Deuteronomy 28:7

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

The LORD will cause your enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you. They will come out against you in one direction but flee from you in seven directions.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

יִתֵּ֨ן יְהוָ֤ה אֶת־אֹיְבֶ֙יךָ֙ הַקָּמִ֣ים עָלֶ֔יךָ נִגָּפִ֖ים לְפָנֶ֑יךָ בְּדֶ֤רֶךְ אֶחָד֙ יֵצְא֣וּ אֵלֶ֔יךָ וּבְשִׁבְעָ֥ה דְרָכִ֖ים יָנ֥וּסוּ לְפָנֶֽיךָ׃

Transliteration

Yittēn YHWH ʾet-ʾōyĕbêkā the qāmîm against ʿālêkā niggāpîm before lĕpānêkā in derek ʾeḥād they will yēṣĕʾû unto ʾēlêkā and in šibʿāh dĕrākîm they will yānûsû before lĕpānêkā.

Grammar Details

• *Yittēn*: imperfect, Qal, 3rd masculine singular - he will give
• *YHWH*: proper name - the LORD
• *ʾet*: direct object marker
• *ʾōyĕbêkā*: masculine plural participle with 2nd masculine singular suffix - your enemies
• *qāmîm*: masculine plural participle, active, Qal with definite article - those rising up
• *ʿālêkā*: preposition with 2nd masculine singular suffix - against you
• *niggāpîm*: masculine plural participle, passive, Niphal - struck/defeated
• *lĕpānêkā*: preposition + plural construct with 2nd masculine singular suffix - before you
• *derek*: masculine singular construct - way/road of
• *ʾeḥād*: numeral, masculine singular - one
• *yēṣĕʾû*: imperfect, Qal, 3rd masculine plural - they will go out
• *ʾēlêkā*: preposition with 2nd masculine singular suffix - unto you
• *šibʿāh*: numeral, feminine - seven
• *dĕrākîm*: masculine plural noun - ways/roads
• *yānûsû*: imperfect, Qal, 3rd masculine plural - they will flee

Word Meanings

• *niggāpîm*: defeated/struck/smitten
• *derek ʾeḥād*: one way/single path [unified attack]
• *šibʿāh dĕrākîm*: seven ways [complete scattering/total defeat]

Other Translations

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  The LORD shall cause your enemies that rise up against you to be smitten before your face: they shall come out against you one way, and flee before you seven ways.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  Jehovah{H3068} will cause{H5414} thine enemies{H341} that rise up{H6965} against thee to be smitten{H5062} before thee:{H6440} they shall come out{H3318} against thee one{H259} way,{H1870} and shall flee{H5127} before{H6440} thee seven{H7651} ways.{H1870}

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  The LORD{H3068} shall cause{H5414}{(H8799)} thine enemies{H341}{(H8802)} that rise up{H6965}{(H8801)} against thee to be smitten{H5062}{(H8737)} before thy face{H6440}: they shall come out{H3318}{(H8799)} against thee one{H259} way{H1870}, and flee{H5127}{(H8799)} before{H6440} thee seven{H7651} ways{H1870}.

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  The Lorde shall smyte thyne enemyes that ryse agenst the before thy face. They shall come out agenst the one waye, and flee before the seuen wayes.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  And thine enemies that ryse vp agaynst the, shal ye LORDE cause to be smytten before thy face. They shal come out agaynst the one waye, & flye before the seuen wayes.

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  The Lorde shall cause thine enemies that rise against thee, to fall before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and shall flee before thee leuen wayes.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  The Lord shall geue ouer thyne enemies that ryse agaynst thee, that they may fall before thy face: They shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seuen wayes.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  Yahweh will cause your enemies who rise up against you to be struck before you: they shall come out against you one way, and shall flee before you seven ways.

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  `Jehovah giveth thine enemies, who are rising up against thee -- smitten before thy face; in one way they come out unto thee, and in seven ways they flee before thee.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  Jehovah will cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thee: they shall come out against thee one way, and shall flee before thee seven ways.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  Jehovah will cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thee: they shall come out against thee one way, and shall flee before thee seven ways.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  By the power of the Lord, those who take arms against you will be overcome before you: they will come out against you one way, and will go in flight from you seven ways.

