Deuteronomy 14:1

Deuteronomy 14:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Ye are the children of the Lord your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.
• New International Version (NIV)You are the children of the Lord your God. Do not cut yourselves or shave the front of your heads for the dead,
• English Standard Version (ESV)"You are the sons of the Lord your God. You shall not cut yourselves or make any baldness on your foreheads for the dead.
• New King James Version (NKJV)“You are the children of the Lord your God; you shall not cut yourselves nor shave the front of your head for the dead.

Context of Deuteronomy 14:1

You are the children of the Lord your God. So when someone dies, don’t ⌞mourn⌟ by cutting yourselves or shaving bald spots on your head. 2You are people who are holy to the Lord your God. Out of all the people who live on earth, the Lord has chosen you to be his own special possession. 3Never eat anything that is disgusting to the Lord.

Deuteronomy 14:1 word by word

בָּנִ֣ים אַתֶּ֔ם לַֽיהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם לֹ֣א תִתְגֹּֽדְד֗וּ וְלֹֽא־תָשִׂ֧ימוּ קָרְחָ֛ה בֵּ֥ין עֵינֵיכֶ֖ם לָמֵֽת׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• the childrenבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• your Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• ye shall not cutגָּדַדgâdad · to cutH1413
• yourselves, nor makeשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
• any baldnessקׇרְחָהqorchâh qorchâ' · bald spotH7144
• between your eyesעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eyeH5869
• for the deadמוּתmûth · to dieH4191

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 14:1

• Genesis 6:2The sons of God saw that the daughters of other humans were beautiful. So they married any woman they chose.
• Exodus 4:22Then tell Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son.
• Psalms 82:6I said, “You are gods. You are all sons of the Most High.
• Jeremiah 3:19“I wanted to treat you like children and give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful property among the nations. I thought that you would call me Father and wouldn’t turn away from me.
• Hosea 1:10“Yet, the Israelites will become as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore. No one will be able to measure them or count them. Wherever they were told, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be told, ‘You are the children of the living God.’
• John 1:12However, he gave the right to become God’s children to everyone who believed in him.
• John 11:52He prophesied that Jesus wouldn’t die merely for this nation, but that Jesus would die to bring God’s scattered children together and make them one.
• Romans 8:16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
• Romans 9:8This means that children born by natural descent ⌞from Abraham⌟ are not necessarily God’s children. Instead, children born by the promise are considered Abraham’s descendants.
• 2 Corinthians 6:18The Lord Almighty says, “I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters.”
• Galatians 3:26You are all God’s children by believing in Christ Jesus.
• Hebrews 2:10God is the one for whom and through whom everything exists. Therefore, while God was bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was the right time to bring Jesus, the source of their salvation, to the end of his work through suffering.
• 1 John 3:1Consider this: The Father has given us his love. He loves us so much that we are actually called God’s dear children. And that’s what we are. For this reason the world doesn’t recognize us, and it didn’t recognize him either.
• 1 John 5:2We know that we love God’s children when we love God by obeying his commandments.
• Leviticus 19:27“Never shave the hair on your foreheads, and never cut the edges of your beard.
• Leviticus 21:5“You should never mourn by shaving bald spots on your heads, shaving the edges of your beards, or slashing your bodies.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 14:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Ye are the children of the Lord - The very highest character that can be conferred on any created beings; ye shall not cut yourselves, i. e., their hair, for it was a custom among idolatrous nations to consecrate their hair to their deities, though they sometimes also made incisions in their flesh.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Make any baldness between your eyes - i. e. by shaving the forepart of the head and the eyebrows. The practices named in this verse were common among the pagan, and seem to be forbidden, not only because such wild excesses of grief (compare 1 Kings 18:28) would be inconsistent in those who as children of a heavenly Father had prospects beyond this world, but also because these usages themselves arose out of idolatrous notions.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The Israelites to distinguish themselves from other nations. (1-21) Respecting the application of tithes. (22-29) Verses 1-21 Moses tells the people of Israel how God had given them three distinguishing privileges, which were their honour, and figures of those spiritual blessings in heavenly things, with which God has in Christ blessed us. Here is election; "The Lord hath chosen thee." He did not choose them because they were by their own acts a peculiar…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1cut yourselves: This pagan custom often linked to mourning ceremonies, possibly to try to get the dead to return to life (see 1 Kings 18:28; Zechariah 13:4–6). shave your foreheads: This practice also related to mourning for the dead (see Leviticus 19:27–28; 21:5–6). But the exact meaning of this ceremony is unclear.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1De 14:1, 2. God's People Must Not Disfigure Themselves in Mourning. 1. ye shall not cut yourselves ... for the dead--It was a common practice of idolaters, both on ceremonious occasions of their worship (1Ki 18:28), and at funerals (compare Jr 16:6; 41:5), to make ghastly incisions on their faces and other parts of their persons with their finger nails or sharp instruments. The making a large bare space between the eyebrows was another heathen custom in…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 14:1

• Adoption
• Baldness
• Cutting
• God
• Idolatry
• Mourning

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Baldness
• Clean
• Cleave
• Cut
• Cutting
• Adoption
• Ashtaroth; Ashteroth-Karnaim; Beeshterah
• Atonement, Day of

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 14

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings