Deuteronomy 21:14

Deu 21:14 And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go whither she will; but thou shalt not sell her at all for money, thou shalt not make merchandise of her, because thou hast humbled her.

Ver. 14. Because thou hast humbled her.] This expression shows, that God approved not of his fact, which yet he tolerated. By "humbling" her is meant the taking away her honour of chastity; her credit was now gone. The body as a vessel should be "possessed in sanctification and honour." {1Th 4:4}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Deu 21:14. If thou have no delight in her — The sense may either be, 1st, If, after he had afflicted her, by making her shave her head, change her garments, &c., and keeping her a full month in hope of marriage, he should change his mind and refuse to marry her: or, 2d, If, after he had married her, and she had been his wife some time, he should conceive a dislike to her, and resolve to part with her; in either of these cases it was not to be in his power to use her as a prisoner of war, by either selling her for money, or making her a slave, but he was to give her her liberty, and let her dispose or herself as she pleased. “The wisdom and humanity of Moses,” says Philo, “are very remarkable in this law, whereby the soldiers are forbidden to indulge a hasty and brutal passion, are kept a whole month in abstinence, and thereby have an opportunity given them of knowing the temper and disposition of the woman, for whose misfortune in captivity a compassionate provision is made, by allowing her so long a time of separation and mourning.”

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

21:14 humiliated her: By first taking her prisoner and then divorcing her, a captive woman’s husband devalued her. To protect her from further disgrace, the law prohibited him from selling her as a slave or from using her as one. Instead, she must be allowed to go free.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

14. let her go] Lit. dismiss, the term for divorce, the right of which was the husband’s alone, but in this case is qualified by the following.

whither she will] Lit. according to her desire; therefore rather as she will, as full mistress of herself; cp. Jer_34:16 of freed slaves.

thou shalt not sell her, etc.] So in E, Exo_21:8, of the married slave whom her husband wishes to divorce.

deal with her as a slave] Only here and Deu_24:7. Although the Ar. forms of the root imply rancour or malice, the Heb. vb seems only to mean deal with her as her owner (Driver, ‘play the master over her’).

because, etc.] Cp Deu_22:24; Deu_22:29.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her;.... Either some time after marriage:

then thou shalt let her go whither she will; by a bill of divorce, as the Targum of Jonathan, who understands it in this sense, and as the connection of the words seems to require; or else before marriage, at the month's end, or any time before, that if his affections cooled towards her, and all the above methods tended to abate his love of her, then he was obliged to dismiss her, or to grant her her freedom, and let her go wherever she pleased; she was no longer his captive, nor his servant:

but thou shalt not sell her at all for money; as he might have done if he had not made such a proposal to her, and obliged her to the observance of such rites and ceremonies as he did, in order to make her his wife:

thou shalt not make merchandise of her; which seems to express the same thing, and therefore something else is rather intended; as that he should neither make any gain of her by selling her to another, nor retain her in his own service, nor make use of her as a slave; so Jarchi says, that in the Persian language they call service by this word, and which also he says he learnt from an eminent writer of theirs, R. Moses Hadarsan; with which Maimonides (s) agrees, who explains it, shall make no use of her service, or serve himself by her; he should have no profit by her, either by sale, or servitude:

because thou hast humbled her; which phrase it must be owned is often, used of unlawful commerce with a woman, of defiling her, or violating her chastity; and so may seem to confirm the notion of those who think that he lay with her before he took her to his house, and therefore, upon a refusal to marry her afterwards, was obliged to this loss; though the word signifies any kind of affliction, as this was a very great one, a great mortification to her, to be taken into his house, to have her head shaved, and her nails pared, or suffered to grow, and her fine clothes changed for sordid ones; and all this with a profession of a design to marry her, and yet after all is deceived and disappointed by him; wherefore for such a conduct toward her he was obliged to give her her freedom.

(s) Ut supra. (Hilchot Melachim, c. 8. sect. 2.)

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Thou shalt not make merchandise of her - Rather, thou shalt not constrain her: literally “treat her with constraint,” or “treat her as a slave.”

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Her. Nothing shews the weakness of the Hebrews more than this liberty, which the law was in a manner forced to allow, to prevent greater evils. The soldier who has married a captive, may abandon her, if he set her free, (Calmet) which was but a slight punishment for his inconstancy.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

If thou have no delight in her; either,

1. After thou hast married her; and so this is a permission of a divorce, which being indulged towards an Israelitish woman, was not likely to be denied towards a stranger. Or rather,

2. Before thy marriage; for it is not probable, that God having given him competent time for the trial of his affections to her before he was permitted to marry her, would suffer him upon so slight an occasion, within a day or two after so solemn a contract, to send her away; nor is there a word spoken here of any divorce.

Thou shalt not make merchandise of her, i.e. make gain of her, either by using her to thy own servile works, or by prostituting her to the lusts or to the service of others.

Humbled her, i.e. lain with her, as this phrase is oft used, as Gen 34:2; Deu 22:24,29; Jdg 19:24; Eze 23:10,11.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. Thou shalt not make merchandise of her — Better translated, thou shalt not lay hands upon her — that is, to treat her as a slave.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Should the man afterwards come no longer to have pleasure in her, he was to let her go whither she would, but he was not to sell her for money or use any violence to her. Thou shalt not make merchandise of her. The verb in the form here used occurs only hero and in Deu_24:7; derived from a root which signifies to gather or press, it properly means to press for one"s self, to lay hands on one, to use violence to one.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

If thou have no delight in her - If thou dost not chuse to marry her. Thou shalt not make merchandise of her - Make gain of her, either by using her to thy own servile works, or by prostituting her to the lusts or to the service of others.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

והיה אם לא חפצת בה AND IT SHALL BE, IF THOU ART NOT PLEASED WITH HER — Scripture tell you that you will in the end hate her (Sifrei Devarim 214:1).

לא תתעמר בה means; THOU SHALT NOT USE HER AS A SLAVE. In the Persian language slavery and servitude is termed עימראה. I learned this from the work of R. Moses the Preacher.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

[AND IT SHALL BE, IF THOU HAVE NO DESIRE FOR HER,] THEN THOU SHALT LET HER GO WHITHER SHE WILL. The Rabbis have said thereon in the Sifre: 214. “But not to her fathers’ house.” Now, I do not know whether the intent thereof is to state that she is a Jewess and that we do not allow her to leave the law of Israel and go back unto her people, and unto her gods, or whether it means to state that he is not to send her to her father’s house with attendants, for in that case he would be assisting those who commit a transgression. Instead he is to send her out of his house to sojourn wherever she could find a place, for perhaps she will remain in the Land and follow the young men and be married to one of them. Now, since Scripture states that he is to let her go where she pleases, and warns that he not sell her for money and that he not treat her as a slave, we deduce that she needs no divorce from him. Rather, Scripture considered her to be a married woman as long as she was with him; when he hates her he may send her away like a rape victim. It is possible that the sense of the verse is to state that, if he cohabits with her and desires her, she shall become his wife. If he cohabits with her, however, and she is not enticing to him and he does not desire her, similar to the affair of Amnon with Tamar, he must let her go where she pleases, everything depending upon this cohabitation. For, if after he cohabited with her [the first time] she tarried with him for days and he cohabited with her, and then changes his attitude and hates her, like a man who hates his wife, she had already become his wife, and thus she is Jewish and can be sent away only with a bill of divorce.

