Deuteronomy 6
New American Standard Bible
Obey God and Prosper
6 “Now this is the commandment, the statutes, and the judgments which the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, so that you may do them in the land where you are going over to take possession of it, 2 so that you, your son, and your grandson will (A)fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, (B)all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. 3 Now Israel, you shall listen and be careful to do them, so that (C)it may go well for you and that you may increase greatly, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has [a]promised you, in (D)a land flowing with milk and honey.
4 “(E)Hear, Israel! The Lord is our God, the (F)Lord is one! 5 And (G)you shall love the Lord your God (H)with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 (I)These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. 7 And (J)you shall repeat them diligently to your sons and speak of them when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you get up. 8 (K)You shall also tie them as a [b]sign to your [c]hand, and they shall be as [d]frontlets [e]on your forehead. 9 (L)You shall also write them on the [f]doorposts of your house and on your gates.
10 “Then it shall come about when the Lord your God brings you into the land that He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give you, (M)great and splendid cities which you did not build, 11 and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and carved cisterns which you did not carve out, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and (N)you eat and are satisfied, 12 be [g]careful that (O)you do not forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of [h]slavery. 13 (P)You shall [i]fear only the Lord your God; and you shall [j]worship Him and (Q)swear by His name. 14 (R)You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you, 15 for the Lord your God who is in the midst of you is a (S)jealous God; so follow Him, or else the anger of the Lord your God will be kindled against you, and He will [k]wipe you off the face of the earth.
16 “(T)You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, (U)as you tested Him at Massah. 17 (V)You shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and His provisions and His statutes which He has commanded you. 18 You shall do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, so that (W)it may go well for you and that you may go in and take possession of the good land which the Lord swore to give your fathers, 19 by driving out all your enemies from you, as the Lord has spoken.
20 “(X)When your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What do the provisions and the statutes and the judgments mean which the Lord our God commanded you?’ 21 then you shall say to your son, ‘We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt, and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 22 Moreover, the Lord provided great and terrible signs and wonders before our eyes against Egypt, Pharaoh, and all his household; 23 He brought us out of there in order to bring us in, to give us the land which He had sworn to our fathers.’ 24 So the Lord commanded us to [l]follow all these statutes, (Y)to fear the Lord our God for our own good always and (Z)for our survival, as it is today. 25 And (AA)it will be righteousness for us if we are careful to [m]follow all this commandment before the Lord our God, just as He commanded us.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 6:3 Lit spoken to
- Deuteronomy 6:8 I.e., reminder
- Deuteronomy 6:8 Or forearm
- Deuteronomy 6:8 Or phylacteries
- Deuteronomy 6:8 Lit between your eyes
- Deuteronomy 6:9 Heb mezuzoth
- Deuteronomy 6:12 Or careful yourself
- Deuteronomy 6:12 Lit slaves
- Deuteronomy 6:13 Or revere
- Deuteronomy 6:13 Or serve
- Deuteronomy 6:15 Lit destroy
- Deuteronomy 6:24 Lit perform
- Deuteronomy 6:25 Lit perform
Deuteronomy 6
Christian Standard Bible
The Greatest Command
6 “This is the command—the statutes and ordinances—the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, so that you may follow them in the land you are about to enter and possess.(A) 2 Do this so that you may fear(B) the Lord your God(C) all the days of your life(D) by keeping all his statutes and commands I am giving you, your son, and your grandson, and so that you may have a long life.(E) 3 Listen, Israel, and be careful to follow them, so that you may prosper and multiply greatly, because the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you a land flowing with milk and honey.(F)
4 “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a](G) 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.(H) 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.(I) 7 Repeat them to your children.(J) Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol[b] on your forehead.[c](K) 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.
Remembering God through Obedience
10 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give you—a land with large and beautiful cities that you did not build, 11 houses full of every good thing that you did not fill them with, cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant(L)—and when you eat and are satisfied,(M) 12 be careful not to forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.(N) 13 Fear the Lord your God, worship him, and take your oaths in his name.(O) 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you, 15 for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God.(P) Otherwise, the Lord your God will become angry with you and obliterate you from the face of the earth. 16 Do not test(Q) the Lord your God as you tested him at Massah.(R) 17 Carefully observe the commands of the Lord your God, the decrees and statutes he has commanded you. 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that you may prosper and so that you may enter and possess the good land(S) the Lord your God swore to give your ancestors,(T) 19 by driving out all your enemies before you, as the Lord has said.(U)
20 “When your son asks you in the future, ‘What is the meaning(V) of the decrees, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God has commanded you?’ 21 tell him, ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand.(W) 22 Before our eyes the Lord inflicted great and devastating signs and wonders on Egypt,(X) on Pharaoh, and on all his household, 23 but he brought us from there in order to lead us in and give us the land that he swore to our ancestors. 24 The Lord commanded us to follow all these statutes and to fear the Lord our God for our prosperity always and for our preservation, as it is today. 25 Righteousness will be ours if we are careful to follow every one of these commands before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us.’
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