Discovery BoxDeuteronomy 4:1
Context4:1 Now, Israel, pay attention to the statutes and ordinances 1 I am about to teach you, so that you might live and go on to enter and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, 2 is giving you.
Deuteronomy 2:1-37
Context2:1 Then we turned and set out toward the desert land on the way to the Red Sea 3 just as the Lord told me to do, detouring around Mount Seir for a long time. 2:2 At this point the Lord said to me, 2:3 “You have circled around this mountain long enough; now turn north. 2:4 Instruct 4 these people as follows: ‘You are about to cross the border of your relatives 5 the descendants of Esau, 6 who inhabit Seir. They will be afraid of you, so watch yourselves carefully. 2:5 Do not be hostile toward them, because I am not giving you any of their land, not even a footprint, for I have given Mount Seir 7 as an inheritance for Esau. 2:6 You may purchase 8 food to eat and water to drink from them. 2:7 All along the way I, the Lord your God, 9 have blessed your every effort. 10 I have 11 been attentive to 12 your travels through this great wasteland. These forty years I have 13 been with you; you have lacked for nothing.’”
2:8 So we turned away from our relatives 14 the descendants of Esau, the inhabitants of Seir, turning from the desert route, 15 from Elat 16 and Ezion Geber, 17 and traveling the way of the Moab wastelands. 2:9 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not harass Moab and provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land as your territory. This is because I have given Ar 18 to the descendants of Lot 19 as their possession. 2:10 (The Emites 20 used to live there, a people as powerful, numerous, and tall as the Anakites. 2:11 These people, as well as the Anakites, are also considered Rephaites; 21 the Moabites call them Emites. 2:12 Previously the Horites 22 lived in Seir but the descendants of Esau dispossessed and destroyed them and settled in their place, just as Israel did to the land it came to possess, the land the Lord gave them.) 23 2:13 Now, get up and cross the Wadi Zered.” 24 So we did so. 25 2:14 Now the length of time it took for us to go from Kadesh Barnea to the crossing of Wadi Zered was thirty-eight years, time for all the military men of that generation to die, just as the Lord had vowed to them. 2:15 Indeed, it was the very hand of the Lord that eliminated them from within 26 the camp until they were all gone.
2:16 So it was that after all the military men had been eliminated from the community, 27 2:17 the Lord said to me, 2:18 “Today you are going to cross the border of Moab, that is, of Ar. 28 2:19 But when you come close to the Ammonites, do not harass or provoke them because I am not giving you any of the Ammonites’ land as your possession; I have already given it to Lot’s descendants 29 as their possession.
2:20 (That also is considered to be a land of the Rephaites. 30 The Rephaites lived there originally; the Ammonites call them Zamzummites. 31 2:21 They are a people as powerful, numerous, and tall as the Anakites. But the Lord destroyed the Rephaites 32 in advance of the Ammonites, 33 so they dispossessed them and settled down in their place. 2:22 This is exactly what he did for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir when he destroyed the Horites before them so that they could dispossess them and settle in their area to this very day. 2:23 As for the Avvites 34 who lived in settlements as far west as Gaza, Caphtorites 35 who came from Crete 36 destroyed them and settled down in their place.)
2:24 Get up, make your way across Wadi Arnon. Look! I have already delivered over to you Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, 37 and his land. Go ahead! Take it! Engage him in war! 2:25 This very day I will begin to fill all the people of the earth 38 with dread and to terrify them when they hear about you. They will shiver and shake in anticipation of your approach.” 39
2:26 Then I sent messengers from the Kedemoth 40 Desert to King Sihon of Heshbon with an offer of peace: 2:27 “Let me pass through your land; I will keep strictly to the roadway. 41 I will not turn aside to the right or the left. 2:28 Sell me food for cash 42 so that I can eat and sell me water to drink. 43 Just allow me to go through on foot, 2:29 just as the descendants of Esau who live at Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for me, until I cross the Jordan to the land the Lord our God is giving us.” 2:30 But King Sihon of Heshbon was unwilling to allow us to pass near him because the Lord our 44 God had made him obstinate 45 and stubborn 46 so that he might deliver him over to you 47 this very day. 2:31 The Lord said to me, “Look! I have already begun to give over Sihon and his land to you. Start right now to take his land as your possession.” 2:32 When Sihon and all his troops 48 emerged to encounter us in battle at Jahaz, 49 2:33 the Lord our God delivered him over to us and we struck him down, along with his sons 50 and everyone else. 51 2:34 At that time we seized all his cities and put every one of them 52 under divine judgment, 53 including even the women and children; we left no survivors. 2:35 We kept only the livestock and plunder from the cities for ourselves. 2:36 From Aroer, 54 which is at the edge of Wadi Arnon (it is the city in the wadi), 55 all the way to Gilead there was not a town able to resist us – the Lord our God gave them all to us. 2:37 However, you did not approach the land of the Ammonites, the Wadi Jabbok, 56 the cities of the hill country, or any place else forbidden by the Lord our God.
