Deuteronomy 20:7

Deuteronomy 20:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.
• New International Version (NIV)Has anyone become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else marry her.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And is there any man who has betrothed a wife and has not taken her? Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man take her.'
• New King James Version (NKJV)And what man is there who is betrothed to a woman and has not married her? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man marry her.’

Context of Deuteronomy 20:7

5Then the officers must say to the soldiers, ‘Has any of you built a new house but he has not yet asked God to bless it? If so, he may go home. If he does not, he may die in the battle. Then someone else will ask God to bless his home. 6Has anyone planted a field with grapes but he has not yet picked any fruit? He also may go home. If he does not, he may die in the battle. Then someone else will enjoy the fruit. Has anyone promised to marry a woman? If he has not married her yet, he may go home too. If not, he may die in the battle. Then another man will marry her.’ 8Then the officers must also say to the soldiers, ‘Is any of you afraid? Does anyone not feel brave? He may go home. Then he will not cause other men to be afraid like him.’ 9When the officers have finished speaking to the army, they must choose other officers to lead the groups of soldiers.

Deuteronomy 20:7 word by word

וּמִֽי־הָאִ֞ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־אֵרַ֤שׂ אִשָּׁה֙ וְלֹ֣א לְקָחָ֔הּ יֵלֵ֖ךְ וְיָשֹׁ֣ב לְבֵית֑וֹ פֶּן־יָמוּת֙ בַּמִּלְחָמָ֔ה וְאִ֥ישׁ אַחֵ֖ר יִקָּחֶֽנָּה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And what manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• that hath betrothedאָרַשׂ'âraώ · to betrothH781
• a wifeאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
• and hath not takenלָקַחlâqach · to take: marryH3947
• her? let him goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• and returnשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• unto his houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: homeH1004
• lest he dieמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
• in the battleמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
• and anotherאַחֵר'achêr · anotherH312

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 20:7

• Deuteronomy 22:23Perhaps a man may meet a young woman in a town. She has already promised to marry another man, but the man has sex with her.
• Deuteronomy 24:5When a man has just married, do not send him away to fight in the army. Do not make him work at jobs in other places. He should stay at home for one year. Then he can make his new wife very happy.
• Matthew 1:18This is how Jesus Christ was born. His mother's name was Mary. She had promised to marry a man called Joseph. Then she discovered that she was pregnant. This happened before they started to live together. It was the Holy Spirit that caused this to happen to her.
• Deuteronomy 28:30A woman will promise to marry you. But another man will take her and have sex with her. You will build a house, but you will not live in it. You will plant a garden, but you will never eat the fruit that grows in it.
• Luke 14:18But then each person gave a reason why he could not come to the meal. The first man said, “I have bought a field, so I must go out and see it. Please say that I am sorry. Tell your master that I cannot come to his meal.”
• 2 Timothy 2:4Any soldier who fights in a war does not become busy with other things. He only wants to fight well to make his captain happy.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 20:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7Betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? - It was customary among the Jews to contract matrimony, espouse or betroth, and for some considerable time to leave the parties in the houses of their respective parents: when the bridegroom had made proper preparations, then the bride was brought home to his house, and thus the marriage was consummated. The provisions in this verse refer to a case of this kind; for it was deemed an excessive hardship for a…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7another man marry her: In this situation, if a man died, he would not have children to carry on his name. Ancient Israel considered this to be a great tragedy.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5-85-8. And the officers shall speak unto the people--literally, Shoterim, who are called "scribes" or "overseers" (Ex 5:6). They might be keepers of the muster-roll, or perhaps rather military heralds, whose duty it was to announce the orders of the generals (2Ch 26:11). This proclamation (De 20:5-8) must have been made previous to the priest's address, as great disorder and inconvenience must have been occasioned if the serried ranks were broken by the…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 20:7

• Armies
• Betrothal
• Soldiers

In the dictionaries

• Faint
• Fearful
• Husband
• Army
• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Deuteronomy
• Exodus, the Book of
• Genesis
• Give

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings