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Deuteronomy 23
Names of God Bible
Deuteronomy 23
Names of God Bible
Various Laws
23 [a]A man whose testicles are crushed or whose penis is cut off may never join the assembly of Yahweh.
2 A man born from an illicit union may not join the assembly of Yahweh. No descendant of his may join the assembly of Yahweh for ten generations.
3 Ammonites or Moabites may not join the assembly of Yahweh. Not one descendant of theirs may join the assembly of Yahweh for ten generations. 4 They cannot join because they didn’t greet you with food and water on your trip from Egypt. They even hired Balaam, son of Beor, from Pethor in Aram Naharaim, to curse you. 5 But Yahweh your Elohim refused to listen to Balaam. Instead, he turned Balaam’s curse into a blessing for you because Yahweh your Elohim loves you. 6 Never offer them peace or friendship as long as you live.
7 Never consider the Edomites disgusting. They’re your relatives. Never consider the Egyptians disgusting. You once were foreigners living in their country. 8 Their grandchildren may join the assembly of Yahweh.
9 When you’re at war and have set up camp to fight your enemies, stay away from anything that will make you unclean.[b] 10 If one of your men becomes unclean from a nocturnal emission, he must go outside the camp and stay there. 11 Toward evening he must wash, and at sunset he may come back to camp.
12 Choose a place outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself. 13 You must carry a pointed stick as part of your equipment. When you go outside to squat, dig a hole with it. When you’re done, cover up your excrement. 14 Yahweh your Elohim moves around in your camp to protect you and hand your enemies over to you. So your camp must always be holy. This way, Yahweh will never see anything offensive among you and turn away from you.
15 If a slave escapes from his master and comes to you, don’t return him to his master. 16 Let him stay with you and live among your people wherever he chooses, in any of your cities that seems best to him. Never mistreat him.
17 No Israelite man or woman should ever become a temple prostitute. 18 Never bring gifts or money earned by prostitution into the house of Yahweh your Elohim as an offering you vowed to give. These earnings are disgusting to Yahweh your Elohim.
19 Never charge another Israelite any interest on money, food, or anything else that is borrowed. 20 You may charge a foreigner interest, but not an Israelite. Then Yahweh your Elohim will bless you in everything you do once you’ve entered the land and taken possession of it.
21 If you make a vow to Yahweh your Elohim, don’t avoid keeping it. Yahweh your Elohim expects you to keep it. You would be guilty of a sin if you didn’t. 22 If you didn’t make a vow, you would not be guilty. 23 Make sure you do what you said you would do in your vow. You freely chose to make your vow to Yahweh your Elohim.
24 If you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you like until you’re full. But never put any in your basket. 25 If you go into your neighbor’s grain field, you may pick grain by hand. But never use a sickle to cut your neighbor’s grain.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 23:1 Deuteronomy 23:1–25 in English Bibles is Deuteronomy 23:2–26 in the Hebrew Bible.
- Deuteronomy 23:9 “Unclean” refers to anything that is not presentable to God.
Deuteronomy 23
New International Version
Deuteronomy 23
New International Version
Exclusion From the Assembly
23 [a]No one who has been emasculated(A) by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the Lord.
2 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.
3 No Ammonite(B) or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.(C) 4 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) 5 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. 6 Do not seek a treaty(J) of friendship with them as long as you live.(K)
7 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) 8 The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord.
Uncleanness in the Camp
9 When you are encamped against your enemies, keep away from everything impure.(O) 10 If one of your men is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.(P) 11 But as evening approaches he is to wash himself, and at sunset(Q) he may return to the camp.(R)
12 Designate a place outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself. 13 As part of your equipment have something to dig with, and when you relieve yourself, dig a hole and cover up your excrement. 14 For the Lord your God moves(S) about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy,(T) so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you.
Miscellaneous Laws
15 If a slave has taken refuge(U) with you, do not hand them over to their master.(V) 16 Let them live among you wherever they like and in whatever town they choose. Do not oppress(W) them.
17 No Israelite man(X) or woman is to become a shrine prostitute.(Y) 18 You must not bring the earnings of a female prostitute or of a male prostitute[d] into the house of the Lord your God to pay any vow, because the Lord your God detests them both.(Z)
19 Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest.(AA) 20 You may charge a foreigner(AB) interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless(AC) you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.
21 If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it,(AD) for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.(AE) 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty.(AF) 23 Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth.
24 If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. 25 If you enter your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing grain.(AG)
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 23:1 In Hebrew texts 23:1-25 is numbered 23:2-26.
- Deuteronomy 23:2 Or one of illegitimate birth
- Deuteronomy 23:4 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
- Deuteronomy 23:18 Hebrew of a dog
Names of God Bible (NOG)
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