Deuteronomy 9:11 kjv
And it came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights, that the LORD gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant.
Deuteronomy 9:11 nkjv
And it came to pass, at the end of forty days and forty nights, that the LORD gave me the two tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant.
Deuteronomy 9:11 niv
At the end of the forty days and forty nights, the LORD gave me the two stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant.
Deuteronomy 9:11 esv
And at the end of forty days and forty nights the LORD gave me the two tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant.
Deuteronomy 9:11 nlt
"At the end of the forty days and nights, the LORD handed me the two stone tablets inscribed with the words of the covenant.
Deuteronomy 9 11 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Exod 24:18 | Moses entered the midst of the cloud... forty days and forty nights. | Moses' time on Sinai. |
| Exod 31:18 | When He had finished speaking with him... two tablets of testimony... written by the finger of God. | Divine authorship of the tablets. |
| Deut 4:13 | So He declared to you His covenant... the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. | God wrote the 10 Commandments. |
| Deut 5:22 | These words the LORD spoke... and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. | Reiterates God's direct writing. |
| Deut 9:10 | The LORD delivered to me the two tablets of stone, written with the finger of God. | Confirms divine writing. |
| Exod 32:19 | As soon as he came near the camp... he cast the tablets out of his hands and broke them. | The tablets are broken due to sin. |
| Deut 9:17 | Then I took the two tablets and threw them from my hands and broke them. | Moses recounting the breaking of the tablets. |
| Exod 34:28 | So he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights... He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant. | Moses on Sinai for new tablets. |
| Deut 10:4-5 | He wrote on the tablets... and the LORD gave them to me... and I put them in the ark. | God replaces the tablets. |
| Heb 9:4 | The ark of the covenant, in which were the golden pot of manna, Aaron's rod... and the tablets of the covenant. | Tablets kept in the Ark. |
| Ps 19:7-8 | The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure... | The excellence and power of God's Law. |
| Neh 9:13 | You came down on Mount Sinai... and gave them right judgments and true laws, good statutes and commandments. | God gave righteous laws. |
| Rom 3:20 | By the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. | Law reveals sin, cannot justify. |
| Rom 7:7 | Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. | Law reveals sin's nature. |
| Jer 31:31-34 | The days are coming... when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel. | Prophecy of the New Covenant. |
| Ezek 36:26-27 | I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you... and cause you to walk in My statutes. | New Covenant involving internal transformation. |
| Matt 5:17 | Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. | Christ fulfills the Law. |
| John 1:17 | For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. | Law through Moses, grace through Christ. |
| Acts 7:38 | This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai... | Stephen mentions Moses receiving living oracles. |
| 2 Cor 3:6-7 | The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. For if the ministry of death, engraved in letters on stones... | Contrast of Old Covenant (stone) and New (Spirit). |
| Gal 3:24-25 | The law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come... | Law as a guide to Christ. |
| Heb 8:6 | But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant. | New Covenant is superior. |
Deuteronomy 9 verses
Deuteronomy 9 11 Meaning
Deuteronomy 9:11 marks the culmination of Moses' initial forty-day and forty-night vigil on Mount Horeb (Sinai). It signifies the direct divine act of God bestowing the foundational elements of His covenant with Israel – the Ten Commandments, inscribed on two tablets of stone. This moment is presented as a pivotal event in Israel's history, symbolizing God's faithfulness in providing His people with the means to enter into and maintain a holy relationship with Him through obedience to His revealed will.
Deuteronomy 9 11 Context
Deuteronomy chapter 9 serves as a strong reminder to the Israelites of their own rebellious history, particularly emphasizing their role in provoking God's anger at Mount Horeb immediately after receiving His divine revelation. Moses, recounting past events, aims to dismantle any sense of self-righteousness or entitlement they might harbor, directly confronting their assumption that they would inherit the land due to their own merit. Verse 11, specifically, sets the stage by recalling the solemn moment when God delivered the tablets of the covenant, only for the narrative in the subsequent verses (Deut 9:12-21) to immediately transition to Israel's idolatry with the golden calf, highlighting their inherent inability to keep the Law they had just received. This historical recount stresses God's unmerited favor and faithfulness, despite His people's persistent failures.
Deuteronomy 9 11 Word analysis
- And it came to pass (וַיְהִי - wayəhî): A common Hebrew literary marker signifying a sequential event or an important transition in the narrative. It emphasizes that what follows is a direct consequence or the next stage of the story. In this context, it marks the end of a significant divine encounter.
- at the end of forty days and forty nights: This duration is significant in biblical narratives, often associated with periods of intense divine revelation, judgment, or preparation for a new beginning. Examples include the Flood (Gen 7:4), Elijah's journey (1 Ki 19:8), and Jesus' fasting in the wilderness (Matt 4:2). It suggests a divinely appointed period of concentrated spiritual activity and the culmination of a sacred process.
- the LORD (יְהוָה - YHWH, Yahweh): This is God's covenant name, signifying His eternal, self-existent nature, and His personal, committed relationship with His people. The use of YHWH emphasizes that it is the faithful, covenant-keeping God who is actively initiating and establishing this foundational agreement with Israel.
- gave me: Highlights God's initiative and Moses' passive role as the recipient and mediator. It wasn't something Moses earned or demanded, but a divine bestowal. This emphasizes the gracious nature of the Law and the covenant, as a gift from God.
- the two tables of stone (לֻחוֹת הָאֲבָנִים - luḥot ha’avanim):
- "two tables" (לֻחוֹת - luḥot): The duality reflects the two aspects of the Ten Commandments – duty to God (first four) and duty to neighbor (last six) – symbolizing the comprehensive nature of the Law covering all aspects of life.
- "stone" (אֲבָנִים - ’avanim): Signifies permanence, immutability, and durability, reflecting the unchanging nature of God's Word and covenant. Stone is a physical, enduring medium, indicating God's eternal truth, in contrast to human transient commands. It also prepares for the subsequent narrative of breaking and remaking them, emphasizing divine restoration.
- even the tables of the covenant (לֻחֹת הַבְּרִית - luḥot habberit):
- "covenant" (בְּרִית - berît): This term is central to understanding the relationship between God and Israel. A berît is a binding agreement or pact, often initiated by the stronger party (God), setting terms and outlining reciprocal responsibilities and consequences (blessings for obedience, curses for disobedience). These tables were not merely a list of rules but the foundational document of God's unique relationship with Israel, confirming their status as His chosen people, distinct from other nations. This covenant marked Israel's identity and their mission to be a holy nation to God.
Deuteronomy 9 11 Bonus section
The concept of the tablets being "written with the finger of God" (Exo 31:18; Deut 9:10) found just before this verse is crucial. This vivid imagery denotes direct divine authorship, distinguishing these commandments from any human-devised law. It conveys ultimate authority and perfect origin. Furthermore, the two tablets symbolically divide the Ten Commandments into two main sections: one dealing with humanity's relationship with God (the first four commands) and the other with humanity's relationship with each other (the latter six commands). This reflects the holistic nature of biblical faith, which encompasses both vertical devotion and horizontal ethics. The "tables of the covenant" are also referred to as "tables of the testimony" (Exo 31:18), emphasizing their role as a witness – a divine witness to God's requirements and a witness against Israel when they failed to keep them. This divine inscription stands in stark contrast to the human inscription and often fallibility of other legal codes in the ancient Near East.
Deuteronomy 9 11 Commentary
Deuteronomy 9:11 concisely records a moment of monumental significance in Israel's history: the reception of the two tables of the covenant, inscribed by God Himself, marking the formal establishment of the Mosaic covenant. This act underscored God's faithfulness in providing a clear standard for holy living and for relating to Him, not based on Israel's inherent righteousness (as Moses stresses throughout this chapter), but solely on God's initiative and grace. The duration of "forty days and forty nights" highlights the extraordinary nature of the divine encounter and Moses' unique role as mediator. The "tables of stone" speak to the enduring, unwavering nature of God's Word and His covenantal demands. Yet, as the subsequent verses quickly reveal, the immutability of the written law contrasted sharply with the fickle hearts of the people, who quickly turned to idolatry, illustrating humanity's profound need not just for an external law, but for an internal transformation that only God could provide, a promise fulfilled in the New Covenant through Christ.