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Deuteronomy 30:19

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Deuteronomy 30:19 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that thou mayest live, thou and thy seed;” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that thou mayest live, thou and thy seed;
Deuteronomy 30:19 — American Standard Version

Context — Deuteronomy 30

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
16in that I command thee this day to love Jehovah thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, that thou mayest live and multiply, and that Jehovah thy God may bless thee in the land whither thou goest in to possess it.
17But if thy heart turn away, and thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;
18I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish; ye shall not prolong your days in the land, whither thou passest over the Jordan to go in to possess it.
19I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that thou mayest live, thou and thy seed;
20to love Jehovah thy God, to obey his voice, and to cleave unto him; for he is thy life, and the length of thy days; that thou mayest dwell in the land which Jehovah sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
← Deuteronomy 30:18Deuteronomy 30:20 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, etc.] Either, literally understood, the heavens above him, and the earth on which he stood, those inanimate bodies, which are frequently called upon as witnesses to matters of moment and importance; (see <050426>Deuteronomy 4:26 32:1 <230102>Isaiah 1:2); or figuratively, the inhabitants of both, angels and men: [that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; had plainly told them in express words what would be the consequence of obedience and disobedience to the law of God; long life, and the blessings of it in the land of Canaan, to those that obey it; death, by various means, and dreadful curses, to those that…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Ignorance of the requirements of the law cannot be pleaded Deuteronomy 30:10-14; hence, Deuteronomy 30:15-20 life and death, good and evil, are solemnly set before the people for their own choice; and an earnest exhortation to choose the better part concludes the address. Deuteronomy 30:11-14. “The righteousness which is of faith” is really and truly described in these words of the Law; and, under Paul’s guidance (see marginal references) we affirm was intended so to be. For the simplicity and accessibility which Moses here attributes to the Law of God neither is nor can be experimentally found in it except through the medium of faith; even though outwardly and in the letter that Law be…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Chuse life - They shall have life that chuse it: they that chuse the favour of God, and communion with him, shall have what they chuse. They that come short of life and happiness, must thank themselves only. They had had them, if they had chosen them, when they were put to their choice: but they die, because they will die. Deuteronomy 30:20”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“30:19 life and death . . . blessings and curses: This grammatical structure suggests an equivalence between life and blessing and between death and curses. The essence of a blessing is life, and the essence of a curse is death.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“I call heaven: Deu 4:26, Deu 31:28, Deu 32:1; Isa 1:2; Jer 2:12, Jer 2:13, Jer 22:29, Jer 22:30; Mic 6:1, Mic 6:2; Ti1 5:21 that I have: Deu 30:15, Deu 11:26 choose life: Jos 24:15-22; Psa 119:30, Psa 119:111, Psa 119:173; Pro 1:29, Pro 8:36; Isa 56:4; Luk 10:42 that both thou: Jer 32:39; Act 2:39 Deuteronomy 30:20”
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Related study paths

Read Deuteronomy 30 in contextBrowse Hebrew word studiesOpen this verse in the study reader

Sources and verification