Deuteronomy21
New King James Version
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,
2then your elders and your judges shall go out and measure the distance from the slain man to the surrounding cities.
3And 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.
4The 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.
5Then 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.
6And 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.
7Then they shall answer and say, ‘Our hands have not shed this blood, nor have our eyes seen it.
8Provide 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.
9So you shall put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you when you do what is right in the sight of the Lord.
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,
11and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and desire her and would take her for your wife,
12then you shall bring her home to your house, and she shall shave her head and trim her nails.
13She 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.
14And 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.
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,
16then 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.
17But 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.
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,
19then 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.
20And 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.’
21Then 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.
22“If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree,
23his 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.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Deuteronomy 21.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The expiation of uncertain murder. (1–9). Respecting a captive taken to wife. (10–14). The first-born not to be disinherited for private affection. (15–17). A stubborn son to be stoned. (18–21). Malefactors not to be left hanging all night. (22, 23).
vv1-9
If a murderer could not be found out, great solemnity is provided for putting away the guilt from the land, as an expression of dread and detesting of that sin. The providence of God has often wonderfully brought to light these hidden works of darkness, and the sin of the guilty has often strangely found them out. The dread of murder should be deeply impressed upon every heart, and all should join in detecting and punishing those who are guilty. The elders were to profess that they had not been any way aiding or abetting the sin. The priests were to pray to God for the country and nation, that God would be merciful. We must empty that measure by our prayers, which others are filling by their sins. All would be taught by this solemnity, to use the utmost care and diligence to prevent, discover, and punish murder. We may all learn from hence to take heed of partaking in other men's sins. And we have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, if we do not reprove them.
vv10-14
By this law a soldier was allowed to marry his captive, if he pleased. This might take place upon some occasions; but the law does not show any approval of it. It also intimates how binding the laws of justice and honour are in marriage; which is a sacred engagement.
vv15-17
This law restrains men from disinheriting their eldest sons without just cause. The principle in this case as to children, is still binding to parents; they must give children their right without partiality.
Key Words
כִּי: (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below); often largely modified by other particles annexed
אֲדָמָה: soil (from its general redness)
אֲשֶׁר: who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.
אֱלֹהִים: gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative
נָתַן: to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etc.)
יָרַשׁ: to occupy (by driving out previous tenants, and possessing in their place); by implication, to seize, to rob, to inherit; also to expel, to impoverish, to ruin
מָצָא: properly, to come forth to, i.e. appear or exist; transitively, to attain, i.e. find or acquire; figuratively, to occur, meet or be present
חָלָל: pierced (especially to death); figuratively, polluted
נָפַל: to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)
שָׂדֶה: a field (as flat)
Cross References
Deuteronomy 21Explicitly cites 'cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree' to show Christ bearing the law's curse.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Pilate washing his hands to declare innocence echoes the elders' ritual washing over the slain heifer.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Both rituals require a red heifer that has never borne a yoke, indicating dedication and purity.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Forget thy own people and father's house parallels the captive woman's month of mourning for her parents.
Supported by John Calvin
Reuben lost his birthright, which gave his double portion to Joseph, demonstrating rules of double portion inheritance.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin
Jacob defines the firstborn Reuben as 'the beginning of my strength,' using the same Hebrew legal phrase.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The sailors' plea 'lay not upon us innocent blood' matches the elders' expiation prayer for unsolved murder.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Jacob loving Rachel more than Leah is the classic historical case of the beloved and 'hated' wives.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin
Joshua takes down the king of Ai's body from the tree at sunset, fulfilling this civil statute.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Joshua's hanging of five kings and taking them down by evening directly conforms to the Deuteronomy law.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Establishes the priestly tribe of Levi's authority to minister, bless in God's name, and decide controversies.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Command to purge the guilt of innocent blood from Israel to ensure the nation's welfare.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Protects maidservants/captives from commercial sale or mistreatment, emphasizing their human dignity when humbled.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Stoning at the gates of the city was the standard punishment for high covenant rebellion.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Hanging of Saul's descendants to expiate the blood guilt of the Gibeonites left on the land.
Supported by Matthew Poole