The Meaning of Deuteronomy 7:23 Explained

Deuteronomy 7:23

KJV: But the LORD thy God shall deliver them unto thee, and shall destroy them with a mighty destruction, until they be destroyed.

YLT: and Jehovah thy God hath given them before thee, and destroyed them -- a great destruction -- till their destruction;

Darby: But Jehovah thy God will give them up before thee, and will confound them with great consternation, until they are destroyed.

ASV: But Jehovah thy God will deliver them up before thee, and will discomfit them with a great discomfiture, until they be destroyed.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

But the LORD  thy God  shall deliver  them unto thee,  and shall destroy  them with a mighty  destruction,  until they be destroyed. 

What does Deuteronomy 7:23 Mean?

Context Summary

Deuteronomy 7:12-26 - What The Lord Does For His People
The promises to obedience are enlarged upon with touching copiousness. Love, blessing, keeping, peace, multiplication, fruit and health lie along the narrow pathway entered by the strait gate of the Cross. However forbidding its entrance, it "leadeth unto life." May Christ secure in us this obedience which He, too, demands and achieves by His Spirit! John 14:15.
Whatever be the strength of the Amalekites and Hittites of the heart, let us not fear. We have been "reconciled by His death" and shall be "saved by His life," Romans 5:10. "Little by little" is the law of progressive sanctification. The Holy Spirit shows us the next portion to be taken and the enemies that resist our prayers. But as we advance, they are driven out, Isaiah 54:17.
We resemble what we admire. Let us set our affections above. To abhor the evil and pursue the good casts a glory on our face. Compare Deuteronomy 7:26; Psalms 115:8; 2 Corinthians 3:18. [source]

Chapter Summary: Deuteronomy 7

1  All communion with the nations is forbidden
5  for fear of idolatry,
6  for the holiness of the people,
9  for the nature of God in his mercy and justice,
17  and for the assuredness of victory which God will give over them

What do the individual words in Deuteronomy 7:23 mean?

But will deliver them Yahweh your God over to you and will inflict upon them destruction mighty until they are destroyed
וּנְתָנָ֛ם יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לְפָנֶ֑יךָ וְהָמָם֙ מְהוּמָ֣ה גְדֹלָ֔ה עַ֖ד הִשָּׁמְדָֽם

וּנְתָנָ֛ם  But  will  deliver  them 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine plural
Root: יָתַן 
Sense: to give, put, set.
יְהוָ֥ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ  your  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
לְפָנֶ֑יךָ  over  to  you 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, common plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
וְהָמָם֙  and  will  inflict  upon  them 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine plural
Root: הָמַם 
Sense: to move noisily, confuse, make a noise, discomfit, break, consume, crush, destroy, trouble, vex.
מְהוּמָ֣ה  destruction 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: מְהוּמָה  
Sense: tumult, confusion, disquietude, discomfiture, destruction, trouble, vexed, vexation.
גְדֹלָ֔ה  mighty 
Parse: Adjective, feminine singular
Root: גָּבֹול 
Sense: great.
עַ֖ד  until 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
הִשָּׁמְדָֽם  they  are  destroyed 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Infinitive construct, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַד  
Sense: to destroy, exterminate, be destroyed, be exterminated.