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Deuteronomy Chapter
Fifteen
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 15
This
chapter treats of a release of debts every seventh year, to which a blessing is
promised if attended to, Deuteronomy 15:1,
which seventh year of release should not hinder lending to a poor man in
distress, even though it was nigh at hand, Deuteronomy 15:7
and of letting servants go free, whether manservant or maidservant, at the end
of six years' servitude, Deuteronomy 15:12
but if unwilling to go, and desirous of staying, must have his ear bored
through with an awl, and serve to the year of jubilee, Deuteronomy 15:16
and of sanctifying and eating the firstlings of the herd and flock where the
Lord directs, Deuteronomy 15:19.
Deuteronomy 15:1 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a
release of debts.
YLT 1`At the end of seven years
thou dost make a release,
At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. Not of
servants, for they were not to be dismissed from their service until they had
served six years, as is directed to in a following law; for if they were to be set
free whenever a sabbatical year came, they might be discharged when they had
not served more than a year, or than half a year, or than a month or two.
Indeed when the year of jubilee intervened, they were released be it at what
time it would; but not in a sabbatical year, which was a year of release of
debts, as the following verses show, as well as there was, then a rest of the
land from tillage, Leviticus 25:2. Now
this was done at the end or extremity of every seventh year; not at the latter
end or extremity of it, for if the debt of a poor man might be exacted of him
in the year, and until the end of it, it would not in this respect have been a
sabbatical year, or a year of rest and quiet; but this was done at the first
extremity of it, at the beginning of it, as Aben Ezra and Ben Melech observe;
though MaimonidesF2Hilchot Shemittah & Yobel, c. 9. sect. 4.
asserts it to be after the seven years were ended; for he says,"the
seventh year releaseth not monies but at the end of it,'according to Deuteronomy 15:1
that as in Deuteronomy 31:10
after seven years is meant, so the release of monies is after seven years.
Deuteronomy 15:2 2 And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who
has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not
require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called the Lord’s release.
YLT
2and this [is] the matter of
the release: Every owner of a loan [is] to release his hand which he doth lift
up against his neighbour, he doth not exact of his neighbour and of his
brother, but hath proclaimed a release to Jehovah;
And this is the manner of the release,.... Or the
rules to be observed in making it:
every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall release
it; that is, forgive the debt, or free the debtor from any
obligation to payment. Some think this was only a release of debts for this
year, in which there was no ploughing nor sowing, and so a poor man could not
be in any circumstances to pay his debts, but might be exacted afterwards; but
it rather seems to be a full release, so as the payment of them might not be
demanded, neither this year nor afterwards; indeed, if a person afterwards
should be in a capacity to pay his debts, he would be obliged, in conscience,
duty, and honour, to pay them, though no reserve was made in this law, which
nowhere appears:
he shall not exact it of his neighbour, or of his brother: he might
receive it, if payment was offered, but he might not demand it, or sue for it;
or give his neighbour or brother, whether in a natural or religious sense, any
trouble about it: the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it,"his brother, an
Israelite;'one of the same nation and religion with him, though he might not be
related in the bonds of consanguinity:
because it is called the Lord's release; appointed and
commanded by him, and was for his honour and glory, as a God gracious and
merciful to the poor, and beneficent to those creditors; and which was
proclaimed in his name, by the civil magistrate, according to his order; so the
Targum of Jonathan,"because the house of judgment, or the sanhedrim,
proclaimed it a release before the Lord.'Now this was typical of a release of
debts, or of forgiveness of sins, which is an act of God's grace through
Christ, and for his sake. Sins are called debts, not what men owe to God, for
then it would be right to commit them, and they might be committed with
impunity, yea, with praise, since it would be doing what is fit and right, and
well pleasing to God; but men are debtors to fulfil the law, and in case of
failure, or a breach of it, are bound to the debt of punishment; and these
debts are very numerous, and men are incapable of paying them: and by a release
of these is meant not a liberty of sinning, nor a freedom from the being or
bondage of sin, but from the guilt of it, and from obligation to punishment for
it; and is properly the forgiveness of sin, which is expressed by various
phrases, as a non-imputation, a non-remembrance, a covering, blotting out, and
removing of sin, and here typically a release of debts; see Matthew 6:12, and
God only can make it; he is the creditor, sin is committed against him, and he
only can forgive it, which he does freely, fully, and at once, see Luke 7:41.
Deuteronomy 15:3 3 Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give
up your claim to what is owed by your brother,
YLT
3of the stranger thou mayest
exact, and that which is thine with thy brother doth thy hand release;
Of a foreigner thou mayest exact it again,.... Either on
the seventh year, or after it:
but that which is thine with thy brother, thine hand shall release; a debt that
lies between them, where the one is the creditor, and the other debtor, the
creditor shall freely and fully forgive the debtor. So those only are released
or forgiven by the Lord who are his own, whom he has reserved for himself, or
chosen to everlasting life; who are interested in the covenant of his grace,
one article in which is the forgiveness of sins; and who are redeemed by the
blood of Christ, a branch of which redemption is remission of sin; and who are
called by grace, and believe in Christ, to whom pardon of sins is promised; but
those who are foreigners and strangers, and are not the Lord's chosen,
redeemed, and called people, have no share in this blessing of grace; nor such
who are rich in their own esteem, and need nothing; but those who are poor and
unable to pay their debts, and are sensible of their spiritual poverty, and
apply to the Lord for the forgiveness of their sins.
Deuteronomy 15:4 4 except when there may be no poor among you; for the Lord will greatly bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance—
YLT
4only when there is no needy
one with thee, for Jehovah doth greatly bless thee in the land which Jehovah
thy God is giving to thee -- an inheritance to possess it.
Save when there shall be no poor among you,.... Then such
a law could not take place, there would be no debts to be released; for this
was never designed to screen rich persons from the payment of their just debts,
or whoever were in a capacity of so doing, only such as were really poor, and
unable to pay; and it supposes that this might sometimes be the case, that
there were none poor in Israel, or needed the benefit of such a law; and,
according to the Targum of Jonathan, it is suggested there would be none, if
they were observant of the commands of God: and some take it for a promise,
rendering the words "nevertheless"F3אפס
כי "veruntamen", Munster. , notwithstanding
such a law:
there shall be no poor among you; but then it must be
understood conditionally: others interpret this as the end to be answered by
this law, "to the endF4"To the end that there be
not", Ainsworth; so the margin of the Bible. there may be no poor among
you"; by observing this law, all debts being released once in seven years,
it would prevent persons falling into distress and poverty, to such a degree as
to be in want, and become beggars; and Julian the emperor observes, that none
of the Jews beggedF5Opera, par. 2. Ep. 49. p. 204. , which he
attributes to the care that was taken of their poor:
for the Lord shall greatly bless thee in the land which the Lord
thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to possess it; which is
either a reason why there would be no poor, should they observe the
commandments of the Lord; or a reason why they should release the debts of the
poor because they were so greatly blessed with a fruitful land, which brought
them such an increase, as enabled them to free their poor debtors, when in
circumstances unable to pay them.
Deuteronomy 15:5 5 only if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe with care all these commandments which I
command you today.
YLT
5`Only, if thou dost
diligently hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy God, to observe to do all this
command which I am commanding thee to-day,
In
his word, and by his prophets; this being the case, there would be no more poor
among them, or however they would be so blessed of God, that they would be
capable of releasing the debts of the poor, without hurting themselves and their
families:
to observe to do all these commandments which I command thee this
day; a phrase often used to put them in mind of the commands of God,
and the necessity of keeping them, their temporal happiness depending thereon.
Deuteronomy 15:6 6 For the Lord your God will bless you just as He promised you; you shall
lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow; you shall reign over many
nations, but they shall not reign over you.
YLT
6for Jehovah thy God hath
blessed thee as He hath spoken to thee; and thou hast lent [to] many nations,
and thou hast not borrowed; and thou hast ruled over many nations, and over
thee they do not rule.
