Deuteronomy 21:17
New English Translation
17 Rather, he must acknowledge the son of the less-loved wife[a] as firstborn and give him the double portion[b] of all he has, for that son is the beginning of his father’s procreative power[c]—to him should go the right of the firstborn.
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- Deuteronomy 21:17 tn See note on the word “other” in v. 15.
- Deuteronomy 21:17 tn Heb “measure of two.” The Hebrew expression פִּי שְׁנַיִם (pi shenayim) suggests a two-thirds split; that is, the elder gets two parts and the younger one part. Cf. 2 Kgs 2:9; Zech 13:8. The practice is implicit in Isaac’s blessing of Jacob (Gen 25:31-34) and Jacob’s blessing of Ephraim (Gen 48:8-22).
- Deuteronomy 21:17 tn Heb “his generative power” (אוֹן, ʾon; cf. HALOT 22 s.v.). Cf. NAB “the firstfruits of his manhood”; NRSV “the first issue of his virility.”
Deuteronomy 21:17
King James Version
17 But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.
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Deuteronomy 21:17
English Standard Version
17 but he shall acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the unloved, by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is (A)the firstfruits of his strength. (B)The right of the firstborn is his.
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