Deuteronomy 4:2

2 Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.

Deuteronomy 4:2 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.
English Standard Version (ESV)
2 You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you.
New Living Translation (NLT)
2 Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you.
The Message Bible (MSG)
2 Don't add a word to what I command you, and don't remove a word from it. Keep the commands of God, your God, that I am commanding you.
American Standard Version (ASV)
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it, that ye may keep the commandments of Jehovah your God which I command you.
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
2 Never add anything to what I command you, or take anything away from it. Then you will be able to obey the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
2 You must not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it, so that you may keep the commands of the Lord your God I am giving you.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
2 Don't add to what I'm commanding you. Don't subtract from it either. Instead, obey the commands of the LORD your God that I'm giving you.

Deuteronomy 4:2 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 4:2

Ye shall not add to the word which I command you, nether shall
you diminish ought from it
Neither make new laws of their own, and join them to the law of God, and set them upon a level with it, or prefer them before it; as the Scribes and Pharisees did in Christ's time, who by their traditions made the word of God of none effect, as do the Papists also by their unwritten traditions; nor abrogate nor detract from the law of God, nor make void any part of it: or else the sense is, neither do that which is forbidden, nor neglect that which is commanded; neither be guilty of sins of omission nor commission, nor in any way break the law of God, and teach men so to do by word or by example; not a jot or tittle is either to be put to it, or taken from it, ( Proverbs 30:5 Proverbs 30:6 ) ( Matthew 5:18 Matthew 5:19 ) ( Revelation 22:18 Revelation 22:19 )

that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command
you;
in his name; or which he delivered unto them as his commandments, and which were to be kept just as they were delivered, without adding to them, or taking from them.

Deuteronomy 4:2 In-Context

1 Now, Israel, hear the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you.
2 Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.
3 You saw with your own eyes what the LORD did at Baal Peor. The LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor,
4 but all of you who held fast to the LORD your God are still alive today.
5 See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the LORD my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it.

Cross References 4

  • 1. Deuteronomy 12:32; Joshua 1:7; Proverbs 30:6; Revelation 22:18-19
  • 2. Jeremiah 26:2
  • 3. S Leviticus 22:31
  • 4. Deuteronomy 10:12-13; Ecclesiastes 12:13
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