Deuteronomy 7:13 · Bible study
Deuteronomy 7:13 Commentary: Covenant Blessing of Love and Prosperity
Hebrew · 7 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Study the promise of God's love, blessing, and material abundance in Deuteronomy 7:13. Explore its covenant context, Hebrew word studies, and application today.
Research Summary
- Meaning: God promises to love, bless, and multiply Israel with children, crops, and livestock if they keep His commandments, fulfilling His oath to the fathers.
- Key words: Love (H0157); bless (H1288); fruit (H6529); new wine (H8492); fresh oil (H3323); ashteroth (H6251, also the goddess Astarte).
- Main debate: Whether this promise of material prosperity for obedience applies directly to Christians or is limited to Israel's Old Covenant context, requiring New Testament reorientation.
- Theological theme: Covenant blessing rooted in God's faithful love; the land as gift; Yahweh as the source of fertility, contra Canaanite deities.
- Best use: Teaching on the nature of covenant, the goodness of creation, and trusting God for provision while not reducing faith to a prosperity transaction.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
He will love you and bless you and multiply you. He will bless the fruit of your womb and the produce of your land—your grain, new wine, and oil, the young of your herds and the lambs of your flocks—in the land that He swore to your fathers to give you.
WEB World English Bible 2000
He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your body and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your livestock and the young of your flock, in the land which he swore to your fathers to give you.
KJV King James Version 1769
And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee: he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
and he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee; he will also bless the fruit of thy body and the fruit of thy ground, thy grain and thy new wine and thine oil, the increase of thy cattle and the young of thy flock, in the land which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and hath loved thee, and blessed thee, and multiplied thee, and hath blessed the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, thy corn, and thy new wine, and thine oil, the increase of thine oxen, and the wealth of thy flock, on the ground which He hath sworn to thy fathers to give to thee.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
and he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee, and will bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, thy corn and thy new wine, and thine oil, the offspring of thy kine, and the increase of thy sheep, in the land which he swore unto thy fathers to give thee.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And he will love thee and multiply thee, and will bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy vintage, thy oil, and thy herds, and the flocks of thy sheep upon the land, for which he swore to thy fathers that he would give it thee.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y te amará, y te bendecirá, y te multiplicará, y bendecirá el fruto de tu vientre, y el fruto de tu tierra, y tu grano, y tu mosto, y tu aceite, la cría de tus vacas, y los rebaños de tus ovejas, en la tierra que juró á tus padres que te daría.
E te amará, e te abençoará, e te multiplicará, e abençoará o fruto de teu ventre, e o fruto de tua terra, e teu grão, e teu mosto, e teu azeite, a cria de tuas vacas, e os rebanhos de tuas ovelhas, na terra que jurou a teus pais que te daria.
Il t’aimera, il te bénira et te multipliera; il bénira le fruit de tes entrailles et le fruit de ton sol, ton blé, ton moût et ton huile, les portées de ton gros et de ton menu bétail, dans le pays qu’ il a juré à tes pères de te donner.
und wird dich lieben und segnen und mehren und wird die Frucht deines Leibes segnen und die Frucht deines Landes, dein Getreide, Most und Öl, die Früchte deiner Kühe und die Früchte deiner Schafe in dem Lande, das er deinen Vätern geschworen hat dir zu geben.
En Hij zal u liefhebben, en zal u zegenen, en u doen vermenigvuldigen; en Hij zal zegenen de vrucht uws buiks, en de vrucht uws lands, uw koren, en uw most, en uw olie, de voortzetting uwer koeien, en de kudden van uw klein vee, in het land, dat Hij aan uw vaderen gezworen heeft u te geven.
Egli t’amerà, ti benedirà, ti moltiplicherà, benedirà il frutto del tuo seno e il frutto del tuo suolo: il tuo frumento, il tuo mosto e il tuo olio, il figliare delle tue vacche e delle tue pecore, nel paese che giurò ai tuoi padri di darti.
I umiłuje cię; i ubłogosławi cię i rozmnoży cię; bo pobłogosławi owocowi żywota twego, i owocowi ziemi twojej, zbożu twojemu, i winu twojemu, i oliwie twojej, płodowi krów twoich, i trzodom owiec twoich w ziemi, o którą przysiągł ojcom twoim, że ją da tobie.
и возлюбит тебя, и благословит тебя, и размножит тебя, и благословит плод чрева твоего и плод земли твоей, и хлеб твой, и вино твое, и елей твой, рождаемое от крупного скота твоего и от стада овец твоих, на той земле, которую Он клялся отцам твоим дать тебе;
他必愛你，賜福與你，使你人數增多，也必在 他向你列祖 起誓 應許給 你 的 地 上賜福 與你身 所生的，地 所產的，並你的五穀、新酒，和油，以及牛 犢、羊 羔。
And he will give you his love, blessing you and increasing you: he will send his blessing on the offspring of your body and the fruit of your land, your grain and your wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the young of your flock, in the land which by his oath to your fathers he undertook to give you.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Deuteronomy 7:13
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree this verse presents a promise of comprehensive blessing tied to covenant obedience. The three verbs, love, bless, multiply, form a sequence, with the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges noting that love is a characteristic addition by the Deuteronomist (compare Genesis 22:17; 26:24). Gill's Exposition emphasizes that this includes not only offspring but the entire process of conception and gestation. The blessings cover every sphere of life: family (fruit of the womb), agriculture (grain, wine, oil), and livestock (cattle, sheep). Matthew Henry places this firmly in the conditional covenant of Deuteronomy 7:12: if Israel keeps the commandments, God keeps the covenant. Barnes' Notes highlights the unusual word for young of your flock, the Hebrew ashteroth, the plural of Ashtoreth, the Canaanite goddess of fertility. This shows the promise uses language from the surrounding culture to assert that Yahweh, not Baal or Astarte, gives increase.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Covenant promise for national Israel: The context (Deut 7:12-16) conditions blessing on obedience to the Mosaic law, and the promise of the land is central; many Old Testament scholars see this as a unique Old Covenant arrangement.
- Typological fulfillment in Christ: Christians like Calvin and Matthew Henry read the material blessings as shadows of spiritual blessings in Christ (e.g., Ephesians 1:3), arguing the physical promises point to eternal realities.
- Continued principle of blessing for obedience: Some Christians hold that God still blesses the righteous materially, citing this and verses like Deuteronomy 28:11, though they often specify this is not a guarantee but a general pattern in a fallen world.
What is clear: In its original setting, this verse promises that Israel's obedience to the covenant will result in God's love, multiplication of family, and abundance of land products and livestock, all as gifts from Yahweh in the land He swore to give them.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning of blessing in context | This verse promises material and familial prosperity to Israel as a covenant reward for obedience (Deut 7:12). | Some traditions read it as a direct pattern for believers today (e.g., prosperity teaching), while others see it as specific to national Israel and fulfilled spiritually in Christ (e.g., covenant theology). |
| The word 'ashteroth' (young of flock) | The Hebrew term is the plural of Ashtoreth, the Canaanite fertility goddess, and it is used here to refer to ewe-lambs or young sheep. | Some see this as a neutral linguistic borrowing from common speech; others argue it is a deliberate polemic, subverting the goddess's name to show Yahweh gives increase. |
| Application for Christians | God cares about our physical needs and often blesses obedience. The verse shows His character as a generous provider. | Christians disagree on how directly to apply the promise. Some emphasize that New Testament suffering and persecution (e.g., 2 Cor 11) temper any guarantee of wealth. Others hold that God's covenant faithfulness still extends to material provision for the faithful. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Deuteronomy 7 sits within Moses' second sermon, explaining the covenant made at Horeb for a new generation about to enter Canaan. Verses 1, 11 command Israel to destroy the nations and their altars, and to remain separate. Verse 12 pivots: obedience leads to blessing. The list in verse 13 covers the three staples of the Israelite economy: grain (dagan, threshed corn), new wine (tirosh, fresh must), and fresh oil (yitshar, pure olive oil). These appear repeatedly in Deuteronomy (11:14; 12:17; 14:23; 28:51) and are the core products of the land.
The most striking historical detail is the word ashteroth for the young of your flock (sheep). Barnes notes this is the plural of Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians (1 Kings 11:5), identified with Astarte, who represented the fruitfulness of nature. The Cambridge Bible explains that a term from fertility religion descended into ordinary language, serving as an old witness to how thoroughly Israel absorbed Canaanite vocabulary while redirecting it to Yahweh worship. Lange's Commentary calls these Veneres Astarte, the Astarte-produce, used perhaps purposely with contempt for the idolatrous associations. The verse thus stands as a polemic: Yahweh, not the goddess, grants the fertility of flocks.
The blessings are tied to the land sworn to the fathers (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob). This oath gives confidence; Israel does not earn the land but inherits it through covenant faithfulness. The same promise recurs in expanded form in Deuteronomy 28:4, alongside its dark mirror in 28:18 (curses on the same items). This covenant structure is characteristic of ancient Near Eastern treaties, where blessings and curses follow stipulations.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant variants for this verse, except that the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges mentions that in the phrase in the land which he swore to your fathers to give you, the Samaritan Pentateuch and the Septuagint (LXX) read Jehovah after swore, making explicit that it is Yahweh who swears. The Masoretic Text does not include the divine name here, though the subject is clear from context.
Reception History
In Jewish tradition, this verse has been understood as part of the covenant blessings recited in liturgies and taught as the fruit of Torah obedience. In Christian history, Deuteronomy 7:13 has often been cited in discussions about God's provision for those who follow Him. Early church fathers like Origen and Augustine read the material blessings allegorically, seeing the grain, wine, and oil as types of spiritual gifts: Christ as the bread of life, the wine of the Eucharist, and the oil of the Spirit. The Reformation commentaries (e.g., Calvin, Luther) emphasized the conditional nature of the covenant, using the verse to teach that obedience brings God's favor, but also warning against equating external prosperity with true godliness. In modern times, the verse has been used in prosperity gospel circles as a proof-text for material blessing, while other evangelicals and mainline traditions urge caution, pointing to the broader biblical picture that includes suffering as a Christian calling.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Love at the foundation. Before any blessing, God promises love. Wesley notes God continues to love and manifest His love. This is not earned but flows from God's character, first shown in choosing Israel (7:7). The material blessings are expressions of a prior relationship.
- Blessing covers every area of life. The verse lists family, field, and flock. Nothing is outside God's concern: the womb, the soil, the barn. Gill highlights that God protects the pregnancy and prevents miscarrying. The word for fruit of your body is literally womb, emphasizing life's beginning. The ground is the same adamah from which Adam was taken, now yielding abundance.
- The condition and the land. The promise is set in the land sworn to the fathers. Obedience (v.12) is the path, but the land itself is grace. The point is not performance but relationship. The verse invites Israel to trust that God will provide all they need as they follow Him.
Five-point outline
- God loves first, the basis of all blessing.
- Blessing of multiplication: children as gift, not merely fertility.
- Blessing of the ground: grain, wine, oil, daily sustenance and joy.
- Blessing of livestock: cattle and sheep, economic security.
- The land as promised inheritance: God keeps His oath to the fathers.
Illustration hooks
- Family farm. A family who tends the land trusts that rain and growth are ultimately gifts, not just hard work. The tension between effort and gift maps onto covenant blessing.
- Parental love. A parent provides for a child because of relationship, not because the child earned it. The gifts (food, clothes, safety) express love. So with God.
- Borrowed language. The use of ashteroth (Astarte) for sheep young is like a family using a popular brand name for a generic product. It shows how deeply culture shapes talk about provision, and how the Bible repurposes it for worship of the true God.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Does this verse mean that if I obey God, I will be materially prosperous? What about Christians in poverty?
