Deuteronomy 8:11-18

11 "Beware that you do not ¹forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today;

12 otherwise, ²when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them,

13 and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies,

14 then your heart will become proud and you will ³forget the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

15 "He led you through ⁴the great and terrible wilderness, with its ⁵fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water; He ⁶brought water for you out of the rock of flint.

16 "In the wilderness He fed you manna ⁷which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might ⁸test you, to do good for you in the end.

17 "Otherwise, ⁹you may say in your heart, 'My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.'

18 "But you shall remember the LORD your God, for ¹⁰it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

Deuteronomy 8:11-18 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 8

In this chapter Moses repeats the exhortation to observe the commands of God, and urges the Israelites to it, from the consideration of the great and good things God had done for them in the wilderness, and even in those instances which were chastisements, and were of an humbling nature, De 8:1-6, and on the consideration of the blessings of the good land they were going to possess, De 8:7-9 for which blessings they are exhorted to be thankful, and are cautioned against pride of heart through them, and forgetfulness of God, and of his goodness to them while in the wilderness, and when brought into the land of Canaan, which they were to ascribe to his power and goodness, and not their own, De 8:10-18, and the chapter is concluded with a warning against idolatry, lest they perish through it as the nations before them, De 8:19,20.

Cross References

• 1. Deuteronomy 4:9
• 2. Proverbs 30:9; Hosea 13:6
• 3. Deuteronomy 8:11; Psalms 106:21
• 4. Deuteronomy 1:19; Jeremiah 2:6
• 5. Numbers 21:6
• 6. Exodus 17:6; Numbers 20:11; Deuteronomy 32:13; Psalms 78:15; Psalms 114:8
• 7. Exodus 16:15
• 8. Deuteronomy 8:2
• 9. Deuteronomy 9:4
• 10. Proverbs 10:22; Hosea 2:8

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit "Take heed to yourself"
• [b]. Lit "lifted up"
• [c]. Lit "slaves"
• [d]. Lit "at your end"