Deuteronomy 24:16-18

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:14-22

Here, I. Masters are commanded to be just to their poor servants, Deut. 24:14, 15. 1. They must not oppress them, by overloading them with work, by giving them undue and unreasonable rebukes, or by withholding from them proper maintenance. A servant, though a stranger to the commonwealth of Israel, must not be abused: ?For thou wast a bondman in the land where thou wast a stranger (Deut. 24:18), and thou knowest what a grievous thing it is to be oppressed by a task-master, and therefore, in... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:16

The fathers shall not be put to death for the children ,.... By the civil magistrates, for sins committed by them of a capital nature, and which are worthy of death: neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers ; for sins committed by them that deserve it: every man shall be put to death for his own sin : which is but just and reasonable; see Ezekiel 18:4 ; which is no contradiction to Exodus 20:5 ; that respects what God himself would do, this what Israel, or the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:17

Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the fatherless ,.... Who are unable to defend themselves, and have but few, if any, to take their part; and therefore particular care should be taken by judges and civil magistrates to do them justice, or God will require it of them: nor take a widow's raiment to pledge ; nor anything else, as her ox or cow, Job 24:3 ; according to the Jewish canons F18 Misn. Bava Metzia, c. 9. sect. 13. , of a widow, whether she is... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:18

But thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt ,.... The remembrance of which may cause sympathy with persons in distress; particularly the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow: and the Lord thy God redeemed thee thence ; the Targum of Jonathan,"the Word of the Lord thy God;'which, as it was an act of great kindness and mercy in God to them, taught them, and laid them under obligation to show favour to their fellow creatures in distress: therefore I command thee to do... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 24:16

The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, etc. - This law is explained and illustrated in sufficient detail, Ezekiel 18. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 24:18

Thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman - Most people who have affluence rose from comparative penury, for those who are born to estates frequently squander them away; such therefore should remember what their feelings, their fears, and anxieties were, when they were poor and abject. A want of attention to this most wholesome precept is the reason why pride and arrogance are the general characteristics of those who have risen in the world from poverty to affluence; and it is the conduct... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 24:16

Verse 16 Here also God manifests how great is His regard for human life, so that blood should not be shed indiscriminately, when he forbids that children should be involved in the punishment of their parents. Nor was this Law by any means supererogatory, because on account of one man’s crime his whole race was often severely dealt with. It is not without cause, therefore, that God interposes for the protection of the innocent, and does not allow the punishment to travel further than where the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:6-22

Neighborly love and good will to be cultivated in detail. One golden thread runs through all the varied precepts of this chapter. They are most interesting illustrations, one and all, of the spirit of humanity and of far-reaching wisdom which pervades the Mosaic Law. The following heading include the gist of the several injunctions here given, and show also their relation to each other. 1. Man's "inhumanity to man" is sternly restrained. No Israelite, however poor, is to be kidnapped... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:10-22

Consideration for the poor and needy. After giving a cursory reference to leprosy as a Divine judgment to be divinely removed and ceremonially purged away ( Deuteronomy 24:8 , Deuteronomy 24:9 ), Moses enters in these verses into the consideration which should be shown to the poor and needy. The debtor is not to be pressed for his pledge, and, if raiment, it must be restored in time for him to sleep with due clothing. The hired servant, engaged for the day, is to get his pay punctually... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 24:16

Among heathen nations it was common for a whole family to be involved in the penalty incurred by the head of the family, and to be put to death along with him. Such severity of retribution is here prohibited in the penal code of the Israelites. Though God, in the exercise of his absolute sovereignty, might visit the sins of the parent upon the children ( Exodus 20:5 ), earthly judges were not to assume this power. Only the transgressor himself was to bear the penalty of his sin (cf. 2 Kings... read more

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