Deuteronomy 5:23

Deuteronomy 5:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, (for the mountain did burn with fire,) that ye came near unto me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders;
• New International Version (NIV)When you heard the voice out of the darkness, while the mountain was ablaze with fire, all the leaders of your tribes and your elders came to me.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And as soon as you heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes, and your elders.
• New King James Version (NKJV)“So it was, when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, that you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your elders.

Context of Deuteronomy 5:23

21You must not want to take your neighbour's wife for yourself. You must not want his house or his land, or his servants, male or female. You must not want his ox or his donkey or anything else that belongs to your neighbour.’ 22These are the commands that the Lord spoke to you. You were all there together at the mountain. He spoke with a loud voice from the middle of a great fire. There was a cloud and it was very dark. He gave only those commands. Then he wrote them on two flat stones and he gave them to me. The mountain was burning with fire and you heard God's voice speak from the darkness. Then the leaders and older men of your tribes came to speak to me. 24They said, ‘The Lord our God has shown us how great and how powerful he is. We have heard his voice from the middle of the fire. We have learned this: People can continue to live, even after God has spoken to them. 25But now we think that this great fire will kill us. We do not want to die! If we continue to hear the voice of the Lord our God, we will surely die.

Deuteronomy 5:23 word by word

וַיְהִ֗י כְּשָׁמְעֲכֶ֤ם אֶת־הַקּוֹל֙ מִתּ֣וֹךְ הַחֹ֔שֶׁךְ וְהָהָ֖ר בֹּעֵ֣ר בָּאֵ֑שׁ וַתִּקְרְב֣וּן אֵלַ֔י כָּל־רָאשֵׁ֥י שִׁבְטֵיכֶ֖ם וְזִקְנֵיכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And it came to pass, when ye heardשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• the voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voiceH6963
• out of the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
• of the darknessחֹ֫שֶׁךְchôshek · darknessH2822
• for the mountainהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• did burnבָּעַרbâ‛ar · to burn: burnH1197
• with fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
• that ye came nearקָרַבqârab · to present: comeH7126
• all the headsרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: leaderH7218
• of your tribesשֵׁ֫בֶטshêbeţ · tribeH7626
• and your eldersזָקֵןzâqên · old: elderH2205

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 5:23

• Exodus 20:18The people heard the loud thunder and they saw the bright lightning. They heard the noise of the trumpet. They saw the smoke on the mountain. They were so afraid that their bodies were shaking. They would not come near.
• Hebrews 12:18You have come near to God. But you have not come to a place that you can touch, like Sinai mountain. That mountain burned with fire. But where the people stood, it was completely dark. They could not see at all. There was also a very strong wind and a storm.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 5:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice - See the notes on Exodus 20:18, etc.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23-33Verses 23-33 These verses contain a much fuller narrative of the events briefly described in Exodus 20:18-21. Here it is important to call attention to the fact that it was on the entreaties of the people that Moses had taken on him to be the channel of communication between God and them. God approved Deuteronomy 5:28 the request of the people, because it showed a feeling of their own unworthiness to enter into direct communion with God. The terrors of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-33Verses 23-33 Moses refers to the consternation caused by the terror with which the law was given. God's appearances have always been terrible to man, ever since the fall; but Christ, having taken away sin, invites us to come boldly to the throne of grace. They were in a good mind, under the strong convictions of the word they heard. Many have their consciences startled by the law who have them not purified; fair promises are extorted from them, but no…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-32The rest of the covenant laws explain and apply the Ten Commandments (5:6–21). These laws are based on those commandments. Moses first gave the Ten Commandments to the people of Israel almost 40 years earlier at Mount Sinai (Exodus 20:2–17). Now he reminds the people of these commands before they enter the promised land.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 23-2823-28. And ... ye came near unto me--(See on Ex 20:19).Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 5:23

• Government
• Mountain
• Obedience
• Volcanoes

In the dictionaries

• Stand
• Ark of the Covenant
• Ethics
• Exodus, the Book of
• God
• Ten Commandments, the
• Deuteronomy

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 5

• 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