Advanced Commentary

Texts -- Deuteronomy 22:1-26 (NET)

Context
Laws Concerning Preservation of Life
22:1 When you see your neighbor’s ox or sheep going astray , do not ignore it; you must return it without fail to your neighbor . 22:2 If the owner does not live near you or you do not know who the owner is, then you must corral the animal at your house and let it stay with you until the owner looks for it; then you must return it to him. 22:3 You shall do the same to his donkey , his clothes , or anything else your neighbor has lost and you have found ; you must not refuse to get involved . 22:4 When you see your neighbor’s donkey or ox fallen along the road , do not ignore it; instead, you must be sure to help him get the animal on its feet again. 22:5 A woman must not wear men’s clothing , nor should a man dress up in women’s clothing , for anyone who does this is offensive to the Lord your God . 22:6 If you happen to notice a bird’s nest along the road , whether in a tree or on the ground , and there are chicks or eggs with the mother bird sitting on them, you must not take the mother from the young . 22:7 You must be sure to let the mother go , but you may take the young for yourself. Do this so that it may go well with you and you may have a long life . 22:8 If you build a new house , you must construct a guard rail around your roof to avoid being culpable in the event someone should fall from it.
Illustrations of the Principle of Purity
22:9 You must not plant your vineyard with two kinds of seed; otherwise the entire yield , both of the seed you plant and the produce of the vineyard , will be defiled . 22:10 You must not plow with an ox and a donkey harnessed together . 22:11 You must not wear clothing made with wool and linen meshed together . 22:12 You shall make yourselves tassels for the four corners of the clothing you wear.
Purity in the Marriage Relationship
22:13 Suppose a man marries a woman , has sexual relations with her, and then rejects her, 22:14 accusing her of impropriety and defaming her reputation by saying , “I married this woman but when I had sexual relations with her I discovered she was not a virgin !” 22:15 Then the father and mother of the young woman must produce the evidence of virginity for the elders of the city at the gate . 22:16 The young woman’s father must say to the elders , “I gave my daughter to this man and he has rejected her. 22:17 Moreover , he has raised accusations of impropriety by saying , ‘I discovered your daughter was not a virgin ,’ but this is the evidence of my daughter’s virginity !” The cloth must then be spread out before the city’s elders . 22:18 The elders of that city must then seize the man and punish him. 22:19 They will fine him one hundred shekels of silver and give them to the young woman’s father , for the man who made the accusation ruined the reputation of an Israelite virgin . She will then become his wife and he may never divorce her as long as he lives . 22:20 But if the accusation is true and the young woman was not a virgin , 22:21 the men of her city must bring the young woman to the door of her father’s house and stone her to death , for she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by behaving like a prostitute while living in her father’s house . In this way you will purge evil from among you. 22:22 If a man is caught having sexual relations with a married woman both the man who had relations with the woman and the woman herself must die ; in this way you will purge evil from Israel . 22:23 If a virgin is engaged to a man and another man meets her in the city and has sexual relations with her, 22:24 you must bring the two of them to the gate of that city and stone them to death , the young woman because she did not cry out though in the city and the man because he violated his neighbor’s fiancée ; in this way you will purge evil from among you. 22:25 But if the man came across the engaged woman in the field and overpowered her and raped her, then only the rapist must die . 22:26 You must not do anything to the young woman – she has done nothing deserving of death . This case is the same as when someone attacks another person and murders him,

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • Moses

    [ebd] drawn (or Egypt. mesu, "son;" hence Rameses, royal son). On the invitation of Pharaoh (Gen. 45:17-25), Jacob and his sons went down into Egypt. This immigration took place probably about 350 years before the birth of Moses. ...

  • TEXT OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

    [isbe] TEXT OF THE OLD TESTAMENT - || I. EARLIEST FORM OF WRITING IN ISRAEL 1. Invention of Alphabet 2. The Cuneiform 3. References to Writing in the Old Testament 4. Inscriptions after Settlement in Canaan 5. Orthography of the Pe...

