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See the exact Deuteronomy 30:20 form guide with morphology, clause role, and guardrails.
OpenForm Insight
How לְאַֽהֲבָה֙ Works in Deuteronomy 30:20
A focused form insight on Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person feminine singular in Deuteronomy 30:20.
Focused term לְאַֽהֲבָה֙ lə·’a·hă·ḇāh H157 Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person feminine singular
Deuteronomy 30:20 - BSB
And that you may love the Lord your God, obey Him, and hold fast to Him. For He is your life, and He will prolong your life in the land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
The Question
How does לְאַֽהֲבָה֙ function in Deuteronomy 30:20?
Short Answer
לְאַֽהֲבָה֙ is a Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person feminine singular in Deuteronomy 30:20. The form clarifies that love for the Lord is part of the verse's covenant-response chain, joined to obeying His voice and holding fast to Him.
What the Form Is Doing
לְאַֽהֲבָה֙ appears in Deuteronomy 30:20 as a Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person feminine singular. It expresses the love response that belongs to the life-and-cleaving appeal of the verse, not an isolated emotion detached from obedience.
The lamed prefix and infinitive construct create a dependent verbal phrase. In Deuteronomy 30:20, the phrase belongs to the call to choose life and is coordinated with obeying the Lord and holding fast to Him.
Why It Matters for Interpretation
The form clarifies that love for the Lord is part of the verse's covenant-response chain, joined to obeying His voice and holding fast to Him.
The form carries the love phrase in a climactic covenant appeal where love, obedience, holding fast, life, and promise are joined.
Translation Effect
The lamed-prefixed infinitive directly supports an English purpose or result phrase such as "that you may love" or "to love."
The form guide should support the public Bible reading, not replace it with a private rendering.
What It Does Not Prove
Do not derive a full theology of love, perseverance, or human ability from Prep-l | V-Qal-Inf | 3fs alone. The form marks the dependent love phrase in this occurrence.
Grammar should serve context, not override it.
Do not make an attached prefix carry more interpretive weight than the sentence gives it.
Evidence from the Form Guide
The BSB+ row for Deuteronomy 30:20 links the English rendering "and that you may love" with לְאַֽהֲבָה֙, Strong's H157, and the morphology label Prep-l | V-Qal-Inf | 3fs.
When teaching Deuteronomy 30:20, use this form to show that love for the Lord is woven into the verse's call to life, obedience, and covenant attachment.
What It Does Not Prove
- Do not derive a full theology of love, perseverance, or human ability from Prep-l | V-Qal-Inf | 3fs alone. The form marks the dependent love phrase in this occurrence.
- Grammar should serve context, not override it.
- Do not make an attached prefix carry more interpretive weight than the sentence gives it.
- Do not treat the attached suffix as a complete theology of the participant; let the verse identify the relationship.