Deuteronomy 24
New American Standard Bible
Law of Divorce
24 “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 (A)indecency in her, that (B)he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and [a]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 [b]turns against her, writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand, and [c]sends her away from his house, or if the latter husband who took her to be his wife dies, 4 then her (C)former husband who [d]sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife, after [e]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 “(D)When 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 (E)make 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 [f]means of life as a pledge.
7 “(F)If someone is [g]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 “(G)Be 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 (H)to Miriam on the way as you came out of Egypt.
10 “(I)When 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 (J)When the sun goes down you shall certainly return the pledge to him, so that he may sleep in his cloak and bless you; and (K)it will be righteousness for you before the Lord your God.
14 “(L)You 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 [h]towns. 15 (M)You shall give him his wages on his day [i]before the sun sets—for he is poor and sets his [j]heart on it—so that (N)he does not cry out against you to the Lord, and it becomes a sin in you.
16 “(O)Fathers 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 “(P)You shall not pervert the justice [k]due a stranger or [l]an orphan, nor (Q)seize a widow’s garment as a [m]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 “(R)When 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 (S)to the stranger, the [n]orphan, and to the widow, in order that the Lord your God (T)may bless you in all the work of your hands. 20 (U)When you beat the olives off your olive tree, you are not to search through the branches [o]again; that shall be left (V)for the stranger, the [p]orphan, and for the widow.
21 “When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you are not to [q]go over it again; that shall be left for the stranger, the [r]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.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 24:1 Or dismisses her
- Deuteronomy 24:3 Lit hates her
- Deuteronomy 24:3 Or dismisses her
- Deuteronomy 24:4 Or dismissed her
- Deuteronomy 24:4 I.e., in relationship to him
- Deuteronomy 24:6 Lit soul
- Deuteronomy 24:7 Lit found stealing
- Deuteronomy 24:14 Lit gates
- Deuteronomy 24:15 Lit that the sun shall not go down on it
- Deuteronomy 24:15 Lit soul
- Deuteronomy 24:17 Lit of
- Deuteronomy 24:17 Or the fatherless
- Deuteronomy 24:17 I.e., for a loan
- Deuteronomy 24:19 Or fatherless
- Deuteronomy 24:20 Lit after yourself
- Deuteronomy 24:20 Or fatherless
- Deuteronomy 24:21 Lit glean it after yourself
- Deuteronomy 24:21 Or fatherless
Deuteronomy 24
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Marriage and Divorce Laws
24 “If a man marries a woman, but she becomes displeasing to him because he finds something improper about her, he may write her a divorce certificate, hand it to her, and send her away from his house.(A) 2 If after leaving his house she goes and becomes another man’s wife, 3 and the second man hates her, writes her a divorce certificate, hands it to her, and sends her away from his house or if he[a] dies, 4 the first husband who sent her away may not marry her again after she has been defiled, because that would be detestable to the Lord. You must not bring guilt on the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.(B)
5 “When a man takes a bride, he must not go out with the army or be liable for any duty. He is free to stay at home for one year, so that he can bring joy to the wife he has married.
Safeguarding Life
6 “Do not take a pair of millstones or an upper millstone as security for a debt, because that is like taking a life as security.
7 “If a man is discovered kidnapping(C) one of his Israelite brothers, whether he treats him as a slave or sells him, the kidnapper must die. You must purge the evil from you.
8 “Be careful in a case of infectious skin disease, following carefully everything the Levitical priests instruct you to do. Be careful to do as I have commanded them. 9 Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam on the journey after you left Egypt.(D)
Consideration for People in Need
10 “When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, do not enter his house to collect what he offers as security. 11 You must stand outside while the man you are making the loan to brings the security out to you. 12 If he is a poor man, you must not sleep in the garment he has given as security. 13 Be sure to return it[b] to him at sunset. Then he will sleep in it and bless you, and this will be counted as righteousness to you before the Lord your God.(E)
14 “Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether one of your brothers or one of the foreigners residing within a town[c] in your land. 15 You are to pay him his wages each day before the sun sets, because he is poor and depends on them.(F) Otherwise he will cry out to the Lord against you, and you will be held guilty.
16 “Fathers are not to be put to death for their children or children for their fathers; each person will be put to death for his own sin.(G) 17 Do not deny justice to a foreigner or fatherless child, and do not take a widow’s garment as security. 18 Remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed(H) you from there. Therefore I am commanding you to do this.(I)
19 “When you reap the harvest in your field, and you forget a sheaf in the field, do not go back to get it. It is to be left for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.(J) 20 When you knock down the fruit from your olive tree, you must not go over the branches again. What remains will be for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. 21 When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you must not glean what is left. What remains will be for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. 22 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt. Therefore I am commanding you to do this.(K)
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 24:3 Lit if the second man who has taken her as his wife
- Deuteronomy 24:13 Lit return what he has given as security
- Deuteronomy 24:14 Lit within the gates
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