Deuteronomy 21:5

Deuteronomy 21:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them the Lord thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the Lord; and by their word shall every controversy and every stroke be tried:
• New International Version (NIV)The Levitical priests shall step forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister and to pronounce blessings in the name of the Lord and to decide all cases of dispute and assault.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister to him and to bless in the name of the Lord, and by their word every dispute and every assault shall be settled.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come near, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister to Him and to bless in the name of the Lord; by their word every controversy and every assault shall be settled.

Context of Deuteronomy 21:5

3When the nearest town has been determined, that town’s elders must select from the herd a heifer that has never been trained or yoked to a plow. 4They 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 heifer’s neck. 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 heifer whose neck was broken. 7Then they must say, ‘Our hands did not shed this person’s blood, nor did we see it happen.

Deuteronomy 21:5 word by word

וְנִגְּשׁ֣וּ הַכֹּהֲנִים֮ בְּנֵ֣י לֵוִי֒ כִּ֣י בָ֗ם בָּחַ֞ר יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ לְשָׁ֣רְת֔וֹ וּלְבָרֵ֖ךְ בְּשֵׁ֣ם יְהוָ֑ה וְעַל־פִּיהֶ֥ם יִהְיֶ֖ה כָּל־רִ֥יב וְכָל־נָֽגַע׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
• the sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• of Leviלֵוִיlêvîy · LeviH3878
• shall come nearנָגַשׁnâgash · to approach: approachH5066
• for them the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• hath chosenבָּחַרbâchar · to chooseH977
• to ministerשָׁרַתshârath · to ministerH8334
• unto him, and to blessבָּרַךְbârak · to blessH1288
• in the nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
• and by their wordפֶּהpeh · lip: wordH6310
• shall every controversyרִיבrîyb rib · strifeH7379
• and every strokeנֶ֫גַעnega‛ · plagueH5061

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 21:5

• Deuteronomy 10:8At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant, and to stand before the Lord as his ministers, and to pronounce blessings in his name. These are their duties to this day.
• Deuteronomy 18:5For the Lord your God chose the tribe of Levi out of all your tribes to minister in the Lord’s name forever.
• Numbers 6:22Then the Lord said to Moses,
• 1 Chronicles 23:13The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. Aaron and his descendants were set apart to dedicate the most holy things, to offer sacrifices in the Lord’s presence, to serve the Lord, and to pronounce blessings in his name forever.
• Deuteronomy 17:8“Suppose a case arises in a local court that is too hard for you to decide—for instance, whether someone is guilty of murder or only of manslaughter, or a difficult lawsuit, or a case involving different kinds of assault. Take such legal cases to the place the Lord your God will choose,
• Malachi 2:7“The words of a priest’s lips should preserve knowledge of God, and people should go to him for instruction, for the priest is the messenger of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 21:5

• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-8A family member seeking revenge could not blame the entire community (19:6–7; Numbers 35:16–29).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-91-6. If one be found slain ... lying in the field, and it be not known who hath slain him--The ceremonies here ordained to be observed on the discovery of a slaughtered corpse show the ideas of sanctity which the Mosaic law sought to associate with human blood, the horror which murder inspired, as well as the fears that were felt lest God should avenge it on the country at large, and the pollution which the land was supposed to contract from the effusion…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 21:5

• Benedictions
• Church
• Government
• Heifer
• Homicide
• Inquest
• Priest

In the dictionaries

• God
• Levi
• Levi, Levite
• Matthew, Levi
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Ablution
• Controversy
• Crucifixion
• Divers
• Murder

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 21

• 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