Thou shalt have also a place without the camp ,.... A place prepared, as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan, provided on purpose for the use hereafter suggested; so Ben Melech: whither thou shalt go forth abroad ; to do the necessities of nature, which they were to do without the camp, not in any place they thought fit and most convenient, but what was appointed for that purpose. read more
And thou shalt have a paddle upon thy weapon ,.... A nail or spike, some kind of instrument to make a hole in the ground with, which was fastened to the sword upon their loins; which was to be instead of a spade or mattock to dig with: and it shall be, when thou shall ease thyself abroad ; without the camp, in the place appointed for that use, whenever nature required such an action to be performed: thou shall dig therewith ; with, the paddle, an hole in the earth: the Essenes used,... read more
For the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp ,.... In the tabernacle, which moved when the host marched after the camps of Judah and Reuben, and before those of Ephraim and Dan, in the midst of them: this was the position of it while in the wilderness, and afterwards when they came into the land of Canaan, and went to war with their enemies, the ark sometimes went with them, the symbol of the divine Presence; and here it is made a reason why they should avoid all uncleanness, since... read more
These directions may appear trifling to some, but they were essentially necessary to this people in their present circumstances. Decency and cleanliness promote health, and prevent many diseases. read more
Cleanliness a religious duty. The Law of Moses may be regarded as fourfold—moral, ritual, civil, and sanitary. The precepts in this paragraph are an example of the last-named part thereof. They refer to the inculcation of cleanliness, both in camp and in person. And not only so, but to the observance thereof in time of war. While, perhaps, at such times special evils would result from the neglect of such regulations, yet, on the other hand, it would be precisely when movements were... read more
Purity in the camp. The camp was to be free from: 1. Moral pollution ( Deuteronomy 23:9 ). 2. Ceremonial pollution (verses10, 11). 3. Natural pollution ( Deuteronomy 23:12 , Deuteronomy 23:13 )—M. Henry. This, because God was in its midst. He was there to work for their deliverance and for the confusion of their enemies. We are taught— I. THAT MILITARY LIFE IS NO EXCUSE FOR LAXITY IN MORALS , OR FOR A LOWERED STANDARD OF PROPRIETY IN... read more
A pure camp for a pure King. After insisting on purity giving power in war ( Deuteronomy 23:9 ), and giving direction to men about putting away uncleanness which may be due to natural causes, Moses urges the precaution, because the All-seeing One walketh through the camp, Inspector of all their ways ( Deuteronomy 23:14 ). The directions here given might have been urged on sanitary grounds, but Moses puts them deliberately upon religious . For the experience among Orientals and... read more
A paddle upon thy weapon ; rather, a small spade (the word properly means a pin or nail ) among thy furniture , or, according to another reading among thy implements or accoutrements ; they were to carry with them along with their implements of war a tool for digging in the earth. read more
The camp was to be kept holy, because God went forth with their armies, and in his presence there must be nothing that defileth or is unclean. That he see no unclean thing in thee ; literally, nakedness , shamefulness of a thing , i . e . anything that one would be ashamed of. read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 23:9-14
Israel was now encamped, and this vast army was just entering upon action, which was likely to keep them together for a long time, and therefore it was fit to give them particular directions for the good ordering of their camp. And the charge is in one word to be clean. They must take care to keep their camp pure from moral, ceremonial, and natural pollution. I. From moral pollution (Deut. 23:9): When the host goes forth against thy enemy then look upon thyself as in a special manner engaged... read more