Deuteronomy 31:18 (DRB)

Passage

But I will hide, and cover my face in that day, for all the evils which they have done, because they have followed strange gods.

Nearby Context

Deuteronomy 31:16 And the Lord said to Moses: Behold thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, and this people rising up will go a fornicating after strange gods in the land, to which it goeth in to dwell: there will they forsake me, and will make void the covenant, which I have made with them,

Deuteronomy 31:17 And my wrath shall be kindled against them in that day: and I will forsake them, and will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured: all evils and afflictions shall find them, so that they shall say in that day: In truth it is because God is not with me, that these evils have found me.

Deuteronomy 31:18 But I will hide, and cover my face in that day, for all the evils which they have done, because they have followed strange gods.

Deuteronomy 31:19 Now therefore write you this canticle, and teach the children of Israel: that they may know it by heart, and sing it by mouth, and this song may be unto me for a testimony among the children of Israel.

Deuteronomy 31:20 For I will bring them into the land, for which I swore to their fathers, that floweth with milk and honey. And when they have eaten, and are full and fat, they will turn away after strange gods, and will serve them: and will despise me, and make void my covenant.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hide", "cover", "face", "evils", "done", "followed", "strange", and "gods". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hide" and "cover", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "And my wrath shall be kindled against..." into verse 19's "Now therefore write you this canticle and...", so "hide" and "cover" belong inside that flow. In Deuteronomy context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "hide" and "cover" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.