The Meaning of Deuteronomy 6:21 Explained

Deuteronomy 6:21

KJV: Then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand:

YLT: then thou hast said to thy son, Servants we have been to Pharaoh in Egypt, and Jehovah bringeth us out of Egypt by a high hand;

Darby: then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt; and Jehovah brought us out of Egypt with a powerful hand;

ASV: then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt: and Jehovah brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then thou shalt say  unto thy son,  We were Pharaoh's  bondmen  in Egypt;  and the LORD  brought us out  of Egypt  with a mighty  hand: 

What does Deuteronomy 6:21 Mean?

Context Summary

Deuteronomy 6:20-25 - No Compromise With Idolatry
The great Lawgiver had His eye constantly on the coming generation. It is good when the children are so arrested by our religious life, that they come to ask us to tell them the reasons that account for it. Seek to live so purely and devoutly, and yet so attractively, that the young people around will be compelled to inquire after your secret, Luke 11:1.
We are not only to teach the children, but to guard them against forming friendships and making marriage alliances with those who might divert them from God. In the New Testament, Christians are forbidden to marry except "in the Lord," and equally stringent are prohibitions against worldly intercourse, 1 Corinthians 7:39; 2 Corinthians 6:14.
God can break the seven-fold power of sin in the heart of those who are absolutely given over to Him and are willing to surrender their evil ways. This is pledged to us by His fidelity and love, Deuteronomy 7:8-9. [source]

Chapter Summary: Deuteronomy 6

1  The end of the law is obedience
3  An exhortation thereto
20  What they are to teach their children

What do the individual words in Deuteronomy 6:21 mean?

Then you shall say to your son slaves we were of Pharaoh in Egypt and brought us out Yahweh of Egypt with a hand mighty
וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ לְבִנְךָ֔ עֲבָדִ֛ים הָיִ֥ינוּ לְפַרְעֹ֖ה בְּמִצְרָ֑יִם וַיּוֹצִיאֵ֧נוּ יְהוָ֛ה מִמִּצְרַ֖יִם בְּיָ֥ד חֲזָקָֽה

וְאָמַרְתָּ֣  Then  you  shall  say 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לְבִנְךָ֔  to  your  son 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
עֲבָדִ֛ים  slaves 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: עֶבֶד  
Sense: slave, servant.
הָיִ֥ינוּ  we  were 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common plural
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
לְפַרְעֹ֖ה  of  Pharaoh 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: פַּרְעֹה  
Sense: the common title of the king of Egypt.
בְּמִצְרָ֑יִם  in  Egypt 
Parse: Preposition-b, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִצְרַיִם  
Sense: a country at the northeastern section of Africa, adjacent to Palestine, and through which the Nile flows adj Egyptians = “double straits”.
וַיּוֹצִיאֵ֧נוּ  and  brought  us  out 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular, first person common plural
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
יְהוָ֛ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
מִמִּצְרַ֖יִם  of  Egypt 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִצְרַיִם  
Sense: a country at the northeastern section of Africa, adjacent to Palestine, and through which the Nile flows adj Egyptians = “double straits”.
בְּיָ֥ד  with  a  hand 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
חֲזָקָֽה  mighty 
Parse: Adjective, feminine singular
Root: חָזָק  
Sense: strong, stout, mighty.