📜WEB · Deuteronomy 6:2
What does Deuteronomy 6:2 mean?
"that you might fear Yahweh your God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you; you, and your son, and your son’s son, all the days of your life; and that your days may be prolonged."
— Deuteronomy 6:2 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
Now this is the commandment, the statutes, and the ordinances, which Yahweh your God commanded to teach you, that you might do them in the land where you go over to possess it;
that you might fear Yahweh your God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you; you, and your son, and your son’s son, all the days of your life; and that your days may be prolonged.
Hear therefore, Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with you, and that you may increase mightily, as Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has promised to you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.
Hear, Israel: Yahweh is our God. Yahweh is one.
You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.
Explanation
Deuteronomy 6:2 sets out the purpose behind the commands Moses is about to deliver: they are meant to cultivate a deep reverence for God that expresses itself in obedience, and this reverence and obedience are meant to span generations, not just the lifetime of the people currently listening. The verse envisions a chain of faithfulness running from parent to child to grandchild, all rooted in the same commitment to God's statutes and commandments. It closes with a promise attached to this obedience: that the days of the people will be prolonged, meaning their life in the land God is giving them will be secure and lasting.
The context is critical for understanding this verse rightly. Moses is speaking to the second generation of Israelites, the children of those who left Egypt, as they stand on the plains of Moab poised to enter the promised land. The first generation died in the wilderness because of unbelief and disobedience, so Moses is now addressing their children, reminding them of the law given at Sinai and urging them to embrace it as their own before they cross the Jordan. Deuteronomy itself means "second law," and much of the book consists of Moses restating and applying the covenant stipulations to this new generation on the verge of possessing the land. This verse falls within the section leading up to the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-5), one of the most central passages in the Hebrew Bible, so it functions as an introduction to that great call to love God with all one's heart, soul, and strength.
Theologically, the verse ties together fear of the Lord, obedience, and blessing in a way that runs throughout
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