Deuteronomy 21:15

Laws Concerning Children

21:15 Suppose a man has two wives, one whom he loves more than the other, ¹  and they both ²  bear him sons, with the firstborn being the child of the less loved wife.

Deuteronomy 22:13

Purity in the Marriage Relationship

22:13 Suppose a man marries a woman, has sexual relations with her, ³  and then rejects ⁴  her,

Exodus 21:10

21:10 If he takes another wife, ⁵  he must not diminish the first one’s food, ⁶  her clothing, or her marital rights. ⁷ 

[21:15]  ¹ tn Heb “one whom he loves and one whom he hates.” For the idea of שָׂנֵא (sane’, “hate”) meaning to be rejected or loved less (cf. NRSV “disliked”), see Gen 29:31, 33; Mal 1:2-3. Cf. A. Konkel, NIDOTTE 3:1256-60.

[21:15]  ² tn Heb “both the one whom he loves and the one whom he hates.” On the meaning of the phrase “one whom he loves and one whom he hates” see the note on the word “other” earlier in this verse. The translation has been simplified for stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy.

[22:13]  ³ tn Heb “goes to her,” a Hebrew euphemistic idiom for sexual relations.

[22:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “hate.” See note on the word “other” in Deut 21:15. Cf. NAB “comes to dislike”; NASB “turns against”; TEV “decides he doesn’t want.”

[21:10]  ⁵ tn “wife” has been supplied.

[21:10]  ⁶ tn The translation of “food” does not quite do justice to the Hebrew word. It is “flesh.” The issue here is that the family she was to marry into is wealthy, they ate meat. She was not just to be given the basic food the ordinary people ate, but the fine foods that this family ate.

[21:10]  ⁷ sn See S. Paul, “Exodus 21:10, A Threefold Maintenance Clause,” JNES 28 (1969): 48-53. Paul suggests that the third element listed is not marital rights but ointments since Sumerian and Akkadian texts list food, clothing, and oil as the necessities of life. The translation of “marital rights” is far from certain, since the word occurs only here. The point is that the woman was to be cared for with all that was required for a woman in that situation.