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Deuteronomy 32:12

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Deuteronomy 32:12 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “Jehovah alone did lead him, And there was no foreign god with him.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

Jehovah alone did lead him, And there was no foreign god with him.
Deuteronomy 32:12 — American Standard Version

Context — Deuteronomy 32

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
9For Jehovah`s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
10He found him in a desert land, And in the waste howling wilderness; He compassed him about, he cared for him, He kept him as the apple of his eye.
11As an eagle that stirreth up her nest, That fluttereth over her young, He spread abroad his wings, he took them, He bare them on his pinions.
12Jehovah alone did lead him, And there was no foreign god with him.
13He made him ride on the high places of the earth, And he did eat the increase of the field; And he made him to suck honey out of the rock, And oil out of the flinty rock;
14Butter of the herd, and milk of the flock, With fat of lambs, And rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, With the finest of the wheat; And of the blood of the grape thou drankest wine.
15But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: Thou art waxed fat, thou art grown thick, thou art become sleek; Then he forsook God who made him, And lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
← Deuteronomy 32:11Deuteronomy 32:13 →
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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
“[So] the Lord alone did lead him, etc.] Out of Egypt, through the wilderness, to the land of Canaan, going before them in a pillar of fire and cloud; though this is not to be understood to the exclusion of the ministry of Moses and Aaron, by whom he led them, (<197720>Psalm 77:20); it may be interpreted of the people being alone in the wilderness when led: and [there was] no strange god with him; with Israel; so Aben Ezra, no idolatry among them then; to which sense are the Targums of Jerusalem and Jonathan; but it may rather signify that the Lord alone was the leader of his people, and he had no assistant in that work, and therefore all the glory should be given to him: he is the leader of…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Song of Moses If Deuteronomy 32:1-3 be regarded as the introduction, and Deuteronomy 32:43 as the conclusion, the main contents of the song may be grouped under three heads, namely, (1) Deuteronomy 32:4-18, the faithfulness of God, the faithlessness of Israel; (2) Deuteronomy 32:19-33, the chastisement and the need of its infliction by God; (3) Deuteronomy 32:34-42, God’s compassion upon the low and humbled state of His people. The Song differs signally in diction and idiom from the preceding chapters; just as a lyrical passage is conceived in modes of thought wholly unlike those which belong to narrative or exhortation, and is uttered in different phraseology. There are, however, in the…”
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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
“Did lead them - When they were shut up in Egypt as in their nest whence they durst not venture to fly nor stir, he taught and encouraged and enabled them to fly out from that bondage, he dealt tenderly with them, bearing with their infirmities, keeping them from all harms. With him - To assist him at that work or to deliver them. The more unworthy they in giving to idols a share in that worship which they owe to God only. Deuteronomy 32:13”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“the Lord: Deu 1:31; Neh 9:12; Psa 27:11, Psa 78:14, Psa 78:52, Psa 78:53, Psa 80:1, Psa 136:16; Isa 46:4; Isa 63:9-13 no strange: Isa 43:11, Isa 43:12, Isa 44:7, Isa 44:8 Deuteronomy 32:13”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification