Lectionary Calendar
Monday, April 6th, 2026
Monday in Easter Week
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Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Deuteronomy 9:3

Today know this: God , your God, is crossing the river ahead of you—he's a consuming fire. He will destroy the nations, he will put them under your power. You will dispossess them and very quickly wipe them out, just as God promised you would.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Moses;  

Dictionaries:

- Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Deuteronomy;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Metaphor;   Quotations (2);  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Bring;   Deuteronomy;   Fire;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Judaism;   Memra;   Sidra;   Soá¹­ah;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Know therefore this day, that the LORD your God is he who goes over before you as a devouring fire; he will destroy them, and he will bring them down before you: so shall you drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as the LORD has spoken to you.
King James Version
Understand therefore this day, that the Lord thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said unto thee.
Lexham English Bible
You should know today that Yahweh your God is the one crossing ahead of you as a devouring fire; he will destroy them, and he will subdue them before you; so you will dispossess them, and you will destroy them quickly, just as Yahweh promised you.
English Standard Version
Know therefore today that he who goes over before you as a consuming fire is the Lord your God. He will destroy them and subdue them before you. So you shall drive them out and make them perish quickly, as the Lord has promised you.
New Century Version
But today remember that the Lord your God goes in before you to destroy them like a fire that burns things up. He will defeat them ahead of you, and you will force them out and destroy them quickly, just as the Lord has said.
New English Translation
Understand today that the Lord your God who goes before you is a devouring fire; he will defeat and subdue them before you. You will dispossess and destroy them quickly just as he has told you.
Amplified Bible
"So know today [with confident assurance] that the LORD your God is crossing [the Jordan] before you like a devouring fire. He will destroy them and He will subdue them before you, and you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly, just as the LORD has promised you.
New American Standard Bible
"So be aware today that it is the LORD your God who is crossing over ahead of you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and He will subdue them before you, so that you may drive them out and eliminate them quickly, just as the LORD has spoken to you.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Vnderstand therefore that this day ye Lorde thy God is he which goeth ouer before thee as a consuming fire: he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them downe before thy face: so thou shalt cast them out and destroy them suddenly, as the Lord hath said vnto thee.
Legacy Standard Bible
So you shall know today that it is Yahweh your God who is crossing over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them, and He will subdue them before you, so that you may dispossess them and make them perish quickly, just as Yahweh has spoken to you.
Contemporary English Version
But the Lord your God has promised to go ahead of you, like a raging fire burning everything in its path. So when you attack your enemies, it will be easy for you to destroy them and take their land.
Complete Jewish Bible
Therefore understand today that Adonai your God will himself cross ahead of you as a devouring fire; he will destroy them and bring them down before you. Thus will you drive them out and cause them to perish quickly, as Adonai has said to you.
Darby Translation
Know then this day, that Jehovah thy God is he that goeth over before thee, a consuming fire; he will destroy them, and he will cast them down before thee, and thou shalt dispossess them and cause them to perish quickly, as Jehovah hath said unto thee.
Easy-to-Read Version
But you can be sure that it is the Lord your God who goes across the river before you—and God is like a fire that destroys! He will destroy those nations and make them fall before you. You will force those nations out and quickly destroy them. The Lord has promised you that this will happen.
George Lamsa Translation
And that you may know therefore this day that the LORD your God is he who will go over before you; as a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall defeat them before you; so that you shall rout them, and destroy them quickly, as the LORD has said to you.
Good News Translation
But now you will see for yourselves that the Lord your God will go ahead of you like a raging fire. He will defeat them as you advance, so that you will drive them out and destroy them quickly, as he promised.
Christian Standard Bible®
But understand that today the Lord your God will cross over ahead of you as a consuming fire; he will devastate and subdue them before you. You will drive them out and destroy them swiftly, as the Lord has told you.
Literal Translation
And know today that Jehovah your God is He who passes over before you as a consuming fire; He will destroy them, and He will bring them down before you; so you shall dispossess them and make them to perish quickly, as Jehovah has spoken to you.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Therfore shalt thou knowe this daye, that the LORDE yi God goeth before the, a cosumynge fyre. He shal destroye the, and shall subdue them before the, and shal driue them out, & shortly shall he brynge the to naught, as the LORDE hath promysed the.
American Standard Version
Know therefore this day, that Jehovah thy God is he who goeth over before thee as a devouring fire; he will destroy them, and he will bring them down before thee: so shalt thou drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as Jehovah hath spoken unto thee.
Bible in Basic English
Be certain then today that it is the Lord your God who goes over before you like an all-burning fire; he will send destruction on them, crushing them before you; and you will send them in flight, putting an end to them quickly, as the Lord has said.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Understande therefore this day, that the Lorde thy God is euen he whiche goeth ouer before thee as a consuming fire, he shall destroy them, and he shall bryng them downe before thy face: So thou shalt caste them out, and bryng them to naught quickly, as the Lorde hath sayde vnto thee.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Know therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is He who goeth over before thee as a devouring fire; He will destroy them, and He will bring them down before thee; so shalt thou drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as the LORD hath spoken unto thee.
King James Version (1611)
Understand therefore this day, that the Lord thy God is he, which goeth ouer before thee, as a consuming fire: he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them downe before thy face: So shalt thou driue them out, and destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said vnto thee.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And thou shalt know to-day, that the Lord thy God he shall go before thy face: he is a consuming fire; he shall destroy them, and he shall turn them back before thee, and shall destroy them quickly, as the Lord said to thee.
English Revised Version
Know therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is he which goeth over before thee as a devouring fire; he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thee: so shalt thou drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as the LORD hath spoken unto thee.
Berean Standard Bible
But understand that today the LORD your God goes across ahead of you as a consuming fire; He will destroy them and subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them swiftly, as the LORD has promised you.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Therfor thou schalt wite to dai, that thi Lord God hym silf schal passe bifor thee; he is a fier deuourynge and wastynge, that schal al to breke hem, and schal do awei, and destrie bifor thi face swiftli, as he spak to thee.
Young's Literal Translation
and thou hast known to-day, that Jehovah thy God [is] He who is passing over before thee -- a fire consuming; He doth destroy them, and He doth humble them before thee, and thou hast dispossessed them, and destroyed them hastily, as Jehovah hath spoken to thee.
Update Bible Version
Know therefore this day, that Yahweh your God is he who goes over before you as a devouring fire; he will destroy them, and he will bring them down before you: so you shall drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as Yahweh has spoken to you.
Webster's Bible Translation
Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God [is] he who goeth over before thee; [as] a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the LORD hath said to thee.
World English Bible
Know therefore this day, that Yahweh your God is he who goes over before you as a devouring fire; he will destroy them, and he will bring them down before you: so shall you drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as Yahweh has spoken to you.
New King James Version
Therefore understand today that the LORD your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly, as the LORD has said to you.
New Living Translation
But recognize today that the Lord your God is the one who will cross over ahead of you like a devouring fire to destroy them. He will subdue them so that you will quickly conquer them and drive them out, just as the Lord has promised.
New Life Bible
But know today that it is the Lord your God Who is crossing over before you as a fire that destroys everything. He will destroy them and bring them down before you. So you may drive them out and be quick to destroy them, just as the Lord has told you.
New Revised Standard
Know then today that the Lord your God is the one who crosses over before you as a devouring fire; he will defeat them and subdue them before you, so that you may dispossess and destroy them quickly, as the Lord has promised you.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So then, thou must consider to-day, that Yahweh thy God, he it is that is passing over before thee as a consuming fire, he, will destroy them, and, he, will cause them to bow down before thee, - so shalt thou dispossess them, and destroy them speedily, as Yahweh hath spoken unto thee.
Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou shalt know therefore this day that the Lord thy God himself will pass over before thee, a devouring and consuming fire, to destroy and extirpate and bring them to nothing before thy face quickly, as he hath spoken to thee.
Revised Standard Version
Know therefore this day that he who goes over before you as a devouring fire is the LORD your God; he will destroy them and subdue them before you; so you shall drive them out, and make them perish quickly, as the LORD has promised you.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Know therefore today that it is the LORD your God who is crossing over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and He will subdue them before you, so that you may drive them out and destroy them quickly, just as the LORD has spoken to you.

