1 “ Hear, O Israel! You are crossing over the Jordan today to take the land that belongs to nations greater and stronger than you, with big cities with walls as high as heaven.

“Hear, O Israel! You are crossing over the Jordan today to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, great cities fortified to heaven,

2 T he people there are strong and tall, the sons of Anakim. You know of them and have heard it said, ‘Who can stand in front of the sons of Anak?’

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 B ut know today that it is the Lord your God Who is crossing over before you as a fire that destroys everything. He will destroy them and bring them down before you. So you may drive them out and be quick to destroy them, just as the Lord has told you.

Know therefore today that it is the Lord your God who is crossing over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and He will subdue them before you, so that you may drive them out and destroy them quickly, just as the Lord has spoken to you.

4 B ut after the Lord your God has driven them out before you, do not say in your heart, ‘The Lord has brought me in to take this land because I am right and good.’ It is because of the sin of these nations that the Lord is driving them out in front of you.

“ Do not say in your heart when the Lord your God has driven them out before you, ‘Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is dispossessing them before you.

5 I t is not because of your being right with God that you are going to take their land. But it is because of the sin of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out in front of you. By this the Lord is proving that He keeps the promise He made to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you, in order to confirm the oath which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

6 U nderstand that it is not because you are right with God that the Lord your God is giving you this good land for your own, for you are a strong-willed people.

“Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people.

7 “ Remember and do not forget how you made the Lord your God angry in the desert. You have gone against the Lord from the day you left the land of Egypt until you came to this place.

Remember, do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness; from the day that you left the land of Egypt until you arrived at this place, you have been rebellious against the Lord.

8 E ven at Mount Sinai you made the Lord angry. The Lord was so angry with you that He would have destroyed you.

Even at Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, and the Lord was so angry with you that He would have destroyed you.

9 I went up the mountain to receive the pieces of stone, the Laws of the agreement which the Lord had made with you. I stayed on the mountain forty days and nights. I did not eat bread or drink water.

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

10 T hen the Lord gave me the two pieces of stone written by the finger of God. On them were all the words the Lord had spoken with you on the mountain from the fire on the day of the meeting.

The Lord gave me the two tablets of stone written by the finger of God; and on them were all the words which the Lord had spoken with you at the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly.

11 A t the end of forty days and nights the Lord gave me the two pieces of stone, the Laws of the agreement.

It came about at the end of forty days and nights that the Lord gave me the two tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant.

12 T hen the Lord said to me, ‘Get up. Hurry and go down from here. For your people whom you brought out of Egypt have become very sinful. They have been quick to turn away from what I told them. They have made a false god for themselves.’

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

13 A nd the Lord said to me, ‘I have seen these people. See, they are strong-willed.

The Lord spoke further to me, saying, ‘I have seen this people, and indeed, it is a stubborn people.

14 L et Me alone, so I may destroy them and destroy their name from under heaven. I will make you into a nation that will be greater and stronger than they.’

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 S o I turned and came down from the mountain while the mountain was burning with fire. The two pieces of stone of the agreement were in my two hands.

“ So I turned and came down from the mountain while the mountain was burning with fire, and the two tablets of the covenant were in my two hands.

16 A nd I saw that it was true that you had sinned against the Lord your God. You had made for yourselves a calf out of gold. You had been quick to turn away from what the Lord had told you.

And I saw that you had indeed sinned against the Lord your God. You had made for yourselves a molten calf; you had turned aside quickly from the way which the Lord had commanded you.

17 S o I took the two pieces of stone and threw them from my hands, and broke them in front of your eyes.

I took hold of the two tablets and threw them from my hands and smashed them before your eyes.

18 T hen again I fell down before the Lord for forty days and nights. I did not eat bread or drink water, because of all the sin you had done. You did what was sinful in the eyes of the Lord and made Him angry.

I fell down before the Lord, as at the first, forty days and nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of all your sin which you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the Lord to provoke Him to anger.

19 I was afraid of the anger of the Lord which was burning against you to destroy you. But the Lord listened to me again.

For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure with which the Lord was wrathful against you in order to destroy you, but the Lord listened to me that time also.

20 T he Lord was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him. So I prayed for Aaron at the same time also.

The Lord was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him; so I also prayed for Aaron at the same time.

21 T hen I took your sinful thing, the calf you had made, and burned it with fire and crushed it. I ground it into pieces until it was as fine as dust. And I threw its dust into the river that flowed down from the mountain.

I took your 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 its dust into the brook that came down from the mountain.

22 “ You made the Lord angry again at Taberah, Massah and Kibroth-hattaavah.

“Again at Taberah and at Massah and at Kibroth-hattaavah you provoked the Lord to wrath.

23 T he Lord sent you from Kadesh-barnea, saying, ‘Go and take for your own the land I have given you.’ But you went against what the Lord your God told you to do. You did not believe Him or listen to His voice.

When the Lord sent you from Kadesh-barnea, saying, ‘ Go up and possess the land which I have given you,’ then you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; you neither believed Him nor listened to His voice.

24 Y ou have gone against the Lord from the day I first knew you.

You have been rebellious against the Lord from the day I knew you.

25 “ So I fell down before the Lord and lay forty days and nights, because the Lord had said He would destroy you.

“ So I fell down before the Lord the forty days and nights, which I did because the Lord had said He would destroy you.

26 I prayed to the Lord, saying, ‘O Lord God, do not destroy Your people, Your chosen nation, whom You have set free by Your power and brought out of Egypt with a strong hand.

I prayed to the Lord and said, ‘O Lord God, do not destroy Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have redeemed through Your greatness, whom You have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand.

27 R emember Your servants, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Do not look at the strong will or sin or wrong-doing of these people.

Remember Your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; do not look at the stubbornness of this people or at their wickedness or their sin.

28 O r the land You brought us from may say, “The Lord was not able to bring them into the land He promised them. Because He hated them, He brought them out to kill them in the desert.”

Otherwise the land from which You brought us may say, “ Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which He had promised them and because He hated them He has brought them out to slay them in the wilderness.”

29 Y et they are Your people, Your chosen nation, whom You have brought out by Your great power and Your long arm.’

Yet they are Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have brought out by Your great power and Your outstretched arm.’