Deuteronomy 10:21

Deu 10:21 He [is] thy praise, and he [is] thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen.

Ver. 21. He is thy praise.] Thy praised One, {Psa 18:3} or, Thy praiseworthy One. He is also thy chief glory and praise amongst all nations, who shall admire thy happiness in such a God.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Deu_10:21

Done for thee these great and terrible things.

The great doings of God

I. In what the great deeds of God consist.

1. In Salvation. God, who delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt, has wrought a great work of deliverance on behalf of the human race. Greater than any deed of vengeance is the Divine interposition by which mankind is saved from the penalty and the curse of sin.

2. In the supply of all wants. The Lord, who gave Israel bread from heaven and water from the flint rock, has made, in the dispensation of His grace, a sufficient supply for the spiritual needs of all mankind.

3. In protection and deliverance from all dangers, and from the assaults of every foe.

II. By what the great deeds of God are prompted.

1. By the spectacle of the need, the misery, the helplessness of men.

2. By the pity and loving kindness of the Infinite Heart.

III. To what the great deeds of God should lead those who profit by them.

1. To gratitude and praise. The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad. Bless the Lord, O my soul.

2. To cheerful obedience. The memory of Divine favours should not only awaken gladness; it should remind us of Gods claims upon us, upon our love, our life, our all. (Family Churchman.)

Praise and obedience

He who would serve God must begin by praising God, for a grateful heart is the mainspring of obedience. We must offer the salt of gratitude with the sacrifice of obedience; our lives should be anointed with the precious oil of thankfulness. As soldiers march to music, so while we walk in the paths of righteousness we should keep step to the notes of thanksgiving. Larks sing as they mount, so should we magnify the Lord for His mercies, while we are winging our way to heaven. Our thanksgiving is not a swallow which is gone with the summer. The birds within our bosom sing all the year round, and on such a day as this their song is doubly welcome. The fire of gratitude will help to warm us--heap on the big logs of loving memories. No cold shall freeze the genial current of our soul; our praise shall flow on when brooks and rivers are bound in ice. Let us see who among us can best rejoice in the Lord in all weathers.

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 21. He is thy praise] It is an eternal honour to any soul to be in the friendship of God. Why are people ashamed of being thought religious? Because they know nothing of religion. He who knows his Maker may glory in his God, for without him what has any soul but disgrace, pain, shame, and perdition? How strange is it that those who fear God should be ashamed to own it, while sinners boldly proclaim their relationship to Satan!

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

21. He] in an emphatic position.

thy praise] Either the object of thy praise (cp. Psa_109:1, God of my praise), or cause of thy fame, thy renown, viz. by the deeds He has done for thee, Jer_17:14.

great and terrible things] Deu_4:34 great terrors; cp. Deu_6:22, Deu_7:19.

which thine eyes have seen] So Deu_4:9; Deu_7:19; Deu_29:3 (2), all Sg. as here; but in Deu_29:2 (1) before your eyes; cp. Deu_11:2. The nation is regarded as identical through all its generations. See on Deu_4:9.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He is thy praise,.... The object and matter of it, who deserves the praises of all his creatures, because of his perfections, works, and blessings of goodness; for all mercies temporal and spiritual come from him, and therefore he is greatly to be praised for them: praise is his due, and it is comely in his people to give it to him; see Jer 17:14.

and he is thy God which hath done for thee these great and terrible things which thine eyes have seen; which were done upon the Egyptians for their sakes, both in the land of Egypt and at the Red sea; and also what he had done for them in the wilderness, to Sihon and Og, kings of the Amorites, Psa 106:22.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Praise, the object whom thou must praise, and the source of all thy happiness and glory. Other nations will revere the Jews on this account. (Calmet) --- An ancient oracle could not refuse giving them this singular commendation, though to the prejudice of idolatry. "Chaldeans alone philosophy may claim --- but Hebrews worship God, the self-born King --- with pure religion." (Haydock) --- agnos, (Calmet) St. Cyril, contra Julian 5., and St. Justin Martyr, Hortatory Address to the Greeks xi., read auton, him. But the meaning is clear from the context. The palm of wisdom is given to the Chaldeans for natural learning, and to the Jews for divinity. (Watson, Proleg. xii.) Porphyrius owns the oracle. (Theodoret) (Haydock)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Thy praise; either,

1. The object and matter of thy praise, as Exo 15:2, whom thou shouldst ever praise. Or rather,

2. The ground of thy praise, i.e. of thy praise-worthiness; he who makes thee honourable and glorious above those people whose God he is not.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

He is thy praise, i.e. the Object of thy praise; the Being who had given them abundant cause to praise him, and whom they were bound continually to praise (cf. Psa_22:3 Psa_109:1; Jer_17:14) Terrible things; acts which by their greatness and awful effects inspired fear and dread into those by whom they were witnessed. For thee; literally, with thee, i.e. either in thy view or towards thee, for thy behoof (comp. Deu_1:30; 1Sa_12:7; Zec_7:9; and such an expression as "deal kindly literally, do Madness) with,". (Gen_24:49, etc.)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thy praise - The object and matter of thy praise, as Exod. xv, 2, whom thou shouldest ever praise.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

HE IS THY PRAISE, AND HE IS THY G-D. The meaning thereof is that He should be your [sole object of] praise, that you are to devote all your praise to Him, praising Him always and not to give His glory to another, neither His praise to graven images, nor to the gods and lords mentioned. Or he may be stating: “He is thy praise, for through Him you are praised above all peoples,” similar in expression to the verses, For Thou art the glory of their strength; O Eternal, my strength, and my stronghold.

And He is thy G-d, for He has especially addressed His Name to you, that you be unto Himself for a people, and that He may be unto thee a G-d, unlike the rest of the peoples to whom He is the G-d of [the various] gods [i.e., angels, etc.] that He allotted to them, as I have explained, because he has done for you the great and tremendous things from which you can recognize that you are His portion and His inheritance, and His eyes are always upon you for good.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.