3. So I made a chest out of acacia wood, and I chiselled two flat stones like the ones I broke. Then I carried the stones up the mountain,
4. where the Lord wrote the Ten Commandments on them, just as he had done the first time. The commandments were exactly what he had announced from the fire, when you were gathered at the mountain.After the Lord returned the stones to me,
5. I took them down the mountainside and put them in the chest, just as he had commanded. And they are still there.
6. Later we set up camp at the wells belonging to the descendants of Jaakan. Then we moved on and camped at Moserah, where Aaron died and was buried, and his son Eleazar became the priest.
7. Next, we camped at Gudgodah and then at Jotbathah, where there are flowing streams.
8. After I put the two stones in the sacred chest, the Lord chose the tribe of Levi, not only to carry the chest, but also to serve as his priests at the place of worship and to bless the other tribes in his name. And they still do these things.
9. The Lord promised that he would always provide for the tribe of Levi, and that's why he won't give them any land, when he divides it among the other tribes.
10. When I had taken the second set of stones up the mountain, I spent forty days and nights there, just as I had done before. Once again, the Lord answered my prayer and did not destroy you.
11. Instead, he told me, “Moses, get ready to lead the people into the land that I promised their ancestors.”
12. People of Israel, what does the Lord your God want from you? The Lord wants you to respect and follow him, to love and serve him with all your heart and soul,
13. and to obey his laws and teachings that I am giving you today. Do this, and all will go well for you.
14. Everything belongs to the Lord your God, not only the earth and everything on it, but also the sky and the highest heavens.
15. Yet the Lord loved your ancestors and wanted them to belong to him. So he chose them and their descendants rather than any other nation, and today you are still his people.