And these words, which I command thee this day ,.... To hearken to, observe, and take notice of, that God is one, and is to be loved in the strongest manner that possibly can be: shall be in thine heart ; on the table of the heart, as the Targum of Jonathan; see 2 Corinthians 3:3 , be cordially received, have a place in the affections of the heart, and be retained in mind and memory. read more
And thou shall teach them diligently unto thy children ,.... Care and diligence are to be used, and pains taken, to instruct children, as soon as they are capable, in the knowledge of God, and of his commandments; that they are to love him, fear him, serve, and worship him; this is to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, Ephesians 6:4 , it may be rendered "thou shalt whet or sharpen them" F19 ושננ־תאם "et acues ea", Vatablus, Piscator. , the words or... read more
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand ,.... As a man ties anything to his hand for a token, that he may remember somewhat he is desirous of; though the Jews understand this literally, of binding a scroll of parchment, with this section and others written in it, upon their left hand, as the Targum of Jonathan here interprets the hand: and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes ; and which the same Targum interprets of the Tephilim, or phylacteries, which the Jews wear... read more
And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thine house, and on thy gates. To put them in mind of them when they went out and came in, that they might be careful to observe them; this the Jews take literally also, and write in a scroll of parchment this section with some passages; and, as the Targum of Jonathan here, fix them in three places, over against the bed chamber, upon the posts of the house, and on the gate at the right hand of it; and this is what they call the Mezuzah; and the... read more
Shall be in thine heart - For where else can love be? If it be not in the heart, it exists not. And if these words be not in the heart - if they are not esteemed, prized, and received as a high and most glorious privilege, what hope is there that this love shall ever reign there? read more
Thou shalt teach them diligently - שננתם shinnantam , from שנן shanan , to repeat, iterate, or do a thing again and again; hence to whet or sharpen any instrument, which is done by reiterated friction or grinding. We see here the spirit of this Divine injunction. God's testimonies must be taught to our children, and the utmost diligence must be used to make them understand them. This is a most difficult task; and it requires much patience, much prudence, much judgment, and much piety... read more
Thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thins hand - Is not this an allusion to an ancient and general custom observed in almost every part of the world? When a person wishes to remember a thing of importance, and is afraid to trust to the common operations of memory, he ties a knot on some part of his clothes, or a cord on his hand or finger, or places something out of its usual order, and in view, that his memory may be whetted to recollection, and his eye affect his heart. God, who knows how... read more
Write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates - The Jews, forgetting the spirit and design of this precept, used these things as superstitious people do amulets and charms, and supposed, if they had these passages of Scripture written upon slips of pure parchment, wrapped round their foreheads, tied to their arm, or nailed to their door-posts, that they should then be delivered from every evil! And how much better are many Christians, who keep a Bible in their house merely that it... read more
Verse 6 6.And these words. In these four next verses God again commands (as before) the study of His Law. And first, indeed, He would have it implanted in their hearts, lest forgetfulness of it should ever steal over them; and by the word “heart” He designates the memory and other faculties of the mind; as though He had said that this was so great a treasure, that there was good cause why they should hide it in their hearts, or so fix this doctrine deeply in their minds that it should never... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 6:4-16
Here is, I. A brief summary of religion, containing the first principles of faith and obedience, Deut. 6:4, 5. These two verses the Jews reckon one of the choicest portions of scripture: they write it in their phylacteries, and think themselves not only obliged to say it at least twice every day, but very happy in being so obliged, having this saying among them, Blessed are we, who every morning and evening say, Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. But more blessed are we if we duly... read more