, who carried the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant, & to the elders of Israel. [10] Then Moses gave them this command: “At the end of every seventh year, the Year of Release, during the Festival of Shelters, [11] you must read this Book of Instruction to all the people of Israel when they assemble before the Lord your God at the place he chooses. [12] Call them all together—men, women, children, & the foreigners living in your towns—so they may hear this Book of Instruction and learn to fear the Lord your God & carefully obey all the terms of these instructions. [13] Do this so that your children who have not known these instructions will hear them & will learn to fear the Lord your God. Do this as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.”
ISRAEL'S DISOBEDIENCE PREDICTED
[14] Then the Lord said to Moses, “The time has come for you to die. Call Joshua & present yourselves at the Tabernacle, so that I may commission him there.” So Moses & Joshua went & presented themselves at the Tabernacle. [15] And the Lord appeared to them in a pillar of cloud that stood at the entrance to the sacred tent. [16] The Lord said to Moses, “You are about to die & join your ancestors. After you are gone, these people will begin to worship foreign gods, the gods of the land where they are going. They will abandon me & break my covenant that I have made with them. [17] Then my anger will blaze forth against them. I will abandon them, hiding my face from them, & they will be devoured. Terrible trouble will come down on them, & on that day they will say, ‘These disasters have come down on us because God is no longer among us!’ [18] At that time I will hide my face from them on account of all the evil they commit by worshiping other gods. [19] “So write down the words of this song, & teach it to the people of Israel. Help them learn it, so it may serve as a witness for me against them. [20] For I will bring them into the land I swore to give their ancestors—a land flowing with milk & honey. There they will become prosperous, eat all the food they want, & become fat. But they will begin to worship other gods; they will despise me & break my covenant. [21] And when great disasters come down on them, this song will stand as evidence against them, for it will never be forgotten by their descendants. I know the intentions of these people, even now before they have entered the land I swore to give them.” [22] So that very day Moses wrote down the words of the song & taught it to the Israelites...
/10
JOSHUA BECOMES ISRAEL'S LEADER
Deuteronomy 31:1-22 NLT
[1] When Moses had finished giving these instructions to all the people of Israel, [2] he said, “I am now 120 years old, & I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has told me, ‘You will not cross the Jordan River.’ [3] But the Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy the nations living there, & you will take possession of their land. Joshua will lead you across the river, just as the Lord promised. [4] “The Lord will destroy the nations living in the land, just as he destroyed Sihon & Og, the kings of the Amorites. [5] The Lord will hand over to you the people who live there, & you must deal with them as I have commanded you. [6] So be strong & courageous! Do not be afraid & do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” [7] Then Moses called for Joshua, & as all Israel watched, he said to him, “Be strong & courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors he would give them. You are the one who will divide it among them as their grants of land. [8] Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
PUBLIC READING OF THE BOOK OF INSTRUCTION
[9] So Moses wrote this entire body of instruction in a book & gave it to the priests, who carried the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant, & to the elders of Israel. [10] Then Moses gave them this command: “At the end of every seventh year, the Year of Release, during the Festival of Shelters, [11] you must read this Book of Instruction to all the people of Israel when they assemble before the Lord your God at the place he chooses. [12] Call them all together—men, women, children, & the foreigners living in your towns—so they may hear this Book of Instruction and learn to fear the Lord your God & carefully obey all the terms of these instructions. [13] Do this so that your children who have not known these instructions will hear them & will learn to fear the Lord your God. Do this as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.”
ISRAEL'S DISOBEDIENCE PREDICTED
[14] Then the Lord said to Moses, “The time has come for you to die. Call Joshua & present yourselves at the Tabernacle, so that I may commission him there.” So Moses & Joshua went & presented themselves at the Tabernacle. [15] And the Lord appeared to them in a pillar of cloud that stood at the entrance to the sacred tent. [16] The Lord said to Moses, “You are about to die & join your ancestors. After you are gone, these people will begin to worship foreign gods, the gods of the land where they are going. They will abandon me & break my covenant that I have made with them. [17] Then my anger will blaze forth against them. I will abandon them, hiding my face from them, & they will be devoured. Terrible trouble will come down on them, & on that day they will say, ‘These disasters have come down on us because God is no longer among us!’ [18] At that time I will hide my face from them on account of all the evil they commit by worshiping other gods. [19] “So write down the words of this song, & teach it to the people of Israel. Help them learn it, so it may serve as a witness for me against them. [20] For I will bring them into the land I swore to give their ancestors—a land flowing with milk & honey. There they will become prosperous, eat all the food they want, & become fat. But they will begin to worship other gods; they will despise me & break my covenant. [21] And when great disasters come down on them, this song will stand as evidence against them, for it will never be forgotten by their descendants. I know the intentions of these people, even now before they have entered the land I swore to give them.” [22] So that very day Moses wrote down the words of the song & taught it to the Israelites...
/10
Mush thoughts:
Today's reading ends on a cliff-hanger.
We all rush to conclusions and solutions of our own devising...but like the Israelites, it is never in our best interests to do so.
Only God can provide for us "in our best interests."
/end
Today's reading ends on a cliff-hanger.
We all rush to conclusions and solutions of our own devising...but like the Israelites, it is never in our best interests to do so.
Only God can provide for us "in our best interests."
/end
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