Exodus 20:6 (WEB)

Passage

and showing loving kindness to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Nearby Context

Exodus 20:4 “You shall not make for yourselves an idol, nor any image of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:

Exodus 20:5 you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,

Exodus 20:6 and showing loving kindness to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Exodus 20:7 “You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain, for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

Exodus 20:8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "showing", "loving", "kindness", "thousands", "love", "keep", and "commandments". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "showing" and "loving", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "you shall not bow yourself down to..." into verse 7's "You shall not take the name of...", so "showing" and "loving" belong inside that flow. In Exodus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

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