⁷ It was not because you were greater than all other people that the Lord loved you and chose you. In fact, you were the smallest of peoples! ⁸ No, it is because the Lord loved you and because he kept the solemn pledge he swore to your ancestors that the Lord brought you out with a strong hand and saved you from the house of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh, Egypt’s king. ⁹ Know now then that the Lord your God is the only true God! He is the faithful God, who keeps the covenant and proves loyal to everyone who loves him and keeps his commands—even to the thousandth generation! ¹⁰ He is the God who personally repays anyone who hates him, ultimately destroying that kind of person. The Lord does not waste time with anyone who hates him; he repays them personally. ¹¹ So make sure you carefully keep the commandment, the regulations, and the case laws that I am commanding you right now.