Deuteronomy 6:16

My Notes

What Does Deuteronomy 6:16 Mean?

"Ye shall not tempt the LORD your God, as ye tempted him in Massah." Moses commands: do NOT TEST God — and cites a SPECIFIC HISTORICAL EXAMPLE: 'as you tested Him at Massah.' The prohibition isn't abstract. It's ILLUSTRATED by a real event the audience's PARENTS experienced. Massah (Exodus 17:1-7 — the place where Israel demanded 'is the LORD among us or not?') becomes the NEGATIVE EXAMPLE that defines what 'testing God' means. The specific memory gives the general command its TEETH.

The phrase "ye shall not tempt the LORD your God" (lo tenassu et YHWH Eloheikhem — you shall not test/try the LORD your God) prohibits PUTTING GOD ON TRIAL: the verb nasah means to test, to try, to prove by examination — the same word used for testing METAL or examining a CLAIM. The prohibition is: don't put God to the test. Don't demand that God PROVE Himself to you. Don't create conditions that force God to DEMONSTRATE His presence or power. The testing assumes God needs to EARN your trust. He doesn't.

The "as ye tempted him in Massah" (ka'asher nissitem bamMassah — as you tested at Massah/Testing-place) cites the DEFINING EXAMPLE: at Massah (Exodus 17:7), Israel demanded water AND questioned God's presence: 'is the LORD among us or not?' The name MASSAH means 'testing' — the place was NAMED for the sin committed there. The geography carries the warning. The place-name IS the prohibition. The name 'Testing' says: don't do what we did HERE.

Jesus quotes THIS VERSE when Satan tempts Him to jump from the Temple (Matthew 4:7/Luke 4:12) — making it the SCRIPTURAL RESPONSE to the temptation to force God's hand.

Reflection Questions

• 1.What test of God are you manufacturing — instead of trusting the proof already provided?
• 2.What does 'as you tested at Massah' (a specific historical example) teach about memory informing obedience?
• 3.How does Jesus using THIS verse against Satan model the Scriptural response to the temptation to force God's hand?
• 4.What proof has God already given that makes the testing unnecessary?

Devotional

Don't test God — like you tested Him at MASSAH. The prohibition is SPECIFIC: don't put God on trial. Don't demand proof. Don't create conditions that force God to demonstrate. And the illustration is HISTORICAL: Massah — the place where Israel said 'is the LORD among us or not?' The place-name IS the warning. The geography IS the prohibition.

The 'shall not tempt' (lo tenassu) prohibits TESTING GOD: the verb means to examine, to prove, to put on trial. The testing assumes God needs to EARN your trust — that you have the RIGHT to examine whether God is reliable. The prohibition says: you DON'T. God has already PROVEN Himself (through the Exodus, through the wilderness-provision). Testing Him AFTER the proof is INSULTING the proof. The trust that was EARNED doesn't need to be RE-TESTED.

The 'as ye tempted him in Massah' makes the prohibition MEMORY-SPECIFIC: the audience didn't just hear a RULE. They heard a STORY — the story of their parents' failure at a specific location. Massah is a PLACE they know. The testing is an EVENT they've heard about. The prohibition comes with its own ILLUSTRATION built in. The rule and the example arrive together.

Jesus' use of THIS verse against Satan (Matthew 4:7) makes it the ULTIMATE anti-testing-God verse: when Satan says 'throw yourself down and make God catch you,' Jesus responds with Deuteronomy 6:16. The verse that prohibited Israel from testing God at Massah prohibits Jesus from testing God at the Temple-pinnacle. The same verse. The same prohibition. The same principle: don't manufacture crises to force God's hand.

What 'Massah' — what testing-of-God — are you manufacturing instead of TRUSTING the proof He already provided?

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture