The LORD will make the rain of your land powder and dust: in a vivid figure of speech, instead of rain from the sky, dust and sand will come down on the earth beneath. Good News Translation “duststorms and sandstorms” sacrifices the beauty of the original for clarity of meaning.

Until you are destroyed: the picture that has been given is of total destruction, wiping out the Israelite people (see verses 20, 21).

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

This verse predicts the same disasters and uses the same vocabulary as in verse 36.

Will scatter you may also be rendered as “will cause you to scatter,” or even “will cause your enemies to take you away to every nation on earth.”

All peoples, from one end of the earth to the other: the exaggerated language should not be softened in translation.

Gods, of wood and stone: see the comment at 4.28.

Which neither you nor your fathers have known: this may also be expressed as “neither you nor your ancestors have ever worshiped before” (Good News Translation).

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

This verse sounds like a proverbial saying that the writer did not intend to be part of what Moses said. But there is no way, other than placing it within parentheses, to indicate this. It is better to translate it as part of Moses’ discourse. It combines with 30.11-14 as a frame for 30.1-10. It will be helpful to begin this verse with “Moses said” or “Then Moses continued to speak.”

The secret things belong to the LORD our God: this pertains primarily to future events, but in a general way it states that there are matters that human beings cannot know; God alone knows. So Good News Translation has “there are some things that the LORD our God has kept secret.”

The things that are revealed: that is, God has made some things known, primarily, in this context, the covenant and its conditions. In many languages it will be helpful to make the subject or agent of the action clear; for example, “but he [God] has revealed his law to us and our descendants.”

Belong to us and to our children for ever: here us are the people of Israel; our children are their descendants.

We may do all the words of this law: see 1.5; 4.2; 6.25.

A possible alternative translation model for this verse is:

• The LORD our [inclusive] God has not revealed certain things to us and our descendants; but he has revealed his law to us. We and our descendants must obey it forever.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

My anger will be kindled against them: see 29.20, 23, 27-28.

Hide my face from them: that is, God will not look on them with love and concern; he will, in effect, withdraw his help from them (see the figure in Psa 13.1; 27.9).

They will be devoured: this means they will be destroyed by God’s anger, which will “eat” them up.

Many evils and troubles will come upon them: such as famines, droughts, epidemics, and hostile enemies. Translators should use a general statement; for example, “Many terrible disasters will come upon them” (Good News Translation), or “I will send disasters and sufferings that…” (Contemporary English Version).

In that day: the day God starts punishing them (see the phrase at the beginning of the verse). The more general statement “When that happens” (Good News Translation) is not as good as “on that day.”

Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us? This is not a question for information; it is a way of stating that they know their troubles are God’s punishment for their sins: God has abandoned them. So we may translate “On that day they will realize that they are suffering because I [God] have abandoned them.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

They shall be wasted … and devoured: the two verbs have the same meaning, complete destruction; the first verb is found only here in the Old Testament. Other ways to translate this are “They [or, You] will die from…” (Good News Translation) or “They [or, You] will be destroyed by….”

Hunger … burning heat … poisonous pestilence: it is not at once apparent what burning heat and poisonous pestilence stand for; they may be ways of speaking of droughts and poisonous snakes, or of fevers and deadly plagues. There is no way to be sure (see 28.21-22; Psa 78.49). Good News Translation is a good model to follow.

The teeth of beasts … the venom of crawling things in the dust: these are wild animals that will devour them, and poisonous snakes that will kill them. Again Good News Translation has a good alternative model.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Good News Translation shows how the first and second parts of this verse hang together; the Levites showed greater loyalty and dedication to Yahweh than to their parents, siblings, and children. Simply to translate all lines as complete, independent statements fails to bring out the meaning of the verse.

Who said of his father and mother, ‘I regard them not’: in many languages there is no need to reproduce the direct speech of the Hebrew text; in a number of cases it will be better to use indirect discourse (see Good News Translation). In all cases the plural forms should be used: “fathers and mothers [or, parents], brothers and sisters [or, siblings], sons and daughters [or, children].” The background for this appears to be the incident narrated in Exo 32.35-39, in which the Levites slaughtered their own people at the command of Yahweh. To regard is to have feeling for, or to be concerned with. In idiomatic English this may be expressed as “They mean nothing to me.” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy preserves the same structure for all three, to good effect:

Who said to his parents: “I have never seen you,”
and to his brothers: “I don’t know you,”
and to his children: “I don’t know who you are.”

Either this or Good News Translation can serve as a good model for the translator. In English brothers is exclusive, so “brothers and sisters” should be used. New Revised Standard Version “his kin” includes all relatives, and not simply blood brothers and sisters.

Disowned … ignored: these terms have the same meaning.

They observed thy word: a reader of Revised Standard Version does not know who they are. It refers, of course, to the Levites.

Observed … kept: these terms have the same meaning.

Thy word … thy covenant: these are parallel but not identical; word is a general term for God’s message, God’s laws and commands, and covenant refers to the special relationship between Yahweh and the people of Israel.

We may reverse the order of the clauses in this verse and translate as follows:

• Obeying the LORD’s commands and keeping the agreement that he made with Israel was more important to you than the life of your father or mother, or brothers or sisters, or your own children.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

All the mighty power and all the great and terrible deeds: the first expression refers to Moses’ power to perform signs and wonders; the second describes the deeds themselves. Translators may say something like the following:

• How great was his power, how mighty [or, awesome] and terrifying the deeds that Moses performed in the presence of the Israelites!

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

When you reap: this would be done with a scythe or sickle. We may say simply “cut down your grain.”

Your harvest: in verses 19-21 the main agricultural products are cited. These are grain (wheat or barley), olive trees (for the production of olive oil), and vineyard (for the production of wine). For comments on these crops see 7.13.

A sheaf consists of stalks of ripe grain that have been cut and tied into a bundle, with the heads of grain at one end.

For the sojourner, …: the Septuagint adds “the poor” at the beginning of the list here. For sojourner see 1.16.

The LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands: see 14.29.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .