Deuteronomy 23

Who might not all enter in the congregation of the Lord and who on the contrary might verse 1 &c. who and why the field camp was to be kept clean and pure 9 how a servant was to dealt withal that he had run away from his master 15 concerning whores and beggars 17 concerning usury 19 concerning vows 21 concerning the plucking of grapes and cares of corns 24.

1. He that is wounded or bruised or hath his privy member cut off shall not enter in the congregation of the Lord [that is according to the opinion of most interpreters shall have no voice in public meeting or assemblies nor place in the counsel of rulers Judges or officers of the people which assembly or congregation is called the congregation of God Psalms 82:1 so likewise none were admitted to the priesthood that had any blemish on her body Leviticus 21:17 &c. the reason of this law may be partly because such are commonly fainthearted and partly because it might be upbraiding and disparagement of the office of the convening or meeting together of the congregation for the public service of God this cannot in any wise be understood because even strangers themselves if circumcised were admitted into it Exodus 12:48 Leviticus 22:18 Numbers 9:14 and 15.15 on the contrary into the congregation whereof mention is made here in the following verse the Ammonites and the Moabites might not enter at all as the following verse 3.]

2. No bastard shall enter into the house of the Lord [as Japhy was Judges11.1 ,2 who in case of necessity was extraordinary and was blessed of God in it] even his tenth generation shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord.

3. No Ammonite nor Moabite shall enter into the congregation of the Lord even their tenth generation shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord forever.

4. Because they met you not with bread and with water on the way when they came forth out of Egypt [see above chapter 2.28] and because he [namely the Moabites] hired against the Bileam the son of Boer of Pethor of Mesopotamia [Heb. Aram Naharajim that is Syria of the two rivers see genesis 24 on verse 10] to curse thee [see Numbers 22:3,4,5 &c.]

5. But the Lord thy God will not hearken unto Bileam but the Lord thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee because the Lord thy God loved thee.

6. Thou shalt not seek their peace [that is prosperity welfare] nor their good all thy days forever.

7. Thou shalt not account the Edomite to be an abomination [except only the Amalekites see below chapter 25 on verse 17] for he is thy brother [one of Esau’s posterity who was your forefather Jacobs brother] thou shalt not account the Egyptians to be an abomination for thou wast a stranger in his land.

8. As for the children that shall be born unto them in the third generation each of them shall enter [that is may enter] into the congregation of the Lord.

9. When the camp marched forth against thine enemies then thou shalt keep thee from all or every wicked thing.

10. When there is any man among ye that is not clean by reason of any chance at night [see Leviticus 25:4, 33.16, 17] he shall go abroad out of the camp he shall not come within.

11. But it shall come to pass that towards the drawing on of the evening he shall bath himself with water and when sun is set he shall come within the camp.

12. Thou shalt have a place [Heb. Hand which word is also taken from room space side, place, thing containing &c. see Proverbs 8:3 Jeremiah 57.8 with the annotate.] also without the camp and thither shalt go forth abroad.

13. And thou shalt have a paddle next to thy furniture [or upon thy weapons [and it shall come to pass when thou sat down [that is hast eased thyself done the work of nature] then thou shalt dig therewith and turn thyself about and cover that which came forth from thee.

14. For the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of the camp [see Leviticus 26 on verse 12] to deliver thee and to give up thine enemies before thy face [see above chapter 1 on verse 8] therefore thy camp shall be holy that he [Heb. No nakedness or shamefulness of anything that is no unseemly unclean thing which modestly suffereth not to lie bare uncovered] in thee among ye and turn back away from thee.

15. Thou shalt not deliver a servant unto his master which is escaped from his master [that used him cruelly or tyrannically] unto thee.

16. he shall abide with thee in the midst of thee [for thou shalt have fitted the matter and found out that he has left his master upon sufficiency and warrantance ground unless thou couldst reconcile him to his master and so send him back again some understand this of some servants as pertained to the nations round about whom they used as they lifted with inhuman and intolerance cruelty] in the place which he shall choose in one of thy gates where is liketh him best or shall be fitted for him ] thou shalt no oppression.

17. There shall be no whore among the daughters of Israel neither shall there be a beggar [that is who suffereth himself to be defiled by mankind see genesis 19.5 Leviticus 18:12 1 Kings 14:24 and 22.47 2Kings 23.6 Romans 1:27] among the son of Israel.

18. Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore or the price of a dog [that is money which was earned by the abominable sin of uncleanness mentioned in the former verse compare 2 Samuel 3 on verse 8 Revelations 22.15 some understand this properly of the price at which a dog as an unclean creature was sold] into the house of the Lord thy God for any vow fro even they both are an abomination to the Lord thy God.

19. Thou shalt not land upon usury to thy brother [see Leviticus 25 on verse 36] usury of money usury of victuals usury of anything that is lent upon usury [see Exodus 22:25 Leviticus 25:35 Nehemiah 5:2 &c. Luke 6:34, 35.]

20. Unto the stranger thou shalt lend usury [that is thou mayst lend upon usury because they had dealing with the Jews not as the poor Israelites had by reason of poverty but to trade and traffic with them and to be enriched by them] but unto thy brother thou shalt not lend upon usury that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all that thy settest thine hand to [Heb. In all the setting or putting of thine hand in the land wither thou goest to inherit.

21. When thou salt have vowed a vow unto the Lord thy God thou salt not slack to pay it for the Lord thy God will surely require [Heb. Requiring require] it of thee and it would be sin in thee [that is it would be counted to thee for sin and consequently punished in thee so above chapter 15.9.]

22. But thou forbearest to vow then it shall be no sin to thee.

23. That which goeth out of the lips [Heb. Out of thy lips] thou shalt keep and perform according as thou hast vowed unto the Lord thy god a free wiling offering which thou hast spoken with thy mouth.

24. When thou shalt go into thy neighbors standing vineyard then thou shalt eat [that is mayst eat so likewise in the following verse] to thy satisfying but thou shalt put nothing into thy vessels.

25. When thou shalt go into thy neighbor standing corn then thou shalt pluck off the ears with thine hand [see hereof an example in Christ’s apostle Matthew 12:1] but thou shalt not move a sickle [or cause it to pass to and fro put it] to thy neighbor standing corn.