THOU SHALT NOT ‘THITH’AMEIR’ (DEAL AS A SLAVE) WITH HER. This is like the expression ‘v’hith’amer’ (and he deal with him as a slave), and sell him., Verse 7. Onkelos in both cases rendered it as an expression of “trading,” and our Rabbis in the Sifre 214. and in the Gemara explained it as a term of “serving.” Thus it is an express negative commandment against making any use of her as a bondmaid, and if he did put her to such service he is to be scourged.It appears to me in line with the simple meaning of Scripture that thou shalt not ‘thith’ameir’ [spelled with an a’yin] is like “thou shalt not thith’ameir” [spelled with an aleph], as in the expression, all the workers of iniquity ‘yith’amru’ (bear themselves loftily). is spelled with an aleph. So also, Thou hast ‘he’emarta’ (acknowledged) the Eternal this day; is written with an aleph. and in their splendor ‘thith’yamaru’ (you shall gain grandeur) — exchanging the aleph for a yod — are all expressions of exaltedness and greatness. ‘He’emarta’ the Eternal this day is written with an aleph. means that “you have exalted and magnified Him to be thy G-d.” is written with an aleph. And the Eternal ‘he’emircha’ this day is written with an aleph. means that “He exalted and magnified you above all peoples to be His own treasure.” is written with an aleph. All of these expressions are derived from the phrase in the top ‘amir’ (of the uppermost bough). is written with an aleph. Thus the verse here states, Do not exalt yourself nor magnify yourself, by acting as her master to sell her or to use her as a bondmaid. Similarly in Arabic they call a master amir. And the usage of the a’yin and the aleph is often identical in the [Sacred] Language. ‘Peda’eihu’ (deliver him) from going down the pit [the word peda’eihu spelled with an a’yin] is like peda’eihu [spelled with an aleph — “deliver him”], as I have explained with reference to the word petha (suddenly). So also, cherubim of ‘tza’atzuim’ work [written with an a’yin] is like [the same word spelled] with an aleph, from the word ‘hatze’etzaim v’hatzfioth’ meaning “the sons and the daughters,” for [Onkelos] translated the Hebrew word keruvim (cherubim) as k’ruvaya [“like children” — and hence cherubim of ‘tza’atzuim’ work written with an a’yin is identical to the same word written with an aleph, thus meaning “work in the image of children”]. And in the language of the Sages [the a’yin and aleph] are used interchangeably, such as: omdoth (appraised) written with an a’yin, and omdoth written with an aleph; beki’in (experts) written with an aleph, and beki’in written with an a’yin; adin (yet) written with an a’yin and adin written with an aleph;, Note 67. orchei (advocates) who advise their clients on how to plead before the judges, written with an a’yin and archi (a court) written with an aleph; aris (a share cropper) written with an a’yin and aris written with an aleph. And we are taught [in the Mishnah]: “Milk enough for gmiah [“a gulp” — if enough milk for one gulp was taken from one domain to another on the Sabbath, whoever took it is culpable]. And in the Gemara, 77a. they asked: “Is the word gmiah written with an a’yin or an aleph, and the Rabbis resolved it by quoting the verse, ‘hagmi’ini’ (give me to drink), I pray thee, a little water [the word hagmi’ini written with an aleph] and yet they use the same term m’gama (taking a drought) written with an a’yin, such as: “[If his teeth pain him he should not] quaff vinegar through his teeth and spit it out but m’gameia (he may take a quaff) and swallow it” [the word m’gameia written with an a’yin]. And in the Mishnah of Tractate Keilim in the Tosephta thereof we are taught concerning a mardeia (the handle of the plough) written with an aleph. in place of mardeia written with an a’yin. Thus the Rabbis were not at all concerned about interchanging these two letters [the aleph and the a’yin], and so also in many places.Now, Rashi wrote: “Thou shalt not ‘thith’ameir’ with her — you shall not use her as a slave. In the Persian language, work and service are termed amirah. I have learned this from the work of Rabbi Moshe the Preacher.” This is true, for I have seen in the Yerushalmi in [Tractate Shabbath] Chapter “Rabbi Akiba said” and in [Tractate Abodah Zarah] Chapter “All Images” the following text: “There [in Babylon] they call a good worker amira.” It is also commonly used in the Aramaic language, as is written in the Scroll of Susanna:, another of the books of the Apocrypha. In our version of the Apocrypha the text referred to here by Ramban is found, with changes, in Judith 1:8. “And the king of Assyria sent to all amira (servants) of Nineveh and to all d’amrin (who serve) on the sea coast, and to the servant of Carmel and Gilead [to come with him to the war], but all the servants of the land disregarded the commandment of Nebuchadnezzar and they were not afraid of him.” So also in many places of that book the inhabitants of a land are called “amurei of the land,” meaning those who are servants to the land and make use thereof. Or it may mean that the king of Assyria commanded the soldiers, these being called “the servants of the land,” for they are subject to the king to go with him in his wars, and they are his soldiers and his horsemen, similar to the expressions: they ‘served’ Chedorlaomer; and many nations shall ‘serve’ him.

BECAUSE THOU HAST HUMBLED HER. The Rabbis interpreted it in the Sifre: 214. “Even after a single act.” This coincides with what we have mentioned that the Rabbis are of the opinion that he is permitted to engage in the first cohabitation with her as soon as he brings her to his home. From that moment on he is admonished against using her [as a slave] and against selling her.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.