Deuteronomy 4:23

Be careful that you do not forget the covenant of the LORD your God that He made with you; do not make an idol for yourselves in the form of anything He has forbidden you.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Moses addresses Israel on the plains of Moab immediately before his death and their impending crossing of the Jordan. He issues a final warning to retain the covenant terms as they enter the land He swore to their fathers.

The words — The text commands הִשָּׁמְרוּ (hiššāmərû), "take heed," paired with פֶּן (p̓en), "lest," to guard against תִּשְׁכָּחוּ (tiškāḥû), "you should forget." These verbs frame the prohibition against forging idols in any forbidden physical form.

The thread — The warning against forgetting the covenant recurs in Deuteronomy 4:9, Deuteronomy 29:25, and Deuteronomy 31:20. These passages link covenant fidelity directly to the threat of idolatry and the loss of the promised land.

Why it lands — The verse demands active vigilance to retain the terms of God's agreement and prohibits crafting any physical representation of the divine. It requires readers to prioritize obedience over visual or cultural substitutes.

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

הִשָּׁמְר֣וּhi.sha.me.Rutake heedלָכֶ֗םla./Khemto/ yourselvesפֶּֽן־pen-lest תִּשְׁכְּחוּ֙tish.ke.Chuyou should forget אֶת־'et-<obj.>בְּרִ֤יתbe.Rit[the] covenant of יְהוָה֙Yah.wehYahweh אֱלֹ֣הֵיכֶ֔ם'e.Lo.hei./KhemGod/ your אֲשֶׁ֥ר'a.Sherwhich כָּרַ֖תka.Rathe has made עִמָּכֶ֑ם'i.ma./Khemwith/ you וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֨םva./'a.si.Temand/ you will makeלָכֶ֥םla./Khemfor/ yourselvesפֶּ֙סֶל֙pe.selan image תְּמ֣וּנַתte.Mu.nata form of כֹּ֔לKolanything אֲשֶׁ֥ר'a.Sherwhich צִוְּךָ֖tzi.ve./Khahe commanded/ you יְהוָ֥הYah.wehYahweh אֱלֹהֶֽיךָ׃'e.lo.Hei./khaGod/ your

King James Version

Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee.

Cross-references

Deuteronomy 4:9 Only 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.
Deuteronomy 29:25 And the people will answer, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.
Deuteronomy 31:20 When I have brought them into the land that I swore to give their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey, they will eat their fill and prosper. Then they will turn to other gods and worship them, and they will reject Me and break My covenant.
Joshua 23:16 If you transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from this good land He has given you.”
1 Chronicles 16:15 Remember His covenant forever, the word He ordained for a thousand generations—
Isaiah 24:5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have transgressed the laws; they have overstepped the decrees and broken the everlasting covenant.
Ezekiel 16:59 For this is what the Lord GOD says: I will deal with you according to your deeds, since you have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.
Matthew 24:4 Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.
Hebrews 3:12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a wicked heart of unbelief that turns away from the living God.
Exodus 20:4 You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath.