21. The Lord was angry with me because of what you said, and he told me that he would not let me cross the River Jordan into the good land that he is giving you.
22. So I must stay here and die on this side of the Jordan, but you will cross the river and take the land.
23. Always remember the agreement that the Lord your God made with you, and don't make an idol in any shape or form.
24. The Lord will be angry if you worship other gods, and he can be like a fire destroying everything in its path.
25-26. Soon you will cross the River Jordan and settle down in the land. Then in the years to come, you will have children, and they will give you grandchildren. After many years, you might lose your sense of right and wrong and make idols, even though the Lord your God hates them. So I am giving you fair warning today, and I call the earth and the sky as witnesses. If you ever make idols, the Lord will be angry, and you won't have long to live, because the Lord will let you be wiped out.
27. Only a few of you will survive, and the Lord will force you to leave the land and will scatter you among the nations.
28. There you will have to worship gods made of wood and stone, and these are nothing but idols that can't see or hear or eat or smell.
29-30. In all your troubles, you may finally decide that you want to worship only the Lord. And if you turn back to him and obey him completely, he will again be your God.
31. The Lord your God will have mercy—he won't destroy you or desert you. The Lord will remember his promise, and he will keep the agreement he made with your ancestors.
32-34. When the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt, you saw how he fought for you and showed his great power by performing terrifying miracles. You became his people, and at Mount Sinai you heard him talking to you out of fiery flames. And yet you are still alive! Has anything like this ever happened since the time God created humans? No matter where you go or who you ask, you will get the same answer. No one has ever heard of another god even trying to do such things as the Lord your God has done for you.
35-36. The Lord wants you to know he is the only true God, and he wants you to obey him. That's why he let you see his mighty miracles and his fierce fire on earth, and why you heard his voice from that fire and from the sky.
37. The Lord loved your ancestors and decided that you would be his people. So the Lord used his great power to bring you out of Egypt.
38. Now you face other nations more powerful than you are, but the Lord has already started forcing them out of their land and giving it to you.
39. So remember that the Lord is the only true God, whether in the sky above or on the earth below.
40. Today I am explaining his laws and teachings. And if you always obey them, you and your descendants will live long and be successful in the land the Lord is giving you.
41-43. Moses said, “People of Israel, you must set aside the following three towns east of the River Jordan as Safe Towns: Bezer in the desert highlands belonging to the Reuben tribe; Ramoth in Gilead, belonging to the Gad tribe; and Golan in Bashan, belonging to the Manasseh tribe. If you kill a neighbour without meaning to, and if you had not been angry with that person, you can run to one of these towns and find safety.”