Deuteronomy 29:18

18 Make sure no man, woman, family group, or tribe among you leaves the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of those nations. They would be to you like a plant that grows bitter, poisonous fruit.

Deuteronomy 29:18 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 29:18

Lest there should be among you man or woman, or family, or
tribe
These words stand in connection with ( Deuteronomy 29:15 ) , with ( Deuteronomy 29:16 Deuteronomy 29:17 ) being in a parenthesis, as may be observed, and show the design of this solemn appearance of the people, and their entering afresh into covenant; which was to prevent their falling into idolatry, and preserve them from it, whether a single person of either sex, or a whole family, or even a tribe, which might be in danger of being infected with it, and so all the people:

whose heart turneth away this day from the Lord our God, to go [and]
serve the gods of those nations;
whose heart is enticed and drawn aside at the remembrance of the idols he has seen worshipped by others; and is looking off from the Lord God, his faith in him being weakened, his fear of him removed, and his affections for him lessened; and is looking towards the idols of the nations, with a hankering mind to serve and worship them:

lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood:
the word "rosh", which we render "gall", signifies, according to Jarchi, a bitter herb, which better suits with a root than gall, and is elsewhere by us rendered "hemlock", ( Hosea 10:4 ) ; and is by him very rightly interpreted of a wicked man among them; for not a principle of immorality, or heresy, rooted in the mind, productive of bitter fruits, or evil actions, is meant; but a bad man, particularly an idolater, who is rooted in idolatry, and is guilty of and commits abominable actions; the issue of which will be bitterness and death, if not recovered; which agrees with what the apostle says, ( Hebrews 12:15 ) ; who manifestly alludes to this passage; see the Apocrypha:

``In those days went there out of Israel wicked men, who persuaded many, saying, Let us go and make a covenant with the heathen that are round about us: for since we departed from them we have had much sorrow.'' (1 Maccabees 1:11)

and is confirmed by what follows.

Deuteronomy 29:18 In-Context

16 You know how we lived in Egypt and how we passed through the countries when we came here.

17 You saw their hateful idols made of wood, stone, silver, and gold.

18 Make sure no man, woman, family group, or tribe among you leaves the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of those nations. They would be to you like a plant that grows bitter, poisonous fruit.

19 These are the kind of people who hear these curses but bless themselves, thinking, "We will be safe even though we continue doing what we want to do." Those people may destroy all of your land, both wet and dry.

20 The Lord will not forgive them. His anger will be like a burning fire against those people, and all the curses written in this book will come on them. The Lord will destroy any memory of them on the earth.