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The Holy Bible

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The Book of Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy Chapter 23

  

Exclusion From the Assembly

1
“NO

man whose testicles have been crushed or who has had his penis cut off shall enter the assembly of the Lord.

2“No one of illegitimate birth may enter the assembly of the Lord; even to the tenth generation, none of his descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord.

3“No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord.  4  For they did not come to meet you with food and water on your journey when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam son of Beor, from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you.  5  Yet the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam; instead the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.  6  You are not to seek peace or friendship with them as long as you live.

7“You must not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother. You must not despise an Egyptian, because you were once a foreigner living in his land.  8  The children born to them in the third generation may enter the assembly of the Lord.

Uncleanness in the Camp

9“When you are encamped against your enemies, then you are to keep yourselves from anything impure.

10  “If there is a man among you who becomes unclean because of a nocturnal emission, then he must go outside the camp; he may not come back inside the camp.  11  But when evening approaches, he is to wash himself, and as the sun sets he may come back into the camp.

12  “You are to have a place set aside outside the camp, where you may go out and relieve yourself.  13  Among your equipment you shall have an implement to dig with; when you relieve yourself, you must dig a hole and cover up your excrement.  14  For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp to protect you and to delivery your enemies to you. Therefore your camp must be holy, so that He may see no unclean thing among you, and turn away from you.

Fugitive Slaves

15  “You are not to return a slave to his master when he has escaped from his master to you.  16  Let him live among you wherever he chooses within your gates. You must not mistreat him.

Cult Prostitution Forbidden

17  “There must not be any cult prostitutes among the daughters of Israel, nor shall any of the sons of Israel become a cult prostitute.

Dishonourable Earnings

18  “You must not bring the wages of a prostitute or the earnings of a male prostitute into the house of the Lord your God honour to fulfil any vow, for both of these are detestable to the Lord your God.

Interest on Loans

19  “You must not charge interest to your brother; interest on money, interest on food, or interest on anything that can be lent.  20  You may charge interest to a foreigner, but you are not to charge interest to your brother, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you undertake in the land you are entering to possess.

Keeping Vows

21  “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it; for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin.  22  But if you are afraid from making a vow, it will not be sin to you.  23  Whatever you utter with your lips you must be careful to perform, just as you have freely vowed to the Lord your God what you promised.

Neighbour’s Crops

24  “When you enter your neighbour’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you please, but you must not put any in your basket.  25  When you enter your neighbour’s standing grain, you may pluck the heads of grain with your hand, but you must not use a sickle on your neighbour’s standing grain.”


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