Deuteronomy 4:23

Deuteronomy 4:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee.
• New International Version (NIV)Be careful not to forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he made with you; do not make for yourselves an idol in the form of anything the Lord your God has forbidden.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Take care, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make a carved image, the form of anything that the Lord your God has forbidden you.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Take heed to 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 which the Lord your God has forbidden you.

Context of Deuteronomy 4:23

21The Lord your God became angry with me, because of you. He told me very strongly that I would not go across the Jordan River. He said that I would not go into the good land that he is now giving to you. 22So I will die here. I will not cross the Jordan River. But you will soon cross over. That good land will belong to you as your home. Be careful! Do not forget the covenant that the Lord your God has made with you. Do not make for yourselves any kind of image as your idol. That is the command that he has given to you. 24That is because the Lord your God wants you to belong to him alone. He is like a fire that destroys all bad things. 25One day, you will have lived in the land for a long time. You will have children and grandchildren. Remember that you still must not make any kind of image as your idol. That would be a sin. Do not do any evil things that will cause the Lord your God to become angry.

Deuteronomy 4:23 word by word

הִשָּׁמְר֣וּ לָכֶ֗ם פֶּֽן־תִּשְׁכְּחוּ֙ אֶת־בְּרִ֤ית יְהוָה֙ אֱלֹ֣הֵיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר כָּרַ֖ת עִמָּכֶ֑ם וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֨ם לָכֶ֥ם פֶּ֙סֶל֙ תְּמ֣וּנַת כֹּ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר צִוְּךָ֖ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶֽיךָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Take heedשָׁמַרshâmar · to keep: carefulH8104
• unto yourselves, lest ye forgetשָׁכַחshâkach shâkêach · to forgetH7911
• the covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• your Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• which he madeכָּרַתkârath · to cut: make(covenant)H3772
• with you, and makeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• you a graven imageפֶּ֫סֶלpesel · idolH6459
• the likenessתְּמוּנָהtemûnâh temûnâh · likenessH8544
• of anyכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• hath forbiddenצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 4:23

• Deuteronomy 4:9But be very careful! Never forget the things that you yourselves have seen. Remember these things for as long as you live. Tell your children and your grandchildren about all the things that God has done.
• Deuteronomy 27:9Then Moses and the Levite priests said to all the Israelites, ‘Be quiet and listen carefully! Today, you have become the people who belong to the Lord your God.
• Joshua 23:11You must be very careful that you continue to love the Lord your God.
• Matthew 24:4Jesus said, ‘You must be careful! Some people will tell you things that are not true. Do not believe them.
• Luke 12:15Then he said to all the people, ‘Be very careful! Do not want more things than you really need. A person's life is worth more than the things that he has, even if he is very rich.’
• Luke 21:8Jesus replied. ‘Be careful! Some people will tell you things that are not true. Do not believe them. Many people will say that they have come on my behalf. They will say, “I am the Messiah.” They will say, “Now is the time!” Do not agree with those people.
• Hebrews 3:12So be careful, my Christian friends. Do not refuse to trust God. That would be a very bad thing to do. Do not turn away from the God who lives for ever.
• Deuteronomy 6:12But be careful that you do not forget the Lord. He rescued you from Egypt, where you were slaves.
• Deuteronomy 29:25People will answer, ‘Because these people turned away from the covenant that the Lord had made with them. He is the God that their ancestors worshipped. He made a covenant with them when he brought them out of Egypt.
• Deuteronomy 31:20I will take them into this land, where there is plenty of food and drink, enough for everyone. It is the land that I promised to give to their ancestors. When they live there, they will eat as much food as they want. They will be fat and healthy. But then they will start to worship other gods. They will turn against me. They will not obey the covenant that I made with them.
• Joshua 23:16You must obey the rules that he commanded you to obey in his covenant. You must not serve or worship other gods. If you turn against him, the Lord your God will be very angry with you. Then very soon none of you will remain in this good land that he has given to you.’
• 1 Chronicles 16:15Always remember the covenant that he has made with us. He made that promise to continue for ever.
• Isaiah 24:5The people who live on the earth have caused it to become unclean. They have not obeyed God's laws. They have turned against his teaching. They have not obeyed the covenant that God made with them for ever.
• Jeremiah 31:22You went away from me, like a daughter who refuses to obey her father. Do not continue to turn away from me. I, the Lord, promise to do a new thing. Women will take care of men!’
• Ezekiel 16:59This is what the Almighty Lord says: You have not done the things that you promised to do when I made a covenant with you. So I will punish you as you deserve.
• Deuteronomy 4:16Do not make any image to be your god. That would be a sin. Do not make an image in any shape as your idol. Do not copy the shape of a man or a woman,

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 4:23

• 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. 14-4015. Take ... good heed ... for ye saw no manner of similitude--The extreme proneness of the Israelites to idolatry, from their position in the midst of surrounding nations already abandoned to its seductions, accounts for their attention being repeatedly drawn to the fact that God did not appear on Sinai in any visible form; and an earnest caution, founded on that remarkable circumstance, is given to beware, not only of making representations of false…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 4:23

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Forgetting God
• Idol
• Idolatry
• Obedience
• Watchfulness

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Graven image
• Add
• Consider
• Consuming
• Diminish
• Furnace
• Hearken
• Deuteronomy

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