You were unmindful … you forgot: the two verbs mean the same thing and indicate a gradual apostasy on the part of the Israelites; they neglected and finally abandoned their own God.

The Rock: see verse 4; here Revised English Bible translates “the Creator.”

That begot you … who gave you birth: as the Revised Standard Version footnote indicates, the first verb may mean “who bore you,” which is the text of New Revised Standard Version. In Gen 4.18 it means “beget”; but most often it means “bear,” as a mother. The second verb is that of a mother giving birth, using a female figure for God. The first verb may be of a father (begot) or of a mother (“bore”). It is not really possible to decide this one way or the other. Some suggest that the writer deliberately used a male figure and a female figure; but it seems more reasonable to suppose that the two parallel lines have the same meaning, in both of them God being compared to a mother. It is recommended that this interpretation be followed. See similar sayings in Isa 49.15; 66.13.

The Contemporary English Version translation is a good model for translators to follow:

• You turned away
from God, your Creator;
you forgot the Mighty Rock,
the source of your life.

But it is important to retain the image of God as mother, so it is preferable to translate:

• You rejected the mighty Savior,
the one who bore you.
You turned away from the God
who gave you birth.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .