6:10 Then when the Lord your God brings you to the land he promised your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you – a land with large, fine cities you did not build,
19:15 A single witness may not testify 73 against another person for any trespass or sin that he commits. A matter may be legally established 74 only on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
21:15 Suppose a man has two wives, one whom he loves more than the other, 75 and they both 76 bear him sons, with the firstborn being the child of the less loved wife.
28:45 All these curses will fall on you, pursuing and overtaking you until you are destroyed, because you would not obey the Lord your God by keeping his commandments and statutes that he has given 78 you.
29:1 (28:69) 80 These are the words of the covenant that the Lord commanded Moses to make with the people of Israel in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Horeb. 81
32:11 Like an eagle that stirs up 89 its nest,
that hovers over its young,
so the Lord 90 spread out his wings and took him, 91
he lifted him up on his pinions.
32:15 But Jeshurun 92 became fat and kicked,
you 93 got fat, thick, and stuffed!
Then he deserted the God who made him,
and treated the Rock who saved him with contempt.
32:36 The Lord will judge his people,
and will change his plans concerning 94 his servants;
when he sees that their power has disappeared,
and that no one is left, whether confined or set free.
32:39 “See now that I, indeed I, am he!” says the Lord, 95
“and there is no other god besides me.
I kill and give life,
I smash and I heal,
and none can resist 96 my power.
33:7 And this is the blessing 97 to Judah. He said,
Listen, O Lord, to Judah’s voice,
and bring him to his people.
May his power be great,
and may you help him against his foes.
33:8 Of Levi he said:
Your Thummim and Urim 98 belong to your godly one, 99
whose authority you challenged at Massah, 100
and with whom you argued at the waters of Meribah. 101
1 tn Heb “the
2 tn Or “has given you the land” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV).
3 tn Heb “in your tents,” that is, privately.
4 tn Heb “the
5 tc The translation follows the LXX in reading the first person pronoun. The MT, followed by many English versions, has a second person masculine singular pronoun, “your.”
6 tn Heb “hardened his spirit” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV “made his spirit stubborn.”
7 tn Heb “made his heart obstinate” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “made his heart defiant.”
8 tn Heb “into your hand.”
9 tn Heb “the
10 tn Heb “which you are crossing over there.”
11 tn Heb “the
12 tn Heb “much to you” (an idiom).
13 tn Or “word” (so KJV, NASB, NIV); NRSV “words.”
14 tn The Hebrew verb used here (חָמַד, khamad) is different from the one translated “crave” (אָוַה, ’avah) in the next line. The former has sexual overtones (“lust” or the like; cf. Song of Sol 2:3) whereas the latter has more the idea of a desire or craving for material things.
15 tn Heb “your neighbor’s.” See note on the term “fellow man” in v. 19.
16 tn Heb “your neighbor’s.” The pronoun is used in the translation for stylistic reasons.
17 tn Heb “or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
18 tn Heb “the
19 tn Heb “the
20 tn Heb “may prolong your days”; NAB “may have long life”; TEV “will continue to live.”
21 tn Heb “upright.”
22 tn Heb “the
23 tn That is, “set apart.”
24 tn Heb “the
25 tn Or “treasured” (so NIV, NRSV); NLT “his own special treasure.” The Hebrew term סְגֻלָּה (sÿgullah) describes Israel as God’s choice people, those whom he elected and who are most precious to him (cf. Exod 19:4-6; Deut 14:2; 26:18; 1 Chr 29:3; Ps 135:4; Eccl 2:8 Mal 3:17). See E. Carpenter, NIDOTTE 3:224.
26 tn For the term “hate” as synonymous with rejection or disobedience see note on the word “reject” in Deut 5:9 (cf. NRSV “reject”).
27 tn Heb “he will not hesitate concerning.”
28 tn Heb “testings” (so NAB), a reference to the plagues. See note at 4:34.
29 tn Heb “the strong hand and outstretched arm.” See 4:34.
30 tn Heb “the
31 tn Heb “the
32 tn Heb “flaming serpents”; KJV, NASB “fiery serpents”; NAB “saraph serpents.” This figure of speech (metonymy) probably describes the venomous and painful results of snakebite. The feeling from such an experience would be like a burning fire (שָׂרָף, saraf).
33 tn Heb “the one who brought out for you water.” In the Hebrew text this continues the preceding sentence, but the translation begins a new sentence here for stylistic reasons.
34 tn Heb “in order to humble you and in order to test you.” See 8:2.
35 sn The very finger of God. This is a double figure of speech (1) in which God is ascribed human features (anthropomorphism) and (2) in which a part stands for the whole (synecdoche). That is, God, as Spirit, has no literal finger nor, if he had, would he write with his finger. Rather, the sense is that God himself – not Moses in any way – was responsible for the composition of the Ten Commandments (cf. Exod 31:18; 32:16; 34:1).
36 tn Heb “according to all the words.”
37 tn Heb “the
38 tn On the phrase “metal calf,” see note on the term “metal image” in v. 12.
39 tn Heb “the
40 tn Heb “the
41 tn Heb “the mouth of the Lord your God,” that is, against the commandment that he had spoken.
42 tn The words “he promises” do not appear in the Hebrew text but are needed in the translation to facilitate the transition from the condition (v. 13) to the promise and make it clear that the Lord is speaking the words of vv. 14-15.
43 tn Heb “the rain of your land.” In this case the genitive (modifying term) indicates the recipient of the rain.
44 sn The autumn and the spring rains. The “former” (יוֹרֶה, yoreh) and “latter” (מַלְקוֹשׁ, malqosh) rains come in abundance respectively in September/October and March/April. Planting of most crops takes place before the former rains fall and the harvests follow the latter rains.
45 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
46 tn Heb “the
47 tn In the Hebrew text vv. 10-11 are one long, complex sentence. For stylistic reasons the translation divides this into two sentences.
48 tn Heb “you must not do thus to/for the
49 tn See note on this term at Deut 7:25.
50 tn Heb “every abomination of the
51 sn Execution by means of pelting the offender with stones afforded a mechanism whereby the whole community could share in it. In a very real sense it could be done not only in the name of the community and on its behalf but by its members (cf. Lev 24:14; Num 15:35; Deut 21:21; Josh 7:25).
52 tn Or “anything that has been put under the divine curse”; Heb “anything of the ban” (cf. NASB). See note on the phrase “divine judgment” in Deut 2:34.
53 tn Or “set apart.”
54 tn Heb “The
55 tn Or “treasured.” The Hebrew term סְגֻלָּה (sÿgullah) describes Israel as God’s choice people, those whom he elected and who are most precious to him (cf. Exod 19:4-6; Deut 14:2; 26:18; 1 Chr 29:3; Ps 135:4; Eccl 2:8 Mal 3:17). See E. Carpenter, NIDOTTE 3:224.
sn The Hebrew term translated “select” (and the whole verse) is reminiscent of the classic covenant text (Exod 19:4-6) which describes Israel’s entry into covenant relationship with the
56 sn When the bondslave’s ear was drilled through to the door, the door in question was that of the master’s house. In effect, the bondslave is declaring his undying and lifelong loyalty to his creditor. The scar (or even hole) in the earlobe would testify to the community that the slave had surrendered independence and personal rights. This may be what Paul had in mind when he said “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus” (Gal 6:17).
57 tn The Hebrew term מִשְׁנֶה (mishneh, “twice”) could mean “equivalent to” (cf. NRSV) or, more likely, “double” (cf. NAB, NIV, NLT). The idea is that a hired worker would put in only so many hours per day whereas a bondslave was available around the clock.
58 tn Heb “the Passover.” The translation uses a pronoun to avoid redundancy in English.
59 tc The MT reading אֶל (’el, “unto”) before “the place” should, following Smr, Syriac, Targums, and Vulgate, be omitted in favor of ב (bet; בַּמָּקוֹם, bammaqom), “in the place.”
60 tn Heb “the
61 tn The Hebrew phrase חַג שָׁבֻעוֹת (khag shavu’ot) is otherwise known in the OT (Exod 23:16) as קָצִיר (qatsir, “harvest”) and in the NT as πεντηχοστή (penthcosth, “Pentecost”).
62 tn Heb “the sufficiency of the offering of your hand.”
63 tn Heb “the
64 tn Heb “in order to multiply horses.” The translation uses “do so” in place of “multiply horses” to avoid redundancy (cf. NAB, NIV).
65 tn Heb “according to all the desire of his soul.”
66 tn Or “sojourning.” The verb used here refers to living temporarily in a place, not settling down.
67 tn Heb “and this is the word pertaining to the one who kills who flees there and lives.”
68 tn Heb “who strikes his neighbor without knowledge.”
69 tn Heb “yesterday and a third (day)” (likewise in v. 6). The point is that there was no animosity between the two parties at the time of the accident and therefore no motive for the killing. Cf. NAB “had previously borne no malice”; NRSV “had not been at enmity before.”
70 tn Heb “and overtake him, for the road is long.”
71 tn Heb “smite with respect to life,” that is, fatally.
72 tn Heb “no judgment of death.”
73 tn Heb “rise up” (likewise in v. 16).
74 tn Heb “may stand.”
75 tn Heb “one whom he loves and one whom he hates.” For the idea of שָׂנֵא (sane’, “hate”) meaning to be rejected or loved less (cf. NRSV “disliked”), see Gen 29:31, 33; Mal 1:2-3. Cf. A. Konkel, NIDOTTE 3:1256-60.
76 tn Heb “both the one whom he loves and the one whom he hates.” On the meaning of the phrase “one whom he loves and one whom he hates” see the note on the word “other” earlier in this verse. The translation has been simplified for stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy.
77 tc The LXX and Smr read “to the men,” probably to conform to this phrase in v. 21. However, since judicial cases were the responsibility of the elders in such instances (cf. Deut 19:12; 21:3, 6; 25:7-8) the reading of the MT is likely original and correct here.
78 tn Heb “commanded”; NAB, NIV, TEV “he gave you.”
79 tn Heb “the
80 sn Beginning with 29:1, the verse numbers through 29:29 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 29:1 ET = 28:69 HT, 29:2 ET = 29:1 HT, 29:3 ET = 29:2 HT, etc., through 29:29 ET = 29:28 HT. With 30:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
81 sn Horeb is another name for Mount Sinai (which some English versions substitute here for clarity, cf. NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).
82 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the subject of the warning in v. 18) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
83 tn Heb “in his heart.”
84 tn Or “invokes a blessing on himself.” A formalized word of blessing is in view, the content of which appears later in the verse.
85 tn Heb “heart.”
86 tn Heb “thus destroying.” For stylistic reasons the translation begins a new sentence here.
87 tn Heb “the watered with the parched.” The word “ground” is implied. The exact meaning of the phrase is uncertain although it appears to be figurative. This appears to be a proverbial observation employing a figure of speech (a merism) suggesting totality. That is, the Israelite who violates the letter and even spirit of the covenant will harm not only himself but everything he touches – “the watered and the parched.” Cf. CEV “you will cause the rest of Israel to be punished along with you.”
88 tn Or “am no longer able to lead you” (NIV, NLT); Heb “am no longer able to go out and come in.”
89 tn The prefixed verbal form is an imperfect, indicating habitual or typical behavior. The parallel verb (cf. “hovers” in the next line) is used in the same manner.
90 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the
91 tn The form of the suffix on this and the following verb forms (cf. “lifted him up”) indicates that the verbs are preterites, not imperfects. As such they simply state the action factually. The use of the preterite here suggests that the preceding verb (cf. “spread out”) is preterite as well.
92 tn To make the continuity of the referent clear, some English versions substitute “Jacob” here (NAB, NRSV) while others replace “Jeshurun” with “Israel” (NCV, CEV, NLT) or “the Lord’s people” (TEV).
sn Jeshurun is a term of affection derived from the Hebrew verb יָשַׁר (yashar, “be upright”). Here it speaks of Israel “in an ideal situation, with its ‘uprightness’ due more to God’s help than his own efforts” (M. Mulder, TDOT 6:475).
93 tc The LXX reads the third person masculine singular (“he”) for the MT second person masculine singular (“you”), but such alterations are unnecessary in Hebrew poetic texts where subjects fluctuate frequently and without warning.
94 tn The translation understands the verb in the sense of “be grieved, relent” (cf. HALOT 689 s.v. נחם hitp 2); cf. KJV, ASV “repent himself”; NLT “will change his mind.” Another option is to translate “will show compassion to” (see BDB 637 s.v. נחם); cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV.
95 tn Verses 39-42 appear to be a quotation of the
96 tn Heb “deliver from” (so NRSV, NLT).
97 tn The words “the blessing” are supplied in the translation for clarity and stylistic reasons.
98 sn Thummim and Urim. These terms, whose meaning is uncertain, refer to sacred stones carried in a pouch on the breastplate of the high priest and examined on occasion as a means of ascertaining God’s will or direction. See Exod 28:30; Lev 8:8; Num 27:21; 1 Sam 28:6. See also C. Van Dam, NIDOTTE 1:329-31.
99 tn Heb “godly man.” The reference is probably to Moses as representative of the whole tribe of Levi.
100 sn Massah means “testing” in Hebrew; the name is a wordplay on what took place there. Cf. Exod 17:7; Deut 6:16; 9:22; Ps 95:8-9.
101 sn Meribah means “contention, argument” in Hebrew; this is another wordplay on the incident that took place there. Cf. Num 20:13, 24; Ps 106:32.