Deuteronomy 21

Chapter 21

Cleansing for Unsolved Murder

1 “When you are in the land the LORD your God is giving you, someone may be found murdered in a field, and you don’t know who committed the murder.2 In such a case, your elders and judges must measure the distance from the site of the crime to the nearby towns.3 When the nearest town has been determined, that town’s elders must select from the herd a young cow that has never been trained or yoked to a plow.4 They must lead it down to a valley that has not been plowed or planted and that has a stream running through it. There in the valley they must break the young cow’s neck.

5 Then the Levitical priests must step forward, for the LORD your God has chosen them to minister before him and to pronounce blessings in the LORD’s name. They are to decide all legal and criminal cases.
6 “The elders of the town must wash their hands over the young cow whose neck was broken.7 Then they must say, ‘Our hands did not shed this person’s blood, nor did we see it happen.8 O LORD, forgive your people Israel whom you have redeemed. Do not charge your people with the guilt of murdering an innocent person.’ Then they will be absolved of the guilt of this person’s blood.

9 By following these instructions, you will do what is right in the LORD’s sight and will cleanse the guilt of murder from your community.

Marriage to a Captive Woman

10 “Suppose you go out to war against your enemies and the LORD your God hands them over to you, and you take some of them as captives.11 And suppose you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and you are attracted to her and want to marry her.12 If this happens, you may take her to your home, where she must shave her head, cut her nails,13 and change the clothes she was wearing when she was captured. She will stay in your home, but let her mourn for her father and mother for a full month. Then you may marry her, and you will be her husband and she will be your wife.

14 But if you marry her and she does not please you, you must let her go free. You may not sell her or treat her as a slave, for you have humiliated her.

Rights of the Firstborn

15 “Suppose a man has two wives, but he loves one and not the other, and both have given him sons. And suppose the firstborn son is the son of the wife he does not love.16 When the man divides his inheritance, he may not give the larger inheritance to his younger son, the son of the wife he loves, as if he were the firstborn son.

17 He must recognize the rights of his oldest son, the son of the wife he does not love, by giving him a double portion. He is the first son of his father’s virility, and the rights of the firstborn belong to him.

Dealing with a Rebellious Son

18 “Suppose a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey his father or mother, even though they discipline him.19 In such a case, the father and mother must take the son to the elders as they hold court at the town gate.20 The parents must say to the elders, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious and refuses to obey. He is a glutton and a drunkard.’

21 Then all the men of his town must stone him to death. In this way, you will purge this evil from among you, and all Israel will hear about it and be afraid.

Various Regulations

22 “If someone has committed a crime worthy of death and is executed and hung on a tree,t

23 the body must not remain hanging from the tree overnight. You must bury the body that same day, for anyone who is hungt is cursed in the sight of God. In this way, you will prevent the defilement of the land the LORD your God is giving you as your special possession.

DEUTERONOMY 21

Unsolved Murder

Moses said to Israel:

1 Suppose the body of a murder victim is found in a field in the land the [Lord] your God is giving you, and no one knows who the murderer is. 2 The judges and other leaders from the towns around there must find out what town is the closest to where the body was found. 3 The leaders from that town will go to their cattle herds and choose a young cow that has never been put to work.t

4-5 They and some of the priests will take this cow to a nearby valley where there is a stream, but no crops. Once they reach the valley, the leaders will break the cow's neck.
The priests must be there, because the [Lord] your God has chosen them to be his special servants at the place of worship. The [Lord] has chosen them to bless the people in his name and to be judges in all legal cases, whether property or injury is involved.
6 The town leaders will wash their hands over the body of the dead cow 7 and say, “We had no part in this murder, and we don't know who did it.

8-9 But since an innocent person was murdered, we beg you, our [Lord], to accept this sacrifice and forgive Israel. We are your people, and you rescued us. Please don't hold this crime against us.”
If you obey the [Lord] and do these things, he will forgive Israel.

Marrying a Woman //Taken Prisoner in War

Moses said to Israel:

11-13 One of these prisoners may be a beautiful woman, and you may want to marry her. But first you must bring her into your home, and have her shave her head, cut her nails, get rid of her foreign clothes, and start wearing Israelite clothes. She will mourn a month for her father and mother, then you can marry her.

14 Later on, if you are not happy with the woman, you can divorce her, and she can go free. But you have slept with her as your wife, so you cannot sell her as a slave or make her into your own slave.

Rights of a First-Born Son

Moses said to Israel:

15-17 Suppose a man has two wives and loves one more than the other. The first son of either wife is the man's first-born son, even if the boy's mother is the wife the man doesn't love. Later, when the man is near death and is dividing up his property, he must give a double share to his first-born son, simply because he was the first to be born.

A Son Who Rebels

Moses said to Israel:

20 The parents will tell the leaders, “This son of ours is stubborn and never obeys. He spends all his time drinking and partying.”

21 The men of the town will stone that son to death, because they must get rid of the evil he brought into the community. Everyone in Israel will be afraid when they hear how he was punished.

The Body of a Criminal

Moses said to Israel: