Holiness in the assembly, the camp, and daily life

23:1 A man with crushed or severed genitals may not enter the assembly of the Lord. 23:2 A person of illegitimate birth may not enter the assembly of the Lord; to the tenth generation no one related to him may do so. 23:3 An Ammonite or Moabite may not enter the assembly of the Lord; to the tenth generation none of their descendants shall ever do so, 23:4 for they did not meet you with food and water on the way as you came from Egypt, and furthermore, they hired Balaam son of Beor of Pethor in Aram Naharaim to curse you. 23:5 But the Lord your God refused to listen to Balaam and changed the curse to a blessing, for the Lord your God loves you. 23:6 You must not seek peace and prosperity for them through all the ages to come. 23:7 You must not hate an Edomite, for he is your relative; you must not hate an Egyptian, for you lived as a foreigner in his land. 23:8 Children of the third generation born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord. 23:9 When you go out as an army against your enemies, guard yourselves against anything impure. 23:10 If there is someone among you who is impure because of some nocturnal emission, he must leave the camp; he may not reenter it immediately. 23:11 When evening arrives he must wash himself with water and then at sunset he may reenter the camp. 23:12 You are to have a place outside the camp to serve as a latrine. 23:13 You must have a spade among your other equipment and when you relieve yourself outside you must dig a hole with the spade and then turn and cover your excrement. 23:14 For the Lord your God walks about in the middle of your camp to deliver you and defeat your enemies for you. Therefore your camp should be holy, so that he does not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you. 23:15 You must not return an escaped slave to his master when he has run away to you. 23:16 Indeed, he may live among you in any place he chooses, in whichever of your villages he prefers; you must not oppress him. 23:17 There must never be a sacred prostitute among the young women of Israel nor a sacred male prostitute among the young men of Israel. 23:18 You must never bring the pay of a female prostitute or the wage of a male prostitute into the temple of the Lord your God in fulfillment of any vow, for both of these are abhorrent to the Lord your God. Respect for Others’ Property 23:19 You must not charge interest on a loan to your fellow Israelite, whether on money, food, or anything else that has been loaned with interest. 23:20 You may lend with interest to a foreigner, but not to your fellow Israelite; if you keep this command the Lord your God will bless you in all you undertake in the land you are about to enter to possess. 23:21 When you make a vow to the Lord your God you must not delay in fulfilling it, for otherwise he will surely hold you accountable as a sinner. 23:22 If you refrain from making a vow, it will not be sinful. 23:23 Whatever you vow, you must be careful to do what you have promised, such as what you have vowed to the Lord your God as a freewill offering. 23:24 When you enter the vineyard of your neighbor you may eat as many grapes as you please, but you must not take away any in a container. 23:25 When you go into the ripe grain fields of your neighbor you may pluck off the kernels with your hand, but you must not use a sickle on your neighbor’s ripe grain.

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Israel must order its life around the holy presence of the Lord. In this Mosaic covenant setting, some people are excluded from the assembly, the camp must stay pure, the weak must not be abused, vows must be kept, and neighbors must be treated with restraint and fairness.

This passage shows that God’s holiness reaches into many parts of life. It begins with limits on who may enter the assembly of the Lord, including the specific exclusions named in the text. It then moves to purity in the army camp, mercy toward an escaped slave, rejection of cult prostitution, fair lending, honest vows, and careful respect for a neighbor’s field. The Lord is in the midst of his people, so even ordinary life must reflect reverence, purity, justice, and self-control.

• Holiness is not only for worship. It reaches bodily life, speech, money, and daily conduct.
• The exclusions in this chapter belong to Israel’s Mosaic covenant setting and must not be turned into a direct rule for the church.
• The Lord turned Balaam’s curse into a blessing because he loved his people.
• God’s presence in the camp meant that even ordinary bodily matters had to be handled with care.
• An escaped slave was to be protected, not returned to oppression.
• Cult prostitution and money gained by it were abhorrent to the Lord.
• God’s people must not charge interest to their fellow Israelites on the loans named here.
• A vow made to the Lord must be fulfilled; it is better not to vow than to make a false promise.
• Neighbors were to be shown both mercy and respect for property.
• The passage warns that sin includes not only idolatry but also careless promises and exploitation in ordinary life.

• A man with crushed or severed genitals may not enter the assembly in this Mosaic setting.
• A person of illegitimate birth may not enter the assembly in this Mosaic setting, and the stated restriction extends through the generations named in the text.
• An Ammonite or Moabite may not enter the assembly in this Mosaic setting, and Israel must not seek their peace or prosperity in the terms stated here.
• Do not hate an Edomite or an Egyptian; their descendants may be received in the way stated by the passage.
• When Israel goes out as an army, the camp must be kept pure.
• A person with a nocturnal emission must leave the camp and return only after washing and sunset.
• The camp must have a place outside it for a latrine, and excrement must be covered.
• Do not return an escaped slave to his master; do not oppress him.
• There must be no sacred prostitute among Israel, and no money from prostitution may be brought to the Lord’s house.
• Do not charge interest to a fellow Israelite on a loan of money, food, or anything else loaned with interest.
• Keep the command about lending and you will be blessed in the land.
• Do not delay in fulfilling a vow to the Lord, or you will be held accountable as a sinner.
• If you do not make a vow, you do not sin.
• Whatever you vow, do it.
• You may eat grapes from your neighbor’s vineyard as you pass through, but do not take them away in a container.
• You may pluck kernels from your neighbor’s grain by hand, but do not use a sickle to harvest it.

God dwells among his people and shapes them into a holy community. In this chapter, holiness is tied to covenant order, mercy, restraint, and justice. God’s presence in the camp demands purity, and his blessing is connected to obedience in the life of the community.

God’s people should take holiness seriously in ordinary life. We should be truthful with our words, keep our promises, treat vulnerable people with mercy, handle money fairly, and respect other people’s property. We should also read Israel’s civil and ceremonial laws in their own covenant setting and not apply them directly to the church.

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