Deuteronomy 31:18 (GNV)

Passage

But I will surely hide my face in that day, because of all the euill, which they shall commit, in that they are turned vnto other gods.

Nearby Context

Deuteronomy 31:16 And the Lord said vnto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleepe with thy fathers, and this people will rise vp, and goe a whoring after the gods of a strange land (whither they goe to dwell therein) and will forsake me, and breake my couenant which I haue made with them.

Deuteronomy 31:17 Wherefore my wrath will waxe hote against them at that day, and I will forsake them, and will hide my face from them: then they shalbe consumed, and many aduersities and tribulations shall come vpon them: so then they will say, Are not these troubles come vpon me, because God is not with me?

Deuteronomy 31:18 But I will surely hide my face in that day, because of all the euill, which they shall commit, in that they are turned vnto other gods.

Deuteronomy 31:19 Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouthes, that this song may be my witnesse against the children of Israel.

Deuteronomy 31:20 For I will bring them into the land (which I sware vnto their fathers) that floweth with milke and honie, and they shall eate, and fil them selues, and waxe fat: then shall they turne vnto other gods, and serue them, and contemne me, and breake my couenant.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "surely", "hide", "face", "euill", "shall", "commit", "turned", and "vnto". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "surely" and "hide", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "Wherefore my wrath will waxe hote against..." into verse 19's "Now therefore write ye this song for...", so "surely" and "hide" 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 "surely" and "hide" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.