• World English Bible (2000)

  Yahweh will cause your enemies who rise up against you to be struck before you. They will come out against you one way, and will flee before you seven ways.

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  The LORD will cause your enemies who attack you to be struck down before you; they will attack you from one direction but flee from you in seven different directions.

Referenced Verses

• 2 Sam 22:38-41 : 38 I pursued my enemies and destroyed them, and I did not turn back until they were consumed. 39 I crushed them and shattered them so they could not rise; they fell beneath my feet. 40 You equipped me with strength for battle; you subdued my adversaries beneath me. 41 You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and I destroyed those who hated me.
• Lev 26:7-8 : 7 You will chase your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword. 8 Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall before you by the sword.
• Deut 28:25 : 25 The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven directions. You will become a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
• 2 Chr 20:22-25 : 22 As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 23 The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another. 24 When the men of Judah came to the place overlooking the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. 25 So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment, clothing, and articles of value—more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it.
• 2 Chr 31:20-21 : 20 This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He did what was good, upright, and true before the Lord his God. 21 In everything he undertook in the service of the house of God, in observing the law and the commandments, and in seeking his God, he worked wholeheartedly and prospered.
• 2 Chr 32:21-22 : 21 And the LORD sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and leaders and officials in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he withdrew in disgrace to his own land. When he went into the temple of his god, some of his own sons killed him there with the sword. 22 So the LORD saved Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all others. He took care of them on every side.
• Ps 89:23 : 23 No enemy will deceive him, and no wicked person will oppress him.
• 2 Chr 14:2-6 : 2 He removed the foreign altars and the high places, shattered the stone pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles. 3 He commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey the law and the commandment. 4 He also removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah, and the kingdom was at peace under him. 5 He built fortified cities in Judah because the land was at peace. There was no war during those years, for the Lord had given him rest. 6 He said to Judah, "Let us build these cities and surround them with walls, towers, gates, and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the Lord our God. We sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side." So they built and succeeded.
• 2 Chr 14:9-9 : 9 Asa went out to meet him, and they took up positions in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah. 10 Asa called to the Lord his God and said, "Lord, there is no one like You to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, Lord our God, for we rely on You, and in Your name we have come against this vast army. Lord, You are our God; do not let mere humans prevail against You." 11 The Lord struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah, and the Cushites fled. 12 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar. The Cushites fell until there was no one left alive, for they were crushed before the Lord and His army. They carried off a very large amount of plunder. 13 They struck down all the cities around Gerar because the terror of the Lord had fallen upon them. They plundered all the cities, for there was a great amount of loot in them. 14 They also attacked the tents of the herdsmen and captured large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
• 2 Chr 19:4 : 4 Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, but he also went out among the people, from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim, and turned them back to the LORD, the God of their ancestors.
• Deut 32:30 : 30 How could one chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them and the LORD had handed them over?
• Josh 8:22 : 22 The others came out from the city to meet them, so the men of Ai were surrounded by the Israelites, some on one side and some on the other. They struck them down until no survivors or fugitives were left.
• Josh 10:10-11 : 10 And the LORD threw them into panic before Israel, and Joshua and his forces inflicted a great defeat on them at Gibeon. They pursued them along the road to the Beth-horon ascent and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 As they fled before Israel down the road from Beth-horon to Azekah, the LORD hurled large hailstones down on them from heaven, and they died. More of them died from the hailstones than were killed by the swords of the Israelites.
• Josh 10:42 : 42 Joshua captured all these kings and their lands at one time because the LORD, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.
• 1 Sam 7:3-4 : 3 Then Samuel said to the whole house of Israel, 'If you are truly returning to the LORD with all your heart, rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth among you. Commit your hearts to the LORD and worship Him only, and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.' 4 So the Israelites put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth and served the LORD alone.
• 1 Sam 7:10-11 : 10 While Samuel was offering the burnt offering, the Philistines approached to fight against Israel. But on that day, the LORD thundered with a mighty sound against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were defeated before Israel. 11 The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, striking them down all the way to a point below Beth-car.