17. At that point my anger will burn against them, and I’ll be the one who abandons them! I’ll hide my face from them. They will become nothing but food for their enemies, and all sorts of bad things and misfortunes will happen to them. Then they will say: ‘Haven’t these terrible things happened to us because our God is no longer with us?’
18. But I will hide my face at that time because of the many wrong things they have done, because they have turned to other gods!
19. So in light of all that, you must write down this poem and teach it to the Israelites. Put it in their mouths so that the poem becomes a witness for me against them.
20. When I bring the Israelites to the land I swore to their ancestors, which is full of milk and honey, and they eat, get full, then fat, and then turn toward other gods, serving them and disrespecting me and breaking my covenant,
21. then, when all kinds of bad things and misfortunes happen to them, this poem will witness against them, giving its testimony, because it won’t be lost from the mouths of their descendants. Yes, I know right now what they are inclined to do, even before I’ve brought them into the land I swore."
22. So Moses wrote this poem down that very day, and he taught it to the Israelites.
23. Then the Lord commissioned Joshua, Nun’s son: "Be strong and fearless because you are the one who will bring the Israelites to the land I swore to them. I myself will be with you."
24. Once Moses had finished writing in their entirety all the words of this Instruction scroll,
25. he commanded the Levites who carry the chest containing the Lord’s covenant as follows:
26. "Take this Instruction scroll and put it next to the chest containing the Lord your God’s covenant. It must remain there as a witness against you
27. because I know how rebellious and hardheaded you are. If you are this rebellious toward the Lord while I’m still alive, it’s bound to get worse once I’m dead!
28. Assemble all of your tribes’ elders and your officials in front of me, so I can speak these words in their hearing, and so I can call heaven and earth as my witnesses against them,
29. because I know that after I’m dead, you will ruin everything, departing from the path I’ve commanded you. Terrible things will happen to you in the future because you will do evil in the Lord’s eyes, aggravating him with the things your hands have made."