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
International Standard Version
Various Laws
24 “If a man chooses to enter into marriage with a woman, but she finds herself displeasing to him because he has found something objectionable[a] about her, he must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her out of his house. 2 If she goes out from his house, becomes the wife of another man, 3 and this second husband[b] dislikes her, he, also, must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her away from his house. Should the second husband die, 4 her first husband who married her and divorced her earlier must not remarry her,[c] because she was defiled, since this is detestable to the Lord. Don’t defile the land that the Lord your God is about to give you as a possession.
5 “When a man is newly married, he must not be sent out to war or have a related duty placed on him. Let him stay home for one year and be happy with his wife whom he has married.
6 “Don’t take a pair of millstones, especially the upper millstone, as collateral for a loan, because this means taking a man’s[d] livelihood.
7 “If a man is found kidnapping his relative, a fellow Israeli, and mistreats or sells him, that kidnapper must die. By doing this, you will remove this evil from among you.
8 “In cases of leprosy, be very careful to observe exactly what the Levitical priests instructed you. Carefully follow what I have commanded them. 9 Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam along the way as you were coming out of Egypt.”
Respecting the Poor
10 “When you loan something to your neighbor, don’t enter his house to seize what he offered as collateral. 11 Stay outside and let the man to whom you made the loan bring it[e] out to you. 12 If he is a poor man, don’t go to sleep with his collateral in your possession.[f] 13 Be sure to return his garment[g] to him at sunset so that he may sleep with it, and he will bless you. It will be a righteous deed in the presence of the Lord your God. 14 Don’t take advantage of a hired person who is poor and needy, whether he’s your fellow citizen or a foreigner who lives in your city. 15 Pay his wages that same day before the sun sets, because he is poor and his livelihood[h] depends on it. Otherwise, he may cry out to the Lord against you, and you will incur guilt.”
Practicing Justice
16 “Fathers are not to be put to death on account of their children’s sin; nor are children to die on account of their fathers’ sin. Each person is to be put to death for his own sin.
17 “Don’t deny justice to a foreigner or to an orphan, nor take a widow’s garment as collateral for a loan. 18 Remember to observe this because you were slaves in Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. That is why I am commanding you to do this.
19 “When you are reaping in the field, and you overlook a sheaf, don’t return to get it. Let it remain for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow, in order that the Lord your God may bless everything you undertake. 20 When you harvest the olives from your trees, don’t go back to the branches a second time. What remains is for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow. 21 When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, don’t go back a second time. What remains is for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow. 22 Remember to do this because you were slaves in the land of Egypt. That is why I’m commanding you to do this.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 24:1 Lit. naked; i.e. indecent
- Deuteronomy 24:3 Lit. this other man
- Deuteronomy 24:4 Lit. not take her to live with him as wife
- Deuteronomy 24:6 Lit. taking his
- Deuteronomy 24:11 Lit. the collateral
- Deuteronomy 24:12 The Heb. lacks in your possession
- Deuteronomy 24:13 Lit. collateral
- Deuteronomy 24:15 Lit. life
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