Deuteronomy 4:26

The NET Bible®

I invoke heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will surely and swiftly be removed from the very land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not last long there because you will surely be annihilated.

Parallel Translations

Legacy Standard Bible
I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will surely perish quickly from the land where you are going over the Jordan to possess it. You shall not prolong your days on it, but will be utterly destroyed.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will surely perish quickly from the land where you are going over the Jordan to possess it. You shall not live long on it, but will be utterly destroyed.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
I call heauen and earth to recorde agaynst you this day, that ye shall shortly perishe from of ye lande whervnto you go ouer Iordane to possesse it: Ye shall not prolong your dayes therin, but shall vtterly be destroyed:

Easy-to-Read Version
So I am warning you now. Heaven and earth are my witnesses! If you do such an evil thing, you will quickly be destroyed! You are crossing the Jordan River now to take that land. But if you make any idols, you will not live there very long. No, you will be destroyed completely!

Revised Standard Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you are going over the Jordan to possess; you will not live long upon it, but will be utterly destroyed.

World English Bible
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go over the Jordan to possess it; you shall not prolong your days on it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

King James Version (1611)
I call heauen and earth to witnesse against you this day, that ye shall soone vtterly perish from off the land whereunto you goe ouer Iordan, to possesse it: yee shall not prolong your dayes vpon it, but shall vtterly bee destroyed.

King James Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
I call heauen and earth to recorde ouer you this daie, that ye shall shortly perishe fro the londe, in to ye which ye go ouer Iordane to possesse it. Ye shal not dwell longe therin, but shal vtterly be destroyed.

American Standard Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over the Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

Bible in Basic English
May heaven and earth be my witnesses against you today, that destruction will quickly overtake you, cutting you off from that land which you are going over Jordan to take; your days will not be long in that land, but you will come to a complete end.

Update Bible Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you shall soon completely perish from off the land to where you go over the Jordan to possess it; you shall not prolong your days on it, but shall be completely destroyed.

Webster's Bible Translation
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from the land to which ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong [your] days upon it, but shall be utterly destroyed.

New King James Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess; you will not prolong your days in it, but will be utterly destroyed.

Complete Jewish Bible
I call on the sky and the earth to witness against you today that you will quickly disappear from the land that you are crossing the Yarden to possess. You will not prolong your days there but will be completely destroyed.

Darby Translation
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye pass over the Jordan to possess it: ye shall not prolong your days on it, but shall be utterly destroyed.

Geneva Bible (1587)
I call heauen and earth to record against you this day, that ye shall shortly perish from the land, whereunto ye goe ouer Iorden to possesse it: ye shall not prolong your dayes therein, but shall vtterly be destroyed.

George Lamsa Translation
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you shall soon utterly perish from off the land which you are going across the Jordan to possess; you shall not live long upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

Good News Translation
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that, if you disobey me, you will soon disappear from the land. You will not live very long in the land across the Jordan that you are about to occupy. You will be completely destroyed.

Amplified Bible
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You shall not live long on it, but will be utterly destroyed.

Hebrew Names Version
I call heaven and eretz to witness against you this day, that you shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go over the Yarden to possess it; you shall not prolong your days on it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over the Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

New Living Translation
"Today I call on heaven and earth as witnesses against you. If you break my covenant, you will quickly disappear from the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. You will live there only a short time; then you will be utterly destroyed.

New Life Bible
I call heaven and earth to speak against you this day. You will soon be destroyed from the land you are crossing the Jordan to have for your own. You will not live long on it, but will all be destroyed.

New Revised Standard
I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to occupy; you will not live long on it, but will be utterly destroyed.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
I call heaven and earth this day to witness against you, that ye shall surely perish from off the land, into which ye go across Jordan to inherit it there; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall be utterly cut off.

