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Reiteration of the Call to Obedience
11 You must love the Lord your God and do what he requires; keep his statutes, ordinances, and commandments[a] at all times. 2 Bear in mind today that I am not speaking[b] to your children who have not personally experienced the judgments[c] of the Lord your God, which revealed[d] his greatness, strength, and power.[e] 3 They did not see[f] the awesome deeds he performed[g] in the midst of Egypt against Pharaoh king of Egypt and his whole land, 4 or what he did to the army of Egypt, including their horses and chariots, when he made the waters of the Red Sea[h] overwhelm them while they were pursuing you and he[i] annihilated them.[j] 5 They did not see[k] what he did to you in the wilderness before you reached this place, 6 or what he did to Dathan and Abiram,[l] sons of Eliab the Reubenite,[m] when the earth opened its mouth in the middle of the Israelite camp[n] and swallowed them, their families,[o] their tents, and all the property they brought with them.[p] 7 I am speaking to you[q] because you are the ones who saw with your own eyes all the great deeds of the Lord.
The Abundance of the Land of Promise
8 Now pay attention to all the commandments[r] I am giving[s] you today, so that you may be strong enough to enter and possess the land where you are headed,[t] 9 and that you may enjoy long life in the land the Lord promised to give to your ancestors[u] and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 For the land where you are headed[v] is not like the land of Egypt from which you came, a land where you planted seed and which you irrigated by hand[w] like a vegetable garden. 11 Instead, the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy[x] is one of hills and valleys, a land that drinks in water from the rains,[y] 12 a land the Lord your God looks after.[z] He is constantly attentive to it[aa] from the beginning to the end of the year.[ab] 13 Now, if you pay close attention[ac] to my commandments that I am giving you today and love[ad] the Lord your God and serve him with all your mind and being,[ae] 14 then he promises,[af] “I will send rain for your land[ag] in its season, the autumn and the spring rains,[ah] so that you may gather in your grain, new wine, and olive oil. 15 I will provide pasture[ai] for your livestock and you will eat your fill.”
Exhortation to Instruction and Obedience
16 Make sure you do not turn away to serve and worship other gods![aj] 17 Then the anger of the Lord will erupt[ak] against you, and he will close up the sky[al] so that it does not rain. The land will not yield its produce, and you will soon be removed[am] from the good land that the Lord[an] is about to give you. 18 Fix these words of mine into your mind and being,[ao] tie them as a reminder on your hands, and let them be symbols[ap] on your forehead. 19 Teach them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road,[aq] as you lie down, and as you get up. 20 Inscribe them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates 21 so that your days and those of your descendants may be extended in the land that the Lord promised to give to your ancestors, like the days of heaven itself.[ar] 22 For if you carefully observe all of these commandments[as] I am giving you[at] and love the Lord your God, live according to his standards,[au] and remain loyal to him, 23 then he[av] will drive out all these nations ahead of you, and you will dispossess nations greater and stronger than you. 24 Every place you set your foot[aw] will be yours; your border will extend from the desert to Lebanon and from the River (that is, the Euphrates) as far as the Mediterranean Sea.[ax] 25 Nobody will be able to resist you; the Lord your God will spread the fear and terror of you over the whole land on which you walk, just as he promised you.
Anticipation of a Blessing and Cursing Ceremony
26 Take note—I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:[ay] 27 the blessing if you take to heart[az] the commandments of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, 28 and the curse if you pay no attention[ba] to his[bb] commandments and turn from the way I am setting before[bc] you today to pursue[bd] other gods you have not known. 29 When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are to possess, you must pronounce the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.[be] 30 Are they not across the Jordan River,[bf] toward the west, in the land of the Canaanites who live in the rift valley opposite Gilgal[bg] near the oak[bh] of Moreh? 31 For you are about to cross the Jordan to possess the land the Lord your God is giving you, and you will possess and inhabit it. 32 Be certain to keep all the statutes and ordinances that I am presenting to you today.
The Central Sanctuary
12 These are the statutes and ordinances you must be careful to obey as long as you live in the land the Lord, the God of your ancestors,[bi] has given you to possess.[bj] 2 You must by all means destroy[bk] all the places where the nations you are about to dispossess worship their gods—on the high mountains and hills and under every leafy tree.[bl] 3 You must tear down their altars, shatter their sacred pillars,[bm] burn up their sacred Asherah poles,[bn] and cut down the images of their gods; you must eliminate their very memory from that place. 4 You must not worship the Lord your God the way they worship. 5 But you must seek only the place he[bo] chooses from all your tribes to establish his name as his place of residence,[bp] and you must go there. 6 And there you must take your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the personal offerings you have prepared,[bq] your votive offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. 7 Both you and your families[br] must feast there before the Lord your God and rejoice in all the output of your labor with which he[bs] has blessed you. 8 You must not do as we are doing here today, with everyone[bt] doing what seems best to him, 9 for you have not yet come to the final stop[bu] and inheritance the Lord your God is giving you. 10 When you do go across the Jordan River[bv] and settle in the land he[bw] is granting you as an inheritance and you find relief from all the enemies who surround you, you will live in safety.[bx] 11 Then you must come to the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to reside, bringing[by] everything I am commanding you—your burnt offerings, sacrifices, tithes, the personal offerings you have prepared,[bz] and all your choice votive offerings that you devote to him.[ca] 12 You shall rejoice in the presence of the Lord your God, along with your sons, daughters, male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages[cb] (since they have no allotment or inheritance with you).[cc] 13 Make sure you do not offer burnt offerings in any place you wish, 14 for you may do so[cd] only in the place the Lord chooses in one of your tribal areas—there you may do everything I am commanding you.[ce]
Regulations for Eating Sacrificial and Non-Sacrificial Foods
15 On the other hand, you may slaughter and eat meat as you please when the Lord your God blesses you[cf] in all your villages.[cg] Both the ritually pure and impure may eat it, whether it is a gazelle or an ibex. 16 However, you must not eat blood—pour it out on the ground like water. 17 You will not be allowed to eat in your villages your tithe of grain, new wine, olive oil, the firstborn of your herd and flock, any votive offerings you have vowed, or your freewill and personal offerings. 18 Only in the presence of the Lord your God may you eat these, in the place he[ch] chooses. This applies to you, your son, your daughter, your male and female servants, and the Levites[ci] in your villages. In that place you will rejoice before the Lord your God in all the output of your labor.[cj] 19 Be careful not to overlook the Levites as long as you live in the land.
