Deuteronomy 23 · Verse 2

Deuteronomy 23:2

A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 23:2, King James Version

Deuteronomy 23:2 in other translations

BSBNo one of illegitimate birth may enter the assembly of the LORD, nor may any of his descendants, even to the tenth generation.
WEBA person born of a forbidden union shall not enter into the LORD’s assembly; even to the tenth generation shall no one of his enter into the LORD’s assembly.
ASVA bastard shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah; even to the tenth generation shall none of his enter into the assembly of Jehovah.
YLTa bastard doth not enter into the assembly of Jehovah; even a tenth generation of him doth not enter into the assembly of Jehovah.
DARBYA bastard shall not come into the congregation of Jehovah; even his tenth generation shall not come into the congregation of Jehovah.
BBEOne whose father and mother are not married may not come into the meeting of the Lord's people, or any of his family to the tenth generation.
WebsterA bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the LORD.

What does Deuteronomy 23:2 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Deuteronomy 23:1-3

De 23:1-25. Who May and Who May Not Enter into the Congregation. 1-3. He that is wounded ..., shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord--"To enter into the congregation of the Lord" means either admission to public honors and offices in the Church and State of Israel, or, in the case of foreigners, incorporation with that nation by marriage. The rule was that strangers and foreigners, for fear of friendship…

Read the full comment on Deuteronomy 23:1-3 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 2 A bastard shall not enter - ממזר mamzer, which is here rendered bastard, should be understood as implying the offspring of an illegitimate or incestuous mixture.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Deuteronomy 23:1-8

We ought to value the privileges of God's people, both for ourselves and for our children, above all other advantages. No personal blemishes, no crimes of our forefathers, no difference of nation, shuts us out under the Christian dispensation. But an unsound heart will deprive us of blessings; and a bad example, or an unsuitable marriage, may shut our children from them.

Read the full comment on Deuteronomy 23:1-8 →

Deuteronomy 23:2 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.

לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
יָבֹ֥אya.Vo'he will goH935
מַמְזֵ֖רmam.Zera bastardH4464
בִּקְהַ֣לbik.Halin [the] assembly ofH6951
יְהוָ֑הYah.wehYahwehH3068
גַּ֚םgamalsoH1571
דּ֣וֹרDora generationH1755
עֲשִׂירִ֔י'a.si.RitenthH6224
לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
יָ֥בֹאYa.vo'it will goH935
ל֖וֹloof <the> him
בִּקְהַ֥לbik.Halin [the] assembly ofH6951
יְהוָֽה\׃\ \סYah.wehYahwehH3068

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

Cross references for Deuteronomy 23:2

  • Zechariah 9:6

    And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.

  • Isaiah 57:3

    But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore.

  • Hebrews 12:8

    But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

  • John 8:41

    Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Isa 57:3; Zec 9:6; Joh 8:41; Heb 12:8

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

Context

  • Deuteronomy 23:1

    He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord.

  • Deuteronomy 23:2

    A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the Lord.

  • Deuteronomy 23:3

    An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the Lord for ever:

Read all of Deuteronomy 23

Deuteronomy 23:2 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		No entrará bastardo en la congregación de Jehová: ni aun en la décima generación entrará en la congregación de Jehová.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Celui qui est eunuque, soit pour avoir été froissé, soit pour avoir été taillé, n’entrera point dans la congrégation de l’ Éternel.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Es soll kein Bastard in die Versammlung Jehovas kommen; auch das zehnte Geschlecht von ihm soll nicht in die Versammlung Jehovas kommen. -
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Non ingredietur mamzer, hoc est, de scorto natus, in ecclesiam Domini, usque ad decimam generationem.