Deuteronomy 31:26 (DRB)

Passage

Take this book, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God: that it may be there for a testimony against thee.

Nearby Context

Deuteronomy 31:24 Therefore after Moses had wrote the words of this law in a volume, and finished it:

Deuteronomy 31:25 He commanded the Levites, who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying:

Deuteronomy 31:26 Take this book, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God: that it may be there for a testimony against thee.

Deuteronomy 31:27 For I know thy obstinacy, and thy most stiff neck. While I am yet living, and going in with you, you have always been rebellious against the Lord: how much more when I shall be dead?

Deuteronomy 31:28 Gather unto me all the ancients of your tribes, and your doctors, and I will speak these words in their hearing, and will call heaven and earth to witness against them.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "take", "book", "side", "covenant", "lord", "testimony", "against", and "thee". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "take" and "book", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "He commanded the Levites who carried the..." into verse 27's "For I know thy obstinacy and thy...", so "take" and "book" belong inside that flow. In Deuteronomy context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "take" and "book" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.