Deuteronomy 9:4

Deuteronomy 9:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord doth drive them out from before thee.
• New International Version (NIV)After the Lord your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, “The Lord has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness.” No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is going to drive them out before you.
• English Standard Version (ESV)"Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, 'It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,' whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out before you.
• New King James Version (NKJV)“Do not think in your heart, after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying, ‘Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land’; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out from before you.

Context of Deuteronomy 9:4

2The people are strong and tall—descendants of the famous Anakite giants. You’ve heard the saying, ‘Who can stand up to the Anakites?’ 3But recognize today that the Lord your God is the one who will cross over ahead of you like a devouring fire to destroy them. He will subdue them so that you will quickly conquer them and drive them out, just as the Lord has promised. “After the Lord your God has done this for you, don’t say in your hearts, ‘The Lord has given us this land because we are such good people!’ No, it is because of the wickedness of the other nations that he is pushing them out of your way. 5It is not because you are so good or have such integrity that you are about to occupy their land. The Lord your God will drive these nations out ahead of you only because of their wickedness, and to fulfill the oath he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 6You must recognize that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land because you are good, for you are not—you are a stubborn people.

Deuteronomy 9:4 word by word

אַל־תֹּאמַ֣ר בִּלְבָבְךָ֗ בַּהֲדֹ֣ף יְהוָה֩ אֱלֹהֶ֨יךָ אֹתָ֥ם׀ מִלְּפָנֶיךָ֮ לֵאמֹר֒ בְּצִדְקָתִי֙ הֱבִיאַ֣נִי יְהוָ֔ה לָרֶ֖שֶׁת אֶת־הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֑את וּבְרִשְׁעַת֙ הַגּוֹיִ֣ם הָאֵ֔לֶּה יְהוָ֖ה מוֹרִישָׁ֥ם מִפָּנֶֽיךָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Speakאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• not thou in thine heartלֵבָבlêbâb · heartH3824
• after that the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• hath cast them outהָדַףhâdaph · to thrustH1920
• from beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• For my righteousnessצְדָקָהtsedâqâh · righteousnessH6666
• hath brought me inבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): bringH935
• to possessיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423
• this landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• but for the wickednessרִשְׁעָהrish‛âh · wickednessH7564
• of these nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 9:4

• Deuteronomy 9:5It is not because you are so good or have such integrity that you are about to occupy their land. The Lord your God will drive these nations out ahead of you only because of their wickedness, and to fulfill the oath he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
• Deuteronomy 7:7“The Lord did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations!
• Deuteronomy 8:17He did all this so you would never say to yourself, ‘I have achieved this wealth with my own strength and energy.’
• Ezekiel 36:22“Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from the Sovereign Lord: I am bringing you back, but not because you deserve it. I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which you brought shame while you were scattered among the nations.
• Romans 11:6And since it is through God’s kindness, then it is not by their good works. For in that case, God’s grace would not be what it really is—free and undeserved.
• 1 Corinthians 4:4My conscience is clear, but that doesn’t prove I’m right. It is the Lord himself who will examine me and decide.
• Ephesians 2:4But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,
• 2 Timothy 1:9For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.
• Deuteronomy 12:31You must not worship the Lord your God the way the other nations worship their gods, for they perform for their gods every detestable act that the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods.
• Deuteronomy 18:12Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord. It is because the other nations have done these detestable things that the Lord your God will drive them out ahead of you.
• Genesis 15:16After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction.”
• Leviticus 18:24“Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, for the people I am driving out before you have defiled themselves in all these ways.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 9:4

• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-64-6. Speak not thou in thine heart, ... saying, For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land--Moses takes special care to guard his countrymen against the vanity of supposing that their own merits had procured them the distinguished privilege. The Canaanites were a hopelessly corrupt race, and deserved extermination; but history relates many remarkable instances in which God punished corrupt and guilty nations by the…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 9:4

• Grace of God
• Humility
• Self-Righteousness

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Carefully
• Rebellious
• Calf, Golden

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 9

• 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