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Deuteronomy 23
Lexham English Bible

23 “No man with crushed testicles[a] or whose male organ is cut off[b] may come into the assembly of Yahweh.

2 An illegitimate child may not come into the assembly of Yahweh; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants[c] may come into the assembly of Yahweh.

3 An Ammonite or a Moabite may not come into the assembly of Yahweh; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants[d] may come into the assembly of Yahweh forever,[e] 4 because[f] they did not come to meet you with food and with water when you came out of Egypt,[g] and also because[h] they[i] hired Balaam, son of Beor, from Pethor, in Aram Naharaim[j] to act against you to curse you. 5 But Yahweh your God was not willing to listen to Balaam, and Yahweh your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because Yahweh your God loved you. 6 You shall not promote their welfare or their prosperity all your days forever.[k]

7 “You shall not abhor an Edomite, because he is your brother; you shall not abhor an Egyptian because you were an alien in his land. 8 The children[l] that are born to them in the third generation may come representing them[m] in the assembly of Yahweh.

9 “If[n] you go out to encamp against your enemies, then you shall guard against doing anything evil.

10 “If there is among you a man that is not clean because of a seminal emission during the night,[o] he shall go outside the camp; he shall not come within the camp. 11 And then[p] toward the coming[q] of the evening, he shall bathe with[r] water, and at the going down[s] of the sun, he may come to the midst of the camp.

12 “And there shall be for you a designated place outside the camp; and you shall go there to relieve yourself,[t] 13 and a digging tool[u] shall be included in addition to your other utensils[v] for yourself; and then[w] when you relieve yourself[x] outside the camp you shall dig with it, and then you shall turn, and you shall cover your excrement. 14 For Yahweh your God is walking about in the midst of your camp to deliver you and to hand your enemies over to you before you,[y] and so let your camp be holy, so that he shall not see in it anything indecent,[z] and he shall turn away from going with you.[aa]

15 “And you shall not hand over a slave to his master who has escaped and fled to you from his master. 16 He shall reside with you in your midst in the place that he chooses in one of your towns wherever he pleases;[ab] you shall not oppress him.

17 “No woman of Israel[ac] shall be a temple prostitute, and no man of Israel[ad] shall be a male shrine prostitute. 18 You may not bring the hire[ae] of a prostitute or the earnings of a male prostitute[af] into the house of Yahweh your God, for any vow offerings, because both[ag] are a detestable thing to Yahweh your God.

19 “You shall not charge your brother interest on money,[ah] interest on[ai] food, or interest on[aj] anything that one could lend[ak] on interest. 20 You may lend on interest to the foreigner, but to your countryman[al] you may not lend on interest, so that Yahweh your God may bless you in all your undertakings[am] in the land where you are going,[an] in order to take possession of it.[ao]

21 “When you make a vow[ap] to Yahweh your God, you shall not postpone fulfillment of it,[aq] for certainly Yahweh your God shall require it from you and if postponed you will incur guilt.[ar] 22 And if you refrain from vowing,[as] you shall not incur guilt.[at] 23 The utterance of your lips you must perform diligently[au] just as you have vowed freely to Yahweh your God whatever it was that you promised[av] with your mouth.

24 “When[aw] you come into the vineyard of your neighbor, then you may eat grapes as you please[ax] and until you are full,[ay] but you shall not put any into your container.

25 “When[az] you come into the standing grain of your neighbor, then you may pluck ears with your hand, but you may not swing[ba] a sickle among the standing grain of your neighbor.”

