And I charged your judges at that time: “Hear the disputes between your people and judge fairly, whether the case is between two persons of your people or between someone of your people and a migrant residing among you. Do not show partiality in judging. Hear both small and great alike. Do not be afraid of anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too hard for you, and I will hear it.’
(Deuteronomy 1:16-17)
Watch yourselves very carefully for you saw no form of any kind the day YHWH spoke to you at Horev out of the fire.
(Deuteronomy 4:15)
Be careful not to forget the covenant of YHWH your God that She made with you. Do not make for yourselves an idol in the form of anything YHWH your God has forbidden. For YHWH your God is a consuming fire, a radical God.
(Deuteronomy 4:23-24)
After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time – if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol, doing evil in the eyes of YHWH your God and arousing Her anger, I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live there long but will certainly be destroyed. YHWH will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which YHWH will drive you. There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.
But if from there you seek YHWH your God, you will find Her if you seek Her with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to YHWH your God and obey Her. For YHWH your God is a merciful God. She will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which She confirmed to them by oath.
(Deuteronomy 4:25-31)
Ask now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created human beings on the earth. Inquire from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything so great as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of? Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire, as you have, and lived? Has any god ever tried to take for themself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things YHWH your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?
You were shown these things so that you might know that YHWH is God. Besides Her there is no other. From heaven She made you hear Her voice to discipline you. On earth She showed you Her great fire, and you heard Her words from out of the fire. Because She loved your ancestors and chose their descendants after them, She liberated you out of Egypt by Her Presence and Her great strength, to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance, as it is today.
Acknowledge and take to heart this day that YHWH is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other. Keep Her decrees and commands, which I am giving you today, so that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may live long in the land YHWH your God gives you for all time.
(Deuteronomy 4:32-40)
Moses summoned the all the people and said:
“Hear, people, the decrees and the laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them. YHWH our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. It was not with our ancestors that YHWH made this covenant, but with us, with all of us who are alive here today. YHWH spoke to you face to face out of the fire on the mountain. At that time I stood between YHWH and you to declare to you the word of YHWH, because you were afraid of the fire and did not go up the mountain.
And She said:
“I am YHWH your God, who liberated you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
You shall have no other gods in stead of me.
You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, YHWH your God, am a radical God, punishing the children for the mistakes of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
You shall not abuse the name of YHWH your God, for YHWH will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to YHWH your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your children, nor the people who work for you, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any migrant residing in your towns, so that the people who work for you may rest, just like you do. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that YHWH your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore YHWH your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.
Honour your parents, as YHWH your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbour.
You shall not covet your neighbour’s partner. You shall not set your desire on your neighbour’s house or land, the people who work for them, their ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbour.’
These are the commandments YHWH proclaimed in a loud voice to your whole assembly there on the mountain from out of the fire, the cloud and the deep darkness; and She added nothing more. Then She wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me.
(Deuteronomy 5:1-22)
Hear, O people, YHWH is our God, YHWH is one. 5 Love YHWH your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door-frames of your houses and on your gates.
(Deuteronomy 6:4-9)
When YHWH your God brings you into the land he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, a land with large, flourishing cities that you didn’t build yourselves, houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not produce yourselves, wells you did not dig yourselves, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant yourselves. Then when you eat and are satisfied, be careful that you do not forget YHWH, who liberated you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
(Deuteronomy 6:10-12)
Know, therefore, that only YHWH your God is God, the steadfast God who keeps Her covenant faithfully to the thousandth generation of those who love Her and keep Her rules.
(Deuteronomy 7:9)
And you will remember all the way that YHWH your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, how She made you humble and test you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep Her commandments or not. And She made you humble. And when you were hungrey, She gave you manna to eat, which you and your ancesters didn’t know. That is how you learned that humans don’t live by bread alone, but they lives by every word that comes from the mouth of YHWH. Your clothes did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. Know then in your heart that, just like a parent educates their kid, YHWH your God educates you. So you shall keep the commandments of YHWH your God by walking in Her ways and by respecting Her.
(Deuteronomy 8:2-6)
For YHWH your God is bringing you into a good land; a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig-trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise YHWH your God for the good land She has given you. Be careful that you do not forget YHWH your God by failing to observe Her guidelines, Her laws and Her advise that I am sharing with you this day.
Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget YHWH your God, who liberated you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. She led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. She brought you water out of hard rock. She gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known. This was to humble and test you so that in the end you might do well.
