Deuteronomy 7:10 (GNV)

Passage

And rewardeth them to their face that hate him, to bring them to destruction: he wil not deferre to reward him that hateth him, to his face.

Nearby Context

Deuteronomy 7:8 But because the Lord loued you, and because hee would keepe the othe which hee had sworne vnto your fathers, the Lord hath brought you out by a mightie hand, and deliuered you out of the house of bondage from the hand of Pharaoh King of Egypt,

Deuteronomy 7:9 That thou mayest knowe, that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithfull God which keepeth couenant and mercie vnto them that loue him and keepe his commandements, euen to a thousand generations,

Deuteronomy 7:10 And rewardeth them to their face that hate him, to bring them to destruction: he wil not deferre to reward him that hateth him, to his face.

Deuteronomy 7:11 Keepe thou therefore the commandements, and the ordinances, and the lawes, which I commaund thee this day to doe them.

Deuteronomy 7:12 For if ye hearken vnto these lawes, and obserue and doe them, then the Lord thy God shall keepe with thee the couenant, and the mercie which he sware vnto thy fathers.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "rewardeth", "face", "hate", "bring", "destruction", "deferre", and "hateth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "rewardeth" and "face", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "That thou mayest knowe that the Lord..." into verse 11's "Keepe thou therefore the commandements and the...", so "rewardeth" and "face" 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 "rewardeth" and "face" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.