Deuteronomy 32:16
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They provoked His jealousy with foreign gods; they enraged Him with abominations.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
In this chapter we have, I. The song which Moses, by the appointment of God, delivered to the children of Israel, for a standing admonition to them, to take heed of forsaking God. This takes up most of the chapter, in which we have, 1. The preface (Deu 32:1, Deu 32:2). 2. A high character of God, and, in opposition to that, a bad character of the people of Israel (Deu 32:3-6). 3. A rehearsal of the great things God had done for them, and in opposition to that an account of their ill carriage towards him (Deu 32:7-18). 4. A prediction of the wasting destroying judgments which God would bring upon them for their sins, in which God is here justified by the many aggravations of their impieties (Deu 32:19-33). 5. A promise of the destruction of their enemies and oppressors at last, and the glorious deliverance of a remnant of Israel (Deu 32:36-43). II. The exhortation with which Moses delivered this song to them (Deu 32:41-47). III. The orders God gives to Moses to go up to Mount Nebo and die (Deu 32:48, etc.).
Open source ↗32:16 his jealousy: See study note on 4:24. Just as a husband is properly jealous when another man tries to draw his wife away (Prov 6:34), God was jealous when Israel worshiped other gods.
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
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They enraged Him with their high places and provoked His jealousy with their idols.
Are we trying to provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?
For the men who were in the land before you committed all these abominations, and the land has become defiled.
The king also desecrated the high places east of Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of Corruption, which King Solomon of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
You must burn up the images of their gods; do not covet the silver and gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it; for it is detestable to the LORD your God.
And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and by the sins they committed they provoked Him to jealous anger more than all their fathers had done.