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Deuteronomy Chapter
Twenty-one
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 21
This
chapter treats of the beheading of the heifer
for the expiation of unknown
murder
and the rules to be observed in it
Deuteronomy 21:1 of
a beautiful captive woman an Israelite is desirous of having for his wife
and
what methods he must take to accomplish it
Deuteronomy 21:10
of giving the double portion to the firstborn
which he must not be deprived of
in favour of the son of a beloved wife
Deuteronomy 21:15
and of the stubborn and rebellious son
who remaining so must be put to death
Deuteronomy 21:18
and of burying a person hanged on a tree the same day he is executed
Deuteronomy 21:22.
Deuteronomy 21:1 “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
YLT
1`When one is found slain on
the ground which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it -- fallen in a
field -- it is not known who hath smitten him
If one be found slain
.... After public war
with an enemy
Moses proceeds to speak of a private quarrel and fight of one
man with another
in which one is slain
as Aben Ezra observes:
in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it; where murders
might be committed more secretly
and remain undiscovered
when they came to
live in separate cities
towns
and villages
with fields adjacent to them
than now encamped together:
lying in the field; where the quarrel begun
and where the
fight was fought: or
however
where the murderer met with his enemy
and slew
him
and left him; it being common for duels to be fought
and murders
committed in a field; the first murder in the world was committed in such a
place
Genesis 4:8. The
Targum of Jonathan is
"not hidden under an heap
not hanging on a tree
nor swimming on the face of the waters;'which same things are observed in the
MisnahF9Sotah
c. 9. sect. 2.
and gathered from some words in the
text:
in the land
and so not under a heap:
lying
and so not hanging:
in the field
and so not swimming on the water:
and it be not known who hath slain him; the parties
being alone
and no witnesses of the fact
at least that appear; for
if it was
known
the heifer was not beheaded
later mentionedF11Maimon.
Hilchot Rotzeach
c. 9. sect. 11
12. ; and one witness in this case was
sufficient
and even one that was not otherwise admitted.
Deuteronomy 21:2 2 then your elders and your judges shall go out and measure the
distance from the slain man to the surrounding cities.
YLT
2then have thine elders and
thy judges gone out and measured unto the cities which [are] round about the
slain one
Then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth
.... From the
city or cities near to which the murder was committed
to make inquiry about
it
and expiation for it; so Aben Ezra interprets it of the elders of the
cities near
but others understand it of the elders of the great sanhedrim at
Jerusalem; so the Targum of Jonathan
"then shall go out from the great
sanhedrim two of thy wise men
and three of thy judges;'and more expressly the
MisnahF12Sotah
c. 9. sect. 1.
"three go out from the great
sanhedrim in Jerusalem;'R. Judah says five
"it is said "thy
elders" two
and "thy judges" two
'and there is no sanhedrim or
court of judicature equal (or even)
therefore they add to them one more:
and they shall measure unto the cities which are round about him
that is slain; that is
from the place where the slain lies
as Jarchi rightly
interprets it; on all sides of it
from the four corner's
as the Targum of
Jonathan
the cities round about the slain. MaimonidesF13Hilchot
Rotzeach
c. 9. sect. 4. says
they do not behead the heifer for
nor measure
but to a city in which there is a sanhedrim: if it is found between two cities
(that is
at an equal distance)
both bring two heifers (MaimonidesF14Ib.
sect. 8. says they bring one between them
which is most reasonable); but the
city of Jerusalem does not bring an heifer to be beheaded: the reason is
because it was not divided to the tribesF15Maimon Hilchot Rotzeachs
c. 9. sect. 8. . This measuring
one would think
should be only necessary when
it was not certain which was the nearest city; and yet MaimonidesF16lb.
c. 9. sect. 1. says
even when it was found on the side of a city
which was
certainly known to be nearest
they measured; the command
he observes
is to
measure.
Deuteronomy 21:3 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.
YLT
3and it hath been
the city
which [is] near unto the slain one
even the elders of that city have taken a
heifer of the herd
which hath not been wrought with
which hath not drawn in
the yoke
And it shall be
that the city which is next unto the slain man
.... And so
suspected
as the Targum of Jonathan
of the murder; or the murderer is in it
or however belonged to it:
even the elders of the city shall take an heifer; of a year
old
as the same Targum
and so Jarchi; and in this the Jewish writers agree
that it must be a year old
but not two; though heifers of three years old were
sometimes used in sacrifice
Genesis 15:9 a type
of Christ
in his strength
laboriousness
and patience; see Numbers 19:2.
which hath not been wrought with; in ploughing land
or
treading out corn:
and which hath not drawn in the yoke
which never
had any yoke put upon it; or however
if attempted to be put upon it
it would
not come under it
and draw with it: no mention is made
as usual
that it
should be without blemish: because though in some sense expiatory
yet was not
properly a sacrifice
it not being slain and offered where sacrifices were;
hence it is said in the MisnahF17Ut supra
(Sotah
c. 9.) sect. 5.
that a blemish in it did not make it rejected
or unlawful for use:
nevertheless
this heifer may be a type of Christ
whose sufferings
bloodshed
and death
atone for secret and unknown sins
as well as for open and manifest
ones
even for all sin; and its being free from labour
and without a yoke
may
signify the freedom of Christ from the yoke of sin
and the service of it
and
from human traditions; that he was not obliged to any toil and labour he had
been concerned in
or to bear the yoke of the law
had he not voluntarily
undertaken it of himself; and that he expiated the sins of such who were sons
of Belial
children without a yoke; and for the same reason
this heifer not
being required to be without blemish
might be because Christ
though he had no
sin of his own
was made sin for his people
and reckoned as if he had been a
sinner; though indeed
had this been the design of the type
all the sacrifices
which typified Christ would not have required such a qualification
to be
without blemish
as they did.
Deuteronomy 21:4 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.
YLT
4and the elders of that city
have brought down the heifer unto a hard valley
which is not tilled nor sown
and have beheaded there the heifer in the valley.
The elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a rough
valley
.... Cities being generally built on hills
and so had adjacent
valleys
to which there was a descent; but here a rough valley
or the rougher
part of it
was selected for this purpose. As a valley is low
and this a rough
one
it may be an emblem of Christ's being brought into this lower world
from
heaven to earth
to do the will of his Father
which was to work out the
salvation of his people; and of his coming into the lower parts of the earth
the womb of the virgin
at his incarnation
and to the grave at his death
Psalm 139:15
and
of the low estate he came into by the assumption of human nature; through
appearing in the form of a servant
being in indigent circumstances
and
ministered to by others
and needing the assistance of angels in the wilderness
and garden
by which it appeared he was made lower than they; by his being
despised of men
and forsaken by his Father; all which are proofs of the low
estate he was brought into
fitly signified by a valley
and which was a rough
valley to him; in which he was roughly treated
his life being sought after in
his infancy by Herod
which obliged the flight of his parents with him into Egypt;
and being not received
but rejected by his own
as the King Messiah
whom they
would not have to reign over them
and loaded with opprobrious names by them;
and who often sought and attempted by various ways to take away his life; and
when apprehended and examined before the high priest
and in Pilate's hall
was
used in the rudest manner
being spit upon
buffeted
and scourged; and when
led out to be crucified
was treated in the most barbarous and scornful manner
and was put to death in the most painful and shameful way; and
above all
was
severely handled by the justice of God
being numbered among the transgressors
when the sword of justice was awaked against him
and he was not in the least
spared
but wrath came upon him to the uttermost for the sins of his people; so
that this world he was brought into proved a rough valley indeed to him. This
some take to be an emblem of the hard heart of the murderer who had committed
such a barbarous and cruel action as to kill a man; or of the hard heart of a
sinner
into which Christ is brought through the ministry of the word; or of
the infamous place
Calvary
where Christ was brought to suffer death; but the
former is best. Some interpret it
a "strong stream"F17אל נחל איתן
"ad torrentem fortem"
Montanus.
or "rapid torrent"; so
MaimonidesF18Hilchot Rotzeach
c. 9. sect. 2
so Abarbinel in Muis.
& Ben Melech. and others; and indeed in valleys there are generally streams
or brooks of water
but this seems not so well to agree with what follows:
which is neither cared nor sown; that is
neither
ploughed nor sown
but quite an uncultivated place; and this the Jews
understand not of what it had been
or then was
but what it should be
hereafter; that from henceforward it should never be manured
but lie barren
and useless; so it is said in the MisnahF19Ut supra. (Sotah
c. 9.
sect. 5.)
the place is forbid sowing or tilling
but is free to dress flax
in
or to dig stones out of it: so R. Joseph KimchiF20Apud D.
Kimchi
Sepher Shorash
rad. איח interprets this of a
fat and fruitful valley
which was not to be tilled nor sown from thenceforward
for time to come; the reason of which he thinks was
that they might be the
more careful of their countries and borders
and how they encouraged bloody
minded men to dwell among them; that no slain person might be found there
and
so they lose a choice part of their possessions; and to the same purpose
MaimonitiesF21Moreh Nevochim
par. 3. c. 40. : and this became true
of the fruitful land of Judea and Jerusalem
after the sufferings and death of
Christ there
Luke 21:24.
and shall strike off the heifer's neck there in the valley; with an axe
on the back part of it
in the midst of the valley
as the Targum of Jonathan
and the same is said in the MisnahF23Ut supra. (Sotah
c. 9. sect.
5.) : in this it was a type of Christ
who was put to death at the instigation
of the elders of the Jewish nation
Matthew 27:1 and
without the gates of Jerusalem at Golgotha; see Hebrews 13:11.
Deuteronomy 21:5 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.
YLT
5`And the priests
sons of
Levi
have come nigh -- for on them hath Jehovah thy God fixed to serve Him
and to bless in the name of Jehovah
and by their mouth is every strife
and
every stroke –
And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near
.... Who were
clearly of the tribe of Levi
as Aben Ezra notes; about whom there could be no
dispute; for it seems there sometimes were persons in that office
of whom
there was some doubt at least whether they were of that tribe; these seem to be
such that belonged to the court of judicature at Jerusalem; see Deuteronomy 17:9
who were to be present at this solemnity
to direct in the performance of it
and to judge and determine in any matter of difficulty that might arise:
for them the Lord thy God hath chosen to minister unto him; in the
service of the sanctuary
by offering sacrifices
&c.
and to bless in the name of the Lord; the people;
see Numbers 6:23.
and by their word shall every controversy and every stroke be
tried; every controversy between man and man respecting civil things
and every stroke or blow which one man may give another; and whatsoever came
before them was tried by them
according to the respective laws given
concerning the things in question
and were not determined by them in an
arbitrary way
according to their own will and pleasure; see Deuteronomy 17:8.
Deuteronomy 21:6 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.
YLT
6and all the elders of that
city
who are near unto the slain one
do wash their hands over the heifer
which is beheaded in the valley
And all the elders of that city that are next unto the slain man
.... The whole
court of judicature belonging to it
all the magistracy of it; even though
there were an hundred of them
MaimonidesF24Hilchot Rotzeach
c. 9.
sect. 3. says:
shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the
valley: in token of their innocence
and this they did not only for
themselves
but for the whole city
being the representatives of it; see Psalm 26:6. Some
think that this is a confirmation of the sense embraced by some
that it was a
strong stream to which the heifer was brought; and there might be a stream of
water here
and a valley also; though it would be no great difficulty to get
from the city
which was near
a sufficient quantity of water to wash the hands
of the elders with. This may denote the purification of sin by the blood of
Christ
when it is confessed over him; and shows that priests and elders
ministers of the word
as well as others
stand in need of it; and that even
those concerned in the death of Christ shared in the benefits of it.
Deuteronomy 21:7 7 Then they shall answer and say
‘Our hands have not shed this
blood
nor have our eyes seen it.
YLT
7and they have answered and
said
Our hands have not shed this blood
and our eyes have not seen –
And they shall answer and say
.... The elders of the
city
at the time of the washing of their hands:
our hands have not shed this blood; have been no ways
concerned in it
nor accessory to it: the Targum of Jonathan is
"it is
manifest before the Lord that he did not come into our hands
nor did we
dismiss him
that has shed this blood;'which is more fully explained in the
MisnahF25Ut supra
(Sotah. c. 9.) sect. 6. ; for had they been aware
of him
or had any suspicion of him or his design
they would have detained
him
or at least would not have suffered him to have departed alone:
neither have our eyes seen; it
or him; so the
Targum of Jerusalem
"our eyes have not seen him that hath shed this
blood;'by which expression is meant
that they had no manner of knowledge of
the murderer
nor of any circumstance that could lead them to suspect or
conclude who he was.
Deuteronomy 21:8 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.
YLT
8receive atonement for Thy
people Israel
whom Thou hast ransomed
O Jehovah
and suffer not innocent
blood in the midst of Thy people Israel; and the blood hath been pardoned to
them
Be merciful
O Lord
to thy people Israel
whom thou hast redeemed
.... Out of
Egyptian bondage
and claimed as his own; and therefore it is requested he
would be favourable to them
and show them mercy
and not punish them for a sin
they were entirely ignorant of
though done by some one among them
whom as yet
they could not discover. The words seem to be the words of the elders
continued
who having made a declaration of their innocence
humbly request
mercy of God
not only for themselves
but for all the people of Israel; yet
both the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan take them to be the words of the
priests
and so does Jarchi
and the same is affirmed in the MisnahF26Ut
supra. (Sotah. c. 9. sect. 5.) :
and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge; impute not
the guilt of innocent blood to a people in general
when only a single person
and he unknown
is chargeable with it: or put it not "in the midst"
of thy people; let it not be placed to the whole
because it cannot be found
out whose it is
though it is certain it is one in the midst of them:
and the blood shall be forgiven them; that is
God
will not impute it
and place it to their account
or lay it to their charge;
but will graciously consider the beheading of the heifer as an expiation of it:
it is said in the MisnahF1Hilchot Rotzeach
c. 9. sect. 7.
"if
the murderer is found before the heifer is beheaded
it goes forth and feeds
among the herd; but if after it is beheaded
it is buried in the same place;
and again
if the heifer is beheaded
and after that the murderer is found
he
shall be slain;'so the Targums
and Jarchi on the next verse.
Deuteronomy 21:9 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.
YLT
9and thou dost put away the
innocent blood out of thy midst
for thou dost that which [is] right in the
eyes of Jehovah.
So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you
.... Which
otherwise
the person not being found out
and brought to just punishment for
it
would devolve upon the whole. Aben Ezra interprets it the punishment of
innocent blood
which
by the above method being taken
would not be inflicted
on them:
when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the Lord; as it was to
observe this law concerning the beheading of the heifer
with all the rites and
ceremonies belonging to it here enjoined; as well as every other command
statute
and ordinance of the Lord
which are all right to be done
Psalm 19:8.
Deuteronomy 21:10 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
YLT
10`When thou goest out to
battle against thine enemies
and Jehovah thy God hath given them into thy
hand
and thou hast taken captive its captivity
When thou goest forth to war against thine enemies
.... This
refers to an arbitrary war
as Jarchi remarks
which they entered into of
themselves
of choice
or through being provoked to it by their enemies; and
not a war commanded by the Lord
as that against the seven nations of Canaan
and against Amalek; since there were to be no captives in that war
but all
were to be destroyed:
and the Lord thy God hath delivered them into thine hands; given them
the victory over their enemies
so that they were obliged to surrender
themselves to them prisoners of war:
and thou hast taken them captive
or "led his or
their captivityF2ושבית שביו
"et captivam duxerit captivitatem ejus"
Pagninus
Montanus
Vatablus. captive"; led them captive who used to lead others
denoting
their conquest of victorious nations; see a like phrase in Psalm 68:18.
Deuteronomy 21:11 11 and you see among the captives a beautiful woman
and
desire her and would take her for your wife
YLT
11and hast seen in the
captivity a woman of fair form
and hast delighted in her
and hast taken to
thee for a wife
And seest among the captives a beautiful woman
.... Whether a
virgin
wife
or widow
according to the Jewish writers
even though another
man's wife; so JarchiF3Vid. T. Bab. Kiddushin
fol. 21. 2.
and
MaimonidesF4Hilchot Melachim
c. 8. sect. 3. ; the marriages of
Gentiles being reckoned by the Jews no marriages:
and hast a desire unto her; being captivated with
her beauty; some understand this of the strength and rage of lust
but it
rather signifies a passionate desire of enjoying her in a lawful way
as
follows:
that thou wouldest have her to thy wife; to be married
to her in a legal manner; for though it was not allowed the Israelites to marry
any of the seven nations of Canaan
nor indeed with any of other nations
continuing in their idolatry; yet they might marry such as became their
captives and servants
and were wholly in their own power; and especially if
proselytes to their religion
and which this fair captive was to become before
marriage
as is by some gathered from the following things to be done by her;
though after all
this was only a permission
because of the hardness of their
hearts
as is said of divorce; and that such marriages were not very grateful
to God appears
as some have observed
from the ceremonies used before
marriage
to render her contemptible; and the easy dismission of her
afterwards
according to the sense of some interpreters.
Deuteronomy 21:12 12 then you shall bring her home to your house
and she
shall shave her head and trim her nails.
YLT
12then thou hast brought her
in unto the midst of thy household
and she hath shaved her head
and prepared
her nails
Then thou shalt bring her home to thine house
.... In order
to make her his wife
after some things were done here directed to; for this is
not to be understood of his taking her home with a view to defile her
as
MaimonidesF5Moreh Nevochim
par. 3. c. 41. interprets it; who
observes
that when a man's lust so rages that he cannot subdue it
yet he
ought not publicly to satisfy his lust
but to have the woman into a private
and secret place
as it is said:
thou shalt bring her into the midst of thine house; nor was he
permitted to lie with her in the camp
nor was it lawful for him to defile her
a second time
until her mourning was at an end; though elsewhereF6Hilchot
Melachim
c. 8. sect. 2. he gives a different sense of this passage
and
supposes the man to have lain with the captive woman
before the introduction
of her into his house; for it is a notion that prevails with the Jewish
writers
that an Israelitish soldier might lie once with an Heathen woman taken
captive
to gratify his lust
but might not repeat it; so it is said in the
TalmudF7T. Bab. Kiddushin
fol. 21. 2. ; yet it must be observed
that
there are some
though but few
who are of opinion that the first congress was
unlawful
and that he might not touch her until certain conditions were
fulfilled
and they were married
as R. JochananF8Apud Abarbinel in
loc. & R. Sol. Urbin. Ohel Moed
fol. 14. 1. ; and which is embraced
supported
and defended by Abarbinel on the place
and in which he is
undoubtedly right; and so it is understood by JosephusF9Antiqu. l.
4. c. 8. sect. 23. and PhiloF11De Charitate
p. 706. ; for this law
gives no liberty nor countenance to the violation of the beautiful captive. The
plain meaning is
that when a Jewish soldier was passionately in love with a
captive
and was desirous of making her his wife
he was to take her home to
his house
where she was to remain
to see whether his passion of love would
subside
or the woman become a proselyte
or however till certain rites were
observed
and then he was permitted to marry her:
and she shall shave her head; either that she might be
the less engaging
her flowing locks
or plaited hair
or modish headdress
being removed from her
which had served to excite a passion for her; or as a
token of mourning for her present afflicted state and condition; and in
afflicted circumstances it was usual to shave the head; see Job 1:20; and
though it was forbidden the Israelites
yet not Gentiles; Deuteronomy 14:1.
and pare her nails; this and the former some think were ordered
to make her fit to be his wife
and were a sort of purification of her
and an
emblem of her having renounced Heathenism
and having departed from it
and
laid aside all superfluity of former naughtiness; but this phrase is
interpreted in the Targum of Onkelos
"let her nails grow"; and so
the Arabic version: and this the Jewish writers say was ordered to be done
that she might appear ugly and disagreeable to him
and be abhorred by him; so
Jarchi
Aben Ezra
and Ben Melech; the same is observed by MaimonidesF12Ut
supra. (Hilchot Melachim
c. 8.) sect. 5.
and is the sense of R. AkibaF13In
T. Bab. Yebamot
fol. 48. 2. . Another of their writersF14R. Abraham
Seba in Tzeror Hammor
fol. 146. 2. think it refers to a custom in some nations
to dye their nails."The daughters of the Heathens (he says) used to adorn
the nails of their hands and feet
and dye them with various colours
according
to the custom of the Ishmaelites (or Turks); that there might be a variety in
their hands
and men might look at them
take them and handle them until the
fire of hell
and an evil concupiscence
burned; wherefore this is ordered that
they might let them grow
without any preparation or die.'But perhaps this
neglect of their nails
and suffering them to grow
was in token of mourning as
well as shaving the head
as also sometimes even paring the nails was done on
the same account.
Deuteronomy 21:13 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.
YLT
13and turned aside the
raiment of her captivity from off her
and hath dwelt in thy house
and
bewailed her father and her mother a month of days
and afterwards thou dost go
in unto her and hast married her
and she hath been to thee for a wife:
And she shall put the raiment of her captivity from off her
.... Her
beautiful garments
and gay apparel
in which she was taken captive; and which
tended to stir up the stronger affection for her
and greater desire after her;
and therefore
as some think
were ordered to be removed
to abate the ardour
of love to her. Jarchi observes
that the daughters of the Gentiles used to
adorn themselves in war
that they might cause others to commit fornication
with them; and another writer before referred to saysF15R. Abraham
Seba in Tzeror. Hammor
fol. 146. 2.
the daughters of Heathens used to adorn
themselves in raiment of silk
and purple
and fine linen
and needlework
to
allure and entice men with them; and therefore the law obliges to put off her
beautiful garments
and clothe her with old worn out ones
that she might be
less agreeable to him; though the putting off her fine clothes
and being clad
with sordid ones
might be only as a token of mourning; as it was customary at
such times to lay aside richer clothing
and put on sackcloth
Jonah 3:6.
and shall remain in thine house: shut up there
and never
stir out
as the same writer interprets it. MaimonidesF16Ut supra.
