Deuteronomy 6:5

My Notes

What Does Deuteronomy 6:5 Mean?

Deuteronomy 6:5 is the Shema — the most important single verse in Jewish theology and the commandment Jesus identified as the greatest (Matthew 22:37). "And thou shalt love the LORD thy God" — ve'ahavta et YHWH elohekha. The verb ahav (love) in the command form is remarkable: love is commanded, not just felt. It's an act of will, not merely an emotion. God doesn't say feel love. He says do it.

"With all thine heart" — bekhol-levavekha. The heart (levav) in Hebrew thought is the center of will, decision-making, and intention — not primarily emotion. Loving God with all your heart means directing your entire decision-making apparatus toward Him. No compartment excluded. No private room kept locked.

"And with all thy soul" — uvekhol-nafshekha. The soul (nephesh) means the entire living self — your life, your vitality, your being. Loving God with all your soul means investing your entire existence — not a portion, not a tithe of your life, but the whole living thing.

"And with all thy might" — uvekhol-me'odekha. The word me'od means muchness, intensity, force — everything you have. Rabbinic tradition interprets this as wealth and resources. Loving God with all your might means deploying every resource at your disposal — energy, money, time, influence — toward Him.

Three dimensions: will (heart), life (soul), resources (might). The command leaves nothing in reserve. Everything you are and everything you have belongs to the love.

Reflection Questions

• 1.Which 'all' is hardest for you — all your heart (will/decisions), all your soul (life/existence), or all your might (resources)?
• 2.Where have you been holding something back from God — a room in the heart, a portion of your life, a percentage of your resources?
• 3.What would it actually look like to love God with all your might — deploying every resource toward Him?
• 4.How does the command to love with 'all' simplify rather than complicate your life?

Devotional

All your heart. All your soul. All your might. The command isn't just to love God. It's to love God with everything — and to hold nothing back.

The repetition of "all" (khol) three times is the point. Not most of your heart with a small room kept private. All. Not the majority of your life with weekends excepted. All. Not a comfortable percentage of your resources with a safety margin preserved. All. The command is total, and the totality is what makes it both terrifying and liberating.

Terrifying because the command leaves no neutral zone. There's no corner of your life where God says: this part is yours. Everything is claimed. Your decision-making (heart). Your existence (soul). Your resources (might). The love God commands isn't a Sunday morning allocation. It's a whole-life occupation.

But liberating because the alternative — dividing your love between God and everything else, managing multiple allegiances, trying to keep God happy while keeping the world satisfied — is the most exhausting thing a human being can do. The divided heart is the anxious heart. The partial soul is the restless soul. The measured might is the depleted might. But all — all of everything, aimed in one direction — that's the simplest and most restful way to live. One love. One direction. One purpose. Everything else finds its place inside that.

Jesus called this the greatest commandment. Not the most important among equals. The greatest. Everything else hangs on it. If this one is in place — all heart, all soul, all might — everything else follows. If this one is broken, nothing else holds.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture