Deu 21:10-25:19 | NASB2020 | STEP | “When you go out to battle against your enemies , and the Lord your God hands them over to you and you take them away captive ,

Deuteronomy 21:10-23

Domestic Relations

10 “When you go out to battle against your enemies, and ^athe Lord your God hands them over to you and you take them away captive, 11 and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and are strongly attracted to her and would take her as a wife for yourself, 12 then you shall bring her into your home, and she shall ^bshave her head and ^{▼▼Lit do}trim her nails. 13 She shall also ^{▼▼Lit remove from her}remove the clothes of her captivity and shall remain in your house, and ^eweep for her father and mother a full month; and after that you may have relations with her and become her husband and she shall be your wife. 14 But it shall be, if you are not pleased with her, then you shall let her go ^{▼▼Lit according to her soul}wherever she wishes; and you certainly shall not sell her for money, you shall not treat her as merchandise, since you have ^{▼▼I.e., by a forced marriage
,} ^hhumiliated her.

15 “If a man has two wives, the one loved and ⁱthe other ^{▼▼Or scorned; lit hated}unloved, and both the loved and the ^{▼▼Or scorned; lit hated}unloved have borne him sons, and the firstborn son belongs to the ^{▼▼Or scorned; lit hated}unloved, 16 then it shall be on the day that he wills what he owns as an inheritance to his sons, he is not allowed to treat the son of the loved wife as the firstborn, ^{▼▼Lit against the face of}at the expense of the son of the ^{▼▼See note v 15}unloved, who actually is the firstborn son. 17 On the contrary, he shall acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the ^{▼▼See note v 15}unloved wife, by giving him a double ^{▼▼Lit mouthful}portion of everything that ^{▼▼Lit is found with him}he owns, for he was the ^rbeginning of his ^{▼▼I.e., power of procreation}strength; ^tto him belongs the right of the firstborn.

18 “If any person has a stubborn and rebellious son who does ^unot obey his father or his mother, and when they discipline him, he does not listen to them, 19 then his father and mother shall seize him, and bring him out to the elders of his city ^{▼▼Lit and to the gate of his place}at the gateway of his hometown. 20 And they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he does not obey us, he is thoughtless and given to drinking.’ 21 ^wThen all the men of his city shall stone him to death; so ^xyou shall eliminate the evil from your midst, and ^yall Israel will hear about it and fear.

22 “Now if ^{▼▼Lit a sin is in a person carrying}a person has committed a sin carrying ^aaa sentence of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on ^{▼▼Lit wood}a tree, 23 ^achis body is not to be left overnight on the ^{▼▼Lit wood}tree, but you shall certainly bury him on the same day (for ^aehe who is hanged is cursed of God), so that you ^afdo not defile your land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.

Deuteronomy 22

Various Laws

1 “ ^agYou shall not see your countryman’s ox or his sheep straying away, and avoid them; you shall certainly bring them back to your countryman. 2 And if your countryman is not near you, or if you do not know him, then you shall bring it to your house, and it shall remain with you until your countryman looks for it; then you shall restore it to him. 3 You shall also do this with his donkey, and you shall do the same with his garment, and you shall do likewise with any lost property of your countryman, which has been lost by him and you have found. You are not allowed to avoid them. 4 You shall not see your countryman’s donkey or his ox fallen down on the road, and avoid them; you shall certainly help him raise them up.

5 “A woman shall not wear a man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God.

6 “If you happen to come upon a bird’s nest along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs in it, and the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, ^ahyou shall not take the mother with the young; 7 you shall certainly let the mother go, but the young you may take for yourself, ^aiin order that it may go well for you and that you may prolong your days.

8 “When you build a new house, you shall make a ^{▼▼I.e., a protective railing}parapet for your roof, so that you will not bring guilt for bloodshed on your house if anyone falls from it.

9 “ ^akYou shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, otherwise ^{▼▼Lit the fullness}all the produce of the seed which you have sown and the yield of the vineyard will be ^{▼▼Or forfeit, adj sense}forfeited to the sanctuary.

10 “ ^anYou shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together.

11 “ ^aoYou shall not wear a material of wool and linen combined together.

12 “ ^apYou shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of your garment with which you cover yourself.

Laws on Morality

13 “ ^aqIf any man takes a wife and goes in to her and then ^{▼▼Lit hates her}turns against her, 14 and he charges her with shameful behavior and ^{▼▼Lit brings out an evil reputation against her}publicly defames her, and says, ‘I took this woman, but when I came near her, I did not find her to have evidence of virginity,’ 15 then the girl’s father and her mother shall take and bring out the evidence of the girl’s virginity to the elders of the city at the gate. 16 And the girl’s father shall say to the elders, ‘I gave my daughter to this man as a wife, but he ^{▼▼Lit hated her}turned against her; 17 and behold, he has charged her with shameful behavior, saying, “I did not find your daughter to have evidence of virginity.” But ^{▼▼Lit these are}this is the evidence of my daughter’s virginity.’ And they shall spread out the garment before the elders of the city. 18 Then ^avthe elders of that city shall take the man and rebuke him, 19 and they shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give it to the girl’s father, because he ^{▼▼Lit brought out an evil reputation against a virgin}publicly defamed a virgin of Israel. And she shall remain his wife; he is not allowed to ^{▼▼Lit send her away}divorce her all his days.

20 “But if this ^{▼▼Lit matter
,} ^azcharge is true, and they did not find the girl to have evidence of virginity, 21 then they shall bring the girl out to the doorway of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her ^{▼▼Lit with stones so that she dies}to death, because she has ^bbcommitted a disgraceful sin in Israel by playing the prostitute in her father’s house; so ^bcyou shall eliminate the evil from among you.

22 “ ^bdIf a man is found sleeping with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who slept with the woman, and the woman; so you shall eliminate the evil from Israel.

23 “ ^beIf there is a girl who is a virgin ^{▼▼A betrothed couple was considered legally married, but did not yet live together}betrothed to a man, and another man finds her in the city and sleeps with her, 24 then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them ^{▼▼Lit with stones so that they die}to death: the girl, because she did not cry out for help though she was in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor’s wife. So you shall eliminate the evil from among you.

25 “But if the man finds the girl who is betrothed in the field, and the man seizes her and ^{▼▼Lit lies down with}rapes her, then only the man who ^{▼▼Lit lies down with}raped her shall die. 26 And you are not to do anything to the girl; there is no sin in the girl worthy of death, for just as a man rises against his neighbor and murders him, ^{▼▼I.e., she is only a victim}so is this case. 27 When he found her in the field, the betrothed girl ^{▼▼I.e., presumably did so}cried out, but there was no one to save her.

28 “ ^blIf a man finds a girl who is a virgin, who is not betrothed, and he seizes her and has sexual relations with her, and they are discovered, 29 then the man who had sexual relations with her shall give the girl’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall become his wife, because he has violated her; he is not allowed to divorce her all his days.

30 “ ^{▼▼Ch 23:1 in Heb
,} ^bnA man shall not take ^{▼▼I.e., a stepmother, not his birth mother}his father’s wife in marriage, so that he does not ^{▼▼Idiom for violating his father’s marriage}uncover his father’s garment.

Deuteronomy 23

Persons Excluded from the Assembly

1 “ ^bqNo one who is ^{▼▼Lit wounded by crushing of testicles}emasculated or has his male organ cut off may enter the assembly of the Lord. 2 No one of illegitimate birth may enter the assembly of the Lord; none of his descendants, even to the tenth generation, may enter the assembly of the Lord. 3 ^bsNo Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord; none of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, may ever enter the assembly of the Lord, 4 ^btbecause they did not meet you with ^{▼▼Lit bread}food and water on the way when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you ^bvBalaam the son of Beor from Pethor of ^{▼▼Heb Aram-naharaim}Mesopotamia, to curse you. 5 Nevertheless, the Lord your God was unwilling to listen to Balaam, but the Lord your God ^bxturned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God ^byloves you. 6 ^bzYou shall never seek their peace or their prosperity all your days.

7 “You shall not loathe an ^{▼▼I.e., a descendant of Esau}Edomite, for ^cbhe is your brother; you shall not loathe an Egyptian, ^ccbecause you were a stranger in his land. 8 The sons of the third generation who are born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord.

9 “When you go out as ^{▼▼Or a camp}an army against your enemies, you shall be on guard against every evil thing.

10 “ ^ceIf there is among you any man who is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, then he must go outside the camp; he may not ^{▼▼Lit come to the midst of}reenter the camp. 11 But when evening approaches, he shall bathe himself with water, and at sundown he may ^{▼▼Lit come to the midst of}reenter the camp.

