and shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you today, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
Parallel translations
- KJV And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
- BSB Do not turn aside to the right or to the left from any of the words I command you today, and do not go after other gods to serve them.
- NKJV So you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
- NASB and do not turn aside from any of the words which I am commanding you today, to the right or the left, to pursue other gods to serve them.
- NLT You must not turn away from any of the commands I am giving you today, nor follow after other gods and worship them.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Israel must not turn aside from God's words to follow other gods, the heart of covenant fidelity.
Overview
The blessings hinge on undivided loyalty to Yahweh alone. Turning right or left to serve idols would break the covenant at its core. This call to single-hearted devotion anticipates the wholehearted love for God that Christ commands and enables.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Isa 30:21and when you turn to the right hand, and when you turn to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way. Walk in it.”
- Deut 5:32You shall observe to do therefore as Yahweh your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
- Prov 4:26–27Make the path of your feet level. Let all of your ways be established.
- Deut 11:16Be careful, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;
- Deut 11:26–28Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse:
- 2 Kgs 22:2He did that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes, and walked in all the way of David his father, and didn’t turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
- Josh 23:6“Therefore be very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that you not turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 28:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.