Deuteronomy 4:1-49
Context4:1 Now, Israel, pay attention to the statutes and ordinances 57 I am about to teach you, so that you might live and go on to enter and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, 58 is giving you. 4:2 Do not add a thing to what I command you nor subtract from it, so that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I am delivering to 59 you. 4:3 You have witnessed what the Lord did at Baal Peor, 60 how he 61 eradicated from your midst everyone who followed Baal Peor. 62 4:4 But you who remained faithful to the Lord your God are still alive to this very day, every one of you. 4:5 Look! I have taught you statutes and ordinances just as the Lord my God told me to do, so that you might carry them out in 63 the land you are about to enter and possess. 4:6 So be sure to do them, because this will testify of your wise understanding 64 to the people who will learn of all these statutes and say, “Indeed, this great nation is a very wise 65 people.” 4:7 In fact, what other great nation has a god so near to them like the Lord our God whenever we call on him? 4:8 And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just 66 as this whole law 67 that I am about to share with 68 you today?
4:9 Again, however, pay very careful attention, 69 lest you forget the things you have seen and disregard them for the rest of your life; instead teach them to your children and grandchildren. 4:10 You 70 stood before the Lord your God at Horeb and he 71 said to me, “Assemble the people before me so that I can tell them my commands. 72 Then they will learn to revere me all the days they live in the land, and they will instruct their children.” 4:11 You approached and stood at the foot of the mountain, a mountain ablaze to the sky above it 73 and yet dark with a thick cloud. 74 4:12 Then the Lord spoke to you from the middle of the fire; you heard speech but you could not see anything – only a voice was heard. 75 4:13 And he revealed to you the covenant 76 he has commanded you to keep, the ten commandments, 77 writing them on two stone tablets. 4:14 Moreover, at that same time the Lord commanded me to teach you statutes and ordinances for you to keep in the land which you are about to enter and possess. 78
4:15 Be very careful, 79 then, because you saw no form at the time the Lord spoke to you at Horeb from the middle of the fire. 4:16 I say this 80 so you will not corrupt yourselves by making an image in the form of any kind of figure. This includes the likeness of a human male or female, 4:17 any kind of land animal, any bird that flies in the sky, 4:18 anything that crawls 81 on the ground, or any fish in the deep waters of the earth. 82 4:19 When you look up 83 to the sky 84 and see the sun, moon, and stars – the whole heavenly creation 85 – you must not be seduced to worship and serve them, 86 for the Lord your God has assigned 87 them to all the people 88 of the world. 89 4:20 You, however, the Lord has selected and brought from Egypt, that iron-smelting furnace, 90 to be his special people 91 as you are today. 4:21 But the Lord became angry with me because of you and vowed that I would never cross the Jordan nor enter the good land that he 92 is about to give you. 93 4:22 So I must die here in this land; I will not cross the Jordan. But you are going over and will possess that 94 good land. 4:23 Be on guard so that you do not forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he has made with you, and that you do not make an image of any kind, just as he 95 has forbidden 96 you. 4:24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God. 97
4:25 After you have produced children and grandchildren and have been in the land a long time, 98 if you become corrupt and make an image of any kind 99 and do other evil things before the Lord your God that enrage him, 100 4:26 I invoke heaven and earth as witnesses against you 101 today that you will surely and swiftly be removed 102 from the very land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not last long there because you will surely be 103 annihilated. 4:27 Then the Lord will scatter you among the peoples and there will be very few of you 104 among the nations where the Lord will drive you. 4:28 There you will worship gods made by human hands – wood and stone that can neither see, hear, eat, nor smell. 4:29 But if you seek the Lord your God from there, you will find him, if, indeed, you seek him with all your heart and soul. 105 4:30 In your distress when all these things happen to you in the latter days, 106 if you return to the Lord your God and obey him 107 4:31 (for he 108 is a merciful God), he will not let you down 109 or destroy you, for he cannot 110 forget the covenant with your ancestors that he confirmed by oath to them.
4:32 Indeed, ask about the distant past, starting from the day God created humankind 111 on the earth, and ask 112 from one end of heaven to the other, whether there has ever been such a great thing as this, or even a rumor of it. 4:33 Have a people ever heard the voice of God speaking from the middle of fire, as you yourselves have, and lived to tell about it? 4:34 Or has God 113 ever before tried to deliver 114 a nation from the middle of another nation, accompanied by judgments, 115 signs, wonders, war, strength, power, 116 and other very terrifying things like the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? 4:35 You have been taught that the Lord alone is God – there is no other besides him. 4:36 From heaven he spoke to you in order to teach you, and on earth he showed you his great fire from which you also heard his words. 117 4:37 Moreover, because he loved 118 your ancestors, he chose their 119 descendants who followed them and personally brought you out of Egypt with his great power 4:38 to dispossess nations greater and stronger than you and brought you here this day to give you their land as your property. 120 4:39 Today realize and carefully consider that the Lord is God in heaven above and on earth below – there is no other! 4:40 Keep his statutes and commandments that I am setting forth 121 today so that it may go well with you and your descendants and that you may enjoy longevity in the land that the Lord your God is about to give you as a permanent possession.
4:41 Then Moses selected three cities in the Transjordan, toward the east. 4:42 Anyone who accidentally killed someone 122 without hating him at the time of the accident 123 could flee to one of those cities and be safe. 4:43 These cities are Bezer, in the desert plateau, for the Reubenites; Ramoth in Gilead for the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan for the Manassehites.
4:44 This is the law that Moses set before the Israelites. 124 4:45 These are the stipulations, statutes, and ordinances that Moses spoke to the Israelites after he had brought them out of Egypt, 4:46 in the Transjordan, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, in the land of King Sihon of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. (It is he whom Moses and the Israelites attacked after they came out of Egypt. 4:47 They possessed his land and that of King Og of Bashan – both of whom were Amorite kings in the Transjordan, to the east. 4:48 Their territory extended 125 from Aroer at the edge of the Arnon valley as far as Mount Siyon 126 – that is, Hermon – 4:49 including all the Arabah of the Transjordan in the east to the sea of the Arabah, 127 beneath the watershed 128 of Pisgah.)
Deuteronomy 22:1-30
Context22:1 When you see 129 your neighbor’s 130 ox or sheep going astray, do not ignore it; 131 you must return it without fail 132 to your neighbor. 22:2 If the owner 133 does not live 134 near you or you do not know who the owner is, 135 then you must corral the animal 136 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 137 has lost and you have found; you must not refuse to get involved. 138 22:4 When you see 139 your neighbor’s donkey or ox fallen along the road, do not ignore it; 140 instead, you must be sure 141 to help him get the animal on its feet again. 142
22:5 A woman must not wear men’s clothing, 143 nor should a man dress up in women’s clothing, for anyone who does this is offensive 144 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, 145 you must not take the mother from the young. 146 22:7 You must be sure 147 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 148 around your roof to avoid being culpable 149 in the event someone should fall from it.
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. 150 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. 151 22:12 You shall make yourselves tassels 152 for the four corners of the clothing you wear.
22:13 Suppose a man marries a woman, has sexual relations with her, 153 and then rejects 154 her, 22:14 accusing her of impropriety 155 and defaming her reputation 156 by saying, “I married this woman but when I had sexual relations 157 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 158 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 159 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 160 before the city’s elders. 22:18 The elders of that city must then seize the man and punish 161 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 162 ruined the reputation 163 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 164 in Israel by behaving like a prostitute while living in her father’s house. In this way you will purge 165 evil from among you.
22:22 If a man is caught having sexual relations with 166 a married woman 167 both the man who had relations with the woman and the woman herself must die; in this way you will purge 168 evil from Israel.
22:23 If a virgin is engaged to a man and another man meets 169 her in the city and has sexual relations with 170 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 171 his neighbor’s fiancée; 172 in this way you will purge 173 evil from among you. 22:25 But if the man came across 174 the engaged woman in the field and overpowered her and raped 175 her, then only the rapist 176 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 177 and murders him, 22:27 for the man 178 met her in the field and the engaged woman cried out, but there was no one to rescue her.
22:28 Suppose a man comes across a virgin who is not engaged and overpowers and rapes 179 her and they are discovered. 22:29 The man who has raped her must pay her father fifty shekels of silver and she must become his wife because he has violated her; he may never divorce her as long as he lives.
22:30 (23:1) 180 A man may not marry 181 his father’s former 182 wife and in this way dishonor his father. 183
[4:1] 1 tn These technical Hebrew terms (חֻקִּים [khuqqim] and מִשְׁפָּטִים [mishpatim]) occur repeatedly throughout the Book of Deuteronomy to describe the covenant stipulations to which Israel had been called to subscribe (see, in this chapter alone, vv. 1, 5, 6, 8). The word חֻקִּים derives from the verb חֹק (khoq, “to inscribe; to carve”) and מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim) from שָׁפַט (shafat, “to judge”). They are virtually synonymous and are used interchangeably in Deuteronomy.
[4:1] 2 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 31, 37).
[2:1] 3 tn Heb “Reed Sea.” See note on the term “Red Sea” in Deut 1:40.
[2:4] 5 tn Heb “command” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “charge the people as follows.”
[2:4] 6 tn Heb “brothers”; NAB “your kinsmen.”
[2:4] 7 sn The descendants of Esau (Heb “sons of Esau”; the phrase also occurs in 2:8, 12, 22, 29). These are the inhabitants of the land otherwise known as Edom, south and east of the Dead Sea. Jacob’s brother Esau had settled there after his bitter strife with Jacob (Gen 36:1-8). “Edom” means “reddish,” probably because of the red sandstone of the region, but also by popular etymology because Esau, at birth, was reddish (Gen 25:25).
