Deuteronomy 21:22-23

Disposition of a Criminal’s Remains

21:22 If a person commits a sin punishable by death and is executed, and you hang the corpse ¹  on a tree, 21:23 his body must not remain all night on the tree; instead you must make certain you bury ²  him that same day, for the one who is left exposed ³  on a tree is cursed by God. ⁴  You must not defile your land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.

Acts 5:30

5:30 The God of our forefathers ⁵  raised up Jesus, whom you seized and killed by hanging him on a tree. ⁶ 

Acts 10:39

10:39 We ⁷  are witnesses of all the things he did both in Judea ⁸  and in Jerusalem. ⁹  They ¹⁰  killed him by hanging him on a tree, ¹¹ 

Acts 13:29

13:29 When they had accomplished ¹²  everything that was written ¹³  about him, they took him down ¹⁴  from the cross ¹⁵  and placed him ¹⁶  in a tomb.

Galatians 3:13

3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming ¹⁷  a curse for us (because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”) ¹⁸ 

[21:22]  ¹ tn Heb “him.”

[21:23]  ² tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates by “make certain.”

[21:23]  ³ tn Heb “hung,” but this could convey the wrong image in English (hanging with a rope as a means of execution). Cf. NCV “anyone whose body is displayed on a tree.”

[21:23]  ⁴ sn The idea behind the phrase cursed by God seems to be not that the person was impaled because he was cursed but that to leave him exposed there was to invite the curse of God upon the whole land. Why this would be so is not clear, though the rabbinic idea that even a criminal is created in the image of God may give some clue (thus J. H. Tigay, Deuteronomy [JPSTC], 198). Paul cites this text (see Gal 3:13) to make the point that Christ, suspended from a cross, thereby took upon himself the curse associated with such a display of divine wrath and judgment (T. George, Galatians [NAC], 238-39).

[5:30]  ⁵ tn Or “ancestors”; Grk “fathers.”

[5:30]  ⁶ tn Or “by crucifying him” (“hang on a tree” is by the time of the first century an idiom for crucifixion). The allusion is to the judgment against Jesus as a rebellious figure, appealing to the language of Deut 21:23. The Jewish leadership has badly “misjudged” Jesus.

[10:39]  ⁷ tn Grk “And we.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[10:39]  ⁸ tn Grk “the land of the Jews,” but this is similar to the phrase used as the name of the province of Judea in 1 Macc 8:3 (see BDAG 1093-94 s.v. χώρα 2.b).

[10:39]  ⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[10:39]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “in Jerusalem, whom they killed.” The relative pronoun was replaced by the pronoun “him” and a new sentence was begun in the translation at this point to improve the English style, due to the length of the sentence in Greek.

[10:39]  ¹¹ tn Or “by crucifying him” (“hang on a tree” is by the time of the 1st century an idiom for crucifixion). The allusion is to the judgment against Jesus as a rebellious figure, appealing to the language of Deut 21:23. The Jewish leadership has badly “misjudged” Jesus.

[13:29]  ¹² tn Or “carried out.”

[13:29]  ¹³ sn That is, everything that was written in OT scripture.

[13:29]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “taking him down from the cross, they placed him.” The participle καθελόντες (kaqelonte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[13:29]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “tree,” but frequently figurative for a cross. The allusion is to Deut 21:23. See Acts 5:30; 10:39.

[13:29]  ¹⁶ tn The word “him” is not in the Greek text but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[3:13]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “having become”; the participle γενόμενος (genomenos) has been taken instrumentally.

[3:13]  ¹⁸ sn A quotation from Deut 21:23. By figurative extension the Greek word translated tree (ζύλον, zulon) can also be used to refer to a cross (L&N 6.28), the Roman instrument of execution.