lest there should be among you man, woman, family, or tribe whose heart turns away today from Yahweh our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; lest there should be among you a root that produces bitter poison; and it happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, “I shall have peace, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart,” to destroy the moist with the dry. Yahweh will not pardon him, but then Yahweh’s anger and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and all the curse that is written in this book will fall on him, and Yahweh will blot out his name from under the sky. Yahweh will set him apart for evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant written in this book of the law.
The generation to come—your children who will rise up after you, and the foreigner who will come from a far land—will say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses with which Yahweh has made it sick, that all of its land is sulfur, salt, and burning, that it is not sown, doesn’t produce, nor does any grass grow in it, like the overthrow of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, which Yahweh overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath. Even all the nations will say, “Why has Yahweh done this to this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean?”
Then men will say, “Because they abandoned the covenant of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt, and went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they didn’t know and that he had not given to them. Therefore Yahweh’s anger burned against this land, to bring on it all the curses that are written in this book. Yahweh rooted them out of their land in anger, in wrath, and in great indignation, and thrust them into another land, as it is today.”
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 22, 26 Such sin, as the bitter fruit thereof might choke…
Such sin, as the bitter fruit thereof might choke and destroy you.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28 Deu 29:19 And it come to pass, when he…
Deu 29:19 And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst:
Ver. 19. When he heareth the words.] But feareth them no more than Behemoth doth the iron weapons, which are esteemed by him as straws. The presumptuous sinner, saith one, makes God a God of clouts, - one that, howsoever he speaks heavy words, will not do as he saith. Words are but wind, say they in Jeremiah. {Jer 5:13} "God forbid," say they in the Gospel. {Luk 20:16} These things are but spoken in terrorem, thinks the practical atheist; bugbear words, devised on purpose to frighten silly people, &c. Ahab, after he was threatened with utter rooting out, begat fifty sons, as it were to cross God, and to try it out with him. So Thrasonical Lamech brags, and goes on to outdare God himself; "If Cain be avenged," &c. {Gen 4:24} The old Italians were wont, in time of thunder, to shoot off their greatest ordinance, and to ring their greatest bells, to drown the noise of the heavens: like unto these are many frontless and flagitious persons. "But shall they escape by iniquity? In thine anger" - it is not more a prayer than a prophecy - "cast down the people, O God." {Psa 56:7}
Read full note →
To add drunkenness to thirst.] To "add rebellion to sin." {Job 34:37} "To drink iniquity like water." {Job 34:7} His sin and his repentance run in a circle, as drunkenness and thirst do. He sins and cries God mercy, and says he will sin no more, and yet does it again the next day, till his heart be so hardened by the deceitfulness of sin, that at length he loseth all passive power of "recovering himself out of the snare of the devil, by whom he is taken alive at his pleasure." {2Ti 2:26}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26 Lest there should be; or take heed or beware…
Lest there should be; or take heed or beware lest there be; for it seems to be an ellipsis, or defect of a verb, which is usual in Scripture, and which we have in a case parallel to this. Gen 3:22. And now we must take care lest he put forth, &c. Or this particle lest may be joined with Deu 29:14,15, to this purpose, I now renew the covenant with you, and with your posterity, lest any of you or yours should be tempted to depart from God, &c. Whose heart turneth away, i.e. who turneth away from God to idols, not by constraint, but by choice, and the inclination of his own heart. By this phrase he leads them to the spring of their sin and ruin, even their own hearts, which he admonisheth them hereby to look to above all things.
A root; either,
Read full note →
1. An evil heart inclining you to such cursed idolatry, and bringing forth bitter fruits. Or rather,
2. Some secret and subtle apostate, who lurks and works like a root under ground, and slyly conveys his poison to the infection of others; for both the foregoing and following words speak of some particular person.
Gall and wormwood, i.e. which though for the present it may please your fancy, yet in the end, assure yourselves, will produce bitter fruits, not only distasteful to God, but also poisonful and destructive to yourselves.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv18–28 And it cometh to pass, when he heareth the…
And it cometh to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse,.... That is, the man before compared to a root bearing bitter herbs, when he should hear the curses pronounced by the law against such persons as himself:
that he bless himself in his heart; inwardly pronounce himself blessed, thinking himself secure from the curse of the law, and flattering himself it will never reach him nor come upon him:
Read full note →
saying, I shall have peace; all happiness and prosperity, in soul, body, and estate; inward peace of mind now, and eternal peace hereafter:
though I walk in the imagination of my heart; in worshipping idols which he vainly and wickedly imagined to be gods; to the worship of which his wicked heart prompted him, and he was resolutely and stubbornly bent upon, and in which he continued:
to add drunkenness to thirst; as a thirsty man to quench his thirst drinks, and adds to that, or drinks yet more and more until he is drunken; so a man inclined to idolatry, that has a secret desire after it, thirsts after such stolen or forbidden waters, and drinks of them, adds thereunto, drinks again and again until he is drunk with the wine of fornication, or idolatry, as it is called Rev 17:2; so the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan understand the words of adding sin to sin, particularly of adding sins of ignorance to pride, or to presumptuous ones. Wicked men, deceivers and deceived, always grow worse and worse, increasing to more ungodliness, and yet promise themselves peace and impunity, Th1 5:3.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 26 A root - An evil heart inclining you to…
A root - An evil heart inclining you to such cursed idolatry, and bringing forth bitter fruits.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 26 Verse 18. A root that beareth gall and wormwood]…
Verse 18. A root that beareth gall and wormwood] That is, as the apostle expresses it, Heb 3:12, An evil heart of unbelief departing from the living God; for to this place he evidently refers. It may also signify false doctrines, or idolatrous persons among themselves.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 22, 26 Deu 29:18. Lest there be among you man or…
Deu 29:18. Lest there be among you man or woman — These words are to be considered as connected with Deu 29:14-15, and as signifying the end for which he engaged them to renew their covenant with God, that none of them might revolt from him to serve other gods. Lest there should be a root — An evil heart inclining you to such cursed idolatry, and bringing forth bitter fruits: or rather, some secret or subtle apostate from the true God and his religion, secretly lurking and working as a root under ground, and spreading his poison to the infection of others; for both the foregoing and following words speak of some particular person. Gall and wormwood — Which though for the present it may please his fancy, yet in the end will produce bitter fruits; not only distasteful to God, but also destructive to yourselves. The word which we translate gall, is thought to signify some noxious and poisonous herb, but what herb, is difficult to say. It is rendered hemlock, (Hos 10:4,) and is commonly joined with wormwood, as here, Jer 9:15; Lam 3:19; Amo 6:12. To this passage the apostle alludes Heb 12:15, Lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 23 The word here and in Deu 32:32 rendered “gall,”…
The word here and in Deu 32:32 rendered “gall,” is in Hos 10:4 translated “hemlock.” It is the name of a plant of intense bitterness, and of quick growth; and is therefore repeatedly used in conjunction with “wormwood” (compare Jer 9:15; Lam 3:19; Amo 6:12), to express figuratively the nature and effects of sin (compare the marginal references.). The herb is probably the poppy. Hence, the “water” (i. e. juice) “of gall” Jer 8:14; Jer 23:15 would be opium. This would explain its employment in the stupefying drink given to criminals at the time of execution (compare Psa 69:21; Mat 27:34), and the use of the word as synonymous with poison (compare Deu 32:33; Job 20:16).
Wormwood - is the plant “absinthium.” It is used to denote metaphorically the distress and trouble which result from sin.
