The Altar on Mount Ebal

¹Now Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, “Keep the whole commandment that I command you today. ²And on the day syou cross over the Jordan to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall set up large stones and plaster them with plaster. ³tAnd you shall write on them all the words of this law, when you cross over to enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you, ua land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you. ⁴And when you have crossed over the Jordan, you shall set up these stones, concerning which I command you today, von Mount Ebal, and you shall plaster them with plaster. ⁵And there you shall build an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. wYou shall wield no iron tool on them; ⁶you shall build an altar to the Lord your God of uncut1 stones. And you shall offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God, ⁷and you shall sacrifice peace offerings and xshall eat there, and you xshall rejoice before the Lord your God. ⁸And yyou shall write on the stones all the words of this law very plainly.”

Curses from Mount Ebal

⁹Then Moses and the Levitical priests said to all Israel, “Keep silence and hear, O Israel: zthis day you have become the people of the Lord your God. ¹⁰You shall therefore obey the voice of the Lord your God, keeping his commandments and his statutes, which I command you today.”

¹¹That day Moses charged the people, saying, ¹²“When you have crossed over the Jordan, athese shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin. ¹³And these shall stand on Mount Ebal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. ¹⁴And bthe Levites shall declare to all the men of Israel in a loud voice:

¹⁵c“‘Cursed be the man who makes a carved or cast metal image, an abomination to the Lord, a thing made by the hands of a craftsman, and sets it up in secret.’ dAnd all the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen.’

¹⁶e“‘Cursed be anyone who dishonors his father or his mother.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

¹⁷f“‘Cursed be anyone who moves his neighbor's landmark.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

¹⁸g“‘Cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man on the road.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

¹⁹h“‘Cursed be anyone who perverts the justice due to the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²⁰i“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his father's wife, because he has juncovered his father's nakedness.’2 And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²¹k“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with any kind of animal.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²²l“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his sister, whether the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²³m“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his mother-in-law.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²⁴n“‘Cursed be anyone who strikes down his neighbor in secret.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²⁵o“‘Cursed be anyone who takes a bribe to shed innocent blood.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

²⁶p“‘Cursed be anyone who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Blessings for Obedience

¹“And qif you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you rhigh above all the nations of the earth. ²And all these blessings shall come upon you and sovertake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God. ³Blessed shall you be in the city, and tblessed shall you be in the field. ⁴Blessed shall be uthe fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. ⁵Blessed shall be your basket and your vkneading bowl. ⁶Blessed shall you be wwhen you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.

⁷“The Lord xwill cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. ⁸The Lord ywill command the blessing on you in your barns and zin all that you undertake. aAnd he will bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. ⁹bThe Lord will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways. ¹⁰And call the peoples of the earth shall see that you are dcalled by the name of the Lord, and they shall be eafraid of you. ¹¹And fthe Lord will make you abound in prosperity, in uthe fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your livestock and in the fruit of your ground, within the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. ¹²The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, gto give the rain to your land in its season and hto bless all the work of your hands. And iyou shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. ¹³And the Lord will make you jthe head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them, ¹⁴kand if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

Curses for Disobedience

¹⁵“But lif you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and movertake you. ¹⁶Cursed shall you be nin the city, and cursed shall you be in the field. ¹⁷Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. ¹⁸Cursed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. ¹⁹Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed shall you be when you go out.

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