Deuteronomy 21:22
in Deuteronomy 21If a man has committed a sin worthy of death, and he is executed, and you hang his body on a tree,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree;
KJV
And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree:
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This verse in Deuteronomy 21
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
There were four methods of execution in use among the ancient Jews; stoning (Exo 17:4; Deu 13:10, etc.), burning Lev 20:14; Lev 21:9, the sword Exo 32:27, and strangulation. The latter, though not named in Scripture, is regarded by the rabbis as the most common, and the proper one to be adopted when no other is expressly enjoined by the Law. Suspension, whether from cross, stake, or gallows, was not used as a mode of taking life, but was sometimes added after death as an enhancement of punishment.
This site's exposition
a sin worthy of death
on Deuteronomy 21:22-23
The rule requires burial the same day so the land is not defiled. Galatians 3:13 applies “anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse” to Christ. This verse is where Paul says the curse of the law went.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
And (as the excellent bishop Patrick well observes) this passage is applied to the death of Christ, not only because he bore our sins and was exposed to shame, as these malefactors were that were accursed of God, but because he was in the evening taken down from the cursed tree and buried (and that by the particular care of the Jews, with an eye to this law, John xix.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
8 Be merciful, O L ORD , unto thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge. And the blood shall be forgiven them. 9 So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the L ORD .
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:93%@v8-9
And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
22, 23. if a man have committed a sin . . . and thou hang him on a tree--Hanging was not a Hebrew form of execution (gibbeting is meant), but the body was not to be left to rot or be a prey to ravenous birds; it was to be buried "that day," either because the stench in a hot climate would corrupt the air, or the spectacle of an exposed corpse bring ceremonial defilement on the land.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְכִֽי־ | vekhi- | and if | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| יִהְיֶ֣ה | yihyeh | it will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| בְאִ֗ישׁ | veish | in anyone | H376 → | 1663 times |
| חֵ֛טְא | chet' | a sin of | H2399 → | 33 times |
| מִשְׁפַּט־ | mishpat- | a sentence of | H4941 → | 422 times |
| מָ֖וֶת | mavet | death | H4194 → | 156 times |
| וְהוּמָ֑ת | vehumat | and he will be put to death | H4191 → | 839 times |
| וְתָלִ֥יתָ | vetalita | and you will hang | H8518 → | |
| אֹת֖וֹ | ʾoto | <obj.> him | H853 → | 10935 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| עֵֽץ׃ | ʾetz | a tree | H6086 → | 328 times |
וְכִֽי־and if
vekhi-H3588 →4482 times
יִהְיֶ֣הit will be
yihyehH1961 →3559 times
בְאִ֗ישׁin anyone
veishH376 →1663 times
חֵ֛טְאa sin of
chet'H2399 →33 times
מִשְׁפַּט־a sentence of
mishpat-H4941 →422 times
מָ֖וֶתdeath
mavetH4194 →156 times
וְהוּמָ֑תand he will be put to death
vehumatH4191 →839 times
וְתָלִ֥יתָand you will hang
vetalitaH8518 →
אֹת֖וֹ<obj.> him
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
עֵֽץ׃a tree
ʾetzH6086 →328 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Matthew 26:66What do you think?” “He deserves to die,” they answered.
it leads to
- John 19:7
“We have a law,” answered the Jews, “and according to that law He must die, because He declared Himself to be the Son of God.”
- John 19:7
Through
Acts 23:29I found that the accusation involved questions about their own law, but there was no charge worthy of death or imprisonment.
it leads to
- Acts 26:31
On their way out, they said to one another, “This man has done nothing worthy of death or imprisonment.”
- Acts 25:25
But I found he had done nothing worthy of death, and since he has now appealed to the Emperor, I decided to send him.
- Acts 18:15
But since it is a dispute about words and names and your own law, settle it yourselves. I refuse to be a judge of such things.”
- Acts 25:11
If, however, I am guilty of anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die. But if there is no truth to their accusations against me, no one has the right to hand…
- Acts 26:31
Through
Acts 26:31On their way out, they said to one another, “This man has done nothing worthy of death or imprisonment.”
it leads to
- Acts 23:29
I found that the accusation involved questions about their own law, but there was no charge worthy of death or imprisonment.
- Acts 23:9
A great clamor arose, and some scribes from the party of the Pharisees got up and contended sharply, “We find nothing wrong with this man. What if a spirit or an angel has spoken…
- Acts 28:18
They examined me and wanted to release me, because there was no basis for a death sentence against me.
- Acts 23:29
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies13
On this verse
On this chapter
About Deuteronomy
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on the Four Last Books of Moses Arranged in the Form of a Harmony; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.