“The LORD our God, the LORD is One”
Deuteronomy 6:4
Foreign wordSettledMoses
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One. (Deuteronomy 6:4 BSB)
* Hebrew: Shema Yisrael; 'Shema' means 'hear' and 'obey' at once. These words open Judaism's central creed, recited morning and evening and traditionally the last words a Jew speaks in life.
What it sounds like today
A simple statement that there is one God.
The cultural key
Known by its first word as the Shema, this is the bedrock confession of Israel's faith, recited twice daily and taught to children first. 'Hear' (shema) means not just to listen but to heed and obey. The line declares the LORD's uniqueness and unity in a world crowded with gods, and it became so central that a faithful Jew aimed to die with it on the lips. When asked for the greatest commandment, Jesus began his answer by quoting the Shema.
Recovered meaning
The most repeated sentence in Judaism is a call to hear and hold fast to one God alone. It anchors everything that follows, and Jesus names it the ground of the greatest commandment.
Parallels: Mark 12:29; Deuteronomy 6:5