◄ Deuteronomy 23:3 ►
No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even to the tenth generation.
Study Bible
No Ammonite or Moabite
This phrase introduces a specific prohibition against two particular groups, the Ammonites and Moabites. Historically, these nations were descendants of Lot, Abraham's nephew, through an incestuous relationship with his daughters (Genesis 19:30-38). The Hebrew roots of these names, "Ammon" and "Moab," reflect their origins, with "Ammon" meaning "people" and "Moab" meaning "from the father." This background sets the stage for understanding the strained relationship between these nations and Israel. The Ammonites and Moabites were often hostile to Israel, as seen in their refusal to offer bread and water during Israel's wilderness journey (Deuteronomy 23:4). This historical enmity is a key reason for their exclusion from the assembly of the LORD.

may enter the assembly of the LORD
The "assembly of the LORD" refers to the congregation of Israel, particularly in a religious or communal context. In Hebrew, the word "qahal" is used, which denotes a gathering or assembly, often with a sacred or covenantal aspect. This exclusion from the assembly signifies a separation from the covenant community and its blessings. It underscores the importance of purity and holiness within the community, as the assembly was meant to be a reflection of God's holy nature. Theologically, this exclusion serves as a reminder of the need for spiritual integrity and the consequences of actions that oppose God's will.

even to the tenth generation
The phrase "even to the tenth generation" is a hyperbolic expression in Hebrew culture, emphasizing a complete and enduring exclusion. The number ten often symbolizes completeness or fullness in biblical numerology. This generational exclusion highlights the severity of the Ammonites' and Moabites' actions against Israel and serves as a deterrent against similar behavior. It also reflects the long-lasting impact of sin and disobedience, reminding the Israelites of the importance of faithfulness to God's commands.

may never enter the assembly of the LORD
The repetition of the prohibition "may never enter" reinforces the absolute nature of this command. It serves as a solemn reminder of the consequences of opposing God's people and His purposes. From a conservative Christian perspective, this underscores the seriousness with which God views covenant relationships and the need for His people to remain distinct and separate from influences that could lead them away from Him. It also points to the ultimate fulfillment of holiness and separation in Christ, who calls His followers to be in the world but not of it (John 17:14-16). This verse, therefore, serves as both a historical directive and a spiritual lesson on the importance of maintaining purity and faithfulness in one's relationship with God.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Ammonites
Descendants of Lot through his younger daughter. Historically, they were often in conflict with Israel and worshiped the god Milcom.

2. Moabites
Also descendants of Lot, through his elder daughter. The Moabites were known for their opposition to Israel during their journey to the Promised Land and for leading Israel into idolatry.

3. Assembly of the LORD
Refers to the congregation of Israel, particularly in a religious or communal context. It signifies those who are part of the covenant community.

4. Tenth Generation
A symbolic expression indicating a long-lasting exclusion, emphasizing the seriousness of the offense against Israel.

5. Lot
Nephew of Abraham, whose descendants through incestuous relationships with his daughters became the Ammonites and Moabites.
Teaching Points
Holiness and Separation
The command reflects God's call for Israel to be a holy nation, distinct from surrounding peoples who could lead them into sin.

Consequences of Sin
The exclusion of Ammonites and Moabites serves as a reminder of the long-term consequences of actions against God's people.

God's Grace and Redemption
Despite the exclusion, the account of Ruth illustrates that God's grace can transcend these boundaries, offering redemption and inclusion.

Obedience to God's Commands
The passage underscores the importance of obedience to God's laws, even when they seem harsh by human standards.

Community and Covenant
Being part of the assembly of the LORD is a privilege tied to covenant faithfulness and communal identity.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the historical context of the Ammonites and Moabites' relationship with Israel help us understand the reason for their exclusion from the assembly?

2. In what ways does the account of Ruth challenge or complement the command in Deuteronomy 23:3?

3. How can we apply the principle of holiness and separation in our lives today without falling into legalism?

4. What does the inclusion of Ruth in the lineage of Jesus teach us about God's grace and redemption?

5. How can we balance the call to be distinct as God's people with the call to love and reach out to those outside the faith?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Genesis 19
Provides the background of the origins of the Ammonites and Moabites through Lot's daughters.