  • Adultery

    [isbe] ADULTERY - a-dul'-ter-i: In Scripture designates sexual intercourse of a man, whether married or unmarried, with a married woman. 1. Its Punishment: It is categorically prohibited in the Decalogue (seventh commandment, Ex 20...
    [smith] (Exodus 20:14) The parties to this crime, according to Jewish law, were a married woman and a man who was not her husband. The Mosaic penalty was that both the guilty parties should be stoned, and it applied as well to the be...
    [nave] ADULTERY. Gen. 20:3; 2 Sam. 12:14; Job 24:15-17 v. 18.; Job 31:1, 9-12; Prov. 2:16, 18, 19 v. 17.; Prov. 5:3, 4 vs. 5-22.; Prov. 6:24-29, 32, 33; Prov. 7:5-23; Prov. 9:13-18; Prov. 22:14; Prov. 23:27, 28; Prov. 29:3; Prov. ...

  • Church

    [nave] CHURCH, the collective body of believers. Miscellany of Minor Sub-Topics Called in the O.T., The Congregation, Ex. 12:3, 6, 19, 47; 16:1, 2, 9, 10, 22; Lev. 4:13, 15; 10:17; 24:14. Called in the N.T., Church, Matt. 16:18; ...

  • LAW OF MOSES

    [smith] It will be the object of this article to give a brief analysis of the substance of this law, to point out its main principles, and to explain the position which it occupies in the progress of divine revelation. In order to do...

  • Slander

    [isbe] SLANDER - slan'-der (substantive, dibbah, "slander"; diabolos, "slanderer"; verb raghal, "to slink about" as a talebearer, lashan, "to use the tongue," "to slander"; diaballo, "to calumniate," "to slander"; and other words):...
    [nave] SLANDER Comes from the evil heart, Luke 6:45. Often arises from hatred, Psa. 109:3. Idleness leads to, 1 Tim. 5:13. The wicked addicted to, Psa. 50:20. Hypocrites addicted to, Prov. 11:9. A characteristic of the devil, ...

  • Virgin

    [nave] VIRGIN Proofs of, Deut. 22:13-21. Dowry of, Ex. 22:17. Character of, to be protected, Deut. 22:17-21, 23, 24. Betrothal of, a quasi marriage, Deut. 22:23, 24. Distinguishing apparel of, 2 Sam. 13:18. Priests might marry...

  • Husband

    [isbe] HUSBAND - huz'-band ('ish; aner): In the Hebrew household the husband and father was the chief personage of an institution which was regarded as more than a social organism, inasmuch as the family in primitive Semitic societ...
    [nave] HUSBAND. Gen. 2:23, 24 Matt. 19:5; Mark 10:7. Num. 5:11-31; Deut. 22:13-21; Deut. 24:5; Prov. 5:15-19; Eccl. 9:9; Mal. 2:14-16; 1 Cor. 7:3, 5; 1 Cor. 7:14, 16, 33; 1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 5:22-33; Col. 3:18, 19; 1 Tim. 5:8; 1 Pet...

  • PUNISHMENTS

    [isbe] PUNISHMENTS - pun'-ish-ments ('awon, "fault," "iniquity," "punishment for iniquity," "sin" (Gen 4:13; Lev 26:41; Job 19:29; Ps 149:7; Lam 4:22; Ezek 14:10 margin; Am 1:3,6,9,11,13; 2:1,4,6), `onesh, "tribute," "fine," "punis...
    [smith] The earliest theory of punishment current among mankind is doubtless the one of simple retaliation, "blood for blood." Viewed historically, the first case of punishment for crime mentioned in Scripture, next to the Fall itsel...

  • Wife

    [ebd] The ordinance of marriage was sanctioned in Paradise (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:4-6). Monogamy was the original law under which man lived, but polygamy early commenced (Gen. 4:19), and continued to prevail all down through Jewish ...

  • Government

    [nave] GOVERNMENT Paternal functions of, Gen. 41:25-57. Civil service school provided by, Dan. 1:3-20. Maintains a system of public instruction, 2 Chr. 17:7-9. Executive departments in. See: Cabinet; King; Ruler; Statecraft. Ju...