12 “You shall also have a place allocated outside the camp, so that you may go out there to relieve yourself, 13 and you shall have a ^{▼▼Lit peg}spade among your tools, and it shall be when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and shall turn and cover up your excrement. 14 Since ^cithe Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp to save you and to ^{▼▼Lit give}defeat your enemies before you, your camp must be ^ckholy; so He must not see ^{▼▼Lit nakedness of anything}anything indecent among you ^{▼▼Lit and}or He will turn away from you.

15 “ ^cnYou shall not hand over to his master a slave who has ^{▼▼Lit delivered himself}escaped from his master to you. 16 He shall live with you in your midst, in the place that he chooses in one of your ^{▼▼Lit gates in the good to him}towns where it pleases him; ^cqyou shall not mistreat him.

17 “ ^crNone of the daughters of Israel shall be a cult prostitute, ^csnor shall any of the sons of Israel be a cult prostitute. 18 You shall not bring the earnings of a prostitute or the money for a ^{▼▼Prob. refers to a male prostitute
,} ^cudog into the house of the Lord your God as payment for any vowed offering, because both of these are an abomination to the Lord your God.

19 “ ^cvYou are not to charge interest to your countrymen: interest on money, food, or anything that may be loaned on interest. 20 ^cwYou may charge interest to a foreigner, but to your countrymen you shall not charge interest, so that ^cxthe Lord your God may bless you in all ^{▼▼Lit the putting forth of your hand}that you undertake in the land which you are about to enter to ^{▼▼Lit possess it}possess.

21 “ ^daWhen you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay to pay it, for the Lord your God will certainly require it of you, and it will be a sin ^{▼▼Lit in you}for you. 22 However, if you refrain from making vows, it will not be a sin ^{▼▼Lit in you}for you. 23 You shall be careful and perform what goes out of your lips, since in fact you have vowed a ^{▼▼Or freewill offering}voluntary offering to the Lord your God, whatever you have ^{▼▼Lit spoken with your mouth}promised.

24 “When you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat grapes ^{▼▼Lit according to your soul, your satiation}until you are satisfied; but you are not to put any in your ^{▼▼Lit container}basket.

25 “ ^dhWhen you enter your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the heads of grain with your hand, but you are not to ^{▼▼Lit brandish}use a sickle on your neighbor’s standing grain.

Deuteronomy 24

Law of Divorce

1 “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens, if she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some ^djindecency in her, that ^dkhe writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and ^{▼▼Or dismisses her}sends her away from his house, 2 and she leaves his house and goes and becomes another man’s wife, 3 and the latter husband ^{▼▼Lit hates her}turns against her, writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand, and ^{▼▼Or dismisses her}sends her away from his house, or if the latter husband who took her to be his wife dies, 4 then her ^doformer husband who ^{▼▼Or dismissed her}sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife, after ^{▼▼I.e., in relationship to him}she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before the Lord, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.

5 “ ^drWhen a man takes a new wife, he is not to go out with the army, nor be assigned any duty; he shall be free at home for one year and shall ^dsmake his wife whom he has taken happy.

Various Laws

6 “No one shall seize a handmill or an upper millstone as a pledge for a loan, since he would be seizing the debtor’s ^{▼▼Lit soul}means of life as a pledge.

7 “ ^duIf someone is ^{▼▼Lit found stealing}caught kidnapping any of his countrymen of the sons of Israel, and he treats him as merchandise and sells him, then that thief shall die; so you shall eliminate the evil from among you.

8 “ ^dwBe careful about an infestation of leprosy, that you are very attentive and act in accordance with everything that the Levitical priests teach you; just as I have commanded them, you shall be careful to act. 9 Remember what the Lord your God did ^dxto Miriam on the way as you came out of Egypt.

10 “ ^dyWhen you make your neighbor a loan of any kind, you shall not enter his house to take his pledge. 11 You shall stand outside, and the person to whom you are making the loan shall bring the pledge outside to you. 12 And if he is a poor man, you shall not sleep with his pledge. 13 ^dzWhen the sun goes down you shall certainly return the pledge to him, so that he may sleep in his cloak and bless you; and ^eait will be righteousness for you before the Lord your God.

14 “ ^ebYou shall not exploit a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your countrymen or one of your strangers who are in your land in your ^{▼▼Lit gates}towns. 15 ^edYou shall give him his wages on his day ^{▼▼Lit that the sun shall not go down on it}before the sun sets--for he is poor and sets his ^{▼▼Lit soul}heart on it--so that ^eghe does not cry out against you to the Lord, and it becomes a sin in you.

16 “ ^ehFathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own sin alone.

17 “ ^eiYou shall not pervert the justice ^{▼▼Lit of}due a stranger or ^{▼▼Or the fatherless}an orphan, nor ^elseize a widow’s garment as a ^{▼▼I.e., for a loan}pledge. 18 But you are to remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and that the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore I am commanding you to do this thing.

19 “ ^enWhen you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you are not to go back to get it; it shall belong ^eoto the stranger, the ^{▼▼Or fatherless}orphan, and to the widow, in order that the Lord your God ^eqmay bless you in all the work of your hands. 20 ^erWhen you beat the olives off your olive tree, you are not to search through the branches ^{▼▼Lit after yourself}again; that shall be left ^etfor the stranger, the ^{▼▼Or fatherless}orphan, and for the widow.

21 “When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you are not to ^{▼▼Lit glean it after yourself}go over it again; that shall be left for the stranger, the ^{▼▼Or fatherless}orphan, and the widow. 22 And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I am commanding you to do this thing.

Deuteronomy 25

Various Laws

1 “ ^exIf there is a dispute between people and they go to ^{▼▼Lit the judgment}court, and ^{▼▼Lit they judge them}the judges decide their case, ^faand they declare the righteous innocent and pronounce the wicked guilty, 2 then it shall be if the wicked person ^{▼▼Lit is a son of beating
,} ^fcdeserves to be beaten, the judge shall then make him lie down and have him beaten in his presence with the number of lashes according to his ^{▼▼Or guilt}wrongful act. 3 ^feHe may have him beaten forty times, but not more, so that he does not have him beaten with many more lashes than these, and that your brother does not ^ffbecome contemptible in your eyes.

4 “ ^fgYou shall not muzzle the ox while it is threshing.

5 “When brothers live together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the deceased shall not be married outside the family to a strange man. ^fhHer husband’s brother shall have relations with her and take her to himself as his wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her. 6 It shall then be that the firstborn to whom she gives birth shall ^{▼▼Lit stand on}assume the name of his father’s deceased brother, so that ^fjhis name will not be wiped out from Israel. 7 ^fkBut if the man does not desire to take his brother’s widow, then his brother’s widow shall go up to the gate to the elders, and say, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to establish a name for his brother in Israel; he is not willing to perform the duty of a husband’s brother to me.’ 8 Then the elders of his city shall summon him and speak to him. And if he persists and says, ‘I do not desire to take her,’ 9 ^flthen his brother’s widow shall come up to him in the sight of the elders, and pull his sandal off his foot and ^fmspit in his face; and she shall ^{▼▼Lit answer and say}declare, ‘This is what is done to the man who does not build up his brother’s house!’ 10 And in Israel ^{▼▼Lit his name shall be called}his family shall be called by the name, ‘The house of him whose sandal was removed.’

11 “If two men, a man and his countryman, have a fight ^{▼▼Lit together}with each other, and the wife of one comes up to save her husband from the hand of the one who is hitting him, and she reaches out with her hand and grasps ^{▼▼Lit his}that man’s genitals, 12 then you shall cut off her ^{▼▼Lit palm}hand; ^{▼▼Lit your eye
,} ^ftyou shall not show pity.

13 “ ^fuYou shall not have in your bag ^{▼▼Lit a stone and a stone}differing weights, a large and a small. 14 You shall not have in your house ^{▼▼Lit an ephah and an ephah}differing measures, a large and a small. 15 You shall have a correct and honest ^{▼▼Lit stone}weight; you shall have a correct and honest ^{▼▼Lit ephah}measure, ^fzso that your days may be prolonged ^{▼▼Lit on the ground}in the land which the Lord your God is giving you. 16 For ^gbeveryone who does these things, everyone who acts unjustly is an abomination to the Lord your God.

17 “ ^gcRemember what Amalek did to you on the way when you came out of Egypt, 18 how he confronted you on the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were tired and weary; and he ^gddid not ^{▼▼Or revere}fear God. 19 So it shall come about, when the Lord your God has given you ^gfrest from all your surrounding enemies in the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance to ^{▼▼Lit possess it}possess, that you shall wipe out the mention of the name Amalek from under heaven; you must not forget.