Bible Strands
Deuteronomy 33:2
He said: “The LORD came from Sinai and dawned upon us from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran and came with myriads of holy ones, with flaming fire at His right hand.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses addresses the assembled tribes of Israel immediately before his death (v. 1), delivering the final blessing.
The words — זָרַח (zāraḥ, "he dawned") is a solar verb applied to Yahweh; it frames God's appearance as a sunrise breaking over the people rather than a static presence.
The thread — Habakkuk 3:3 repeats the Paran theophany and "holy ones" language; Jude 1:14 quotes the "myriads of holy ones" phrase; Revelation 5:11 depicts the many myriads encircling the throne.
Why it lands — The law that follows in v. 3 arrived with a theophany; the reader is not handed a document but positioned as the ground upon which God dawned.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And he said, The Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them.
Cross-references
- Habakkuk 3:3 God came from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah His glory covered the heavens, and His praise filled the earth.
- Jude 1:14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied about them: “Behold, the Lord is coming with myriads of His holy ones
- Revelation 5:11 Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels encircling the throne, and the living creatures and the elders. And their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands.
- Judges 5:4 O LORD, when You went out from Seir, when You marched from the land of Edom, the earth trembled, the heavens poured out rain, and the clouds poured down water.
- Psalms 68:17 The chariots of God are tens of thousands—thousands of thousands are they; the Lord is in His sanctuary as He was at Sinai.
- Acts 7:53 you who received the law ordained by angels, yet have not kept it.”
- Psalms 68:7 O God, when You went out before Your people, when You marched through the wasteland, Selah
- Hebrews 2:2 For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every transgression and disobedience received its just punishment,
- Exodus 19:18 Mount Sinai was completely enveloped in smoke, because the LORD had descended on it in fire. And the smoke rose like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently.
- Daniel 7:9 As I continued to watch, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took His seat. His clothing was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.