Deuteronomy 17:11
in Deuteronomy 17according to the terms of law they give and the verdict they proclaim. Do not turn aside to the right or to the left from the decision they declare to you.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
according to the tenor of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do; thou shalt not turn aside from the sentence which they shall show thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.
KJV
According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall shew thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.
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This verse in Deuteronomy 17
Commentary
6 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
You must abide by the verdict they give you
on Deuteronomy 17:10-11
The ruling binds, and “to the right or to the left” is the charge laid on the nation at 5:32 and on the king at verse 20. Rabbinic tradition rested its courts' authority on these two verses, and readers differ over how far one ruling reaches past its case. At Matthew 23:2-3 Jesus tells the crowd to do what those in Moses' seat bid, but not to copy their deeds.
This site's exposition
according to the terms of law
Verse 11 names two things the court declares, the terms of law and the verdict in the case. Adam Clarke calls the priests and Levites lawyers by birth and continual practice, the men best fitted to decide a difficult case for the local magistrates. Malachi 2:7 has the people seeking instruction from a priest's mouth.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Just as a person has to pick his way between fire and water so as to be neither burned nor drowned, so we should steer our way between the pinnacle of pride and the whirlpool of sloth, as it is written, "turning neither to the right nor to the left." For there are some who, through fear of being carried up to the heights on the right, slip and are drowned on the left. Others … fear to be sucked in by the soft ease of sloth on the left and are ruined and destroyed by the ostentation of boasting on the other side, and [they] vanish into smoke and ashes.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), to the right hand nor to the left. Note, It is for the honour of God and the welfare of a people that the authority of the higher power be supported and the due order of government observed, that those be obeyed who are appointed to rule, and that every soul be subject to them in all those things that fall within their commission.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment--In all civil or criminal cases, where there was any doubt or difficulty in giving a decision, the local magistrates were to submit them by reference to the tribunal of the Sanhedrim--the supreme council, which was composed partly of civil and partly of ecclesiastical persons.
The words behind it
20 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| פִּ֨י | pi | [the] mouth of | H6310 → | 498 times |
| הַתּוֹרָ֜ה | hatorah | the instruction | H8451 → | 219 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יוֹר֗וּךָ | yorukha | they will instruct you | H3384 → | 80 times |
| וְעַל־ | veal- | and on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| הַמִּשְׁפָּ֛ט | hamishpat | the verdict | H4941 → | 422 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יֹאמְר֥וּ | yomeru | they will say | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לְךָ֖ | lekha | to <the> you | ||
| תַּעֲשֶׂ֑ה | taaseh | you will do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תָס֗וּר | tasur | you will turn aside | H5493 → | 299 times |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הַדָּבָ֛ר | hadavar | the word | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יַגִּ֥ידֽוּ | yagidu | they will tell | H5046 → | 370 times |
| לְךָ֖ | lekha | to <the> you | ||
| יָמִ֥ין | yamin | right [hand] | H3225 → | 140 times |
| וּשְׂמֹֽאל׃ | usemol | and left [hand] | H8040 → | 54 times |
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
פִּ֨י[the] mouth of
piH6310 →498 times
הַתּוֹרָ֜הthe instruction
hatorahH8451 →219 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יוֹר֗וּךָthey will instruct you
yorukhaH3384 →80 times
וְעַל־and on
veal-H5921 →5755 times
הַמִּשְׁפָּ֛טthe verdict
hamishpatH4941 →422 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
יֹאמְר֥וּthey will say
yomeruH559 →5305 times
לְךָ֖to <the> you
lekha
תַּעֲשֶׂ֑הyou will do
taasehH6213 →2628 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תָס֗וּרyou will turn aside
tasurH5493 →299 times
מִן־from
min-H4480 →1188 times
הַדָּבָ֛רthe word
hadavarH1697 →1440 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
יַגִּ֥ידֽוּthey will tell
yagiduH5046 →370 times
לְךָ֖to <the> you
lekha
יָמִ֥יןright [hand]
yaminH3225 →140 times
וּשְׂמֹֽאל׃and left [hand]
usemolH8040 →54 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Joshua 1:7Above all, be strong and very courageous. Be careful to observe all the law that My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that…
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 22:13
Then you will succeed, if you carefully follow the statutes and ordinances that the LORD commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.
- Deuteronomy 5:32
So be careful to do as the LORD your God has commanded you; you are not to turn aside to the right or to the left.
- Joshua 1:8
This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper…
- Proverbs 4:27
Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your feet away from evil.
- Joshua 11:15
As the LORD had commanded His servant Moses, so Moses commanded Joshua. That is what Joshua did, leaving nothing undone of all that the LORD had commanded Moses.
- 1 Chronicles 22:13
Through
Titus 3:1Remind the believers to submit to rulers and authorities, to be obedient and ready for every good work,
it leads to
- Romans 13:1–7
Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which is from God. The authorities that exist have been appointed by God.
- 1 Peter 2:13–17
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to the king as the supreme authority,
- Ecclesiastes 10:4
If the ruler’s temper flares against you, do not abandon your post, for calmness lays great offenses to rest.
- Romans 13:1–7
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Deuteronomy
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Augustine of Hippo, LETTER 48; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.