▼ Heb “and Moses called to all Israel and he said to them”; NAB, NASB, NIV “Moses summoned (convened NRSV) all Israel.”

▼ Heb “the Lord.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

▼ Heb “fathers.”

▼ Or “word” (so KJV, NASB, NIV); NRSV “words.”

▼ Heb “there must not be for you other gods.” The expression “for you” indicates possession.

▼ Heb “upon my face,” or “before me” (עַל־פָּנָיַ, ’al-panaya). Some understand this in a locative sense: “in my sight.” The translation assumes that the phrase indicates exclusion. The idea is that of placing any other god before the Lord in the sense of taking his place. Contrary to the view of some, this does not leave the door open for a henotheistic system where the Lord is the primary god among others. In its literary context the statement must be taken in a monotheistic sense. See, e.g., 4:39; 6:13–15.

▼ Heb “an image, any likeness.”

▼ Heb “under the earth” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV); NCV “below the land.”

▼ In the Hebrew text the form is a participle, which is subordinated to what precedes. For the sake of English style, the translation divides this lengthy verse into two sentences.

▼ Heb “who hate” (so NAB, NIV, NLT). Just as “to love” (אָהַב, ’ahav) means in a covenant context “to choose, obey,” so “to hate” (שָׂנֵא, sane’) means “to reject, disobey” (cf. the note on the word “loved” in Deut 4:37; see also 5:10).

▼ Heb “visiting the sin of fathers upon sons and upon a third (generation) and upon a fourth (generation) of those who hate me.” God sometimes punishes children for the sins of a father (cf. Num 16:27, 32; Josh 7:24–25; 2 Sam 21:1–9). On the principle of corporate solidarity and responsibility in OT thought see J. Kaminsky, Corporate Responsibility in the Hebrew Bible (JSOTSup). In the idiom of the text, the father is the first generation and the “sons” the second generation, making grandsons the third and great-grandsons the fourth. The reference to a third and fourth generation is a way of emphasizing that the sinner’s punishment would last throughout his lifetime. In this culture, where men married and fathered children at a relatively young age, it would not be unusual for one to see his great-grandsons. In an Aramaic tomb inscription from Nerab dating to the seventh century b.c., Agbar observes that he was surrounded by “children of the fourth generation” as he lay on his death bed (see ANET 661). The language of the text differs from Exod 34:7, the sons are the first generation, the grandsons (literally, “sons of the sons”) the second, great-grandsons the third, and great-great-grandsons the fourth. One could argue that formulation in Deut 5:9 (see also Exod 20:50) is elliptical/abbreviated or that it suffers from textual corruption (the repetition of the words “sons” would invite accidental omission).

▼ This theologically rich term (חֶסֶד, khesed) describes God’s loyalty to those who keep covenant with him. Sometimes it is used synonymously with בְּרִית (b^erit, “covenant”; Deut 7:9), and sometimes interchangeably with it (Deut 7:12). See H.-J. Zobel, TDOT 5:44–64.

▼ By a slight emendation (לַאֲלּוּפִים [la’allufim] for לַאֲלָפִים [la’alafim]) “clans” could be read in place of the MT reading “thousands.” However, no ms or versional evidence exists to support this emendation.

▼ Another option is to understand this as referring to “thousands (of generations) of those who love me” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). See Deut 7:9.

▼ Heb “love.” See note on the word “reject” in v. 9.

▼ Heb “take up the name of the Lord your God to emptiness”; KJV “take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.” The idea here is not cursing or profanity in the modern sense of these terms but rather the use of the divine Name for unholy, mundane purposes, that is, for meaningless (the Hebrew term is שָׁוְא) and empty ends. In ancient Israel this would include using the Lord’s name as a witness in vows one did not intend to keep.

▼ Heb “who takes up his name to emptiness.”

▼ Heb “to make holy,” that is, to put to special use, in this case, to sacred purposes (cf. vv. 13–15).

▼ There is some degree of paronomasia (wordplay) here: “the seventh (הַשְּׁבִיעִי, hash^evi’i) day is the Sabbath (שַׁבָּת, shabbat).” Otherwise, the words have nothing in common, since “Sabbath” is derived from the verb שָׁבַת (shavat, “to cease”).

▼ Heb “in your gates”; NRSV, CEV “in your towns”; TEV “in your country.”

▼ Heb “by a strong hand and an outstretched arm,” the hand and arm symbolizing divine activity and strength. Cf. NLT “with amazing power and mighty deeds.”

▼ Or “keep” (so KJV, NRSV).

▼ The imperative here means, literally, “regard as heavy” (כַּבֵּד, kabbed). The meaning is that great importance must be ascribed to parents by their children.

▼ Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “He” in 5:3.

▼ Traditionally “kill” (so KJV, ASV, RSV, NAB). The verb here (רָצַח, ratsakh) is generic for homicide but in the OT both killing in war and capital punishment were permitted and even commanded (Deut 13:5, 9; 20:13, 16–17), so the technical meaning here is “murder.”

▼ Heb “your neighbor.” Clearly this is intended generically, however, and not to be limited only to those persons who live nearby (frequently the way “neighbor” is understood in contemporary contexts). So also in v. 20.

▼ The Hebrew verb used here (חָמַד, khamad) is different from the one translated “crave” (אָוַה, ’avah) in the next line. The former has sexual overtones (“lust” or the like; cf. Song of Sol 2:3) whereas the latter has more the idea of a desire or craving for material things.

▼ Heb “your neighbor’s.” See note on the term “fellow man” in v. 19.

▼ Heb “your neighbor’s.” The pronoun is used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

▼ Heb “or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

▼ Heb “and he added no more” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NLT “This was all he said at that time.”

▼ Heb “them”; the referent (the words spoken by the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

▼ Heb “his glory and his greatness.”

▼ Heb “this day we have seen.”

▼ Heb “who is there of all flesh.”

▼ Heb “the Lord our God.” See note on “He” in 5:3.

▼ Heb “the Lord.” See note on “He” in 5:3.

▼ Heb “keep” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).

▼ Heb “commandment.” The MT actually has the singular (הַמִּצְוָה, hammitsvah), suggesting perhaps that the following terms (חֻקִּים [khuqqim] and מִשְׁפָּטִים [mishpatim]) are in epexegetical apposition to “commandment.” That is, the phrase could be translated “the entire command, namely, the statutes and ordinances.” This would essentially make מִצְוָה (mitsvah) synonymous with תּוֹרָה (torah), the usual term for the whole collection of law.

▼ Heb “to possess it” (so KJV, ASV); NLT “as their inheritance.”

▼ Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

▼ Heb “may prolong your days”; NAB “may have long life”; TEV “will continue to live.”