Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous — the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you or forsake you.
Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid or scared of them; for Yahweh your God himself is who goes with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you.”
What Deuteronomy 31:6 means
Moses says this to Israel as he hands leadership to Joshua and prepares to die. The people are about to enter unfamiliar country without the leader they have always had.
The command to be strong is not motivational; it rests on a reason given immediately after. Courage here is a response to God’s presence, not a quality summoned from within. The promise never to leave or forsake is quoted again in Hebrews, applied to Christians centuries later.
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Questions about Deuteronomy 31:6
What does Deuteronomy 31:6 mean?
It calls God’s people to strength and courage in the face of what frightens them, on the grounds that God himself goes with them and will never abandon them.
When did Moses say Deuteronomy 31:6?
At the end of his life, as Israel prepared to enter the promised land under Joshua’s leadership rather than his own.