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Deuteronomy 32:21

“They have provoked me to jealousy with what is not El; they have provoked me to anger with their worthless idols. So I will provoke them to jealousy with what is not a people; with a foolish nation I will provoke them to anger.”

Deuteronomy 32:21 · direct translation from the Hebrew
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With the Hebrew beneath

21

Quotation · Romans 10:19

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Paul quotes the second half of Deuteronomy 32:21, from the Song of Moses, in the second person.

Formula: πρῶτος Μωϋσῆς λέγει “first Moses says” (Romans 10:19)

See the original texts

Greek of the New Testament: ἀλλὰ λέγω μὴ Ἰσραὴλ οὐκ ἔγνω πρῶτος Μωϋσῆς λέγει Ἐγὼ παραζηλώσω ὑμᾶς ἐπ’ οὐκ ἔθνει ἐπ’ ἔθνει ἀσυνέτῳ παροργιῶ ὑμᾶς

Hebrew (Masoretic text): הֵם קִנְאוּנִי בְלֹא אֵל כִּעֲסוּנִי בְּהַבְלֵיהֶם וַאֲנִי אַקְנִיאֵם בְּלֹא עָם בְּגוֹי נָבָל אַכְעִיסֵם

Septuagint (Deuteronomy 32:21 in the Septuagint numbering): αὐτοὶ παρεζήλωσάν με ἐπ’ οὐ θεῷ, παρώξυνάν με ἐν τοῖς εἰδώλοις αὐτῶν· κἀγὼ παραζηλώσω αὐτοὺς ἐπ’ οὐκ ἔθνει, ἐπ’ ἔθνει ἀσυνέτῳ παροργιῶ αὐτούς.

The Greek of the NT matches the Septuagint word for word in 7 consecutive words: “ἐπ’ οὐκ ἔθνει ἐπ’ ἔθνει ἀσυνέτῳ παροργιῶ.”

Septuagint, Swete’s text, First1KGreek transcription (with reading errors), CC BY-SA 4.0

Theme · 1 Corinthians 10:22

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Paul asks whether the Lord is to be provoked to jealousy; in Deuteronomy 32:21 YHWH says that they provoked him to jealousy with what is not God.

The same term appears in both passages.

  • קִנְאוּkinuH7065παραζηλοῦμενparazēloumenG3863“be jealous; be zealous”

Deuteronomy 32:21, word by word

have provoked me to jealousyקִנְאוּkinu

provoke to jealousy

To make someone full of jealousy by giving oneself to another.

Where else “kinu” appears
Elאֵלel

El, God, god

"El", an ancient Hebrew word for "God". Alone or with another title it is a name of the God of Israel: El Elyon (God Most High), El Shaddai (God Almighty). Neighboring peoples used the same word for their gods; then this translation writes "god" in lower case. It also means "mighty".

Where else “el” appears
they have provoked me to angerכִּעֲסוּkiasu

provoke

To stir up someone's anger by what one does, like worshiping idols before YHWH.

Where else “kiasu” appears
with their worthless idolsהַבְלֵיhavle

worthless idol

Idols, which are nothing.

Where else “havle” appears
a peopleעָםam

crowd

The people gathered in a place: the crowd, or the troops that go out to war.

Where else “am” appears
with a foolishנָבָלnaval

foolish, fool

Foolish, a fool: not one who knows little, but one who lives without regard for God.

Where else “naval” appears
nationגוֹיgoy

nation

A people with their land; also Israel.

Where else “goy” appears

Translation note

Paul quotes the second half of this verse in Romans 10:19.

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

Quotation · Romans 10:19

Paul quotes the second half of Deuteronomy 32:21, from the Song of Moses, in the second person.

See them side by side

Deuteronomy 32:21

21They have provoked me to jealousy with what is not El; they have provoked me to anger with their worthless idols. So I will provoke them to jealousy with what is not a people; with a foolish nation I will provoke them to anger.

Romans 10:19

19But I say: It is not that Israel did not know, is it? First Moses says: I will provoke you to jealousy with what is not a nation; with a nation without understanding I will make you angry.

The context

20And he said, ‘I will hide my face from them; I will see what their end will be, for they are a generation of perversities, children in whom there is no faithfulness.

21 · This verse (above)

22For a fire has been kindled in my anger, and it burns to the lowest Sheol; it devours the earth and its produce and sets ablaze the foundations of the mountains.

Read all of Deuteronomy 32

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