If, regarding one of the cities the LORD your God is giving you to inhabit, you hear it said If, regarding one of the citiesThis phrase sets the context within the Promised Land, which the Israelites were to inherit. The cities mentioned are those within the land of Canaan, which God had promised to Abraham and his descendants. The focus on "one of the cities" indicates a specific location within the broader territory, emphasizing the communal and localized nature of the instructions. the LORD your God is giving you to inhabit
This highlights the divine gift of the land to the Israelites, underscoring God's sovereignty and faithfulness to His covenant promises. The land is not just a possession but a divine inheritance, meant to be a place where God's laws and presence are central. This phrase also implies a responsibility to maintain the purity and holiness of the land as a reflection of their relationship with God. you hear it said
This introduces the concept of a report or rumor, which requires discernment and investigation. The phrase suggests the importance of vigilance and the need to address potential threats to the community's spiritual integrity. It also implies the necessity of communal accountability and the role of leaders in safeguarding the faithfulness of the people to God's commandments. Persons / Places / Events 1. The LORD (Yahweh)The covenant God of Israel, who is giving the Israelites the land to inhabit. 2. IsraelitesThe people of God, who are receiving instructions on how to live in the Promised Land. 3. Cities of IsraelThe specific locations within the Promised Land that God is giving to the Israelites. 4. False Prophets/IdolatersIndividuals who may lead the people astray by encouraging the worship of other gods. 5. Promised LandThe land that God promised to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Teaching Points Guard Against IdolatryThe passage warns against the influence of idolatry. Believers today must be vigilant against modern forms of idolatry, such as materialism or secular ideologies, that can lead them away from God. Community ResponsibilityThe Israelites were responsible for maintaining the spiritual purity of their community. Similarly, Christians are called to hold each other accountable and encourage one another in faithfulness to God. Discernment and ActionThe instruction to investigate reports of idolatry highlights the need for discernment. Believers should seek wisdom and understanding to discern truth from falsehood in their spiritual lives. Faithfulness to God's CommandsThe passage underscores the importance of adhering to God's commands. Christians are called to live according to the teachings of Scripture, maintaining their commitment to God. Consequences of SinThe severe consequences for idolatry in the Old Testament remind believers of the seriousness of sin and the need for repentance and restoration through Christ. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the warning against idolatry in Deuteronomy 13:12 apply to modern-day believers, and what are some contemporary forms of idolatry we might face? 2. In what ways can we, as a Christian community, hold each other accountable to ensure faithfulness to God, similar to the responsibility given to the Israelites? 3. How can we develop discernment to recognize false teachings or influences that may lead us away from God? 4. What are some practical steps we can take to ensure that we are living according to God's commands in our daily lives? 5. How do the consequences of idolatry in the Old Testament inform our understanding of the seriousness of sin and the need for repentance today? Connections to Other Scriptures Deuteronomy 13:1-11Provides context for the warning against false prophets and idolaters, emphasizing the importance of faithfulness to God. Exodus 23:24Commands the Israelites to not worship other gods, reinforcing the call to exclusive worship of Yahweh. 1 Corinthians 5:6-7Paul warns the church about the influence of sin, similar to the warning against idolatry in Deuteronomy. Matthew 7:15-20Jesus warns about false prophets, echoing the Old Testament concern for spiritual purity and truth. People MosesPlaces Beth-baal-peor, EgyptTopics Anyone, Cities, Dwell, Gives, Giveth, Giving, Hearest, Resting-place, Saying, TownsDictionary of Bible Themes Deuteronomy 13:12-15 1461 truth, nature of
5472 proof, evidence
8771 idolatry, objections Library Fifthly, as this Revelation, to the Judgment of Right and Sober Reason,
appears of itself highly credible and probable, and abundantly recommends itself in its native simplicity, merely by its own intrinsic goodness and excellency, to the practice of the most rational and considering men, who are desirous in all their actions to have satisfaction and comfort and good hope within themselves, from the conscience of what they do: So it is moreover positively and directly proved to be actually and immediately sent to us from God, by the many infallible signs and miracles …
