New Living Translation
Deuteronomy 17:14
14“You are about to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you. When you take it over and settle there, you may think, ‘We should select a king to rule over us like the other nations around us.’
Deuteronomy 17:14 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)When thou art come unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me;
- New International Version (NIV)When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,”
- English Standard Version (ESV)"When you come to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, 'I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,'
- New King James Version (NKJV)“When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, ‘I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me,’
Context of Deuteronomy 17:14
12Anyone arrogant enough to reject the verdict of the judge or of the priest who represents the Lord your God must die. In this way you will purge the evil from Israel. 13Then everyone else will hear about it and be afraid to act so arrogantly. “You are about to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you. When you take it over and settle there, you may think, ‘We should select a king to rule over us like the other nations around us.’ 15If this happens, be sure to select as king the man the Lord your God chooses. You must appoint a fellow Israelite; he may not be a foreigner. 16“The king must not build up a large stable of horses for himself or send his people to Egypt to buy horses, for the Lord has told you, ‘You must never return to Egypt.’
Read all of Deuteronomy 17Deuteronomy 17:14 word by word
כִּֽי־תָבֹ֣א אֶל־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ נֹתֵ֣ן לָ֔ךְ וִֽירִשְׁתָּ֖הּ וְיָשַׁ֣בְתָּה בָּ֑הּ וְאָמַרְתָּ֗ אָשִׂ֤ימָה עָלַי֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ כְּכָל־הַגּוֹיִ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר סְבִיבֹתָֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- When thou art comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- unto the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- which the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- givethנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- thee, and shalt possessיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423
- it, and shalt dwellיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- therein, and shalt sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- I will setשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: appointH7760
- a kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- over me, like as all the nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
- aboutסָבִיבsâbîyb sebîybâh · aroundH5439
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 17:14
- Deuteronomy 7:1“When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are about to enter and occupy, he will clear away many nations ahead of you: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. These seven nations are greater and more numerous than you.
- Deuteronomy 12:9because you have not yet arrived at the place of rest, the land the Lord your God is giving you as your special possession.
- Deuteronomy 18:9“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there.
- Deuteronomy 26:1“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you as a special possession and you have conquered it and settled there,
- Leviticus 14:34“When you arrive in Canaan, the land I am giving you as your own possession, I may contaminate some of the houses in your land with mildew.
- Joshua 1:13“Remember what Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded you: ‘The Lord your God is giving you a place of rest. He has given you this land.’
- 1 Samuel 8:5“Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.”
- 1 Samuel 12:19“Pray to the Lord your God for us, or we will die!” they all said to Samuel. “For now we have added to our sins by asking for a king.”
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 17:14
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14No encouragement is given to the desire, natural in an Oriental people, for monarchical government; but neither is such desire blamed, as appears from the fact that conditions are immediately laid down upon which it may be satisfied. Compare the marginal references.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-20Verses 14-20 God himself was in a particular manner Israel's King; and if they set another over them, it was necessary that he should choose the person. Accordingly, when the people desired a king, they applied to Samuel, a prophet of the Lord. In all cases, God's choice, if we can but know it, should direct, determine, and overrule ours. Laws are given for the prince that should be elected. He must carefully avoid every thing that would turn him from God…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-2014. When thou ... shalt say, I will set a king over me--In the following passage Moses prophetically announces a revolution which should occur at a later period in the national history of Israel. No sanction or recommendation was indicated; on the contrary, when the popular clamor had effected that constitutional change on the theocracy by the appointment of a king, the divine disapproval was expressed in the most unequivocal terms (1Sa 8:7). Permission…Read the comment
Topics related to Deuteronomy 17:14
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 17
- 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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries