Deuteronomy 4:12

Deuteronomy 4:12 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.
• New International Version (NIV)Then the Lord spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then the Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of words, but saw no form; there was only a voice.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; you only heard a voice.

Context of Deuteronomy 4:12

10the day that thou stoodest before Jehovah thy God in Horeb, when Jehovah said to me, Gather me the people together, that I may cause them to hear my words, that they may learn them, and fear me all the days that they live upon the earth, and teach them to their children. 11And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and obscurity. And Jehovah spoke to you from the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but ye saw no form; only [ye heard] a voice. 13And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to do, the ten words; and he wrote them on two tables of stone. 14And Jehovah commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances, that ye might do them in the land whither ye are passing over to possess it.

Deuteronomy 4:12 word by word

וַיְדַבֵּ֧ר יְהוָ֛ה אֲלֵיכֶ֖ם מִתּ֣וֹךְ הָאֵ֑שׁ ק֤וֹל דְּבָרִים֙ אַתֶּ֣ם שֹׁמְעִ֔ים וּתְמוּנָ֛ה אֵינְכֶ֥ם רֹאִ֖ים זוּלָתִ֥י קֽוֹל׃Read the interlinear

• spokeדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
• fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
• heardשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voiceH6963
• wordsדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
• sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• formתְּמוּנָהtemûnâh temûnâh · likenessH8544
• heardשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 4:12

• Deuteronomy 5:4Face to face on the mountain from the midst of the fire Jehovah spoke with you
• Deuteronomy 4:15And take great heed to your souls (for ye saw no form on the day that Jehovah spoke to you in Horeb from the midst of the fire),
• Numbers 12:8Mouth to mouth do I speak to him openly, and not in riddles; and the form of Jehovah doth he behold. Why then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?
• Isaiah 40:18To whom then will ye liken God? and what likeness will ye compare unto him?
• Colossians 1:15who is image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation;
• Deuteronomy 4:33Did [ever] people hear the voice of God speaking from the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?
• Exodus 20:22And Jehovah said to Moses, Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel: Ye have seen that I have spoken with you from the heavens.
• 1 Kings 19:12And after the earthquake, a fire: Jehovah was not in the fire. And after the fire, a soft gentle voice.
• Isaiah 30:21And when ye turn to the right hand or when ye turn to the left, thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it.
• Isaiah 40:3The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of Jehovah, make straight in the desert a highway for our God!
• Matthew 3:3For this is he who has been spoken of through Esaias the prophet, saying, Voice of him that crieth in the wilderness: prepare ye the way of [the] Lord, make straight his paths.
• Matthew 17:5While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and lo, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight: hear him.
• John 12:28Father, glorify thy name. There came therefore a voice out of heaven, I both have glorified and will glorify [it] again.
• 2 Peter 1:17For he received from God [the] Father honour and glory, such a voice being uttered to him by the excellent glory: This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight;

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 4:12

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12Hero worship exhibited itself in the practice of setting up images of human form as household gods (Penates, compare Genesis 31:19; Genesis 35:2), or as local and civic divinities: a practice forbidden by Deuteronomy 4:16. Nature worship in its baser shapes is seen in the Egyptian idolatry of animals and animal figures, and is condemned in Deuteronomy 4:17-18: while its less ignoble flight, the worship of the sun, moon, and stars, is forbidden in…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. 1212. ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude--Although articulate sounds were heard emanating from the mount, no form or representation of the Divine Being who spoke was seen to indicate His nature or properties according to the notions of the heathen.Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 4:12

• Afflictions and Adversities
• God
• Law
• Obedience

In the dictionaries

• Add
• Consider
• Consuming
• Diminish
• Furnace
• Hearken
• Idol
• Criticism
• Deuteronomy
• Form

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