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Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim)

Deuteronomy 7

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) Summary

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) begins with Moses explaining the defeat of the seven nations – the Hittite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.

Moshe further explains YHWH will drive these nations out. Moshe forbids covenants, mercy, marriage. He explains how their sons marrying the woman of these nations will lead their sons to idol worship. This will anger YHWH.

Moshe teaches how to deal with the idols of the nations and for the first time calls Israel “a holy people”. Also called holy in 14.2, 21; 26:19.  Moshe declares YHWH’s love for them. Further encourages the people with YHWH’s attributes of faithfulness. He implores them to act the same way towards Him. He explains how to show faithfulness towards YHWH.

[Chapter Division – The seventh reading of parsha Vaethchanan ends on verse 11. Then we begin with parsha Ekev in verse 12.‏‎]

Moshe explains the rewards for keeping the covenant. He explains that when they begins to fear to remember what YHWH has done for them. The promise of YHWH being among them is made along with explaining how the nations will be driven out “little by little”.

This chapter ends with a strong exhortation to destroy idols.

 

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Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) Outline

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) can be navigated in three possible ways. (1) Jewish tradition of daily reading called Torah Portions. (2) Rabbi Johnathan Sacks proposed treaty (covenant) layout and finally (3) theme based verses.

Click to see Deuteronomy 7 Links

Torah Portions:

  1. Seventh Reading vv. 1-11 – Parsha VaEthchanan
  2. First Reading vv. 12 – 28 – Parsha Ekev

Treaty (Covenant):

  1. Stipulations: General Provision – The Stipulations – General Provision portion is the third part of the treaty (covenant). It begins in 5.1 and continues through to 11.32.

Verses Topics:

  1. vv 1-4 – The promise of coming into the land and the destruction of the 7 greater nations. The forbidden things from the nations explained.
  2. v. 5 – How to properly deal with idol worship
  3. v. 6 – Called the Holy People.
  4. vv. 7-11 – YHWH’s love proclaimed, His faithfulness revealed, Israel’s redemption is recalled.
  5. vv. 12-16 – The rewards of keeping the covenant with YHWH.
  6. vv. 17-22 – How to deal with fear by remembering YHWH’s actions
  7. vv. 23-24 – YHWH gives promise of victory over their enemies.
  8. vv. 25-26 – Moshe teaches how to deal with idol worship and forbids them to participle in it.

Deuteronom 7 (Devarim) Verses

SEVENTH READING

→ Stipulations: General Provision – Con’t

1 When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and shall cast out many nations before thee, the Hittite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;
2  and when the LORD thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them;
3  neither shalt thou make marriages with them: thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.
4 For he will turn away thy son from following Me, that they may serve other gods; so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and He will destroy thee quickly.

5  But thus shall ye deal with them: ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire.


6  For thou art a holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be His own treasure, out of all peoples that are upon the face of the earth.


7  The LORD did not set His love* upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people – for ye were the fewest of all peoples –
8  but because the LORD loved you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

Notes on Deuteronomy 7:7

Deuteronomy 7:7

* love – Appears in Genesis 15x (Always between humans) – 27.4; 29.20, 32  , Exodus 2x – 20.5; 21.5 , Leviticus in Chpater 19 – 19.18,34,  Numbers 0x, In Deuteronomy no less than 23x (always between YHWH and his people) – 5.10; 6.5; 6.7, 9,13; 10.12,15,19; 11.1,13,22; 13.3; 19.9, 30.6, 16,20 I found 15.


9  Know therefore that the LORD thy God, He is God; the faithful God, who keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments to a thousand generations;
10  and repayeth them that hate Him to their face, to destroy them; He will not be slack to him that hateth Him, He will repay him to his face.
11  Thou shalt therefore keep the commandment, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which I command thee this day, to do them.

Parsha Ekev #47
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FIRST READING

12  And it shall come to pass, because* ye hearken to these ordinances, and keep, and do them, that the LORD thy God shall keep with thee the covenant and the mercy which He swore unto thy fathers,
13  and He will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee; He will also bless the fruit of thy body and the fruit of thy land, thy corn and thy wine and thine oil, the increase of thy kine and the young of thy flock, in the land which He swore unto thy fathers to give thee.

Notes on Deuteronomy 7:12

Deuteronomy 7:12

* Ekev עֵקֶב is translated as “as a result“. JPS translates is as “because“. BDB provides four definitions (1) as a consequence of, (2) because, (3)  reward, or (4) end.  ( The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon  2012, Hendrickson Publishing, Massachusetts, pg 784, S# 6118) According to Strongs (H6118) appears 0nly 16x

If you add a yod to the beginning it becomes Yaakov/Yaaqov (Jacob). עֵקֶב Ekev / יַעֲקֹב‎ Ya’aqov.

Also means “heel“, “hilly“,  In a verb form it means “follow at the heel“, figuratively “assail“, “insidiously“, “circumvent“, “overreach” As an adjective it means “deceitful“.

According to the Midrash there are two ways to see this:

(1) Eikev עֵ֣קֶב may be considered the commandments that people consider unimportant. Hence they figuratively tend to “trample with their heels” those commandments. According to Rashi, Torah assures Israel if they are careful to observe even the neglected commandments, they can be certain that G-d will reward them with His covenant and kindness.

(2) Artscroll Chumash on Deuteronomy/Devarim (pg 55) states “Sfas Emes questions the image of trampling: on any of the commandments, for that is the action of sinners. He suggests instead that the Midrash refers to the statement (Makkos 23b) that each of the 248 commandments corresponds to a different part of the body. There are commandments that corresponds to the head and the heart, and there are those that correspond the heels, Even though the head and the heart are more important that the heels, nevertheless, it is the heels that a person stands upon; they are the foundation, and so for the corresponding commandments”

According to Maimonides there are no commandment in this parsha.  Sefer ha-Chinuch lists 6 positive and 2 negative. Dt. 7.25, 26; 8.10, 10.19, 20 (x4); [ Wikipedia Article on Eikev ]

14  Thou shalt be blessed above all peoples; there shall not be male or female barren among you, or among your cattle.
15 And the LORD will take away from thee all sickness; and He will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee, but will lay them upon all them that hate thee.

16 And thou shalt consume* all the peoples that the LORD thy God shall deliver unto thee; thine eye shall not pity them; neither shalt thou serve their gods; for that will be a snare unto thee.

Notes on Deuteronomy 7:16

Deuteronomy 7:16 (Devarim) – “consume” akal אָכַל  – S# H398 appears 810x prime root meaning “to eat”. Nehemia Gordon says (00.14.56 – 00.17.51) “Literally says, You shall eat all the nations and you shall not have pity upon them. Torah is written in the language of men. It’s not cannibalism but rather an idiom meaning “to consume” or “you are going to chew them up and spit them out”. This is an example of slang.”

17  If thou shalt say in thy heart: ‘These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?’

18  thou shalt not be afraid of them; thou shalt well remember* what the LORD thy God did unto Pharaoh, and unto all Egypt:
19  the great trials which thine eyes saw*, and the signs, and the wonders, and the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, whereby the LORD thy God brought thee out; so shall the LORD thy God do unto all the peoples of whom thou art afraid.
20  Moreover the LORD thy God will send the hornet* among them, until they that are left, and they that hide themselves, perish from before thee.

Notes on Deuteronomy 7:18-20

Deuteronomy 7:18 (Devarim) – remember תִּזְכֹּ֗ר  tizkor – This is the second time Moshe bids Israel to remember. He does this 14 times in book of Deuteronomy – 5.15; here; 7.18; 8.2,18; 9.7,27; 15.15; 16.3,12; 24.9,18,22; 25.17; 32.7

Deuteronomy 7:19 (Devarim) which thine eyes saw אֲשֶׁר־רָאוּ עֵינֶיךָ  aser-rau eneka – This generation may not have actually seen the previous events preformed but because it was discussed and handed down it was as they where there.

Deuteronomy 7:20 (Devarim) hornet צִרְעָה  tsirah – appears only 3x in the Tanakh Exodus 23:28, here, Joshua 24:12. Artscroll translates it “the hornet-swarm”  Root word uncertain. Nor do we know what this is referencing. Nehemia Gordon says (00.13.25 – 00.14.44) “Some Hebrew experts say it may mean “fear” or “terror” i.e. as a gripping fear that will cause the enemy to run away and lose the will to fight.”

21  Thou shalt not be affrighted at them; for the LORD thy God is in the midst of thee, a God great and awful.

Notes on Deuteronomy 7:21

Deuteronomy 7:21 (Devarim)terrible – Hebrew yare’ יָרֵא Strongs H3372 means “affright” some versions translate it as “awesome”. Artscroll (p57) translates Thou shalt not be affrighted at them to “Do not let [your spirit] be broken before them.” Continues to say, “Since G-d will be among you and He is great and awesome, any fear you might have of the Canaanites nations should be submerged in your greater fear of God (Ibn Ezra); and if so, you should consider the Canaanites to be insignificant.” This word appears again in Deuteronomy 8:15, “Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness,” which shows how the desert appeared to the Israelites. Note awesome actually indicate “awe” or “fear” in respect.

22  And the LORD thy God will cast out those nations before thee by little and little; thou mayest not consume them quickly, lest the beasts of the field increase upon thee.

23  But the LORD thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and shall discomfit them with a great discomfiture, until they be destroyed.
24  And He shall deliver their kings into thy hand, and thou shalt make their name to perish from under heaven; there shall no man be able to stand against thee, until thou have destroyed them.

25  The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire; thou shalt not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein; for it is an abomination to the LORD thy God.
26  And thou shalt not bring an abomination into thy house, and be accursed like unto it; thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a devoted thing.

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) Verses

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דברים מה 45

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) ברים Hebrew Verses

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) Hebrew Reading

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ואתחנן  מה 45

ז  Chapter 7
[שביעי] א כִּי יְבִֽיאֲךָ יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּה בָא־שָׁמָּה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ וְנָשַׁל גּֽוֹיִם־רַבִּים ׀ מִפָּנֶיךָ הַֽחִתִּי וְהַגִּרְגָּשִׁי וְהָֽאֱמֹרִי וְהַכְּנַֽעֲנִי וְהַפְּרִזִּי וְהַֽחִוִּי וְהַיְבוּסִי שִׁבְעָה גוֹיִם רַבִּים וַֽעֲצוּמִים מִמֶּֽךָּ:

ב וּנְתָנָם יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְפָנֶיךָ וְהִכִּיתָם הַֽחֲרֵם תַּֽחֲרִים אֹתָם לֹֽא־תִכְרֹת לָהֶם בְּרִית וְלֹא תְחָנֵּֽם:

ג וְלֹא תִתְחַתֵּן בָּם בִּתְּךָ לֹֽא־תִתֵּן לִבְנוֹ וּבִתּוֹ לֹֽא־תִקַּח לִבְנֶֽךָ:

ד כִּֽי־יָסִיר אֶת־בִּנְךָ מֵֽאַֽחֲרַי וְעָֽבְדוּ אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים וְחָרָה אַף־יְהוָֹה בָּכֶם וְהִשְׁמִֽידְךָ מַהֵֽר:

ה כִּי אִם־כֹּה תַֽעֲשׂוּ לָהֶם מִזְבְּחֹֽתֵיהֶם תִּתֹּצוּ וּמַצֵּֽבֹתָם תְּשַׁבֵּרוּ וַֽאֲשֵֽׁירֵהֶם תְּגַדֵּעוּן וּפְסִֽילֵיהֶם תִּשְׂרְפוּן בָּאֵֽשׁ:

ו כִּי עַם קָדוֹשׁ אַתָּה לַֽיהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ בְּךָ בָּחַר ׀ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לִהְיוֹת לוֹ לְעַם סְגֻלָּה מִכֹּל הָֽעַמִּים אֲשֶׁר עַל־פְּנֵי הָֽאֲדָמָֽה:

ז לֹא מֵֽרֻבְּכֶם מִכָּל־הָֽעַמִּים חָשַׁק יְהוָֹה בָּכֶם וַיִּבְחַר בָּכֶם כִּֽי־אַתֶּם הַמְעַט מִכָּל־הָֽעַמִּֽים:

ח כִּי מֵאַֽהֲבַת יְהֹוָה אֶתְכֶם וּמִשָּׁמְרוֹ אֶת־הַשְּׁבֻעָה אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּע לַֽאֲבֹתֵיכֶם הוֹצִיא יְהוָֹה אֶתְכֶם בְּיָד חֲזָקָה וַֽיִּפְדְּךָ מִבֵּית עֲבָדִים מִיַּד פַּרְעֹה מֶֽלֶךְ־מִצְרָֽיִם:

[מפטיר] ט וְיָדַעְתָּ כִּֽי־יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ הוּא הָֽאֱלֹהִים הָאֵל הַֽנֶּֽאֱמָן שֹׁמֵר הַבְּרִית וְהַחֶסֶד לְאֹֽהֲבָיו וּלְשֹֽׁמְרֵי מִצְוֹתָו [מִצְוֹתָיו] לְאֶלֶף דּֽוֹר:

י וּמְשַׁלֵּם לְשֽׂנְאָיו אֶל־פָּנָיו לְהַֽאֲבִידוֹ לֹא יְאַחֵר לְשׂנְאוֹ אֶל־פָּנָיו יְשַׁלֶּם־לֽוֹ:

יא וְשָֽׁמַרְתָּ אֶת־הַמִּצְוָה וְאֶת־הַֽחֻקִּים וְאֶת־הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים אֲשֶׁר אָֽנֹכִי מְצַוְּךָ הַיּוֹם לַֽעֲשׂתָֽם:

פ פ פ

עקב  מו 46

[פרשת עקב] יב וְהָיָה ׀ עֵקֶב תִּשְׁמְעוּן אֵת הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים הָאֵלֶּה וּשְׁמַרְתֶּם וַֽעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם וְשָׁמַר יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְךָ אֶֽת־הַבְּרִית וְאֶת־הַחֶסֶד אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּע לַֽאֲבֹתֶֽיךָ:

יג וַֽאֲהֵבְךָ וּבֵֽרַכְךָ וְהִרְבֶּךָ וּבֵרַךְ פְּרִֽי־בִטְנְךָ וּפְרִֽי־אַדְמָתֶךָ דְּגָנְךָ וְתִֽירשְׁךָ וְיִצְהָרֶךָ שְׁגַר־אֲלָפֶיךָ וְעַשְׁתְּרֹת צֹאנֶךָ עַל הָֽאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר־נִשְׁבַּע לַֽאֲבֹתֶיךָ לָתֶת לָֽךְ:

יד בָּרוּךְ תִּֽהְיֶה מִכָּל־הָֽעַמִּים לֹא־יִֽהְיֶה בְךָ עָקָר וַֽעֲקָרָה וּבִבְהֶמְתֶּֽךָ:

טו וְהֵסִיר יְהוָֹה מִמְּךָ כָּל־חֹלִי וְכָל־מַדְוֵי מִצְרַיִם הָֽרָעִים אֲשֶׁר יָדַעְתָּ לֹא יְשִׂימָם בָּךְ וּנְתָנָם בְּכָל־שֽׂנְאֶֽיךָ:

טז וְאָֽכַלְתָּ אֶת־כָּל־הָֽעַמִּים אֲשֶׁר יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ לֹֽא־תָחוֹס עֵֽינְךָ עֲלֵיהֶם וְלֹא תַֽעֲבֹד אֶת־אֱלֹהֵיהֶם כִּֽי־מוֹקֵשׁ הוּא לָֽךְ: ס

