Deuteronomy 4 in the early church
155 passages quote, allude to, or echo Deuteronomy 4, grouped by verse; passages on the same verse are in date order. Verse text from the Berean Standard Bible (public domain). References use the Protestant English Bible's numbering, with a writer's own numbering in brackets where it differs.
Verses: 1 · 2 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 9 · 10 · 11 · 12 · 14 · 15 · 16 · 17 · 18 · 19 · 20 · 21 · 23 · 24 · 25 · 26 · 32 · 34 · 35 · 39 · 41 · 42 · 43 · 45
Deuteronomy 4:1
Hear now, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live and may enter and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:1 | Epistle of Barnabas 10.2 · Anonymous | allusion, low confidence | ca. 70–135 (often ca. 130) |
| Deut 4:1 | Tractates 16 · Gaudentius of Brescia | quotation, medium confidence | ca. 397-410 |
Deuteronomy 4:2
You must not add to or subtract from what I command you, so that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I am giving you.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:2 | Didache 4.13 · Anonymous | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 50–150 (often ca. 100) |
| Deut 4:2 | Epistle of Barnabas 19.11 · Anonymous | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 70–135 (often ca. 130) |
| Deut 4:2 | Epistle of the Apostles 29 · Anonymous | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 140-170 |
| Deut 4:2 | Apostolic Church Order 14 · Anonymous | allusion, high confidence | ca. 300 |
| Deut 4:2 | Apostolic Church Order 30 · Anonymous | allusion, high confidence | ca. 300 |
| Deut 4:2 | Church History 5.16.3 · Eusebius of Caesarea | echo, medium confidence | ca. 300–325 |
| Deut 4:2 | Oration 36.11 · Gregory of Nazianzus | echo, medium confidence | ca. 362–383 |
| Deut 4:2 | Against Eunomius 2.8 · Basil of Caesarea | echo, medium confidence | ca. 364 |
| Deut 4:2 | Festal Letter 39 1 · Athanasius of Alexandria | allusion, medium confidence | 367 (Easter letter) |
| Deut 4:2 | On Paradise 56 · Ambrose | echo, medium confidence | ca. 375-378 |
| Deut 4:2 | Apostolic Constitutions 7.14.2 · Anonymous | quotation, high confidence | ca. 380 |
| Deut 4:2 | Homilies on Matthew 51.1 · John Chrysostom | quotation, high confidence | ca. 390 |
| Deut 4:2 | Sermon 354.8 · Augustine of Hippo | echo, low confidence | ca. 391-430 |
| Deut 4:2 | Against Faustus the Manichaean 17.2 · Augustine of Hippo | allusion, high confidence | ca. 398–400 |
| Deut 4:2 | Against Faustus the Manichaean 17.6 · Augustine of Hippo | allusion, high confidence | ca. 398–400 |
| Deut 4:2 | Prayers 31–59b · Orientius of Auch | echo, low confidence | 5th-6th century(?) |
| Deut 4:2 | Celestine, ACO I.2, letter 2.5 · Celestine I, bishop of Rome | allusion, high confidence | 430-432 |
Deuteronomy 4:4
But you who held fast to the LORD your God are alive to this day, every one of you.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:4 | Oration IV Against the Arians 5 · Athanasius of Alexandria | quotation, high confidence | 4th century (disputed) |
Deuteronomy 4:5
See, I have taught you statutes and ordinances just as the LORD my God has commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land that you are about to enter and possess.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:5 | Epistle of Barnabas 10.2 · Anonymous | allusion, low confidence | ca. 70–135 (often ca. 130) |
Deuteronomy 4:6
Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding in the sight of the peoples, who will hear of all these statutes and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.”
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:6 | Explanation of Twelve Psalms 1.50.2 · Ambrose | quotation, high confidence | ca. 387-397 |
Deuteronomy 4:7
For what nation is great enough to have a god as near to them as the LORD our God is to us whenever we call on Him?
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:7 | Oration IV Against the Arians 5 · Athanasius of Alexandria | quotation, high confidence | 4th century (disputed) |
Deuteronomy 4:9
Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen, and so that they do not slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:9 | Miscellanies 2.15.71 · Clement of Alexandria | quotation, high confidence | ca. 198–203 |
Deuteronomy 4:10
The day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, the LORD said to me, “Gather the people before Me to hear My words, so that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach them to their children.”