[2:5] 7 sn Mount Seir is synonymous with Edom.
[2:6] 9 tn Heb includes “with silver.”
[2:7] 11 tn The Hebrew text does not have the first person pronoun; it has been supplied for purposes of English style (the Lord is speaking here).
[2:7] 12 tn Heb “all the work of your hands.”
[2:7] 13 tn Heb “he has.” This has been converted to first person in the translation in keeping with English style.
[2:7] 14 tn Heb “known” (so ASV, NASB); NAB “been concerned about.”
[2:7] 15 tn Heb “the
[2:8] 13 tn Or “brothers”; NRSV “our kin.”
[2:8] 14 tn Heb “the way of the Arabah” (so ASV); NASB, NIV “the Arabah road.”
[2:8] 15 sn Elat was a port city at the head of the eastern arm of the Red Sea, that is, the Gulf of Aqaba (or Gulf of Eilat). Solomon (1 Kgs 9:28), Uzziah (2 Kgs 14:22), and Ahaz (2 Kgs 16:5-6) used it as a port but eventually it became permanently part of Edom. It may be what is known today as Tell el-Kheleifeh. Modern Eilat is located further west along the northern coast. See G. Pratico, “Nelson Glueck’s 1938-1940 Excavations at Tell el-Kheleifeh: A Reappraisal,” BASOR 259 (1985): 1-32.
[2:8] 16 sn Ezion Geber. A place near the Gulf of Aqaba, Ezion-geber must be distinguished from Elat (cf. 1 Kgs 9:26-28; 2 Chr 8:17-18). It was, however, also a port city (1 Kgs 22:48-49). It may be the same as the modern site Gezirat al-Fauran, 15 mi (24 km) south-southwest from Tell el-Kheleifah.
[2:9] 15 sn Ar was a Moabite city on the Arnon River east of the Dead Sea. It is mentioned elsewhere in the “Book of the Wars of Yahweh” (Num 21:15; cf. 21:28; Isa 15:1). Here it is synonymous with the whole land of Moab.
[2:9] 16 sn The descendants of Lot. Following the destruction of the cities of the plain, Sodom and Gomorrah, as God’s judgment, Lot fathered two sons by his two daughters, namely, Moab and Ammon (Gen 19:30-38). Thus, these descendants of Lot in and around Ar were the Moabites.
[2:10] 17 sn Emites. These giant people, like the Anakites (Deut 1:28), were also known as Rephaites (v. 11). They appear elsewhere in the narrative of the invasion of the kings of the east where they are said to have lived around Shaveh Kiriathaim, perhaps 9 to 11 mi (15 to 18 km) east of the north end of the Dead Sea (Gen 14:5).
[2:11] 19 sn Rephaites. The earliest reference to this infamous giant race is, again, in the story of the invasion of the eastern kings (Gen 14:5). They lived around Ashteroth Karnaim, probably modern Tell Ashtarah (cf. Deut 1:4), in the Bashan plateau east of the Sea of Galilee. Og, king of Bashan, was a Rephaite (Deut 3:11; Josh 12:4; 13:12). Other texts speak of them or their kinfolk in both Transjordan (Deut 2:20; 3:13) and Canaan (Josh 11:21-22; 14:12, 15; 15:13-14; Judg 1:20; 1 Sam 17:4; 1 Chr 20:4-8). They also appear in extra-biblical literature, especially in connection with the city state of Ugarit. See C. L’Heureux, “Ugaritic and Biblical Rephaim,” HTR 67 (1974): 265-74.
[2:12] 21 sn Horites. Most likely these are the same as the well-known people of ancient Near Eastern texts described as Hurrians. They were geographically widespread and probably non-Semitic. Genesis speaks of them as the indigenous peoples of Edom that Esau expelled (Gen 36:8-19, 31-43) and also as among those who confronted the kings of the east (Gen 14:6).
[2:12] 22 tn Most modern English versions, beginning with the ASV (1901), regard vv. 10-12 as parenthetical to the narrative.
[2:13] 23 sn Wadi Zered. Now known as Wadi el-H£esa, this valley marked the boundary between Moab to the north and Edom to the south.
[2:13] 24 tn Heb “we crossed the Wadi Zered.” This has been translated as “we did so” for stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy.
[2:15] 25 tn Heb “from the middle of.” Although many recent English versions leave this expression untranslated, the point seems to be that these soldiers did not die in battle but “within the camp.”
[2:16] 27 tn Heb “and it was when they were eliminated, all the men of war, to die from the midst of the people.”
[2:18] 29 sn Ar. See note on this word in Deut 2:9.
[2:19] 31 sn Lot’s descendants. See note on this phrase in Deut 2:9.
[2:20] 33 sn Rephaites. See note on this word in Deut 2:11.
[2:20] 34 sn Zamzummites. Just as the Moabites called Rephaites by the name Emites, the Ammonites called them Zamzummites (or Zazites; Gen 14:5).
