Deuteronomy 31:16

Deuteronomy 31:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them.
• New International Version (NIV)And 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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the Lord said to Moses, "Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise and whore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will forsake me and break my covenant that I have made with them.
• New Living Translation (NLT)The Lord said to Moses, “You are about to die and join your ancestors. After you are gone, these people will begin to worship foreign gods, the gods of the land where they are going. They will abandon me and break my covenant that I have made with them.

Context of Deuteronomy 31:16

14Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, the days approach when you must die; call Joshua, and present yourselves in the tabernacle of meeting, that I may inaugurate him.” So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tabernacle of meeting. 15Now the Lord appeared at the tabernacle in a pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud stood above the door of the tabernacle. And the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, you will rest with your fathers; and this people will rise and play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them. 17Then My anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, ‘Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us?’ 18And I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.

Deuteronomy 31:16 word by word

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהוָה֙ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה הִנְּךָ֥ שֹׁכֵ֖ב עִם־אֲבֹתֶ֑יךָ וְקָם֩ הָעָ֨ם הַזֶּ֜ה וְזָנָ֣ה׀ אַחֲרֵ֣י׀ אֱלֹהֵ֣י נֵֽכַר־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֨ר ה֤וּא בָא־שָׁ֙מָּה֙ בְּקִרְבּ֔וֹ וַעֲזָבַ֕נִי וְהֵפֵר֙ אֶת־בְּרִיתִ֔י אֲשֶׁ֥ר כָּרַ֖תִּי אִתּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
• Behold, thou shalt sleepשָׁכַבshâkab · to lie down: lay downH7901
• with thy fathersאָב'âb · fatherH1
• and this peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• will rise upקוּםqûm · to arise: riseH6965
• and go a whoringזָנָהzânâh · to fornicateH2181
• afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
• the godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• of the strangersנֵכָרnêkâr · foreignH5236
• of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• whither they goבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• amongקֶ֫רֶבqereb · entrails: amongH7130
• them, and will forsakeעָזַב‛âzab · to leave: forsakeH5800
• me, and breakפָּרַרpârar · to breakH6565
• my covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285
• which I have madeכָּרַתkârath · to cut: make(covenant)H3772

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 31:16

• Genesis 25:8Then Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people.
• 2 Samuel 7:12“When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
• Isaiah 57:2He shall enter into peace; They shall rest in their beds, Each one walking in his uprightness.
• Acts 13:36“For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption;
• Job 20:11His bones are full of his youthful vigor, But it will lie down with him in the dust.
• Exodus 32:6Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
• Exodus 34:15lest 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,
• Leviticus 20:3I will set My face against that man, and will cut him off from his people, because he has given some of his descendants to Molech, to defile My sanctuary and profane My holy name.
• Judges 2:17Yet they would not listen to their judges, but they played the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them. They turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked, in obeying the commandments of the Lord; they did not do so.
• Psalms 73:27For indeed, those who are far from You shall perish; You have destroyed all those who desert You for harlotry.
• Psalms 106:39Thus they were defiled by their own works, And played the harlot by their own deeds.
• Isaiah 57:3“But come here, You sons of the sorceress, You offspring of the adulterer and the harlot!
• Jeremiah 3:1“They say, ‘If a man divorces his wife, And she goes from him And becomes another man’s, May he return to her again?’ Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers; Yet return to Me,” says the Lord.
• Ezekiel 16:15“But you trusted in your own beauty, played the harlot because of your fame, and poured out your harlotry on everyone passing by who would have it.
• Ezekiel 23:5“Oholah played the harlot even though she was Mine; And she lusted for her lovers, the neighboring Assyrians,
• Hosea 2:2“Bring charges against your mother, bring charges; For she is not My wife, nor am I her Husband! Let her put away her harlotries from her sight, And her adulteries from between her breasts;

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 31:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers - שכב shocheb, thou shalt lie down; it signifies to rest, take rest in sleep, and, metaphorically, to die. Much stress cannot be safely laid on this expression to prove the immortality of the soul, or that the people in the time of Moses had a distinct notion of its separate existence. It was, however, understood in this sense by Jonathan ben Uzziel, who in his Targum paraphrases the word thus: "Thou shalt lie…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14-23Verses 14-23 The transaction recorded in these verses may be regarded as the solemn inauguration of Joshua to the office to which he had some time before Numbers 27:22 been called, and his recognition in it by God, which were manifested by his being summoned into the tabernacle with Moses while the Lord appeared in the pillar of cloud (compare Numbers 11:25; Numbers 12:5). Deuteronomy 31:16 The future apostasy of the people is announced in the presence of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-22Verses 14-22 Moses and Joshua attended the Divine Majesty at the door of the tabernacle. Moses is told again that he must shortly die; even those who are most ready and willing to die, need to be often reminded of its coming. The Lord tells Moses, that, after his death, the covenant he had taken so much pains to make between Israel and their God, would certainly be broken. Israel would forsake Him; then God would forsake Israel. Justly does he cast those…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-29For a covenant document to remain binding and important, it had to be kept in a place where both sides could easily find it. The book of Deuteronomy needed to be preserved for future generations. In this way, Israel would continue to remember to submit to the Lord’s rule.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-2216-22. the Lord said unto Moses, ... this people will rise up--In this remarkable interview, Moses was distinctly apprised of the infidelity of Israel, their corruptions of the true religion through intercourse with the idolatrous inhabitants of Canaan (Am 5:26), and their chastisements in consequence of those national defections.Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 31:16

• Backsliders
• Death
• Fellowship
• Idolatry
• Ingratitude
• Minister, Christian
• Whoredom

In the dictionaries

• Moses
• Courage
• Geber
• Hilkiah
• Crime; Crimes
• Daniel, Book of
• Deuteronomy
• God, Strange
• Law in the Old Testament
• Sleep

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 31

• 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