Exclusion From the Assembly

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

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.

No Ammonite(B) or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.(C) 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) 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. Do not seek a treaty(J) of friendship with them as long as you live.(K)

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) The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord.

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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

Exclusion and Inclusion

23 “No man whose testicles have been crushed or whose penis has been cut off may enter the Lord’s assembly. No one of illegitimate birth may enter the Lord’s assembly; none of his descendants, even to the tenth generation, may enter the Lord’s assembly. No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the Lord’s assembly;(A) none of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, may ever enter the Lord’s assembly. This is because they did not meet you with food and water on the journey after you came out of Egypt, and because Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram-naharaim was hired to curse you.(B) Yet the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, but he turned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God loves(C) you.(D) Never pursue their welfare or prosperity as long as you live. Do not despise an Edomite, because he is your brother. Do not despise an Egyptian, because you were a resident alien in his land. The children born to them in the third generation may enter the Lord’s assembly.

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