Deuteronomy24

Deuteronomy 24 presents various social and ethical laws for Israel, beginning with regulations for divorce and remarriage, specifically prohibiting a man from remarrying his former wife if she has been married to another. The chapter also includes statutes on military exemptions, fair lending practices, and the protection of vulnerable groups such as the poor, strangers, fatherless, and widows. A key principle of individual accountability for sin is established, emphasizing justice and compassion rooted in Israel's own history of redemption from Egypt.

Regulations Concerning Divorce and Remarriage

1
When a man takes a wife and marries her, then it shall be, if she finds no favor in his eyes, because he has found some unseemly thing in her, that he shall write her a bill of divorce, and put it in her hand, and send her out of his house. ​
2
When she has departed out of his house, she may go and be another man’s wife.
3
If the latter husband hates her, and write her a bill of divorce, and puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, who took her to be his wife;
4
her former husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before the LORD. You shall not cause the land to sin, which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance. ​

Protection for the Newly Married

5
When a man takes a new wife, he shall not go out in the army, neither shall he be assigned any business. He shall be free at home one year, and shall cheer his wife whom he has taken. ​

Protecting Life and Livelihood

6
No man shall take the mill or the upper millstone as a pledge; for he takes a life in pledge. ​
7
If a man is found stealing any of his brothers of the children of Israel, and he deals with him as a slave, or sells him; then that thief shall die. So you shall remove the evil from your midst. ​

Observance of Leprosy Laws

8
Be careful in the plague of leprosy, that you observe diligently, and do according to all that the priests the Levites teach you. As I commanded them, so you shall observe to do. ​
9
Remember what the LORD your God did to Miriam, by the way as you came out of Egypt. ​

Ethical Practices in Lending

10
When you lend your neighbor any kind of loan, you shall not go into his house to get his pledge. ​
11
You shall stand outside, and the man to whom you lend shall bring the pledge outside to you.
12
If he is a poor man, you shall not sleep with his pledge.
13
You shall surely restore to him the pledge when the sun goes down, that he may sleep in his garment, and bless you. It shall be righteousness to you before the LORD your God. ​

Justice for Hired Servants

14
You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers, or one of the foreigners who are in your land within your gates. ​
15
In his day you shall give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down on it; for he is poor, and sets his heart on it; lest he cry against you to the LORD, and it be sin to you. ​

Individual Responsibility in Judgment

16
The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers. Every man shall be put to death for his own sin. ​

Judicial Fairness for the Vulnerable

17
You shall not deprive the foreigner or the fatherless of justice, nor take a widow’s clothing in pledge; ​
18
but you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you there. Therefore I command you to do this thing. ​

Laws of Gleaning and Charity

19
When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go again to get it. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow; that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. ​
20
When you beat your olive tree, you shall not go over the boughs again. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
21
When you harvest your vineyard, you shall not glean it after yourselves. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
22
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt. Therefore I command you to do this thing. ​

Study Notes for Deuteronomy 24

Verse 1

This passage regulates, but does not institute, the practice of divorce common in the ancient Near East. The ‘bill of divorcement’ provided legal protection for the woman, enabling her to remarry and preventing the husband from later claiming her as his property.

Verse 4

The prohibition against remarrying the former spouse protects the sanctity of the second marriage and prevents a cycle of intentional wife-swapping. The former wife is deemed 'defiled' for the first husband after the second marriage has been consummated, highlighting the seriousness of the marriage bond.

Verse 5

This law ensures the establishment of the family unit, giving the man a full year free from military or public duties. This provision emphasizes the importance of domestic life and fulfilling marital obligations.

Verse 6

The millstones (especially the lower, larger one) were essential for grinding grain and providing daily sustenance. Taking them as collateral was prohibited because it amounted to threatening the family's very survival.

Verse 7

Kidnapping ('man-stealing') is treated as a capital offense, emphasizing the inherent freedom and sanctity of human life among the Israelites. This law protected against forced slavery or trafficking.

Verse 8

This verse reminds the people of their obligation to strictly follow the instructions given to the priests (Leviticus 13-14) concerning ritual cleanness and public health.

Verse 9

The reference to Miriam (Numbers 12:10) serves as a historical reminder that God enforces ritual purity and punishes those, regardless of status, who defy His commands or the authority He has established.

Verse 10

This law protects the borrower’s dignity and privacy by forbidding the lender from entering the house to seize collateral. The borrower must willingly bring the pledge out.

Verse 13

If the pledge was a garment needed for warmth, it had to be returned nightly, ensuring the poor person’s comfort and survival. Treating the vulnerable with such compassion is designated as 'righteousness' before God.

Verse 14

This law extends protection to both Israelite and foreign laborers, forbidding financial exploitation of those most economically defenseless.

Verse 15

Wages must be paid immediately at the end of the day because the poor laborer depended on that money for their next meal. Delaying payment is a serious sin because it causes the poor to 'cry against thee unto the LORD.'

Verse 16

This foundational principle establishes that judicial punishment must be based solely on individual guilt, rejecting the ancient Near Eastern custom of punishing the entire family for the crime of one member.

Verse 17

The 'stranger, fatherless, and widow' constituted the most vulnerable societal groups, often without legal representation. God commands special protection for their legal rights and prevents taking necessary items (like a widow's garment) as collateral.

Verse 18

The theological motivation for compassionate justice is the Israelites' own history: they must remember their experience as oppressed slaves in Egypt whom God redeemed. Their redemption demands they show mercy to others.

Verse 19

The laws of gleaning institutionalize charity, requiring farmers to leave forgotten sheaves, unpicked olives, and grapes for the poor. This system allowed the needy to sustain themselves through honorable labor rather than outright begging.

Verse 22

This restatement of the Egyptian slavery motif emphasizes that these agricultural and social justice laws are not optional suggestions but are binding commands rooted in God's saving action.

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