Deuteronomy 4:28

Deuteronomy 4:28 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
• New International Version (NIV)There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And there you will serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.

Context of Deuteronomy 4:28

26I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will quickly perish from the land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not live long there, but you will certainly be destroyed. 27The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be reduced to a few survivors among the nations where the Lord your God will drive you. There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see, hear, eat, or smell. 29But from there, you will search for the Lord your God, and you will find him when you seek him with all your heart and all your soul. 30When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, in the future you will return to the Lord your God and obey him.

Deuteronomy 4:28 word by word

וַעֲבַדְתֶּם־שָׁ֣ם אֱלֹהִ֔ים מַעֲשֵׂ֖ה יְדֵ֣י אָדָ֑ם עֵ֣ץ וָאֶ֔בֶן אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹֽא־יִרְאוּן֙ וְלֹ֣א יִשְׁמְע֔וּן וְלֹ֥א יֹֽאכְל֖וּן וְלֹ֥א יְרִיחֻֽן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And there ye shall serveעָבַד‛âbad · to serve: ministerH5647
• godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• the workמַעֲשֶׂהma‛ăώeh · deed: workH4639
• of men’sאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• handsיָדyâd · handH3027
• woodעֵץ‛êts · tree: woodH6086
• and stoneאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
• which neither seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• nor hearשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• nor eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
• nor smellרִיחַrûach · to smellH7306

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 4:28

• Deuteronomy 28:36“The Lord will bring you and your king that you have appointed to a nation neither you nor your ancestors have known, and there you will worship other gods, of wood and stone.
• 1 Samuel 26:19Now, may my lord the king please hear the words of his servant: If it is the Lord who has incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. But if it is people, may they be cursed in the presence of the Lord, for today they have banished me from sharing in the inheritance of the Lord, saying, ‘Go and worship other gods.’
• Jeremiah 16:13So I will hurl you from this land into a land that you and your ancestors have not known. There you will worship other gods both day and night, for I will not grant you grace.’
• Ezekiel 20:32“‘When you say, “Let’s be like the nations, like the clans of other countries, serving wood and stone,” what you have in mind will never happen.
• Acts 7:42God turned away and gave them up to worship the stars of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: House of Israel, did you bring me offerings and sacrifices for forty years in the wilderness?
• Psalms 115:4Their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands.
• Psalms 135:15The idols of the nations are of silver and gold, made by human hands.
• Isaiah 44:9All who make idols are nothing, and what they treasure benefits no one. Their witnesses do not see or know anything, so they will be put to shame.
• Isaiah 45:20“Come, gather together, and approach, you fugitives of the nations. Those who carry their wooden idols and pray to a god who cannot save have no knowledge.
• Isaiah 46:7They lift it to their shoulder and bear it along; they set it in its place, and there it stands; it does not budge from its place. They cry out to it but it doesn’t answer; it saves no one from his trouble.
• Jeremiah 10:3for the customs of the peoples are worthless. Someone cuts down a tree from the forest; it is worked by the hands of a craftsman with a chisel.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 4:28

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 28There ye shall serve gods - wood and stone - This was also true of the Israelites, not only in their captivities, but also in their own land. And it may now be literally the case with the ten tribes who were carried away captive by the Assyrians, and of whose residence no man at present knows any thing with certainty. That they still exist there can be no doubt; but they are now, most probably, so completely incorporated with the idolaters among whom they…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 25-28Verses 25-28 Compare with these verses Leviticus 26:33-40, and Deuteronomy 28:64 ff.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 24-40Verses 24-40 Moses urged the greatness, glory, and goodness of God. Did we consider what a God he is with whom we have to do, we should surely make conscience of our duty to him, and not dare to sin against him. Shall we forsake a merciful God, who will never forsake us, if we are faithful unto him? Whither can we go? Let us be held to our duty by the bonds of love, and prevailed with by the mercies of God to cleave to him. Moses urged God's authority…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-40Moses gave a long speech to the Israelites because of their recent failures and what he thought would happen in Canaan.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2828. there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands--The compulsory measures of their tyrannical conquerors would force them into idolatry, so that their choice would become their punishment.Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 4:28

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Backsliders
• Idol
• Idolatry
• Obedience
• Stones

In the dictionaries

• Add
• Consider
• Consuming
• Diminish
• Furnace
• Hearken
• Deuteronomy
• Pentateuch
• Smell

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings