No Idols
Deuteronomy 4:15-31
Deu.4.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ונשמרתם: CONJ+VERB,nip,perf,2,m,pl
- מאד: ADV
- לנפשתיכם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+2,m,pl
- כי: CONJ
- לא: PART_NEG
- ראיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- כל: DET
- תמונה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ביום: PREP
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אליכם: PREP+PRON,2,pl
- בחרב: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מתוך: PREP
- האש: NOUN,f,sg,def
Parallels
- Exodus 20:4 (verbal): The explicit prohibition against making graven images — the same command echoed indirectly in Deut 4:15’s reminder that Israel saw no likeness when God spoke at Horeb.
- Deuteronomy 5:8 (quotation): A parallel formulation of the Decalogue’s ban on images within Deuteronomy; repeats the theme that God did not present a visible form when speaking to Israel.
- Exodus 33:20 (thematic): God’s declaration that no one may see His face and live corresponds to Deut 4:15’s insistence that Israel did not behold any form of God, underscoring divine invisibility and transcendence.
- Isaiah 40:18 (thematic): A rhetorical challenge about whom one can liken God to — stresses God’s incomparability and the futility of making an image, closely related to Deut 4:15’s warning against visual representations.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): A contrast between impotent, man-made idols and the living LORD; echoes the Deuteronomic concern that Israel must not rely on or fashion visible representations of God.
Alternative generated candidates
- Watch yourselves well for your lives; for you did not see any form on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire.
- Take utmost care for your lives, for you did not see any likeness on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire.
Deu.4.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- פן: CONJ
- תשחתון: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- ועשיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- פסל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תמונת: NOUN,f,sg,const
- כל: DET
- סמל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תבנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- זכר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- או: CONJ
- נקבה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 20:4-5 (quotation): Direct command in the Ten Commandments forbidding making graven images or likenesses of anything to worship, closely parallel in wording and intent.
- Deuteronomy 5:8 (quotation): Restatement of the Ten Commandments within Deuteronomy; repeats the prohibition against making images of any likeness (male or female).
- Leviticus 26:1 (verbal): Holiness-code prohibition against idols, sacred stones, and pillars—another legal formulation forbidding physical representations used in worship.
- Isaiah 42:8 (thematic): Theological basis against idolatry: God refuses to share his glory with carved images, underscoring why making images is forbidden.
- Romans 1:23 (allusion): New Testament depiction of idolatry as exchanging the glory of God for images made to resemble mortal man or animals, echoing the problem addressed in Deut 4:16.
Alternative generated candidates
- Lest you corrupt yourselves and make for yourselves a carved image, an idol, any molded likeness, male or female,
- Lest you corrupt yourselves and make for yourselves a carved image, the likeness of any form, male or female.
Deu.4.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- תבנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- בהמה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- תבנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- צפור: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כנף: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- תעוף: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- בשמים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 20:4-5 (quotation): The Decalogue's direct prohibition against making and bowing to carved images of any likeness of things in heaven or earth — closely parallels Deut 4:17's ban on images of beasts and birds.
- Deuteronomy 5:8 (quotation): Restatement of the Ten Commandments within Deuteronomy that repeats the prohibition against making graven images of animals and birds, mirroring Deut 4:17's wording.
- Exodus 34:17 (verbal): Prohibits making molten gods; a related legal prohibition against fashioning images for worship, thematically linked to the ban on animal and bird likenesses.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Denounces idols as lifeless, man-made objects that cannot speak or act — echoes the warning against worshiping images of beasts and birds as powerless creations.
- Isaiah 44:9-17 (thematic): Satirizes the craftsman who fashions idols from wood and then worships them; thematically parallels Deut 4:17's condemnation of image-making and idol worship (including animals/birds).
Alternative generated candidates
- the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the heavens,
- The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the heavens,
Deu.4.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- תבנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- רמש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- באדמה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- תבנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- דגה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- במים: PREP
- מתחת: PREP
- לארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 20:4 (quotation): Direct parallel and source for Deut 4:18's prohibition: the Decalogue forbids making graven images of anything in heaven, on earth, or in the waters under the earth.
- Deuteronomy 5:8 (quotation): Repetition of the same command in Deuteronomy's restatement of the Ten Commandments, echoing the prohibition against crafting images of creatures on earth and in the waters.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Critiques the futility of idols made by human hands (they have mouths but do not speak), thematically opposing worship of crafted images such as creeping things or fish.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (thematic): Condemns the practice of making and worshiping carved images, portraying idol‑making as learned pagan practice—echoing Deut 4:18's ban on images of animals and fish.
- Isaiah 44:9-20 (thematic): Satirizes idol‑makers who fashion gods from wood and other materials; connects to Deut 4:18 by exposing the folly of producing and worshiping images of creatures.
Alternative generated candidates
- the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that are in the waters under the earth.
- the likeness of any creeping thing that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters under the earth.
Deu.4.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ופן: CONJ
- תשא: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- עיניך: NOUN,f,pl,abs+2ms
- השמימה: NOUN,m,pl,def
- וראית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- השמש: NOUN,f,sg,def
- ואת: CONJ
- הירח: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ואת: CONJ
- הכוכבים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- כל: DET
- צבא: NOUN,m,sg,const
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ונדחת: VERB,niphal,perf,2,m,sg
- והשתחוית: VERB,hithpael,perf,2,m,sg
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- ועבדתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- אשר: PRON,rel
- חלק: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- לכל: PREP
- העמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- תחת: PREP
- כל: DET
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
Parallels
- Deut.17.3 (structural): Within the same Deuteronomic law corpus warning against idolatry—prohibits turning aside to serve or bow down to other gods, paralleling the exhortation not to worship the sun, moon, or stars.
- Job 31:26-28 (verbal): Job explicitly mentions the sun and moon and denies secretly honoring or kissing them; a direct verbal and ethical counterpoint to the warning against celestial worship.
- 2 Kings 17:16 (verbal): Describes Israel's abandonment of Yahweh and the burning of incense to ‘all the host of heaven,’ using the same phrase and depicting the very practice Deut.4:19 forbids.
- 2 Chronicles 33:3-5 (thematic): Records Manasseh’s establishment of high places and altars and his worship of ‘the host of heaven,’ illustrating historical instances of the celestial worship prohibited in Deut.4:19.
- Amos 5:26 (allusion): Condemns Israel for carrying the tabernacle of their foreign god and the star (or image) of their god—an oracle attesting to star/planetary cults that Deut.4:19 seeks to prevent.
Alternative generated candidates
- And lest you lift up your eyes to the heavens and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, and be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them—things which the LORD your God has apportioned to all the peoples under all the heavens.
- And lest you lift up your eyes to the heavens and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, and be led astray and bow down to them and serve them—which the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.
Deu.4.20 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואתכם: CONJ+PRON,2,m,pl
- לקח: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ויוצא: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
- מכור: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הברזל: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ממצרים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- להיות: VERB,qal,inf,NA,NA,NA
- לו: PRON,3,m,sg
- לעם: PREP
- נחלה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כיום: ADV
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 20:2 (quotation): Foundational confession: God identifies himself as the one who brought Israel out of Egypt — parallels Deut.4:20’s emphasis on the Exodus as the basis for Israel’s relationship to Yahweh.
- Deuteronomy 7:6 (verbal): Speaks of Israel as Yahweh’s chosen/treasured possession (people of inheritance), echoing Deut.4:20’s language of Israel being brought out to be God’s people.
- Hosea 11:1 (allusion): Recalls God’s formative act of calling Israel out of Egypt (‘Out of Egypt I called my son’) — another prophetic retelling of the Exodus that frames Israel’s identity as God’s people.
- Isaiah 43:1 (thematic): Yahweh’s claim ‘I have called you by name; you are mine’ parallels Deut.4:20’s theme that God redeemed Israel from Egypt to be his own people/possession.
Alternative generated candidates
- But you the LORD took and brought out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be for him a people of inheritance, as at this day.
- But the LORD took you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be for him a people of inheritance, as you are this day.