Contextual Overview

1Attention, Israel! This very day you are crossing the Jordan to enter the land and dispossess nations that are much bigger and stronger than you are. You're going to find huge cities with sky-high fortress-walls and gigantic people, descendants of the Anakites—you've heard all about them; you've heard the saying, "No one can stand up to an Anakite." 3 Today know this: God , your God, is crossing the river ahead of you—he's a consuming fire. He will destroy the nations, he will put them under your power. You will dispossess them and very quickly wipe them out, just as God promised you would. 4But when God pushes them out ahead of you, don't start thinking to yourselves, "It's because of all the good I've done that God has brought me in here to dispossess these nations." Actually it's because of all the evil these nations have done. No, it's nothing good that you've done, no record for decency that you've built up, that got you here; it's because of the vile wickedness of these nations that God , your God, is dispossessing them before you so that he can keep his promised word to your ancestors, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 6Know this and don't ever forget it: It's not because of any good that you've done that God is giving you this good land to own. Anything but! You're stubborn as mules. Keep in mind and don't ever forget how angry you made God , your God, in the wilderness. You've kicked and screamed against God from the day you left Egypt until you got to this place, rebels all the way. You made God angry at Horeb, made him so angry that he wanted to destroy you. When I climbed the mountain to receive the slabs of stone, the tablets of the covenant that God made with you, I stayed there on the mountain forty days and nights: I ate no food; I drank no water. Then God gave me the two slabs of stone, engraved with the finger of God. They contained word for word everything that God spoke to you on the mountain out of the fire, on the day of the assembly.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Understand: Deuteronomy 9:6, Matthew 15:10, Mark 7:14, Ephesians 5:17

