God’s Word Translation
Deuteronomy 6:16
16Never test the Lord your God as you did at Massah.
Deuteronomy 6:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Ye shall not tempt the Lord your God, as ye tempted him in Massah.
- New International Version (NIV)Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“You shall not tempt the Lord your God as you tempted Him in Massah.
Context of Deuteronomy 6:16
14Never worship any of the gods worshiped by the people around you. 15If you do, the Lord your God will become very angry with you and will wipe you off the face of the earth, because the Lord your God, who is with you, is a God who does not tolerate rivals. Never test the Lord your God as you did at Massah. 17Be sure to obey the commands of the Lord your God and the regulations and laws he has given you. 18Do what the Lord considers right and good. Then things will go well for you, and you will enter and take possession of that good land which the Lord promised to your ancestors with an oath.
Read all of Deuteronomy 6Deuteronomy 6:16 word by word
לֹ֣א תְנַסּ֔וּ אֶת־יְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר נִסִּיתֶ֖ם בַּמַּסָּֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 6:16
- Matthew 4:7Jesus said to him, “Again, Scripture says, ‘Never tempt the Lord your God.’ ”
- Luke 4:12Jesus answered him, “It has been said, ‘Never tempt the Lord your God.’ ”
- Exodus 17:2So they complained to Moses by saying, “Give us water to drink!” Moses said to them, “Why are you complaining to me? Why are you testing the Lord?”
- Numbers 20:3The people complained to Moses and said, “If only we had died when the other Israelites died in the Lord’s presence!
- Numbers 21:4Then they moved from Mount Hor, following the road that goes to the Red Sea, in order to get around Edom. The people became impatient on the trip
- Psalms 95:8“Do not be stubborn like ⌞my people were⌟ at Meribah, like the time at Massah in the desert.
- 1 Corinthians 10:9We shouldn’t put the Lord to the test as some of them did. They were killed by snakes.
- Hebrews 3:8Don’t be stubborn like those who rebelled and tested me in the desert.
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 6:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Ye shall not tempt the Lord - Ye shall not provoke him by entertaining doubts of his mercy, goodness, providence, and truth. As ye tempted him in Massah - How did they tempt him in Massah? They said, Is the Lord among us or not? Exodus 17:1-7. After such proofs as they had of his presence and his kindness, this was exceedingly provoking. Doubting God's kindness where there are so many evidences of it, is highly insulting to God Almighty.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10-25Verses 10-25 The Israelites were at the point of quitting a normal, life for a fixed and settled abode in the midst of other nations; they were exchanging a condition of comparative poverty for great and goodly cities, houses and vineyards. There was therefore before them a double danger; (1) a God-forgetting worldliness, and (2) a false tolerance of the idolatries practiced by those about to become their neighbors. The former error Moses strives to guard…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-16Verses 6-16 Here are means for maintaining and keeping up religion in our hearts and houses. 1. Meditation. God's words must be laid up in our hearts, that our thoughts may be daily employed about them. 2. The religious education of children. Often repeat these things to them. Be careful and exact in teaching thy children. Teach these truths to all who are any way under thy care. 3. Pious discourse. Thou shalt talk of these things with due reverence and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16When Israel traveled through the Sinai desert after the exodus, they reached Rephidim. There was no water here (Exodus 17:1–7). Moses saw the people's demand for water as testing the Lord, so he called the place Massah, which means "testing." Jesus later quoted this verse when Satan tempted him (Matthew 4:7; Luke 4:12).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-251-9. Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the Lord your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them ... whither ye go to possess it--The grand design of all the institutions prescribed to Israel was to form a religious people, whose national character should be distinguished by that fear of the Lord their God which would ensure their divine observance of His worship and their steadfast obedience to His will. The…Read the comment
Topics related to Deuteronomy 6:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 6
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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