Pay close attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.
Parallel translations
- WEB “Be careful to do all things that I have said to you; and don’t invoke the name of other gods or even let them be heard out of your mouth.
- KJV And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.
- NKJV “And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.
- NASB Now concerning everything which I have said to you, be careful; and do not mention the name of other gods, nor let them be heard from your mouth.
- NLT “Pay close attention to all my instructions. You must not call on the name of any other gods. Do not even speak their names.
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 obey all God's commands and never invoke the names of other gods. Wholehearted loyalty to the Lord excludes all rival worship.
Overview
This summary call to careful obedience guards against idolatry, even forbidding the casual mention of false gods' names. It underscores Israel's exclusive devotion to Yahweh. Such undivided loyalty is fulfilled in Christ, who alone is Lord and at whose name every other power must bow (Philippians 2:9-11).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Josh 23:7So you are not to associate with these nations that remain among you. You must not call on the names of their gods or swear by them, and you must not serve them or bow down to them.
- Zech 13:2And on that day, declares the LORD of Hosts, I will erase the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. I will also remove the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land.
- Deut 4:9Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen, and so that they do not slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren.
- Hos 2:17For I will remove from her lips the names of the Baals; no longer will their names be invoked.
- 1 Tim 4:16Pay close attention to your life and to your teaching. Persevere in these things, for by so doing you will save both yourself and those who hear you.
- Deut 12:3Tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, burn up their Asherah poles, cut down the idols of their gods, and wipe out their names from every place.
- Jer 10:11Thus you are to tell them: “These gods, who have made neither the heavens nor the earth, will perish from this earth and from under these heavens.”
- Josh 22:5But be very careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
- Josh 23:11Therefore watch yourselves carefully, that you love the LORD your God.
- Ps 16:4Sorrows will multiply to those who chase other gods. I will not pour out their libations of blood, or speak their names with my lips.
- Deut 4:15So since you saw no form of any kind on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb, be careful
- Eph 5:15Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
- Ps 39:1For the choirmaster. For Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. I said, “I will watch my ways so that I will not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth with a muzzle as long as the wicked are present.”
- Heb 12:15See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God, and that no root of bitterness springs up to cause trouble and defile many.
- Eph 5:12For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
- 1 Chr 28:7–9I will establish his kingdom forever, if he resolutely carries out My commandments and ordinances, as is being done this day.’
- Num 32:38as well as Nebo and Baal-meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt.
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 23:13 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
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