Numbers 22-25
Describes the Moabites' attempt to curse Israel through Balaam and their subsequent seduction of Israel into idolatry.

Ruth 1-4
The account of Ruth, a Moabite woman who becomes part of the lineage of David and ultimately Jesus, showing God's grace and redemption.

Nehemiah 13
Nehemiah enforces the exclusion of Ammonites and Moabites from the assembly, reflecting adherence to the law.
Sermons
Loss of Sacred Privilege a Grievous PenaltyD. Davies Deuteronomy 23:1-6
The Congregation of the Lord Jealously GuardedR.M. Edgar Deuteronomy 23:1-8
The Excluded from the CongregationJ. Orr Deuteronomy 23:1-8
People
Aram, Balaam, Beor, Moses
Places
Beth-baal-peor, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Pethor
Topics
Age, Ammonite, Assembly, Belonging, Congregation, Descendants, Enter, Forever, Generation, Lord's, Meeting, Moabite, None, Tenth
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Deuteronomy 23:1-8

     7209   congregation

Deuteronomy 23:2-3

     5694   generation

Deuteronomy 23:3-4

     8446   hospitality, duty of
     8447   hospitality, examples

Library
Appendix v. Rabbinic Theology and Literature
1. The Traditional Law. - The brief account given in vol. i. p. 100, of the character and authority claimed for the traditional law may here be supplemented by a chronological arrangement of the Halakhoth in the order of their supposed introduction or promulgation. In the first class, or Halakhoth of Moses from Sinai,' tradition enumerates fifty-five, [6370] which may be thus designated: religio-agrarian, four; [6371] ritual, including questions about clean and unclean,' twenty-three; [6372] concerning …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

That the Employing Of, and Associating with the Malignant Party, According as is Contained in the Public Resolutions, is Sinful and Unlawful.
That The Employing Of, And Associating With The Malignant Party, According As Is Contained In The Public Resolutions, Is Sinful And Unlawful. If there be in the land a malignant party of power and policy, and the exceptions contained in the Act of Levy do comprehend but few of that party, then there need be no more difficulty to prove, that the present public resolutions and proceedings do import an association and conjunction with a malignant party, than to gather a conclusion from clear premises. …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Here Then Shall These Persons in their Turn be in Another More Sublime Degree...
28. Here then shall these persons in their turn be in another more sublime degree of righteousness outdone, by them who shall so order themselves, that every day they shall betake them into the fields as unto pasture, and at what time they shall find it, pick up their meal, and having allayed their hunger, return. But plainly, on account of the keepers of the fields, how good were it, if the Lord should deign to bestow wings also, that the servants of God being found in other men's fields should …
St. Augustine—Of the Work of Monks.

Lessons for Worship and for Work
'Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. 2. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter anything before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth; therefore let thy words be few. 3. For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words. 4. When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for He hath …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Introductory Note to the Works of Origen.
[a.d. 185-230-254.] The reader will remember the rise and rapid development of the great Alexandrian school, and the predominance which was imparted to it by the genius of the illustrious Clement. [1865] But in Origen, his pupil, who succeeded him at the surprising age of eighteen, a new sun was to rise upon its noontide. Truly was Alexandria "the mother and mistress of churches" in the benign sense of a nurse and instructress of Christendom, not its arrogant and usurping imperatrix. The full details …
Origen—Origen De Principiis

Excursus on Usury.
The famous canonist Van Espen defines usury thus: "Usura definitur lucrum ex mutuo exactum aut speratum;" [96] and then goes on to defend the proposition that, "Usury is forbidden by natural, by divine, and by human law. The first is proved thus. Natural law, as far as its first principles are concerned, is contained in the decalogue; but usury is prohibited in the decalogue, inasmuch as theft is prohibited; and this is the opinion of the Master of the Sentences, of St. Bonaventura, of St. Thomas …
Philip Schaff—The Seven Ecumenical Councils

Jesus Defends Disciples who Pluck Grain on the Sabbath.
(Probably While on the Way from Jerusalem to Galilee.) ^A Matt. XII. 1-8; ^B Mark II. 23-28; ^C Luke VI. 1-5. ^b 23 And ^c 1 Now it came to pass ^a 1 At that season ^b that he ^a Jesus went { ^b was going} on the { ^c a} ^b sabbath day through the grainfields; ^a and his disciples were hungry and began ^b as they went, to pluck the ears. ^a and to eat, ^c and his disciples plucked the ears, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands. [This lesson fits in chronological order with the last, if the Bethesda …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

That it is not Lawful for the Well Affected Subjects to Concur in Such an Engagement in War, and Associate with the Malignant Party.
That It Is Not Lawful For The Well Affected Subjects To Concur In Such An Engagement In War, And Associate With The Malignant Party. Some convinced of the unlawfulness of the public resolutions and proceedings, in reference to the employing of the malignant party, yet do not find such clearness and satisfaction in their own consciences as to forbid the subjects to concur in this war, and associate with the army so constituted. Therefore it is needful to speak something to this point, That it is …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Canaan
Canaan was the inheritance which the Israelites won for themselves by the sword. Their ancestors had already settled in it in patriarchal days. Abraham "the Hebrew" from Babylonia had bought in it a burying-place near Hebron; Jacob had purchased a field near Shechem, where he could water his flocks from his own spring. It was the "Promised Land" to which the serfs of the Pharaoh in Goshen looked forward when they should again become free men and find a new home for themselves. Canaan had ever been …
Archibald Sayce—Early Israel and the Surrounding Nations

Brief Directions How to Read the Holy Scriptures once Every Year Over, with Ease, Profit, and Reverence.
But forasmuch, that as faith is the soul, so reading and meditating on the word of God, are the parent's of prayer, therefore, before thou prayest in the morning, first read a chapter in the word of God; then meditate awhile with thyself, how many excellent things thou canst remember out of it. As--First, what good counsels or exhortations to good works and to holy life. Secondly, what threatenings of judgments against such and such a sin; and what fearful examples of God's punishment or vengeance …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Commerce
The remarkable change which we have noticed in the views of Jewish authorities, from contempt to almost affectation of manual labour, could certainly not have been arbitrary. But as we fail to discover here any religious motive, we can only account for it on the score of altered political and social circumstances. So long as the people were, at least nominally, independent, and in possession of their own land, constant engagement in a trade would probably mark an inferior social stage, and imply …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Nature of Covenanting.
A covenant is a mutual voluntary compact between two parties on given terms or conditions. It may be made between superiors and inferiors, or between equals. The sentiment that a covenant can be made only between parties respectively independent of one another is inconsistent with the testimony of Scripture. Parties to covenants in a great variety of relative circumstances, are there introduced. There, covenant relations among men are represented as obtaining not merely between nation and nation, …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

Scriptures Showing the Sin and Danger of Joining with Wicked and Ungodly Men.
Scriptures Showing The Sin And Danger Of Joining With Wicked And Ungodly Men. When the Lord is punishing such a people against whom he hath a controversy, and a notable controversy, every one that is found shall be thrust through: and every one joined with them shall fall, Isa. xiii. 15. They partake in their judgment, not only because in a common calamity all shares, (as in Ezek. xxi. 3.) but chiefly because joined with and partakers with these whom God is pursuing; even as the strangers that join …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Appeal to the Christian Women of the South
BY A.E. GRIMKE. "Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not within thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place: but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this. And Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer:--and so will I go in unto the king, …
Angelina Emily Grimke—An Appeal to the Christian Women of the South

The Tenth Commandment
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.' Exod 20: 17. THIS commandment forbids covetousness in general, Thou shalt not covet;' and in particular, Thy neighbour's house, thy neighbour's wife, &c. I. It forbids covetousness in general. Thou shalt not covet.' It is lawful to use the world, yea, and to desire so much of it as may keep us from the temptation …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Deuteronomy
Owing to the comparatively loose nature of the connection between consecutive passages in the legislative section, it is difficult to present an adequate summary of the book of Deuteronomy. In the first section, i.-iv. 40, Moses, after reviewing the recent history of the people, and showing how it reveals Jehovah's love for Israel, earnestly urges upon them the duty of keeping His laws, reminding them of His spirituality and absoluteness. Then follows the appointment, iv. 41-43--here irrelevant (cf. …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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