For the Lord thy God blesseth thee, as he promised thee,.... He is
faithful that has promised, and he always gives the blessing he promises
according to the nature of the promise; if absolute, and without conditions, he
gives it without respect to any; but if conditional, as the promises of
temporal good things to Israel were, he gives according as the condition is
performed:
and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shall not borrow; signifying
they should be so rich and increased in goods, and worldly substance, that they
should be able to lend to their neighbouring nations round about, but should
stand in no need of borrowing of any of them. This is sometimes said of the
language of these people, the Hebrew language, that it lends to all, but
borrows of none, being an original primitive language; see Deuteronomy 28:12.
and thou shalt reign over many nations: which was
fulfilled in the times of David and Solomon:
but they shall not reign over thee; that is, as long as they
observed the commands of God; otherwise, when they did not, they were carried
captive into other countries, and other people reigned over them, as at this
day.
Deuteronomy 15:7 7 “If there is among you a poor man of your brethren,
within any of the gates in your land which the Lord your God
is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your
poor brother,
YLT
7`When there is with thee
any needy one of one of thy brethren, in one of thy cities, in thy land which
Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, thou dost not harden thy heart, nor shut thy
hand from thy needy brother;
If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren,.... As there
would be, according to the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem, if they did not
keep the commandments of the law, and continue therein:
within any of thy gates, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth
thee; a native of the land was to be preferred to a foreigner, and a
brother, whether in relation or religion, to a proselyte of the gate; and the
poor of a city to which a man belonged, to the poor of another city, as Jarchi
observes; which he gathers from this phrase:
within any of thy gates: thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor
shut thine hand from thy brother; so as not to pity his
distressed case, and have no bowels of compassion for him, and feel for his
want, and so as not to distribute to his necessities, and relieve him.
Deuteronomy 15:8 8 but
you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his
need, whatever he needs.
YLT
8for thou dost certainly
open thy hand to him, and dost certainly lend him sufficient for his lack which
he lacketh.
But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him,.... And give
him bountifully and liberally; in order to which the heart must be first
opened, the affections moved, and a willing mind disposed to give generously:
and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he
wanteth: enough to answer his present exigencies, but not to cause him to
abound, or to supply him with things needless and superfluous.
Deuteronomy 15:9 9 Beware lest there be a wicked thought in your heart,
saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand,’ and your eye be
evil against your poor brother and you give him nothing, and he cry out to the Lord against you, and it become sin among you.
YLT
9`Take heed to thee lest
there be a word in thy heart -- worthless, saying, Near [is] the seventh year,
the year of release; and thine eye is evil against thy needy brother, and thou
dost not give to him, and he hath called concerning thee unto Jehovah, and it
hath been in thee sin;
Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart,.... "Or,
thy heart of Belial"F6לבבך בליעל "corde tuo Belial", Montanus. ; thy
worthless heart, and which is without a yoke not subjected to the law of God,
as every carnal heart is; and in which Belial, Satan, the prince of this world,
works effectually, and inclines to evil thoughts, afflictions, and desires,
which are to be guarded against:
saying, the seventh year, the year of release, is at hand: perhaps next
year, or within a few months:
and thine eye be evil against thy brother, and thou give him
nought; being of an uncompassionate and covetous disposition, shall
refuse to give or lend him anything on this consideration, because the year of
release will quickly come, when, if poor and unable to pay him, he would be
obliged to release his debt:
and he cry unto the Lord against thee; go to the
throne of grace, and in prayer bring a charge, and lodge a complaint of
unkindness and uncharitableness: and it be a sin unto thee; the Lord shall
reckon it as a sin, a very heinous one, and call to an account for it.
Deuteronomy 15:10 10 You shall surely give to him, and your heart should
not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you
put your hand.
YLT
10thou dost certainly give to
him, and thy heart is not sad in thy giving to him, for because of this thing
doth Jehovah thy God bless thee in all thy works, and in every putting forth of
thy hand;
Thou shall surely give him,.... Or lend to him;
though lending in such a case and circumstances, that person being extremely
poor, and the year of release at hand, is the same as giving. Jarchi remarks
that money must be given him, even a hundred times if he asks it; but the
limitation is to what he wants, and what is sufficient for his present wants, Deuteronomy 15:8.
and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him; grieved at
parting with his money he has little or no hope of seeing again, grudging it to
him to whom it is given; when, on the other hand, it should he given freely and
cheerfully, for God loves a cheerful giver:
because that for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee in
all thy works, and in all thou puttest thine hand unto; that is, for
lending or giving largely, liberally, and cheerfully, to persons in distress;
see Proverbs 11:24.
