Deuteronomy 31 Summary

Moses, now 120 years old, addresses all Israel acknowledging that he will not cross the Jordan, and he exhorts the people and Joshua to be strong and courageous because the LORD will go before them to defeat the nations of Canaan. He writes the law and entrusts it to the Levitical priests and elders, commanding that it be read publicly before all Israel every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles. The LORD summons Moses and Joshua to the tabernacle, appears in a pillar of cloud, and foretells that Israel will forsake the covenant after entering the land, prompting Him to command Moses to write a song as a perpetual witness against Israel's future rebellion. Moses finishes writing the law, instructs the Levites to place the book beside the ark of the covenant, gathers the elders and officers to hear his warning of coming corruption, and then recites the words of the song before the entire congregation.