Forty blows he may give him and no more, lest he should exceed this and beat him with many blows above these, and your brother be humiliated in your sight.
Parallel translations
- WEB He may sentence him to no more than forty stripes. He shall not give more; lest, if he should give more, and beat him more than that many stripes, then your brother will be degraded in your sight.
- KJV Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed: lest, if he should exceed, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee.
- BSB He may receive no more than forty lashes, lest your brother be beaten any more than that and be degraded in your sight.
- NASB He may have him beaten forty times, but not more, so that he does not have him beaten with many more lashes than these, and that your brother does not become contemptible in your eyes.
- NLT But never give more than forty lashes; more than forty lashes would publicly humiliate your neighbor.
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
No more than forty stripes may be given, lest the offender be degraded; even the guilty retain their God-given dignity. Justice has limits that protect human worth.
Overview
Capping the punishment at forty lashes guarded the condemned man, still called 'your brother,' from being dehumanized. Jewish practice later set the limit at thirty-nine to avoid any miscount, the beatings Paul himself received (2 Corinthians 11:24). The law's restraint testifies that even sinners bear God's image, a dignity Christ honored by suffering scourging in our place (Matthew 27:26).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Job 18:3Why are we counted as animals, which have become unclean in your sight?
- Jas 2:2–3For if a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing, comes into your synagogue, and a poor man in filthy clothing also comes in;
- Luke 15:30But when this, your son, came, who has devoured your living with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’
- 2 Cor 11:24–25Five times from the Jews I received forty stripes minus one.
- Luke 18:9–12He spoke also this parable to certain people who were convinced of their own righteousness, and who despised all others.
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 25:3 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.