The Fifth Book of Moses, called Deuteronomy
Deuteronomy 16
Chapter XVI · Vol. I, pp. 505–506
1 The feast of the passover, 9 of weeks, 13 of tabernacles. 16 Every male must offer, as he is able, at these three feasts. 18 Of judges and justice. 21 Groves and images are forbidden.
1 OBSERVE the amonth of Abib, and keep the passover unto the LORD thy God: for bin the month of Abib the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night.
a Ex. 12.2-11,43-49, &c. Le. 23.5. Nu. 9.2-5; 28.16. 1 Co. 5.7,8.
2 Thou shalt therefore csacrifice the passover unto the LORD thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which the LORD shall choose to place his name there.
c Nu. 28.16-23. Ex. 12.5. 2 Ch. 35.7. ch. 12.5,6; ver. 5-7.
3 Thoud shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; (for ethou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste;) that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life.
d Ex. 12.15,18,19; 13.6,7; 34.18; 23.15. Le. 23.6. Nu. 28.17. 1 Co. 5.8. Zec. 12.10.
e Ex. 12.33,34,39; 11.8.
4 Andf there shall be no leavened bread seen with thee in all thy coast seven days; gneither shall there any thing of the flesh, which thou sacrificedst the first day at even, remain all night until the morning.
5 Thou mayest not hsacrifice the passover within any of thy gates, which the LORD thy God giveth thee:
h Or, kill, ver. 2; ch. 12.5,6.
6 But at the place which the LORD thy God shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover iat even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt.
7 And thou shalt kroast and eat it in the place which the LORD thy God shall choose; and thou shalt turn in the morning, and go unto thy tents.1
k Ex. 12.8. Ps. 22.13-15.
1 When the passover was first instituted, the lamb was ordered to be killed in each house, the blood sprinkled on the door-posts, and the flesh roasted and eaten within. Here a great change is made. They were expressly forbidden to kill the paschal lamb in their houses; the lambs were all to be taken to the tabernacle or temple, and killed there by the priests alone. It will be observed, too, that the killing of the lamb is here called a sacrifice, i.e. an animal slain and offered to God as an expiation for sin. So the apostle says, 'Christ, our passover, is sacrificed for us.' The passover was one of the three great feasts which it was necessary for all adult males to observe in Jerusalem.—P.
8 Sixl days2 thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly3 to the LORD thy God; thou shalt do no work therein.
l ver. 3,4. Ex. 12.15,16; 13.6. Nu. 28.17-19. Le. 23.6-8.
2 There is no contradiction between ver. 3 and 8: ver. 3 requires seven days of unleavened bread, but ver. 8 prescribes a solemn assembly on the seventh, which had not been specified in ver. 3.—C.
3 Heb. restraint.
9 Sevenm weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn.
m Ex. 23.16; 34.22. Le. 23.15-21. Nu. 28.26-30. 1 Co. 16.8. Ac. ii.-xix. It prefigured the descent of the Holy Ghost.
10 And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the LORD thy God with4 an tribute5 of a free-will-offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the LORD thy God, according as the LORD thy God hath blessed thee:
11 And thou oshalt rejoice before the LORD thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to place his name there.
12 And pthou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt: and thou shalt observe and do these statutes.
13 Thouq shalt observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine.6
q Ex. 23.16; 34.22. Le. 23.34-36. Nu. 29.12-38.
6 Heb. floor, and thy wine-press.
14 Andr thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates.7
r ver. 11; ch. 12.12,18; 26.11. Ne. 8.9, &c. Is. 12.1-6. 1 Th. 5.16. Ro. 5.11.
7 How beautiful and well worthy of their divine and gracious Author are these Mosaic institutions! The corn has been reaped and gathered into barns, the vine has yielded its luxuriant clusters, and the rich possessors are called to the feast. But mark the assembled party. The lord and his servant, the mistress and her handmaid, the Levite in his official dignity but unprovided dependence, the stranger from another land, the fatherless and the widow of their own, are all assembled around one abundant joyous board. There is no extinction of ranks, neither is there any extinction of privileges, but all the grades of society blend and harmonize together in obedience and gratitude to their covenant God.—C.
