Exodus 20:5

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

לֹֽא־תִשְׁתַּחְוֶ֥֣ה לָהֶ֖ם֮ וְלֹ֣א תָעָבְדֵ֑ם֒ כִּ֣י אֽ͏ָנֹכִ֞י יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ אֵ֣ל קַנָּ֔א פֹּ֠קֵד עֲוֺ֨ן אָבֹ֧ת עַל־בָּנִ֛ים עַל־שִׁלֵּשִׁ֥ים וְעַל־רִבֵּעִ֖ים לְשֹׂנְאָֽ֑י׃

Transliteration

lōʾ-ṯishtaḥăweh lāhem wə-lōʾ ṯāʿāḇəḏēm kî ʾānōḵî YHWH ʾĕlōheḵā ʾēl qannāʾ pōqēḏ ʿăwōn ʾāḇōṯ ʿal-bānîm ʿal-shillēshîm wə-ʿal-ribēʿîm lə-śōnəʾāy

Grammar Details

• *lōʾ-ṯishtaḥăweh*: negative particle + hishtaphel imperfect, 2nd masculine singular - you shall not bow down
• *lāhem*: preposition with 3rd masculine plural suffix - to them
• *wə-lōʾ ṯāʿāḇəḏēm*: conjunction + negative particle + qal imperfect, 2nd masculine singular with 3rd masculine plural suffix - and you shall not serve them
• *kî*: conjunction - for/because
• *ʾānōḵî*: 1st person singular pronoun - I
• *YHWH*: proper name - LORD/YHWH
• *ʾĕlōheḵā*: masculine plural noun construct with 2nd masculine singular suffix - your God
• *ʾēl qannāʾ*: masculine singular noun + adjective - jealous God
• *pōqēḏ*: qal participle, masculine singular - visiting/punishing
• *ʿăwōn*: masculine singular construct - iniquity of
• *ʾāḇōṯ*: masculine plural noun - fathers
• *ʿal-bānîm*: preposition + masculine plural noun - upon children
• *ʿal-shillēshîm*: preposition + masculine plural ordinal - upon third [generation]
• *wə-ʿal-ribēʿîm*: conjunction + preposition + masculine plural ordinal - and upon fourth [generation]
• *lə-śōnəʾāy*: preposition + qal participle plural construct with 1st singular suffix - to those hating me

Word Meanings

• *ṯishtaḥăweh*: bow down/prostrate yourself/worship
• *ṯāʿāḇəḏēm*: serve them/worship them/be enslaved to them
• *ʾēl qannāʾ*: jealous God/zealous God/passionate God
• *pōqēḏ*: visiting/punishing/attending to
• *ʿăwōn*: iniquity/guilt/punishment
• *lə-śōnəʾāy*: to those who hate me/to my enemies

Other Translations

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  thou shalt not bow down{H7812} thyself unto them, nor serve{H5647} them; for I Jehovah{H3068} thy God{H430} am a jealous{H7067} God,{H430} visiting{H6485} the iniquity{H5771} of the fathers{H1} upon the children,{H1121} upon the third{H8029} and upon the fourth{H7256} generation of them that hate{H8130} me,

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  Thou shalt not bow down{H7812}{(H8691)} thyself to them, nor serve{H5647}{(H8714)} them: for I the LORD{H3068} thy God{H430} am a jealous{H7067} God{H410}, visiting{H6485}{(H8802)} the iniquity{H5771} of the fathers{H1} upon the children{H1121} unto the third{H8029} and fourth{H7256} generation of them that hate{H8130}{(H8802)} me;

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  Se that thou nether bowe thy sylf vnto them nether serue them: for I the Lorde thy God, am a gelouse God, and viset the synne of the fathers vppon the childern vnto the third and fourth generacion of the that hate me:

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  Worshipe them not, and serue them not: for I the LORDE thy God am a gelouse God, vysitinge ye synne of the fathers vpon the children, vnto ye thirde and fourth generacion, of them that hate me:

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  Thou shalt not bowe downe to them, neither serue them: for I am the Lord thy God, a ielous God, visiting the iniquitie of the fathers vpon the children, vpon the third generation and vpon the fourth of them that hate me:

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  Thou shalt not bowe downe to them, neyther serue them: for I the Lord thy God, am a gelous God, and visite the sinne of the fathers vpon the chyldren, vnto the thirde and fourth generation of them that hate me:

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me;

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  Thou dost not bow thyself to them, nor serve them: for I, Jehovah thy God, `am' a zealous God, charging iniquity of fathers on sons, on the third `generation', and on the fourth, of those hating Me,

• American Standard Version (1901)

  Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them, for I Jehovah thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate me,

• American Standard Version (1901)

  thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them; for I Jehovah thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate me,

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  You may not go down on your faces before them or give them worship: for I, the Lord your God, am a God who will not give his honour to another; and I will send punishment on the children for the wrongdoing of their fathers, to the third and fourth generation of my haters;

• World English Bible (2000)

  you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I, the LORD, your God, am a jealous God, responding to the transgression of fathers by dealing with children to the third and fourth generations of those who reject me,

Referenced Verses

• Num 14:18 : 18 'The LORD is slow to anger, abundant in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and rebellion; yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers' iniquity upon the children to the third and fourth generation.'
• Exod 34:14 : 14 For you must not worship any other god, because the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
• Nah 1:2 : 2 The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and reserves wrath for his enemies.
• Jer 32:18 : 18 You show steadfast love to thousands, but You repay the iniquity of the fathers into the laps of their children after them. You are the great and mighty God, whose name is the LORD of Hosts.
• Deut 4:24 : 24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
• Deut 5:9 : 9 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the iniquity of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me.
• Deut 6:15 : 15 For the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God. His anger will burn against you, and He will destroy you from the face of the earth.
• Josh 23:7 : 7 Do not associate with these nations that remain among you. Do not invoke the names of their gods, swear by them, serve them, or bow down to them.
• Exod 23:24 : 24 Do not bow down to their gods or worship them or follow their practices. Instead, you must demolish them completely and shatter their sacred pillars.
• Num 14:33 : 33 Your children will be shepherds in the wilderness for forty years, bearing the consequences of your unfaithfulness, until your corpses are consumed in the wilderness.
• Josh 24:19 : 19 Joshua said to the people, "You are not able to serve the LORD. He is a holy God; He is a jealous God. He will not forgive your transgressions or your sins.
• Ps 79:8 : 8 Do not hold against us the sins of our ancestors; may Your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need.
• Ps 109:14 : 14 May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord, and may the sin of his mother not be blotted out.
• Isa 65:6-7 : 6 Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silent, but I will repay; I will pay it back into their laps. 7 Your iniquities and the iniquities of your ancestors together,' says the LORD, 'because they burned incense on the mountains and reproached me on the hills; I will measure their former deeds into their laps.'
• Jer 2:9 : 9 Therefore I will still bring charges against you, declares the LORD, and against your children’s children I will bring charges.
• John 7:7 : 7 'The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me, because I testify about it that its works are evil.'
• John 15:18 : 18 If the world hates you, know that it hated me before it hated you.
• John 15:23-24 : 23 Whoever hates me also hates my Father. 24 If I had not done the works among them that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these works, and yet they have hated both me and my Father.
• Rom 1:30 : 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;
• Lev 26:39-40 : 39 Those of you who remain will waste away in their iniquity in the lands of your enemies; and also because of the iniquities of their ancestors, they will waste away with them. 40 But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their ancestors—their unfaithfulness with which they were unfaithful to me, and also how they walked contrary to me—
• Jas 4:4 : 4 You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
• Isa 14:20-21 : 20 You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land and slain your people. The offspring of evildoers will never be remembered. 21 Prepare a place of slaughter for his sons because of the iniquity of their fathers. Let them not rise to possess the land or fill the face of the earth with cities.
• Isa 44:15 : 15 It becomes fuel for a man; he takes part of it to warm himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also makes a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it.
• Isa 44:19 : 19 No one considers in his heart, no one has the knowledge or insight to say, 'Half of it I burned in the fire; I also baked bread on its coals, roasted meat, and ate. Now, should I make an abomination of the rest? Should I bow down to a block of wood?'
• Ps 81:15 : 15 I would soon subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their adversaries.
• Job 5:4 : 4 His children are far from safety; they are crushed at the gate with no one to deliver them.
• 2 Kgs 23:26 : 26 However, the LORD did not turn from the fierce anger that burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to provoke Him to anger.
• 2 Sam 21:1 : 1 During the days of David, there was a famine for three years, year after year. David sought the presence of the Lord, and the Lord said, "It concerns Saul and his house, who are guilty of bloodshed, for he killed the Gibeonites."
• 2 Sam 21:6 : 6 let seven of his male descendants be handed over to us to be executed before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, the Lord’s chosen one." The king said, "I will give them to you."
• 1 Kgs 21:29 : 29 'Have you noticed how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself, I will not bring disaster during his lifetime; but in the days of his son, I will bring disaster on his house.'
• 2 Kgs 17:35 : 35 The Lord made a covenant with them and commanded them, saying, 'Do not fear other gods, do not bow down to them, do not serve them, and do not sacrifice to them.'
• Lev 26:1 : 1 Do not make idols for yourselves, or set up a carved image or a sacred pillar for yourselves, and do not place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the LORD your God.
• Deut 32:21 : 21 They made Me jealous with something that is not God; they provoked Me with their worthless idols. So I will make them jealous with those who are not a nation; I will provoke them with a foolish nation.
• Deut 32:41 : 41 when I sharpen My flashing sword and My hand takes hold of judgment, I will bring vengeance on My adversaries and repay those who hate Me.
• Josh 23:16 : 16 If you violate the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land He has given you.
• Deut 7:10 : 10 But He repays those who hate Him to their face to destroy them. He will not delay to repay those who hate Him; He will repay them to their face.
• Lev 26:29 : 29 You will eat the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters.
• Exod 34:6-7 : 6 The LORD passed in front of him and proclaimed: "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. 7 Maintaining steadfast love to thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin, but not leaving the guilty unpunished. He punishes the iniquity of the fathers on their children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generations."
• Lev 20:5 : 5 then I will set my face against that man and his family, and I will cut off from their people both him and all who follow him in prostituting themselves to Molech.
• 2 Kgs 17:41 : 41 So these nations feared the Lord, but they also served their carved images. Their children and grandchildren continued to do as their fathers did, even to this day.
• 2 Chr 25:14 : 14 After Amaziah returned from defeating the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down to them, and burned sacrifices to them.
• Judg 2:19 : 19 But when the judge died, they returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their ancestors, following other gods, serving them, and bowing down to them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
• 1 Sam 15:2-3 : 2 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: 'I will punish Amalek for what they did to Israel, how they ambushed them on their way up from Egypt.' 3 Now go and attack Amalek. Devote to destruction everything they have. Do not spare them; kill men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.'
• Job 21:19 : 19 God stores up their iniquity for their children. Let him repay them so that they may experience it themselves.
• Ps 78:58 : 58 They angered Him with their high places and provoked His jealousy with their carved images.
• Prov 6:34-35 : 34 For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury, and he will show no mercy in the day of vengeance. 35 He will not accept any ransom, nor will he be appeased, no matter how great the gift you offer.
• Prov 8:36 : 36 But whoever sins against me wrongs his own soul; all who hate me love death.
• Matt 4:9 : 9 And he said to Him, 'All these I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.'
• Matt 23:34-36 : 34 Therefore, look, I am sending you prophets, wise men, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, 35 so that upon you will come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 Truly, I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation.
• Rom 8:7 : 7 Because the mindset of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so.
• 1 Cor 10:22 : 22 Or are we trying to provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He is?
• Ezek 8:3 : 3 He stretched out what looked like a hand and took me by the lock of my head. Then the spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north-facing inner gate, where the seat of the idol that provokes jealousy was located.
• Dan 1:2 : 2 The Lord delivered Jehoiakim, king of Judah, along with some of the vessels from the house of God, into his hand. He brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god.