Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Deuteronomy 12:31
Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
Verse 31. Their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire] Almost all the nations in the world agreed in offering human victims to their gods on extraordinary occasions, by which it is evident that none of those nations had any right notion of the Divine nature. How necessary, then, was the volume of revelation, to teach men what that religion is with which God can be well pleased! The Hindoos to this day offer human victims to their goddess Cali, and at the temple of Jaggernaut; and yet, notwithstanding this, there are found certain persons who, while they profess Christianity, are absolutely unwilling to send the Hindoos the Gospel of Christ, because they think it would not be politically wise! But the wisdom of this world has ever been foolishness with God; and in spite of all this infidel policy, the word of the Lord shall have free course and be glorified.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Shalt not do so unto the Lord; either,
1. Not offer him that indignity and injury to worship other gods together with him. Or rather,
2. Not worship him in such manner as they worshipped their gods, to wit, by offering thy children to him, as they did to their gods, as it here follows, or by their own devices or superstitions, as is implied, Deu 12:32.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Thou shalt not do so unto the Lord thy God,…. Not serve and worship him after the manner of the Gentiles, nor introduce their rites and customs into his service, used by them in the worship of their gods:
for every abomination which he hateth have they done unto their gods; as murder, adultery, c. which God has expressed his aversion to, and indignation at one instance of the former sort is given here:
for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods; not only men have they sacrificed to them, but such near relations; and not only caused them to pass through the fire, but burnt them in it; so the Carthaginians are said to do, who learned this inhuman practice from the Phoenicians; they were a colony of the inhabitants of this land of Canaan. Of the Phoenicians Porphyry says i, that in great calamities, as war or pestilence, they sacrificed to Saturn some one of those that were dearest to them, appointed by suffrage. The Phoenician history, adds he, is full of such sacrifices, which Sanchoniatho wrote in the Phoenician language; and Curtius says k, this custom of sacrificing a fine boy to Saturn was received by the Carthaginians from their founders (the Tyrians and Phoenicians), and which they continued even to the destruction of their city.
i De Abstinentia, l. 2. sect. 56. k Hist. l. 4. c. 3.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Deu 12:31, like Deu 12:4, with the reason assigned in Deu 12:31: “for the Canaanites prepare ( , as in Deu 12:27) all kinds of abominations for their gods,” i.e., present offerings to these, which Jehovah hates and abhors; they even burn their children to their idols-for example, to Moloch (see at Lev 18:21).
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
31. Thou shalt not do so. From these words we may gather what it is not to make to one’s self the gods of others, viz., to bid farewell to all the inventions of men, and to pay attention to this one thing — what God commands. For why does God desire to be worshipped by His elect people, otherwise than the nations were in the habit of serving their gods, except because there ought to be a notable distinction, so that religion may not be confused? And surely unless men cleave to God’s word, so as resolutely to determine that nothing else is permitted to them except what is there taught, they will not only be vacillating, but. they will receive indiscriminately whatever comes in their way. We must then hold fast to this, “Thou shalt not do so;” and our minds must be restrained by this curb, lest any superstition which may defile the service of God should insinuate or establish itself. He adds, that God not only repudiates these strange worships, but even abominates them; and in order to impress this the more, he adduces one form of superstition, in which its absurdity was unusually manifest; for it is a foul barbarity that innocent children should be burnt by their parents.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
Ver. 31. Their sons and their daughters they have burnt, &c. To what we have said of this horrid custom on Lev 20:1; Lev 20:27 we shall only add, that it was notoriously practised by the Carthaginians, who, it is certain, derived it from the Phoenicians, the ancient inhabitants of Canaan; and at last it overspread all nations, and prevailed even among the refined Greeks themselves. See Banier’s Mythol. book 3: ch. 10. But what is more surprising, we find the Israelites themselves, notwithstanding this admonition, seduced to commit the same abomination; Psa 106:37-38. Eze 37:28. Dr. Chandler, in his Vindication, justly observes, that though several instances of such inhuman offerings are to be found among the Phoenicians, Greeks, and others, yet they do not appear to have been sacrifices freely made, but with the utmost horror and reluctance, by the order of their priests, or the supposed command of their gods, or through the compulsion of some extreme necessity, and to avoid some dreadful calamity. Thus the king of Moab, in the distress of a grievous war, took his eldest son, and offered him for a burnt-offering upon the wall. 2Ki 3:27. See Jac. Gensius, de Victim. Human. pars i. c. 11. et alibi.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
burnt = burnt up. See App-43.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Thou: Deu 12:4, Deu 18:9, Exo 23:2, Lev 18:3, Lev 18:26-30, 2Ki 17:15-17, 2Ki 21:2, 2Ch 33:2, 2Ch 36:14
abomination to the: Heb. abomination of the
even their sons: The unnatural and horrid practice of offering human sacrifices not only existed, but universally prevailed among ancient nations. We have already – See note on Lev 20:2 referred to the custom among the Phoenicians and Carthaginians, descendants from the Canaanitish nations, of sacrificing their children to Moloch, or Saturn; and we will now cite a passage from Diodorus Siculus – lib. xx.which immediately precedes that already produced relative to this barbarous custom. He states that the Carthaginians imputed their being besieged by Agathocles to the anger of Saturn, because, instead of sacrificing the best of their own children, as formerly, they had sacrificed children bought for that purpose. “In haste, therefore, to rectify their errors, they chose 200 of the noblest children, and publicly sacrificed them! Others, accused of irreligion, voluntarily gave themselves up, to the number of no less than 300!” Deu 18:10, Lev 18:21, Lev 20:2, Jer 7:31, Jer 32:35, Eze 20:31, Eze 23:27, Mic 6:7
Reciprocal: Exo 8:26 – we shall Exo 23:24 – do after Lev 18:24 – for Lev 20:23 – in the manners Num 33:52 – General Deu 7:16 – for that will Deu 9:4 – for the wickedness Deu 16:22 – which Deu 20:18 – General Jdg 11:39 – did with 1Ki 21:26 – according to 2Ki 3:27 – offered him 2Ki 16:3 – made his son 2Ki 17:8 – walked 2Ki 17:31 – burnt their children 2Ch 28:3 – after the abominations 2Ch 33:6 – caused Ezr 9:1 – doing according Ezr 9:11 – The land Psa 53:1 – have done Psa 74:20 – the dark Psa 106:37 – they sacrificed Jer 10:2 – Learn Jer 19:5 – to burn Eze 11:12 – but Eze 16:45 – that loatheth Eze 23:37 – have also 1Pe 4:3 – to have
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
12:31 Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have {q} burnt in the fire to their gods.
(q) They held nothing too dear to offer to their idols.