Read full note →
“The root that beareth gall and wormwood,” means in this place any person lurking among them who is tainted with apostasy.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 23, 26 Bitterness; an Israelite, who cherishes now in his heart…
Bitterness; an Israelite, who cherishes now in his heart any idol, (Haydock) and who may draw God’s judgments upon the people, (Calmet) or induce them to follow his wicked example. (Haydock) --- Let all watch over their children, lest they fall off. Chaldean, "Let there be none among you now whose heart may be filled with the sin of pride." See Acts viii. 13., and Hebrew xii. 15., where this text is cited. The Hebrew seems to allude to some very bitter herbs. Rass is mentioned as growing in the ground, and the juice of it is often alluded to, Osee x. 4., Jeremias viii. 13., and Psalm lxviii. 22. Lane is generally joined with the former term, and God threatens to make the faithless Israelites eat of it, Jeremias ix. 15., and Proverbs v. 4. It may denote a poisonous bitter herb, as well as rass, which signifies "the head, gall, wormwood, aconite," &c. (Calmet) --- The root designates a mind secretly infected with idolatry, and the appetite, being once drunken with pleasures, thirsteth still more. (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 23, 24, 28 18. Lest there should be among you a root…
18. Lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood — This figurative expression may be compared with the passage in Heb_12:15, “Lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.” The word translated gall probably does not denote a poisonous plant.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28 18. lest there should be] Perhaps better, may there…
18. lest there should be] Perhaps better, may there not be!
this day] Not in LXX and here out of place.
Read full note →
to go to serve] Deu_13:6; Deu_13:13 (7, 14), Deu_17:3.
a root that beareth] Only here.
gall] Heb. rôsh, lit. head, sometimes interpreted of the poppy; either that or some poison: Deu_32:32, Amo_6:12, Hos_10:4; with wormwood, Amo_5:7; Amo_6:12, Jer_9:15 (14), Deu_23:15, Lam_3:15; Lam_3:19, Pro_5:4. Such are the fruits of idolatry!
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 26, 28 (18) Lest there should be.—The connection with Deu_29:15 seems…
(18) Lest there should be.—The connection with Deu_29:15 seems to be this. “I make this covenant binding with all your generations, in case there should even now be any root of idolatry among you which may grow up and bring forth fruit in later times, and bring a curse upon your whole country.” That there were such roots of idolatry is only too plain from Deu_31:16, and from what followed after the death of the elders of this generation. (Comp. Jdg_2:10-12.)
A root that beareth gall and wormwood.—The same two words occur in Lam_3:19, and one of them (gall) in Psa_69:21. From whatever root it came, there was One to whom it was given to drink. The LXX. form of this expression, “lest there is among you any root that springeth up in gall and bitterness,” is incorporated into the warning in Heb_12:15 : “Looking diligently, lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28 Lest there should be among you; rather, See that…
Lest there should be among you; rather, See that there be not among you, etc. The part. pe, lest, at the beginning of a sentence, sometimes implies a prohibition or dissuasion, as Job_32:13, "say not;". Isa_36:18," beware of saying" (Gesenius, Noldius in voc.) Gall. The Hebrew word so rendered (vaOr) is supposed by Gesenius to be the poppy plant, by Celsius to be the hemlock (it is so rendered, Hos_10:4; Amo_6:12, and by Aedman to be colocynth. It is probably a general name for what is poisonous and bitter; for it is used of poison generally Deu_32:32) and of the venom of asps, (Job_20:16) as well as of poisonous roots and bitter fruits (see Kitto, "Bibl. Cycl.," 3:701). Coupled here with wormwood, it must be a plant that is referred to; and the union of the two affords "a striking image of the destructive fruit borne by idolatry" (Keil).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv18–19 A root that beareth gall and wormwood.
Deu_29:18
A root that beareth gall and wormwood.
Read full note →
The root that beareth wormwood
I. Sin is the root which beareth gall and wormwood.
1. That this was true in the case of the Israelites is very manifest. Their history tells us the whole generation which came up out of Egypt died in the wilderness because of their sins. Their sin then was a root which bore to them the poisonous hemlock, for they left a line of graves along their line of march as a sad memorial to their iniquities, and only Joshua and Caleb ever entered into the promised land.
