Fear the LORD
Deuteronomy 10:12-22
Deu.10.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ועתה: CONJ
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מה: PRON,int
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- שאל: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- מעמך: PREP+PRON,2ms
- כי: CONJ
- אם: CONJ
- ליראה: VERB,qal,inf
- את: PRT,acc
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- ללכת: VERB,qal,inf
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- דרכיו: NOUN,f,pl,abs,3ms
- ולאהבה: CONJ+VERB,qal,inf
- אתו: PRON,3,m,sg,acc
- ולעבד: CONJ+VERB,qal,inf
- את: PRT,acc
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לבבך: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- ובכל: CONJ+PREP
- נפשך: NOUN,f,sg,abs,2,m
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 6:5 (verbal): Commands to love the LORD with all your heart, soul and strength — closely echoes Deut 10:12's call to love and serve God with all heart and soul.
- Deuteronomy 11:13 (verbal): Uses near-identical language ('if you will hearken... to love the LORD your God and serve him with all your heart and with all your soul'), a direct parallel in the Deuteronomic exhortation tradition.
- Joshua 22:5 (verbal): Joshua urges the people to 'love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways' and to keep his commandments — a concise restatement of the same obligations found in Deut 10:12.
- Micah 6:8 (structural): Opens with the rhetorical question 'what does the LORD require of you?' and answers with a brief ethical summons (act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with God), structurally and thematically paralleling Deut 10:12's question-and-answer listing of duties.
- 1 Samuel 12:24 (thematic): Samuel exhorts Israel to 'fear the LORD and serve him in truth with all your heart,' echoing Deut 10:12's paired summons to fear/serve God wholeheartedly.
Alternative generated candidates
- And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul?
- And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
Deu.10.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- לשמר: VERB,qal,inf
- את: PRT,acc
- מצות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ואת: CONJ
- חקתיו: NOUN,f,pl,abs,3,m,sg
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אנכי: PRON,1,sg
- מצוך: VERB,piel,part,1,sg,obj:2,m,sg
- היום: NOUN,m,sg,def
- לטוב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לך: PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 6:1-2 (verbal): Repeats the formula of commandments/statutes/rules to be taught and kept and gives the purpose (to fear the LORD and live) — close verbal and functional parallel to keeping God's statutes “for your good.”
- Deuteronomy 11:8-9 (thematic): Commands Israel to keep the LORD’s commandments and links obedience to entering, possessing, and living securely in the land — echoes the purpose-language of Deut 10:13 (obeying for Israel’s welfare).
- Deuteronomy 4:40 (verbal): Explicitly urges keeping God's statutes and commandments so that it may go well with you and your children, closely mirroring the ‘for your good’ rationale of Deut 10:13.
- Leviticus 18:5 (verbal): “You shall keep my statutes and my rules…by doing them a person shall live” — similar phrasing (keep statutes/rules) and a stated benefit (life/well‑being) that parallels Deut 10:13’s purpose statement.
- Deuteronomy 30:16 (thematic): Ties choosing and obeying God’s commandments to life, prosperity, and blessing — thematically parallel in presenting obedience as for Israel’s good and life.
Alternative generated candidates
- To keep the commandments of the LORD and his statutes which I command you today for your good.
- to keep the commandments of the LORD and his statutes, which I command you this day, for your good;
Deu.10.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הן: PART
- ליהוה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ושמי: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,construct
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- וכל: CONJ+PRON,indef
- אשר: PRON,rel
- בה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Psalm 24:1 (thematic): Affirms God's ownership of the earth and its contents (‘The earth is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof’), echoing Deut 10:14's claim of divine possession.
- Nehemiah 9:6 (verbal): Uses near-verbatim language ('thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein') in a confession of God as Creator and owner.
- 1 Chronicles 29:11–12 (verbal): Declares that all in heaven and earth belongs to the LORD ('for all things come of thee... for all that is in heaven and in earth is thine'), closely paralleling the language and theme of divine possession.
