Essay for Deuteronomy 30:1
וְהָיָה֩ כִֽי־יָבֹ֨אוּ עָלֶ֜יךָ כָּל־הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה הַבְּרָכָה֙ וְהַקְּלָלָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֖תִּי לְפָנֶ֑יךָ וַהֲשֵׁבֹתָ֙ אֶל־לְבָבֶ֔ךָ בְּכָל־הַגּוֹיִ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֧ר הִדִּיחֲךָ֛ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ שָֽׁמָּה׃
And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt bethink thyself among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,
The Five Books of Moses, by Everett Fox
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The Five Books of Moses, by Everett Fox
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The Five Books of Moses, by Everett Fox
A chapter that is usually taken to be a late addition, 30 envisions a time after the curses have fallen upon the people of Israel and they finally return to God. This restorative vision is followed by Moshe’s turning to his audience and finishing his exhortations with a rhetorically moving appeal (vv.11–20). In this section the key root is “life,” occurring six times. It is a fitting ending to Moshe’s regular speeches. Also noteworthy is the sevenfold use of Heb. shuv (“return / restore”).
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