1Once Moses had finished ⁵³giving these instructions to all the Israelites,

2he told them, I'm now a hundred and twenty years old. I can't get around like I used to, and the Lord has told me, “You are not to cross the Jordan.”

3The Lord your God himself is going to lead you across. He will destroy these nations as you advance, and you will take over their land. Joshua will cross ahead of you, as the Lord said.

4The Lord will do to them what he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and their land when he destroyed them.

5The Lord will hand them over to you, and you will deal with them exactly as I've told you.

6Be strong! Be brave! Don't be frightened or terrified of them, because the Lord your God will go with you. He won't ever leave you or abandon you.

7Moses called for Joshua and told him in front of all the Israelites, “Be strong!! Be brave! You will accompany this people into the country that the Lord promised to give their forefathers, and you are to allocate it for them to own.

8The Lord himself goes ahead of you. He will be with you. He won't ever leave you or abandon you. Don't be afraid and don't be discouraged.”

9Moses wrote this law down and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the Ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the Israelite elders.

10Moses gave them these orders, “At the end of every seven years, the year when debts are canceled during the Festival of Shelters,

11when all the Israelites come before the Lord your God at the place he will choose, you are to read this law for everyone to hear.

12Have the people gather together—the men, women, children, and the foreigners living with you—so that they can listen and learn to respect the Lord your God and to carefully observe all the instructions of this law.

13Then their children who are ignorant of the law will listen and learn to respect the Lord your God for as long as you live in the country you are going to occupy once you cross the Jordan.”

14Then the Lord told Moses, “Listen, you are soon going to die. Tell Joshua to meet you, and then both of you are to come and stand before me at the Tent of Meeting, so that I may appoint him as leader.” Moses and Joshua went to stand before the Lord at the Tent of Meeting.

15The Lord appeared there at the tent in a pillar of cloud. The cloud stood at the entrance to the tent.

16The Lord told Moses, “You will join your ancestors in death, and these people are going to prostitute themselves by worshiping the foreign gods of the country they are entering. They will abandon me and break the agreement I've made with them.

17Then I will abandon them and turn away from them, so they will be destroyed, and they will experience many disasters and problems. At that time they'll say, ‘We're suffering these disasters because our God has abandoned us!’

18Then I will definitely ignore them because of all the evil they have done by worshiping other gods.

19So write down this song and teach it to the Israelites. Help them learn to sing it, so it will provide evidence for me against them.

20Once I've led them into the country that I promised to give their forefathers, a land flowing with milk and honey, they will have plenty to eat and will do well. Then they will go and worship other gods, and they will abandon me and break my agreement.

21Once they've experienced plenty of trouble and suffering, this song will testify against them, because their descendants won't forget the words. I know what they're like, even before I lead them into the country that I promised to give them.”

22Right then Moses wrote down this song and taught it to the Israelites.

23Then the Lord appointed Joshua son of Nun as leader, and told him, “Be strong! Be brave! For you are going to lead the Israelites into the country that I promised to give them, and I will be with you.”

24After Moses had finished writing down this Law in a book from start to finish,

25he ordered the Levites who carried the Ark of the Lord's Agreement:

26“Place this book of the Law beside the Ark of the Lord your God's Agreement, so that it will be kept there as a evidence against you.

27I know how stubborn and rebellious you are. If you've already started rebelling against the Lord while I'm still alive, how much worse will you get after I die?

28Summon all the elders of your tribes and all your officers to gather here before me so that I can tell them this directly and call on heaven and earth as witnesses against them.

29I know that after my death you will become completely immoral, leaving the path I have ordered you to follow. In the future, evil things will happen to you because of the evil sins you commit in the sight of the Lord, making him angry by what you do.”

30Then Moses recited all the words of this song as the Israelites listened.