Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("promise")

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Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, yakusokus-are-ru (約束される) or “promise” is used.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on Deuteronomy 27:3

All the words of this law: notice that Good News Translation has “all these laws and teachings” (see 1.5). This assumes that all the laws given in Deuteronomy have been recorded and assembled.

When you pass over: there is considerable repetition in verses 1-4; the crossing of the Jordan is mentioned three times, and in a number of languages this information may need be supplied only once (see the alternative translation model for verses 2-4 below).

A land flowing with milk and honey: see 6.3.

As the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you: that is, as the LORD promised their ancestors that he would give them and their descendants the land of Canaan (see 1.8; 26.15).

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 .