2. Again, not only does the history of the Jews prove that sin is a root of bitterness, but our judgment tells us that it is most fitting it should be so. If sin were in the long run pleasurable, and really produced advantage to man, it would be a very strange arrangement in the Divine economy. Sin is a root which has not always budded and blossomed in this life, but which will bud and blossom and bring forth its fruit in the life to come, and the fruit of sin will be more bitter than hemlock and wormwood. I gather this from my reason. Let an intelligent person only think a minute, and I am sure he will be convinced that there must be a terrible punishment for sin. Reflect, there are other laws in the world besides moral laws: there are what is called by the philosopher physical laws, that is to say, laws which concern matter rather than mind. Now, if men break these laws, does any ill result follow from the violation? For instance, the law of attraction, or gravitation, that certain bodies shall attract other bodies, can that be infringed without risk? If you rebel against gravitation, it will just crush you up as a man would a beetle, or a fly, and without a particle of pity will avenge its insulted authority. Again, we are not left to this argument alone, for there is one out of the Ten Commandments, to which I can only allude, which involves more especially the bodies of men. Now, when a man offends against the one command, we shall see if God does really punish sin; we shall see in the mans body whether or not sin does produce gall and wormwood. I allude, of course, to the command, Thou shalt not commit adultery, which forbids all classes of lasciviousness and uncleanness. The men or women who violate this precept soon find that they have not only done wrong to God, but wrong to themselves. Our hospitals and asylums could tell you into what a fearful state men have brought themselves by sins of the flesh. Now, if the violation of this one command, which happens to touch the body, does beyond all doubt make men smart for it, why not with the rest?
3. But we are not, happily, left to our reason about it; we can turn to the Book of God, and call up the witnesses. Ask Noah, as he looks out of his ark, Does sin bring bitterness? and he points to the floating carcasses of innumerable thousands that died because of sin. Turn to Abraham: does sin bear bitterness? he points to the smoke of Sodom and Gomorrah that God destroyed because of their wickedness. Listen to James, or Jude, or Peter, and you hear them speak of chains of darkness and flaming fire. Let the Saviour Himself speak to you. He cries, These shall go away into everlasting punishment.
II. Is there such a root as this growing in the heart of any one of us here? Some have this root that will bear gall and wormwood in them who are not actually gross outward sinners: they are described as those who forget God.
1. The non-loving of the Most High, even though you never curse or swear, even though you do not break the Sabbath, is that root that will hear gall and wormwood.
2. Next we read of men seeking after another God. Are you loving someone better than God? Are you living for money--is that your great object? Is there no one here who is living for self? If so, though you may be outwardly most respectable people, if you are living for anything but God, that root will bring forth gall and wormwood.
3. Again, this root is in every man who disbelieves the penalty. The verse following the text speaks of one who said, I shall have peace though I walk after my own heart. Are you saying that? If so, you have the evil root in your heart. There is no more sure sign of reprobation than callousness and carelessness.
III. The last point was to be, how are we to get rid of it? Is there a possibility of being delivered from the gall and wormwood? There is. As many as trust in Christ shall be rid of the gall and wormwood. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv20, 22, 25, 27 the anger of Yahweh and his jealousy will smolder
the anger of Yahweh and his jealousy will smolder
Just as a fire can grow in intensity, so can God's anger and Jealousy grow in intensity. AT: "Yahweh's jealous anger will grow like a fire" (See: Metaphor)
Read full note →
the anger of Yahweh and his jealousy
Here the word "jealousy" describes "the anger of Yahweh." AT: Yahweh's jealous anger" (See: Hendiadys)
that are written
This can be stated in active form. AT: "that I have written" (See: Active or Passive)
the curses that are written in this book will come on him
Moses describes the curses as a person who would attack them by surprise. See how you translated these words in Deuteronomy 28:15. AT: "Yahweh will curse him with the curses written in this book in ways that will completely surprise him" (See: Metaphor and Personification)
Yahweh will blot out his name from under heaven
This means God will completely destroy the person and his family. In the future people will not remember him. A similar phrase appears in Deuteronomy 7:24.
translationWords
forgive
anger
jealous
curse
blot out
name
heaven
tribe
Israel
covenant
law
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 27 29:18 This metaphor describes idolatry (the root), which, if…
29:18 This metaphor describes idolatry (the root), which, if cultivated, would result in idol worship (the fruit).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.