Deuteronomy 34
The full text of Deuteronomy 34 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
1 Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the LORD showed him the whole land—from Gilead to Dan,
2 all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea,
3 the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar.
4 Then the LORD said to him, "This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, 'I will give it to your descendants.' I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it."
5 And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the LORD had said.
6 He buried him in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is.
7 Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.
8 The Israelites grieved for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days, until the time of weeping and mourning was over.
9 Now Joshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. So the Israelites listened to him and did what the LORD had commanded Moses.
10 Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,
11 who did all those signs and wonders the LORD sent him to do in Egypt—to Pharaoh and to all his officials and to his whole land.
12 For no one has ever shown the mighty power or performed the awesome deeds that Moses did in the sight of all Israel.
Translation notes (6)
- Deuteronomy 34:4a This verse is the poignant close of the theme of God's promise to the patriarchs. Moses sees with his own eyes the land sworn to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (see Genesis 12:7; Deuteronomy 1:8) but, because of the judgment at Meribah (Deuteronomy 32:51), he does not enter it.
- Deuteronomy 34:5a "The servant of the LORD" translates the Hebrew 'eved YHWH, which is a great honorific title for Moses and later for others. The phrase "as the LORD had said" is literally "by the mouth of the LORD," which Jewish tradition tenderly understood as "by the kiss of the LORD."
- Deuteronomy 34:6a The subject of "buried" is not stated and is ambiguous in Hebrew; it can be read as "he [the LORD] buried him" (the traditional and most natural reading here) or impersonally as "he was buried." The unknown grave ("no one knows... to this day") prevents any worship of Moses' tomb; the dispute over his body is mentioned in Jude 9.
- Deuteronomy 34:9a The phrase "filled with the spirit of wisdom" because Moses had laid hands on him marks the orderly transfer of authority. The laying on of hands as a way of commissioning someone for service is a practice found later in Scripture (see Numbers 27:18-23) and in the New Testament ordination practice.
- Deuteronomy 34:10a This closing testimony declares Moses unparalleled among Israel's prophets, stating that he was "whom the LORD knew face to face" (see Exodus 33:11; Numbers 12:6-8). This stands in deliberate tension with the promise of "a prophet like me" (Deuteronomy 18:15-18). The question of whether and how that promise is fulfilled—whether through a line of prophets, a single coming prophet, or Christ as understood in the New Testament (Acts 3:22-23; 7:37; John 1:21)—is theologically important and is not decided in this draft, but is reserved for further review.
- Deuteronomy 34:12a The book ends using phrases often used to describe the exodus—"the mighty hand" and "great and awesome deeds" (hayad hachazaqah... hammora' hagadol). These phrases are now applied to Moses' ministry "in the sight of all Israel," confirming the Torah with the unmatched importance of Moses, its mediator.
About this translation
The Trinity Bible Version (TBV) is Trinity Bible's own translation of Scripture, made directly from the original Hebrew rather than revised from an older English Bible. Completed in 2026, it is the most modern English Bible translation available, and it is exclusive to Trinity Bible. Reading the TBV here on the web is free — the full study edition, with original-language tools and notes on every verse, lives in the Trinity Bible app.
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