[2:21] 35 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the Rephaites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:21] 36 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the Ammonites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 37 sn Avvites. Otherwise unknown, these people were probably also Anakite (or Rephaite) giants who lived in the lower Mediterranean coastal plain until they were expelled by the Caphtorites.
[2:23] 38 sn Caphtorites. These peoples are familiar from both the OT (Gen 10:14; 1 Chr 1:12; Jer 47:4; Amos 9:7) and ancient Near Eastern texts (Miriam Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, 2:37-38; ANET 138). They originated in Crete (OT “Caphtor”) and are identified as the ancestors of the Philistines (Gen 10:14; Jer 47:4).
[2:23] 39 tn Heb “Caphtor”; the modern name of the island of Crete is used in the translation for clarity (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT).
[2:24] 39 sn Heshbon is the name of a prominent site (now Tell Hesba„n, about 7.5 mi [12 km] south southwest of Amman, Jordan). Sihon made it his capital after having driven Moab from the area and forced them south to the Arnon (Num 21:26-30). Heshbon is also mentioned in Deut 1:4.
[2:25] 41 tn Heb “under heaven” (so NIV, NRSV).
[2:25] 42 tn Heb “from before you.”
[2:26] 43 sn Kedemoth. This is probably Aleiyan, about 8 mi (13 km) north of the Arnon and between Dibon and Mattanah.
[2:27] 45 tn Heb “in the way in the way” (בַּדֶּרֶךְ בַּדֶּרֶךְ, baderekh baderekh). The repetition lays great stress on the idea of resolute determination to stick to the path. IBHS 116 §7.2.3c.
[2:28] 48 tn Heb “and water for silver give to me so that I may drink.”
[2:30] 49 tc The translation follows the LXX in reading the first person pronoun. The MT, followed by many English versions, has a second person masculine singular pronoun, “your.”
[2:30] 50 tn Heb “hardened his spirit” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV “made his spirit stubborn.”
[2:30] 51 tn Heb “made his heart obstinate” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “made his heart defiant.”
[2:30] 52 tn Heb “into your hand.”
[2:32] 52 sn Jahaz. This is probably Khirbet el-Medeiyineh. See J. Dearman, “The Levitical Cities of Reuben and Moabite Toponymy,” BASOR 276 (1984): 55-57.
[2:33] 53 tc The translation follows the Qere or marginal reading; the Kethib (consonantal text) has the singular, “his son.”
[2:33] 54 tn Heb “all his people.”
[2:34] 55 tn Heb “every city of men.” This apparently identifies the cities as inhabited.
[2:34] 56 tn Heb “under the ban” (נַחֲרֵם, nakharem). The verb employed is חָרַם (kharam, usually in the Hiphil) and the associated noun is חֵרֶם (kherem). See J. Naudé, NIDOTTE, 2:276-77, and, for a more thorough discussion, Susan Niditch, War in the Hebrew Bible, 28-77.
[2:36] 57 sn Aroer. Now known as àAraáir on the northern edge of the Arnon river, Aroer marked the southern limit of Moab and, later, of the allotment of the tribe of Reuben (Josh 13:9, 16).
[2:36] 58 tn Heb “the city in the wadi.” This enigmatic reference may refer to Ar or, more likely, to Aroer itself. Epexegetically the text might read, “From Aroer…, that is, the city in the wadi.” See D. L. Christensen, Deuteronomy 1–11 (WBC), 49.
[2:37] 59 sn Wadi Jabbok. Now known as the Zerqa River, this is a major tributary of the Jordan that normally served as a boundary between Ammon and Gad (Deut 3:16).
[4:1] 61 tn These technical Hebrew terms (חֻקִּים [khuqqim] and מִשְׁפָּטִים [mishpatim]) occur repeatedly throughout the Book of Deuteronomy to describe the covenant stipulations to which Israel had been called to subscribe (see, in this chapter alone, vv. 1, 5, 6, 8). The word חֻקִּים derives from the verb חֹק (khoq, “to inscribe; to carve”) and מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim) from שָׁפַט (shafat, “to judge”). They are virtually synonymous and are used interchangeably in Deuteronomy.
[4:1] 62 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 31, 37).
[4:3] 65 tc The LXX and Syriac read “to Baal Peor,” that is, the god worshiped at that place; see note on the name “Beth Peor” in Deut 3:29.
[4:3] 66 tn Heb “the
[4:3] 67 tn Or “
[4:5] 67 tn Heb “in the midst of” (so ASV).
[4:6] 69 tn Heb “it is wisdom and understanding.”
[4:6] 70 tn Heb “wise and understanding.”
[4:8] 71 tn Or “pure”; or “fair”; Heb “righteous.”
[4:8] 72 tn The Hebrew phrase הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת (hattorah hazzo’t), in this context, refers specifically to the Book of Deuteronomy. That is, it is the collection of all the חֻקִּים (khuqqim, “statutes,” 4:1) and מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim, “ordinances,” 4:1) to be included in the covenant text. In a full canonical sense, of course, it pertains to the entire Pentateuch or Torah.
[4:8] 73 tn Heb “place before.”
[4:9] 73 tn Heb “watch yourself and watch your soul carefully.”
[4:10] 75 tn The text begins with “(the) day (in) which.” In the Hebrew text v. 10 is subordinate to v. 11, but for stylistic reasons the translation treats v. 10 as an independent clause, necessitating the omission of the subordinating temporal phrase at the beginning of the verse.
[4:10] 76 tn Heb “the
[4:10] 77 tn Heb “my words.” See v. 13; in Hebrew the “ten commandments” are the “ten words.”
[4:11] 77 tn Heb “a mountain burning with fire as far as the heart of the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
[4:11] 78 tn Heb “darkness, cloud, and heavy cloud.”
[4:12] 79 tn The words “was heard” are supplied in the translation to avoid the impression that the voice was seen.
[4:13] 81 sn This is the first occurrence of the word בְּרִית (bÿrit, “covenant”) in the Book of Deuteronomy but it appears commonly hereafter (4:23, 31; 5:2, 3; 7:9, 12; 8:18; 9:9, 10, 11, 15; 10:2, 4, 5, 8; 17:2; 29:1, 9, 12, 14, 15, 18, 21, 25; 31:9, 16, 20, 25, 26; 33:9). Etymologically, it derives from the notion of linking or yoking together. See M. Weinfeld, TDOT 2:255.
[4:13] 82 tn Heb “the ten words.”
[4:14] 83 tn Heb “to which you are crossing over to possess it.”
[4:15] 85 tn Heb “give great care to your souls.”
[4:16] 87 tn The words “I say this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 16 is subordinated to “Be careful” in v. 15, but this makes for an unduly long sentence in English.
[4:18] 89 tn Heb “creeping thing.”
[4:18] 90 tn Heb “under the earth.”
[4:19] 91 tn Heb “lest you lift up your eyes.” In the Hebrew text vv. 16-19 are subordinated to “Be careful” in v. 15, but this makes for an unduly long sentence in English.
[4:19] 92 tn Or “heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
[4:19] 93 tn Heb “all the host of heaven.”
[4:19] 94 tn In the Hebrew text the verbal sequence in v. 19 is “lest you look up…and see…and be seduced…and worship them…and serve them.” However, the first two actions are not prohibited in and of themselves. The prohibition pertains to the final three actions. The first two verbs describe actions that are logically subordinate to the following actions and can be treated as temporal or circumstantial: “lest, looking up…and seeing…, you are seduced.” See Joüon 2:635 §168.h.
[4:19] 97 tn Heb “under all the heaven.”
[4:20] 93 tn A כּוּר (kur) was not a source of heat but a crucible (“iron-smelting furnace”) in which precious metals were melted down and their impurities burned away (see I. Cornelius, NIDOTTE 2:618-19); cf. NAB “that iron foundry, Egypt.” The term is a metaphor for intense heat. Here it refers to the oppression and suffering Israel endured in Egypt. Since a crucible was used to burn away impurities, it is possible that the metaphor views Egypt as a place of refinement to bring Israel to a place of submission to divine sovereignty.
[4:20] 94 tn Heb “to be his people of inheritance.” The Lord compares his people to valued property inherited from one’s ancestors and passed on to one’s descendants.
[4:21] 95 tn Heb “the
[4:21] 96 tn The Hebrew text includes “(as) an inheritance,” or “(as) a possession.”
[4:22] 97 tn Heb “this.” The translation uses “that” to avoid confusion; earlier in the verse Moses refers to Transjordan as “this land.”
[4:23] 99 tn Heb “the
[4:23] 100 tn Heb “commanded.”
[4:24] 101 tn The juxtaposition of the Hebrew terms אֵשׁ (’esh, “fire”) and קַנָּא (qanna’, “jealous”) is interesting in light of Deut 6:15 where the
[4:25] 103 tn Heb “have grown old in the land,” i.e., been there for a long time.
[4:25] 104 tn Heb “a form of anything.” Cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV, TEV “an idol.”
[4:25] 105 tn The infinitive construct is understood here as indicating the result, not the intention, of their actions.
[4:26] 105 sn I invoke heaven and earth as witnesses against you. This stock formula introduces what is known form-critically as a רִיב (riv) or controversy pattern. It is commonly used in the ancient Near Eastern world in legal contexts and in the OT as a forensic or judicial device to draw attention to Israel’s violation of the
[4:26] 106 tn Or “be destroyed”; KJV “utterly perish”; NLT “will quickly disappear”; CEV “you won’t have long to live.”
[4:26] 107 tn Or “be completely” (so NCV, TEV). It is not certain here if the infinitive absolute indicates the certainty of the following action (cf. NIV) or its degree.
[4:27] 107 tn Heb “you will be left men (i.e., few) of number.”
[4:29] 109 tn Or “mind and being.” See Deut 6:5.
