Deuteronomy, 9

1. 'Listen, Israel; today you are about to cross the Jordan, to go and dispossess nations greater and stronger than yourself, and cities immense, with walls reaching to the sky.

1. "Hear, O Israel; you are to pass over the Jordan this day, to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourselves, cities great and fortified up to heaven,

2. A people great and tall, these Anakim, as you know; you have heard the saying: Who can stand up to the sons of Anak?

2. a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you have heard it said, `Who can stand before the sons of Anak?'

3. Know then today that Yahweh your God himself will go ahead of you, destroying them like a devouring fire, and that he himself will subdue them before you so that you can dispossess and quickly make an end of them, as Yahweh has already said.

3. Know therefore this day that he who goes over before you as a devouring fire is the LORD your God; he will destroy them and subdue them before you; so you shall drive them out, and make them perish quickly, as the LORD has promised you.

4. Do not think to yourself, once Yahweh your God has driven them before you, "Yahweh has brought me into possession of this country because I am upright," when Yahweh is dispossessing these nations for you, because they do wrong.

4. "Do not say in your heart, after the LORD your God has thrust them out before you, `It is because of my righteousness that the LORD has brought me in to possess this land'; whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is driving them out before you.

5. You are not going into their country to take possession because of any right behaviour or uprightness on your part; rather, it is because of their wickedness that Yahweh is dispossessing these nations for you, and also to keep the pact which he swore to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

5. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess their land; but because of the wickedness of these nations the LORD your God is driving them out from before you, and that he may confirm the word which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

6. Be clear about this: Yahweh is not giving you possession of this fine country because of any right conduct on your part, for you are an obstinate people.

6. "Know therefore, that the LORD your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness; for you are a stubborn people.

7. 'Remember; never forget how you provoked Yahweh your God in the desert. From the very day that you left Egypt until you arrived here, you have been rebels against Yahweh.

7. Remember and do not forget how you provoked the LORD your God to wrath in the wilderness; from the day you came out of the land of Egypt, until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against the LORD.

8. At Horeb, you provoked Yahweh, and Yahweh was so angry with you that he was ready to destroy you.

8. Even at Horeb you provoked the LORD to wrath, and the LORD was so angry with you that he was ready to destroy you.

9. I had gone up the mountain to receive the stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant that Yahweh was making with you. I stayed forty days and forty nights on the mountain, with nothing to eat or drink.

9. When I went up the mountain to receive the tables of stone, the tables of the covenant which the LORD made with you, I remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water.

10. Yahweh gave me the two stone tablets inscribed by the finger of God, exactly corresponding to what Yahweh had said to you on the mountain, from the heart of the fire, on the day of the Assembly.

10. And the LORD gave me the two tables of stone written with the finger of God; and on them were all the words which the LORD had spoken with you on the mountain out of the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly.

11. After forty days and forty nights, having given me the two stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant,

11. And at the end of forty days and forty nights the LORD gave me the two tables of stone, the tables of the covenant.

12. Yahweh said to me, "Get up, go down quickly, for your people, whom you have brought out of Egypt, are corrupting one another. They have been quick to leave the way I marked out for them; they have cast themselves a metal idol."

12. Then the LORD said to me, `Arise, go down quickly from here; for your people whom you have brought from Egypt have acted corruptly; they have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them; they have made themselves a molten image.'

13. Yahweh then said to me, "I have seen this people, and what an obstinate people they are!

13. "Furthermore the LORD said to me, `I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stubborn people;

14. Leave me, I am going to destroy them and wipe out their name under heaven; and I shall make you into a mightier and more numerous nation than they are!"

14. let me alone, that I may destroy them and blot out their name from under heaven; and I will make of you a nation mightier and greater than they.'

15. 'I went back down the mountain, which was blazing with fire, and in my hands were the two tablets of the covenant.

15. So I turned and came down from the mountain, and the mountain was burning with fire; and the two tables of the covenant were in my two hands.

16. When I looked, I saw that you had been sinning against Yahweh your God. You had cast yourselves a metal calf; you had been quick to leave the way marked out for you by Yahweh.

16. And I looked, and behold, you had sinned against the LORD your God; you had made yourselves a molten calf; you had turned aside quickly from the way which the LORD had commanded you.

17. I seized the two tablets and with my two hands threw them down and broke them before your eyes.

17. So I took hold of the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and broke them before your eyes.

18. Then I fell prostrate before Yahweh; as before, I spent forty days and forty nights with nothing to eat or drink, on account of all the sins which you had committed, by doing what was displeasing to Yahweh and thus arousing his anger.

18. Then I lay prostrate before the LORD as before, forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of all the sin which you had committed, in doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.

19. For I was afraid of this anger, of the fury which so roused Yahweh against you that he was ready to destroy you. And, once again, Yahweh heard my prayer.

19. For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure which the LORD bore against you, so that he was ready to destroy you. But the LORD hearkened to me that time also.

20. Yahweh was enraged with Aaron and was ready to destroy him too; I also pleaded for Aaron on that occasion.

20. And the LORD was so angry with Aaron that he was ready to destroy him; and I prayed for Aaron also at the same time.

21. That work of sin, the calf you had made, I took and burned and broke to pieces; having ground it to the finest dust, I threw its dust into the stream that comes down from the mountain.

21. Then I took the sinful thing, the calf which you had made, and burned it with fire and crushed it, grinding it very small, until it was as fine as dust; and I threw the dust of it into the brook that descended out of the mountain.

22. 'At Taberah too and at Massah and Kibroth-ha-Taavah, you provoked Yahweh.

22. "At Tab'erah also, and at Massah, and at Kib'roth-hatta'avah, you provoked the LORD to wrath.

23. And when Yahweh, meaning you to leave Kadesh-Barnea, said, "Go up and take possession of the country which I have given you," you rebelled against the command of Yahweh your God and would not believe him or listen to his voice.

23. And when the LORD sent you from Ka'desh-bar'nea, saying, `Go up and take possession of the land which I have given you,' then you rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God, and did not believe him or obey his voice.

24. You have been rebels against Yahweh from the day he first knew you.

24. You have been rebellious against the LORD from the day that I knew you.

25. 'So I fell prostrate before Yahweh and lay there those forty days and forty nights, Yahweh having said that he was going to destroy you.

25. "So I lay prostrate before the LORD for these forty days and forty nights, because the LORD had said he would destroy you.

26. And I pleaded with Yahweh. "My Lord Yahweh," I said, "do not destroy your people, your heritage whom in your greatness you have redeemed, whom you have brought out of Egypt with your mighty hand.

26. And I prayed to the LORD, `O Lord GOD, destroy not thy people and thy heritage, whom thou hast redeemed through thy greatness, whom thou hast brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand.

27. Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; take no notice of this people's stubbornness, their wickedness, and their sin,

27. Remember thy servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; do not regard the stubbornness of this people, or their wickedness, or their sin,

28. so that, in the country from which you have brought us, it may not be said, 'Yahweh was not able to bring them to the country which he had promised them. He hated them; that was why he brought them out -- to slaughter them in the desert.'

28. lest the land from which thou didst bring us say, "Because the LORD was not able to bring them into the land which he promised them, and because he hated them, he has brought them out to slay them in the wilderness."

29. But these are your people, your heritage, whom you yourself have brought out by your great power and your outstretched arm." '

29. For they are thy people and thy heritage, whom thou didst bring out by thy great power and by thy outstretched arm.'