- Psalm 89:11 (verbal): Proclaims 'The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine,' a direct verbal resonance with Deut 10:14's affirmation of God's ownership of heaven(s) and earth.
- Isaiah 66:1 (allusion): Presents God’s transcendence over heaven and earth ('Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool'), thematically echoing the sovereignty and cosmic ownership asserted in Deut 10:14.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, to the LORD your God belong the heavens and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in them.
- behold, to the LORD your God belong the heavens and the heaven of heavens, the earth and all that is in it.
Deu.10.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- רק: PRT
- באבתיך: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss2ms
- חשק: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- לאהבה: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- אותם: PRON,3,m,pl,obj
- ויבחר: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- בזרעם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss3mp
- אחריהם: PREP,3,m,pl
- בכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- מכל: PREP
- העמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- כיום: ADV
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
Parallels
- Deut.7.6-8 (verbal): Speaks of Israel as a people chosen and holy above all nations and explains that the LORD loved and chose them because of his covenant with the patriarchs—close verbal and thematic parallel about divine choice.
- Deut.4.37 (verbal): Explicitly states that the LORD loved the fathers and chose their offspring, echoing the language and idea of God's elective love for Israel's ancestors and their seed.
- Deut.9.5 (thematic): Affirms Israel’s chosenness is due to the LORD’s purposes and promises to the patriarchs rather than Israel’s righteousness—provides theological context for why God 'chose' their descendants.
- Exod.19.5-6 (structural): Presents the covenantal formulation of Israel as God’s prized/peculiar possession and a kingdom of priests, paralleling the covenantal idea of divine selection found in Deut.10:15.
- Ps.135:4 (verbal): Declares that the LORD has chosen Jacob and Israel as his special treasure, using language that echoes Deut.10:15’s assertion of God’s elective love for Israel.
Alternative generated candidates
- Only it was because the LORD loved your fathers that he chose their offspring after them— you above all peoples, as it is this day.
- Yet the LORD took pleasure in your fathers to love them, and he chose their offspring after them—he has chosen you from among all the peoples, as is now the case.
Deu.10.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ומלתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- ערלת: NOUN,f,sg,cons
- לבבכם: NOUN,m,sg,poss
- וערפכם: NOUN,m,sg,poss
- לא: PART_NEG
- תקשו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- עוד: ADV
Parallels
- Deut.30.6 (verbal): Uses the same circumcision-of-the-heart imagery; Deut 10:16 commands inward circumcision, while 30:6 promises the LORD will circumcise the heart of his people—continuing the theme of internal transformation.
- Jer.4.4 (verbal): A prophetic echo: 'Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart'—virtually the same metaphorical language calling for repentance and removal of hardness.
- Jer.9.25-26 (thematic): Contrasts outward physical circumcision with inward condition—God indicts those 'uncircumcised in heart,' developing the Deuteronomic theme that true covenant faithfulness is internal, not merely ritual.
- Rom.2.29 (verbal): Paul appropriates the Deuteronomic metaphor: 'circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit,' reinterpreting Israel's sign as spiritual inward reality rather than merely physical rite.
- Col.2.11 (allusion): Speaks of a 'circumcision made without hands'—an allusive use of the circumcision-of-the-heart motif to describe the believer's inward transformation in Christ.
Alternative generated candidates
- Circumcise, then, the foreskin of your heart, and no longer be stubborn.
- Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.
Deu.10.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
- הוא: PRON,3,m,sg
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- האלהים: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ואדני: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- האדנים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- האל: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הגדל: ADJ,m,sg,def
- הגבר: ADJ,m,sg,def
- והנורא: ADJ,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- לא: PART_NEG
- ישא: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- פנים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ולא: CONJ
- יקח: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,sg
- שחד: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Deut.16.19 (verbal): Repeats the commands against showing partiality and taking bribes ('you shall not show partiality; and you shall not take a bribe'), echoing Deut 10:17's affirmation that God 'shows no partiality and accepts no bribe.'
- 2 Chron.19.7 (verbal): Jehoshaphat's judicial charge declares that the LORD shows no partiality nor takes a bribe—language that closely parallels the moral attribute ascribed to God in Deut 10:17.
