Deuteronomy 4: Hold Fast and Don't Forget
Moses calls Israel to obey, to remember Horeb, and above all to shun idols, for the LORD alone is God in heaven and on earth.
Deuteronomy 4 (WEB)
1 Now, Israel, listen to the statutes and to the ordinances, which I teach you, to do them; that you may live, and go in and possess the land which Yahweh, the God of your fathers, gives you.
2 You shall not add to the word which I command you, neither shall you take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of Yahweh your God which I command you.
3 Your eyes have seen what Yahweh did because of Baal Peor; for all the men who followed Baal Peor, Yahweh your God has destroyed them from among you.
4 But you who were faithful to Yahweh your God are all alive this day.
5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and ordinances, even as Yahweh my God commanded me, that you should do so in the midst of the land where you go in to possess it.
6 Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who shall hear all these statutes, and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.”
7 For what great nation is there, that has a god so near to them, as Yahweh our God is whenever we call on him?
8 What great nation is there, that has statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
9 Only be careful, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes saw, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life; but make them known to your children and your children’s children;
10 the day that you stood before Yahweh your God in Horeb, when Yahweh said to me, “Assemble the people to me, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.”
11 You came near and stood under the mountain. The mountain burned with fire to the heart of the sky, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness.
12 Yahweh spoke to you out of the midst of the fire: you heard the voice of words, but you saw no form; you only heard a voice.
13 He declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even the ten commandments. He wrote them on two stone tablets.
14 Yahweh commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances, that you might do them in the land where you go over to possess it.
15 Be very careful, for you saw no kind of form on the day that Yahweh spoke to you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire,
16 lest you corrupt yourselves, and make yourself an engraved image in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the sky,
18 the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth;
19 and lest you lift up your eyes to the sky, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, even all the army of the sky, you are drawn away and worship them, and serve them, which Yahweh your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole sky.
20 But Yahweh has taken you, and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be to him a people of inheritance, as at this day.
21 Furthermore Yahweh was angry with me for your sakes, and swore that I should not go over the Jordan, and that I should not go in to that good land, which Yahweh your God gives you for an inheritance;
22 but I must die in this land. I must not go over the Jordan; but you shall go over, and possess that good land.
23 Be careful, lest you forget the covenant of Yahweh your God, which he made with you, and make yourselves an engraved image in the form of anything which Yahweh your God has forbidden you.
24 For Yahweh your God is a devouring fire, a jealous God.
25 When you shall father children, and children’s children, and you shall have been long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make an engraved image in the form of anything, and shall do that which is evil in the sight of Yahweh your God, to provoke him to anger;
26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from off the land which you go over the Jordan to possess it. You will not prolong your days on it, but will utterly be destroyed.
27 Yahweh will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations, where Yahweh will lead you away.
28 There you shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 But from there you shall seek Yahweh your God, and you shall find him, when you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.
30 When you are in oppression, and all these things have come on you, in the latter days you shall return to Yahweh your God, and listen to his voice.
31 For Yahweh your God is a merciful God. He will not fail you, neither destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which he swore to them.
32 For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and from the one end of the sky to the other, whether there has been anything as this great thing is, or has been heard like it?
33 Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live?
34 Or has God tried to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand, by an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that Yahweh your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?
35 It was shown to you so that you might know that Yahweh is God. There is no one else besides him.
36 Out of heaven he made you to hear his voice, that he might instruct you. On earth he made you to see his great fire; and you heard his words out of the midst of the fire.
37 Because he loved your fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought you out with his presence, with his great power, out of Egypt;
38 to drive out nations from before you greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as at this day.
39 Know therefore this day, and lay it to your heart, that Yahweh himself is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath. There is no one else.
40 You shall keep his statutes, and his commandments, which I command you this day, that it may go well with you, and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land, which Yahweh your God gives you, forever.
41 Then Moses set apart three cities beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise;
42 that the man slayer might flee there, who kills his neighbor unawares, and didn’t hate him in time past; and that fleeing to one of these cities he might live:
43 Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, for the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, for the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, for the Manassites.
44 This is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel.
45 These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which Moses spoke to the children of Israel, when they came out of Egypt,
46 beyond the Jordan, in the valley over against Beth Peor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel struck, when they came out of Egypt.
47 They took his land in possession, and the land of Og king of Bashan, the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise;
48 from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, even to Mount Sion (the same is Hermon),
49 and all the Arabah beyond the Jordan eastward, even to the sea of the Arabah, under the slopes of Pisgah.
