Deuteronomy 21

Deuteronomy 21 provides guidance for various legal and ethical situations that Israel might face in their new land. These include unresolved murders, family relations, and issues of justice. The chapter emphasizes communal responsibility, fairness in judgment, and respect for human dignity.

Deuteronomy 21:1-3 (NKJV)
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,
2 then your elders and your judges shall go out and measure the distance from the slain man to the surrounding cities.
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."

These verses establish the procedure for dealing with an unsolved murder. When someone is found dead in a field, and no one knows who the killer is, the responsibility falls on the nearby community. The elders and judges are required to investigate, measuring the distance from the body to the nearest city. This procedure shows that God holds the community accountable, even for unknown crimes, and highlights the value of human life.

Deuteronomy 21:4-6 (NKJV)
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.
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.
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."

Here, the elders of the nearest city perform a ritual involving a heifer to symbolically atone for the unresolved death. The unworked heifer and the untouched valley signify purity. The Levites, as ministers of God, oversee the ritual, affirming the sacred nature of justice. The elders washing their hands demonstrates their innocence in the death and their desire for the community’s guilt to be removed, highlighting the seriousness of bloodshed and communal responsibility.

Deuteronomy 21:7-9 (NKJV)
7 "Then they shall answer and say, 'Our hands have not shed this blood, nor have our eyes seen it.
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.
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."

The elders must declare their innocence before God, affirming that they had no involvement in the murder. They plead with God for atonement on behalf of the nation, asking that the innocent blood not bring guilt upon the community. This process emphasizes that even when the guilty party is unknown, the community must seek God’s forgiveness and justice, ensuring that righteousness is upheld and God’s judgment is avoided.

Deuteronomy 21:10-11 (NKJV)
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,
11 and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and desire her and would take her for your wife,"

These verses address how Israelite men should handle captives after a battle, specifically regarding marriage. If a man desires to marry a captive woman, the law provides a process to ensure that she is treated with dignity and respect, rather than as a mere spoil of war. This law humanizes the captives and guards against exploitation, reflecting God's care for all individuals.

Deuteronomy 21:12-14 (NKJV)
12 "then you shall bring her home to your house, and she shall shave her head and trim her nails.
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.
14 And it shall be, if you have no delight in her, then you shall set her free; you certainly shall not sell her for money; you shall not treat her brutally, because you have humbled her."

The law requires the man to give the woman time to mourn her family, and for a symbolic transformation to take place. The shaving of the head and trimming of nails are acts of purification and signify the transition from captivity to a new life. If the man later chooses not to remain married to her, he must let her go free. He cannot treat her as a slave, reflecting respect for her dignity even after a failed marriage. This highlights the importance of treating others with humanity, even in difficult situations.

Deuteronomy 21:15-17 (NKJV)
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,
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.
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."

This passage deals with fairness in inheritance when a man has multiple wives and children by both. Even if he loves one wife more than the other, the man must recognize the rights of the firstborn, even if that child is from the unloved wife. The firstborn son is to receive a double portion, a reflection of his privileged status. This law ensures that emotional favoritism does not interfere with the legal rights of children, emphasizing fairness and justice within the family structure.

Deuteronomy 21:18-21 (NKJV)
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,
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.
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.'
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."

These verses address the consequences of persistent rebellion within a family. If a son refuses correction and continues in a life of gluttony and drunkenness, his parents are to bring him to the elders for judgment. The extreme punishment of stoning reflects the seriousness of rebellion and dishonor toward parents, as well as the desire to maintain order and morality within the community. The harshness of the punishment would also serve as a deterrent for others, stressing the importance of respect and discipline.

Deuteronomy 21:22-23 (NKJV)
22 "If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree,
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."

These final verses provide instruction for dealing with the body of a criminal who has been executed. If a person is hung after being put to death, their body must not be left exposed overnight, as this would defile the land. Instead, the body is to be buried on the same day. The command reflects a deep respect for the land God gave them, as well as the belief that a person hanged on a tree represents being under God's curse. This principle echoes in the New Testament when Paul references Christ becoming a curse for humanity.