Deuteronomy 22 · Verse 7

Deuteronomy 22:7

But thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young to thee; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.
Deuteronomy 22:7, King James Version

Deuteronomy 22:7 in other translations

BSBYou may take the young, but be sure to let the mother go, so that it may be well with you and that you may prolong your days.
WEBYou shall surely let the hen go, but the young you may take for yourself, that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days.
ASVthou shalt surely let the dam go, but the young thou mayest take unto thyself; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.
YLTthou dost certainly send away the mother, and the young ones dost take to thyself, so that it is well with thee, and thou hast prolonged days.
DARBYthou shalt in any case let the dam go, and thou mayest take the young to thee, that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.
BBESee that you let the mother bird go, but the young ones you may take; so it will be well for you and your life will be long.
WebsterBut thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young to thee; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.

What does Deuteronomy 22:7 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Deuteronomy 22:6-7

6-7. If a bird's nest chance to be before thee--This is a beautiful instance of the humanizing spirit of the Mosaic law, in checking a tendency to wanton destructiveness and encouraging a spirit of kind and compassionate tenderness to the tiniest creatures. But there was wisdom as well as humanity in the precept; for, as birds are well known to serve important uses in the economy of nature, the extirpation of a…

Read the full comment on Deuteronomy 22:6-7 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 7 Thou shalt - let the dam go, and take the young to thee; that it may be well with thee - This passage may be understood literally. If they destroyed both young and old, must not the breed soon fail, and would it not in the end be ill with them; and by thus cutting off the means of their continual support, must not their days be shortened on the land? But we may look for a humane precept in this law. The young never knew the sweets of liberty; the dam did: they might be taken and used for any lawful purpose, but the dam must not be brought into a state of captivity. They who can act otherwise must be either very inconsiderate or devoid of feeling; and such persons can never be objects of God's peculiar care and attention, and therefore need not expect that it shall be well with them, or that they shall prolong their days on the earth. Every thing contrary to the spirit of mercy and kindness the ever blessed God has in utter abhorrence. And we should remember a fact, that he who can exercise cruelty towards a sparrow or a wren, will, when circumstances are favorable, be cruel to his fellow creatures. The poet Phocylides has a maxim in his admonitory poem very similar to that in the sacred text: - Μηδε τις ορυιθας καλιης ἁμα παντας ἑλεσθω· Μητερα δ' εκπρολιπῃς, ἱν' εχῃς παλι τησδε νεοττους. Phocyl. Ποιημα Νουθετ., ver. 80. "Nor from a nest take all the birds away; The mother spare, she'll breed a future day."

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Deuteronomy 22:5-12

God's providence extends itself to the smallest affairs, and his precepts do so, that even in them we may be in the fear of the Lord, as we are under his eye and care. Yet the tendency of these laws, which seem little, is such, that being found among the things of God's law, they are to be accounted great things. If we would prove ourselves to be God's people, we must have respect to his will and to his glory, and…

Read the full comment on Deuteronomy 22:5-12 →

Deuteronomy 22:7 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

שַׁלֵּ֤חַsha.Le.achcertainly <let go>H7971
תְּשַׁלַּח֙te.sha.Lachyou will let goH7971
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הָאֵ֔םha.'Emthe motherH517
וְאֶת\־ve.'Etand <obj.>H853
הַבָּנִ֖יםha.ba.Nimthe young onesH1121
תִּֽקַּֽח\־ti.kach-you will takeH3947
לָ֑ךְLakhfor <the> yourself
לְמַ֙עַן֙le.Ma.'anso thatH4616
יִ֣יטַבYi.tavit may go wellH3190
לָ֔ךְLakhfor <the> you
וְהַאֲרַכְתָּ֖ve.ha.'a.rakh.Taand you will prolongH748
יָמִֽים\׃\ \סya.MimdaysH3117

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Deuteronomy 22:7

  • Deuteronomy 4:40

    Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.

  • Proverbs 22:4

    By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
But thou shalt.The extirpation of any species of birds, whether edible or birds of prey, is often attended with serious consequences, and is always productive of evil; to prevent which was the object of this law. Palestine is situated in a climate producing poisonous snakes and scorpions, and between deserts and mountains, from which it would be inundated by them, as well as with immense swarms of flies, locusts, and mice, if the birds which feed upon them were extirpated. In a moral point of view, it may have been intended to inculcate a spirit of mercy and kindness, and to prevent the exercise of cruelty even towards a sparrow; for he who is guilty of such cruelty will, if circumstances be favourable, be cruel to his fellow-creatures.
that it may.
4:40
thou mayest.
Pr 22:4

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Deuteronomy 22:6

    If a bird’s nest chance to be before thee in the way in any tree, or on the ground, whether they be young ones, or eggs, and the dam sitting upon the young, or upon the eggs, thou shalt not take the dam with the young:

  • Deuteronomy 22:7

    But thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young to thee; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.

  • Deuteronomy 22:8

    When thou buildest a new house, then thou shalt make a battlement for thy roof, that thou bring not blood upon thine house, if any man fall from thence.

Read all of Deuteronomy 22

Deuteronomy 22:7 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Dejarás ir á la madre, y tomarás los pollos para ti; para que te vaya bien, y prolongues tus días.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		tu ne manqueras pas de laisser aller la mère, et tu prendras les petits pour toi; afin que tu prospères et que tu prolonges tes jours.
German
Elberfelder 1871		du sollst die Mutter jedenfalls fliegen lassen, und die Jungen magst du dir nehmen: auf daß es dir wohlgehe und du deine Tage verlängerst.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		sed abire patieris, captos tenens filios: ut bene sit tibi, et longo vivas tempore.