Chapter Twenty-Three
Who Can and Who Cannot Attend an Assembly
23:1 “No one whose testicles are crushed or whose male organ is cut off shall enter the assembly of the LORD.
Moses then discusses eligibility to participate in an assembly of the LORD. The Hebrew word ‘qehǎl’[1] (translated here as ‘assembly’) does not narrow down what type of assembly as the word can refer to any gathering.[2] However, Moses associates this assembly with YHWH, referring to those assemblies required by God.
Similar to one of the requirements outlined in Leviticus 21:1-22:16 for priests (stated as “merôªḥ[3] ’ā·šěḵ,”[4] translated as “crushed testicles,” in Leviticus 21:20), even though the wording is different here (Hebrew ‘peṣûª’,[5] to bruise or crush, along with ‘dǎk·kā(‘)’[6] referring to the crushing or damaging of testicles) the phrase means the same, any damage to the testicles or if the male organ (Hebrew ‘šǒp·ḵā(h)’,)[7] has been cut off, the person is disqualified to attend in these assemblies.
23:2 “No one born of a forbidden union may enter the assembly of the LORD. Even to the tenth generation, none of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD.
No child of a forbidden union may participate at any assembly for YHWH. The Hebrew word ‘mǎm·zēr’,[8] translated here as “no one born of a forbidden union,” is often debated. Most scholars believe the word refers to any illegitimate child (born out of wedlock), others believe it to refer to a specific forbidden relationship such as a child from a marriage with a non-Israeli. In either case the result would mean that the children from those forbidden marriages were not allowed to participate ever, even after ten generations have passed.
23:3 “No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the LORD. Even to the tenth generation, none of them may enter the assembly of the LORD forever, 4 because they did not meet you with bread and with water on the way, when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. 5 But the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam; instead the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loved you. 6 You shall not seek their peace or their prosperity all your days forever.
Neither the Ammonites nor the Moabites would be allowed to participate in any assembly for YHWH now or ever in the future. The reason given as to why the Ammonites were unacceptable was that they would not cooperate in allowing them passage through their land nor bring the people of Israel food and water (even though the account of this incident in Numbers 21:21-35 does not mention any request for food and water, it is still considered valid and likely as it is only a summary of the events, not a detailed report). The Moabites were denied because they hired Balaam to curse the people of Israel (see Numbers 22:1-24:25). No peace efforts were to be made with these people groups.
23:7 “You shall not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother. You shall not abhor an Egyptian, because you were a sojourner in his land. 8 Children born to them in the third generation may enter the assembly of the LORD.
Even though the Edomites and the Moabites were often closely associated, and Edom would not allow the Israelites to pass through their territory (see Numbers 20:14-20), God recognizes that the Edomites were descendants of Jacob’s brother Esau. Plus, He acknowledges that even though the Egyptians enslaved the people of Israel, they allowed them to stay in their land as sojourners. Therefore, the children born in a mixed marriage with an Edomite, or an Egyptian would be acceptable to attend an assembly after the second generation.
Even During War Your Camp Must Be Holy
23:9 “When you are encamped against your enemies, then you shall keep yourself from every evil thing.
When a military camp is set up a high standard of holiness is to be enforced. Every person is to keep away from anything evil (Hebrew ‘rā’,[9] meaning bad, wicked, etc., in context anything that could compromise their purity).
23:10 “If any man among you becomes unclean because of a nocturnal emission, then he shall go outside the camp. He shall not come inside the camp, 11 but when evening comes, he shall bathe himself in water, and as the sun sets, he may come inside the camp.
If someone in the military camp becomes unclean due to an unintentional emission of semen at night, they are to leave the camp (see Leviticus 15:16). They are to bathe in water and then as the sun sets, they can return to the camp.
23:12 “You shall have a place outside the camp, and you shall go out to it. 13 And 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. 14 Because 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.
The subject of defecation is rare in most literature and the Bible is no exception. This is the first of only two locations in Scripture that the Hebrew word ‘ṣē·’āṯ’[10] appears, referring to the excrement of human waste (see Ezekiel 4:12-15 for the other location). There have been many suggestions as to how to best interpret verse 14. Some believe that since the excrement is filthy and unpleasant, that God objects to it being in the camp, however, there is no reference in the Torah regarding it as being unclean (although the Ezekiel passage does imply that it is impure). Others believe that the concern is in the process, not the excrement itself, as the word translated here as ‘indecent’ is the Hebrew word ‘ěr·wā(h)’,[11] referring to being naked.
