Deuteronomy Chapter 10
Showing all 22 verses for Deuteronomy Chapter 10.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"At that time the LORD said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up unto me into the mount, and make thee an ark of wood. "
"At that time the LORD said to me, 'Cut two stone tablets like the first ones, and come up to me on the mountain, and make yourself an ark of wood.'"
After the tables were shattered, I told Moses to cut new ones and come back up - I am always ready to make something new after failure has broken what came before. Whatever you have shattered in your own life, I am still willing to begin again with you.
"And I will write on the tables the words that were in the first tables which thou brakest, and thou shalt put them in the ark. "
"'And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke, and you are to put them in the ark.'"
I promised to write the very same words on the new tables that had been on the ones you broke - what your sin destroyed, my grace restored in full, not in some lesser form. Nothing you have ruined is beyond my ability to remake completely.
"And I made an ark of shittim wood, and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the mount, having the two tables in mine hand. "
"So I made an ark out of acacia wood, and cut two stone tablets like the first ones, and went up the mountain carrying the two tablets in my hand."
Moses built the ark and cut the stones exactly as instructed, without complaint or shortcuts - careful obedience preparing the way for something holy to be carried safely. Faithful, patient preparation matters even in the small practical tasks nobody notices.
"And he wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the ten commandments, which the LORD spake unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly: and the LORD gave them unto me. "
"And he wrote on the tablets, just as the first writing, the ten commandments that the LORD had spoken to you on the mountain out of the fire, on the day of the assembly - and the LORD gave them to me."
I wrote the same ten commandments on the new tables as on the first - my moral character does not shift with circumstances or change to suit a new situation. What I ask of you today is rooted in who I have always been.
"And I turned myself and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they be, as the LORD commanded me. "
"Then I turned and came down from the mountain, and put the tablets in the ark I had made - and there they still are, just as the LORD commanded me."
Moses did exactly as instructed, placing the tables safely in the ark he had built - completed obedience, nothing left undone. There is a quiet satisfaction in simply finishing what I have asked of you, without adding to it or leaving it half done.
"And the children of Israel took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Mosera: there Aaron died, and there he was buried; and Eleazar his son ministered in the priest’s office in his stead. "
"The Israelites travelled on from Beeroth Bene-jaakan to Moserah. Aaron died there and was buried there, and his son Eleazar succeeded him as priest."
Aaron died along the journey, and his son Eleazar simply stepped into his place to continue the work - even the loss of a great leader did not stop what I was doing among my people. No single person, however important, is indispensable to my purposes; my work continues on through others.
"From thence they journeyed unto Gudgodah; and from Gudgodah to Jotbath, a land of rivers of waters. "
"From there they travelled to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land with flowing streams."
The journey continued on to a land of flowing rivers, a reminder that even in the middle of loss and grief, I was still leading you towards provision. Grief and forward movement can happen at the same time; one does not have to wait for the other to finish.
"At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day. "
"At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to serve him, and to bless in his name, as they still do today."
I set apart the tribe of Levi specifically to carry the ark and minister and bless in my name - a calling given by me, not chosen through ambition or self-promotion. Whatever role you serve me in, know that a true calling comes from my choosing you, not from grasping at status.
"Wherefore Levi hath no part nor inheritance with his brethren; the LORD is his inheritance, according as the LORD thy God promised him. "
"That's why Levi has no share or inheritance among his brothers - the LORD is his inheritance, just as the LORD your God promised him."
Levi received no land inheritance like the other tribes, because I myself was to be his inheritance - a portion richer than any plot of ground. When you feel you are missing out on what others have, remember that knowing me is itself the greatest possession.
"And I stayed in the mount, according to the first time, forty days and forty nights; and the LORD hearkened unto me at that time also, and the LORD would not destroy thee. "
"I stayed on the mountain, as I had the first time, forty days and forty nights, and the LORD listened to me that time too, and the LORD chose not to destroy you."
