Deuteronomy · chapter 6 of 34
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Deuteronomy 6 contains the Shema, Israel's great confession: the Lord is one, and he is to be loved with all the heart, soul and strength. Moses commands that these words be fixed on the heart, taught to children in daily life, and that Israel not forget the Lord when prosperity and the promised land arrive.
After recalling the Ten Commandments in chapter 5, Moses explains their spirit. Chapter 6 is one of the most important in the Bible: Jesus quoted it as the greatest commandment. It puts love for God at the center of the whole law and shows how to pass faith from one generation to the next.
Moses explains that the commandments were given so that Israel might fear the Lord, keep his statutes and prolong their days, and so that it would go well with them and they would multiply in a land flowing with milk and honey. Then comes the Shema: the Lord our God, the Lord is one, and he is to be loved with all the heart, with all the soul and with all the strength.
These words are to be on the people's hearts. Parents will repeat them to their children and talk about them at home and on the road, when they lie down and when they rise. They will bind them as a sign on the hand, have them as frontlets between the eyes and write them on the doorposts of the house and on the gates.
Moses warns of the danger of prosperity. When the Lord brings them into a land with cities they did not build, houses full of goods they did not fill, wells they did not dig, vineyards and olive groves they did not plant, and they eat and are full, they must take care not to forget the Lord who brought them out of Egypt. They must fear him, serve him, swear by his name and not follow other gods, for he is a jealous God. They are not to test him as at Massah, but diligently keep his commandments and do what is right and good in his sight.
The chapter ends with a future question from a son about the meaning of the testimonies and laws. The father is to answer by telling the story: they were slaves of Pharaoh, the Lord brought them out with a mighty hand and commanded them to keep these laws, and that obedience will be their righteousness before the Lord.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Israel confesses that the Lord is the only God and that he must be loved with all the heart, soul and strength. It is the central confession of the Jewish faith, and Jesus quoted it as the first and greatest commandment.
The Lord's words are to be on the parents' hearts and taught to the children in everyday life: at home, on the road, when lying down and rising. Faith is passed on in daily conversation, not only in the church meeting.
When Israel enjoys the goods of the promised land, they must take care not to forget the Lord who brought them out of Egypt. Abundance can be more dangerous than scarcity, because it makes us feel we do not need God.
When the son asks about the meaning of the laws, the father will answer with a story: they were slaves in Egypt and the Lord brought them out with a mighty hand. Obedience is explained by the memory of salvation.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: That the Lord our God, the Lord is one. — Deuteronomy 6:4
Answer: With all the heart, with all the soul and with all the strength. — Deuteronomy 6:5
Answer: At home, on the road, when lying down and when rising. — Deuteronomy 6:7
Answer: On the doorposts of the houses and on the gates. — Deuteronomy 6:9
Answer: Not to forget the Lord who brought them out of Egypt. — Deuteronomy 6:11-12
Answer: That they were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt and the Lord brought them out with a mighty hand. — Deuteronomy 6:20-21
Deuteronomy 6 teaches that education in the faith is not only the task of a church program but of daily life at home. Talking about God while walking, eating, lying down and rising means faith becomes a natural part of conversation. In a small group we can share which routines help families talk about God with their children.
The chapter also warns that success can dull faith. Someone who has what they need may stop praying and giving thanks. Asking when we have taken for granted what God has given us is a practical way of doing what Moses asks: remembering.
Deuteronomy 6 places love for God at the center of the whole law and leaves a task: tell the story to the children. In chapter 7, Moses explains how that love translates into separation from the gods of Canaan, starting from Israel's election.
The Shema, a Hebrew word meaning hear, is the confession of Deuteronomy 6:4-9, recited by Jews every day. It sums up that God is one and is to be loved with the whole being. Jesus quoted it as the first commandment, and the New Testament presents it as the basis of love for God and neighbor.
Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:5 when asked which was the greatest commandment. He also used Deuteronomy 6:13 and 6:16 to answer Satan in the wilderness, saying that the Lord alone is to be worshiped and that God must not be put to the test.
It is language stressing that the law must guide actions and thoughts. Over time, many Jews took it literally in phylacteries and the mezuzah, but the main sense of the text is that God's word should be present in everything one does and sees.