New Stone Tablets

10 At that time the Lord said to me, “·Cut [Carve; Chisel] two stone tablets like the first ones and come up to me on the mountain. Also make a wooden Ark [Ex. 25:10]. ² I will write on the tablets the same words that were on the first tablets, which you broke, and you will put the new tablets in the Ark [Ex. 34].”

³ So I made the Ark out of acacia wood, and I ·cut [carved; chiseled] out two stone tablets like the first ones. Then I went up on the mountain with the two tablets in my hands. ⁴ The Lord wrote the same things on these tablets he had written before—the Ten ·Commandments [^LWords; Ex. 20:2–27; 34] that he had told you on the mountain from the fire, on the day ·you were gathered [of the assembly] there. And the Lord gave them to me. ⁵ Then I turned and came down the mountain; I put the tablets in the Ark I had made, as the Lord had commanded, and they are still there.

⁶ (The ·people [^Lsons; children] of Israel went from ·the wells of the Jaakanites [or Beeroth-bene-jaakan] to Moserah. Aaron died there and was buried [Num. 20:22–29]; his son Eleazar became priest in his place. ⁷ From Moserah they went to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah they went to Jotbathah [Num. 33:33], a place with ·streams [wadis] of water. ⁸ At that time the Lord ·chose [set apart] the tribe of Levi to carry the Ark of the ·Agreement [Treaty; Covenant; Ex. 25:10] with the Lord. They were to ·serve [minister to] the Lord and to bless the people in his name, which they still do today [Num. 6:22–27]. ⁹ That is why the Levites did not ·receive any land of their own [^Lhave an allotment and inheritance along with their brothers]; instead, they ·received the Lord himself as their gift [^Linherited the Lord himself], as the Lord your God ·told [promised] them.)

¹⁰ I stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights just like the first time, and the Lord listened to me this time also. He did not want to destroy you. ¹¹ The Lord said to me, “Go and lead the people so that they will go in and ·take [possess] the land I promised their ·ancestors [fathers; Gen. 12:1–3; 15:17–20].”

What the Lord Wants You to Do

¹² Now, Israel, ·this is what [^Lwhat is it that…?] the Lord your God wants you to do: ·Respect [Fear] the Lord your God, and ·do what he has told you to do [^Lwalk on all his ways/paths]. Love him. Serve the Lord your God with ·your whole being [^Lall your heart/mind and all your soul], ¹³ and obey the Lord’s commands and ·laws [statutes; ordinances; requirements] that I am giving you today for your own good.

¹⁴ The Lord owns the ·world [earth] and everything in it—the heavens, even the ·highest heavens [^Lheaven of heavens], are his. ¹⁵ But the Lord ·cared for [stuck to] and loved your ·ancestors [fathers], and he chose you, their ·descendants [^Lseed], over all the other nations, just as it is today. ¹⁶ ·Give yourselves completely to serving him [^LCircumcise the foreskin of your heart], and do not be stubborn any longer. ¹⁷ The Lord your God is God of all gods and Lord of all lords. He is the great God, who is strong and ·wonderful [awesome]. He does not ·take sides [show favoritism/partiality], and he will not ·be talked into doing evil [take a bribe]. ¹⁸ He ·helps [grants justice to] orphans and widows, and he loves ·foreigners [resident aliens] and gives them food and clothes. ¹⁹ You also must love ·foreigners [resident aliens], because you were ·foreigners [resident aliens] in Egypt. ²⁰ ·Respect [Fear] the Lord your God and serve him. ·Be loyal [Cling] to him and ·make your promises in [swear by] his name. ²¹ He is the one you should praise; he is your God, who has done great and ·wonderful [awesome] things for you, which you have seen with your own eyes. ²² There were only seventy of your ·ancestors [fathers] when they went down to Egypt [Gen. 46:26; Ex. 1:5], and now the Lord your God has made you as many as the stars in the sky [Gen. 15:5; 22:19].