  • Character

    [nave] CHARACTER. of Saints Attentive to Christ's voice, John 10:3, 4; blameless and harmless, Phil. 2:15; bold, Prov. 28:1; contrite, Isa. 57:15; 66:2; devout, Acts 8:2; 22:12; faithful, Rev. 17:14; fearing God, Mal. 3:16; Acts ...

  • Damages and Compensations

    [nave] DAMAGES AND COMPENSATIONS. Ex. 21:18, 19, 22, 28-34; Lev. 6:1-5; Deut. 22:13-19, 28, 29 See: Fine.

  • Fornication

    [ebd] in every form of it was sternly condemned by the Mosaic law (Lev. 21:9; 19:29; Deut. 22:20, 21, 23-29; 23:18; Ex. 22:16). (See ADULTERY.) But this word is more frequently used in a symbolical than in its ordinary sense. It f...

  • Punishment

    [nave] PUNISHMENT. Death Penalty Shall not be remitted, Num. 35:31. In the Mosaic law the death penalty was inflicted for murder, Gen. 9:5, 6; Num. 35:16-21, 30-33; Deut. 17:6; adultery, Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:24; incest, Lev. 20:...

  • Dress

    [ebd] (1.) Materials used. The earliest and simplest an apron of fig-leaves sewed together (Gen. 3:7); then skins of animals (3:21). Elijah's dress was probably the skin of a sheep (2 Kings 1:8). The Hebrews were early acquainted ...
    [smith] This subject includes the following particulars: Materials; Color and decoration; Name, form, and mode of wearing the various articles; Special usages relating thereto. Materials .--After the first "apron" of fig leaves, (Ge...
    [nave] DRESS Of fig leaves, Gen. 3:7. Of skins, Gen. 3:21. Of other materials, See: Hair; Goats' Hair; Leather; Linen; Sackcloth; Silk; Wool. Mixed materials in, forbidden, Deut. 22:11. Men forbidden to wear women's, and women ...

  • Agriculture

    [ebd] Tilling the ground (Gen. 2:15; 4:2, 3, 12) and rearing cattle were the chief employments in ancient times. The Egyptians excelled in agriculture. And after the Israelites entered into the possession of the Promised Land, the...
    [smith] This was little cared for by the patriarchs. The pastoral life, however, was the means of keeping the sacred race, whilst yet a family, distinct from mixture and locally unattached, especially whilst in Egypt. When grown into...
    [nave] AGRICULTURE Divine institution of, Gen. 2:15; 3:19, 23. Practiced by Cain, Gen. 4:2; Noah, Gen. 9:20; Elisha, 1 Kin. 19:19; David, 1 Chr. 27:26-31; Uzziah, 2 Chr. 26:10; Solomon, Eccl. 2:4-6. God to be acknowledged in, Jer...

  • LAW IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

    [isbe] LAW IN THE OLD TESTAMENT - || I. TERMS USED 1. Torah ("Law") 2. Synonyms of Torah (1) Mitswah ("Command") (2) `Edhah ("Witness," "Testimony") (3) MishpaTim ("Judgments") (4) Chuqqim ("Statutes") (5) Piqqudhim ("Precepts") II...

  • Women

    [nave] WOMEN Creation of, Gen. 1:27; 2:21, 22. Named, Gen. 2:23. Fall of, and curse upon, Gen. 3:1-16; 2 Cor. 11:3; 1 Tim. 2:14. Promise to, Gen. 3:15. Had separate apartments in dwellings, Gen. 24:67; 31:33; Esth. 2:9, 11. Ve...

  • Brother

    [nave] BROTHER Signifies a relative, Gen. 14:16; 29:12; neighbor, Deut. 23:7; Judg. 21:6; Neh. 5:7; any Israelite, Jer. 34:9; Obad. 10; mankind, Gen. 9:5; Matt. 18:35; 1 John 3:15; companion, 2 Sam. 1:26; 1 Kin. 13:30; 20:33. Love...
more