Deuteronomy 15:11 11 For the poor will never cease from the land; therefore
I command you, saying, ‘You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your
poor and your needy, in your land.’
YLT
11because the needy one doth
not cease out of the land, therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Thou dost
certainly open thy hand to thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy one, in
thy land.
For the poor shall never cease out of the land,.... There
would be always such objects to exercise their charity and beneficence towards,
John 12:8, which is
no contradiction to Deuteronomy 15:4
for had they been obedient to the laws of God, they would have been so blessed
that there would have been none; so the Targums; but he foresaw that they would
not keep his commands, and so this would be the case, and which he foretells
that they might expect it, and do their duty to them, as here directed:
therefore I command thee, saying, thou shalt open thine hand wide
unto thy brother; not give sparingly, but largely, in proportion to the
necessities of the poor, and according to the abilities of the lender or giver;
and this must be done to a brother, one that is near in the bonds of
consanguinity, and to him a man must give or lend first, as Aben Ezra observes,
and then "to thy poor"; the poor of thy family, as the same writer:
and to thy needy in the land; that are in very distressed
circumstances, though not related, and particularly such as are in the same
place where a man dwells; for, as the same writer remarks, the poor of thy land
are to be preferred to the poor of another place,
Deuteronomy 15:12 12 “If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is
sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let
him go free from you.
YLT
12`When thy brother is sold
to thee, a Hebrew or a Hebrewess, and he hath served thee six years -- then in
the seventh year thou dost send him away free from thee.
And if thy brother, an Hebrew man, or an Hebrew woman, be sold
unto thee,.... By others, as by the sanhedrim for theft, for which a man
might be sold, but not a woman, as Jarchi observes; but then a father might
sell his daughter for an handmaid, if little and under age; and to such cases
this law is supposed to refer; see Exodus 21:2 though
a man on account of poverty might sell himself:
and serve thee six years; as he was bound to do,
if his master lived so long; if he died before the six years were out, he was
obliged to serve his son, but not his daughter, nor his brother, nor his heirs,
as the Jewish writers affirmF7Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn.
Kiddushin. c. 1. sect. 2. : then in the seventh year thou shalt let him go free
from thee; that is, at the end of the sixth, and beginning of the seventh year;
see Exodus 21:2.
Deuteronomy 15:13 13 And when you send him away free from you, you shall
not let him go away empty-handed;
YLT
13And when thou dost send him
away free from thee, thou dost not send him away empty;
And when thou sendest him out free from thee,.... When he
discharged him from his servitude, and made him a free man:
thou shall not let him go away empty; without
anything to support himself, or to put himself in a way of business; he having
in the time of his servitude worked entirely for his master, and so could not
have got and saved anything for himself.
Deuteronomy 15:14 14 you shall supply him liberally from your flock, from
your threshing floor, and from your winepress. From what the Lord your God has blessed you with, you shall give to him.
YLT
14thou dost certainly
encircle him out of thy flock, and out of thy threshing-floor, and out of thy
wine-vat; [of] that which Jehovah thy God hath blessed thee thou dost give to
him,
Thou shalt furnish him liberally,.... Not only to supply
his present wants, but for his future use, and to set him up in the world:
"loading thou shall load him"F8העניק
תעניק "onerando oneratis", Munster,
Pagninus, Vatablus. , so some render the words; give him as much as he can
carry, and well stand up under; the word used has the signification of chains
wore about the neck for honour or ornament, and so may signify he should be
very honourably dismissed, with plain marks of honour and respect; and the
order is, to supply him
out of thy flock, and out of thy floor, and out of thy winepress; with sheep or
lambs out of the flock, with corn out of the floor, wheat, or barley, or both,
and wine out of the winepress; which take in all the necessaries and comforts
of life: of that
wherewith the Lord thy God hath blessed thee thou shall give unto
him; be it what it will, and in proportion to it, as of money as well
as goods; it is asked, how much shall be given to him? not less than the value
of thirty shekels, whether of one kind or whether of many kinds, according to
the thirty shekels for the price of a servant, Exodus 21:32 F9Maimon.