יז כִּי תֹאמַר בִּלְבָבְךָ רַבִּים הַגּוֹיִם הָאֵלֶּה מִמֶּנִּי אֵיכָה אוּכַל לְהֽוֹרִישָֽׁם:

יח לֹא תִירָא מֵהֶם זָכֹר תִּזְכֹּר אֵת אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂה יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְפַרְעֹה וּלְכָל־מִצְרָֽיִם:

יט הַמַּסֹּת הַגְּדֹלֹת אֲשֶׁר־רָאוּ עֵינֶיךָ וְהָֽאֹתֹת וְהַמֹּֽפְתִים וְהַיָּד הַֽחֲזָקָה וְהַזְּרֹעַ הַנְּטוּיָה אֲשֶׁר הוֹצִֽאֲךָ יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ כֵּן־יַֽעֲשֶׂה יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְכָל־הָעַמִּים אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּה יָרֵא מִפְּנֵיהֶֽם:

כ וְגַם אֶת־הַצִּרְעָה יְשַׁלַּח יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ בָּם עַד־אֲבֹד הַנִּשְׁאָרִים וְהַנִּסְתָּרִים מִפָּנֶֽיךָ:

כא לֹא תַֽעֲרֹץ מִפְּנֵיהֶם כִּֽי־יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ בְּקִרְבֶּךָ אֵל גָּדוֹל וְנוֹרָֽא:

כב וְנָשַׁל יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶת־הַגּוֹיִם הָאֵל מִפָּנֶיךָ מְעַט מְעָט לֹא תוּכַל כַּלֹּתָם מַהֵר פֶּן־תִּרְבֶּה עָלֶיךָ חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶֽה:

כג וּנְתָנָם יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְפָנֶיךָ וְהָמָם מְהוּמָה גְדֹלָה עַד הִשָּֽׁמְדָֽם:

כד וְנָתַן מַלְכֵיהֶם בְּיָדֶךָ וְהַֽאֲבַדְתָּ אֶת־שְׁמָם מִתַּחַת הַשָּׁמָיִם לֹֽא־יִתְיַצֵּב אִישׁ בְּפָנֶיךָ עַד הִשְׁמִֽדְךָ אֹתָֽם:

כה פְּסִילֵי אֱלֹֽהֵיהֶם תִּשְׂרְפוּן בָּאֵשׁ לֹֽא־תַחְמֹד כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב עֲלֵיהֶם וְלָֽקַחְתָּ לָךְ פֶּן תִּוָּקֵשׁ בּוֹ כִּי תֽוֹעֲבַת יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ הֽוּא:

כו וְלֹֽא־תָבִיא תֽוֹעֵבָה אֶל־בֵּיתֶךָ וְהָיִיתָ חֵרֶם כָּמֹהוּ שַׁקֵּץ ׀ תְּשַׁקְּצֶנּוּ וְתַעֵב ׀ תְּֽתַעֲבֶנּוּ כִּי־חֵרֶם הֽוּא: פ

Deuteronomy 7 (Devarim) Interlinear


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Parsha Notes

Parsha Ekev – Details and stats about this parsha.

Hebrew Studies

Parsha Ekev- Hebrew

Downloads (Handouts/Worksheets)

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Books

Covenant & Conversation Commentary – The Late Chief Rabbi Johnanath Sacks’ last published commentary on the Torah.

The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon – One of the most used Hebrew and English Lexicons among serious Bible students.

Pentateuch & Haftorahs, By. Dr. JH Hertz – The Late Chief Rabbi of the British Empire was renowned for his writings amd teaches. By many he is considered a must read. In the Preface Dr. Hertz calls this “a People’s Commentary”.

The Holy Scriptures
According to the Masoretic Text
The Jewish Publication Society translation
[1917] – Public Domain