Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Deuteronomy 32:16
They provoked him to jealousy with strange [gods], with abominations provoked they him to anger.
16. moved him to jealousy ] This form of the vb. is found only here, and in Deu 32:21 b, Psa 78:58; another form in Deu 32:21 a. On God’s jealousy see Deu 4:24.
strange ] Jer 2:25; Jer 3:13. See above on Deu 32:12.
abominations ] See Deu 7:25, and cp. Isa 44:19.
provoked ] Deu 4:25.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
To jealousy, i.e. to anger and fury,
for jealousy is the rage of a man, Pro 6:31. And withal it implies the ground of his anger, to wit, their falseness to God, whom they had owned and accepted as their Husband, and their spiritual whoredom with other gods.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
They provoked him to jealousy with strange [gods],…. Or “with others” h; the word “gods” is not in the text, nor were the Jews guilty of worshipping strange gods or idols in the times of Christ, nor had they been from the time of their coming out of the Babylonish captivity; but the word, as Cocceius observes, is used for “another”, as in Job 19:27; and signifies other saviours, other messiahs, whom the Jews set up when they rejected Christ, the rock of salvation; and it is observable, that before the coming of Christ, they never attempted to set up any; but, after they had rejected him, were ready to embrace everyone that offered, of which one, called Bar Cochab, the son of a star, in allusion to Nu 24:17; is a flagrant instance; and whom, when they found themselves deceived, they called Bar Cozba, the son of a lie, or a lying fellow; to whom our Lord may be thought to have respect, Joh 5:43; and where he expressly calls him another. Now, not only to reject Jesus, the true Messiah, but to set up others in his room, false Christs, was highly provoking to God, who is a jealous God, and will not give his glory to another:
with abominations provoked they him to anger; by advancing the traditions of the elders to an equality with, and above the word of God; and by continuing sacrifices, after the great sacrifice was offered up, when they ought to have ceased; for, by continuing them, it was saying Christ was not come in the flesh, nor his sacrifice offered up; it was trampling under foot the Son of God, and treating his blood and sacrifice with contempt; which must be an abomination to God, and highly provoking of his anger, when that sacrifice was of a sweet smelling savour to him; and especially what was abominable to him, and grievously provoked him to anger and wrath, was their setting up the idol of their own righteousness, refusing to submit to the righteousness of Christ, Ro 10:3; and indeed, whenever anything is set up in competition with him, or in opposition to him, be it what it will, it must be an abomination to God; because it opposes his purposes and resolutions of saving men by Christ alone, reflects on his wisdom in the scheme of salvation, flies in the face of his love, grace, and mercy, makes the death of Christ of none effect, advances pride in the creature, gives God the lie, who says there is no other Saviour, and is a total slight and neglect of his Gospel; all which must be abominable, and dreadfully provoking to him; see Isa 65:5;
h “per alios”, Cocceius.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
16 They provoked him to jealousy. It is only figuratively that jealousy is attributed to God, who is free from all passions; but, since men never sufficiently reflect how great pollution they contract by their idolatries, it is necessary that the grossness of the sin should be expressed in such terms as this, implying that men do no less injury to God, when they transfer to others the honor due to Him, and that the offense is no lighter than as if a licentious woman should provoke her husband’s mind to jealousy, and inflict a wound upon him by running after adulterers. This jealousy has reference to the sacred and spiritual marriage, whereby God had bound His people to Himself. The suae is, that the Israelites were as insulting to God by their superstitions as if they had designedly provoked Him.
In the next verse an amplification follows, viz., that they had transferred to devils the worship due to God alone. By the general consent of all nations God ought to be worshipped by sacrifices; for, although the Gentiles invented for themselves divers gods, still the persuasion continued to prevail, that this service was the peculiar prerogative of Deity. Nothing, then, could be more disgraceful or detestable than to rob God of His honor, and to offer it to demons. This, indeed, would never have been admitted by the Israelites, inasmuch as they pretended that their minor gods were their advocates with the supreme and only Creator of the world, and did not hesitate to account as rendered to Him whatever they shared among their idols. Here, however, He first of all repudiates all such mixtures whereby His holy name is unworthily profaned, and suffers Himself not to be associated with idols; and, secondly, by whatever titles they may dignify their idols, He declares all false gods to be demons. Hence it follows that the sacrifices made to them are infected with sacrilege. Both of these points are worthy of careful remark, viz., that God abominates all corruptions of His service; and also, that whatever names the world may invent for its gods, they are so many masks, under which the devil hides himself for the deception of the simple.
Furthermore, Moses reproves the folly of the Israelites in having promiscuously devoted themselves to unknown gods; just as an adulterous woman might prostitute herself indiscriminately to all comers. When he says that they came from near, (266) it has reference to time, and is equivalent to saying that they had lately sprung up. Thirdly, it is said, that these gods were not honored by their fathers; for thus their perverse love of novelty is proved against them, inasmuch as they had not been even led by imitation of their fathers, but in their restless innovation had procured for themselves new and unwonted gods. Not that the law of piety is founded on antiquity alone, as if it were sufficient to follow the customs handed down by our ancestors; for thus any of the religions of the Gentiles might be proved true, but because the genuine and faithful tradition of their fathers would be the sure and approved rule for the worship of God. For Moses assumes a higher principle, viz., that their fathers were truly and most unmistakably instructed who was the one and only God, in whom alone they ought to trust. Yet a distinction is here to be drawn between these holy fathers and the reprobate; for the imitation of their fathers, which here seems to be deemed praiseworthy, is elsewhere severely condemned, because the Jews were carried away, without discrimination, after the bad examples of their fathers. Moses, therefore, here refers to no other fathers than those who were in a position to hand down what they had learned from God Himself. The word fear often comprises, by synecdoche, the whole service of God, and sometimes is applied to outward ceremonies: the word שער , sagnar however, is here used, which means properly to stand in awe of, or to dread; (267) but still in the same sense.
(266) A. V. , “newly.” Lat., e propinquo.”
(267) In the editions of Geneva, 1563 and 1573, C. is made to say, that this word is equivalent to “ formare, vel pavere;” the former being probably a misprint for reformidare. — W. The Fr. renders the words “Redouter, ou avoir peur.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
16. Departing from God, they will give themselves up to the worship of idols. They provoked him to jealousy is a figure taken from the marriage relation. The intimate relation that Jehovah sustains to his people is expressed by this. Comp. Deu 31:16; Exo 39:14; Isa 54:5; Jer 3:14.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
What a melancholy picture of rebellion, folly, and sin, to forget GOD, to forsake him, to be unmindful of the rock of his strength. Alas! who should have conceived the possibility of the thing itself. But this is not all, Israel added provocations to neglect, and took up with dunghill deities. And observe their character; these gods were not only contemptible in themselves, but gods they knew not. Moreover, they were newly risen up, as if gods, like mushrooms, came up in a night. Neither was this all, they were devils, and such as their fathers feared not. How striking is that expostulation of GOD by the prophet: Hath a nation changed their gods, which yet are no gods? but my people have changed their glory, for that which doth not profit? Jer 2:11 . Reader! is there nothing in all this, in which your heart, and mine, can find a too just resemblance.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Deu 32:16 They provoked him to jealousy with strange [gods], with abominations provoked they him to anger.
Ver. 16. They provoked him to jealousy. ] See Trapp on “ Deu 31:29 “
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Note the Introversion of these four lines: From this, “abominations” generally means idols.
jealousy. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia. App-6. Compare Psa 78:58.
strange = foreign.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
provoked: Deu 5:9, 1Ki 14:22, Nah 1:1, Nah 1:2, 1Co 10:22
abominations: Deu 7:25, Lev 18:27, 2Ki 23:13
Reciprocal: Gen 35:2 – strange Exo 34:14 – jealous God Num 25:11 – that I Deu 4:24 – a jealous God Deu 7:4 – so will Deu 13:6 – which thou Deu 32:21 – moved me Jdg 5:8 – new gods Jdg 10:7 – was hot 1Ki 14:9 – thou hast gone Psa 78:58 – moved Psa 79:5 – jealousy Psa 106:29 – with their Isa 65:3 – A people Jer 2:25 – after Jer 7:19 – they provoke Jer 8:19 – Why Jer 11:13 – For according Jer 13:25 – because Jer 35:17 – Behold Jer 44:8 – ye provoke Eze 8:3 – provoketh Eze 14:5 – estranged Joe 2:18 – and pity 1Co 10:20 – sacrifice
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Deu 32:16-17. They provoked him to jealousy Speaking after the manner of men. See on Num 25:11. The word expresses not only the hot displeasure and indignation of God, but also the ground of it, which was Israels falseness to him, whom they had accepted as their husband, and their spiritual whoredom with other gods. They sacrificed unto devils Not that they actually considered their gods under the notion of devils; but, whatever pretext they might have for their idolatry, when they sacrificed, they really did it unto devils, the wasters and destroyers of mankind, as the Hebrew word , shedim, here used, is thought to signify, and as the devil is called, Rev 9:11. Some, indeed, think it is a word of the same import with , segnirim, (Lev 17:7,) a name given to demons, either because they were conceived to haunt waste places, or to appear in the form of goats. To devils or demons the Israelites sacrificed their sons and daughters, when they sacrificed them unto the idols of Canaan, Psa 106:36-38. But these idols may here and elsewhere be termed devils, because devils brought them into the world in opposition to the true God, and gave answers by them, and in and through them received mens worship. Many of the heathen considered their idols as a sort of lower gods, and pretended to worship the supreme God by them: but Moses here takes off this mask, and shows the Israelites that in worshipping these idols they worshipped devils, whose will they hereby obeyed, and whose work and service they promoted. And not to God For God utterly rejected those sacrifices which they offered to him together with idols. To gods whom they knew not Had no experience of receiving any good from them, or who knew not them, as the words may be rendered; that is, who had never bestowed any benefits upon them. As, on the contrary, the true God says, (Hos 13:5,) I did know thee in the wilderness, which the Chaldee interprets, I supplied thy necessities. New gods Not simply or absolutely, for some of them had been worshipped for many generations; but in comparison of the true God who is the Ancient of days, (Dan 7:9,) and who was worshipped from the beginning of the world. Moses may, however, also intend to signify that they had not so much as the plea of ancient custom or tradition for the worship of many of their idols, and that they were so prone to idolatry, that every new object or mode of heathen superstition caught their fancy, and drew them away from their allegiance to the true God. Whom your fathers feared not Worshipped not: and concerning whom they had no superstitious dread, (as the word , segnaru, here used, imports,) no fear lest they should be hurt by them if they did not worship them, which fear differs essentially from that pious fear and reverence which we owe to the true God. He means they were such gods as could neither do good nor evil, Jer 10:5.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
32:16 They provoked him to jealousy with {k} strange [gods], with abominations provoked they him to anger.
(k) By changing his service for their superstitions.