You may say to yourself: “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember YHWH your God, for it is She who gives you the ability to produce wealth. Like this She confirms her covenant, which She swore to your ancestors, as it is today.
If you ever forget YHWH your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. 20 Like the nations the Lord destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the Lord your God.
(Deuteronomy 8:7-20)
Hear now, My people. You are now about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities that have walls up to the sky. The people there are strong and tall like giants! You have heard the stories about them. “Who could stand up against those giants?” But be assured today that YHWH your God is the one who goes across ahead of you like aan all consuming fire. She will destroy them. She will subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them quickly. Just as YHWH has promised you.
After YHWH your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself: “YHWH has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness.” No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that YHWH is going to drive them out before you. It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land, but on account of the wickedness of these nations, YHWH your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that YHWH your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.
(Deuteronomy 9:1-6)
Remember this and never forget how you aroused the anger of YHWH your God in the wilderness. From the day you left Egypt until you arrived here, you have been in opposition against YHWH.
(Deuteronomy 9:7)
For YHWH your God is God over gods and Lord over lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. She defends the cause of the orphan and the widow, and loves the migrant residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are migrants, for you yourselves were migrants in Egypt.
(Deuteronomy 10:17-19)
So if you faithfully obey the guidelines I am giving you today, to love YHWH your God and to serve Her with all your heart and with all your soul, then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your corn, new wine and olive oil. I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.
Be careful, or you will be seduced to turn away and to serve other gods and bow down to them. Then YHWH’s anger will burn against you, and She will shut the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land YHWH is giving you.
(Deuteronomy 11:13-17)
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the door-frames of your houses and on the gates of your cities. Then your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that YHWH swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.
(Deuteronomy 11:18-21)
At the end of every three year period, bring all the surplus of that year’s produce and store it in your towns so that the Levites (who have no land allotted to them or any inheritance of their own) and the migrants, the orphans and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that YHWH your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.
(Deuteronomy 14:28-29)
At the end of every seven year period, you must cancel all debts. This is how this should be done: every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to any comrade. They shall not require payment from anyone among their comrades, because YHWH has ordered that Her time for cancelling debts has come.
(Deuteronomy 15: 1-2)
But, nobody among you should have to live in poverty. For in the land that YHWH your God is giving you as your inheritance, She will richly bless you. If you only obey YHWH your God and carefully follow all the guidelines I am giving you today.
(Deuteronomy 15: 4-5)
If anyone is poor among your comrades in any of the towns of the land that YHWH your God is giving you, then don’t be hard-hearted or tight-fisted towards them. Rather, be open-handed and freely lend them whatever they need. Therefore, as long as there will be poor people in the world, I command you to be open-handed towards your comrades who are poor and needy in your land.
(Deuteronomy 15: 7-11)
And rejoice before YHWH your God at the place She will choose as a dwelling for Her Name – you and your children and all those who work for you; together with the Levites in your towns and the migrants, the fatherless and the widows living among you. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and follow carefully these decrees.
(Deuteronomy 16: 11-12)
Be joyful when you celebrate – you and your children and all those who work for you together with the Levites, the migrants, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns.
(Deuteronomy 16: 14)
Do not pervert justice and don’t show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the innocent. Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land YHWH your God is giving you.
(Deuteronomy 16: 19-20)
When you live in the land that YHWH your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, you might say, “Let us set a ruler over us like all the nations around us.” Then be sure to appoint over you a ruler YHWH your God chooses. They must be from among your comrades. Do not give someone else power over you, one who is not from among your comrades.
The ruler, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself which would make you return to the system of Egypt. YHWH has told you: “You are not to go back that way again.” They must not take many spouses, or their heart will be led astray. They must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.
When they take the throne of his kingdom, they are to write a copy of this law on a scroll for themself copied from that of the Levitical priests. It is to be kept with them, and they are to read it every day of their life so that they may learn to respect YHWH his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees
And they should not consider themself better than their comrades and twist the law to the right or to the left. Then they and their descendants will reign a long time over this society of their comrades.
(Deuteronomy 17: 14-20)
If a slave has taken refuge with you, do not hand them over to their master. Let them live among you wherever they like and in whatever town they choose. Do not oppress them.
(Deuteronomy 23:15-16)
Nobody from your people, no matter what their gender may be, should become a temple-prostitute. You must not bring the earnings of a prostitute, no matter what their gender may be, into the house of the Lord your God to pay any vow, because YHWH your God detests them.
(Deuteronomy 23:17-18)
If you enter your neighbour’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. If you enter your neighbour’s cornfield, you may pick the ears with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing corn.
(Deuteronomy 23:24-25)
If a person was recently married, they must not be sent to war or have any other duty laid on them. For one year they should be free to stay at home and bring happiness to their spouse they have married.
(Deuteronomy 24:5)
Do not take a pair of millstones – not even the upper one – as security for a debt, because that would be taking a person’s livelihood as security.
(Deuteronomy 24:6)
If someone is caught kidnapping a fellow Israelite and treating or selling them as a slave, the kidnapper must die. You must purge the evil from among you.
(Deuteronomy 24:7)
When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbour, do not go into their house to get what is offered to you as a pledge. Stay outside and let the neighbour to whom you are making the loan bring the pledge out to you.
If the neighbour is poor, do not go to sleep with their pledge in your possession. Return their cloak by sunset so that your neighbour may sleep in it. Then they will thank you, and it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the Lord your God.
(Deuteronomy 24:10-13)
You shall not oppress a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers or one of the sojourners who are in your land within your towns. You shall give him his wages on the same day, before the sun sets. For he is poor and counts on it. If not he will cry against you to YHWH, and you be guilty of sin.
(Deuteronomy 24:14-15)
Parents are not to be punished for their children, nor children punished for their parents. Each will be punished for their own sin.
(Deuteronomy 24:16)
Do not deprive migrants or orphans of justice, or take the cloak of a widow as a pledge. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and YHWH your God liberated you from there. That is why I command you to do this.
(Deuteronomy 24:17-18)
When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for migrants, orphans and widows, so that YHWH your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you collect the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for migrants, orphans and widows. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for migrants, orphans and widows. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this.
(Deuteronomy 24:19-22)
Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.
(Deuteronomy 25:4)
Do not have two differing weights in your bag – one heavy, one light. Do not have two differing measures in your house – one large, one small. You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land that YHWH your God is giving you. For YHWH your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.
(Deuteronomy 25:13-16)
Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and attacked all who were lagging behind; they had no respect for God.
When YHWH your God gives you rest from all the enemies around you in the land She is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you shall blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!
(Deuteronomy 25:17-19)
Therefore, observe the words of this covenant and follow them, so that you will succeed in everything you do. All of you are standing today before YHWH your God. Your leaders, tribes, elders, officials, all the people of the nation, your dependents, your spouses, and the migrants who live with you in your camps, who cut your wood and draw your water— so that you may enter into the covenant of YHWH your God, which She is making with you today, so that you may enter into Her oath and so that She may establish you today as his people and he may be your God as he promised you and as he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I am making this covenant and this oath not only with you, but also with those who are standing here with us today in the presence of YHWH our God and with those who are not here today.
(Deuteronomy 29:9-14)
This command that I give you today, is certainly not too difficult or beyond your reach. It is not in heaven so that you would have to ask: “Who will go up to heaven, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow it?” And it is not across the sea so that you would have to ask: “Who will cross the sea, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow it?” But the message is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may follow it.
(Deuteronomy 30:11-14)
See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love YHWH your God, listen to Her voice, and hold fast to Her. For YHWH is your life, and he will give you many years in the land She promised to give to your ancestors.
(Deuteronomy 30:15-19)
Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.
(Deuteronomy 32:2)
They made Her jealous with their foreign gods and angered Her with their detestable idols. They sacrificed to false gods, which are not God. Gods they had not known, gods that recently appeared, gods your ancestors did not fear. You deserted the Rock, who fathered you. You forgot the God who gave you birth.
YHWH saw this and rejected them because She was angered by Her children.
“I will hide my face from them,” She said, “and see what their end will be. For they are a perverse generation, children who are unfaithful. They made me jealous by what is no god and angered me with their worthless idols. I will make them envious by those who are not a people. I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding.”
(Deuteronomy 32:16-21)
I said I would scatter them and erase their name from human memory, but I dreaded the taunt of the enemy, lest the adversary misunderstand and say, “Our hand has triumphed. YHWH has not done all this.” They are a nation without sense, there is no discernment in them.
(Deuteronomy 32:26-29)
YHWH will vindicate Her people and have mercy on Her servants when She sees their strength is gone and no one is left, slave or free. She will say: “Now, where are their gods? Where is the rock they took refuge in? Where are the gods who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? Let them rise up to help you! Let them give you shelter! See now that I myself am Her! There is no god besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand.
(Deuteronomy 32:36-39)