“The elders of the town must wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken.
Parallel translations
- WEB All the elders of that city, who are nearest to the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley.
- KJV And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley:
- BSB Then all the elders of the city nearest the victim shall wash their hands by the stream over the heifer whose neck has been broken,
- NKJV And all the elders of that city nearest to the slain man shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley.
- NASB And all the elders of that city which is nearest to the person killed shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley;
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The elders of the nearest town wash their hands over the slain heifer to disclaim guilt for an unsolved murder. It dramatizes the community's responsibility for innocent blood.
Overview
In the case of an unsolved killing (Deut 21:1-9), the leaders of the closest town perform a ritual to declare their innocence and seek atonement. Washing the hands is a visible disavowal of guilt, the same gesture Pilate would later imitate when condemning Jesus (Matt 27:24). The law shows that bloodshed defiles the land and that the whole community bears concern for justice, anticipating the need for cleansing only Christ's blood can fully supply.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Ps 26:6I will wash my hands in innocence, so I will go about your altar, Yahweh;
- Ps 73:13Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocence,
- Ps 51:14Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, the God of my salvation. My tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
- Heb 9:10being only (with meats and drinks and various washings) fleshly ordinances, imposed until a time of reformation.
- Ps 51:7Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean. Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
- Job 9:30If I wash myself with snow, and cleanse my hands with lye,
- Jer 2:22For though you wash yourself with lye, and use much soap, yet your iniquity is marked before me,” says the Lord Yahweh.
- Matt 27:24–25So when Pilate saw that nothing was being gained, but rather that a disturbance was starting, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this righteous person. You see to it.”
- Ps 51:2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity. Cleanse me from my sin.
- Ps 19:12Who can discern his errors? Forgive me from hidden errors.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 21:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.