Deuteronomy 32

Give Ear, O Heavens

1Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
let the earth hear
the words of my mouth. 2May my teaching drop like rain,
my word distill like dew,
like showers upon young grass
and like abundant rain upon plants. 3For I will proclaim
the name of the LORD.
Give greatness
to our God!

The Rock, His Work Is Perfect

4The Rock—his work is perfect,
for all his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness
and without injustice,
righteous and upright is he. 5They have acted corruptly toward him;
they are not his children—their blemish.
They are a twisted
and crooked generation. 6Is this how you repay the LORD,
foolish and unwise people?
Is he not your father who acquired you?
He made you
and established you.

Remember the Days of Old

7Remember the days of old;
consider the years
of generation after generation.
Ask your father, and he will tell you;
your elders,
and they will say to you. 8When the Most High
gave the nations their inheritance,
when he divided the children of humanity,
he set the boundaries of the peoples
according to the number
of the sons of God. 9For the LORD’s portion
is his people;
Jacob is the measured share
of his inheritance.

He Found Him in a Wilderness Land

10He found him in a wilderness land,
in a waste,
a howling emptiness.
He surrounded him;
he cared for him;
he guarded him
as the pupil of his eye. 11Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
that hovers over its young,
he spread his wings,
took him,
and carried him
upon his pinions. 12The LORD alone guided him,
and no foreign god
was with him.

Israel Ate and Was Satisfied

13He made him ride
upon the heights of the land,
and he ate the produce of the field.
He made him suck honey from the rock
and oil
from the flinty rock, 14curds from cattle
and milk from the flock,
with fat of lambs,
rams of Bashan,
and goats,
with the finest wheat;
and from the blood of grapes
you drank wine.

Jeshurun Grew Fat and Kicked

15But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked.
You grew fat, thick, and sleek.
Then he abandoned the God who made him
and treated with contempt
the Rock of his salvation. 16They made him jealous with foreign gods;
with detestable things
they provoked him to anger. 17They sacrificed to demons,
not God,
to gods they had not known,
new ones that came recently,
whom your ancestors
did not dread. 18You neglected the Rock
who fathered you,
and forgot the God
who gave you birth.

I Will Hide My Face from Them

19The LORD saw
and rejected them
because of the provocation
of his sons and daughters. 20He said:

“I will hide my face from them;
I will see what their end will be.
For they are a generation of reversals,
children in whom
there is no faithfulness. 21They made me jealous
with what is not God;
they provoked me
with their empty things.
So I will make them jealous
with those who are not a people;
with a foolish nation
I will provoke them. 22For a fire is kindled
in my anger
and burns as far as deepest Sheol.
It devours the earth
and its produce
and sets ablaze
the foundations of the mountains.

I Will Heap Disasters upon Them

23I will heap disasters upon them;
I will spend my arrows
against them. 24Wasted by hunger,
consumed by fever
and bitter plague,
I will send against them
the teeth of beasts,
with the venom
of creatures crawling in dust. 25Outside, the sword will bereave;
inside, terror—
young man and young woman alike,
nursing child
and gray-haired man.

I Feared the Taunt of the Enemy

26I said,
‘I will scatter them;
I will make their memory
cease from humanity,’ 27if I had not feared
the provocation of the enemy,
lest their adversaries misunderstand
and say,
‘Our hand is exalted;
the LORD did not do
all this.’

They Are a Nation without Counsel

28For they are a nation
without counsel,
and there is no understanding
in them. 29If only they were wise,
they would understand this;
they would discern
their latter end. 30How could one chase a thousand,
and two put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock had sold them
and the LORD
had handed them over? 31For their rock is not like our Rock,
even our enemies
being judges.

Their Vine Is from Sodom

32For their vine is from the vine of Sodom
and from the fields of Gomorrah.
Their grapes are grapes of poison;
their clusters are bitter. 33Their wine is the venom of serpents
and the cruel poison
of cobras.

Vengeance Belongs to Me

34Is this not stored up with me,
sealed in my treasuries? 35Vengeance belongs to me,
and repayment,
for the time when their foot slips.
For the day of their disaster is near,
and what is prepared for them
hurries toward them. 36For the LORD will judge his people
and have compassion on his servants
when he sees that strength is gone
and there is none left,
slave or free.

Where Are Their Gods?

37Then he will say:

“Where are their gods,
the rock in which
they took refuge, 38who ate the fat of their sacrifices
and drank the wine of their drink offerings?
Let them rise and help you!
Let them be
a shelter over you!

See Now That I Am He

39See now that I, I am he,
and there is no god beside me.
I put to death,
and I make alive.
I wound,
and I heal,
and there is no one
who rescues from my hand. 40For I lift my hand to the heavens
and say,
‘As I live forever, 41when I sharpen
my flashing sword
and my hand takes hold
of judgment,
I will return vengeance
upon my adversaries
and repay
those who hate me. 42I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
and my sword will devour flesh—
with the blood of the slain and captives,
from the long-haired heads
of the enemy.’

Rejoice, O Nations, with His People

43Rejoice, O nations, with his people,
for he will avenge
the blood of his servants.
He will return vengeance
upon his adversaries
and make atonement
for his land and his people.

Set Your Heart on All These Words

44Moses came and spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and Joshua son of Nun. 45When Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46he said to them, “Set your heart on all the words that I testify against you today, which you shall command your children to be careful to do, all the words of this instruction. 47For it is not an empty word for you, but it is your life, and by this word you will prolong your days upon the ground that you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

Moses Will See the Land but Not Enter It

48The LORD spoke to Moses on that very day, saying, 49“Go up this mountain of Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab opposite Jericho, and see the land of Canaan that I am giving to the children of Israel as a possession. 50You shall die on the mountain that you ascend and be gathered to your people, just as Aaron your brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, 51because you acted unfaithfully against me in the midst of the children of Israel at the waters of Meribath-Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin, because you did not treat me as holy in the midst of the children of Israel. 52For from a distance you shall see the land, but you shall not enter there, into the land that I am giving to the children of Israel.”