- How do we square these promises with Jesus' teaching about storing treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21)?
- Is it wrong to ask God for material blessings like a good harvest or healthy children, or should we only ask for spiritual ones?
Leading a Discussion
Deuteronomy 7:13 stands as a promise of comprehensive blessing, but it comes in a specific covenant context. Israel is about to enter a land where every crop and flock could be interpreted as a gift from local gods. Moses insists it all comes from Yahweh, who loves them. As we read, we bring our own assumptions about wealth, effort, and divine favor. The questions below help a group explore the text faithfully together.
Discussion questions
- Observation: What items are included in the list of blessings? Why do you think each one is mentioned specifically?
- Observation: Look at verses 12 and 13 together. What condition is stated before the blessing list begins?
- Interpretation: The Hebrew word ashteroth (young of your flock) is the same name as the Canaanite goddess Astarte. Why would Moses use that term? What does it say about God's power compared to other gods?
- Interpretation: How does the promise of love (v.13) change the way you understand the material blessings that follow?
- Interpretation: In what ways is this promise tied specifically to Israel's possession of the land of Canaan? How does that shape whether and how it applies to Christians?
- Application: What would it look like to hold a job, save money, and plan for your family while also depending on God's blessing as the ultimate source?
- Application: When you face hard times (illness, financial loss, infertility), how do you wrestle with promises like this one? How does the rest of Scripture help you respond?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 23:25 | You shall serve Yahweh your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you. |
| Deuteronomy 7:7 | Yahweh didn’t set his love on you nor choose you, because you were more in number than any people; for you were the fewest of all peoples; |
| Deuteronomy 28:3 | You shall be blessed in the city, and you shall be blessed in the field. |
| Deuteronomy 28:5 | Your basket and your kneading trough shall be blessed. |
| Deuteronomy 28:11 | Yahweh will grant you abundant prosperity in the fruit of your body, in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground, in the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers to give you. |
| Deuteronomy 28:15 | But it shall come to pass, if you will not listen to Yahweh your God’s voice, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come on you and overtake you. |
| Deuteronomy 28:18 | The fruit of your body, the fruit of your ground, the increase of your livestock, and the young of your flock will be cursed. |
| Job 42:12 | So Yahweh blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand female donkeys. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
7 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes highlights that the Hebrew word for "ewes" in this passage is actually the plural form of Ashtoreth, the fertility goddess of the Sidonians. He sees this as a deliberate wordplay that connects the flocks' fruitfulness to the very concept of nature's abundance that the goddess represented.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This commentary highlights the Deuteronomist’s distinctive addition of “love” to the blessing formula, and contrasts Deuteronomy’s material blessings with Hosea’s more spiritual list that includes flax. It also notes the Hebrew terms for fresh wine, threshed corn, and fresh oil, showing a less manufactured state
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
And he wil loue thee, and blesse thee, and multiplie thee: he will also blesse the fruite of thy wombe, and the fruite of thy land, thy corne and thy wine, and thine oyle and the increase of thy kine, and the flockes of thy sheepe in the land, which he sware vnto thy fathers to giue thee.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill notes that God's love has already been shown, and these blessings are continuing proofs of it. He highlights that multiplication of offspring was the specific promise made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and that even the details of pregnancy and preventing miscarriage are included in the blessing of the womb.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange draws attention to the symbolic number seven, the seven heathen nations standing as a deliberate caricature against the one covenant people. The command to destroy them is not national hatred but a theocratic necessity for God's honor, flowing from true love for Him.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry sees these verses as showing how obedience to God's commands unlocks the full scope of covenant love and blessing. The repeated assurance against fear rests on one argument: remembering the exodus proves God is with them, a mighty and fearsome presence who will remove every obstacle in due time.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley stresses that God’s love is not a single past act but an ongoing commitment. He will keep loving and actively show that love to the believer. The emphasis falls on the steadiness and visible expression of divine affection, not merely the fact that it exists.