[4:30] 111 sn The phrase is not used here in a technical sense for the eschaton, but rather refers to a future time when Israel will be punished for its sin and experience exile. See Deut 31:29.
[4:30] 112 tn Heb “hear his voice.” The expression is an idiom meaning “obey,” occurring in Deut 8:20; 9:23; 13:18; 21:18, 20; 26:14, 17; 27:10; 28:1-2, 15, 45, 62; 30:2, 8, 10, 20.
[4:31] 113 tn Heb “the
[4:31] 114 tn Heb “he will not drop you,” i.e., “will not abandon you” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
[4:31] 115 tn Or “will not.” The translation understands the imperfect verbal form to have an added nuance of capability here.
[4:32] 115 tn The Hebrew term אָדָם (’adam) may refer either to Adam or, more likely, to “man” in the sense of the human race (“mankind,” “humankind”). The idea here seems more universal in scope than reference to Adam alone would suggest.
[4:32] 116 tn The verb is not present in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for clarification. The challenge has both temporal and geographical dimensions. The people are challenged to (1) inquire about the entire scope of past history and (2) conduct their investigation on a worldwide scale.
[4:34] 117 tn The translation assumes the reference is to Israel’s God in which case the point is this: God’s intervention in Israel’s experience is unique in the sense that he has never intervened in such power for any other people on earth. The focus is on the uniqueness of Israel’s experience. Some understand the divine name here in a generic sense, “a god,” or “any god.” In this case God’s incomparability is the focus (cf. v. 35, where this theme is expressed).
[4:34] 118 tn Heb “tried to go to take for himself.”
[4:34] 119 tn Heb “by testings.” The reference here is the judgments upon Pharaoh in the form of plagues. See Deut 7:19 (cf. v. 18) and 29:3 (cf. v. 2).
[4:34] 120 tn Heb “by strong hand and by outstretched arm.”
[4:36] 119 tn Heb “and his words you heard from the midst of the fire.”
[4:37] 121 tn The concept of love here is not primarily that of emotional affection but of commitment or devotion. This verse suggests that God chose Israel to be his special people because he loved the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob) and had promised to bless their descendants. See as well Deut 7:7-9.
[4:37] 122 tc The LXX, Smr, Syriac, Targum, and Vulgate read a third person masculine plural suffix for the MT’s 3rd person masculine singular, “his descendants.” Cf. Deut 10:15. Quite likely the MT should be emended in this instance.
[4:38] 123 tn Heb “(as) an inheritance,” that is, landed property that one can pass on to one’s descendants.
[4:40] 125 tn Heb “commanding” (so NRSV).
[4:42] 127 tn Heb “the slayer who slew his neighbor without knowledge.”
[4:42] 128 tn Heb “yesterday and a third (day).” The point is that there was no animosity between the two parties at the time of the accident and therefore no motive for the killing.
[4:44] 129 tn Heb “the sons of Israel” (likewise in the following verse).
[4:48] 131 tn The words “their territory extended” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 47-49 are all one sentence, but for the sake of English style and readability the translation divides the text into two sentences.
[4:48] 132 sn Mount Siyon (the Hebrew name is שִׂיאֹן [si’on], not to be confused with Zion [צִיּוֹן, tsiyyon]) is another name for Mount Hermon, also called Sirion and Senir (cf. Deut 3:9).
[4:49] 133 sn The sea of the Arabah refers to the Dead Sea, also known as the Salt Sea in OT times (cf. Deut 3:17).
[4:49] 134 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term אַשְׁדֹּת (’ashdot) is unclear. It is usually translated either “slopes” (ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or “watershed” (NEB).
[22:1] 135 tn Heb “you must not see,” but, if translated literally into English, the statement is misleading.
[22:1] 136 tn Heb “brother’s” (also later in this verse). In this context it is not limited to one’s siblings, however; cf. NAB “your kinsman’s.”
[22:1] 137 tn Heb “hide yourself.”
[22:1] 138 tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with the words “without fail.”
[22:2] 137 tn Heb “your brother” (also later in this verse).
[22:2] 138 tn Heb “is not.” The idea of “residing” is implied.
[22:2] 139 tn Heb “and you do not know him.”
[22:2] 140 tn Heb “it”; the referent (the ox or sheep mentioned in v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:3] 139 tn Heb “your brother” (also in v. 4).
[22:3] 140 tn Heb “you must not hide yourself.”
[22:4] 141 tn Heb “you must not see.” See note at 22:1.
[22:4] 142 tn Heb “and (must not) hide yourself from them.”
[22:4] 143 tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “be sure.”
[22:4] 144 tn Heb “help him to lift them up.” In keeping with English style the singular is used in the translation, and the referent (“the animal”) has been specified for clarity.
[22:5] 143 tn Heb “a man’s clothing.”
[22:5] 144 tn The Hebrew term תּוֹעֵבָה (to’evah, “offense”) speaks of anything that runs counter to ritual or moral order, especially (in the OT) to divine standards. Cross-dressing in this covenant context may suggest homosexuality, fertility cult ritual, or some other forbidden practice.
