Israel Must Obey God
Moses said:
1 Israel, listen to these laws and teachings! If you obey them, you will live, and you will go in and take the land that the Lord is giving you. He is the God your ancestors worshiped, 2 and now he is your God. I am telling you everything he has commanded, so don't add anything or take anything away.
3 You saw how he killed everyone who worshiped the god Baal Peor. 4 But all of you that were faithful to the Lord your God are still alive today.
5-8 No other nation has laws that are as fair as the ones the Lord my God told me to give you. If you faithfully obey them when you enter the land, you will show other nations how wise you are. In fact, everyone that hears about your laws will say, “That great nation certainly is wise!” And what makes us greater than other nations? We have a God who is close to us and answers our prayers.
9 You must be very careful not to forget the things you have seen God do for you. Keep reminding yourselves, and tell your children and grandchildren as well. 10 Do you remember the day you stood in the Lord's presence at Mount Sinai? The Lord said, “Moses, bring the people of Israel here. I want to speak to them so they will obey me as long as they live, and so they will teach their children to obey me too.”
11 Mount Sinai was surrounded by deep dark clouds, and fire went up to the sky. You came to the foot of the mountain, 12 and the Lord spoke to you from the fire. You could hear him and understand what he was saying, but you couldn't see him. 13 The Lord said he was making an agreement with you, and he told you that your part of the agreement is to obey the Ten Commandments. Then the Lord wrote these Commandments on two flat stones.
14 That's when the Lord commanded me to give you the laws and teachings you must obey in the land that you will conquer west of the Jordan River.
Don't Worship Idols
Moses said to Israel:
15 When God spoke to you from the fire, he was invisible. So be careful 16 not to commit the sin of worshiping idols. Don't make idols to be worshiped, whether they are shaped like men, women, 17 animals, birds, 18 reptiles, or fish. 19 And when you see the sun or moon or stars, don't be tempted to bow down and worship them. The Lord put them there for all the other nations to worship. 20 But you are the Lord's people, because he rescued you from Egypt, that fiery furnace.
21 The Lord was angry with me because of what you said, and he told me that he would not let me cross the Jordan River into the good land that he is giving you. 22 So I must stay here and die on this side of the Jordan, but you will cross the river and take the land.
23 Always remember the agreement that the Lord your God made with you, and don't make an idol in any shape or form. 24 The Lord will be angry if you worship other gods, and he can be like a fire destroying everything in its path.
25-26 Soon you will cross the Jordan River and settle down in the land. Then in the years to come, you will have children, and they will give you grandchildren. After many years, you might lose your sense of right and wrong and make idols, even though the Lord your God hates them. So I am giving you fair warning today, and I call the earth and the sky as witnesses. If you ever make idols, the Lord will be angry, and you won't have long to live, because the Lord will let you be wiped out. 27 Only a few of you will survive, and the Lord will force you to leave the land and will scatter you among the nations. 28 There you will have to worship gods made of wood and stone, and these are nothing but idols that can't see or hear or eat or smell.
29-30 In all of your troubles, you may finally decide that you want to worship only the Lord. And if you turn back to him and obey him completely, he will again be your God. 31 The Lord your God will have mercy—he won't destroy you or desert you. The Lord will remember his promise, and he will keep the agreement he made with your ancestors.
32-34 When the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt, you saw how he fought for you and showed his great power by performing terrifying miracles. You became his people, and at Mount Sinai you heard him talking to you out of fiery flames. And yet you are still alive! Has anything like this ever happened since the time God created humans? No matter where you go or who you ask, you will get the same answer. No one has ever heard of another god even trying to do such things as the Lord your God has done for you.
35-36 The Lord wants you to know he is the only true God, and he wants you to obey him. That's why he let you see his mighty miracles and his fierce fire on earth, and why you heard his voice from that fire and from the sky.
37 The Lord loved your ancestors and decided that you would be his people. So the Lord used his great power to bring you out of Egypt. 38 Now you face other nations more powerful than you are, but the Lord has already started forcing them out of their land and giving it to you.
39 So remember that the Lord is the only true God, whether in the sky above or on the earth below. 40 Today I am explaining his laws and teachings. And if you always obey them, you and your descendants will live long and be successful in the land the Lord is giving you.
