Deuteronomy 4:13

13 1And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, 2the Ten Commandments,[a]3and he wrote them on two tablets of stone.

Deuteronomy 4:13 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 4:13

And he declared unto you his covenant
So the law was called, because it contained, on the part of God, things which he would have done or avoided, to which were annexed promises of long life and happiness in the land he gave them; and they, on their part, agreed to hearken to it, and obey it, ( Exodus 24:3 Exodus 24:7 ) ,

which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments;
which see at large in ( Exodus 20:1-17 ) , and in this book afterwards repeated, ( Deuteronomy 5:6-21 ) ,

and he wrote them upon two tables of stone;
to denote the durableness of them; the Targum of Jonathan says on tables of sapphire; but it is most likely that they were written on tables of marble, since there were great quantities of it in Mount Sinai; (See Gill on Exodus 31:18).

Deuteronomy 4:13 In-Context

11 And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom.
12 Then the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of words, but saw no form; there was only a voice.
13 And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments,and he wrote them on two tablets of stone.
14 And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and rules, that you might do them in the land that you are going over to possess.
15 "Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire,

Cross References 3

  • 1. Deuteronomy 9:9, 11
  • 2. Exodus 34:28
  • 3. See Exodus 24:12

Footnotes 1

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.