Deu.4.21 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויהוה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- התאנף: VERB,hitpael,perf,3,m,sg
- בי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- על: PREP
- דבריכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs,2,mp
- וישבע: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לבלתי: PART,neg
- עברי: ADJ,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- הירדן: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ולבלתי: CONJ+PART,inf+neg
- בא: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- הטובה: ADJ,f,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- נתן: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לך: PRON,2,m,sg
- נחלה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Numbers 20:12 (quotation): The original account of God’s decree after Moses struck the rock: God says Moses did not trust/ honor Him, and therefore would not bring the congregation into the land — the direct basis for Deut.4:21.
- Deut.1:37 (verbal): An earlier restatement within Deuteronomy using the same language — 'the LORD was angry with me on your account' and swore that Moses would not enter the land.
- Deut.3:26-27 (quotation): God’s direct refusal when Moses pleads to enter the land: 'Enough for you; do not speak to me of this matter any more... you shall not go over this Jordan' — a closely parallel declaration.
- Numbers 27:12-14 (quotation): Another narrative occurrence where God tells Moses to climb Abarim to view the land but declares he will not enter because of his rebellion at the waters of Meribah — reinforces the same judgment.
- Psalm 106:32-33 (thematic): A poetic retelling that links Israel’s sin at the waters of Meribah with the trouble that befell Moses (and God's anger), alluding to the reason Moses was barred from entering the land.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the LORD was angry with me on your account and swore that I would not cross the Jordan, nor would I go into the good land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance.
- And the LORD was angry with me on your account and swore that I would not cross over the Jordan and would not enter the good land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.
Deu.4.22 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- אנכי: PRON,1,sg
- מת: ADJ,m,sg
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- הזאת: DEM,f,sg,def
- אינני: VERB,negexist,perf,1,sg
- עבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- את: PRT,acc
- הירדן: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ואתם: CONJ+PRON,2,pl
- עברים: PART,qal,ptc,3,m,pl
- וירשתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- הטובה: ADJ,f,sg,def
- הזאת: DEM,f,sg,def
Parallels
- Numbers 20:12 (verbal): God declares Moses and Aaron will not bring the assembly into the land because of their disobedience—provides the decisive reason behind Moses’ statement that he will not cross the Jordan.
- Numbers 27:12-14 (allusion): God tells Moses at Mount Pisgah that he will see the land but not enter it; this earlier divine pronouncement is echoed by Moses’ declaration in Deut 4:22.
- Deuteronomy 31:2-3 (verbal): Moses again announces that he will not cross the Jordan and points forward to Joshua’s leadership in leading the people into the land—closely parallels the language and intent of 4:22.
- Deuteronomy 34:1-4 (thematic): Narrative fulfillment: Moses is brought to view the promised land from Mount Nebo and dies there, which completes the situation stated in 4:22 that Moses would not cross into the land.
- Joshua 1:2-3 (thematic): God commissions Joshua to cross the Jordan and to give the land to Israel—this commission corresponds to Deut 4:22’s assertion that the people will cross and inherit the good land.
Alternative generated candidates
- For I am to die in this land; I shall not cross the Jordan, but you shall go over and possess this good land.
- For I am to die in this land; I will not cross over the Jordan, and you are crossing over and will inherit that good land.
Deu.4.23 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- השמרו: VERB,qal,impv,2,pl
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- פן: CONJ
- תשכחו: VERB,qal,impf,2,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- ברית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
- אשר: PRON,rel
- כרת: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- עמכם: PREP+PRON,2,pl
- ועשיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- פסל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תמונת: NOUN,f,sg,cstr
- כל: DET
- אשר: PRON,rel
- צוך: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
Parallels
- Exodus 20:4-6 (quotation): Direct command against making carved images and worshiping them; same prohibition found in Deut 4:23 as part of the covenantal law.
- Deuteronomy 5:8-9 (quotation): Repetition of the Ten Commandments in Deuteronomy that reiterates the ban on idols and links it to covenant faithfulness.
- Deuteronomy 4:15-16 (verbal): Immediate context in the same chapter warning Israel not to form any likeness of God — closely parallel language and intent to Deut 4:23.
- Leviticus 26:1 (thematic): Law against making idols and setting up sacred pillars; reflects the wider priestly legislation prohibiting images and cultic representations.