Safe Towns
41-43 Moses said, “People of Israel, you must set aside the following three towns east of the Jordan River as Safe Towns: Bezer in the desert highlands belonging to the Reuben tribe; Ramoth in Gilead, belonging to the Gad tribe; and Golan in Bashan, belonging to the Manasseh tribe. If you kill a neighbor without meaning to, and if you had not been angry with that person, you can run to one of these towns and find safety.”
The Second Speech: Moses Tells What the Lord Demands
Israel at Beth-Peor
44-46 The Israelites had come from Egypt and were camped east of the Jordan River near Beth-Peor, when Moses gave these laws and teachings. The land around their camp had once belonged to King Sihon of Heshbon. But Moses and the Israelites defeated him 47 and King Og of Bashan, and took their lands. These two Amorite kings had ruled the territory east of the Jordan River 48 from the town of Aroer on the edge of the Arnon River gorge, north to Mount Hermon. 49 Their land included the eastern side of the Jordan River valley, as far south as the Dead Sea below the slopes of Mount Pisgah.
Omaronga wokuṱakamisa nawa omatwako wa Ndjambi
1 “Nambano, Israel, zuva komatwako nomazikamisiro, ngu me mu hongo okuyeṱakamisa kutja mu kare nomuinyo nu mu kahite mehi, Muhona, Ndjambi wooiho mukururume, ndi ma vanga okumupa ri rire ouini weṋu. 2 Amu weza ko okaṋa komambo ngu me mu rakiza, nu amu isa ko otjiṋa; nungwari kareye nonḓuviro komatwako wa Muhona, Ndjambi weṋu, ngu mbe mu rakiza. 3 Eṋe mwa muna nomeho weṋu oveni imbi Muhona mbya tjitira pu Baal wa Peor; orondu imba avehe mbaa ve rikotamene ku Baal wa Peor, Muhona, Ndjambi woye, we ve yandeka mokati keṋu. 4 Nungwari eṋe mbu mwa panḓera pu Muhona, Ndjambi weṋu, ingee mu nomuinyo nga ku ndinondi.
5 “Purateneye, ami mbe mu honga omatwako nomazikamisiro otja Muhona, Ndjambi wandje, pe ndji rakiza. Keyeṱakamiseye kehi ku mamu i nu ndi mari karira ouini weṋu. 6 Ye ṱakamiseye nokuyetjita; orondu mokutjita nao otji mamu raisa ounongo nozondunge zeṋu komurungu woviwaṋa. Novyo tji mavi zuu omazikamisiro nga aehe mavi tja: ‘Tjiri, otjiwaṋa otjinene hi otjinaunongo notjinazondunge.’
7 “Orondu kape notjiwaṋa tjarwe otjinene tji tji noomukuru vovisenginina mbe ri popezu na tjo tjimuna Muhona, Ndjambi wetu, tje ri puna eṱe aruhe, tji matu ku ku ye. 8 Nu kape notjiwaṋa tjarwe otjinene tji tji nomatwako nomazikamisiro omasemba tjimuna inga ngu mbe ku hongo ndinondi. 9 Ritjevera u kare katumba kutja, ngunda au nomuinyo, o ha zembi imbi mbi wa muna nomeho woye omuini. Vi tjivisa kovanatje voye na kovanatje vovanatje voye. 10 Ve tjivisa eyuva ndi, ndi wa kuramene komurungu wa Muhona, Ndjambi woye, kondundu Sinai, Muhona tja tjere nai ku ami: ‘Ndji woronganisira otjiwaṋa, nami me vanga kutja tjizuve omambo wandje ngu me vanga okuhungira kutja tji rihonge okukara nondira ku ami oruveze aruhe ngunda ave nomuinyo, nokuhonga wo kovanatje vawo.’