Arts

Questions

Sermon Illustrations

2 Corinthians 6:14; Ox and Ass

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • Chapter 4 shows the spread of sin from Adam's family to the larger society that his descendants produced. Not only did sin affect everyone, but people became progressively more wicked as time passed. Verses 1-16 show that the...
  • The writer composed chapter 20 as another chiasm with the focal point being Abimelech warning his servants (v. 8). Two dialogues dominate the story: the one between God and Abimelech (vv. 3-7) and the one between Abimelech an...
  • After Shechem the Canaanite raped Dinah, Simeon and Levi gained revenge by deceiving the Shechemites into being circumcised as the condition for Dinah's marriage. Then they murdered the incapacitated men of the city."The stor...
  • Moses revealed God's purpose for giving the Mosaic Covenant in this chapter.19:1-6 The Israelites arrived at the base of the mountain where God gave them the law about three months after they had left Egypt, in May-June (v. 1...
  • Adultery is sexual intercourse when one or both partners are married (or engaged, under Israelite law; cf. Deut. 22:23-29) to someone else. Adultery destroys marriage and the home, the foundations of society (cf. Matt. 5:27-2...
  • 23:13 This verse is a summary warning against idolatry (cf. 20:22-23)."The continual return to the theme of idolatry throughout this section of the book is preparation and background for an appreciation of the incident of the...
  • This incident illustrates the fate of the Israelite or foreigner in Israel who deliberately violated the law of Sabbath observance. It clarifies the meaning of defiant sin as well as what it means to be "cut off from among hi...
  • Perhaps God initiated this command in response to the incident of Sabbath-breaking just mentioned.The Israelites were to wear tassels on the four corners of their upper outer garments (Deut. 22:12). The text does not explain ...
  • Let me share with you a couple of quotations that point out the importance of this book."Deuteronomy is one of the greatest books of the Old Testament. Its significance on the domestic and personal religion of all ages has no...
  • I. Introduction: the covenant setting 1:1-5II. Moses' first major address: a review of God's faithfulness 1:6-4:40A. God's past dealings with Israel 1:6-3:291. God's guidance from Sinai to Kadesh 1:6-462. The march from Kades...
  • This brief section places the events that follow in their geographical and chronological setting. It introduces the occasion for the covenant, the parties involved, and other information necessary to identify the document and...
  • "The passage at hand is without comparison as a discourse on the doctrine of God."56Moses' three rhetorical questions (vv. 32-34) clearly point out the uniqueness of Yahweh."In addition to His self-disclosure in event, in his...
  • ". . . Deuteronomy contains the most comprehensive body of laws in the Pentateuch. It is clearly intended to be consulted for guidance on many aspects of daily life, in sharp contrast with the laws of Leviticus, which are ver...
  • This commandment deals with adultery only. Whereas murder violates life itself, adultery violates the most important and sacred human relationship, marriage.88God dealt with other forms of sexual sin elsewhere (cf. chs. 22-25...
  • Another writer suggested that chapters 6-26 expand the Decalogue with the intent of addressing the spirit of the law.92He believed the structure of the book supports his contention that the writer chose exemplary cases. Moses...
  • "These clearly are not laws or commandments as such but primarily series of parenetic homilies in which Moses exhorted the people to certain courses of action in light of the upcoming conquest and occupation of Canaan. Within...
  • The section of Deuteronomy dealing with general stipulations of the covenant ends as it began, with an exhortation to covenant loyalty (5:1-5; cf. 4:32-40)."This chapter is to be understood as a re-emphasis of these principle...
  • Moses' homiletical exposition of the law of Israel that follows explains reasons for the covenant laws that arose from the Ten Commandments. This address concludes with directions for celebrating and confirming the covenant (...
  • This section opens and closes with references to death (21:22; 22:8) placing it within the legislation dealing with the sixth commandment.238...
  • Love for one's neighbor comes through in several concrete situations in verses 1-4. Failure to get involved and help a neighbor in need is also wrong under the New Covenant (James 2:15-16; 1 John 3:17).Men appeared in women's...
  • Adultery involves mixing people in a way that they should not mix, so the antithesis is keeping things properly apart separate. The prohibitions against mixing seed, animals in yoke, and fibers in clothing (vv. 9-11) seem to ...
