I told you, ‘I am the Lord your God. You must not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you now live.’ But you have not listened to me.”
Parallel translations
- WEB I said to you, “I am Yahweh your God. You shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.” But you have not listened to my voice.’”
- KJV And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.
- BSB And I said to you: ‘I am the LORD your God. You must not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.’ But you did not obey Me.”
- NKJV Also I said to you, “I am the Lord your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.” But you have not obeyed My voice.’ ”
- NASB and I said to you, “I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live.” But you have not obeyed Me.’ ”
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
God had commanded Israel not to fear the gods of the Amorites, but they had disobeyed His voice.
Overview
The prophet's message reaches its point: Yahweh had charged Israel to worship Him alone, yet they had turned to false gods. Their failure to heed His voice is the root cause of Midianite oppression. This indictment shows that idolatry, the breaking of the first commandment, lies at the heart of Israel's troubles and remains the chief temptation of the human heart.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Jer 10:2Yahweh says, “Don’t learn the way of the nations, and don’t be dismayed at the signs of the sky; for the nations are dismayed at them.
- Jer 9:13Yahweh says, “Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein,
- 2 Kgs 17:35–39with whom Yahweh had made a covenant, and commanded them, saying, “You shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them;
- Exod 20:2–3“I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
- Judg 2:2You shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land. You shall break down their altars.’ But you have not listened to my voice. Why have you done this?
- Jer 3:25Let us lie down in our shame, and let our confusion cover us; for we have sinned against Yahweh our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day. We have not obeyed Yahweh our God’s voice.”
- Jer 43:4So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, didn’t obey Yahweh’s voice, to dwell in the land of Judah.
- Jer 3:13Only acknowledge your iniquity, that you have transgressed against Yahweh your God, and have scattered your ways to the strangers under every green tree, and you have not obeyed my voice,’ says Yahweh.”
- Jer 42:21and I have declared it to you today; but you have not obeyed Yahweh your God’s voice in anything for which he has sent me to you.
- Jer 43:7and they came into the land of Egypt; for they didn’t obey Yahweh’s voice: and they came to Tahpanhes.
- Rom 10:16But they didn’t all listen to the glad news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?”
- Heb 5:9Having been made perfect, he became to all of those who obey him the author of eternal salvation,
- 2 Kgs 17:33They feared Yahweh, and also served their own gods, after the ways of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.
- Prov 5:13neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor turned my ear to those who instructed me!
- Zeph 3:2She didn’t obey the voice. She didn’t receive correction. She didn’t trust in Yahweh. She didn’t draw near to her God.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 6:10 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.