Deuteronomy 29:21
in Deuteronomy 29and single him out from all the tribes of Israel for disaster, according to all the curses of the covenant written in this Book of the Law.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jehovah will set him apart unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that is written in this book of the law.
KJV
And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law:
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This verse in Deuteronomy 29
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
The LORD will never be willing to forgive him
on Deuteronomy 29:20-21
To “blot out his name from under heaven” is the sentence on Amalek at Exodus 17:14 and 25:19. An Israelite who turns to other gods is judged as the enemy was.
This site's exposition
single him out from all
Wesley reads single him out for disaster as a plague made an example, so one man becomes a monument of God's displeasure to the land. Henry calls separation to evil the truest definition of a curse. The covenant's curses weigh most, he adds, being the penalty of grace abused.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel,.... Unto the evil of punishment, devote and consign him to it, and make him a visible and distinguished mark of his displeasure and vengeance.
And ( lastly ) All this according to the curses of the covenant, which are the most fearful curses, being the just revenges of abused grace. (2.) Idolatry would be the ruin of their nation; it would bring plagues upon the land that connived at this root of bitterness and received the infection; as far as the sin spread, the judgment should spread likewise. [1.] The ruin is described.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
It was of the greatest consequence to impress all with the strong and abiding conviction, that while the covenant of grace had special blessings belonging to it, it at the same time had curses in reserve for transgressors, the infliction of which would be as certain, as lasting and severe. This was the advantage contemplated in the law being rehearsed a second time.
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהִבְדִּיל֤וֹ | vehivdilo | and he will separate him | H914 → | 42 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| לְרָעָ֔ה | leraah | for harm | H7451 → | 662 times |
| מִכֹּ֖ל | mikol | from all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| שִׁבְטֵ֣י | shivtei | [the] tribes of | H7626 → | 190 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| כְּכֹל֙ | kekhol | according to all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אָל֣וֹת | ʾalot | [the] oaths of | H423 → | 35 times |
| הַבְּרִ֔ית | haberit | the covenant | H1285 → | 284 times |
| הַכְּתוּבָ֕ה | haketuvah | that is written | H3789 → | 224 times |
| בְּסֵ֥פֶר | besefer | in [the] book of | H5612 → | 186 times |
| הַתּוֹרָ֖ה | hatorah | the law | H8451 → | 219 times |
| הַזֶּֽה׃ | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
וְהִבְדִּיל֤וֹand he will separate him
vehivdiloH914 →42 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
לְרָעָ֔הfor harm
leraahH7451 →662 times
מִכֹּ֖לfrom all
mikolH3605 →5413 times
שִׁבְטֵ֣י[the] tribes of
shivteiH7626 →190 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
כְּכֹל֙according to all
kekholH3605 →5413 times
אָל֣וֹת[the] oaths of
ʾalotH423 →35 times
הַבְּרִ֔יתthe covenant
haberitH1285 →284 times
הַכְּתוּבָ֕הthat is written
haketuvahH3789 →224 times
בְּסֵ֥פֶרin [the] book of
beseferH5612 →186 times
הַתּוֹרָ֖הthe law
hatorahH8451 →219 times
הַזֶּֽה׃<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 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
Matthew 25:32All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
it leads to
- Malachi 3:18
So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”
- Matthew 13:49
So will it be at the end of the age: The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous,
- 2 Corinthians 5:10
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad.
- Psalms 98:9
before the LORD, for He comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity.
- Malachi 3:18
Through
Matthew 25:46And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
it leads to
- Daniel 12:2
And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt.
- John 5:29
and come out—those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.
- John 3:36
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”
- Daniel 12:2
Through
Matthew 25:41Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
it leads to
- 2 Peter 2:4
For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them deep into hell, placing them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;
- 2 Peter 2:4
Where this verse is studied
About Deuteronomy

This page draws on 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); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
