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Psalm 78:5
For he established a covenant in Jacob, and appointed a teaching in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children;
3which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.
4We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, his strength, and his wondrous deeds that he has done.
5For he established a covenant in Jacob, and appointed a teaching in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children;
6that the generation to come might know, even the children who should be born; who should arise and tell their children,
7that they might set their hope in God, and not forget God’s deeds, but keep his commandments,
Notice
The command to teach children makes passing on God's word a responsibility rooted in his covenant, reaching beyond the generation that first received it.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What did someone from an older generation help you understand about God's teaching?
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Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Psalm 147:19He shows his word to Jacob, his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.Both passages name Jacob and Israel as recipients of God's word and teaching.
Ephesians 6:4You fathers, don’t provoke your children to wrath, but nurture them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.Both passages charge fathers with teaching their children what comes from God.
Deuteronomy 6:7and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, …Both passages command teaching children; Deuteronomy describes how that teaching belongs within the routines of a day.
Deuteronomy 4:45These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the ordinances which Moses spoke to the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt,Both passages concern teaching given to Israel, with Deuteronomy naming Moses as the one who spoke it.
Genesis 18:19For I have known him, to the end that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and …Both passages describe a father's responsibility to make God's commands known to the children who come after him.
Psalm 81:5He appointed it in Joseph for a covenant, when he went out over the land of Egypt, I heard a language that I didn’t know.Both passages speak of God appointing a covenant, naming Jacob in one and Joseph in the other.
Isaiah 8:20Turn to the law and to the covenant! If they don’t speak according to this word, surely there is no morning for them.Both passages join covenant with authoritative teaching, though Isaiah addresses speaking according to that word rather than teaching children.
Deuteronomy 11:19You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.The command to teach children appears in both; Deuteronomy names household talk as a setting for passing it on.
Romans 3:2Much in every way! Because first of all, they were entrusted with the revelations of God.Both passages describe people receiving God's revelation; the psalm adds the command to make it known to their children.
Isaiah 38:19The living, the living, he shall praise you, as I do today. The father shall make known your truth to the children.Both passages name fathers making God's truth known to children.
Exodus 40:3You shall put the ark of the covenant in it, and you shall screen the ark with the veil.Both mention the covenant; Exodus concerns the ark and veil, while the psalm concerns teaching children.
Psalm 78:3–4which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.The fathers' telling in verse 3 reflects the command in verse 5 to make God's teaching known to children.
Where this verse fits
Parenting. sermon or Bible study notes.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
Children matter within God's command to Israel. The teaching he established was to reach them through the words of those who had received it before them.
Now put it in your words.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).