11 “Raereye ovanatje veṋu, eṋe tji mweya popezu, namu kakurama keṋe yondundu, nondundu ya koverwa i omuzororema wotjikamba otjinene mu mwa pita omuriro mbwaa u yaka okuyenda keyuru. 12 Veraereye omuano Muhona mbwa hungirire ku eṋe mokati komuriro. Veraereye omuano mbwaa mu zuu ombosiro yomambo, nokuhinakumuna ombunikiro yomundu, nungwari pa ri ombosiro yeraka uriri. 13 Neye we mu raera kutja mamu sokutjitavi kokutja mu ṱakamise omerikutiropamwe we, nge ri omatwako omurongo, nga tjangerwe kovitjangero vivari vyomawe. 14 Nu moruveze ndo Muhona wina we ndji rakiza kutja mbi mu honge omatwako nomazikamisiro aehe ngu mamu kaṱakamisa kehi ku mamu i, indi ehi, ndi mamu kakambura ri rire ouini weṋu.
Omaronga otja koomukuru vovisenginina
15 “Ritjevereye nawa! Orondu meyuva ndo Muhona tja hungira kweṋe mokati komuriro kondundu Sinai, kamu munine ombunikiro yomundu, 16 kokutja amu ha tjiti ourunde mokuriungurira otjiserekarera otjihongwa, otjisanekero ngamwa atjihe tjomukuru wotjisenginina, okutja otjisanekero tjomurumendu poo tjomukazendu 17 poo tjotjinamuinyo ngamwa atjihe tji tji ri kombanda yehi poo tjangamwa onḓera 18 poo tjangamwa atjihe tji tji honahona pehi poo tjangamwa ohi aihe, ndji ri momeva kehi yehi. 19 Ororo nosaneke okurikotamena nokukarera imbi mbi wa munu kevaverwa: Eyuva nomueze nozonyose notjimbumba atjihe tjeyuru okurikotamena ku vyo nokuvikarera. Orondu Muhona, Ndjambi woye, oviṋa avihe mbi we vi yandja koviwaṋa avihe, mbi ri kehi yeyuru arihe. 20 Nungwari oweṋe otjiwaṋa Muhona tja pitisire mehi ra Engipte, mezuko romuriro kutja mu rire otjiwaṋa tjouini we otja tji mu ri ndinondi. 21 Wina Muhona wa pindikira ami mena reṋu nga tja yana kutja hi nokukonda onḓonḓu Jordan nokuhita mehi ewa Muhona, Ndjambi woye, ndi me ku pe ri rire otjirumatwa tjoye. 22 Nungwari ami me kokere mehi ndi, nu himee kondo onḓonḓu Jordan; neṋe mamu kondo namu kakambura ehi ndina ewa ri rire ouini weṋu. 23 Ṱakamiseye kutja amu ha zembi omerikutiropamwe Muhona, Ndjambi weṋu, nga tjitire kuna eṋe. Ṱakamiseye etwako re kutja amu he ritungire otjiserekarera otjihongwa, okutja otjisanekero tjangamwa atjihe Muhona, Ndjambi weṋu, tje mu tjaera. 24 Orondu Muhona, Ndjambi woye, tjinga e ri omuriro omusesete, eye Ndjambi ngu he ri yandjere otjirakaneno kuna kaaṋi.
25 “Nu tji mwa kara orure mehi ndi namu kwata ovanatje novanatje vovanatje veṋu, amu tjiti ourunde mokuriungurira otjiserekarera otjihongwa, otjisanekero tjotjiṋa ngamwa atjihe. Okutjita nai okokuvi komurungu wa Muhona, Ndjambi woye, nu ihi matji mu pindikisa. 26 Nu tji mamu tjiti nao, ami ndinondi me isana eyuru nehi vi hongonone eṋe kutja, tjiri, mu zengisiwe mehi tjimanga. Eṋe kamu nokuhupa orure mehi, ndi ri munda mbwina na nonḓonḓu Jordan, ndi mu ri pokukambura; nungwari, tjiri, mamu ṱu okumanuka. 27 Muhona me mu piza mokati koviwaṋa, nu mu eṋe mamu kahupa ovandu ouṱiṱi porwe. 28 Nu ingo mamu kakarera oviserekarera vyovisenginina, mbya ungurwa i omake wovandu pomuti na pomawe, mbe ha munu nokuzuva nokurya nokuṋuka. 29 Koṋa ngo mo kapaha Muhona, Ndjambi woye; nove tji mo mu paha nomutima nomuinyo woye auhe, otji mo mu munu. 30 Nu tji u ri mombamisiro, nomauzeu inga aehe tji maye ku wire, otji mo kotoka ku Muhona, Ndjambi woye, no zuu keraka re. 31 Orondu Ndjambi eye omunaunyaṋutima, eye ke nokuvanga okukuesa nokukunyona; nu ke nakuzemba omerikutiropamwe eye omuini nga tjita puna ooiho mukururume noruyano.
32 “Konḓonona omayuva wotuveze tu twa kapita rukuru okuza keyuva Ndjambi nda memene ovandu kombanda yehi; konḓonona okuza kotjikoro tjimwe tjeyuru nga kotjikwao kutja otjiṋa otjinene otja ihi tji na pu tja tjitirwe poo pu tja zuvakere. 33 Pe notjiwaṋa tji tja zuvire eraka ra Ndjambi okuza momuriro otja ove tji wa zuva, natji kara nomuinyo are? 34 Poo pena omukuru wotjisenginina ngwa rorere okuripahera otjiwaṋa motjiwaṋa tjarwe, nomarorero noviraisiro, novihimise novita otja Muhona, Ndjambi weṋu, tje mu tjitira mOengipte are? 35 Ove wa raisirwa oviṋa mbi avihe u tjiwe kutja Muhona eye Ndjambi; nu posi ye kape na warwe. 36 Eye we ku zuvisa eraka re nda za meyuru kutja e ku honge nu e ku munise omuriro we omunene kombanda yehi; nove wa zuva omambo we okuza momuriro. 37 Eye tjinga a suverere ooiho mukururume wa toorora ozondekurona zawo, neye omuini we ku pitisa mOengipte nomasa we omanene. 38 Nove ngunda amo ryama, eye wa ramba oviwaṋa ovinene novinamasa pove okukuhitisa nokukupa ehi ravyo ri rire otjirumatwa tjoye nga ku ndinondi. 39 Nungwari opu mo sokutjiwa nokurizemburuka momutima kutja Muhona onguri Ndjambi erike, meyuru na kombanda yehi; nu kape na warwe. 40 Nove ṱakamisa omazikamisiro nomatwako we ngu me ku rakiza ndinondi, kutja ove nozondekurona zoye mu kare nawa, nove u kare nomuinyo orure mehi Muhona, Ndjambi woye, ndi me ku pe kutja ri rire oroye nga aruhe.”
Ovihuro vyomaundiro komuhuka wonḓonḓu Jordan
41 Moruveze ndo Moses wa toorora ovihuro vitatu munda mbwina nonḓonḓu Jordan, komapitiro weyuva 42 kutja omundu ngwa zeperere omukwao ngu ha kara novita na ye a sore okutaurira ko nokuhupisa omuinyo we. 43 Ovihuro mbi vya ri ooBeser tji tja ri tjomuhoko wa Ruben, mokuti onguza morutjandja, na Ramot tjomuhoko wa Gad, tji tja ri mehi ra Gilead, na Golan tjomuhoko wa Manasse mehi ra Basan.
Omayandjero wOmatwako Omurongo
44 Moses wa yandja omatwako nomahongero kotjiwaṋa tjOvaisrael. 45 Inga onge ri omatwako nomazikamisiro nomaraerero Moses nga yandjere kOvaisrael, tji va zire mOengipte. 46 Ihi tja tjitirwa munda mbwina nonḓonḓu Jordan motjana tji tja hungama Bet-Peor mehi ra Sihon, ombara yOvaamori, ngwa turire mOhesbon. Ombara ndji Moses nOvaisrael ondji va haverere, tji va zire mOengipte. 47 Nowo va kamburire ehi re na indi ora Og, ombara ya Basan; inḓa azeyembari za ri ozombara zOvaamori, nḓa turire munda mbwina na Jordan komuhuka. 48 Indi ehi, ndi va kamburire, ra utire okuza kOaroer, tji tji ri komukuro wonḓonḓu Arnon, nga kondundu Sion, ndji ri Hermon, 49 norutjandja aruhe komuhuka wonḓonḓu Jordan nga kOmuronga wOmongwa komaṱurukiro wondundu Pisga.