Deuteronomy 4 (KJV)
1 Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers giveth you.
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.
3 Your eyes have seen what the Lord did because of Baal–peor: for all the men that followed Baal–peor, the Lord thy God hath destroyed them from among you.
4 But ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God are alive every one of you this day.
5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
6 Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7 For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for?
8 And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;
10 Specially the day that thou stoodest before the Lord thy God in Horeb, when the Lord said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.
11 And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness.
12 And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.
13 And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.
14 And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.
15 Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the Lord spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,
18 The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the Lord thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
20 But the Lord hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.
21 Furthermore the Lord was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance:
22 But I must die in this land, I must not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.
23 Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee.
24 For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.
25 When thou shalt beget children, and children’s children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of the Lord thy God, to provoke him to anger:
26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.
27 And the Lord shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the Lord shall lead you.
28 And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
30 When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;
31 (For the Lord thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.
32 For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?
33 Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?
34 Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?
35 Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God; there is none else beside him.
36 Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.
37 And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt;
38 To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.
39 Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.
40 Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.
41 Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;
42 That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:
43 Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.
44 And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:
45 These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt,
46 On this side Jordan, in the valley over against Beth–peor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they were come forth out of Egypt:
47 And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, which were on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;
48 From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto mount Sion, which is Hermon,
49 And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the springs of Pisgah.
Deuteronomy 4 (ASV)
1 And now, O Israel, hearken unto the statutes and unto the ordinances, which I teach you, to do them; that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which Jehovah, the God of your fathers, giveth you.
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it, that ye may keep the commandments of Jehovah your God which I command you.
3 Your eyes have seen what Jehovah did because of Baal-peor; for all the men that followed Baal-peor, Jehovah thy God hath destroyed them from the midst of thee.
4 But ye that did cleave unto Jehovah your God are alive every one of you this day.
5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and ordinances, even as Jehovah my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the midst of the land whither ye go in to possess it.
6 Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, that shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7 For what great nation is there, that hath a god so nigh unto them, as Jehovah our God is whensoever we call upon him?
8 And what great nation is there, that hath statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes saw, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life; but make them known unto thy children and thy children’s children;
10 the day that thou stoodest before Jehovah thy God in Horeb, when Jehovah said unto me, Assemble me the people, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.
11 And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the heart of heaven, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness.
12 And Jehovah spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of words, but ye saw no form; only ye heard a voice.
13 And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even the ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.
14 And Jehovah commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it.
15 Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of form on the day that Jehovah spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire;
16 lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flieth in the heavens,
18 the likeness of anything that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth;
19 and lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun and the moon and the stars, even all the host of heaven, thou be drawn away and worship them, and serve them, which Jehovah thy God hath allotted unto all the peoples under the whole heaven.
20 But Jehovah hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be unto him a people of inheritance, as at this day.
21 Furthermore Jehovah was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over the Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance:
22 but I must die in this land, I must not go over the Jordan; but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.
23 Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of Jehovah your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image in the form of anything which Jehovah thy God hath forbidden thee.
24 For Jehovah thy God is a devouring fire, a jealous God.
25 When thou shalt beget children, and children’s children, and ye shall have been long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image in the form of anything, and shall do that which is evil in the sight of Jehovah thy God, to provoke him to anger;
26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over the Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.
27 And Jehovah will scatter you among the peoples, and ye shall be left few in number among the nations, whither Jehovah shall lead you away.
28 And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 But from thence ye shall seek Jehovah thy God, and thou shalt find him, when thou searchest after him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
30 When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, in the latter days thou shalt return to Jehovah thy God, and hearken unto his voice:
31 for Jehovah thy God is a merciful God; he will not fail thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.
32 For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and from the one end of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?
33 Did ever a people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?
34 Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that Jehovah your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?
35 Unto thee it was showed, that thou mightest know that Jehovah he is God; there is none else besides him.
36 Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he made thee to see his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.
37 And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out with his presence, with his great power, out of Egypt;
38 to drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as at this day.
39 Know therefore this day, and lay it to thy heart, that Jehovah he is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there is none else.
40 And thou shalt keep his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days in the land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, for ever.
41 Then Moses set apart three cities beyond the Jordan toward the sunrising;
42 that the manslayer might flee thither, that slayeth his neighbor unawares, and hated him not in time past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:
43 namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, for the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, for the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, for the Manassites.
44 And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:
45 these are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, when they came forth out of Egypt,
46 beyond the Jordan, in the valley over against Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, when they came forth out of Egypt.