Hilchot Obedim, c. 3. sect. 14. . All this may be an emblem both of the
servitude the people of God are in to sin, Satan, and the law, while in a state
of nature; and of their freedom from it by Christ, and of the sufficiency and
fulness of food and raiment, and large measures of divine grace; even all
things richly to enjoy, all things pertaining to life and godliness, which are
given to them when brought out of that state; who otherwise come out of it
destitute of all good things, having neither food nor clothes, nor money to buy
either, but have all from Christ freely and fully.
Deuteronomy 15:15 15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land
of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore
I command you this thing today.
YLT
15and thou hast remembered
that a servant thou hast been in the land of Egypt, and Jehovah thy God doth
ransom thee; therefore I am commanding thee this thing to-day.
And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of
Egypt,.... Where they were used hardly, and their lives were made bitter
in hard bondage; and therefore should show the greater compassion to servants,
whose case they could not but sympathize with, and have a fellow feeling of
and the Lord thy God redeemed thee; from the house of
bondage and state of slavery, after they had been in it many years:
therefore I command thee this thing today, to release
their servants at the end of six years, and not send them away empty, but
generously contribute to them at their release; since when he redeemed them he
gave them the spoil of Egypt, and of the sea, as Jarchi remarks; they came out
of their bondage state with jewels, and gold, and silver, and raiment, even
with great substance; and at the Red sea their spoil was increased which they
took from Pharaoh and his host when drowned there; now as they came out of
their servitude not empty but full, being sufficiently paid for their hard
service, so they should remember to give to their servants liberally, when they
made them free.
Deuteronomy 15:16 16 And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go
away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with
you,
YLT
16`And it hath been, when he
saith unto thee, I go not out from thee -- because he hath loved thee, and thy
house, because [it is] good for him with thee --
And it shall be, if he say unto thee, I will not go away from thee,.... Out of
his house, nor quit his service:
because he loveth thee and thine house; his master
and his family, and so loath to leave them, but chooses rather to stay with
them than have his liberty; hence the Jews sayF11Maimon. in Misn.
Kiddushin, c. 1. sect. 2. , if his master has not a wife and children, his ear
is not to be bored:
because he is well with thee; lives well with him, is well used
by him, wants for nothing, and enjoys peace and quietness, and has everything
to make him happy as such a state will admit of, and with the which he is well
contented, and highly pleased. This is an emblem of the cheerful and constant
obedience of the people of Christ to him their master, flowing from love to
him; whom they love above all persons and things, with all their heart and
soul, and his house also, the place of his worship, his ordinances, truths,
ministers and children; and therefore choose to be where they are, finding that
they are there well used, fare well, having bread enough and to spare,
spiritual provisions in plenty; are well clothed with the righteousness of
Christ, have the good company of the saints and excellent in the earth, in whom
is all their delight; and, above all, the presence of their Lord and master,
and the smiles of his countenance.
Deuteronomy 15:17 17 then you shall take an awl and thrust it
through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your
female servant you shall do likewise.
YLT
17then thou hast taken the
awl, and hast put [it] through his ear, and through the door, and he hath been
to thee a servant age-during; and also to thy handmaid thou dost do so.
Then thou shall take an awl, and thrust it through his ear unto
the door,.... Not of his master's house, but of the sanhedrim, or court of
judicature, according to the Targum of Jonathan, before whom he was to be
brought, and declare his desire to continue with his master; See Gill on Exodus 21:6,
and he shall be thy servant for ever; that is, unto
the jubilee, as the same Targum; for then all servants were released, and so
Jarchi calls it the ever of jubilee:
and also unto thy maidservant thou shall do likewise; not bore her
ear, for, as both Jarchi and Aben Ezra, and others say, she was not to be
bored; though some are of opinion that a maidservant who was willing to
continue with her master was to be bored as a manservant; but this respects the
manner of dismissing her, or letting her go free, when she was not to go empty,
but to be liberally furnished and supplied, as a manservant was.
Deuteronomy 15:18 18 It shall not seem hard to you when you send him away
free from you; for he has been worth a double hired servant in serving you six
years. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all that you do.
YLT
18`It is not hard in thine
eyes, in thy sending him away free from thee; for the double of the hire of an
hireling he hath served thee six years, and Jehovah thy God hath blessed thee
in all that thou dost.
