Deuteronomy 23:16
in Deuteronomy 23Let him live among you wherever he chooses, in the town of his pleasing. Do not oppress him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
he shall dwell with thee, in the midst of thee, in the place which he shall choose within one of thy gates, where it pleaseth him best: thou shalt not oppress him.
KJV
He shall dwell with thee, even among you, in that place which he shall choose in one of thy gates, where it liketh him best: thou shalt not oppress him.
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This verse in Deuteronomy 23
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
Do not return a slave to his master if he has taken refuge with you
on Deuteronomy 23:15-18
The runaway is not returned, which reverses the codes around Israel. The laws of Hammurabi put to death the man who hid a fugitive slave.
This site's exposition
Do not oppress him
A runaway slave could live in any town he chose, and the townspeople were forbidden to oppress him. Wesley grounds the law in the LORD who hates tyranny and shelters the oppressed.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
The angel bid Hagar return to her mistress, and Paul sent Onesimus back to his master Philemon, because they had neither of them any cause to go away, nor was either of them exposed to any danger in returning. But the servant here is supposed to escape, that is, to run for his life, to the people of Israel, of whom he had heard (as Benhadad of the kings of Israel, 1 Kings xx.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
He shall dwell in thee, even among you,....
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| עִמְּךָ֞ | ʾimekha | with you | H5973 → | 1050 times |
| יֵשֵׁ֣ב | yeshev | let him remain | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| בְּקִרְבְּךָ֗ | bekirbecha | in midst your | H7130 → | 227 times |
| בַּמָּק֧וֹם | bamakom | in the place | H4725 → | 401 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יִבְחַ֛ר | yivchar | he will choose | H977 → | 171 times |
| בְּאַחַ֥ד | beachad | in one of | H259 → | 971 times |
| שְׁעָרֶ֖יךָ | sheareikha | gates your | H8179 → | 374 times |
| בַּטּ֣וֹב | batov | in the good [place] | H2896 → | 538 times |
| ל֑וֹ | lo | to <the> him | ||
| לֹ֖א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תּוֹנֶֽנּוּ׃ ס | tonenu | you will maltreat him | H3238 → |
עִמְּךָ֞with you
ʾimekhaH5973 →1050 times
יֵשֵׁ֣בlet him remain
yeshevH3427 →1079 times
בְּקִרְבְּךָ֗in midst your
bekirbechaH7130 →227 times
בַּמָּק֧וֹםin the place
bamakomH4725 →401 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
יִבְחַ֛רhe will choose
yivcharH977 →171 times
בְּאַחַ֥דin one of
beachadH259 →971 times
שְׁעָרֶ֖יךָgates your
sheareikhaH8179 →374 times
בַּטּ֣וֹבin the good [place]
batovH2896 →538 times
ל֑וֹto <the> him
lo
לֹ֖אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תּוֹנֶֽנּוּ׃ סyou will maltreat him
tonenuH3238 →
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
Malachi 3:5“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud…
it leads to
- James 5:8–9
You, too, be patient and strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near.
- Hebrews 13:4
Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.
- Deuteronomy 5:11
You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave anyone unpunished who takes His name in vain.
- James 5:4
Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.
- Deuteronomy 27:19
‘Cursed is he who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’
- James 5:8–9
Through
James 2:6But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?
it leads to
- Proverbs 17:5
He who mocks the poor insults their Maker; whoever gloats over calamity will not go unpunished.
- Proverbs 14:31
Whoever oppresses the poor taunts their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors Him.
- 1 Corinthians 11:22
Don’t you have your own homes in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What can I say to you? Shall I…
- Proverbs 17:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies13
About Deuteronomy
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.