The Sanctity of Blood
20 When the Lord your God extends your borders as he said he would do and you say, “I want to eat meat just as I please,”[ck] you may do so as you wish.[cl] 21 If the place he[cm] chooses to locate his name is too far for you, you may slaughter any of your herd and flock he[cn] has given you just as I have stipulated; you may eat them in your villages[co] just as you wish. 22 As you eat the gazelle or ibex, so you may eat these; the ritually impure and pure alike may eat them. 23 However, by no means eat the blood, for the blood is life itself[cp]—you must not eat the life with the meat. 24 You must not eat it! You must pour it out on the ground like water. 25 You must not eat it so that it may go well with you and your children after you; you will be doing what is right in the Lord’s sight.[cq] 26 But the holy things and votive offerings that belong to you, you must pick up and take to the place the Lord will choose.[cr] 27 You must offer your burnt offerings, both meat and blood, on the altar of the Lord your God; the blood of your other sacrifices[cs] you must pour out on his[ct] altar while you eat the meat. 28 Pay careful attention to all these things I am commanding you so that it may always go well with you and your children after you when you do what is good and right in the sight of the Lord your God.
The Abomination of Pagan Gods
29 When the Lord your God eliminates the nations from the place where you are headed and you dispossess them, you will settle down in their land.[cu] 30 After they have been destroyed from your presence, be careful not to be ensnared like they are; do not pursue their gods and say, “How do these nations serve their gods? I will do the same.” 31 You must not worship the Lord your God the way they do![cv] For everything that is abhorrent[cw] to him,[cx] everything he hates, they have done when worshiping their gods. They even burn up their sons and daughters before their gods!
Idolatry and False Prophets
32 (13:1)[cy] You[cz] must be careful to do everything I am commanding you. Do not add to it or subtract from it![da]
Stilling of a Storm
22 One[a] day Jesus[b] got into a boat[c] with his disciples and said to them, “Let’s go across to the other side of the lake.” So[d] they set out, 23 and as they sailed he fell asleep. Now a violent windstorm[e] came down on the lake,[f] and the boat[g] started filling up with water, and they were in danger. 24 They[h] came[i] and woke him, saying, “Master, Master,[j] we are about to die!” So[k] he got up and rebuked[l] the wind and the raging waves;[m] they died down, and it was calm. 25 Then[n] he said to them, “Where is your faith?”[o] But they were afraid and amazed,[p] saying to one another, “Who then is this? He commands even the winds and the water,[q] and they obey him!”
Healing of a Demoniac
26 So[r] they sailed over to the region of the Gerasenes,[s] which is opposite[t] Galilee. 27 As[u] Jesus[v] stepped ashore,[w] a certain man from the town[x] met him who was possessed by demons.[y] For a long time this man[z] had worn no clothes and had not lived in a house, but among[aa] the tombs. 28 When he saw[ab] Jesus, he cried out, fell[ac] down before him, and shouted with a loud voice, “Leave me alone,[ad] Jesus, Son of the Most High[ae] God! I beg you, do not torment[af] me!” 29 For Jesus[ag] had started commanding[ah] the evil[ai] spirit to come out of the man. (For it had seized him many times, so[aj] he would be bound with chains and shackles[ak] and kept under guard. But[al] he would break the restraints and be driven by the demon into deserted[am] places.)[an] 30 Jesus then[ao] asked him, “What is your name?” He[ap] said, “Legion,”[aq] because many demons had entered him. 31 And they began to beg[ar] him not to order[as] them to depart into the abyss.[at] 32 Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside,[au] and the demonic spirits[av] begged Jesus[aw] to let them go into them. He gave them permission.[ax] 33 So[ay] the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd of pigs[az] rushed down the steep slope into the lake and drowned. 34 When[ba] the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran off and spread the news[bb] in the town[bc] and countryside. 35 So[bd] the people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus. They[be] found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. 36 Those[bf] who had seen it told them how the man who had been demon-possessed had been healed.[bg] 37 Then[bh] all the people of the Gerasenes[bi] and the surrounding region[bj] asked Jesus[bk] to leave them alone,[bl] for they were seized with great fear.[bm] So[bn] he got into the boat and left.[bo] 38 The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go[bp] with him, but Jesus[bq] sent him away, saying, 39 “Return to your home,[br] and declare[bs] what God has done for you.”[bt] So[bu] he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole town[bv] what Jesus[bw] had done for him.
Psalm 70[a]
For the music director, by David; written to get God’s attention.[b]
70 O God, please be willing to rescue me.[c]
O Lord, hurry and help me.[d]
2 May those who are trying to take my life
be embarrassed and ashamed.[e]
May those who want to harm me
be turned back and ashamed.[f]
3 May those who say, “Aha! Aha!”
be driven back[g] and disgraced.[h]
4 May all those who seek you be happy and rejoice in you.
May those who love to experience[i] your deliverance say continually,[j]
“May God[k] be praised!”[l]
5 I am oppressed and needy.[m]
O God, hurry to me.[n]
You are my helper and my deliverer.
O Lord,[o] do not delay.
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