New Living Translation
Deuteronomy 13:16
16Then you must pile all the plunder in the middle of the open square and burn it. Burn the entire town as a burnt offering to the Lord your God. That town must remain a ruin forever; it may never be rebuilt.
Deuteronomy 13:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the Lord thy God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again.
- New International Version (NIV)You are to gather all the plunder of the town into the middle of the public square and completely burn the town and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the Lord your God. That town is to remain a ruin forever, never to be rebuilt,
- English Standard Version (ESV)You shall gather all its spoil into the midst of its open square and burn the city and all its spoil with fire, as a whole burnt offering to the Lord your God. It shall be a heap forever. It shall not be built again.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And you shall gather all its plunder into the middle of the street, and completely burn with fire the city and all its plunder, for the Lord your God. It shall be a heap forever; it shall not be built again.
Context of Deuteronomy 13:16
14In such cases, you must examine the facts carefully. If you find that the report is true and such a detestable act has been committed among you, 15you must attack that town and completely destroy all its inhabitants, as well as all the livestock. Then you must pile all the plunder in the middle of the open square and burn it. Burn the entire town as a burnt offering to the Lord your God. That town must remain a ruin forever; it may never be rebuilt. 17Keep none of the plunder that has been set apart for destruction. Then the Lord will turn from his fierce anger and be merciful to you. He will have compassion on you and make you a large nation, just as he swore to your ancestors. 18“The Lord your God will be merciful only if you listen to his voice and keep all his commands that I am giving you today, doing what pleases him.
Read all of Deuteronomy 13Deuteronomy 13:16 word by word
וְאֶת־כָּל־שְׁלָלָ֗הּ תִּקְבֹּץ֮ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ רְחֹבָהּ֒ וְשָׂרַפְתָּ֨ בָאֵ֜שׁ אֶת־הָעִ֤יר וְאֶת־כָּל־שְׁלָלָהּ֙ כָּלִ֔יל לַיהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ וְהָיְתָה֙ תֵּ֣ל עוֹלָ֔ם לֹ֥א תִבָּנֶ֖ה עֽוֹד׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And thou shalt gatherקָבַץqâbats · to gatherH6908
- all the spoilשָׁלָלshâlâl · spoilH7998
- of it into the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
- of the streetרְחוֹבrechôb rechôb · street/plazaH7339
- thereof, and shalt burnשָׂרַףώâraph · to burnH8313
- with fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · excitementH5892
- thereof every whitכָּלִילkâlîyl · entireH3632
- for the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- and it shall be an heapתֵּלtêl · moundH8510
- for everעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769
- it shall not be built againבָּנָהbânâh · to buildH1129
Cross-references for Deuteronomy 13:16
- Joshua 6:24Then the Israelites burned the town and everything in it. Only the things made from silver, gold, bronze, or iron were kept for the treasury of the Lord’s house.
- Numbers 21:2Then the people of Israel made this vow to the Lord: “If you will hand these people over to us, we will completely destroy all their towns.”
- Joshua 6:26At that time Joshua invoked this curse: “May the curse of the Lord fall on anyone who tries to rebuild the town of Jericho. At the cost of his firstborn son, he will lay its foundation. At the cost of his youngest son, he will set up its gates.”
- Joshua 8:28So Joshua burned the town of Ai, and it became a permanent mound of ruins, desolate to this very day.
- Isaiah 17:1This message came to me concerning Damascus: “Look, the city of Damascus will disappear! It will become a heap of ruins.
- Isaiah 25:2You turn mighty cities into heaps of ruins. Cities with strong walls are turned to rubble. Beautiful palaces in distant lands disappear and will never be rebuilt.
- Jeremiah 49:2In the days to come,” says the Lord, “I will sound the battle cry against your city of Rabbah. It will become a desolate heap of ruins, and the neighboring towns will be burned. Then Israel will take back the land you took from her,” says the Lord.
- Micah 1:6“So I, the Lord, will make the city of Samaria a heap of ruins. Her streets will be plowed up for planting vineyards. I will roll the stones of her walls into the valley below, exposing her foundations.
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 13:16
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16Every whit, for the Lord thy God - Some prefer: “as a whole offering to the Lord thy God.”Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-18Verses 12-18 Here is the case of a city revolting from the God of Israel, and serving other gods. The crime is supposed to be committed by one of the cities of Israel. Even when they were ordered to preserve their religion by force, yet they were not allowed to bring others to it by fire and sword. Spiritual judgments under the Christian dispensation are more terrible than the execution of criminals; we have not less cause than the Israelites had, to fear…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16Plunder or "spoils of war" were not to be kept. God had ordered them to be completely destroyed (see 2:34; Leviticus 27:28–29).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 12-1812-18. Certain men, the children of Belial--lawless, designing demagogues (Jud 19:22; 1Sa 1:16; 25:25), who abused their influence to withdraw the inhabitants of the city to idol-worship.Read the comment
Topics related to Deuteronomy 13:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Deuteronomy 13
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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