For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them:
Parallel translations
- WEB and went and served other gods, and worshiped them, gods that they didn’t know, and that he had not given to them.
- BSB They went and served other gods, and they worshiped gods they had not known—gods that the LORD had not given to them.
- NKJV for they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they did not know and that He had not given to them.
- NASB And they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they have not known and whom He had not assigned to them.
- NLT Instead, they turned away to serve and worship gods they had not known before, gods that were not from the Lord.
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
They turned to serve and worship false gods they had never known. Idolatry, the breach of the first commandment, brought the curse.
Overview
The specific sin is named: Israel went and served other gods, gods 'they didn't know' and that God 'had not given to them.' This violation of exclusive devotion to the Lord is the essence of covenant betrayal. The verse highlights idolatry as humanity's root rebellion, from which the gospel rescues us by reconciling sinners to the one true God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Deut 28:64And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.
- 2 Kgs 17:7–18For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods,
- Jer 19:3–13And say, Hear ye the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, the which whosoever heareth, his ears shall tingle.
- Judg 5:8They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?
- Judg 2:12–13And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger.
- 2 Chr 36:12–17And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD.
- Jer 44:2–6Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Ye have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, and upon all the cities of Judah; and, behold, this day they are a desolation, and no man dwelleth therein,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 29:26 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.