Moses sits down for a chat with the Israelites and tells them to follow the rules just as they were given.
2 You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you.
Bibles, Harper . NRSV Bible with the Apocrypha (p. 429). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
He says that he will teach them all of the statutes and ordinances to obey when they enter the promised land. Apparently, if they follow them diligently it will make people of the land think that they are really cool because they have all these rules. Yeah, having lots of rules is what I consider cool.
Then it goes into a lot of “remember when…” about the first time that they heard God speak, and a reference to making a false idol, and God being mad at Moses because of them.
They are warned not to become complacent because then they will be scattered around and will worship and serve other, man-made gods, but because God is merciful, he will forgive them and remember the covenant. However, he’s not merciful enough to not hold a grudge against Moses and will still prevent him from crossing the Jordan.
This is basically a lot of preamble for what’s coming next chapter, which is yet another reading of the Ten Commandments. This chapter ends with Moses picking the three refuge cities east of the Jordan.
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