God’s Word Translation
Deuteronomy 4:25
25Even when you have children and grandchildren and have grown old in that land, don’t become corrupt and make carved idols or statues that represent anything. I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today: If you do this thing that the Lord your God considers evil, making him furious,
Deuteronomy 4:25 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)When thou shalt beget children, and children’s children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of the Lord thy God, to provoke him to anger:
- New International Version (NIV)After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time—if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol, doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God and arousing his anger,
- English Standard Version (ESV)"When you father children and children's children, and have grown old in the land, if you act corruptly by making a carved image in the form of anything, and by doing what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, so as to provoke him to anger,
- New King James Version (NKJV)“When you beget children and grandchildren and have grown old in the land, and act corruptly and make a carved image in the form of anything, and do evil in the sight of the Lord your God to provoke Him to anger,
Context of Deuteronomy 4:25
23Be careful that you don’t forget the promise that the Lord your God made to you. Don’t make your own carved idols or statues that represent anything the Lord your God has forbidden. 24The Lord your God is a raging fire, a God who does not tolerate rivals. Even when you have children and grandchildren and have grown old in that land, don’t become corrupt and make carved idols or statues that represent anything. I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today: If you do this thing that the Lord your God considers evil, making him furious, 26you will quickly disappear from the land you’re going to possess on the other side of the Jordan River. You won’t live very long there. You’ll be completely wiped out. 27The Lord will scatter you among the people of the world, and only a few of you will be left among the nations where the Lord will force you to live.
Read all of Deuteronomy 4Deuteronomy 4:25 word by word
כִּֽי־תוֹלִ֤יד בָּנִים֙ וּבְנֵ֣י בָנִ֔ים וְנוֹשַׁנְתֶּ֖ם בָּאָ֑רֶץ וְהִשְׁחַתֶּ֗ם וַעֲשִׂ֤יתֶם פֶּ֙סֶל֙ תְּמ֣וּנַת כֹּ֔ל וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֥ם הָרַ֛ע בְּעֵינֵ֥י יְהוָֽה־אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לְהַכְעִיסֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- When thou shalt begetיָלַדyâlad · to begetH3205
- childrenבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- and ye shall have remained longיָשֵׁןyâshên · to sleepH3462
- in the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and shall corruptשָׁחַתshâchath · to ruinH7843
- and makeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- a graven imageפֶּ֫סֶלpesel · idolH6459
- the likenessתְּמוּנָהtemûnâh temûnâh · likenessH8544
- and shall doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
- evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
- in the sightעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eye: seeingH5869
- of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- to provoke him to angerכָּעַסka‛as · to provokeH3707
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 4:25
- Deuteronomy 31:16The Lord said to Moses, “Soon you are going to lie down in death with your ancestors. When these people enter the land and are living among the foreigners there, they will chase after foreign gods as though they were prostitutes. They will abandon me and reject the promise I made to them.
- Judges 2:8The Lord’s servant Joshua, son of Nun, died at the age of 110.
- Deuteronomy 4:16that you don’t become corrupt and make your own carved idols. Don’t make statues that represent men or women,
- Deuteronomy 31:29I know that after I die you will become thoroughly corrupt and turn from the way I have commanded you to live. In the days to come disasters will happen to you because you will make the Lord furious by doing what he considers evil.”
- Exodus 32:7The Lord said to Moses, “Go back down there. Your people whom you brought out of Egypt have ruined ⌞everything⌟.
- Hosea 9:9People have deeply corrupted themselves as they once did at Gibeah. God will remember their wickedness and punish them because of their sins.
- 2 Kings 17:17They sacrificed their sons and daughters by burning them alive. They practiced black magic and cast evil spells. They sold themselves by doing what the Lord considered evil, and they made him furious.
- 2 Kings 21:2He did what the Lord considered evil by copying the disgusting things done by the nations that the Lord had forced out of the Israelites’ way.
- 2 Chronicles 36:12He did what the Lord his God considered evil and didn’t humble himself in front of the prophet Jeremiah, who spoke for the Lord.
- 1 Corinthians 10:22Are we trying to make the Lord jealous? Are we stronger than he is?
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 4:25
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 25-28Verses 25-28 Compare with these verses Leviticus 26:33-40, and Deuteronomy 28:64 ff.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 24-40Verses 24-40 Moses urged the greatness, glory, and goodness of God. Did we consider what a God he is with whom we have to do, we should surely make conscience of our duty to him, and not dare to sin against him. Shall we forsake a merciful God, who will never forsake us, if we are faithful unto him? Whither can we go? Let us be held to our duty by the bonds of love, and prevailed with by the mercies of God to cleave to him. Moses urged God's authority…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. 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 4:25
In the dictionaries
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
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