(Hilchot Melachim
c. 8. sect. 2.) says
that she was to be with him in the
house
that going in and out he might see her
and she become abominable to
him; though perhaps it was only that he might have an opportunity of observing
her manners
and of conversing with her
in order to make a proselyte of her;
so the Targum of Jonathan interprets it of dipping herself
and becoming a
proselytess in his house; or else
as the rest
her abiding in the house
and
not going out
might be on account of mourning
as follows:
and bewail her father and her mother a full month; who were
either dead in the battle
or however she had no hope of seeing them any more
being a captive
and likely to be settled in another man's house in a foreign
country
and so take her farewell of her father's house in this mournful
manner. The Jews are divided about the sense of these words; some take them
simply to signify her parents
others her idols
according to Jeremiah 2:17. The
Targum of Jonathan is
"and weep for the idols of the house of her father
and her mother;'meaning not for the loss of them
but for the idolatry of her
father's house she was now convinced of
being become a proselytess
according
to the paraphrast; but the last seems only to have respect to the loss of her
father and mother
which she was to bewail a whole month
or "a moon of
days"F17ירח ימים
"luna dierum"
Montanus
Piscator
Grotius. ; as many days as the
moon is going its course
which it finishes in twenty seven days
seven hours
and forty three minutes
and this is called the periodical month; but is longer
in passing from one conjunction of it with the sun to another
called the
synodical month
and its quantity is twenty nine days
twelve hours
and forty
four minutes. MaimonidesF18Ut supra (Hilchot Melachim
c. 8.)
sect.
6. says
she was to stay in his house three months
one month of mourning
and
two after that
and then he was to marry her. The reason of this the Targum of
Jonathan explains
by paraphrasing the words thus
"and shall stay three
months
that it may be known whether she is with child;'that is
by his lying
with her before when taken with her beauty
that so he might distinguish this
child begotten on her in Heathenism
from what he might have by her after
marriage
which is supposed to be the case of Tamar and Absalom; but as there
is no foundation in the text for a permission to lie with her before marriage
so neither for these additional months; only one month was required
which was
the usual time for mourning for deceased relations; see Numbers 20:29.
and after that thou shalt go in unto her; and not
before:
and be her husband
and she shall be thy wife he continuing
to love her
and she having become a proselytess.
Deuteronomy 21:14 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.
YLT
14`And it hath been -- if
thou hast not delighted in her
that thou hast sent her away at her desire
and
thou dost not at all sell her for money; thou dost not tyrannize over her
because that thou hast humbled her.
And it shall be
if thou have no delight in her;.... Either
some time after marriage:
then thou shalt let her go whither she will; by a bill of
divorce
as the Targum of Jonathan
who understands it in this sense
and as
the connection of the words seems to require; or else before marriage
at the
month's end
or any time before
that if his affections cooled towards her
and
all the above methods tended to abate his love of her
then he was obliged to
dismiss her
or to grant her her freedom
and let her go wherever she pleased;
she was no longer his captive
nor his servant:
but thou shalt not sell her at all for money; as he might
have done if he had not made such a proposal to her
and obliged her to the
observance of such rites and ceremonies as he did
in order to make her his
wife:
thou shalt not make merchandise of her; which seems
to express the same thing
and therefore something else is rather intended; as
that he should neither make any gain of her by selling her to another
nor
retain her in his own service
nor make use of her as a slave; so Jarchi says
that in the Persian language they call service by this word
and which also he
says he learnt from an eminent writer of theirs
R. Moses Hadarsan; with which
MaimonidesF19Ut supra. (Hilchot Melachim
c. 8. sect. 2.) agrees
who explains it
shall make no use of her service
or serve himself by her; he
should have no profit by her
either by sale
or servitude:
because thou hast humbled her; which phrase it must be
owned is often
used of unlawful commerce with a woman
of defiling her
or
violating her chastity; and so may seem to confirm the notion of those who
think that he lay with her before he took her to his house
and therefore
upon
a refusal to marry her afterwards
was obliged to this loss; though the word
signifies any kind of affliction
as this was a very great one
a great
mortification to her
to be taken into his house
to have her head shaved
and
her nails pared
or suffered to grow
and her fine clothes changed for sordid
ones; and all this with a profession of a design to marry her
and yet after
all is deceived and disappointed by him; wherefore for such a conduct toward
her he was obliged to give her her freedom.
Deuteronomy 21:15 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
YLT
15`When a man hath two wives
the one loved and the other hated
and they have borne to him sons (the loved
one and the hated one)
and the first-born son hath been to the hated one;
If a man have two wives
.... Which is supposed
but not approved of
though permitted because of the hardness of men's hearts;
for it was not so from the beginning
when only one man and one woman were
created
and joined together in marriage; but as it was connived at
and become
customary
a law is made to prevent confusion
and preserve order in families:
one beloved and another hated; or less loved
yet
continued his wife
and not divorced. Aben Ezra observes
this follows upon the
former
because it is there said
that though first he had a desire to her (the
captive beautiful woman)
yet afterwards had no delight in her:
and they have borne him children both
the beloved and the hated; as Rachel and
Leah did to Jacob
who were
the one very much beloved by him
and the other
less:
and if the firstborn son be hers that was hated; or not so
much beloved as the other
as was the case in the above instance.
Deuteronomy 21:16 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.
YLT
16then it hath been
in the
day of his causing his sons to inherit that which he hath
he is not able to
declare first-born the son of the loved one
in the face of the son of the
hated one -- the first-born.
Then it shall be
when he maketh his sons to inherit that which he
hath
.... By a will in writing
or byword of mouth
or by a deed of
gift
actually bestowing his goods upon them
and dividing among them what he
is for the present possessed of; see Luke 15:12
that he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the
son of the hated
which is indeed the firstborn; that is
when
such is the case
that the son of his wife he has the least value for is really
his firstborn
he may not
through favour and affection to the wife he loves
better
prefer her son
and declare him to be the firstborn
by devising to him
or bestowing on him the double portion of his goods; for so to do would not be
right
or agreeably to the will and law of God; for though previous to this law
the birthright was given to Joseph
the eldest son of Rachel
the most beloved
wife of Jacob
before Reuben who was the son of Leah
less beloved by him
and
was in fact his firstborn; yet this was owing to the sin of Reuben
and by the
appointment of God; see Genesis 49:3.
Deuteronomy 21:17 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.
YLT
17But the first-born
son of
the hated one
he doth acknowledge
to give to him a double portion of all that
is found with him
for he [is] the beginning of his strength; to him [is] the
right of the first-born.
But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn
.... Own him
and declare him to be so
both by his will and the division of goods by him; or
he shall "separate" him
as Onkelos; distinguish him from all his
other sons
and make known to all
as the Targum of Jonathan
that he is his
firstborn:
by giving him a double portion of all that he hath; or
"that is found with him"F20אשר ימצא לו "quod inventum
fuerit ei"
Pagninus
Montanus.
; which he was in the possession of when
he made his will
or divided his goods; and so refers not to what might come
into his hands afterwards
or should be his in reversion afterwards; in this
the firstborn had not his double portion
only in what his father was for the
present possessed of; so that if a man had two sons
his goods were divided
into three parts
and the firstborn took two parts
and the other the third; if
three sons
they were divided into four parts
of which the firstborn had two
parts
and the others each of them one; if four sons
they were divided into
five parts
and the firstborn took two
and the other three one apiece
and so
in proportion; the division was made according to their number:
for he is the beginning of his strength; as Jacob
said
of Reuben; see Gill on Genesis 49:3 the
right of the firstborn is his; before this law was given
there was a
birthright
or a privilege belonging to the firstborn
which gave him the
preeminence in the family to his brethren; but whether he was entitled to a
double portion of goods
previous to this law
is not certain; however
by this
it was his right
and might not be alienated from him; for
according to the
Jewish canonsF21Misn. Bava Bathra
c. 8. sect. 5.
"if a man
say
such an one my son
the firstborn
shall not take the double portion
and
my son such an one shall not inherit with his brethren
he says nothing
cause
he disposes contrary to what is written in the law.'This law of the firstborn
in the mystery of it may respect our Lord Jesus Christ
the firstborn of God
and the firstborn of Mary; and who had a double portion of the gifts and grace
of the Spirit
or rather the Spirit without measure
the oil of gladness he was
anointed with above his fellows
and is the firstborn among many brethren
among whom in all things he has the preeminence; and also the elect of God
the
church of the firstborn
whose names are written in heaven
who have a double
portion
both temporal and spiritual things
the promise of this life and that
to come
grace here and glory hereafter; and the ultimate glory is but one
inheritance
they all share alike in
being equally children
and all
firstborn; and it may have regard also to the Jewish and Gentile churches
the
former was the beloved wife
the latter some time not beloved
and yet the
children of the Gentile church have a larger measure of the Spirit than those
of the jewish church had; see Romans 9:25.
Deuteronomy 21:18 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
YLT
18`When a man hath a son
apostatizing and rebellious -- he is not hearkening to the voice of his father
and to the voice of his mother
and they have chastised him
and he doth not hearken
unto them –
If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son
.... It is
observedF23Moses Kotensis Mitzvot Torah
pr. affirm. 122. Kimchi in 2 Sam. 3. 3. that this law
quickly follows
and is subjoined to that which relates to the marriage of a
woman taken captive
because often from such marriages wicked and refractory
children have sprung
and which they exemplify in the case of Absalom
whose
mother they say David took in war and married: the character of such a son
follows
and by which it may be known that he is stubborn and rebellious;
stubborn in his nature
and rebellious in his actions; behaves contrary to the
laws of God
and the instructions of his parents; what he should do
that he
does not; and what he should not do
that he does; will not do what is
commanded him
and will do what is forbidden him
notwithstanding all counsels
admonitions
and corrections given him:
which will not obey the voice of his father
or the voice of his
mother; is disobedient to the commands of either of them; see Proverbs 30:17 and
when they have chastened him
will not hearken to them; when they have reproved
him by words
and corrected him with blows; the Jews understand this of
scourging or beating by the order of the sanhedrim
after admonition given; it
is saidF24Misn. Sandedrin
c. 8. sect. 4.
"they admonish him
before three (a court of judicature consisting of three judges)
and they beat
him; but it seems rather to respect private corrections of their own by words
and stripes
which having no effect
they were to proceed as follows.'
Deuteronomy 21:19 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.
YLT
19then laid hold on him have
his father and his mother
and they have brought him out unto the elders of his
city
and unto the gate of his place
Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him
.... With
their own hands
or cause him to be apprehended by others
in which they were
to agree
and which the Jews gather from hence;"if (say theyF25Misn.
Sanhedrin
c. 8. sect. 4. ) the father is willing (to bring him to justice)
and the mother not willing
if his father is not willing and the mother is
willing
he is not reckoned a stubborn or rebellious son
until they both
agree:"
and bring him out unto the elders of his city; according to
the MisnahF26Ibid.
the sanhedrim
or court of judicature
consisting of twenty three; for they say
that after he has been admonished and
scourged by order of the bench of three
if he returns to his corrupt and
wicked ways again
he is judged by the court of twenty three:
and unto the gate of his place; or city
where the court
sat; so the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan
to the gate of the sanhedrim of
his place.
Deuteronomy 21:20 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.’
YLT
20and have said unto the
elders of his city
Our son -- this one -- is apostatizing and rebellious; he
is not hearkening to our voice -- a glutton and drunkard;
And they shall say unto the elders of his city
.... In open
court
what follows
at the same time
according to the Targum of Jonathan
acknowledging their own sins
for which such a calamity had befallen them
saying
"we have transgressed the decree of the word of the Lord
because
is born unto us a son that is stubborn
&c.'see John 9:2.
this our son is stubborn and rebellious
he will not obey our voice; one of an
obstinate disposition
will have his own will and way
is perverse and
refractory; honours not
but despises his parents
and is disobedient to their
commands
unruly and ungovernable: the Jews gatherF1Misn. Sanhedrin
c. 8. sect. 4. many things from hence
for which there is little foundation
as
that they must be neither dumb
nor blind
nor deaf; though what they further
observe is not much amiss
concerning this rebellious child
that the law
respects a son and not a daughter
because a daughter generally is more
tractable; and less capable of doing mischief than a son; and a son and not a
man
for if at man's estate
and for himself
he is not under the power of his
parents; and yet not a child or a little one
for that is not comprehended in
the commands; he must be according to them thirteen years of age and one day
and he must be a son and not a fatherF2Ut supra
(Misn. Bava Bathra
c. 8.) sect. 1. Maimon. & Bartenora in ib. :
he is a glutton and
a drunkard; which
according to the MisnahF3Ib. sect. 2.
is one
that eats half a pound of flesh
and drinks half a log of Italian wine; R. Jose
says
a pound of flesh and a log of wine; but the decision was not according to
him; the first rule stood: now half a pound of flesh
and half a log of wine
which was about three egg shells
or a quarter of a pint
would be at this day
reckoned very little by our grandsons of Bacchus
as Schickard observesF4Jus
Regium Heb. c. 5. Theor. 17. p. 364. ; but in an age of severer discipline
as
he says
in the tender candidates of temperance
it was reckoned too much
and
was a presage of a future glutton: and it must be further observed to
denominate him a rebellious son
what he ate and drank was to be what he stole
from his parents
and did not eat and drink it at home
but abroad
and in bad
company; so Jarchi remarks on the text
he is not guilty until he steals
and
eats half a pound of flesh
and drinks half a log of wine; in which he seems to
have respect to the Jewish canonF5Misn. Sanhedrin
c. 8. sect. 3.
"if he steals from his father and eats it in a place in his father's
power
or from others and eats it in a place in their power
or from others and
eats it in a place in his father's power; he is not reckoned a stubborn and
rebellious son
unless he steals from his father
and eats it in a place in the
power of others
'see Proverbs 23:20
the
Jews seem to refer to this when they charged Christ with being a glutton and a
winebibber
Matthew 11:19 being
desirous of having him thought as such an one.
Deuteronomy 21:21 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.
YLT
21and all the men of his city
have stoned him with stones
and he hath died
and thou hast put away the evil
out of thy midst
and all Israel do hear and fear.
And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones
that he
die
.... The populace; that is
after his trial is finished
and he
is condemned to die; and he was not stoned until the three first judges were
there (by whom he was admonished
and ordered to be beaten)
as it it said
"this is our son"
this is he that was beaten before youF6Misn.
Sanhedrin
c. 3. sect. 4. ; and according to the Targum of Jonathan
"if he
feared (God
and showed any token of repentance) and received instruction
and
they (his parents) desired to preserve him alive
they preserved him; but if he
refused and was rebellious
then they stoned him;'but the Jews say this law
and that of retaliation
were never put into execution:
so shalt thou put away evil from among you; put a stop
to
and prevent such an evil for the future
and remove the guilt of it; or
as
the Targum of Jonathan
him that doeth that evil:
and all Israel shall hear
and fear; it being to be publicly
notified throughout the land
that such an one suffered death for such a crime
which would be a means of deterring others from the same; so Jarchi
remarks
"here (says he) a proclamation was necessary to be made by the
sanhedrim
as that such an one was stoned because he was stubborn and
rebellious;'for the mystical sense of this see Ephesians 2:2.
Deuteronomy 21:22 22 “If a man has committed a sin deserving of death
and
he is put to death
and you hang him on a tree
YLT
22`And when there is in a man
a sin -- a cause of death
and he hath been put to death
and thou hast hanged
him on a tree
And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death
.... This
before mentioned
or any other that deserves death
any kind of death
as
strangling
killing with the sword
burning and stoning
to which the Jews
restrain it here:
and he be to be put to death
and thou hang him
on a tree; is condemned
to stoning
and after that they hang him
as the Targum of Jonathan; and
according to the Jewish Rabbins
as Jarchi observes
all that were stoned were
to be hanged
and only men
not womenF7Misn. Sotah
c. 3. sect. 8. ;
for it is remarked that it is said "him" and not "her"F8Maimon.
& Bartenora in. ib. : about this there is a dispute in the MisnahF9Misn.
Sanhedrin
c. 6. sect. 4. ;"all that are stoned are hanged
they are the
words of R. Eliezer; but the wise men say none are to be hanged but the
blasphemer and idolater; a man is to be hanged with his face to the people
a
woman with her face to the tree
they are the words of R. Eliezer; but the wise
men say
a man is to be hanged
but no woman
to whom R. Eliezer replied
did
not Simeon Ben Shetach hang women in Ashkelon? they answered him
he hung eighty
women (at once)
but they do not judge or condemn two in one day;'so that this
was a particular case at a particular time
and not be drawn into an example:
in the same place it is asked
"how
they hang one? they fix a beam in the earth
and a piece of wood goes out of it
(near the top of it
as one of the commentatorF11Bartenora in Misn.
Sanhedrin
c. 6. sect. 4. remarks)
and join his two hands together and hang
him;'that is
by his hand
not by his neck
as with us
but rather in the
crucifixion; only in that the hands are spread
and one hand is fastened to one
part of the cross beam
and the other to the other end.
Deuteronomy 21:23 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.
YLT
23his corpse doth not remain
on the tree
for thou dost certainly bury him in that day -- for a thing
lightly esteemed of God [is] the hanged one -- and thou dost not defile thy
ground which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee -- an inheritance.
His body shall not remain
all night upon the tree
.... Which is to be understood of any and everyone that was
hanged
and not of the rebellious son only; of whom JosephusF12Antiqu.
l. 4. c. 8. sect. 24. says
that he was to be stoned by the multitude without
the city
and having remained a whole day for a spectacle unto all
was to be
buried at night; and indeed such a person was not to remain hanging on the tree
any part of the night
but to be taken down at sun setting; so the Targum of
Jonathan
"ye shall bury him at sun setting;'so says MaimonidesF13Hilchot
Sanhedrin
c. 15. sect. 7.
they hang a man near the setting of the sun and
loose him immediately
and if he continues they transgress a negative precept
"his body shall not remain"
&c. yea
according to him and to the
MisnahF14Sanhedrin
c. 6. sect. 5.
and which agrees with the
practice of the Jews to this day
not only those that were put to death by the
sanhedrim
but whoever suffered his dead to remain unburied a night
transgressed a negative command
unless he kept him for his honour
to get for
him a coffin and shroud:
but thou shalt in any wise bury him in that day: by all means
if possible; malefactors were not buried in the sepulchre of their fathers
but
there were two burying places provided by the sanhedrim
one for those that
were stoned and burnt
and another for those that were killed with the sword
and strangledF15Sanhedrin
c. 6. sect. 5. ; and even the instruments
of their death were to be buried also
as MaimonidesF16Ut supra
(Hilchot Sanhedrin
c. 15.) sect. 9. relates
the tree on which he is hanged is
buried with him
that there may be no remembrance of the evil
and they say
this is the tree on which such an one was hanged; and so the stone with which
he is stoned
and the sword with which he is killed
and the napkin with which
he is strangled
all are buried in the place where he is put to death
but not
in the grave itself:
for he that is hanged is accursed of God: plainly
appears to be so
having committed some foul sin which has brought the curse of
God upon him
and which being hanged on a tree was a plain proof and
declaration of; and therefore having hereby suffered the rigour of the law
the
curse of it
his body was ordered to be taken down; for the words are not a
reason of his being hanged
but a reason why being hanged
and so openly
accursed
he should not remain hanging
but be taken down and buried: the
meaning is not
as Onkelos gives it
that"because he sinned before the
Lord he is hanged
'and particularly was guilty of blasphemy; which is given as
the reason of his being hanged
and as the sense of this passage; on the
mention of which it is saidF17Misn. Sanhedrin
c. 6. sect. 4.
"it is as if he should say
wherefore is he hanged? because he cursed
God
and the name of God was found profaned:'but though this
or any other
capital crime
may be allowed to be the reason of the man's being hanged
and
so apparently accursed; yet this is not the reason of his being loosed from
thence
but his having bore the curse and satisfied the law: and hence this is
applied to Christ by the apostle
in Galatians 3:13
showing
that his hanging on the tree was an indication and proof of his being
made sin and a curse for his people
or that he bore the curse of the law for
their sins
and that the taking of him down from the tree
and burying him
signified the removing the curse from him and his people for whom he suffered;
or that thereby he redeemed them from the curse of the law
as the apostle
expresses it:
that thy land be not defiled
which the Lord thy God giveth thee
for an inheritance: which is another reason for taking down the body from the tree
and burying it
lest the land of Canaan
which the Lord had given them for an
inheritance
and which was typical of the undefiled inheritance
1 Peter 1:4 should
be polluted
both in a natural sense
through the putrefaction and corruption
and the disagreeable smell of a dead body
and in a ceremonial sense
as every
carcass was defiling
if a person but entered where it was; and therefore a
dead body was not to be left hanging openly in the air
and rotting there.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》