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Deuteronomy 21-23    Listen Podcast

 

Another heifer, but for an unsolved murder! (Deuteronomy 21:1-9)

1 “If anyone is found slain, lying in the field in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess, and it is not known who killed him,
2 then your elders and your judges shall go out and measure the distance from the slain man to the surrounding cities.
3 And it shall be that the elders of the city nearest to the slain man will take a heifer which has not been worked and which has not pulled with a yoke.
4 The elders of that city shall bring the heifer down to a valley with flowing water, which is neither plowed nor sown, and they shall break the heifer’s neck there in the valley.
5 Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come near, for the LORD your God has chosen them to minister to Him and to bless in the name of the LORD; by their word every controversy and every assault shall be settled.
6 And all the elders of that city nearest to the slain man shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley.
7 Then they shall answer and say, “Our hands have not shed this blood, nor have our eyes seen it.
8 Provide atonement, O LORD, for Your people Israel, whom You have redeemed, and do not lay innocent blood to the charge of Your people Israel.’ And atonement shall be provided on their behalf for the blood.
9 So you shall put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you when you do what is right in the sight of the LORD.

We saw a ritual involving a red heifer back in Numbers 19 (see notes) for the ceremonial cleansing of those who had touched dead bodies. This is a heifer, but not necessarily red. When a slain body is discovered, the elders of the city closest to the location of the body are obligated to bring a specially-qualified heifer to the site and slay it there with the priests by breaking her neck and offering a prayer that the blood of the slain one not be charged to the innocent people of Israel.

What a way to land a wife! (Deuteronomy 21:10-14)

10 ¶ “When you go out to war against your enemies, and the LORD your God delivers them into your hand, and you take them captive,
11 and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and desire her and would take her for your wife,
12 then you shall bring her home to your house, and she shall shave her head and trim her nails.
13 She shall put off the clothes of her captivity, remain in your house, and mourn her father and her mother a full month; after that you may go in to her and be her husband, and she shall be your wife.
14 And it shall be, if you have no delight in her, then you shall set her free, but you certainly shall not sell her for money; you shall not treat her brutally, because you have humbled her.

Here's an interesting law. She's a prisoner of war and now you want to marry her. According to this provision of the law, she may be taken as a wife by the Hebrew captor after she is given a full month to mourn the loss of her family. She shaves her head and pares her nails to indicate a new life as a Hebrew wife. Notice the disposition of this woman if the Hebrew husband tires of her. Before marriage as a slave, she could have been sold. After marriage, however, she must be given her freedom to go wherever she pleases. Of course, she has no family to which she may return.

The disenfranchised elder son catches a break (Deuteronomy 21:15-17)

15 ¶ “If a man has two wives, one loved and the other unloved, and they have borne him children, both the loved and the unloved, and if the firstborn son is of her who is unloved,
16 then it shall be, on the day he bequeaths his possessions to his sons, that he must not bestow firstborn status on the son of the loved wife in preference to the son of the unloved, the true firstborn.
17 But he shall acknowledge the son of the unloved wife as the firstborn by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.

Jacob did show a partiality toward the firstborn son of Rachel (Joseph) who was actually the eleventh of twelve sons born to Jacob. This law literally protects the rights of the firstborn no matter how much you hated his mom. Ironically, had Abraham been subject to this law, he could not have blessed Isaac over Ishmael with the rights of the firstborn. Here we see a definition of firstborn rights as a "double portion of all that he has."

Yes, parents can get some respect around here! (Deuteronomy 21:18-21)

18 ¶ “If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and who, when they have chastened him, will not heed them,
19 then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city, to the gate of his city.
20 And they shall say to the elders of his city, “This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’
21 Then all the men of his city shall stone him to death with stones; so you shall put away the evil from among you, and all Israel shall hear and fear.

"Mom, couldn't I just go to my room without supper?" His mom replies, "Son, where you're going, you won't be needin' a supper." Yes...we're talking about the stoning to death of one's rebellious son. What age son are we talkin' here, do you suppose? Well, he'd have to be under age twenty; that's the age of manhood in Israel. How fed up with your son must you be to take these drastic measures? I'm just guessing that this punishment encouraged model behavior - just the threat ought to do it.

It is worth noting that the mandate for further investigation or other witnesses seen in Deuteronomy 13:14 (see notes) and Deuteronomy 17:4 (see notes) is not required in this instance. The word of the parents is all that is required.

Paul made reference to this verse (Deuteronomy 21:22-23)

22 ¶ “If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree,
23 his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.

Galatians 3:13 (see notes) says, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”)." Here's the law in verses 22-23 to which Paul is making reference. Jesus literally became accursed by God as he was upon the cross redeeming the world. The hanging of a body on a tree was most often done, not as the means of death, but rather as a form of public humiliation after death. In the example given here, we know that the means of death for adultery is stoning. The Philistines did similarly with with Saul's body by hanging him on a wall after his death (I Samuel 31:1-13, see notes). Also, you may recall that the heads of the Hebrew idol worshippers were similarly placed on display before Israel in Numbers 25:1-18 (see notes).

People don't talk much about keeping these laws (Deuteronomy 22:1-12)

1 “You shall not see your brother’s ox or his sheep going astray, and hide yourself from them; you shall certainly bring them back to your brother.
2 And if your brother is not near you, or if you do not know him, then you shall bring it to your own house, and it shall remain with you until your brother seeks it; then you shall restore it to him.
3 You shall do the same with his donkey, and so shall you do with his garment; with any lost thing of your brother’s, which he has lost and you have found, you shall do likewise; you must not hide yourself.
4 ¶ “You shall not see your brother’s donkey or his ox fall down along the road, and hide yourself from them; you shall surely help him lift them up again.
5 ¶ “A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God.
6 ¶ “If a bird’s nest happens to be before you along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs, with the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young;
7 you shall surely let the mother go, and take the young for yourself, that it may be well with you and that you may prolong your days.
8 ¶ “When you build a new house, then you shall make a parapet for your roof, that you may not bring guilt of bloodshed on your household if anyone falls from it.
9 ¶ “You shall not sow your vineyard with different kinds of seed, lest the yield of the seed which you have sown and the fruit of your vineyard be defiled.
10 ¶ “You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together.
11 ¶ “You shall not wear a garment of different sorts, such as wool and linen mixed together.
12 ¶ “You shall make tassels on the four corners of the clothing with which you cover yourself.

I still find it interesting that many Christians want to enforce on others the Mosaic laws they like and disregard the rest. Here are a group of laws that are obviously culturally motivated dealing with lost property, transvestitism, treatment of birds' nests, building codes, and forbidden pairings. For people who maintain that Believers today are responsible for keeping all of the Old Testament laws, they just haven't spent much time reading the Old Testament.

Laws found here govern the following:

Hebrew law concerning betrothal and marriage (Deuteronomy 22:13-30)

13 ¶ “If any man takes a wife, and goes in to her, and detests her,
14 and charges her with shameful conduct, and brings a bad name on her, and says, “I took this woman, and when I came to her I found she was not a virgin,’
15 then the father and mother of the young woman shall take and bring out the evidence of the young woman’s virginity to the elders of the city at the gate.
16 And the young woman’s father shall say to the elders, “I gave my daughter to this man as wife, and he detests her.
17 Now he has charged her with shameful conduct, saying, “I found your daughter was not a virgin,” and yet these are the evidences of my daughter’s virginity.’ And they shall spread the cloth before the elders of the city.
18 Then the elders of that city shall take that man and punish him;
19 and they shall fine him one hundred shekels of silver and give them to the father of the young woman, because he has brought a bad name on a virgin of Israel. And she shall be his wife; he cannot divorce her all his days.
20 ¶ “But if the thing is true, and evidences of virginity are not found for the young woman,
21 then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with stones, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel, to play the harlot in her father’s house. So you shall put away the evil from among you.
22 ¶ “If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die—the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil from Israel.
23 ¶ “If a young woman who is a virgin is betrothed to a husband, and a man finds her in the city and lies with her,
24 then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry out in the city, and the man because he humbled his neighbor’s wife; so you shall put away the evil from among you.
25 ¶ “But if a man finds a betrothed young woman in the countryside, and the man forces her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die.
26 But you shall do nothing to the young woman; there is in the young woman no sin deserving of death, for just as when a man rises against his neighbor and kills him, even so is this matter.
27 For he found her in the countryside, and the betrothed young woman cried out, but there was no one to save her.
28 ¶ “If a man finds a young woman who is a virgin, who is not betrothed, and he seizes her and lies with her, and they are found out,
29 then the man who lay with her shall give to the young woman’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife because he has humbled her; he shall not be permitted to divorce her all his days.
30 ¶ “A man shall not take his father’s wife, nor uncover his father’s bed.

Israel observed the practice of a legally binding period of betrothal; some period of time later (apparently, typically a year or so) the marriage would follow. This betrothal does not compare very well to our modern practice of a marriage engagement or wedding ceremony. The betrothal was a legally-binding agreement between the father and groom. This usually took place a year or more before marriage. From the time of betrothal, the woman was regarded by everyone as the lawful wife of the man to whom she was betrothed (Deuteronomy 28:30 - see notes; Judges 14:2, 8 - see notes; Matthew 1:18-21 - see notes).The marriage itself consisted basically of the consummation of the relationship. Here's the unusual part. Immediately after the first night for the newlyweds, the parents of the bride would strip the bed and hold in storage the bed sheet for future reference. If the new husband ever called into question the virginity of the bride prior to that night, the stained bed sheet served as evidence before the elders of the city. A false accusation by the husband resulted in a stiff fine, and he relinquished his right to ever divorce her. However, if her virginity previous to her wedding night could not be proved, she was stoned to death.

Verses 22-30 give us a view of the emphasis placed upon a Hebrew woman's virginity as well as the standing of their women in that society. Her virginity is treated more as the property of her father or husband rather than her own. You will notice in verses 23 and 24 that a man betrothed to a woman is called her husband.

We then see some special conditions listed with regard to whom gets stoned in the case of adultery in verses 21-30. You will notice that stoning was the associated punishment for adultery in these cases when the woman was the wife or betrothed of another, but not otherwise. If the woman was not committed to another man, the penalty was not death unless she entered a marriage under the pretense of being a virgin and it was discovered not to be so.

The prohibition of verse 30 is most likely a reference, not to one's own mother, but rather to another of one's father's wives. You will recall that Reuben took advantage of Jacob's wife, Bilhah, in Genesis 35:22 (see notes) for which he was told "you shall not excel" in Genesis 49:3-4 (see notes) at Jacob's death.

Self mutilators are not welcome here! (Deuteronomy 23:1-2)

1 “He who is emasculated by crushing or mutilation shall not enter the assembly of the LORD.
2 ¶ “One of illegitimate birth shall not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD.

A phrase is used three times in the first three verses - "shall not enter into the assembly of the LORD." That exact terminology is restricted in the Old Testament to these three verses. We do not know exactly what is meant by this phrase. Most do not feel that it is a reference to dwelling among the Israelites, although some have suggested that it means precisely that. Most agree that this phrase does, indeed, restrict one's participation in Israel's environment in matters such as serving in the military and religious activities.

It's impossible to know for certain, but verse 1 probably speaks of INTENTIONAL actions emulating the self-abusive customs of the heathen around them. Illegitimate children referenced in verse 2 would have probably been those who were born (not necessarily conceived) without both a father and mother. The "tenth-generations" rule was probably used to emphasize that God detests this practice to the point that you will NEVER have an esteemed place with Israel. This wording could mean that they were permitted to live among the Israelites, but as second-class residents not permitted to partake in some of the congregational activities.

Ammonites and Moabites? NO! (Deuteronomy 23:3-8)

3 ¶ “An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD forever,
4 because they did not meet you with bread and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you.
5 Nevertheless the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam, but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loves you.
6 You shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity all your days forever.
7 ¶ “You shall not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother. You shall not abhor an Egyptian, because you were an alien in his land.
8 The children of the third generation born to them may enter the assembly of the LORD.

They should've been more helpful like the Edomites and Egyptians. We saw that Canaanites weren't welcome to live among the Hebrews, but those outside Canaan were. However, here's an exception - men from among the Ammonites and Moabites as seen in verse 3, "An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD forever." It was because of that Balaam incident back in Numbers 22-25 (see notes). This law, however, did not forbid an Israelite man from taking a wife from among them. As a matter of fact, the Hebrew verb translated "shall not enter" (see note on phrase above) in verse 3 is masculine in gender suggesting that males only are intended to be understood here. One's heritage in Israel was determined by one's father, not one's mother. Remember Ruth? She was a Moabite from whom King David was a descendant. See the notes on the Book of Ruth for more details.

