Deuteronomy 15:5

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
if only you obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow every one of these commands I am giving you today.

Hebrew Names Version
if only you diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, to observe to do all this mitzvah which I command you this day.

King James Version
Only if thou carefully hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all these commandments which I command thee this day.

Lexham English Bible
If only you listen well to the voice of Yahweh your God by observing diligently all of these commandments that I am commanding you today.

English Standard Version
if only you will strictly obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all this commandment that I command you today.

New Century Version
He will bless you if you obey the Lord your God completely, but you must be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today.

New English Translation
if you carefully obey him by keeping all these commandments that I am giving you today.

Amplified Bible
if only you will listen to and obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all these commandments which I am commanding you today.

New American Standard Bible
if only you listen obediently to the voice of the LORD your God, to follow carefully all this commandment which I am commanding you today.

Geneva Bible (1587)
So that thou hearken vnto the voyce of the Lord thy God to obserue and doe all these commandements, which I commande thee this day.

Legacy Standard Bible
if only you listen obediently to the voice of Yahweh your God, to be careful to do all this commandment which I am commanding you today.

Complete Jewish Bible
if only you will listen carefully to what Adonai your God says and take care to obey all these mitzvot I am giving you today.

Darby Translation
if thou only diligently hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to take heed to do all this commandment which I command thee this day.

Easy-to-Read Version
But this will happen only if you obey the Lord your God. You must be careful to obey every command that I have told you today.

George Lamsa Translation
If you hearken to the voice of the LORD your God, to observe to do all these commandments which I command you this day.

Good News Translation
if you obey him and carefully observe everything that I command you today.

Literal Translation
only if hearing you listen to the voice of Jehovah your God, to take heed to do all this command which I am commanding you today.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
onely yt thou herke vnto the voyce of the LORDE yi God, & kepe all these comaundemetes which I comaunde the this daye,

American Standard Version
if only thou diligently hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to observe to do all this commandment which I command thee this day.

Bible in Basic English
If only you give ear to the voice of the Lord your God, and take care to keep all these orders which I give you today.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
So that thou hearken vnto the voyce of the Lord thy God, to obserue and do all these commaundementes which I commaunde thee this day:

JPS Old Testament (1917)
if only thou diligently hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all this commandment which I command thee this day.

King James Version (1611)
Onely if thou carefully hearken vnto the voice of the Lord thy God, to obserue to doe all these commandedements, which I commaund thee this day.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And if ye shall indeed hearken to the voice of the Lord your God, to keep and do all these commandments, as many as I charge thee this day,

English Revised Version
if only thou diligently hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all this commandment which I command thee this day.

Berean Standard Bible
if only you obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commandments I am giving you today.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
If netheles thou schalt here the vois of thi Lord God, and schalt kepe alle thingis whiche he comaundide, and whiche Y comaunde to dai to thee, he schal blesse thee, as he bihiyte.

Young's Literal Translation
`Only, if thou dost diligently hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy God, to observe to do all this command which I am commanding thee to-day,

Update Bible Version
if only you diligently listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, to observe to do all [of] this commandment which I command you this day.

Webster's Bible Translation
Only if thou shalt carefully hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all these commandments which I command thee this day.

World English Bible
if only you diligently listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, to observe to do all this commandment which I command you this day.

New King James Version
only if you carefully obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today.

New Living Translation
You will receive this blessing if you are careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today.

New Life Bible
But you must listen and obey the voice of the Lord your God. Be careful to do all the Law which I am telling you today.

New Revised Standard
if only you will obey the Lord your God by diligently observing this entire commandment that I command you today.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
only if thou do hearken unto the voice of Yahweh thy God, - to observe to do - all this commandment which I am commanding time to-day.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Yet so if thou hear the voice of the Lord thy God, and keep all things that he hath ordained, and which I command thee this day, he will bless thee, as he hath promised.

Revised Standard Version
if only you will obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all this commandment which I command you this day.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
if only you listen obediently to the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all this commandment which I am commanding you today.