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 23:1 Literally “bruised of crushing”
  2. Deuteronomy 23:1 Literally “cut off of male organ”
  3. Deuteronomy 23:2 Literally “to him”
  4. Deuteronomy 23:3 Literally “to him”
  5. Deuteronomy 23:3 Literally “until eternity”
  6. Deuteronomy 23:4 Literally “because of the event when”
  7. Deuteronomy 23:4 Literally “at your going out of Egypt”
  8. Deuteronomy 23:4 Literally “because of the event when”
  9. Deuteronomy 23:4 Hebrew “he,” but with plural meaning
  10. Deuteronomy 23:4 Or “Mesopotamia” = “between the rivers”
  11. Deuteronomy 23:6 Literally “until eternity”
  12. Deuteronomy 23:8 Or “sons”
  13. Deuteronomy 23:8 Literally “for them” or possibly “become members of”
  14. Deuteronomy 23:9 Or “when”
  15. Deuteronomy 23:10 Literally “of the night”
  16. Deuteronomy 23:11 Literally “And it will happen/come about that”
  17. Deuteronomy 23:11 Literally “turning”
  18. Deuteronomy 23:11 Hebrew “in” but this is instrumental use of this preposition
  19. Deuteronomy 23:11 The verb can mean “coming/going” and here it means “going”
  20. Deuteronomy 23:12 Literally “and you shall go out there, outside to relieve yourself”
  21. Deuteronomy 23:13 Or “spade”
  22. Deuteronomy 23:13 Hebrew “utensil”
  23. Deuteronomy 23:13 Literally “and it will happen”
  24. Deuteronomy 23:13 Literally “at your sitting”
  25. Deuteronomy 23:14 Literally “to give your enemies to the face of you”
  26. Deuteronomy 23:14 Literally “nakedness of a thing”
  27. Deuteronomy 23:14 Literally “from behind/after you”
  28. Deuteronomy 23:16 Literally “in your gates good for him”
  29. Deuteronomy 23:17 Literally “from the daughters of Israel”
  30. Deuteronomy 23:17 Literally “from the sons of Israel”
  31. Deuteronomy 23:18 Literally “gift”
  32. Deuteronomy 23:18 Literally “the earnings of a dog”
  33. Deuteronomy 23:18 Literally “both, the two of them”
  34. Deuteronomy 23:19 Literally “You shall not lend on interest to your brother, interest of money”
  35. Deuteronomy 23:19 Hebrew “of”
  36. Deuteronomy 23:19 Hebrew “of”
  37. Deuteronomy 23:19 Or “can lend”
  38. Deuteronomy 23:20 Or “brother”
  39. Deuteronomy 23:20 Literally “in all the sendings out of your hand”
  40. Deuteronomy 23:20 Literally “the land that you are going there”
  41. Deuteronomy 23:20 Literally “to take possession”
  42. Deuteronomy 23:21 Literally “When/if you vow a vow”
  43. Deuteronomy 23:21 Literally “to fulfill it”
  44. Deuteronomy 23:21 Literally “it shall become against you as sin”
  45. Deuteronomy 23:22 Literally “if you refrain to make a vow”
  46. Deuteronomy 23:22 Literally “it shall not become against you as sin”
  47. Deuteronomy 23:23 Literally “you must observe and you shall do”
  48. Deuteronomy 23:23 Or “spoke”
  49. Deuteronomy 23:24 Or “If”
  50. Deuteronomy 23:24 Literally “according to your desire”
  51. Deuteronomy 23:24 Literally “to your satiation”
  52. Deuteronomy 23:25 Or “If”
  53. Deuteronomy 23:25 Literally “wave”
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Deuteronomy 23
Common English Bible

The Lord’s assembly

23 [a] No man whose testicles are crushed or whose penis is cut off can belong to the Lord’s assembly. 2 No one born of an illegitimate marriage[b] can belong to the Lord’s assembly either. Not even the tenth generation of such children can belong to the Lord’s assembly. 3 Ammonites and Moabites can’t belong to the Lord’s assembly. Not even the tenth generation of such people can belong to the Lord’s assembly, as a rule, 4 because they didn’t help you with food or water on your journey out of Egypt, and because they hired Balaam, Beor’s son, from Pethor of Mesopotamia to curse you. 5 But the Lord your God wasn’t interested in listening to Balaam. The Lord your God turned that curse into a blessing because the Lord your God loves you. 6 So don’t be concerned with their health and well-being as long as you live.

7 Don’t detest Edomites, because they are your relatives. Don’t detest Egyptians because you were immigrants in their land. 8 Children born to them are permitted to belong to the Lord’s assembly starting with the third generation.

Rules for the war camp

9 When you are camped in battle against your enemies, guard yourself from every possible evil. 10 If an individual in the camp becomes polluted due to a nighttime emission, he must exit the camp area and not reenter. 11 When the next evening arrives, he must wash with water; and when the sun sets, he can come back to the camp.

12 The latrines[c] must be outside the camp. You will use them there, outside the camp. 13 Carry a shovel with the rest of your gear; once you have relieved yourself, use it to dig a hole, then refill it, covering your excrement.

14 Do these things because the Lord your God travels with you, right in the middle of your camp, ready to save you and to hand your enemies over to you. For this reason your camp must be holy. The Lord must not see anything indecent among you, or he will turn away from you.

Escaped slaves

15 Don’t return slaves to owners if they’ve escaped and come to you. 16 They can stay with you: in your own community or in any place they select from one of your cities, whatever seems good to them. Don’t oppress them.

Consecrated workers

17 No Israelite daughter is allowed to be a consecrated worker.[d] Neither is any Israelite son allowed to be a consecrated worker.[e] 18 Don’t bring a female prostitute’s fee or a male prostitute’s[f] payment to the Lord your God’s temple to pay a solemn promise because both of these things are detestable to the Lord your God.

Charging interest

19 Don’t charge your fellow Israelites interest—whether on money, provisions, or anything one might loan. 20 You can charge foreigners interest, but not your fellow Israelite. Do this so that the Lord your God blesses you in all your work on the land you are entering to possess.

Solemn promise

21 When you make a promise to the Lord your God, don’t put off making good on it, because the Lord your God will certainly be expecting it from you; delaying would make you guilty. 22 Now if you simply don’t make any promises, you won’t be guilty of anything. 23 But whatever you say, you should be sure to make good on, exactly according to the promise you freely made to the Lord your God because you promised it with your own mouth.

Neighbor’s goods

24 If you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you can eat as many grapes as you like, until full, but don’t carry any away in a basket. 25 If you go into your neighbor’s grain field, you can pluck ears by hand, but you aren’t allowed to cut off any of your neighbor’s grain with a sickle.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 23:1 23:2 in Heb
  2. Deuteronomy 23:2 Heb uncertain
  3. Deuteronomy 23:12 LXX, Syr, Vulg place of the hand (a euphemism); MT has only hand.
  4. Deuteronomy 23:17 Traditionally cultic prostitute
  5. Deuteronomy 23:17 Traditionally cultic prostitute
  6. Deuteronomy 23:18 Or a dog’s
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Deuteronomy 23
New International Version

Exclusion From the Assembly

23 [a]No one who has been emasculated(A) by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the Lord.

2 No one born of a forbidden marriage[b] nor any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.

3 No Ammonite(B) or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.(C) 4 For they did not come to meet you with bread and water(D) on your way when you came out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam(E) son of Beor from Pethor in Aram Naharaim[c](F) to pronounce a curse on you.(G) 5 However, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse(H) into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves(I) you. 6 Do not seek a treaty(J) of friendship with them as long as you live.(K)

7 Do not despise an Edomite,(L) for the Edomites are related to you.(M) Do not despise an Egyptian, because you resided as foreigners in their country.(N) 8 The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord.

Uncleanness in the Camp

9 When you are encamped against your enemies, keep away from everything impure.(O) 10 If one of your men is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.(P) 11 But as evening approaches he is to wash himself, and at sunset(Q) he may return to the camp.(R)

12 Designate a place outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself. 13 As part of your equipment have something to dig with, and when you relieve yourself, dig a hole and cover up your excrement. 14 For the Lord your God moves(S) about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy,(T) so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you.

Miscellaneous Laws

15 If a slave has taken refuge(U) with you, do not hand them over to their master.(V) 16 Let them live among you wherever they like and in whatever town they choose. Do not oppress(W) them.

17 No Israelite man(X) or woman is to become a shrine prostitute.(Y) 18 You must not bring the earnings of a female prostitute or of a male prostitute[d] into the house of the Lord your God to pay any vow, because the Lord your God detests them both.(Z)

19 Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest.(AA) 20 You may charge a foreigner(AB) interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless(AC) you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.

21 If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it,(AD) for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.(AE) 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty.(AF) 23 Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth.

24 If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. 25 If you enter your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing grain.(AG)

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 23:1 In Hebrew texts 23:1-25 is numbered 23:2-26.
  2. Deuteronomy 23:2 Or one of illegitimate birth
  3. Deuteronomy 23:4 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
  4. Deuteronomy 23:18 Hebrew of a dog
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Deuteronomy 22
Deuteronomy 24
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