Deuteronomy 23:10

If there be among you any man, that is not clean by reason of uncleanness that chanceth him by night, then shall he go abroad out of the camp, he shall not come within the camp:

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

23:9-14 The camp of the Lord must have nothing offensive in it. If there must be this care taken to preserve the body clean, much more should we be careful to keep the mind pure.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The whole passage refers not to the encampments of the nation while passing from Egypt through the wilderness, but to future warlike expeditions seat out from Canaan.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

9-14. When the host goeth forth against thine enemies, then keep thee from every wicked thing—from the excesses incident to camp life, as well as from habits of personal neglect and impurity.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Of which uncleanness see Leviticus 15:4,16,17; or by uncleanness of any like kind; one kind being here, as oft, put for all.

He shall go out of the camp.

Quest. Why doth this uncleanness oblige a man to go out of the camp, when it did not oblige him to such a removal, Le 15?

Answ. 1. It is not unreasonable if they were obliged to greater strictness and purity when they were undertaking so difficult and dangerous a work.

2. There is a manifest reason of the difference, because in their houses they had private chambers, where they could in such cases keep themselves from converse with others; whereas in the camp their conveniencies were so small, and their occasions of action so many, that it was very hard for his fellow soldiers that continued with him in the same tent, or part of the camp, to avoid the touching of him, which yet was infectious, Leviticus 15:7,22.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

If there be among you any man that is not clean,.... Any unclean person in the army, that was even ceremonially unclean in any of the instances the law makes so, one of which put for the rest is mentioned:

by reason of uncleanness that chanceth him by night; through pollution by a nocturnal flux, as the Septuagint version, or a gonorrhoea, an involuntary one, occasioned by impure thoughts and imaginations in dreams; the same case as in Leviticus 15:16.

then shall he go abroad out of the camp; out of the army, lest others should be defiled by such; they not having houses to retire to, and chambers to keep themselves in separate from others, as when at home:

he shall not come within the camp; that is, not till he has done what is prescribed him in the next verse. Jarchi says, he might not come into the camp of the Levites, and much less into the camp of God.

Geneva Study Bible

If there be among you any man, that is not clean by reason of uncleanness that chanceth him by night, then shall he go abroad out of the camp, he shall not come within the camp:

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Deuteronomy 23:10

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The person who had become unclean through a nightly occurrence, was to go out of the camp and remain there till he had cleansed himself in the evening. On the journey through the desert, none but those who were affected with uncleanness of a longer duration were to be removed from the camp (Numbers 5:2) but when they were encamped, this law was to apply to even lighter defilements.