Deuteronomy 4:19

19 lest peradventure, when thine eyes be raised up to heaven, thou see the sun, and the moon, and all the stars of heaven, and thou be deceived by error, and worship those things, and honour them, the which things thy Lord God made of nought, into the service of all folks that be under heaven. (lest, when thine eyes be raised up to the heavens, and thou see the sun, and the moon, and all the stars in the sky, that is, the host of heaven, thou be deceived by error, and thou worship those things, and honour them, which things the Lord thy God made out of nothing, for the service of all the peoples who be under heaven.)

Deuteronomy 4:19 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 4:19

And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven
The starry heaven, which to do in itself is not sinful; and may be lawfully and commendably done, to raise admiration at the wonderful works of God in them, and lead to adore the author of them: but if not guarded against may be ensnaring:

and when thou seest the sun and the moon, and the stars, [even] all the
host of heaven;
those bright luminaries, so glorious to behold, and so useful and beneficial to the earth, and the inhabitants of it:

shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them;
should have an impulse on their minds and their hearts, be inclined and drawn to the worship of them, partly by considering their splendour, glory, and usefulness, and partly by the example of others; for the worshipping of these seems to be and is the first kind of idolatry men gave into, at least it was very ancient; see ( Job 31:26 Job 31:27 ) ,

which the Lord thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole
heaven;
the sun and the moon by their constant revolutions visit all the parts of the world, and stars are fixed in both hemispheres, so that all nations of the earth receive the benefit and advantage of all these heavenly bodies; but were never designed to be the objects of their worship, as might be learnt from their being divided to them, sometimes one part of the earth enjoying them, and then another, and not present with them all at one and the same time, which, if deities, would have been necessary; see ( Psalms 19:6 ) ( Matthew 5:45 ) .

Deuteronomy 4:19 In-Context

17 or a likeness of all beasts that be on earth, either of birds flying under heaven, (or a likeness of any beast that is on the earth, or of any bird flying in the sky,)
18 either of creeping beasts that be moved in the earth, either of fishes that dwell under the earth in waters; (or of any creeping beast that moveth on the ground, or of any fish that liveth in the waters under the earth;)
19 lest peradventure, when thine eyes be raised up to heaven, thou see the sun, and the moon, and all the stars of heaven, and thou be deceived by error, and worship those things, and honour them, the which things thy Lord God made of nought, into the service of all folks that be under heaven. (lest, when thine eyes be raised up to the heavens, and thou see the sun, and the moon, and all the stars in the sky, that is, the host of heaven, thou be deceived by error, and thou worship those things, and honour them, which things the Lord thy God made out of nothing, for the service of all the peoples who be under heaven.)
20 Forsooth the Lord took you, and led you out of the iron furnace, or strong tribulation, of Egypt, that he should have a people of heritage, as it is in [the] present day. (But the Lord took you, and led you out of the iron furnace, that is, out of thy strong tribulation, in Egypt, so that he would have a people of inheritance, as ye be to this present day.)
21 And the Lord was wroth against me for your words, and swore that I should not pass (the) Jordan, and that I should not enter into the best land, which he shall give to you. (But because of you, the Lord was angry with me, and he swore that I would not cross over the Jordan River, and that I would not enter into that best land, which he shall give to you.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.