Let him live among you wherever he chooses, in the town of his pleasing. Do not oppress him.
Parallel translations
- WEB He shall dwell with you, among you, in the place which he shall choose within one of your gates, where it pleases him best. You shall not oppress him.
- KJV He shall dwell with thee, even among you, in that place which he shall choose in one of thy gates, where it liketh him best: thou shalt not oppress him.
- NKJV He may dwell with you in your midst, in the place which he chooses within one of your gates, where it seems best to him; you shall not oppress him.
- NASB He shall live with you in your midst, in the place that he chooses in one of your towns where it pleases him; you shall not mistreat him.
- NLT Let them live among you in any town they choose, and do not oppress them.
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 escaped slave may live freely wherever he chooses among Israel, and must not be oppressed. Refuge includes dignity and protection.
Overview
Not only is the runaway not to be returned, he is to be welcomed, allowed to settle where he wishes, and shielded from oppression. This extends genuine mercy and freedom to the vulnerable outsider. The law embodies God's heart for the oppressed and anticipates the welcome and liberty that the gospel offers to all who take refuge in the Lord.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Exod 22:21You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
- Isa 16:3–4“Give us counsel; render a decision. Shelter us at noonday with shade as dark as night. Hide the refugees; do not betray the one who flees.
- Jas 2:6But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?
- Zech 7:10Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. And do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.’
- Jer 7:6if you no longer oppress the foreigner and the fatherless and the widow, and if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place or follow other gods to your own harm,
- Mal 3:5“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.
- Exod 23:9Do not oppress a foreign resident, since you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners; for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
- Titus 3:2–3to malign no one, and to be peaceable and gentle, showing full consideration to everyone.
- Luke 15:15–24So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed the pigs.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 23:16 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.