الأرض الصالحة
1 إحفظْ جميعَ الوصايا الّتي آمرُكَ بها اليومَ واعمَلْ بها لتحيا وتَكثُرَ وتدخُلَ وتمتَلِكَ الأرضَ الّتي أَقسمَ الرّبُّ أنْ يُعطيَها لآبائِكَ. 2 واذكُرْ جميعَ الطُّرقاتِ الّتي سيَّركَ فيها الرّبُّ إلهُكَ في البَرِّيَّةِ هذِهِ الأربعينَ سنَةً، ليقهَرَكَ ويمتحِنَكَ حتّى يعرفَ ما في قلبِكَ، أتحفظُ وصاياهُ أم لا؟ 3 فأذلَّكَ وجَوَّعكَ ثمَّ أطعَمَكَ المَنَّ الّذي لم تعرفْهُ أنتَ ولا عرفَهُ آباؤُكَ، حتّى يُعلِّمَكَ أنَّ الإنسانَ لا يحيا بالخُبزِ وحدَهُ، بل بكُلِّ ما يخرُجُ مِنْ فَمِ الرّبِّ يحيا الإنسانُ. 4 ثيابُكَ لم تَبلَ علَيكَ ورِجْلُكَ لم تـتورَّمْ في هذِهِ الأربعينَ سنَةً. 5 فاعلَمْ أنَّهُ كما يؤدِّبُ الأبُ ابنَهُ، أدَّبكَ الرّبُّ إلهُكَ. 6 فاعمَلْ بوصايا الرّبِّ إلهِكَ وسِرْ في طريقِهِ واتَّقِهِ 7 لأنَّ الرّبَّ إلهَكَ هوَ الّذي يُدخِلُكَ أرضا صالحةً، لها أنهارٌ وينابـيعُ وعيونٌ تـتفجَّرُ في البِقاعِ والجِبالِ، 8 أرضَ حنطةٍ وشعيرٍ وكرمٍ وتينٍ ورُمَّانٍ، أرضَ زيتٍ وعسلٍ، 9 أرضا لا تفتقِرُ فيها إلى خُبزٍ تأكلُهُ ولا تـتحسَّرُ فيها على شيءٍ، أرضا مِنْ حِجارتِها الحديدُ ومِنْ جِبالِها تطلُبُ النُّحاسَ. 10 فتأكُلُ وتشبعُ وتُبارِكُ الرّبَّ إلهَكَ لأجلِ الأرضِ الصَّالحةِ الّتي أعطاها لكَ.
11 حاذِرْ أنْ تنسى الرّبَّ إلهَكَ. وأنْ لا تعمَلَ بوصاياهُ وأحكامِهِ وسُننهِ الّتي أنا آمرُكَ بها اليومَ، 12 فإذا أكلتَ وشَبِــعتَ وبَنيتَ بـيوتا فخمةً وسكنْتَها 13 وكَثُرَ بقَرُكَ وغنَمُكَ وفِضَّتُكَ وذهبُكَ وجميعُ ما لكَ 14 فلا يَطمحْ قلبُكَ فتنسى الرّبَّ إلهَكَ الّذي أخرجَكَ مِنْ أرضِ مِصْرَ، مِنْ دارِ العُبوديَّةِ 15 وسار بكَ في البَرِّيَّةِ الشَّاسعةِ المُخيفةِ حيثُ الحيَّاتُ الهرِمةُ المُسنَّةُ والعقاربُ والأرضُ العطشى الّتي لا ماءَ فيها، ففجَّرَ لكَ الماءَ مِنْ صخرةِ الصَّوَّانِ، 16 وأطعمَكَ في البَرِّيَّةِ المَنَّ الّذي ما عرفَهُ آباؤُكَ، وأذلَّكَ وامتحنَكَ حتى تَطيـبَ نفْسُكَ في آخرتِكَ 17 ولا تقولَ في قلبِكَ بقُدرتي وقوَّةِ ساعدي اكتسبتُ ما أنا علَيهِ مِنْ سُلطانٍ 18 بل تذكُرُ الرّبَّ إلهَكَ الّذي أعطاكَ تِلكَ القُدرةَ ليفيَ بعهدِهِ لآبائِكَ كما في هذا اليومِ. 19 وإنْ نسِيتَ الرّبَّ إلهَكَ واتَّبعْتَ آلهةً غريـبةً وعبَدْتَها وسجدْتَ لها، فأنا شاهِدٌ علَيكَ اليومَ بأنَّكَ لا محالَةَ بائِدٌ. 20 مِثلَ الشُّعوبِ الّتي يُبـيدُها الرّبُّ مِنْ أمامِكَ كذلِكَ تَبـيدُ أنتَ لأنَّكَ لم تسمعْ لِصوتِ الرّبِّ إلهِكَ.
A Good Land to Be Possessed
1 “Obey faithfully all the laws that I have given you today, so that you may live, increase in number, and occupy the land that the Lord promised to your ancestors. 2 Remember how the Lord your God led you on this long journey through the desert these past forty years, sending hardships to test you, so that he might know what you intended to do and whether you would obey his commands. 3 He made you go hungry, and then he gave you manna to eat, food that you and your ancestors had never eaten before. He did this to teach you that you must not depend on bread alone to sustain you, but on everything that the Lord says. 4 During these forty years your clothes have not worn out, nor have your feet swollen up. 5 Remember that the Lord your God corrects and punishes you just as parents discipline their children. 6 So then, do as the Lord has commanded you: live according to his laws and obey him. 7 The Lord your God is bringing you into a fertile land—a land that has rivers and springs, and underground streams gushing out into the valleys and hills; 8 a land that produces wheat and barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and honey. 9 There you will never go hungry or ever be in need. Its rocks have iron in them, and from its hills you can mine copper. 10 You will have all you want to eat, and you will give thanks to the Lord your God for the fertile land that he has given you.
Warnings against Forgetting the Lord
11 “Make certain that you do not forget the Lord your God; do not fail to obey any of his laws that I am giving you today. 12 When you have all you want to eat and have built good houses to live in 13 and when your cattle and sheep, your silver and gold, and all your other possessions have increased, 14 be sure that you do not become proud and forget the Lord your God who rescued you from Egypt, where you were slaves. 15 He led you through that vast and terrifying desert where there were poisonous snakes and scorpions. In that dry and waterless land he made water flow out of solid rock for you. 16 In the desert he gave you manna to eat, food that your ancestors had never eaten. He sent hardships on you to test you, so that in the end he could bless you with good things. 17 So then, you must never think that you have made yourselves wealthy by your own power and strength. 18 Remember that it is the Lord your God who gives you the power to become rich. He does this because he is still faithful today to the covenant that he made with your ancestors. 19 Never forget the Lord your God or turn to other gods to worship and serve them. If you do, then I warn you today that you will certainly be destroyed. 20 If you do not obey the Lord, then you will be destroyed just like those nations that he is going to destroy as you advance.
