Deuteronomy 5:21

5:21 You must not desire another man’s wife, nor should you crave his house, his field, his male and female servants, his ox, his donkey, or anything else he owns.”

Deuteronomy 12:12

12:12 You shall rejoice in the presence of the Lord your God, along with your sons, daughters, male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages (since they have no allotment or inheritance with you).

Deuteronomy 16:18

Provision for Justice

16:18 You must appoint judges and civil servants for each tribe in all your villages that the Lord your God is giving you, and they must judge the people fairly.

Deuteronomy 32:36

32:36 The Lord will judge his people,

and will change his plans concerning 10  his servants;

when he sees that their power has disappeared,

and that no one is left, whether confined or set free.

Deuteronomy 32:43

32:43 Cry out, O nations, with his people,

for he will avenge his servants’ blood;

he will take vengeance against his enemies,

and make atonement for his land and people.


tn The Hebrew verb used here (חָמַד, khamad) is different from the one translated “crave” (אָוַה, ’avah) in the next line. The former has sexual overtones (“lust” or the like; cf. Song of Sol 2:3) whereas the latter has more the idea of a desire or craving for material things.

tn Heb “your neighbor’s.” See note on the term “fellow man” in v. 19.

tn Heb “your neighbor’s.” The pronoun is used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

tn Heb “or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

tn Heb “within your gates” (so KJV, NASB); NAB “who belongs to your community.”

sn They have no allotment or inheritance with you. See note on the word “inheritance” in Deut 10:9.

tn The Hebrew term וְשֹׁטְרִים (vÿshoterim), usually translated “officers” (KJV, NCV) or “officials” (NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT), derives from the verb שֹׁטֵר (shoter, “to write”). The noun became generic for all types of public officials. Here, however, it may be appositionally epexegetical to “judges,” thus resulting in the phrase, “judges, that is, civil officers,” etc. Whoever the שֹׁטְרִים are, their task here consists of rendering judgments and administering justice.

tn Heb “gates.”

tn Heb “with judgment of righteousness”; ASV, NASB “with righteous judgment.”

10 tn The translation understands the verb in the sense of “be grieved, relent” (cf. HALOT 689 s.v. נחם hitp 2); cf. KJV, ASV “repent himself”; NLT “will change his mind.” Another option is to translate “will show compassion to” (see BDB 637 s.v. נחם); cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV.