New Living Translation
Exodus 20:3
3“You must not have any other god but me.
Exodus 20:3 in other versions
Context of Exodus 20:3
1Then God gave the people all these instructions: 2“I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. 4“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. 5You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me.
Read all of Exodus 20Exodus 20:3 word by word
לֹֽ֣א יִהְיֶֽה־לְךָ֛֩ אֱלֹהִ֥֨ים אֲחֵרִ֖֜ים עַל־פָּנָֽ֗יַ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Exodus 20:3
- Exodus 15:11“Who is like you among the gods, O Lord— glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders?
- Deuteronomy 5:7“You must not have any other god but me.
- Deuteronomy 6:5And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.
- Joshua 24:18It was the Lord who drove out the Amorites and the other nations living here in the land. So we, too, will serve the Lord, for he alone is our God.”
- 2 Kings 17:29But these various groups of foreigners also continued to worship their own gods. In town after town where they lived, they placed their idols at the pagan shrines that the people of Samaria had built.
- Psalms 29:2Honor the Lord for the glory of his name. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.
- Psalms 73:25Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth.
- Psalms 81:9You must never have a foreign god; you must not bow down before a false god.
- Isaiah 26:4Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.
- Isaiah 43:10“But you are my witnesses, O Israel!” says the Lord. “You are my servant. You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. There is no other God— there never has been, and there never will be.
- Isaiah 44:8Do not tremble; do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago? You are my witnesses—is there any other God? No! There is no other Rock—not one!”
- Isaiah 45:21Consult together, argue your case. Get together and decide what to say. Who made these things known so long ago? What idol ever told you they would happen? Was it not I, the Lord? For there is no other God but me, a righteous God and Savior. There is none but me.
- Isaiah 46:9Remember the things I have done in the past. For I alone am God! I am God, and there is none like me.
- Jeremiah 25:6Do not provoke my anger by worshiping idols you made with your own hands. Then I will not harm you.’
- Jeremiah 35:15Time after time I sent you prophets, who told you, “Turn from your wicked ways, and start doing things right. Stop worshiping other gods so that you might live in peace here in the land I have given to you and your ancestors.” But you would not listen to me or obey me.
- Matthew 4:10“Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’ ”
Commentaries on Exodus 20:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Thou shalt have no other gods before me - אחרים אלהים elohim acherim, no strange gods - none that thou art not acquainted with, none who has not given thee such proofs of his power and godhead as I have done in delivering thee from the Egyptians, dividing the Red Sea, bringing water out of the rock, quails into the desert, manna from heaven to feed thee, and the pillar of cloud to direct, enlighten, and shield thee. By these miracles God had rendered…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-17Verses 1-17 The Hebrew name which is rendered in our King James Version as the ten commandments occurs in Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13; Deuteronomy 10:4. It literally means “the Ten Words.” The Ten Commandments are also called the law, even the commandment Exodus 24:12, the words of the covenant Exodus 34:28, the tables of the covenant Deuteronomy 9:9, the covenant Deuteronomy 4:13, the two tables Deuteronomy 9:10, Deuteronomy 9:17, and, most…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 3-11Verses 3-11 The first four of the ten commandments, commonly called the FIRST table, tell our duty to God. It was fit that those should be put first, because man had a Maker to love, before he had a neighbour to love. It cannot be expected that he should be true to his brother, who is false to his God. The first commandment concerns the object of worship, JEHOVAH, and him only. The worship of creatures is here forbidden. Whatever comes short of perfect…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Not recognizing any other god is the first step toward learning the truth that there are no other gods besides the Lord (see Deuteronomy 4:35; 6:4; Isaiah 43:10–11; 45:21–22).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. Thou shalt have no other gods before me--in My presence, beside, or except Me.Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 20:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 20
- 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
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