Samuel Clarke—A Discourse Concerning the Being and Attributes of GodKnox's Writings from Abroad: Beginning of the Scottish Revolution, 1556-1558
Knox was about this time summoned to be one of the preachers to the English at Geneva. He sent in advance Mrs. Bowes and his wife, visited Argyll and Glenorchy (now Breadalbane), wrote (July 7) an epistle bidding the brethren be diligent in reading and discussing the Bible, and went abroad. His effigy was presently burned by the clergy, as he had not appeared in answer to a second summons, and he was outlawed in absence. It is not apparent that Knox took any part in the English translation of the …
Andrew Lang—John Knox and the Reformation With, Before, After
'Enoch walked with God,'--GENESIS v. 22. 'Walk before Me.'--GENESIS xvii. 1. 'Ye shall walk after the Lord your God.'--DEUTERONOMY xiii. 4. You will have anticipated, I suppose, my purpose in doing what I very seldom do--cutting little snippets out of different verses and putting them together. You see that these three fragments, in their resemblances and in their differences, are equally significant and instructive. They concur in regarding life as a walk--a metaphor which expresses continuity, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Feeding of the Four Thousand - to Dalmanutha - the Sign from Heaven' - Journey to Cæsarea Philippi - what is the Leaven of The
THEY might well gather to Jesus in their thousands, with their wants of body and soul, these sheep wandering without a shepherd; for His Ministry in that district, as formerly in Galilee, was about to draw to a close. And here it is remarkable, that each time His prolonged stay and Ministry in a district were brought to a close with some supper, so to speak, some festive entertainment on his part. The Galilean Ministry had closed with the feeding of the five thousand, the guests being mostly from …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Fifth Sunday after Epiphany
Text: Colossians 3, 12-17. 12 Put on therefore, as God's elect, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, longsuffering; 13 forbearing one another, and forgiving each other, if any man have a complaint against any; even as the Lord forgave you, so also do ye: 14 and above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfectness. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to the which also ye were called in one body; and be ye thankful. 16 Let the Word …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. II Concerning the Power of the Civil Magistrate in Matters Purely Religious, and Pertaining to the Conscience.
Concerning the Power of the Civil Magistrate in Matters purely Religious, and pertaining to the Conscience. Since God hath assumed to himself the power and Dominion of the Conscience, who alone can rightly instruct and govern it, therefore it is not lawful [1226] for any whosoever, by virtue of any authority or principality they bear in the government of this world, to force the consciences of others; and therefore all killing, banishing, fining, imprisoning, and other such things which are inflicted …
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
THE FALL OF NINEVEH AND THE RISE OF THE CHALDAEAN AND MEDIAN EMPIRES--THE XXVIth EGYPTIAN DYNASTY: CYAXARES, ALYATTES, AND NEBUCHADREZZAR. The legendary history of the kings of Media and the first contact of the Medes with the Assyrians: the alleged Iranian migrations of the Avesta--Media-proper, its fauna and flora; Phraortes and the beginning of the Median empire--Persia proper and the Persians; conquest of Persia by the Medes--The last monuments of Assur-bani-pal: the library of Kouyunjik--Phraortes …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8 Jewish Homes
It may be safely asserted, that the grand distinction, which divided all mankind into Jews and Gentiles, was not only religious, but also social. However near the cities of the heathen to those of Israel, however frequent and close the intercourse between the two parties, no one could have entered a Jewish town or village without feeling, so to speak, in quite another world. The aspect of the streets, the building and arrangement of the houses, the municipal and religious rule, the manners and customs …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life Deuteronomy
Owing to the comparatively loose nature of the connection between consecutive passages in the legislative section, it is difficult to present an adequate summary of the book of Deuteronomy. In the first section, i.-iv. 40, Moses, after reviewing the recent history of the people, and showing how it reveals Jehovah's love for Israel, earnestly urges upon them the duty of keeping His laws, reminding them of His spirituality and absoluteness. Then follows the appointment, iv. 41-43--here irrelevant (cf. …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Deuteronomy 13:12 NIVDeuteronomy 13:12 NLTDeuteronomy 13:12 ESVDeuteronomy 13:12 NASBDeuteronomy 13:12 KJV
Deuteronomy 13:12 Commentaries
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