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Deuteronomy 9:2

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Deuteronomy 9:2 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard say, Who can stand before the sons of Anak?” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard say, Who can stand before the sons of Anak?
Deuteronomy 9:2 — American Standard Version

Context — Deuteronomy 9

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
1Hear, O Israel: thou art to pass over the Jordan this day, to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than thyself, cities great and fortified up to heaven,
2a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard say, Who can stand before the sons of Anak?
3Know 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.
4Speak not thou in thy heart, after that Jehovah thy God hath thrust them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness Jehovah hath brought me in to possess this land; whereas for the wickedness of these nations Jehovah doth drive them out from before thee.
5Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thy heart, dost thou go in to possess their land; but for the wickedness of these nations Jehovah thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may establish the word which Jehovah sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
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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
“A people great and tall, etc.] Of a large bulky size, and of an high stature, so that the spies seemed to be as grasshoppers to them, (<041333>Numbers 13:33), the children of the Anakims, whom thou knowest; by report, having had an account of them by the spies, who described them as very large bodied men, and of a gigantic stature, the descendants of one Anak, a giant; and so the Targum of Jonathan, “a people strong and high like the giants;” from these Bene Anak, children of Anak, or Phene Anak, as the words might be pronounced, the initial letter of the first word being of the same sound, Bochart f96 thinks the country had its name of Phoenicia: and of whom thou hast heard say, who can…”
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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
“Who can stand - This seems to be a proverb used in those times. Deuteronomy 9:5”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“great: Deu 2:11, Deu 2:12, Deu 2:21 Who can stand: Deu 7:24; Exo 9:11; Job 11:10; Dan 8:4, Dan 11:16; Nah 1:6 Deuteronomy 9:3”
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Related study paths

Read Deuteronomy 9 in contextBrowse Hebrew word studiesOpen this verse in the study reader

Sources and verification