New International Version
Exodus 34:15
15“Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices.
Exodus 34:15 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice;
- English Standard Version (ESV)lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and when they whore after their gods and sacrifice to their gods and you are invited, you eat of his sacrifice,
- New King James Version (NKJV)lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they play the harlot with their gods and make sacrifice to their gods, and one of them invites you and you eat of his sacrifice,
- New Living Translation (NLT)“You must not make a treaty of any kind with the people living in the land. They lust after their gods, offering sacrifices to them. They will invite you to join them in their sacrificial meals, and you will go with them.
Context of Exodus 34:15
13Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. 14Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. “Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices. 16And when you choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will lead your sons to do the same. 17“Do not make any idols.
Read all of Exodus 34Exodus 34:15 word by word
פֶּן־תִּכְרֹ֥ת בְּרִ֖ית לְיוֹשֵׁ֣ב הָאָ֑רֶץ וְזָנ֣וּ׀ אַחֲרֵ֣י אֱלֹֽהֵיהֶ֗ם וְזָבְחוּ֙ לֵאלֹ֣הֵיהֶ֔ם וְקָרָ֣א לְךָ֔ וְאָכַלְתָּ֖ מִזִּבְחֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Lest thou makeכָּרַתkârath · to cut: make(covenant)H3772
- a covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285
- with the inhabitantsיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and they go a whoringזָנָהzânâh · to fornicateH2181
- afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
- their godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- and do sacrificeזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
- callקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
- thee, and thou eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- of his sacrificeזֶ֫בַחzebach · sacrificeH2077
Cross-references for Exodus 34:15
- Exodus 34:10Then the Lord said: “I am making a covenant with you. Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world. The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the Lord, will do for you.
- Exodus 23:32Do not make a covenant with them or with their gods.
- Deuteronomy 7:2and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy.
- Leviticus 17:7They must no longer offer any of their sacrifices to the goat idols to whom they prostitute themselves. This is to be a lasting ordinance for them and for the generations to come.’
- Leviticus 20:5I myself will set my face against him and his family and will cut them off from their people together with all who follow him in prostituting themselves to Molek.
- Numbers 15:39You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the Lord, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by chasing after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes.
- Deuteronomy 31:16And the Lord said to Moses: “You are going to rest with your ancestors, and these people will soon prostitute themselves to the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake me and break the covenant I made with them.
- Judges 2:17Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands.
- Psalms 73:27Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
- Jeremiah 3:9Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood.
- Ezra 6:9Whatever is needed—young bulls, rams, male lambs for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, and wheat, salt, wine and olive oil, as requested by the priests in Jerusalem—must be given them daily without fail,
- Hosea 4:12My people consult a wooden idol, and a diviner’s rod speaks to them. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God.
- Hosea 9:1Do not rejoice, Israel; do not be jubilant like the other nations. For you have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute at every threshing floor.
- Revelation 17:1One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters.
- Numbers 25:2who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods.
- 1 Corinthians 10:27If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience.
Commentaries on Exodus 34:15
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12-27Verses 12-27 The precepts contained in these verses are, for the most part, identical in substance with some of those which follow the Ten Commandments and are recorded in “the Book of the covenant” (Exodus 24:7). Exodus 34:13 Cut down their groves - This is the first reference to what is commonly known as grove-worship. The original word for “grove” in this connection אשׁרה 'ăshêrāh is different from that so rendered in Genesis 21:33. Our translators…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-17Verses 10-17 The Israelites are commanded to destroy every monument of idolatry, however curious or costly; to refuse all alliance, friendship, or marriage with idolaters, and all idolatrous feasts; and they were reminded not with idolaters, and all idolatrous feats; and they were reminded not to repeat the crime of making molten images. Jealously is called the rage of a man, Pr 6:34; but in God it is holy and just displeasure. Those cannot worship God…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12-17Worship of idols was prohibited, particularly the idols of the peoples into whose lands the Israelites were going. A key part of this restriction was the ban on treaties, or covenants, with these idol-worshiping peoples. Making a treaty would mean acknowledging their gods, as ancient treaties often called upon gods as witnesses (see study note on 20:1–23:33). The treaties would also tempt the Israelites to adopt the customs of their treaty partners…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 8-268-26. Moses bowed ... and worshipped--In the East, people bow the head to royalty, and are silent when it passes by, while in the West, they take off their hats and shout.Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 34:15
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 34
- 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
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