English Revised Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

Berean Standard Bible
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live long upon it, but will be utterly destroyed.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
I take both the heavens and the earth to witness against you to-day, that ye shall, perish, speed, from off the land which ye are passing over the Jordan to possess, - ye shall not prolong your days thereupon; for, ye shall surely be laid waste;

Douay-Rheims Bible
I call this day heaven and earth to witness, that you shall quickly perish out of the land, which, when you have passed over the Jordan, you shall possess. You shall not dwell therein long, but the Lord will destroy you,

Lexham English Bible
I call to witness against you today the heaven and the earth, that you will perish soon and completely from the land that you are crossing the Jordan into it to take possession of it; you will not live long on it, but you will be completely destroyed.

Literal Translation
I call the heavens and the earth to witness against you today that you shall soon utterly perish from off the land to which you go over the Jordan to possess it; you shall not prolong your days on it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

English Standard Version
I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, but will be utterly destroyed.

New American Standard Bible
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today, that you will certainly perish quickly from the land where you are going over the Jordan to take possession of it. You will not live long on it, but will be utterly destroyed.

New Century Version
If you do, I ask heaven and earth to speak against you this day that you will quickly be removed from this land that you are crossing the Jordan River to take. You will not live there long after that, but you will be completely destroyed.

Christian Standard Bible®
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will quickly perish from the land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not live long there, but you will certainly be destroyed.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Y clepe witnesses to dai heuene and erthe, `that is, ech resonable creature beynge in heuene and in erthe, that ye schulen perische soone fro the lond, which ye schulen welde, whanne ye han passid Jordan; ye schulen not dwelle long tyme therynne, but the Lord schal do awey you,

Young's Literal Translation
I have caused to testify against you this day the heavens and the earth, that ye do perish utterly hastily from off the land whither ye are passing over the Jordan to possess it; ye do not prolong days upon it, but are utterly destroyed;

Contextual Overview

¹ Now, Israel, pay attention to the statutes and ordinances I am about to teach you, so that you might live and go on to enter and take possession of the land that the Lord , the God of your ancestors, is giving you. ² Do not add a thing to what I command you nor subtract from it, so that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I am delivering to you. ³ You have witnessed what the Lord did at Baal Peor, how he eradicated from your midst everyone who followed Baal Peor. ⁴ But you who remained faithful to the Lord your God are still alive to this very day, every one of you. ⁵ Look! I have taught you statutes and ordinances just as the Lord my God told me to do, so that you might carry them out in the land you are about to enter and possess. ⁶ So be sure to do them, because this will testify of your wise understanding to the people who will learn of all these statutes and say, "Indeed, this great nation is a very wise people." ⁷ In fact, what other great nation has a god so near to them like the Lord our God whenever we call on him? ⁸ And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this whole law that I am about to share with you today? ⁹ Again, however, pay very careful attention, lest you forget the things you have seen and disregard them for the rest of your life; instead teach them to your children and grandchildren. ¹⁰ You stood before the Lord your God at Horeb and he said to me, "Assemble the people before me so that I can tell them my commands. Then they will learn to revere me all the days they live in the land, and they will instruct their children."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

I call heaven: A most solemn method of adjuration, in use among all the nations in the world; God and man being called upon to bear testimony to the truth of what was spoken, that if there was any flaw or insincerity it might be detected, and if any crime, it might not go unpunished. Such appeals to God shew at once the origin and use of oaths. Deuteronomy 30:18, Deuteronomy 30:19, Deuteronomy 31:28, Deuteronomy 32:1, Isaiah 1:2, Jeremiah 2:12, Jeremiah 6:19, Jeremiah 22:29, Ezekiel 36:4, Micah 1:2, Micah 6:2

ye shall: Deuteronomy 29:28, Leviticus 18:28, Leviticus 26:31-35, Joshua 23:16, Isaiah 6:11, Isaiah 24:1-3, Jeremiah 44:22, Ezekiel 33:28, Luke 21:24