It shall not seem hard to thee when thou sendest him away free
from thee,.... He should not grudge him his liberty, nor what he gives to
him when he dismisses him:
for he hath been worth a double hired servant to thee in serving
thee six years; since a hired servant a man is obliged to pay him wages for his
work, besides his food, whereas a bondservant received no wages. Aben Ezra
remarks, that this proves that a man might not hire himself for more than three
years; or however, whereas a hired servant was sometimes hired for so many
years, and this is the longest time of any we read of, a servant serving his
master six years, his service must be worth double the service of an hired
servant, which at most was but three years:
and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all thou doest; thus well
using thy servants, whether menservants or maidservants.
Deuteronomy 15:19 19 “All the firstborn males that come from your herd and
your flock you shall sanctify to the Lord your God;
you shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn
of your flock.
YLT
19`Every firstling that is
born in thy herd and in thy flock -- the male thou dost sanctify to Jehovah thy
God; thou dost not work with the firstling of thine ox, nor shear the firstling
of thy flock;
All the firstling males that come of thy herd, or of thy flock,
thou shalt sanctify unto the Lord thy God,.... According to the law
in Exodus 13:2. See
Gill on Exodus 13:2; See
Gill on Exodus 13:12; See
Gill on Exodus 13:13,
thou shalt do no work with the firstling of thy bullock: as to plough
or tread out the corn with it, which were done with other heifers:
nor shear the firstling of thy sheep; nor was the
wool shorn of it to be made use of; one of the Jewish canons runs thus,"if
any man weave an hand's breadth of the wool of a firstling into cloth, the
cloth is to be burntF12Misn. Orlah, c. 3. sect. 3. .'
Deuteronomy 15:20 20 You and your household shall eat it before the Lord your God year by year in the place which the Lord chooses.
YLT
20before Jehovah thy God thou
dost eat it year by year, in the place which Jehovah doth choose, thou and thy
house.
Thou shalt eat it before the Lord thy God, year by year,.... Which, if
understood of male firstlings, as in connection with the preceding verse, only
priests might eat of them, being devoted to the Lord; so Jarchi says, to the
priest he speaks; but if this respects the Israelites in common, then they must
be understood either of female firstlings or second firstlings, which the
people voluntarily separated, and which they were not to eat in their own
houses:
but in the place which the Lord shall choose, which was the
city of Jerusalem; see Deuteronomy 12:5,
thou and thy household; the household of the
priest, as Aben Ezra interprets it; but if it designs the same as in Deuteronomy 12:17,
then the Israelites and their families are meant.
Deuteronomy 15:21 21 But if there is a defect in it, if it is lame
or blind or has any serious defect, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord your God.
YLT
21`And when there is in it a
blemish, lame, or blind, any evil blemish, thou dost not sacrifice it to
Jehovah thy God;
And if there be any blemish therein,.... In the firstling, as
if it be "lame or blind", or have
any ill blemish: thou shall not sacrifice it unto the Lord thy God; blemishes in
any beast made it unfit for sacrifices which were required; and so all peace
offerings, vows, and freewill offerings, were to be free from any, Leviticus 22:19,
such were not fit for an holy sacrifice or an holy feast.
Deuteronomy 15:22 22 You may eat it within your gates; the unclean and the
clean person alike may eat it, as if it were a gazelle or
a deer.
YLT
22within thy gates thou dost
eat it, the unclean and the clean alike, as the roe, and as the hart.
Thou shalt eat it within thy gates,.... Though it might not
be sacrificed, nor eaten as an eucharistic feast at Jerusalem, it might be
eaten as common food in their own houses:
the unclean and the clean person shall eat it alike; such as were
ceremonially unclean, by the touch of a dead body or the like, might partake of
it with those that were clean, no difference was to be made:
as the roebuck and as the hart; which were clean
creatures, and used for food, though not for sacrifice; see Deuteronomy 12:15.
Deuteronomy 15:23 23 Only you shall not eat its blood; you shall pour it on
the ground like water.
YLT
23Only, its blood thou dost
not eat; on the earth thou dost pour it as water.
Only thou shalt not eat the blood thereof,.... Of the
firstling:
thou shalt pour it upon the ground as water; See Gill on Deuteronomy 12:16;
see Gill on Deuteronomy 12:23;
see Gill on Deuteronomy 12:24.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》