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Circumcise Your Heart

12 (A)So now, Israel, what does Yahweh your God ask from you, but to [a]fear Yahweh your God, to walk in all His ways and (B)love Him, and to serve Yahweh your God with (C)all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the commandments of Yahweh and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good? 14 Behold, (D)to Yahweh your God belong heaven and the [b]highest heavens, (E)the earth and all that is in it. 15 (F)Yet on your fathers did Yahweh set His affection to love them, and He chose their seed after them, even you above all peoples, as it is this day. 16 (G)So circumcise [c]your heart, and (H)stiffen your neck no longer. 17 (I)For Yahweh your God is the God of gods and the (J)Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the fearsome God (K)who does not show partiality nor (L)take a bribe. 18 He executes justice for (M)the orphan and the widow, and shows love for the sojourner by giving him food and clothing. 19 (N)So show love for the sojourner, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 20 Yahweh your God you shall fear; Him you shall serve, and to Him you shall (O)cling, and by His name (P)you shall swear. 21 He is (Q)your praise, and He is your God, who has done these great and fearsome things for you which your eyes have seen. 22 (R)Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons in all, (S)and now Yahweh your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:12 Or reverence
  2. Deuteronomy 10:14 Lit heaven of heavens
  3. Deuteronomy 10:16 Lit the foreskin of your heart

An Exhortation to Love Both God and People

12 Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you except to revere him,[a] to obey all his commandments,[b] to love him, to serve him[c] with all your mind and being,[d] 13 and to keep the Lord’s commandments and statutes that I am giving[e] you today for your own good? 14 The heavens—indeed the highest heavens—belong to the Lord your God, as does the earth and everything in it. 15 However, only to your ancestors did he[f] show his loving favor,[g] and he chose you, their descendants,[h] from all peoples—as is apparent today. 16 Therefore, cleanse[i] your hearts and stop being so stubborn![j] 17 For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awesome God who is unbiased and takes no bribe, 18 who justly treats[k] the orphan and widow, and who loves resident foreigners, giving them food and clothing. 19 So you must love the resident foreigner because you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. 20 Revere the Lord your God, serve him, be loyal to him, and take oaths only in his name. 21 He is the one you should praise;[l] he is your God, the one who has done these great and awesome things for you that you have seen. 22 When your ancestors went down to Egypt, they numbered only seventy, but now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars of the sky.[m]

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  2. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “to walk in all his ways” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV); NAB “follow his ways exactly”; NLT “to live according to his will.”
  3. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  4. Deuteronomy 10:12 tn Heb “heart and soul” or “heart and being”; NCV “with your whole being.” See note on the word “being” in Deut 6:5.
  5. Deuteronomy 10:13 tn Heb “commanding” (so NASB, NRSV). For stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy, “giving” has been used in the translation.
  6. Deuteronomy 10:15 tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” in 10:4.
  7. Deuteronomy 10:15 tn Heb “take delight to love.” Here again the verb אָהֵב (ʾahev, “love”), juxtaposed with בָחַר (bakhar, “choose”), is a term in covenant contexts that describes the Lord’s initiative in calling the patriarchal ancestors to be the founders of a people special to him (cf. the note on the word “loved” in Deut 4:37).
  8. Deuteronomy 10:15 tn The Hebrew text includes “after them,” but it is redundant in English style and has not been included in the translation.
  9. Deuteronomy 10:16 tn Heb “circumcise the foreskin of” (cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV). Reference to the Abrahamic covenant prompts Moses to recall the sign of that covenant, namely, physical circumcision (Gen 17:9-14). Just as that act signified total covenant obedience, so spiritual circumcision (cleansing of the heart) signifies more internally a commitment to be pliable and obedient to the will of God (cf. Deut 30:6; Jer 4:4; 9:26).
  10. Deuteronomy 10:16 tn Heb “your neck do not harden again.” See note on the word “stubborn” in Deut 9:6.
  11. Deuteronomy 10:18 tn Or “who executes justice for” (so NAB, NRSV); NLT “gives justice to.” Cf. Exod 22:21; Lev 19:33-34; Deut 24:14, 17; 27:19.
  12. Deuteronomy 10:21 tn Heb “your praise.” The pronoun is subjective and the noun “praise” is used here metonymically for the object of their praise (the Lord).
  13. Deuteronomy 10:22 tn Or “heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.