Deuteronomy 7:17
New International Version
You may say to yourselves, “These nations are stronger than we are. How can we drive them out?”

New Living Translation
Perhaps you will think to yourselves, ‘How can we ever conquer these nations that are so much more powerful than we are?’

English Standard Version
“If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I. How can I dispossess them?’

Berean Standard Bible
You may say in your heart, “These nations are greater than we are; how can we drive them out?”

King James Bible
If thou shalt say in thine heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?

New King James Version
“If you should say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’—

New American Standard Bible
“If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’

NASB 1995
“If you should say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’

NASB 1977
“If you should say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’

Legacy Standard Bible
“If you should say in your heart, ‘These nations are more numerous than I; how can I dispossess them?’

Amplified Bible
“If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I am; how can I dispossess them?’

Christian Standard Bible
“If you say to yourself, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I drive them out? ’

Holman Christian Standard Bible
If you say to yourself, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I drive them out?’

American Standard Version
If thou shalt say in thy heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?

Contemporary English Version
You may be thinking, "How can we destroy these nations? They are more powerful than we are."

English Revised Version
If thou shalt say in thine heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
You may say to yourselves, "These nations outnumber us. How can we force them out?"

Good News Translation
"Do not tell yourselves that these peoples outnumber you and that you cannot drive them out.

International Standard Version
"You may say to yourselves, 'These nations are more numerous than we are. How can we dispossess them?'

Majority Standard Bible
You may say in your heart, ?These nations are greater than we are; how can we drive them out??

NET Bible
If you think, "These nations are more numerous than I--how can I dispossess them?"

New Heart English Bible
If you shall say in your heart, "These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?"

Webster's Bible Translation
If thou shalt say in thy heart, These nations are more than I, how can I dispossess them?

World English Bible
If you shall say in your heart, “These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?”
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
When you say in your heart, These nations [are] more numerous than I, how am I able to dispossess them?

Young's Literal Translation
When thou sayest in thine heart, These nations are more numerous than I, how am I able to dispossess them? --

Smith's Literal Translation
When thou shalt say in thy heart, The nations many more than I, how shall I be able to dispossess them?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
If thou say in thy heart: These nations are more than I, how shall I be able to destroy them?

Catholic Public Domain Version
If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are more than I am, so how will I be able to destroy them?’

New American Bible
If you say to yourselves, “These nations are more numerous than we. How can we dispossess them?”

New Revised Standard Version
If you say to yourself, “These nations are more numerous than I; how can I dispossess them?”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
If you shall say in your heart, These nations are greater than I; how will I be able to destroy them?

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And if you say in your heart: ‘These nations are more numerous than I; how can I destroy them?’
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
If thou shalt say in thy heart: 'These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
But if thou shouldest say in thine heart, This nation is greater than I, how shall I be able to destroy them utterly?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Promises of God
16You must destroy all the peoples the LORD your God will deliver to you. Do not look on them with pity. Do not worship their gods, for that will be a snare to you. 17 You may say in your heart, “These nations are greater than we are; how can we drive them out?” 18But do not be afraid of them. Be sure to remember what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt:…

Cross References
Exodus 14:13-14
But Moses told the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. / The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Isaiah 41:10
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

Numbers 13:31-33
But the men who had gone up with him replied, “We cannot go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are!” / So they gave the Israelites a bad report about the land that they had spied out: “The land we explored devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw there are great in stature. / We even saw the Nephilim there—the descendants of Anak that come from the Nephilim! We seemed like grasshoppers in our own sight, and we must have seemed the same to them!”

2 Chronicles 20:15
And he said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army, for the battle does not belong to you, but to God.

Romans 8:31
What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Psalm 27:1-3
Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—whom shall I dread? / When the wicked came upon me to devour my flesh, my enemies and foes stumbled and fell. / Though an army encamps around me, my heart will not fear; though a war breaks out against me, I will keep my trust.

1 Samuel 17:33-37
But Saul replied, “You cannot go out against this Philistine to fight him. You are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” / David replied, “Your servant has been tending his father’s sheep, and whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a lamb from the flock, / I went after it, struck it down, and delivered the lamb from its mouth. If it reared up against me, I would grab it by its fur, strike it down, and kill it. ...

Matthew 19:26
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Judges 6:12-16
And the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon and said, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.” / “Please, my Lord,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all His wonders of which our fathers told us, saying, ‘Has not the LORD brought us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hand of Midian.” / The LORD turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Am I not sending you?” ...

Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Isaiah 43:1-2
But now, this is what the LORD says—He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine! / When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze.

Hebrews 13:5-6
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” / So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

2 Kings 6:15-17
When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early in the morning, behold, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. So he asked Elisha, “Oh, my master, what are we to do?” / “Do not be afraid,” Elisha answered, “for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” / Then Elisha prayed, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw that the hills were full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

Mark 10:27
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”


Treasury of Scripture

If you shall say in your heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?

thou shalt

Deuteronomy 8:17
And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

Deuteronomy 15:9
Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto the LORD against thee, and it be sin unto thee.

Deuteronomy 18:21
And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken?

these nations

Numbers 13:32
And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.

Numbers 33:53
And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it.

Joshua 17:16-18
And the children of Joseph said, The hill is not enough for us: and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both they who are of Bethshean and her towns, and they who are of the valley of Jezreel…

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Deuteronomy 7
1. All communion with the nations is forbidden
5. for fear of idolatry,
6. for the holiness of the people,
9. for the nature of God in his mercy and justice,
17. and for the assuredness of victory which God will give over them.














If you say in your heart
This phrase introduces a hypothetical internal dialogue, emphasizing the personal and introspective nature of doubt or fear. In Hebrew, the word for "heart" (לֵבָב, levav) often represents the center of thought and emotion, not just feelings. It suggests a deep, internal struggle or contemplation. The heart, in biblical terms, is the seat of decision-making and moral reflection. This phrase invites believers to examine their innermost thoughts and align them with faith and trust in God.

These nations are greater than I
Here, the focus is on the perceived strength and superiority of the surrounding nations. Historically, the Israelites faced formidable opponents in the Promised Land, such as the Canaanites, who were known for their advanced military capabilities and fortified cities. The phrase reflects a common human tendency to compare oneself to others and feel inadequate. It serves as a reminder of the Israelites' past experiences in Egypt, where they witnessed God's power overcoming a seemingly invincible foe.

how can I drive them out?
This question captures the essence of doubt and the challenge of faith. The Hebrew root for "drive out" (יָרַשׁ, yarash) implies not just removal but also taking possession. It is a call to action, requiring reliance on divine strength rather than human ability. The historical context is crucial here; the Israelites were tasked with conquering the land God promised them, a task that seemed impossible without divine intervention. This phrase encourages believers to trust in God's promises and power, even when circumstances appear daunting.

Verses 17, 18. - If thou shalt say in thine heart. The thought might rise in their minds, How can we ever compete with nations so much more powerful than we? But such thoughts they must repress, remembering what God had done for them to Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and resting assured that the same would he do to the Canaanites.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
You may say
תֹאמַר֙ (ṯō·mar)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

in your heart,
בִּלְבָ֣בְךָ֔ (bil·ḇā·ḇə·ḵā)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 3824: Inner man, mind, will, heart

“These
הָאֵ֖לֶּה (hā·’êl·leh)
Article | Pronoun - common plural
Strong's 428: These, those

nations
הַגּוֹיִ֥ם (hag·gō·w·yim)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 1471: A foreign nation, a Gentile, a troop of animals, a flight of locusts

are greater
רַבִּ֛ים (rab·bîm)
Adjective - masculine plural
Strong's 7227: Much, many, great

than we are;
מִמֶּ֑נִּי (mim·men·nî)
Preposition | first person common singular
Strong's 4480: A part of, from, out of

how
אֵיכָ֥ה (’ê·ḵāh)
Interjection
Strong's 349: How?, how!, where

can
אוּכַ֖ל (’ū·ḵal)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 3201: To be able, have power

we drive them out?”
לְהוֹרִישָֽׁם׃ (lə·hō·w·rî·šām)
Preposition-l | Verb - Hifil - Infinitive construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 3423: To occupy, to seize, to rob, to inherit, to expel, to impoverish, to ruin


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OT Law: Deuteronomy 7:17 If you shall say in your heart (Deut. De Du)
Deuteronomy 7:16
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