Reciprocal: Exodus 20:12 - that thy Deuteronomy 8:19 - I testify against Deuteronomy 11:17 - ye perish Deuteronomy 28:20 - until thou be Joshua 23:13 - until ye perish Joshua 24:27 - General 1 Kings 8:46 - unto the land 1 Kings 9:7 - will I cut 1 Kings 14:15 - this good land 2 Kings 15:29 - carried them 2 Kings 17:13 - all 2 Kings 21:14 - deliver 2 Kings 24:3 - remove them 2 Kings 25:21 - So Judah 1 Chronicles 28:8 - in the audience 2 Chronicles 6:36 - thou be angry Nehemiah 9:29 - testifiedst Psalms 106:27 - to scatter Isaiah 34:1 - let the Jeremiah 16:13 - will I Jeremiah 17:4 - shalt Jeremiah 28:8 - prophesied Jeremiah 32:24 - what Jeremiah 52:27 - Thus Ezekiel 33:26 - and shall Daniel 9:27 - that determined Hosea 9:3 - shall not Micah 2:10 - and Micah 6:1 - contend Mark 12:9 - he will

Cross-References

Genesis 4:14
Look! You are driving me off the land today, and I must hide from your presence. I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth; whoever finds me will kill me."

Genesis 4:15
But the Lord said to him, "All right then, if anyone kills Cain, Cain will be avenged seven times as much." Then the Lord put a special mark on Cain so that no one who found him would strike him down.

Genesis 4:17
Cain had marital relations with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was building a city, and he named the city after his son Enoch.

Genesis 4:18
To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael. Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

Genesis 12:8
Then he moved from there to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and worshiped the Lord .

Genesis 26:25
Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped the Lord . He pitched his tent there, and his servants dug a well.

1 Kings 18:24
Then you will invoke the name of your god, and I will invoke the name of the Lord . The god who responds with fire will demonstrate that he is the true God." All the people responded, "This will be a fair test."

Psalms 116:17
I will present a thank offering to you, and call on the name of the Lord .

Isaiah 44:5
One will say, ‘I belong to the Lord ,' and another will use the name ‘Jacob.' One will write on his hand, ‘The Lord 's,' and use the name ‘Israel.'"

Isaiah 48:1
Listen to this, O family of Jacob, you who are called by the name ‘Israel,' and are descended from Judah, who take oaths in the name of the Lord , and invoke the God of Israel— but not in an honest and just manner.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day,.... Should they be guilty of such a sin, since they were so strongly and publicly cautioned against it; and even the heaven and the earth were called upon as witnesses of the law being set before them, which so expressly forbids it, Deuteronomy 30:19

that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go over Jordan to possess it; though they were now about to go over Jordan and inherit the land of Canaan, yet they would not enjoy it long, but be taken and carried captive out of it; as the ten tribes were by Shalmaneser king of Assyria, and the two tribes by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and both for their idolatry and other crimes.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Compare with these verses Leviticus 26:33-40, and Deuteronomy 28:64 ff.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Deuteronomy 4:26. I call heaven and earth to witness against you — A most solemn method of adjuration, in use among all nations in the world. So Virgil, AEn., lib. xii., ver. 176, c.

Tum pius AEneas stricto sic ense precatur:

Esto nunc Sol testis et haec mihi terra vocanti -

Fontesque fluviosque voco, quaeque aetheris alti

Relllgio, et quae caeruleo sunt numina ponto, &c.

"Then the great Trojan prince unsheathed his sword,

And thus, with lifted hands, the gods adored:

Thou land for which I wage this war, and thou

Great source of day, be witness to my vow! -

Almighty king of heaven and queen of air,

Propitious now and reconciled by prayer, -

Ye springs, ye floods, ye various powers who lie

Beneath the deep, or tread the golden sky, -

HEAR and ATTEST!" PITT.

God and man being called upon to bear testimony to the truth of what was spoken, that if there was any flaw or insincerity, it might be detected and if any crime, it might not go unpunished. Such appeals to God, for such purposes, show at once both the origin and use of oaths. Deuteronomy 6:13.