Deuteronomy 22:5

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:5-12

Here are several laws in these verses which seem to stoop very low, and to take cognizance of things mean and minute. Men's laws commonly do not so: Deut. minimis non curat lex?The law takes no cognizance of little things; but because God's providence extends itself to the smallest affairs, his precepts do so, that even in them we may be in the fear of the Lord, as we are under his eye and care. And yet the significancy and tendency of these statutes, which seem little, are such that,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:5

The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man ,.... It being very unseemly and impudent, and contrary to the modesty of her sex; or there shall not be upon her any "instrument of a man" F6 כלי גבר "instrumentum virile", Pagninus, Junius et Tremellius; "instrumentum viri", Vatablus. , any utensil of his which he makes use of in his trade and business; as if she was employed in it, when her business was not to do the work of men, but to take care of her house and family;... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 22:5

The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man - גבר כלי keli geber , the instruments or arms of a man. As the word גבר geber is here used, which properly signifies a strong man or man of war, it is very probable that armor is here intended; especially as we know that in the worship of Venus, to which that of Astarte or Ashtaroth among the Canaanites bore a striking resemblance, the women were accustomed to appear in armor before her. It certainly cannot mean a simple... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 22:5

Verse 5 5.This decree also commends modesty in general, and in it God anticipates the danger, lest women should harden themselves into forgetfulness of modesty, or men should degenerate into effeminacy unworthy of their nature. Garments are not in themselves of so much importance; but as it is disgraceful for men to become effeminate, and also for women to affect manliness in their dress and gestures, propriety and modesty are prescribed, not only for decency’s sake, but lest one kind of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:1-30

Divine care for sexual honor. In these, as in so many of the precepts of this book, we find civil precepts invested with religious sanctions. Nothing is more important for the honorable maintenance of social life, than that both men and women should honor each other's sex as well as their own. Those that do otherwise are an abomination to the Lord their God. There are five or six different cases supposed in the verses referred to at the heading of this Homily: Such sins would have been... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:5

The divinely instituted distinction between the sexes was to be sacredly observed, and, in order to this, the dress and ether things appropriate to the one were not to be used by the other. That which pertaineth unto a man ; literally, the apparatus ( כְּלִי ) of a man , including, not dress merely, but implements, tools, weapons, and utensils. This is an ethical regulation in the interests of morality. There is no reference, as some have supposed, to the wearing of masks for the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:5

Man and woman. Woman has her rightful place and function in society. So has man his. Their places, while complementary, are distinct. In modern society, a variety of influences—competition in business, difficulty of finding suitable employment, the leveling tendency of the age, which is impatient even of distinctions that have their ground in nature-combine to thrust women into spheres and work not in keeping with womanly character. The distinction of the sexes is to be preserved: 1. ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:5

The philosophy of clothes. We have here particular directions as to the maintenance of the distinction of dress between the sexes. On the termination of what Carlyle calls "Adamitism," in his 'Sartor Resartus,' when through the fall of man fig leaves were first resorted to, it is evident that the Lord was not content therewith as the device of self-conscious modesty, but gave them "coats of skins." These "coats," we can well believe, were differentiated, so that Eve s was in some... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 22:5

Against deceptions in dress. Truthfulness in act is as needful as truthfulness in speech. Our very dress is a manifesto of truth or of falsehood. God has stamped a visible distinction in the appearance of the human sexes, and it is fraudulent to obliterate them. I. SIN OFTEN ROBES ITSELF IN A FOREIGN GARB . If sin always appeared in her true habits, but few would court her society. It is her plan to put on a false appearance. Vice usually succeeds because she wears the... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Deuteronomy 22:5

That which pertaineth unto a man - i. e. not only his dress but all that especially pertains distinctively to his sex; arms, domestic and other utensils, etc.The distinction between the sexes is natural and divinely established, and cannot be neglected without indecorum and consequent danger to purity (compare 1 Corinthians 11:3-15). read more

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