Deuteronomy 31:13
And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it. And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.
God's law was to be read aloud in public before the whole assembled community. Its stated purpose was that the children who had not yet known anything of it might hear it and learn to fear the Lord their God. That reverent fear learned by hearing was to continue as long as they lived in the land beyond the Jordan which they were going over to possess. The repeated public hearing was also for parents and the other assembled adults, so that the precepts would stay familiar to them and they would learn their duty and obey God. In this way training the next generation was made an ongoing part of remembering and obeying the law, laying on parents the requirement to train their children to love and fear God and keep His commandments.
Continued life and prosperity in the land depended on obeying the law thus heard, while disobedience brought death. This family instruction also embraced welcoming outsiders who acknowledge God into the community, that they might share in spiritual blessings, learn God's law, and glorify Him by obedience. The public reading was neglected during the captivity, was restored when Ezra read to the people after the return to Jerusalem, yet by the time of Christ many had again become ignorant of God's Word.