goeth over: Deuteronomy 1:30, Deuteronomy 20:4, Deuteronomy 31:3-6, Joshua 3:11, Joshua 3:14, Micah 2:13, Revelation 19:11-16

a consuming fire: Deuteronomy 4:24, Isaiah 27:4, Isaiah 30:27, Isaiah 30:30, Isaiah 30:33, Isaiah 33:14, Nahum 1:5, Nahum 1:6, 2 Thessalonians 1:8, Hebrews 12:29

he shall: Deuteronomy 7:1, Deuteronomy 7:2, Deuteronomy 7:16, Deuteronomy 7:23, Deuteronomy 7:24, Exodus 23:29-31, Isaiah 41:10-16, Romans 8:31

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 12:29 - cut off Deuteronomy 31:8 - he it is that Deuteronomy 33:27 - thrust Judges 1:4 - Lord Judges 4:14 - is not 1 Samuel 17:46 - will the Lord Psalms 50:3 - a fire

Cross-References

Genesis 9:1
God blessed Noah and his sons: He said, "Prosper! Reproduce! Fill the Earth! Every living creature—birds, animals, fish—will fall under your spell and be afraid of you. You're responsible for them. All living creatures are yours for food; just as I gave you the plants, now I give you everything else. Except for meat with its lifeblood still in it—don't eat that.
Genesis 9:5
"But your own lifeblood I will avenge; I will avenge it against both animals and other humans.
Genesis 9:12
God continued, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and everything living around you and everyone living after you. I'm putting my rainbow in the clouds, a sign of the covenant between me and the Earth. From now on, when I form a cloud over the Earth and the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll remember my covenant between me and you and everything living, that never again will floodwaters destroy all life. When the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll see it and remember the eternal covenant between God and everything living, every last living creature on Earth."
Deuteronomy 12:15
It's permissible to slaughter your nonsacrificial animals like gazelle and deer in your towns and eat all you want from them with the blessing of God , your God. Both the ritually clean and unclean may eat.
Romans 14:17
God's kingdom isn't a matter of what you put in your stomach, for goodness' sake. It's what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and you'll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you.
1 Corinthians 10:23
Looking at it one way, you could say, "Anything goes. Because of God's immense generosity and grace, we don't have to dissect and scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster." But the point is not to just get by. We want to live well, but our foremost efforts should be to help others live well.
1 Corinthians 10:31
So eat your meals heartily, not worrying about what others say about you—you're eating to God's glory, after all, not to please them. As a matter of fact, do everything that way, heartily and freely to God's glory. At the same time, don't be callous in your exercise of freedom, thoughtlessly stepping on the toes of those who aren't as free as you are. I try my best to be considerate of everyone's feelings in all these matters; I hope you will be, too.
Colossians 2:16
So don't put up with anyone pressuring you in details of diet, worship services, or holy days. All those things are mere shadows cast before what was to come; the substance is Christ.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Understand therefore this day,.... Or be it known to you for your encouragement, and believe it:

that the Lord thy God [is] he which goeth over before thee as a consuming fire: did not only go before them over the river Jordan, in a pillar of cloud and fire, to guide and direct them, and was a wall of fire around them to protect and defend them, but as a consuming fire, before which there is no standing, to destroy their enemies; see Deuteronomy 4:24,

he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face; be they as great and as mighty, as large and as tall as they may, they will not be able to stand before the Lord, but will soon be made low, and be easily brought down to the earth by him, and to utter destruction; which would be done in a public and visible manner, so as that the hand of the Lord would be seen in it by the Israelites:

so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said unto thee; that is, the far greater part of them, and so many as to make room for the Israelites, and which was quickly done. The Jews commonly say a, that they were seven years in subduing the land; otherwise they were not to be driven out and destroyed at once, but by little and little: see Deuteronomy 7:22.

a Seder Olam Rabba, c. 11. p. 31, 32.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

So shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly - This is not inconsistent with Deuteronomy 7:22, in which instant annihilation is not to be expected for the reasons assigned. Here Moses urges the people to trust in God’s covenanted aid; since He would then make no delay in so destroying the nations attacked by them as to put them into enjoyment of the promises, and in doing so as fast as was for the well-being of Israel itself.


 
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