Incidentally, the Jews understood the "tenth generation" reference in verse 3 to be the equivalent of "never." That fact is seen in Nehemiah 13:1 (see notes) where this restriction was once again enforced based upon this very verse.

The Edomites and Egyptians get a pass in verse 7. However, that was not always to be the case. Later, the Edomites would get considerable negative attention from the prophets. For an overview of Israel's struggle with the Edomites over centuries, see the notes on Numbers 20:14-21. One more thing, while the Egyptians are not listed as forbidden marriages here, the returning exiles in Ezra 9 (see notes) determined that Egyptian marriages were forbidden as well.

O water closet! Where art thou? (Deuteronomy 23:9-14)

9 ¶ “When the army goes out against your enemies, then keep yourself from every wicked thing.
10 If there is any man among you who becomes unclean by some occurrence in the night, then he shall go outside the camp; he shall not come inside the camp.
11 But it shall be, when evening comes, that he shall wash with water; and when the sun sets, he may come into the camp.
12 ¶ “Also you shall have a place outside the camp, where you may go out;
13 and you shall have an implement among your equipment, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and turn and cover your refuse.
14 For the LORD your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and give your enemies over to you; therefore your camp shall be holy, that He may see no unclean thing among you, and turn away from you.

When you gotta go, you gotta go! However, when you're fighting a war, nobody likes a messy camp! Here are some laws that regulate even that aspect of daily life. You gotta bury your business outside the camp.

Protecting escaped slaves (Deuteronomy 23:15-16)

15 ¶ “You shall not give back to his master the slave who has escaped from his master to you.
16 He may dwell with you in your midst, in the place which he chooses within one of your gates, where it seems best to him; you shall not oppress him.

Most students of the Old Testament agree that this regulation concerns a slave who has escaped from his master in some foreign land and sought refuge in Israel. We do know that, in addition to slaves captured in battle, debt slavery and voluntary slavery existed in Israel and was protected by law, so it seems unlikely that this law applies to those two categories of slaves. We simply aren't given any detail beyond these two verses.

No prostitution among the daughters of Israel! (Deuteronomy 23:17-18)

17 ¶ “There shall be no ritual harlot of the daughters of Israel, or a perverted one of the sons of Israel.
18 You shall not bring the wages of a harlot or the price of a dog to the house of the LORD your God for any vowed offering, for both of these are an abomination to the LORD your God.

Whoredom was not permitted among the daughters of Israel. The "price of a dog" speaks to money acquired by dishonorable means - probably referring to the male prostitute. Sodomy was absolutely forbidden in Israel.

And how about these laws (Deuteronomy 23:19-25)

19 ¶ “You shall not charge interest to your brother—interest on money or food or anything that is lent out at interest.
20 To a foreigner you may charge interest, but to your brother you shall not charge interest, that the LORD your God may bless you in all to which you set your hand in the land which you are entering to possess.
21 ¶ “When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay to pay it; for the LORD your God will surely require it of you, and it would be sin to you.
22 But if you abstain from vowing, it shall not be sin to you.
23 That which has gone from your lips you shall keep and perform, for you voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God what you have promised with your mouth.
24 ¶ “When you come into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes at your pleasure, but you shall not put any in your container.
25 When you come into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the heads with your hand, but you shall not use a sickle on your neighbor’s standing grain.

Hebrew bankers? NO! It's tough to make an income without interest. However, one could lend to non-Hebrews with interest. And another law: Don't promise it (make a vow) if you can't keep it in verses 21-23. We find these vows dealt with in Leviticus 27 (see notes) and Numbers 30 (see notes).

And how about those poor people? Eat what you want out of the vineyard, but don't you dare carry any of it away in anything but your stomach! And regarding the grain field, only take what you can pluck by hand.

Incidentally, the Pharisees accused the disciples of Jesus of breaking the law when they gathered grain on the Sabbath day for personal consumption (Matthew 12:1-8; Mark 2:23-28; Luke 6:1-5, see notes). They accused them of reaping grain on the Sabbath. We see from this passage of scripture that doing so in the field itself was simply feeding oneself, not reaping.