15 Sevens days shalt thou keep a solemn feast unto the LORD thy God in the place which the LORD shall choose: because the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands; therefore thou shalt surely rejoice.
16 Threet times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and uthey shall not appear before the LORD empty.
t Ex. 23.14-17; 34.22,23.
u Ex. 23.15; 34.20. Pr. 3.9,10. Ro. 12.1.
17 Every xman shall give as he is able,8 according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.9
x Le. 27.8. Ezr. 2.69. 1 Pe. 4.11. 1 Co. 16.2. 2 Co. 8.12-14.
8 Heb. according to the gift of his hand.
9 This was in addition to all tithes and regular sacrifices. The legal provision for divine ordinances and the voluntary offerings of a God-fearing people were admirably combined under the Mosaic economy.—P.
18 Judgesy and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates,1 which the LORD thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment.
y Ex. 18.25. 2 Ch. 19.8. ch. 20.5. 1 Ch. 23.4; 26.29. Jn. 7.24. Ps. 82.2,3; 58.1,2.
1 The constant reference to gates indicates a state of society in the midst of enemies; these gates were consequently not merely the places of exit and entrance, but of watch and guard. This state, requiring the presence of civil and military officers, rendered the gate or the adjoining guard-rooms the most convenient places of summary jurisdiction; for cases requiring more deliberate consideration, places of greater privacy and retirement were provided; and these in Jerusalem seem to have been either in the private palace appropriated to the high-priest, Mat. 26. 3, 58-69, or a public court of civil and criminal law, Jn. 18. 28, 29, 33; 19. 9.—C.
19 Thouz shalt not wrest judgment: thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words2 of the righteous.
20 Thata which is altogether just3 shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
a ch. 25.16. Ps. 82.2,3. Mi. 6.8. Phi. 4.8. Ro. 13.7,8. Mat. 7.12.
3 Heb. justice.
21 Thou shalt not plant thee ba grove of any trees near unto the altar of the LORD thy God, which thou shalt make thee.
b Ju. 3.7. 1 Ki. 14.23; 16.33. ch. 12.4,30,31.
Notes
[Ver. 21. Trees near unto the altar of the Lord. The famous Roman law of the twelve tables enjoined the planting and preservation of sacred groves—the law of God expressly and repeatedly denounces them, De. 12. 3. The reason of the difference is plain; heathenism sanctioned a system that not only legalized but attempted to sanctify impurity, by the character of its deities and the nature of their worship; nay, according to the testimony of Pliny (b. xii. c. 1), the heathen not only adored the images glittering with gold and silver, but the groves themselves, and their solemn silence. In a warm climate, the temptation to retire to shady groves being great, God proportions to that circumstance the frequency and speciality of their prohibition. C.]
Reflections.—Is it not shameful, that even the most solemn ordinances of our fellowship with God should need to be so frequently inculcated upon us? But since Jesus, our passover, hath been sacrificed for us, and our pentecost, the effusion of the Holy Ghost by an ascended Saviour, is fully come, and the tabernacle of God is in manhood, and is with men upon earth; with holy joy and gladness let us, and others instigated by us, observe our solemn feasts, and keep our eyes always fixed upon the Lamb of God. And while we ourselves are comforted of Christ, let us remember that it is both honourable and godlike to follow his example, and to manifest a tender regard to the poor and afflicted. Let us observe likewise, that magistrates are necessary for the regulation of mankind: and should be so placed that people may have easy access to them; and it is becoming that, in all their ministration, they show themselves of proper abilities and remarkable integrity. But dangerous is it, in the worship of God, to copy after the example of wicked and idolatrous men; his worship is pure and spiritual; he regards not the external appearance; but they who worship him, must worship him in spirit and in truth.