Deuteronomy 32:30

30 How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?

Deuteronomy 32:30 in Other Translations

30 How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had shut them up?

30 How could one have chased a thousand, and two have put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had given them up?

30 How could one person chase a thousand of them, and two people put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?

30 How could one soldier chase a thousand enemies off, or two men run off two thousand, Unless their Rock had sold them, unless God had given them away?

30 How should one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, Except their Rock had sold them, And Jehovah had delivered them up?

30 How could one person chase a thousand or two people make ten thousand flee? Their rock used these people to defeat them and the LORD gave them no help.

30 How could one man pursue a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the Lord had given them up?

30 How could one person chase a thousand? How could two make ten thousand run away? It couldn't happen unless their Rock had deserted them. It couldn't take place unless the LORD had given them up.

Deuteronomy 32:30 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 32:30

How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to
flight
This is said for the conviction of the Pagan Romans of their folly in behaving strangely, attributing to their gods what belonged to the true God; for since the Jews were more numerous than they, both in Judea, in the times of Titus Vespasian, when the country was subdued by him; and in other parts of the world, in the times of Adrian, when the Jews rose up in vast numbers, greatly superior to the Romans, and yet were conquered; which, allowing the phrase to be hyperbolical, was like one to a thousand, and two to ten thousand: now since this was what was promised to the Jews in case of obedience, that they should in this manner chase their enemies, ( Leviticus 26:8 ) ; it cannot be accounted for that they should in like manner be chased by their enemies, as threatened ( Isaiah 30:17 ) ;

except their rock had sold them, and the Lord had shut them up;
that is, unless the Lord, who was their rock and fortress, and in whom they should have trusted as such, had forsaken them, and given them up into their enemies' hands, shut up as they were in the city of Jerusalem in the times of Titus, and afterwards in Bither in the times of Adrian; it is a plain case that this was of God, and not owing to the idols of the Gentiles; see ( Psalms 44:9-12 ) ; Cocceius and Van Till interpret this of Constantine overcoming Maxentius, Licinius, and Maximinius, whereby the whole Roman empire on a sudden became Christian nominally, when but a little before Dioclesian had erected a trophy with this inscription on it,

``the Christian name blotted out;''

so that the odds between the Christians and Pagans were as one to a thousand, and two to ten thousand, and the victory therefore must be ascribed to God; this could never have been unless Satan, the great red dragon, had given his kingdom to the beast, which was done by the permission and sovereign will of God; see ( Revelation 6:14 ) ( Revelation 12:7 Revelation 12:8 ) ( 13:2 ) ( 17:17 ) ; so those interpreters, but the former sense seems best.

Deuteronomy 32:30 In-Context

28 They are a nation without sense, there is no discernment in them.

29 If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be!

30 How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?

31 For their rock is not like our Rock, as even our enemies concede.

32 Their vine comes from the vine of Sodom and from the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are filled with poison, and their clusters with bitterness.

Cross References

• 1. S Leviticus 26:8
• 2. Judges 2:14; Judges 3:8; Judges 4:2; Judges 10:7; 1 Samuel 12:9
• 3. Numbers 21:34; 1 Samuel 23:7; Psalms 31:8; Psalms 44:12; Psalms 106:41; Isaiah 50:1; Isaiah 54:6