Deuteronomy 23
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Those Excluded from the Assembly
23 “No one whose testicles are crushed or whose penis is cut off shall come into the assembly of the Lord.
2 “Those born of an illicit union shall not come into the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants shall come into the assembly of the Lord.
3 “No Ammonite or Moabite shall come into the assembly of the Lord even to the tenth generation. None of their descendants shall come into the assembly of the Lord forever, 4 because they did not meet you with food and water on your journey out of Egypt and because they hired against you Balaam son of Beor, from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. 5 (Yet the Lord your God refused to heed Balaam; the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loved you.) 6 You shall never promote their welfare or their prosperity as long as you live.
7 “You shall not abhor any of the Edomites, for they are your kin. You shall not abhor any of the Egyptians, because you were an alien residing in their land. 8 The children of the third generation that are born to them may come into the assembly of the Lord.
Sanitary, Ritual, and Humanitarian Precepts
9 “When you are encamped against your enemies, you shall guard against every evil thing.
10 “If one of you becomes unclean because of a nocturnal emission, then he shall go outside the camp; he must not come within the camp. 11 When evening comes, he shall wash himself with water, and when the sun has set, he may come back into the camp.
12 “You shall have a designated area outside the camp to which you shall go. 13 With your tools you shall have a trowel; when you relieve yourself outside, you shall dig a hole with it and then cover up your excrement. 14 Because the Lord your God travels along with your camp, to save you and to hand over your enemies to you, therefore your camp must be holy, so that he may not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you.
15 “You shall not return to their owners slaves who have escaped to you from their owners. 16 They shall reside with you, in your midst, in any place they choose in any one of your towns, wherever they please; you shall not oppress them.
17 “None of the daughters of Israel shall serve in an illicit shrine; none of the sons of Israel shall serve in an illicit shrine.(A) 18 You shall not bring the fee of a prostitute or the wages of a dog into the house of the Lord your God in payment for any vow, for both of these are abhorrent to the Lord your God.
19 “You shall not charge interest on loans to another Israelite,[a] interest on money, interest on provisions, interest on anything that is lent.(B) 20 On loans to a foreigner you may charge interest, but on loans to another Israelite[b] you may not charge interest, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all your undertakings in the land that you are about to enter and possess.(C)
21 “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not postpone fulfilling it, for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you would incur guilt.(D) 22 But if you refrain from vowing, you will not incur guilt. 23 Whatever your lips utter you must diligently perform, just as you have freely vowed to the Lord your God with your own mouth.
24 “If you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in a container.
25 “If you go into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the ears with your hand, but you shall not put a sickle to your neighbor’s standing grain.(E)
Deuteronomy 23
International Standard Version
Qualifications for Assembling
23 [a]“No man whose testicles have been crushed[b] or whose penis has been cut off may participate in the assembly of the Lord. 2 Furthermore, no one born due to an illicit sexual relationship may participate in the assembly of the Lord, including his descendants to the tenth generation. 3 No Ammonite or Moabite may participate in the assembly of the Lord, and none of their descendants is to be admitted to the assembly of the Lord, to the tenth generation, 4 because they didn’t come to meet you with food and water along the way as you were coming out of Egypt. Instead, they hired Beor’s son Balaam from Pethor in Aram-naharaim[c] to curse you. 5 However, the Lord your God didn’t listen to Balaam. The Lord your God turned Balaam’s[d] curse into a blessing, because the Lord your God loves you. 6 Don’t seek a peace treaty with them as long as you live. 7 Don’t detest Edomites, since they are related to you. Don’t detest Egyptians, either, because you were strangers in their land. 8 Their grandchildren[e] may participate in the assembly of the Lord.”
Community Sanitation
9 “When you are encamped for battle against your enemies, be on guard against every form of impropriety. 10 If someone among you becomes unclean due to nocturnal emissions, he must leave the camp and stay outside. 11 As evening approaches, he must wash himself with water. Then at sunset, he may return to the camp.
12 “Choose a place outside the camp for a latrine. 13 Include a spade among your equipment so that when you squat to relieve yourself, you can dig a hole and then cover your excrement. 14 For the Lord your God is on the move within your camp to deliver you and to hand your enemies over to you. Therefore, your camp must be holy so that he will not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you.”
Treatment of Slaves
15 “Don’t hand over a slave who escaped from his master when he runs to you. 16 Let him live among you wherever he chooses in any of your cities that he likes. Don’t mistreat him.”
Cultic Prostitution Prohibited
17 “There are to be no cultic prostitutes among the daughters or the sons of Israel. 18 Don’t bring the earnings of a female prostitute nor the income of a male prostitute into the house of the Lord your God as payment for any vow. Both of these are detestable to the Lord your God.”
Fair Dealings
19 “Don’t charge interest to your relatives, whether for money, food, or for anything that has been loaned at interest. 20 You may charge interest to a foreigner, but don’t charge interest to your relatives, so the Lord your God may bless you in everything you undertake in the land that you are about to enter and possess.
21 “When you make a vow to the Lord your God, don’t delay paying it, because the Lord your God will certainly demand payment from you, and then you will be guilty of sin. 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, then you won’t be guilty. 23 Be sure you do whatever you promise, because you have given your word voluntarily to the Lord your God.
24 “When you enter your countrymen’s vineyard, you may eat the grapes to your satisfaction, but don’t take any in a basket. 25 When you enter your countrymen’s grain fields, you may pluck the grain with your hand, but don’t put a sickle to his standing grain.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 23:1 This v. is 2 in MT, and so throughout the chapter.
- Deuteronomy 23:1 Or wounded
- Deuteronomy 23:4 I.e. Mesopotamia
- Deuteronomy 23:5 Lit. his
- Deuteronomy 23:8 Lit. Children born in the third generation
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