- Jeremiah 2:11-13 (thematic): Prophetic denunciation of Israel's idolatry as forsaking the covenantal 'living water' for worthless idols — echoes the covenantal concern and warning of Deut 4:23.
Alternative generated candidates
- Guard yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God which he made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything that the LORD your God has commanded you.
- Guard yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God which he made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in any form of which the LORD your God has commanded you.
Deu.4.24 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- אש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אכלה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- הוא: PRON,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- קנא: ADJ,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Deut.5:9 (verbal): Repeats the same theological formula — 'I the LORD your God am a jealous God' — reinforcing God's jealous, covenantal character found in Deut 4:24.
- Exod.34:14 (verbal): Uses the divine epithet 'the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God,' closely paralleling the language and covenantal warning of Deut 4:24.
- Heb.12:29 (quotation): Direct New Testament echo — 'Our God is a consuming fire' — explicitly cites the image of God as consuming fire from Deut 4:24.
- Deut.32:21 (thematic): Speaks of God’s jealousy provoked by Israel’s idolatry ('I will provoke them to jealousy with those who are no people'), developing the covenant-justice theme behind the 'jealous God' motif.
- Nah.1:6 (thematic): Portrays God’s wrath in fiery terms ('Who can stand before his indignation?... his fury is poured out like fire'), reflecting the 'consuming fire' imagery of Deut 4:24.
Alternative generated candidates
- For the LORD your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God.
- For the LORD your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God.
Deu.4.25 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- תוליד: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- בנים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ובני: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,cons
- בנים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ונושנתם: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- והשחתם: CONJ+VERB,hiphil,perf,2,m,pl
- ועשיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- פסל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תמונת: NOUN,f,sg,cons
- כל: DET
- ועשיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- הרע: ADJ,m,sg,def
- בעיני: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- להכעיסו: PREP+VERB,hiphil,inf+OBJ,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 31:16-18 (verbal): God predicts Israel will corrupt themselves, make idols, and provoke the Lord—language and prophetic situation closely parallel to Deut 4:25.
- Exodus 32:7-9 (verbal): After the people make the golden calf God says they have 'corrupted themselves' and provoked Him—verbal and thematic echo of making images and angering God.
- Deuteronomy 8:19-20 (thematic): Warning that if Israel turns to other gods and provokes the LORD they will perish—same covenantal warning linking idolatry to judgment.
- 2 Kings 17:7-23 (thematic): Narrative summary of Israel's idolatry and how making images and doing evil led to exile—historical fulfilment of the threat in Deut 4:25.
- Judges 2:11-15 (thematic): Accounts of Israel doing evil and serving Baals, provoking the LORD and bringing oppression—a recurring pattern of idolatry and consequence reflected in Deut 4:25.
Alternative generated candidates
- When you have borne children and grandchildren, and have lived long in the land, and become corrupt and make any carved image, doing what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God so as to provoke him,
- When you beget children and grandchildren and live long in the land, and corrupt yourselves and make a carved image and do what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, to provoke him,
Deu.4.26 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- העידתי: VERB,hiph,perf,1,_,sg
- בכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- היום: NOUN,m,sg,def
- את: PRT,acc
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ואת: CONJ
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- כי: CONJ
- אבד: VERB,qal,infabs
- תאבדון: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- מהר: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,sg
- מעל: PREP
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- עברים: PART,qal,ptc,3,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- הירדן: NOUN,m,sg,def
- שמה: ADV
- לרשתה: INF,qal,3,f,sg
- לא: PART_NEG
- תאריכן: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- ימים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- עליה: PREP,3,f,sg
- כי: CONJ
- השמד: VERB,hiph,infabs
- תשמדון: VERB,nip,impf,2,m,pl
Parallels
- Deut.30.19 (verbal): Same covenant summons formula — 'I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day' — setting before Israel alternative outcomes (life/death) as in 4:26's heaven-and-earth testimony and warning of destruction.
- Leviticus 26:14–39 (thematic): Covenantal curses for disobedience that parallel Deut.4:26: promises of rapid defeat, exile, land desolation and being cut off as consequences for breaking God's covenant.
- Deut.28:63–68 (thematic): Extended Deuteronomic curse section describing sudden ruin, loss of land, exile and shortened days in the land — close thematic parallel to the warning in 4:26.
- Deut.31:16–18 (allusion): God's prediction that he will forsake Israel, hide his face and allow them to be destroyed — echoes the threat in 4:26 that they will be quickly destroyed and not remain long in the land.
- 2 Chronicles 36:17–21 (structural): Historical fulfillment motif: Babylonian conquest and exile that make the land desolate, presented as the consequence of covenant unfaithfulness anticipated by Deut.4:26.
Alternative generated candidates
- I call to witness against you this day the heavens and the earth: you shall quickly perish from off the good land which you are about to enter and possess across the Jordan; you shall not prolong your days upon it, for you will be utterly destroyed.
- I call heaven and earth to witness against you today: you shall surely perish quickly from off the land that you are passing over the Jordan to possess; you shall not prolong your days upon it, but will be utterly destroyed.
Deu.4.27 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והפיץ: VERB,hiphil,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
- בעמים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ונשארתם: VERB,niphal,perf,2,m,pl
- מתי: ADV,int
- מספר: VERB,qal,impf,1,m,sg
- בגוים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- ינהג: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
- שמה: ADV
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 28:64 (verbal): Direct covenantal parallel — in the curses section God similarly states he will 'scatter you among the nations,' echoing the threat of dispersal for disobedience.
- Leviticus 26:33 (verbal): Parallel language and theme — God warns he will 'scatter you among the nations' and leave the land desolate as punishment for breaking the covenant.
- Ezekiel 12:15 (verbal): Prophetic restatement — Ezekiel uses comparable wording that God will scatter Israel among the nations, presenting the exile as fulfillment of covenant judgment.
- 2 Kings 17:6 (structural): Historical fulfillment — the Assyrian deportation of the northern kingdom is a concrete instance of Israel being 'scattered among the nations.'
- 2 Chronicles 36:20 (structural): Historical fulfillment — the Babylonian exile of Judah (taken to Babylon) illustrates the promised driving of the people into foreign lands as judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and you shall be left few in number among the nations where the LORD will drive you.
- And the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and you shall be few in number among the nations where the LORD will lead you.
Deu.4.28 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ועבדתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- שם: ADV
- אלהים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- מעשה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ידי: NOUN,f,pl,cons
- אדם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עץ: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואבן: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- לא: PART_NEG
- יראון: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- ישמעון: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- יאכלון: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- יריחן: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Psalm 115:4-8 (verbal): Lists the impotence of idols (they have mouths but do not speak; eyes but do not see; ears but do not hear; noses but do not smell), closely echoing Deut. 4:28’s catalogue of senses/idolatry’s futility.
- Isaiah 44:9-20 (thematic): Extended satire of idols made by human hands (wood and metal), including the image of a man using part for fire and worshipping the rest — thematically parallel to serving man-made gods of wood and stone.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (verbal): Condemns the making and worship of wooden idols, noting their inability to speak or move — language and imagery that parallel Deut. 4:28’s critique of lifeless carved gods.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (thematic): Denounces the futility of idols and the folly of calling on mute wood to 'awake,' echoing the theme that man-made gods cannot hear or act.
- Exodus 20:4-5 (quotation): The Decalogue’s prohibition against making and worshipping graven images provides the legal and theological basis for Deut. 4:28’s warning about serving idols of wood and stone.
Alternative generated candidates
- There you will serve gods that are the work of men’s hands—wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.
- There you will serve gods made by the hands of men—wood and stone, which see not and hear not and eat not and smell not.
Deu.4.29 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ובקשתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- משם: PREP
- את: PRT,acc
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- ומצאת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- תדרשנו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- 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
- Jer.29:13 (quotation): Direct verbal parallel: 'You will seek me, and you will find me, when you seek me with all your heart' echoes Deut 4:29's promise of finding YHWH when sought with whole heart and soul.
- Deut.6:5 (verbal): Shared key phrase and ethical demand: 'with all your heart and with all your soul' appears in both verses as the required orientation for relationship to YHWH.
- 1 Chron.28:9 (thematic): Similar promise and counsel: 'If you seek him, he will be found by you' and the appeal to know and serve God with wholehearted devotion resonate with Deut 4:29.
- Isa.55:6 (thematic): Parallel summons to seek God while he is near: 'Seek the LORD while he may be found' conveys the same urgency and hope that seeking God results in encounter and restoration.
- 2 Chron.7:14 (structural): Covenantal conditionality and restoration motif: when God's people humble themselves, pray, and seek his face, God responds—echoing Deut 4:29's link between seeking (wholeheartedly) and finding God in times of exile/crisis.
Alternative generated candidates
- Yet from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find him if you search for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
- And from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deu.4.30 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בצר: PREP
- לך: PRON,2,m,sg
- ומצאוך: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- כל: DET
- הדברים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- האלה: DEM,pl
- באחרית: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,const
- הימים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ושבת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- עד: PREP
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- ושמעת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- בקלו: PREP
Parallels
- Deut.30:2 (verbal): Repeats the same promise language—'when you return to the LORD your God and obey his voice'—framing restoration after exile as conditional on return and obedience.
- Deut.4:29 (structural): Immediate contextual parallel in the same chapter: seeking the LORD 'from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him,' which sets up the return promised in 4:30.
- Hosea 14:1-2 (verbal): Explicit call to 'Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God' with repentance language, echoing Deut.'s summons to return to God for restoration.
- Joel 2:12-13 (thematic): Calls for wholehearted return and repentance ('return to me with all your heart'), promising mercy—the same theological theme of restoration upon turning to the LORD.
- Jeremiah 29:12-14 (thematic): Promises that exiles who call and seek the LORD will be heard and brought back—connects 'in the latter days' return motif in Deut. to prophetic restoration language.
Alternative generated candidates
- In your distress, when all these things have come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice.
- In your distress, when all these things have come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice.
Deu.4.31 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- אל: NEG
- רחום: ADJ,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהיך: NOUN,m,sg,prsuf-2ms
- לא: PART_NEG
- ירפך: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- ישחיתך: VERB,hiphil,impf,3,m,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- ישכח: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- ברית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אבתיך: NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss:2,m
- אשר: PRON,rel
- נשבע: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,sg
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Exodus 34:6-7 (verbal): God self-declares as 'merciful and gracious' and faithful to covenant; closely parallels the language and theme of God's mercy and covenant-keeping in Deut 4:31.
- Deuteronomy 7:9 (verbal): Affirms that the LORD keeps his covenant and steadfast love to those who love him—repeats Deuteronomy's promise that God will not abandon his people.
- Psalm 89:33-34 (thematic): God vows not to break his covenant or alter his faithful love; echoes the assurance that God will not forget or destroy the covenant made with the fathers.
- Isaiah 49:15-16 (thematic): Uses the image of God's unfailing remembrance ('I will not forget you') to promise Israel's preservation—parallels Deut 4:31's claim that God will not forget or forsake his covenant people.
Alternative generated candidates
- For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the covenant of your fathers which he swore to them.
- For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not cast you off, nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which he swore to them.
Take utmost care for yourselves, for you did not see any likeness on the day that the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire.
Lest you become corrupt and make for yourselves a carved image — any form, the likeness of male or female.
The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the heavens.
The likeness of any creeping thing that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth. And lest you lift up your eyes to the heavens and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, and be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them — which the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. But the LORD took you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be for himself a people of inheritance, as at this day. And the LORD was angry with me because of you; he swore that I would not cross over the Jordan, and that I would not enter into the good land that the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance.
For I die in this land; I shall not cross the Jordan. You are crossing over and shall possess that good land.
Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God that he made with you, and so make for yourselves a carved image in contradiction to what the LORD your God has commanded you.
For the LORD your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God.
When you have borne sons and sons’ sons, and have lived long in the land, and become corrupt and make any carved image, doing what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God to provoke him.
I call to witness against you this day the heavens and the earth: you shall soon perish from the land to which you pass over the Jordan to possess; you shall not prolong your days there — you shall be utterly destroyed. And the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will be left among the nations to which the LORD will drive you.
There you will serve gods made by the hands of men — wood and stone, which see not, hear not, eat not, nor have any smell. And from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul.
In your distress, when all these things have come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice.
For the LORD your God is a God of compassion; he will not forsake you or destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which he swore to them.