47 And they took his land in possession, and the land of Og king of Bashan, the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan toward the sunrising;
48 from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, even unto mount Sion (the same is Hermon),
49 and all the Arabah beyond the Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the Arabah, under the slopes of Pisgah.
Summary
Having reviewed the journey, Moses turns to exhortation, urging Israel to listen to God's statutes and ordinances so that they may live and possess the land. They must neither add to nor take away from God's word, for keeping his law is their wisdom in the sight of the nations, who will marvel that no people has a God so near. Moses calls them to guard their hearts diligently and never forget what their eyes saw at Horeb, where they heard God's voice from the fire but saw no form. Because they saw no form, they must make no idol in any likeness, for the LORD is a devouring fire, a jealous God. Moses warns that if they later corrupt themselves with images, they will be scattered among the nations; yet even there, if they seek the LORD with all their heart, they will find him, for he is a merciful God who will not forget his covenant. He sets before them the unmatched grandeur of their history: a people who heard God speak from the fire and lived, a nation taken by God out of the midst of another by signs and wonders. All of this was to teach them that the LORD is God, and there is no other in heaven above or on the earth beneath. Moses then sets apart three cities of refuge east of the Jordan.
Main Characters
- Moses — The preacher who pleads with Israel to obey, to remember Horeb, and to guard their hearts against idolatry.
- Yahweh (the LORD) — The one true God, near to his people, a devouring fire and a jealous God, yet merciful and faithful to his covenant.
- The generation at Horeb — Those who stood beneath the burning mountain, heard God's voice from the fire, and saw no form, called never to forget it.
- The watching nations — The peoples who would see Israel's wise law and recognize the greatness of a God so near to those who call on him.
Key Verse
Deuteronomy 4:39 (WEB)
Know therefore this day, and lay it to your heart, that Yahweh himself is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath. There is no one else.
Lessons Learned
- God's word is to be kept whole, neither added to nor subtracted from.
- Obedience to God displays his wisdom and nearness before a watching world.
- Because God revealed himself by his voice and not a form, we must worship him as he is, not by images of our own making.
- Even after failure and scattering, God can be found by those who seek him wholeheartedly.
- The deepest truth of all is that the LORD alone is God, and there is no other.
- God's word is sufficient and sacred. “You shall not add to the word… neither shall you take away from it” (Deuteronomy 4:2, WEB). We submit to Scripture rather than edit it.
- A near God is our true wisdom. “What great nation is there, that has a god so near to them, as Yahweh our God” (Deuteronomy 4:7, WEB). Knowing him is the heart of wisdom.
- Worship God as he reveals himself. Because “you saw no form” (Deuteronomy 4:15, WEB), Israel must make no idol. We must not reshape God into images of our own imagining.
- God is found by those who seek him. “You shall seek Yahweh your God, and you shall find him, when you search after him with all your heart” (Deuteronomy 4:29, WEB). His mercy meets the returning heart.
- Why does Moses insist that Israel neither add to nor take away from God's word (4:2)? How might we be tempted to do both today?
- Moses says keeping God's law is Israel's “wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples” (4:6). How does obedience become a witness to those around us?
- Why is it so important that Israel saw “no form” at Horeb (4:12, 15)? What does this guard against in our worship?
- How do verses 29-31 offer hope even after warning of judgment and exile?
- What “forms” or images of God do we tend to construct that fit our preferences rather than his self-revelation? How can we worship the God who actually is?
- God's word is complete and authoritative; adding to it or trimming it both put us in the place of judge over God. We add by binding consciences with our own rules and subtract by ignoring what we find inconvenient. Faithfulness means receiving his word whole.
- When God's people live by his wise and just law, the watching world sees something compelling—a nation marked by a God who is near. Obedience is not merely private; it commends the Lord to others and displays his character publicly.
- Seeing no form protects Israel from reducing the infinite God to a manageable object. Idolatry tames God to our control; worshiping the unseen God who speaks keeps us submitted to him as he truly is rather than as we would prefer.
- Even foreseeing Israel's failure and scattering, Moses promises that if they seek the LORD with all their heart they will find him, because he is merciful and will not forget his covenant. Grace outlasts judgment, and the door of return is never bolted shut.
- This is a personal-application question. Help the group recognize subtle idols—a God who is only comfort, or only sternness, or who endorses our agendas. Invite them to return to Scripture's portrait of God and worship him as he has revealed himself.