Deuteronomy 3:20

3:20 You must fight ¹  until the Lord gives your countrymen victory ²  as he did you and they take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving them on the other side of the Jordan River. Then each of you may return to his own territory that I have given you.”

Deuteronomy 4:32

The Uniqueness of Israel’s God

4:32 Indeed, ask about the distant past, starting from the day God created humankind ³  on the earth, and ask ⁴  from one end of heaven to the other, whether there has ever been such a great thing as this, or even a rumor of it.

Deuteronomy 4:34

4:34 Or has God ⁵  ever before tried to deliver ⁶  a nation from the middle of another nation, accompanied by judgments, ⁷  signs, wonders, war, strength, power, ⁸  and other very terrifying things like the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?

Deuteronomy 5:14

5:14 but the seventh day is the Sabbath ⁹  of the Lord your God. On that day you must not do any work, you, your son, your daughter, your male slave, your female slave, your ox, your donkey, any other animal, or the foreigner who lives with you, ¹⁰  so that your male and female slaves, like yourself, may have rest.

Deuteronomy 12:15

Regulations for Profane Slaughter

12:15 On the other hand, you may slaughter and eat meat as you please when the Lord your God blesses you ¹¹  in all your villages. ¹²  Both the ritually pure and impure may eat it, whether it is a gazelle or an ibex.

Deuteronomy 31:20

31:20 For after I have brought them ¹³  to the land I promised to their ¹⁴  ancestors – one flowing with milk and honey – and they ¹⁵  eat their fill ¹⁶  and become fat, then they ¹⁷  will turn to other gods and worship them; they will reject me and break my covenant.

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¹ tn The words “you must fight” are not present in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

² tn Heb “gives your brothers rest.”

³ tn The Hebrew term אָדָם (’adam) may refer either to Adam or, more likely, to “man” in the sense of the human race (“mankind,” “humankind”). The idea here seems more universal in scope than reference to Adam alone would suggest.

⁴ tn The verb is not present in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for clarification. The challenge has both temporal and geographical dimensions. The people are challenged to (1) inquire about the entire scope of past history and (2) conduct their investigation on a worldwide scale.

⁵ tn The translation assumes the reference is to Israel’s God in which case the point is this: God’s intervention in Israel’s experience is unique in the sense that he has never intervened in such power for any other people on earth. The focus is on the uniqueness of Israel’s experience. Some understand the divine name here in a generic sense, “a god,” or “any god.” In this case God’s incomparability is the focus (cf. v. 35, where this theme is expressed).

⁶ tn Heb “tried to go to take for himself.”

⁷ tn Heb “by testings.” The reference here is the judgments upon Pharaoh in the form of plagues. See Deut 7:19 (cf. v. 18) and 29:3 (cf. v. 2).

⁸ tn Heb “by strong hand and by outstretched arm.”

⁹ tn There is some degree of paronomasia (wordplay) here: “the seventh (הַשְּׁבִיעִי, hashÿvi’i) day is the Sabbath (שַׁבָּת, shabbat).” Otherwise, the words have nothing in common, since “Sabbath” is derived from the verb שָׁבַת (shavat, “to cease”).

¹⁰ tn Heb “in your gates”; NRSV, CEV “in your towns”; TEV “in your country.”

¹¹ tn Heb “only in all the desire of your soul you may sacrifice and eat flesh according to the blessing of the Lord your God which he has given to you.”

¹² tn Heb “gates” (so KJV, NASB; likewise in vv. 17, 18).

¹³ tn Heb “him.” Smr, LXX, and the Targums read the plural “them.” See note on the first occurrence of “they” in v. 16.

¹⁴ tn Heb “his.” Smr, LXX, and the Targums read the plural “their.” See note on the first occurrence of “they” in v. 16.

¹⁵ tn Heb “he.” Smr, LXX, and the Targums read the plural “they.” See note on the first occurrence of “they” in v. 16.

¹⁶ tn Heb “and are satisfied.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “he.” Smr, LXX, and the Targums read the plural “they.” See note on the first occurrence of “they” in v. 16.