7
(7) 1 When Adonai your God brings you into the land where you go to possess it, and casts out many nations before you, the Hittite [Descendant of Trembling fear], the Girgashite, the Amorite [Descendants of Talkers], the Canaanite [Descendant of Humbled], the Perizzite [Descendant of Belonging to village], the Hivite [Wicked], and the Jebusite [Descendants of Thresher], seven nations * greater and mightier than you; 2 and when Adonai your God delivers them up before you, and you strike them; then you shall utterly destroy them. † ‡ You shall make no covenant with them, § nor show mercy to them; 3 * neither shall you make marriages with them. You shall not give your daughter to his son, nor shall you take his daughter for your son. 4 For he will turn away your son from following me, that they may abad ·serve· other deities. So Adonai’s anger would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. 5 But you shall deal with them like this. You shall break down their altars, dash their pillars in pieces, and cut down their Asherah poles, and burn their engraved images with fire. 6 For you are a holy people to Adonai your God. Adonai your God has chosen you to be a le'am segulah ·people of special treasure· † for his own possession, above all peoples who are on the face of the earth. 7 Adonai didn’t set his chasak ·to set one’s affection, to make bands· on you, nor choose you, because you were more in number than any people; for you were the fewest of all peoples: 8 but because Adonai loves you, and because he desires to keep the oath which he swore to your fathers, Adonai has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt [Abode of slavery]. (Maftir ·Conclusion·) 9 Know therefore that Adonai your God himself is God, the faithful God, who keeps covenant and chesed ·loving-kindness· with them who 'ahav ·affectionately love· him and keep his mitzvot ·instructions· to a thousand generations, 10 and repays those who hate him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack to him who hates him. He will repay him to his face. 11 You shall therefore keep the mitzvot ·instructions·, the statutes, and the judgments, which I enjoin you today, to do them.
Haftarah Va'etchanan ·Taking leave· ·And I pleaded·:
Yesha'yahu / Isaiah 40:1-26
B'rit Hadashah ·New Covenant·: Luke 22:13-38
Parashah 46: 'Ekev ·Because, Result, Consequence· 7:12-11:25
12 It shall happen, because you sh'ma ·hear obey· these judgments, and keep and do them, that Adonai your God will keep with you the covenant and the chesed ·loving-kindness· which he swore to your fathers. 13 He will 'ahav ·affectionately love· you, bless you, multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your body and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your livestock and the young of your flock, in the land which he swore to your fathers to give you. 14 You shall be blessed above all peoples. There shall not be male or female barren among you, or among your livestock. 15 Adonai will take away from you all sickness; and none of the evil diseases of Egypt [Abode of slavery], which you know, will he put on you, but will lay them on all those who hate you. 16 You shall consume all the peoples whom Adonai your God shall deliver to you. Your eye shall not pity them: neither shall you abad ·serve· their deities; for that would be a snare to you. 17 If you shall say in your heart, “These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?” 18 you shall not be afraid of them. You shall remember well what Adonai your God did to Pharaoh, and to all Egypt [Abode of slavery]; 19 the great trials which your eyes saw, the signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, by which Adonai your God brought you out. So shall Adonai your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid. 20 Moreover Adonai your God will send the hornet among them, until those who are left, and hide themselves, perish from before you. 21 ‡ You shall not be scared of them; for Adonai your God is among you, a great and awesome God. 22 Adonai your God will cast out those nations before you little by little. You may not consume them at once, lest the animals of the field increase on you. 23 But Adonai your God will deliver them up before you, and will confuse them with a great confusion, until they are destroyed. 24 He will deliver their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name perish from under the sky. No one will be able to stand before you, until you have destroyed them. 25 § You shall burn the engraved images of their deities with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it for yourself, lest you be snared in it; for it is an abomination to Adonai your God. 26 * You shall not bring an abomination into your house, and become a devoted thing like it. You shall utterly detest it, and you shall utterly abhor it; for it is a devoted thing.
* 7:1 . Quoted in Acts 13:19 † 7:2 . Deut 7:2 (Deut 7:1-8) (#2b.168): T. Not to make a covenant nor treaty with the seven Canaanite nations / R. Not to make a covenant or treaty with idolaters ‡ 7:2 7.2-7, 7.16, 7.26 Note: God commanded Israel to kill all the people and animals of the nations in the Promised Land. One reason is to prevent Israel from learning the Gentile ways of worshiping their deities. Another reason is plague and disease, in order to prevent the spread of disease all living creatures must be killed. Another reason, in order to prevent the uprising of nations that lost a war, they would be assimilated or killed off. God chose to command Israel to “devote” all the nations to destruction. § 7:2 . Deut 7:2 (Deut 7:1-8) (#6.405): T. Show no mercy to the seven Canaanite nations God is expelling ahead of you / R. Not to have mercy or favor towards idolaters * 7:3 . Deut 7:3 (Deut 7:1-8, 7:6-11, 7:1-11) (#2b.169): T. Not to intermarry with the seven Canaanite nations / R. Not to marry with idolaters / R. Some Rabbis also interpret this as “Not to marry non-Jews” † 7:6 . Quoted in 1 Pet 2:9 ‡ 7:21 . Deut 7:21 (Deut 7:21-24, 3:21-22) (#1.39): T. The Israelite warriors shall not fear their enemies nor be frightened of them in battle / R. Not to panic and retreat during battle § 7:25 . Deut 7:25 (Deut 7:12-26, 7:3-5) (#10.607): T. Not to covet ·to be greedy for· the silver or gold used in idols or for idolatrous worship / R. Not to derive benefit from any object used in idolatrous worship thru coveting * 7:26 . Deut 7:26 (Deut 7:25-26) (#2a.73): T. Do not bring something abhorrent, that is an abomination, into your house / R. Not to benefit from an object of idolatry, its accessories, nor its offerings, nor its wine libations