- Job 34:19 (thematic): Elihu (speaking of God's justice) asserts that God 'shows no partiality to princes,' paralleling the theme of God's impartiality in Deut 10:17.
- Dan.2:47 (verbal): The Babylonian king confesses 'Truly your God is God of gods,' using the same exalted title ('God of gods') found in Deut 10:17 to acknowledge God's supremacy.
- Rev.19:16 (verbal): The exalted title 'King of kings and Lord of lords' in Revelation parallels Deut 10:17's 'God of gods and Lord of lords,' showing continuity of the supreme divine sovereignty motif in Scripture.
Alternative generated candidates
- For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, the mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and takes no bribe.
- For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, the mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribe.
Deu.10.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- משפט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יתום: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואלמנה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ואהב: CONJ+VERB,qal,ptc,m,sg
- גר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לתת: VERB,qal,inf
- לו: PRON,3,m,sg
- לחם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ושמלה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 22:22-24 (verbal): Explicit prohibition against afflicting widows and orphans; emphasizes God's concern and wrath if they are mistreated, closely matching Deut 10:18's focus on justice for the fatherless and widow.
- Deuteronomy 24:19-21 (structural): Law prescribing provisions for the stranger, the orphan, and the widow (gleanings left for them); complements Deut 10:18's call to care for the vulnerable by providing food and clothing.
- Psalm 68:5 (Heb. 68:6) (allusion): Describes God as 'a father of the fatherless and protector of widows,' echoing Deut 10:18's attribution of justice and loving care for orphans and widows to God's character.
- Isaiah 1:17 (thematic): Prophetic injunction to 'learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow,' reflecting the social-justice ethic embodied in Deut 10:18.
- James 1:27 (thematic): New Testament formulation of 'pure religion' as visiting orphans and widows in their affliction, echoing the Torah's emphasis (as in Deut 10:18) on practical care for orphans and widows.
Alternative generated candidates
- He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing.
- He does justice for the orphan and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.
Deu.10.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואהבתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- הגר: NOUN,f,sg,def,prop
- כי: CONJ
- גרים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- הייתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
Parallels
- Leviticus 19:34 (verbal): Almost identical command: the resident foreigner is to be loved as yourself, with the explicit reason 'for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.'
- Exodus 22:21 (verbal): Directly parallels the injunction toward the stranger: 'You shall not wrong a stranger... for you were strangers in the land of Egypt,' sharing the same motivation and phrasing.
- Exodus 23:9 (verbal): Reiterates the reason for fair treatment of sojourners: 'You shall not oppress a sojourner... for you know the heart of a sojourner, for you were sojourners in Egypt,' echoing Deut.10:19's rationale.
- Matthew 25:35 (thematic): New Testament application of hospitality to outsiders: 'I was a stranger and you welcomed me,' used as a criterion for righteous behavior toward those in need, echoing the concern for strangers in Deut.10:19.
Alternative generated candidates
- You shall therefore love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
- You shall love the sojourner, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
Deu.10.20 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- את: PRT,acc
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- תירא: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- אתו: PRON,3,m,sg,acc
- תעבד: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- ובו: CONJ+PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- תדבק: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- ובשמו: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+3ms
- תשבע: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Deut.6:13 (verbal): Nearly identical wording: 'Fear the LORD your God; serve him, and by his name swear' — a direct verbal repetition of the command found in Deut 10:20.
- Deut.10:12-13 (thematic): Close context: summarizes what the LORD requires — to fear the LORD your God, walk in his ways, love and serve him — echoing the demands of Deut 10:20.
- Josh.24:14-15 (thematic): Joshua's covenant summons: 'Now therefore fear the LORD and serve him... choose this day whom you will serve'—repeats the call to fear and serve YHWH and to be devoted to him.
- Ps.2:11 (verbal): 'Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling' — a compact verbal parallel linking service and fear of the LORD as fitting responses to his rule.