  • Moses considered seven types of cases in these verses.The first case (vv. 13-19) is of a man who marries a woman and then falsely charges her with being a harlot (not being a virgin when he married her). If the girl could pro...
  • A discussion of divorce and remarriage fits into this context because they both involve respect for the rights of others. The first of the two situations Moses dealt with in this section concerns a married, divorced, and rema...
  • This section concludes the "purely legal material."284The ordinances with which Moses concluded his second address (chs. 5-26) not only specified the Israelites' actions in further respects but also focused their thinking on ...
  • "The presentation of the commandments and the statutes and ordinances that will guide Israel's life in the land is over now. Verse 16 serves as a concluding bracket around chapters 5-26, matching Moses' introduction to the wh...
  • "Moses assigned the priests and elders the duty of regularly republishing the law of the covenant. The effect of this was to associate the priests and elders with Joshua in the responsibility of rule and in the esteem of Isra...
  • Adams, Jay. Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible. Phillipsburg, N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1980.Albright, William Foxwell. The Archaeology of Palestine. 1949. Revised ed. Pelican Archaeology seri...
  • The Lord granted the Benjamites success to discipline the other Israelites for their independence, not because He approved of the Benjamites' actions. The Benjamites became God's temporary instrument to discipline the other t...
  • Josiah began to seek Yahweh when he was 16 years old and began initiating religious reforms when he was 20 (2 Chron. 34:3-7). His reforms were more extensive than those of any of his predecessors. One of them was the repair o...
  • Three cases illustrate this principle: a father doing right (vv. 5-9), his son doing evil (vv. 10-13), and his grandson doing right (vv. 14-18). In each case Ezekiel described the individual's actions and the Lord's responses...
  • 23:5-8 Oholah proved unfaithful to the Lord by lusting after her attractive neighbors, the Assyrians."The appeal, then as now, was to youth, strength, position, wealth and self-gratification; that is, the world in all its daz...
  • In this message, the Lord described Israel's unfaithfulness to Him in terms similar to those that a husband would use to describe his wife's unfaithfulness to him. The whole message appears to be one that Hosea delivered to h...
  • 1:7 In view of the inevitability of coming judgment for idolatry, it was appropriate for the Judeans to be quiet before sovereign Yahweh (cf. Hab. 2:20)."This is a call to the people of Judah to cease every manner of oppositi...
  • The first sentence in this pericope (section) serves as a title for the section, as the sentence in verse 1 did for 1:1-17. Matthew recorded the supernatural birth of Jesus to demonstrate further His qualification as Israel's...
  • 5:33 Jesus next gave a condensation of several commands in the Old Testament that forbade taking an oath, invoking the Lord's name to guarantee the oath, and then breaking it (Exod. 20:7; Lev. 19:12; Num. 30:2; Deut. 5:11; 6:...
  • 9:18-19 This incident evidently happened shortly after Jesus and His disciples returned from Gadara on the east side of the lake (cf. Mark 5:21-22; Luke 8:40-41). The name of this Capernium synagogue ruler was Jairus (Mark 5:...
  • Matthew evidently included this instruction because the marriage relationships of His disciples were important factors in their effective ministries. Jesus clarified God's will for His disciples that was different from the co...
  • 23:1 As we have seen, there were three groups of people present in the temple courtyard. These were the disciples of Jesus, His critics, namely the various groups of Israel's leaders, and the crowds of ordinary Israelites. Je...
  • The textual authenticity of this pericope is highly questionable. Most ancient Greek manuscripts dating before the sixth century do not contain it. However, over 900 ancient manuscripts do contain it including the important e...
  • The Corinthians had a tendency to respond to Paul's teachings by first resisting them and then going overboard in applying them inappropriately. They had done this in dealing with the incestuous man (1 Cor. 5). Consequently P...
Back to Commentary Page
Display Bible



Universal Search:

NET Only
Exact Search
Commentary
Study Dictionary
Word Study
Lexicon
Study Maps System
Sermon Illustrations
Expository
Arts
Resource
Daily Bible Reading
Training Video
Classic NET Bible
iPhone NET Bible
Mobile Bible
TIP #20: To dig deeper, please read related articles at BIBLE.org (via Articles Tab). [ALL]
created in 0.05 seconds
powered by
bible.org - YLSA