Deuteronomy 24:9

Deu 24:9 Remember what the LORD thy God did unto Miriam by the way, after that ye were come forth out of Egypt.

Ver. 9. Did unto Miriam.] When he spat in her face, and spared her not, though a prophetess, and a conductress of God’s people to Canaan. {Mic 6:4} God will not pass by the sins of his saints, if scandalous especially, without a sensible check.

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 24:9. Remember what the Lord did unto Miriam — This seems to have been intended as an admonition, to take care lest they spoke evil of dignities, or disobeyed the commands of the priest, which might bring such a stroke upon them as God inflicted upon Miriam.

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

Remember what the Lord thy God did unto Miriam,.... Who was stricken with leprosy for speaking against Moses, and was shut up seven days; and they are reminded of this instance, partly to warn them against entertaining evil suspicions, and surmises of persons in power and authority, and speaking evil of them; and partly to expect that punishment would certainly be inflicted on them, should they be guilty of the same crime; nor should they think it hard, either to be smitten with leprosy, or to be shut up for it; since Miriam, a prophetess, and the sister of Moses, was so used; and that when

by the way, after that ye were come out of Egypt: when upon their journey, and were retarded in it, and obliged to stay at least seven days before they could proceed on in it; see Num 12:14.

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

God smote Miriam with leprosy for her contempt of Moses, and therefore thou mayst expect the same or like punishment, if thou dost despise the counsel and direction of the Levites, which I have set over thee, and commanded thee to observe in this and the like matters.

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

9. Remember what… thy God did unto Miriam — The case of Miriam, the sister of Moses, is here introduced to enforce the admonition. She became “leprous, white as snow.” Num_12:10.

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

זכור את אשר עשה ה' אלהיך למרים REMEMBER WHAT THE LORD THY GOD DID UNTO MIRIAM — if you wish to guard yourself against being stricken with leprosy, do not speak slander! Remember what was done unto Miriam who spoke slander against her brother and was stricken with a leprous plague! (cf. Sifrei Devarim 275:1).

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.

REMEMBER WHAT THE ETERNAL THY G-D DID UNTO MIRIAM. “If you wish to guard yourself against being stricken with leprosy, do not speak slander.” This is Rashi’s language. And in my opinion this actually is a positive commandment, like Remember the Sabbath-day, to keep it holy; Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt;, 13:3. Remember what Amalek did unto thee — which are all commandments. If so, this verse, too, is like those, it being an admonition against speaking slander. He commanded by way of a positive precept that we remember the great punishment which G-d inflicted upon the righteous prophetess who spoke only about her brother upon whom she had bestowed her mercy and whom she loved as herself. And she spoke nothing wrong to his face, but only, in privacy, between herself and her holy brother [Aaron]. Yet all her good deeds were of no avail to her! You, too, if thou sittest and speakest against thy brother; thou slanderest thine own mother’s son you will not be saved!In the language of the Sifra:. On Sifra, Sifre, etc. see Vol. IV, p. 46, Note 55. “When Scripture states, and ye will not do all these commandments, this refers to everything written in the Torah. If so, why does it say, And if ye will not hearken unto Me? It means to study the Torah laboriously. Similarly, He states Remember the Sabbath-day, to keep it holy. I might think that this means ‘in your heart.’ But Observe the Sabbath-day refers already to observance of the heart. How then can I fulfill the command Remember [if that also refers to the heart? I must conclude that Remember means] ‘verbal utterance.’ Similarly, it is said Remember, forget thou not, [how thou didst make the Eternal thy G-d wroth in the wilderness] etc. refers to forgetfulness of the heart. How then can I fulfill the command Remember? It means ‘verbal utterance.’” It is thus a positive commandment throughout the generations that we speak of G-d’s mercies upon us etc. (see my Hebrew commentary p. 463). And so it is also said, Remember what the Eternal thy G-d did unto Miriam. I might think that this means ‘in your heart.’ But Take heed in the plague of leprosy, that thou observe diligently, and do refers already to forgetfulness of heart. How then can I fulfill the injunction Remember [if that also refers to the heart? I must conclude that it means] ‘verbal utterance.’ And so also he states, Remember what Amalek did unto thee. I might think that it means ‘in your heart.’ But thou shalt not forget refers already to forgetfulness of the heart. How then can I obey the injunction Remember? ‘By verbal utterance.’” The meaning thereof is as follows: To the Sages the verse Take heed ‘in’ the plague of leprosy means, “Beware ‘from’ the plague of leprosy, observing diligently that it should not come upon you, and do therein according to all that the priests the Levites shall teach you,” and Remember what the Eternal thy G-d did unto Miriam, meaning that you mention it always in the utterance of words. It appears from here [i.e., from this Sifra] our Rabbis considered this a commandment, not as a narrative and advice on how to be saved from plagues [as Rashi had explained it]. And how is it possible that, concerning slander which is as weighty as bloodshed, there should not be a real negative commandment against it in the Torah, or at least a negative commandment derived from a positive commandment! But this verse contains a great admonition to refrain from it both in public and in private, whether with intent to hurt and to shame or with no intent to harm at all. And this commandment is of the Taryag (613) Commandments which the author of the “Hilchoth Gedoloth” and all those who counted the commandments have forgotten to include.

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.