English Standard Version
Deuteronomy 23:15
15"You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you.
Deuteronomy 23:15 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which is escaped from his master unto thee:
- New International Version (NIV)If a slave has taken refuge with you, do not hand them over to their master.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“You shall not give back to his master the slave who has escaped from his master to you.
- New Living Translation (NLT)“If slaves should escape from their masters and take refuge with you, you must not hand them over to their masters.
Context of Deuteronomy 23:15
13And you shall have a trowel with your tools, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig a hole with it and turn back and cover up your excrement. 14Because the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and to give up your enemies before you, therefore your camp must be holy, so that he may not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you. "You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you. 16He shall dwell with you, in your midst, in the place that he shall choose within one of your towns, wherever it suits him. You shall not wrong him. 17"None of the daughters of Israel shall be a cult prostitute, and none of the sons of Israel shall be a cult prostitute.
Read all of Deuteronomy 23Deuteronomy 23:15 word by word
לֹא־תַסְגִּ֥יר עֶ֖בֶד אֶל־אֲדֹנָ֑יו אֲשֶׁר־יִנָּצֵ֥ל אֵלֶ֖יךָ מֵעִ֥ם אֲדֹנָֽיו׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 23:15
- 1 Samuel 30:15And David said to him, "Will you take me down to this band?" And he said, "Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this band."
- Obadiah 1:14Do not stand at the crossroads to cut off his fugitives; do not hand over his survivors in the day of distress.
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 23:15
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15Thou shalt not deliver - the servant which is escaped - unto thee - That is, a servant who left an idolatrous master that he might join himself to God and to his people. In any other case, it would have been injustice to have harboured the runaway.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15The case in question is that of a slave who fled from a pagan master to the holy land. It is of course assumed that the refugee was not flying from justice, but only from the tyranny of his lord.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-25Verses 15-25 It is honourable to shelter and protect the weak, provided they are not wicked. Proselytes and converts to the truth, should be treated with particular tenderness, that they may have no temptation to return to the world. We cannot honour God with our substance, unless it be honestly and honourably come by. It must not only be considered what we give, but how we got it. Where the borrower gets, or hopes to get, it is just that the lender…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 15-1615-16. Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which has escaped from his master unto thee--evidently a servant of the Canaanites or some of the neighboring people, who was driven by tyrannical oppression, or induced, with a view of embracing the true religion, to take refuge in Israel.Read the comment
Topics related to Deuteronomy 23:15
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 23
- 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
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries