Deuteronomy 32:41

³⁹ See now that I am He; there is no God besides Me. I bring death and I give life; I wound and I heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand.

⁴⁰ For I lift up My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever,

when I sharpen My flashing sword, and My hand grasps it in judgment, I will take vengeance on My adversaries and repay those who hate Me.

⁴² I will make My arrows drunk with blood, while My sword devours flesh— the blood of the slain and captives, the heads of the enemy leaders.”

⁴³ Rejoice, O heavens, with Him, and let all God’s angels worship Him. Rejoice, O nations, with His people; for He will avenge the blood of His children. He will take vengeance on His adversaries and repay those who hate Him; He will cleanse His land and His people.

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: when I sharpen My flashing sword, and My hand grasps it in judgment, I will take vengeance on My adversaries and repay those who hate Me.
KJV: If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me.
WEB: if I sharpen my glittering sword, my hand grasps it in judgment; I will take vengeance on my adversaries, and will repay those who hate me.
ASV: If I whet my glittering sword, And my hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine adversaries, And will recompense them that hate me.
DARBY: If I have sharpened my gleaming sword, And my hand take hold of judgment, I will render vengeance to mine adversaries, And will recompense them that hate me.
BLB: if I have sharpened the brightness of My sword, and My hand takes hold on judgment, I will turn back vengeance to My enemies and those who hate Me I will repay.

ÅB: Når jeg hvesser mitt lynende sverd og tar dommen i min hånd, da vil jeg føre hevn over mine fiender og gjengjelde dem som hater meg;
OTB: hvis jeg kvesser mitt glitrende sverd og min hånd griper til dom, vil jeg ta hevn på mine motstandere og vil gjengjelde dem som hater meg.
B1930: Når jeg hvesser mitt lynende sverd og tar dommen i min hånd, da vil jeg føre hevn over mine fiender og gjengjelde dem som hater mig;

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Isaiah 66:16
For by fire and by His sword, the LORD will execute judgment on all flesh, and many will be slain by the LORD.
Read in context
Isaiah 34:5–6
When My sword has drunk its fill in the heavens, then it will come down upon Edom, upon the people I have devoted to destruction.
Read in context
Exodus 20:5
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
Read in context
Psalms 7:12
If one does not repent, God will sharpen His sword; He has bent and strung His bow.
Read in context
Isaiah 27:1
In that day the LORD will take His sharp, great, and mighty sword, and bring judgment on Leviathan the fleeing serpent —Leviathan the coiling serpent—and He will slay the dragon of the sea.
Read in context
Ezekiel 21:20
Mark out one road for the sword to come against Rabbah of the Ammonites, and another against Judah into fortified Jerusalem.
Read in context
Deuteronomy 32:35
Vengeance is Mine; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; for their day of disaster is near, and their doom is coming quickly.”
Read in context
Romans 8:7
because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
Read in context