The overall concern was to prevent from doing anything to keep God from turning away from them during the time of battle.
Additional Miscellaneous Regulations
23:15 “You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you. 16 He 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.
If a slave was to escape their master, they were not to be sent back to them. Most scholars agree that this clause refers to slaves escaping from a foreign nation, as the language does not indicate a fellow brother or kinsman. In contrast to many foreign policies of other nations that require the extradition of slaves, God wants the people of Israel to provide a safe haven in Israel for those who have escaped enslavement.
Some commentators connect these verses with the theme of the previous six verses which deal with warfare, as slaves could escape easier while their masters are engaged in battle.
23:17 “None of the daughters of Israel shall be a cult prostitute, and none of the sons of Israel shall be a cult prostitute. 18 You shall not bring the fee of a prostitute or the wages of a dog into the house of the LORD your God in payment for any vow, for both of these are an abomination to the LORD your God.
The Hebrew words ‘qeḏē·šā(h)’[12] (female temple prostitute) and ‘qā·ḏēš’[13] (male temple prostitute) imply that both are either holy or sacred, although not to or for YHWH. The use of the word ‘cult’ refers to the person being dedicated to pagan practices, here identified as prostitutes typically used in the worship protocols of false gods and goddesses. The phrase, “wages of a dog,” could be a reference that corresponds to how dogs are often negatively portrayed in the Bible, however, many believe that the Hebrew found here (essentially ‘klb’) does not refer to dogs (Hebrew word ‘kě’·lěḇ’,[14] meaning dog, remember the vowel sounds were added later forming specific words).[15] They believe instead that the ‘klb’ refers to a specific Canaanite prostitute. The payment received for such activities was not allowed to be used in paying any vow offering (Hebrew ‘ně’·ḏěr’,[16] a vow offering, see Leviticus 7:16; 22:18-23; 27:2; Numbers 6:21; 15:3-8; 29:39; Deuteronomy 12:6, 11, 17, 26), including paying for any animal used as the offering. Prostitution in the service of false deities would be an abomination to YHWH.
23:19 “You shall not charge interest on loans to your brother, interest on money, interest on food, interest on anything that is lent for interest. 20 You may charge a foreigner interest, but you may not charge your brother interest, that the LORD your God may bless you in all that you undertake in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.
The people of Israel were not to charge any interest on any loan of money, food, or any item that would otherwise be charged interest to any fellow Israelite. However, they were allowed to charge interest to a foreigner. This should not be considered favoritism; it was another way for the people of Israel to demonstrate reliance on God and His blessings to compensate for any added burden imposed by the loan.
23:21 “If you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it, for the LORD your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. 22 But if you refrain from vowing, you will not be guilty of sin. 23 You shall be careful to do what has passed your lips, for you have voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God what you have promised with your mouth.
When a vow was made to YHWH, the person making the vow was to accomplish and fulfill the promise as soon as possible. Even though these vows were voluntary, not completing the vow was considered a sin (see also Numbers chapter 30). Care must be taken to not inadvertently speak a vow; as it is better to not make a promise than to later realize that it cannot (or will not) be fulfilled.[17]
23:24 “If you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in your bag. 25 If you go into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the ears with your hand, but you shall not put a sickle to your neighbor’s standing grain.
If a person was hungry, they could gather for themselves as many grapes they wanted in a vineyard or pluck the ears of grain in a field to satisfy their immediate need. But they were not allowed to take more than they could eat at that time. Harvesting more than they could eat would essentially be stealing (although that is not explicitly stated).
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[1] Strong’s Hebrew 6951.
[2] See commentary under Genesis 28:1-5.
[3] Strong’s Hebrew 4790.
[4] Strong’s Hebrew 810.
[5] Strong’s Hebrew 6481.
[6] Strong’s Hebrew 1795.
[7] Strong’s Hebrew 8212.
[8] Strong’s Hebrew 4464.
[9] Strong’s Hebrew 7451.
[10] Strong’s Hebrew 6627.
[11] Strong’s Hebrew 6172.
[12] Strong’s Hebrew 6948.
[13] Strong’s Hebrew 6945.
[14] Strong’s Hebrew 3611.
[15] See commentary above Genesis 2:4-6.
[16] Strong’s Hebrew 5088.
[17] See commentary under Numbers 30:1-2.