Moses's final speeches before entering the land.
Explore the book of Deuteronomy - Moses's final speeches, a renewed covenant, and the view of the promised land from Mount Nebo.
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ReadA new generation hears the law restated before crossing into Canaan.
Learn More"Hear, O Israel" - a central declaration of faith and loyalty.
Learn MoreA final view of the promised land from Mount Nebo.
Learn MoreDeuteronomy's name comes from a Greek phrase meaning "second law," reflecting its structure as a series of speeches Moses delivers to the Israelites on the plains of Moab, just before they cross into Canaan without him. Addressed to a generation that had mostly grown up in the wilderness rather than in Egypt, the speeches retell the story of the exodus and restate the law given at Sinai, adapting it for a settled life in the land ahead rather than a wandering camp.
Chapter 6 contains the Shema, "Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one," which became the central declaration of faith in Jewish worship and is still recited daily in traditional practice today. Deuteronomy repeatedly frames the covenant as a choice, most memorably urging the people to "choose life," and it closes with blessings promised for faithfulness and warnings against turning away, reflecting a covenant renewal ceremony similar in form to treaties known from the wider ancient Near East.
In the book's final chapters, Moses commissions Joshua as his successor and climbs Mount Nebo, where he is shown the promised land he will not personally enter, a consequence tied earlier in the Torah to an incident of disobedience during the wilderness years. Deuteronomy closes with his death and a tribute calling him a prophet unlike any other Israel had known, a fitting end to the five books traditionally attributed to him and a bridge into the historical narratives that follow in Joshua.