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:10 | Catechetical Lecture 18.24 · Cyril of Jerusalem | quotation, high confidence | ca. 350 |
| Deut 4:10 | Liber Orsiesii 51 · Orsiesius | allusion, low confidence | ca. 380-390 |
Deuteronomy 4:11
You came near and stood at the base of the mountain, a mountain blazing with fire to the heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:11 | Refutation of All Heresies 5.20.2 · Hippolytus of Rome | allusion, high confidence | ca. 222–235 |
| Deut 4:11 | Commentary on John 2.172 · Origen | allusion, high confidence | ca. 230–248 |
| Deut 4:11 | Homilies 2.44 · Anonymous | allusion, medium confidence | 4th century (reworking earlier material) |
| Deut 4:11 | Homilies 3.45 · Anonymous | allusion, high confidence | 4th century (reworking earlier material) |
Deuteronomy 4:12
And the LORD spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of the words but saw no form; there was only a voice.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:12 | Miscellanies 6.3.34 · Clement of Alexandria | quotation, high confidence | ca. 198–203 |
| Deut 4:12 | Eclogae on Exodus-Judges, column 803 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 220-254 |
Deuteronomy 4:14
At that time the LORD commanded me to teach you the statutes and ordinances you are to follow in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:14 | Against Heresies 4.16.5 · Irenaeus of Lyons | quotation, high confidence | ca. 180–190 |
Deuteronomy 4:15
So since you saw no form of any kind on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb, be careful
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:15 | Catechetical Lecture 6.7 · Cyril of Jerusalem | quotation, high confidence | ca. 350 |
Deuteronomy 4:16
that you do not act corruptly and make an idol for yourselves of any form or shape, whether in the likeness of a male or female,
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:16 | Homily on Luke 8 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 233–250 |
| Deut 4:16 | Against Celsus 4.31 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 248 |
Deuteronomy 4:17
of any beast that is on the earth or bird that flies in the air,
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:17 | Homily on Luke 8 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 233–250 |
| Deut 4:17 | Against Celsus 4.31 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 248 |
Deuteronomy 4:18
or of any creature that crawls on the ground or fish that is in the waters below.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:18 | Against Celsus 4.31 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 248 |
Deuteronomy 4:19
When you look to the heavens and see the sun and moon and stars—all the host of heaven—do not be enticed to bow down and worship what the LORD your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven.
Deuteronomy 4:20
Yet the LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be the people of His inheritance, as you are today.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:20 | On Prayer 13.4 · Origen | allusion, high confidence | ca. 233–234 |
| Deut 4:20 | Oration 6.17 · Gregory of Nazianzus | allusion, high confidence | ca. 362–383 |
| Deut 4:20 | Oration 45.20 · Gregory of Nazianzus | allusion, high confidence | ca. 362–383 |
| Deut 4:20 | Apostolic Constitutions 7.36.3 · Anonymous | quotation, high confidence | ca. 380 |
| Deut 4:20 | Exposition of Psalm 118 20.11.1 · Ambrose | quotation, high confidence | ca. 386-397 |
Deuteronomy 4:21
The LORD, however, was angry with me on account of you, and He swore that I would not cross the Jordan to enter the good land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:21 | Eclogae on Exodus-Judges, column 803 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 220-254 |
Deuteronomy 4:23
Be careful that you do not forget the covenant of the LORD your God that He made with you; do not make an idol for yourselves in the form of anything He has forbidden you.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:23–24 | Against Adimantus, a Disciple of Mani 13 · Augustine of Hippo | quotation, high confidence | ca. 394 |
Deuteronomy 4:24
For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
Deuteronomy 4:25
After you have children and grandchildren and you have been in the land a long time, if you then act corruptly and make an idol of any form—doing evil in the sight of the LORD your God and provoking Him to anger—
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:25 | Instructions 1.2 · Commodian | allusion, low confidence | 3rd century (disputed) |
Deuteronomy 4:26
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live long upon it, but will be utterly destroyed.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:26 | Eclogae on Exodus-Judges, column 293 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 220-254 |
| Deut 4:26 | Eclogae on Exodus-Judges, column 803 · Origen | quotation, high confidence | ca. 220-254 |
| Deut 4:26 | PG 12:1445 (Ps 49 LXX) · Origen | allusion, high confidence | ca. 220-254 |
| Deut 4:26 | Tractates on the Psalms 118.1.7 · Hilary of Poitiers | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 360–367 |
| Deut 4:26 | Oration 36.6 · Gregory of Nazianzus | echo, medium confidence | ca. 362–383 |
| Deut 4:26 | On the Holy Spirit 13.30 · Basil of Caesarea | quotation, high confidence | ca. 374–375 |
| Deut 4:26 | Deuteronomy, lines 27–52 · Cyprianus Gallus | allusion, medium confidence | early 5th cent. |
| Deut 4:26 | The Conferences 21.5 · John Cassian | quotation, medium confidence | ca. 426–429 |
Deuteronomy 4:32
Indeed, ask now from one end of the heavens to the other about the days that long preceded you, from the day that God created man on earth: Has anything as great as this ever happened or been reported?
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:32 | Oration II Against the Arians 45 · Athanasius of Alexandria | quotation, high confidence | ca. 339–346 |
Deuteronomy 4:34
Or has any god tried to take as his own a nation out of another nation—by trials, signs, wonders, and war, by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors—as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, before your eyes?
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:34 | 1 Clement 29.3 · Clement of Rome | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 95–97 (range ca. 70–100) |
| Deut 4:34 | 1 Clement 60.3 · Clement of Rome | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 95–97 (range ca. 70–100) |
| Deut 4:34 | 6 Ezra 15.11 · Anonymous | allusion, medium confidence | 3rd century |
| Deut 4:34 | Homilies 16.6 · Anonymous | quotation, high confidence | 4th century (reworking earlier material) |
| Deut 4:34 | Apology of the Prophet David 43 · Ambrose | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 384-390 |
Deuteronomy 4:35
You were shown these things so that you would know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides Him.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:35 | Homilies 3.10 · Anonymous | allusion, medium confidence | 4th century (reworking earlier material) |
Deuteronomy 4:39
Know therefore this day and take to heart that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:39 | On the Trinity 3 · Novatian | quotation, high confidence | ca. 240–250 |
| Deut 4:39 | Homilies 16.7 · Anonymous | quotation, high confidence | 4th century (reworking earlier material) |
| Deut 4:39 | Recognitions 2.43 · Anonymous | quotation, high confidence | Greek original 3rd–4th century; Rufinus's Latin translation before 407 |
| Deut 4:39 | Preparation for the Gospel 3.10.5 · Eusebius of Caesarea | quotation, high confidence | ca. 313–324 |
| Deut 4:39 | Against Marcellus 2.2.34 · Eusebius of Caesarea | quotation, high confidence | ca. 336–337 |
| Deut 4:39 | On Ecclesiastical Theology 2.19.11 · Eusebius of Caesarea | quotation, high confidence | ca. 337–339 |
| Deut 4:39 | On Ecclesiastical Theology 2.19.12 · Eusebius of Caesarea | quotation, high confidence | ca. 337–339 |
| Deut 4:39 | Apostolic Constitutions 7.35.8 · Anonymous | quotation, high confidence | ca. 380 |
Deuteronomy 4:41
Then Moses set aside three cities across the Jordan to the east
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:41 | Arabic Pentateuch fragment XXI · Hippolytus of Rome | allusion, high confidence | unknown (transmitted in a medieval Arabic catena) |
Deuteronomy 4:42
to which a manslayer could flee after killing his neighbor unintentionally without prior malice. To save one’s own life, he could flee to one of these cities:
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:42 | Arabic Pentateuch fragment XXI · Hippolytus of Rome | allusion, high confidence | unknown (transmitted in a medieval Arabic catena) |
Deuteronomy 4:43
Bezer in the wilderness on the plateau belonging to the Reubenites, Ramoth in Gilead belonging to the Gadites, or Golan in Bashan belonging to the Manassites.
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:43 | Homilies on Numbers 28.3 · Origen | allusion, high confidence | ca. 238–250 (Rufinus's translation ca. 400–410) |
| Deut 4:43 | Demonstration 11.9 · Aphrahat | allusion, medium confidence | 337-345 |
Deuteronomy 4:45
These are the testimonies, statutes, and ordinances that Moses proclaimed to them after they had come out of Egypt,
| Reference | Passage | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deut 4:45 | Homilies on Numbers 11.1 · Origen | allusion, medium confidence | ca. 238–250 (Rufinus's translation ca. 400–410) |
| Deut 4:45 | Questions and Answers to the Orthodox 91–92 · Anonymous | allusion, high confidence | 5th century (disputed) |