[22:6] 145 tn Heb “and the mother sitting upon the chicks or the eggs.”
[22:6] 146 tn Heb “sons,” used here in a generic sense for offspring.
[22:7] 147 tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation seeks to reflect with “be sure.”
[22:8] 149 tn Or “a parapet” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); KJV “a battlement”; NLT “a barrier.”
[22:8] 150 tn Heb “that you not place bloodshed in your house.”
[22:9] 151 tn Heb “set apart.” The verb קָדַשׁ (qadash) in the Qal verbal stem (as here) has the idea of being holy or being treated with special care. Some take the meaning as “be off-limits, forfeited,” i.e., the total produce of the vineyard, both crops and grapes, have to be forfeited to the sanctuary (cf. Exod 29:37; 30:29; Lev 6:18, 27; Num 16:37-38; Hag 2:12).
[22:11] 153 tn The Hebrew term שַׁעַטְנֵז (sha’atnez) occurs only here and in Lev 19:19. HALOT 1610-11 s.v. takes it to be a contraction of words (שַׁשׁ [shash, “headdress”] + עַטְנַז [’atnaz, “strong”]). BDB 1043 s.v. שַׁעַטְנֵז offers the translation “mixed stuff” (cf. NEB “woven with two kinds of yarn”; NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “woven together”). The general meaning is clear even if the etymology is not.
[22:12] 155 tn Heb “twisted threads” (גְּדִלִים, gÿdilim) appears to be synonymous with צִיצִת (tsitsit) which, in Num 15:38, occurs in a passage instructing Israel to remember the covenant. Perhaps that is the purpose of the tassels here as well. Cf. KJV, ASV “fringes”; NAB “twisted cords.”
[22:13] 157 tn Heb “goes to her,” a Hebrew euphemistic idiom for sexual relations.
[22:13] 158 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.”
[22:14] 159 tn Heb “deeds of things”; NRSV “makes up charges against her”; NIV “slanders her.”
[22:14] 160 tn Heb “brings against her a bad name”; NIV “gives her a bad name.”
[22:14] 161 tn Heb “drew near to her.” This is another Hebrew euphemism for having sexual relations.
[22:15] 161 sn In light of v. 17 this would evidently be blood-stained sheets indicative of the first instance of intercourse. See E. H. Merrill, Deuteronomy (NAC), 302-3.
[22:16] 163 tn Heb “hated.” See note on the word “other” in Deut 21:15.
[22:17] 165 tn Heb “they will spread the garment.”
[22:18] 167 tn Heb “discipline.”
[22:19] 169 tn Heb “for he”; the referent (the man who made the accusation) has been specified in the translation to avoid confusion with the young woman’s father, the last-mentioned male.
[22:19] 170 tn Heb “brought forth a bad name.”
[22:21] 171 tn The Hebrew term נְבָלָה (nÿvalah) means more than just something stupid. It refers to a moral lapse so serious as to jeopardize the whole covenant community (cf. Gen 34:7; Judg 19:23; 20:6, 10; Jer 29:23). See C. Pan, NIDOTTE 3:11-13. Cf. NAB “she committed a crime against Israel.”
[22:21] 172 tn Heb “burn.” See note on Deut 21:21.
[22:22] 173 tn Heb “lying with” (so KJV, NASB), a Hebrew idiom for sexual relations.
[22:22] 174 tn Heb “a woman married to a husband.”
[22:22] 175 tn Heb “burn.” See note on the phrase “purge out” in Deut 21:21.
[22:23] 176 tn Heb “lies with.”
[22:24] 179 tn Heb “burn.” See note on the phrase “purge out” in Deut 21:21.
[22:25] 179 tn Heb “found,” also in vv. 27, 28.
[22:25] 180 tn Heb “lay with” here refers to a forced sexual relationship, as the accompanying verb “seized” (חָזַק, khazaq) makes clear.
[22:25] 181 tn Heb “the man who lay with her, only him.”
[22:26] 181 tn Heb “his neighbor.”
[22:27] 183 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man who attacked the woman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:28] 185 tn Heb “lies with.”
[22:30] 187 sn Beginning with 22:30, the verse numbers through 23:25 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 22:30 ET = 23:1 HT, 23:1 ET = 23:2 HT, 23:2 ET = 23:3 HT, etc., through 23:25 ET = 23:26 HT. With 24:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
[22:30] 188 tn Heb “take.” In context this refers to marriage, as in the older English expression “take a wife.”
[22:30] 189 sn This presupposes either the death of the father or their divorce since it would be impossible for one to marry his stepmother while his father was still married to her.
[22:30] 190 tn Heb “uncover his father’s skirt” (so ASV, NASB). This appears to be a circumlocution for describing the dishonor that would come to a father by having his own son share his wife’s sexuality (cf. NAB, NIV “dishonor his father’s bed”).