I stayed with Moses on the mountain forty days again, and I listened to him, and in the end I chose not to destroy you. Persistent, honest prayer genuinely moves my heart - it is never wasted breath.
"And the LORD said unto me, Arise, take thy journey before the people, that they may go in and possess the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give unto them. "
"And the LORD said to me, 'Get up, go on your journey ahead of the people, so that they can go in and take possession of the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.'"
After all the failure and the pleading, I said simply: rise, go on ahead, lead the people into what I promised. Forgiveness was never meant to leave you stuck looking backwards - it frees you to move forward into what I still have for you.
"And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, "
"And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you, except to respect the LORD your God, to live by all his ways, to love him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul,"
What I actually ask of you is not complicated: reverence me, walk in my ways, love me, and serve me with everything you have. It was never a burden of endless rules - it has always been a relationship of the whole heart.
"To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good? "
"to keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I'm giving you today for your own good?"
Every commandment I give you is for your own good, not to restrict your joy but to protect and bless your life. When my instructions feel hard, remember they were written by someone who loves you and wants good for you, not by someone testing your obedience for its own sake.
"Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD’s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. "
"Look - the heavens, even the highest heavens, belong to the LORD your God, and so does the earth and everything in it."
The heavens, the heaven of heavens, and the whole earth belong to me - a vastness that should humble any of us who think our own small kingdom is really our own. Whatever you hold today is on loan from the one who owns everything that exists.
"Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day. "
"Yet the LORD delighted in your ancestors and loved them, and chose their descendants after them - you - out of all peoples, as is the case today."
I simply delighted in your fathers and chose their descendants above all other people - not because you earned it, but because I loved you. Being chosen was always rooted in my delight, not your performance.
"Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked. "
"So circumcise your hearts, and stop being stubborn."
What I actually want is a circumcised heart, not merely an external ritual - real transformation on the inside, not just outward compliance. Stop being stubborn where it matters most, in the hidden places of who you really are, not just in what people can see.
"For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward: "
"For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, a great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God, who doesn't play favourites and doesn't take bribes."
I am God over every so-called god, Lord over every so-called lord, and I show no favouritism and take no bribes - my justice cannot be bought or swayed by status. Whoever you are, rich or poor, powerful or overlooked, I treat you exactly the same.
"He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment. "
"He carries out justice for the orphan and the widow, and loves the foreigner, giving them food and clothing."
I execute justice for the orphan and the widow, and I love the foreigner, making sure they have food and clothing - my heart has always leaned towards those the world overlooks. If you want to know what matters to me, look at how you treat the person with the least power in the room.
"Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. "
"So love the foreigner, because you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt."
Love the foreigner among you, because you yourselves were once foreigners in Egypt - your own experience of being an outsider should make you tender towards every outsider you meet. Whatever you have suffered, let it soften you towards others in the same place, rather than harden you against them.
"Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name. "
"Fear the LORD your God; serve him, and hold on tightly to him, and take your oaths in his name."
Fear me, serve me, hold fast to me, and let your loyalty be entirely mine - I quoted these very words myself when I was tested in the wilderness, because undivided devotion still matters most. Wherever your loyalty is divided today, that is exactly where I am asking you to cleave more closely to me.
"He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen. "
"He is the one you should praise, and he is your God, who has done these great and awe-inspiring things for you, which you have seen with your own eyes."
I am your praise and your God, the one who has done great and awe-filled things right in front of your own eyes - remembering what I have actually done for you is what fuels real, lasting praise. Look back honestly at your own story and you will find plenty worth thanking me for.
"Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the LORD thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude. "
"Your ancestors went down to Egypt seventy people in total, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky."
Your ancestors went down to Egypt as just seventy people, and I have multiplied you until you are like the stars in the sky - small, humble beginnings are never a limit on what I can grow. Whatever feels small and insignificant in your life today is not too small for me to multiply.