Contextual Overview

¹At the end of every seventh year, cancel all debts. This is the procedure: Everyone who has lent money to a neighbor writes it off. You must not press your neighbor or his brother for payment: All-Debts-Are-Canceled— God says so. You may collect payment from foreigners, but whatever you have lent to your fellow Israelite you must write off. ⁴There must be no poor people among you because God is going to bless you lavishly in this land that God , your God, is giving you as an inheritance, your very own land. But only if you listen obediently to the Voice of God , your God, diligently observing every commandment that I command you today. Oh yes— God , your God, will bless you just as he promised. You will lend to many nations but won't borrow from any; you'll rule over many nations but none will rule over you. ⁷When you happen on someone who's in trouble or needs help among your people with whom you live in this land that God , your God, is giving you, don't look the other way pretending you don't see him. Don't keep a tight grip on your purse. No. Look at him, open your purse, lend whatever and as much as he needs. Don't count the cost. Don't listen to that selfish voice saying, "It's almost the seventh year, the year of All-Debts-Are-Canceled," and turn aside and leave your needy neighbor in the lurch, refusing to help him. He'll call God 's attention to you and your blatant sin. ¹⁰Give freely and spontaneously. Don't have a stingy heart. The way you handle matters like this triggers God , your God's, blessing in everything you do, all your work and ventures. There are always going to be poor and needy people among you. So I command you: Always be generous, open purse and hands, give to your neighbors in trouble, your poor and hurting neighbors.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Deuteronomy 4:9, Deuteronomy 11:13-15, Deuteronomy 28:1-15, Leviticus 26:3-14, Joshua 1:7, Psalms 19:11, Isaiah 1:19, Isaiah 1:20, Philippians 1:27

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 26:17 - hearken 1 Kings 11:38 - if thou wilt

Cross-References

Genesis 12:2
I'll make you a great nation and bless you. I'll make you famous; you'll be a blessing. I'll bless those who bless you; those who curse you I'll curse. All the families of the Earth will be blessed through you."

Genesis 15:7
God continued, "I'm the same God who brought you from Ur of the Chaldees and gave you this land to own."

Genesis 15:8
Abram said, "Master God , how am I to know this, that it will all be mine?"

Deuteronomy 10:22
When your ancestors entered Egypt, they numbered a mere seventy souls. And now look at you—you look more like the stars in the night skies in number. And your God did it.

1 Chronicles 27:23
David didn't keep a count of men under the age of twenty, because God had promised to give Israel a population as numerous as the stars in the sky. Joab son of Zeruiah started out counting the men, but he never finished. God's anger broke out on Israel because of the counting. As it turned out, the numbers were never entered into the court records of King David.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Ver. 5 Only if thou carefully hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God,.... In his word, and by his prophets; this being the case, there would be no more poor among them, or however they would be so blessed of God, that they would be capable of releasing the debts of the poor, without hurting themselves and their families:

to observe to do all these commandments which I command thee this day; a phrase often used to put them in mind of the commands of God, and the necessity of keeping them, their temporal happiness depending thereon.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The year of release is no doubt identical with the sabbatical year of the earlier legislation (Exodus 23:10 ff, and Leviticus 25:2 ff), the command of the older legislation being here amplified. The release was probably for the year, not total and final, and had reference only to loans lent because of poverty (compare Deuteronomy 15:4, Deuteronomy 15:7). Yet even so the law was found to be too stringent for the avarice of the people, because it was one of those which the rabbis “made of none effect by their traditions.”

Deuteronomy 15:2

Because it is called the Lord’s release - Render, because proclamation has been made of the Lord’s release. The verb is impersonal, and implies (compare Deuteronomy 31:10) that “the solemnity of the year of release” has been publicly announced.

Deuteronomy 15:3

The foreigner would not be bound by the restriction of the sabbatical year, and therefore would have no claim to its special remissions and privileges. He could earn his usual income in the seventh as in other years, and therefore is not exonerated from liability to discharge a debt anymore in the one than the others.

Deuteronomy 15:4

There is no inconsistency between this and Deuteronomy 15:11. The meaning seems simply to be, “Thou must release the debt for the year, except when there be no poor person concerned, a contingency which may happen, for the Lord shall greatly bless thee.” The general object of these precepts, as also of the year of Jubilee and the laws respecting inheritance, is to prevent the total ruin of a needy person, and his disappearance from the families of Israel by the sale of his patrimony.

Deuteronomy 15:9

literally: “Beware that there be not in thy heart a word which is worthlessness” (compare Deuteronomy 13:13 note).