Why the Lord Gave Canaan to Israel
1Israel, listen to me. You are now about to go across the Jordan River. You will take over the land of the nations that live there. Those nations are greater and stronger than you are. Their large cities have walls that reach up to the sky. 2The people who live there are Anakites. They are strong and tall. You know all about them. You have heard people say, “Who can stand up against the Anakites?” 3But today you can be sure the Lord your God will go over there ahead of you. He is like a fire that will burn them up. He’ll destroy them. He’ll bring them under your control. You will drive them out. You will put an end to them quickly, just as the Lord has promised you.
4The Lord your God will drive them out to make room for you. When he does, don’t say to yourself, “The Lord has done it because I am godly. That’s why he brought me here to take over this land.” That isn’t true. The Lord is going to drive out those nations to make room for you because they are very evil. 5You are not going in to take over their land because you have done what is right or honest. It’s because those nations are so evil. That’s why the Lord your God will drive them out to make room for you. He will do what he said he would do. He made a promise to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 6The Lord your God is giving you this good land to take as your own. But you must understand that it isn’t because you are a godly nation. In fact, you are stubborn.
Israel Worshiped the Golden Calf
7Here is something you must remember. Never forget it. You made the Lord your God angry in the desert. You refused to obey him from the day you left Egypt until you arrived here. 8At Mount Horeb you made the Lord angry enough to destroy you. 9I went up the mountain. I went there to receive the tablets of the covenant law. They were made out of stone. It was the covenant the Lord had made with you. I stayed on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights. I didn’t eat any food or drink any water. 10The Lord gave me two stone tablets. The words on them were written by the finger of God. All the commandments the Lord gave you were written on the tablets. He announced them to you out of the fire on the mountain. He wrote them on the day you gathered together there.
11The 40 days and 40 nights came to an end. Then the Lord gave me the two stone tablets. They were the tablets of the covenant law. 12The Lord told me, “Go down from here right away. The people you brought out of Egypt have become very sinful. They have quickly turned away from what I commanded them. They have made a statue of a god for themselves.”
13The Lord also said to me, “I have seen these people. They are so stubborn! 14Do not try to stop me. I am going to destroy them. I will wipe them out from the earth. Then I will make you into a great nation. Your people will be stronger than they were. There will be more of you than there were of them.”
15So I turned and went down the mountain. It was blazing with fire. I was carrying the two tablets of the covenant law. 16When I looked, I saw that you had sinned against the Lord your God. You had made for yourselves a metal statue of a god. It looked like a calf. You had quickly turned away from the path the Lord had commanded you to follow. 17So I threw the two tablets out of my hands. You watched them break into pieces.
18Then once again I fell down flat in front of the Lord with my face toward the ground. I lay there for 40 days and 40 nights. I didn’t eat any food or drink any water. You had committed a terrible sin. You had done an evil thing in the Lord’s sight. You had made him angry. 19I was afraid of the Lord’s great anger. He was so angry with you he wanted to destroy you. But the Lord listened to me again. 20And he was so angry with Aaron he wanted to destroy him too. But at that time I prayed for Aaron. 21I also got that sinful calf you had made. I burned it in the fire. I crushed it and ground it into fine powder. Then I threw the powder into a stream that was flowing down the mountain.
22You also made the Lord angry at Taberah, Massah and Kibroth Hattaavah.
23The Lord sent you out from Kadesh Barnea. He said, “Go up and take over the land I have given you.” But you refused to do what the Lord your God had commanded you to do. You didn’t trust him or obey him. 24You have been refusing to obey the Lord as long as I’ve known you.
25I lay down in front of the Lord with my face toward the ground for 40 days and 40 nights. I did it because the Lord had said he would destroy you. 26I prayed to him. “Lord and King,” I said, “don’t destroy your people. They belong to you. You set them free by your great power. You used your mighty hand to bring them out of Egypt. 27Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Forgive the Israelites for being so stubborn. Don’t judge them for the evil and sinful things they’ve done. 28If you do, the Egyptians will say, ‘The Lord wasn’t able to take them into the land he had promised to give them. He hated them. So he brought them out of Egypt to put them to death in the desert.’ 29But they are your people. They belong to you. You used your great power to bring them out of Egypt. You reached out your mighty arm and saved them.”
以色列人的悖逆
1“以色列人啊，你们要听！今天你们要过约旦河，去赶出那些比你们强大的民族。他们住在城墙高耸入云的大城里， 2是长得高大威猛的亚衲人。你们了解他们，也听人说过，‘谁能抵挡亚衲人呢？’ 3但今天你们要知道，你们的上帝耶和华要走在你们前面，像烈火一样吞噬他们。祂要制服他们，使你们迅速赶走他们，毁灭他们，正如祂对你们的应许。
4“你们的上帝耶和华赶走他们以后，你们不要以为耶和华带领你们占领那片土地是因为你们公义，其实是因为那里的民族邪恶，耶和华才将他们从你们面前赶走。 5你们能占领他们的土地并非因为你们公义、行为正直。你们的上帝耶和华从你们面前赶走那些民族，是因为他们邪恶，也是为了实现祂给你们祖先亚伯拉罕、以撒和雅各的誓言。 6你们要知道，耶和华赐给你们那佳美之地不是因为你们有好品德。其实你们是顽固不化的人。
7“要牢记你们在旷野怎样触怒你们的上帝耶和华。从你们离开埃及那天到现在，你们屡屡背叛耶和华。 8在何烈山，你们触怒了耶和华，以致祂要毁灭你们。 9那时，我上山去接受耶和华与你们立约的石版，在山上待了四十昼夜，不吃也不喝。 10耶和华把两块立约的石版交给我，上面刻着那天你们聚会时祂在山上的火焰中对你们说的话，是祂用手指刻上去的。 11四十昼夜后，耶和华把那两块刻着约的石版交给我， 12对我说，‘快下山吧，你从埃及领出来的百姓已经败坏了。他们这么快就偏离了我吩咐他们走的道，为自己铸造了神像。’
13“耶和华又对我说，‘我已看出，这是顽固不化的百姓。 14不要拦我，我要毁灭他们，从世上抹去他们的名字。我要使你的子孙成为一个比他们更强大的民族。’ 15我双手拿着那两块石版，转身从烈火熊熊的山上下来， 16看见你们为自己铸造了牛犊像，得罪了你们的上帝耶和华，这么快就偏离了耶和华吩咐你们走的道， 17就当着你们的面摔碎了那两块石版。
18“我又俯伏在耶和华面前，四十昼夜不吃不喝，因为你们犯了大罪，做耶和华憎恶的事，惹祂发怒。 19耶和华向你们发烈怒，要毁灭你们，我非常惧怕。但耶和华再次垂听了我的祈求。 20耶和华对亚伦非常愤怒，以致要杀掉他，于是我也为他祈求。 21我焚烧了你们铸造的罪恶之物——牛犊像，把它磨成细粉，撒在从山上流下来的溪水中。
22“你们在他备拉、玛撒和基博罗·哈他瓦三番四次地触怒耶和华。 23你们的上帝耶和华吩咐你们离开加低斯·巴尼亚，去占领祂赐给你们的土地，你们却背叛祂，不信靠祂，也不听从祂。 24自从我认识你们以来，你们就不断地背叛耶和华。
25“因为耶和华说要毁灭你们，我就俯伏在耶和华面前四十昼夜， 26向祂祈求说，‘主耶和华啊，求你不要毁灭你的子民！他们是你的产业，是你用大能的手从埃及拯救出来的。 27求你看在你仆人亚伯拉罕、以撒和雅各的份上，不要计较这个民族的顽固和罪恶， 28免得你带领我们离开之地的人说，你不能把他们领到你应许给他们的地方，你憎恶他们，所以把他们带到旷野杀了。 29他们毕竟是你的子民，你的产业，是你伸出大能的臂膀从埃及带出来的。’