- Matt.4:10 (quotation): Jesus' reply to Satan: 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.'—an explicit New Testament citation/allusion to the Deuteronomic command to fear/serve God.
Alternative generated candidates
- You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve him and cling to him, and by his name you shall swear.
- You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve him and cling to him, and by his name you shall swear.
Deu.10.21 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הוא: PRON,3,m,sg
- תהלתך: NOUN,f,sg,abs+2ms
- והוא: CONJ+PRON,3,m,sg
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- אשר: PRON,rel
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אתך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- הגדלת: NOUN,f,pl,def
- ואת: CONJ
- הנוראת: NOUN,f,pl,def
- האלה: DEM,pl
- אשר: PRON,rel
- ראו: VERB,qal,impv,2,pl
- עיניך: NOUN,f,pl,abs+2ms
Parallels
- Exodus 15:11-12 (thematic): Song of Moses praises YHWH for unique, wondrous deeds (Who is like you…who did glorious things?), echoing Deut 10:21’s affirmation that God is Israel’s praise because of the great acts their eyes have seen.
- Deuteronomy 7:21 (verbal): Within Deuteronomy the description of the LORD as a 'great and awesome' God who works signs parallels the language and theological point of 10:21 about the great and awesome things God has done for Israel.
- Deuteronomy 4:34-39 (structural): Deuteronomy elsewhere recalls YHWH’s unparalleled wonders and commands recognition that 'the LORD is God'—the same structural argument in 10:21 linking God’s acts to Israel’s confession and praise.
- Psalm 78:4 (thematic): This psalmic summary urges telling the next generation the 'wondrous deeds' and 'glorious acts' God performed in Israel’s sight, paralleling Deut 10:21’s focus on God as the object of Israel’s praise because of visible mighty acts.
- Psalm 86:10 (verbal): The declaration 'For you are great and do wondrous things; you alone are God' closely echoes Deut 10:21’s coupling of God’s greatness/wondrous acts with the confession that he is Israel’s God and praise.
Alternative generated candidates
- He is your praise; he is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen.
- He is your praise; he is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen.
Deu.10.22 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בשבעים: PREP+NUM,m,pl
- נפש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ירדו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- אבתיך: NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss:2,m
- מצרימה: NOUN,prop,pl,m,abs
- ועתה: CONJ
- שמך: NOUN,m,sg,cs,2,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- ככוכבי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,cs
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- לרב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Genesis 46:27 (verbal): Explicit statement that the house of Jacob who went into Egypt numbered seventy — the same tradition of 'seventy' ancestors cited in Deut 10:22.
- Exodus 1:5 (verbal): Affirms that all the souls of Jacob who came to Egypt were seventy, a parallel report of the ancestral number.
- Deuteronomy 1:10 (verbal): Within Deuteronomy itself: the people are described as multiplied 'as the stars of heaven' — the same cosmic image of Israel's multitude used in 10:22.
- Genesis 22:17 (thematic): God's promise to Abraham that his descendants will be 'as the stars of the heavens' — the patriarchal source of the star imagery applied to Israel's numerous offspring.
- Acts 7:14 (allusion): Stephen, recounting Israel's history, gives the number of Jacob's family who went to Egypt (threescore and fifteen in his text), echoing the tradition of the seventy/so-many ancestors mentioned in Deut 10:22.
Alternative generated candidates
- Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy in all, and now the LORD your God has made you as the stars of the heavens in number.
- Your fathers went down into Egypt with seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you like the stars of heaven in number.
And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul?
To keep the commandments of the LORD and his statutes, which I command you today for your good.
Behold, to the LORD your God belong the heavens and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in them.
Only the LORD set his heart to love your fathers; and in their offspring he chose you above all the peoples, as it is this day.
Circumcise, then, the foreskin of your heart, and do not be stubborn any longer.
For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords—the great, the mighty, and the awesome—who shows no partiality and accepts no bribe.
He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and he loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing.
You shall love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear.
He is your praise; he is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen.
Your fathers went down to Egypt—seventy persons—and now the LORD your God has made your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven.