God’s Word Translation
Deuteronomy 32:40
40I raise my hand toward heaven and solemnly swear: As surely as I live forever,
Deuteronomy 32:40 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live for ever.
- New International Version (NIV)I lift my hand to heaven and solemnly swear: As surely as I live forever,
- English Standard Version (ESV)For I lift up my hand to heaven and swear, As I live forever,
- New King James Version (NKJV)For I raise My hand to heaven, And say, “As I live forever,
Context of Deuteronomy 32:40
38Where are the gods who ate the fat from their sacrifices and drank the wine from their wine offerings? Let them come to help you! Let them be your refuge!” 39See, I am the only God. There are no others. I kill, and I make alive. I wound, and I heal, and no one can rescue you from my power. I raise my hand toward heaven and solemnly swear: As surely as I live forever, 41I will sharpen my flashing sword and take justice into my own hands. Then I will take revenge on my enemies and pay back those who hate me. 42My arrows will drip with blood from those who were killed and taken captive. My sword will cut off the heads of the enemy who vowed to fight.
Read all of Deuteronomy 32Deuteronomy 32:40 word by word
כִּֽי־אֶשָּׂ֥א אֶל־שָׁמַ֖יִם יָדִ֑י וְאָמַ֕רְתִּי חַ֥י אָנֹכִ֖י לְעֹלָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 32:40
- Genesis 14:22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I now raise my hand and solemnly swear to the Lord God Most High, maker of heaven and earth,
- Exodus 6:8I will bring you to the land I solemnly swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as your own possession. I am the Lord.’ ”
- Numbers 14:28So tell them, ‘As I live, declares the Lord, I solemnly swear I will do everything to you that you said I would do.
- Jeremiah 4:2if you take the oath, ‘As the Lord lives …’ in an honest, fair, and right way, then the nations will be blessed, and they will be honored by me.”
- Hebrews 6:17God wouldn’t change his plan. He wanted to make this perfectly clear to those who would receive his promise, so he took an oath.
- Revelation 10:5The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven.
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 32:40
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 40For I lift up my hand to heaven - See concerning oaths and appeals to God in the note on Deuteronomy 6:13; (note).Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-42Verses 1-42 Song of Moses If Deuteronomy 32:1-3 be regarded as the introduction, and Deuteronomy 32:43 as the conclusion, the main contents of the song may be grouped under three heads, namely, (1) Deuteronomy 32:4-18, the faithfulness of God, the faithlessness of Israel; (2) Deuteronomy 32:19-33, the chastisement and the need of its infliction by God; (3) Deuteronomy 32:34-42, God‘s compassion upon the low and humbled state of His people. The Song…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 39-43Verses 39-43 This conclusion of the song speaks, 1. Glory to God. No escape can be made from his power. 2. It speaks terror to his enemies. Terror indeed to those who hate him. The wrath of God is here revealed from heaven against them. 3. It speaks comfort to his own people. The song concludes with words of joy. Whatever judgments are brought upon sinners, it shall go well with the people of God.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 40I lift up My hand to heaven: This way of speaking about God as if he had human actions (anthropomorphism; see study notes on 4:34 and 8:2) shows that God is serious about keeping his covenant promises to rescue his people from their enemies. When God makes an oath, he is not relying on any external force in case he fails. Instead, the statement emphasizes that God’s promises are completely reliable, beyond even his character (see Numbers 14:21, 28; Isaiah…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-431. Give ear, O ye heavens; ... hear, O earth--The magnificence of the exordium, the grandeur of the theme, the frequent and sudden transitions, the elevated strain of the sentiments and language, entitle this song to be ranked amongst the noblest specimens of poetry to be found in the Scriptures.Read the comment
Topics related to Deuteronomy 32:40
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 32
- 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
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