§1Ἐλάλησε Μωϋσῆς πρὸς πάντας υἱοὑς Ἰσραήλ κατὰ πάντα ὅσα ἐνετείλατο Κύριος αὐτῷ.
Moses spoke to all the sons of Israel according to all that the Lord had commanded him.
Ἐπειδὴ ὁ μὲν Θεὸς τὴν δύναμιν ἀπεκάλυπτεν· ὁ δὲ προφήτης τῇ ἑαυτοῦ γλώσσῃ ἐκέχρητο πρὸς παράστασιν τῶν δεδηλωμένων.
For while God revealed the power, the prophet used his own tongue to represent the things that had been shown.
Κίνησις οὖν λέγεται ἡ προφητικὴ φωνὴ, οἷα παριστῶσα τὰ ὑπὸ Θεοῦ εἰρημένα.
Therefore, the prophetic voice is called a "movement," as it represents the things spoken by God.
§2Καὶ εἶπα πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ. Οὐχ ἀπλῶς ὁ Μωῦσῆς φησιν, « εἶπον ὑμῖν» ἀλλʼ ἐπειδὴ ἔμελλεν αὐτοῦ ἀναχωρήσαντος διαδέχεσθαι αὐτὸν Ἰησοῦς ὁ τοῦ Ναυῆ, οὐκ ἄτοπόν φησι τὸ πρᾶγμα, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑπόμενον.
"And I spoke to you at that time." Moses does not simply say, "I said to you," but because Joshua the son of Nun was to succeed him after his departure, he says that the matter is not absurd, but even natural.
Προλαβὼν γὰρ, φησὶ, παρεκάλεσα, καὶ, ὡς ἐπενεύσατε, ἐπέστησα κριτάς· ὥστε καὶ τῷ κατὰ προφητικὴν χάριν καὶ ὁδηγητικὴν διαδεχομένῳ με Ἰησοῦ τῷ τοῦ Ναυῆ πείθεσθε. §3Οὐ δυνήσομαι μόνος φέρειν ὑμᾶς. Καὶ τῶν προδευτάς.
For he says, "Having anticipated, I exhorted, and as you assented, I appointed judges; so that you should also obey Joshua the son of Nun, who succeeds me according to prophetic and guiding grace." "I shall not be able to bear you alone." And of the leaders.
§4Ἔδωκα τῷ Ῥουβὶμ καὶ τῷ Γάδ. Οἱ ὑποδεέστεροι τάχιον ἐν τῇ ἐπαγγελίᾳ γίνονται· οἱ δὲ ἐπιεικέστεροι βράδιον ἀπολαμβάνουσιν.
"I gave to Reuben and to Gad." The inferior ones enter into the promise more quickly, while the more excellent ones receive it more slowly.
Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ Μωῦσέως πρῶτοι εἰλήφασι τὴν κληρονομίαν· οἱ δὲ ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ὕστερον.
For those under Moses were the first to receive their inheritance, whereas those under Joshua received it later.
Ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ πάντων δικαίων λέγεται, οὐ τῶν τυχόντων· ὡς γὰρ ὁ Ἀπόστολός φησιν· « Οὗτοι πάντες μαρτυρηθέντες διὰ τῆς πίστεως οὐκ ἐκομίσαντο τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν, τοῦ Θεοῦ περὶ ἡμῶν κρεῖττόν τι προβλεψαμένου, ἵνα μὴ χωρὶς ἡμῶν τελειωθῶσιν. » §5Φωνὴν ῥημάτων ἣν ὑμεῖς ἠκούσατε, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς.
But this is also said concerning all the righteous, not just anyone; for as the Apostle says: "All these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us." "The voice of words which you heard," and so on.
Οὐχ ὅτι ὁρατὴ ἡ φωνὴ, οὐδʼ ὅτι φύσει φωνὴν ἔχει ὁ Θεός· τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ συνθέτου φύσεως ἂν εἴη·
Not because the voice is visible, nor because God by nature possesses a voice; for this would belong to a composite nature.
ἀλλʼ ἐπειδὴ καὶ αἱ σάλπιγγες, καὶ αἱ φωναὶ, ὡς αὐτὸς οἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς, ἐπετελοῦντο ἐκ τῆς τῶν ὁρωμένων συνεχείας δημιουργούμεναι στοιχείων· τοῦ πυρὸς λέγω καὶ τοῦ γνόφου·
Rather, it is because both the trumpets and the voices, as God himself knows, were brought about and created from the continuity of visible elements—I mean fire and dark gloom.
ὥστε καὶ ἀκούεται φωνὴ, καὶ οὐχ ὁρᾶται· ἀλλʼ οὗν ἐπὶ τῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ θαυμάτων καὶ ἡ φωνὴ ὁρᾶται.
Consequently, a voice is heard and not seen; and yet, in the case of God's wonders, even the voice is seen.
§6Καὶ ὤμοσεν ἴνα μὴ διαβῶτὸν Ἰορδάνηντοῦτον. Μωῦσῆς, μὴ δοξάσας τὸν Θεὸν ἐπὶ τοῦ λαοῦ, ἐκωλύθη παρελθεῖν μετʼ αὐτῶν, ἵνα μὴ ὅν ἐτίμων ζῶντα, ἐν θεῶν θεραπείαις τιμήσωσιν ἀπελθόντα.
"And he swore that I should not cross this Jordan." Moses, because he did not glorify God before the people, was prevented from crossing over with them, so that they might not worship him as a god after his departure, whom they had honored while he was alive.
Διὸ δὴ καὶ ἀποθανόντος ἀφανῆ τὸν τάφον ἐποίησεν.
For this very reason, when he died, He made his tomb unknown.
§7Διαμαρτύρομαι ὑμῖν σήμερον τόν τε οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν. Ὁ Θεὸς τοὺς αὐτὸν προσκυνοῦντας οὐ συγχωρῶν δαίμοσι συνάπτεσθαι, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἅπαξ αὐτὸν ἐγνωκότας ἐκτὸς εἶναι κελεύων τῆς πρὸς ἐκείνους διαθέσεως, καὶ παραζηλῶν ἐν τῇ ἀποστασίᾳ τῶν λαῶν, τὰς μελλούσας αὐτοῖς προλέγει τιμωρίας διὰ τὴν πονηρίαν τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων αὐτῶν.
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day." God, not permitting those who worship Him to be joined to demons, but commanding those who have once known Him to remain outside of any disposition toward them, and being jealous over the apostasy of the peoples, foretells the punishments that will come upon them because of the wickedness of their practices.
§8Ἐξ οἴκου δουλείας. Καὶ γὰρ ἀληθῶς τὰ σωματικὰ πράγματα καὶ ὑλικὰ, οἶκός ἐστι δουλείας, ὥσπερ ἐκ τῶν ἐναντίων οἶκός ἐστιν ἐλευθερίας.
"Out of the house of slavery." For indeed, bodily and material things are a house of slavery, just as, conversely, [spiritual things] are a house of freedom.
§9Ὑμεῖς γάρ ἐστε ὀλιγοστοὶ παρὰ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. Καλῶς τοῖς ἀπὸ τῆς μερίδος εἴρηται· « Ὀλι γοστοί ἐστε παρὰ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. » Συγγενῶς τε τὸ, « Ὀλίγοι οἱ σωζόμενοι, » καὶ τὸ, « Ἀγωνίζεσθε εἰσελθεῖν διὰ τῆς στενῆς πύλης. »
"For you are few in number among all the nations." It is beautifully said to those of the portion: "You are few in number among all the nations." And closely related is: "Few are those who are saved," and: "Strive to enter through the narrow gate."