When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go again to get it. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow, that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.
Parallel Translations
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When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go again to get it. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow, that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.
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When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field, and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not go again to fetch it: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow: that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hands.
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When thou reapest thy harvest in thy field, and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not go back to fetch it; it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow; that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thy hands.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Commandments (2)
The laws of the Torah, each cited and shown as a primary source.
Cross-references (21)
Passages linked to Deuteronomy 24:19 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Leviticus 23:22 “ ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you must not wholly reap into the corners of your field, and you must not gather the gleanings of your harvest. You must leave them for the poor, and for the foreigner. I am Yahweh your God.’ ”
- Proverbs 19:17 He who has pity on the poor lends to Yahweh; he will reward him.
- Leviticus 19:9-10 “ ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not glean your vineyard, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the foreigner. I am Yahweh your God.
- Deuteronomy 14:29 The Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, as well as the foreigner living among you, the fatherless, and the widow who are within your gates shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.
- Luke 14:13-14 But when you make a feast, ask the poor, the maimed, the lame, or the blind; and you will be blessed, because they don’t have the resources to repay you. For you will be repaid in the resurrection of the righteous.”
- Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be given to you. For with the same measure you measure it will be measured back to you.”
- Psalms 112:9 He has dispersed, he has given to the poor. His righteousness endures forever. His horn will be exalted with honor.
- Proverbs 11:24-25 There is one who scatters, and increases yet more. There is one who withholds more than is appropriate, but gains poverty. The liberal soul shall be made fat. He who waters shall be watered also himself.
- Isaiah 32:8 But the noble devises noble things; and he will continue in noble things.
- Isaiah 58:7-11 Isn’t it to distribute your bread to the hungry, and that you bring the poor who are cast out to your house? When you see the naked, that you cover him; and that you not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light will break out as the morning, and your healing will appear quickly; then your righteousness shall go before you, and Yahweh’s glory will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and Yahweh will answer. You will cry for help, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ “If you take away from among you the yoke, finger pointing, and speaking wickedly; and if you pour out your soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light will rise in darkness, and your obscurity will be as the noonday; and Yahweh will guide you continually, satisfy your soul in dry places, and make your bones strong. You will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters don’t fail.
- 2 Corinthians 9:6-8 Remember this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that you, always having all sufficiency in everything, may abound to every good work.
- Deuteronomy 26:13 You shall say before Yahweh your God, “I have put away the holy things out of my house, and also have given them to the Levite, to the foreigner, to the fatherless, and to the widow, according to all your commandment which you have commanded me. I have not transgressed any of your commandments, neither have I forgotten them.
- Job 42:12 So Yahweh blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand female donkeys.
- Psalms 41:1-3 Blessed is he who considers the poor. Yahweh will deliver him in the day of evil. Yahweh will preserve him, and keep him alive. He shall be blessed on the earth, and he will not surrender him to the will of his enemies. Yahweh will sustain him on his sickbed, and restore him from his bed of illness.
- Deuteronomy 15:10 You shall surely give, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, because it is for this thing Yahweh your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you put your hand to.
- Deuteronomy 24:20-21 When you beat your olive tree, you shall not go over the boughs again. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow. When you harvest your vineyard, you shall not glean it after yourselves. It shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
- Ruth 2:16 Also pull out some for her from the bundles, and leave it. Let her glean, and don’t rebuke her.”
- Job 31:16-22 “If I have withheld the poor from their desire, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, or have eaten my morsel alone, and the fatherless has not eaten of it (no, from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, I have guided her from my mother’s womb); if I have seen any perish for want of clothing, or that the needy had no covering; if his heart hasn’t blessed me, if he hasn’t been warmed with my sheep’s fleece; if I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, because I saw my help in the gate, then let my shoulder fall from the shoulder blade, and my arm be broken from the bone.
- Proverbs 14:21 He who despises his neighbor sins, but he who has pity on the poor is blessed.
- Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back; and your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind toward the unthankful and evil.
- 1 John 3:17-19 But whoever has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, then closes his heart of compassion against him, how does God’s love remain in him? My little children, let’s not love in word only, or with the tongue only, but in deed and truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and persuade our hearts before him,
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Explain this verse (10 sources)
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John Gill 1763 · Public Domain When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field,....…
When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field,.... Whether barley harvest or wheat harvest, when either of them are ripe for cutting, mowing, or reaping, and are cutting down:
and hast forgot a sheaf in the field; Jarchi says the phrase "in the field" is to include standing corn, some of which is forgotten in cutting down, and so is subject to this law as well as a sheaf; and a sheaf claimed by this name is one that is forgotten both by the workman and the owner; if by the one and not by the other, it could not be so called. The canon runs thus (t),"a sheaf which the workmen forget, and not the owner, or the owner forgets, and not the workman, before which the poor stand, or is covered with straw or stubble, is not a forgotten sheaf.''And about this they have various other rules;"a sheaf that is near the gate (of a field), or to an heap (of sheaves), or to oxen, or to instruments, and left, the house of Shammai say it is not to be reckoned a forgotten sheaf; but the house of Hillell say it is;--two sheaves are reckoned forgotten, three are not; a sheaf in which there are two seahs (about a peck and a half), and they leave it, it is not reckoned forgotten (u):"
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thou shall not go again to fetch it; which supposes a remembrance of it, or some intelligence about it when at home, and after the field has been cleared, and all carried in but this sheaf; then the owner might not go nor send to fetch it: the beginnings of the rows, they say, show when a sheaf is forgotten, or not; particularly the adverse sheaf, or that over against it, shows it (w); so Jarchi:
it shall be for the stranger; or proselyte; the proselyte of righteousness; of this there is no doubt, but it seems to be for the proselyte of the gate also:
for the fatherless and for the widow; which of them soever should first find it:
that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hands; in the culture of their ground the next year, and give them large and fruitful crops; they either purposely leaving the sheaf for the poor, or however suffer them to take it unmolested when found by them. The Targum of Jonathan is, "that the word of the Lord thy God may bless thee", &c.
(t) Misn. Peah, c. 5. sect. 7. (u) Misn. Peah, c. 6. sect. 2, 5, 6. (w) Ib. sect. 3, 4.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 19. When thou cuttest down thine harvest] This…
Verse 19. When thou cuttest down thine harvest] This is an addition to the law, Le 19:9; Le 23:22. The corners of the field, the gleanings, and the forgotten sheaf, were all the property of the poor. This the Hebrews extended to any part of the fruit or produce of a field, which had been forgotten in the time of general ingathering, as appears from the concluding verses of this chapter.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Deu 24:19-22. It shall be for the stranger —…
Deu 24:19-22. It shall be for the stranger — Moses here exhorts them to be mindful of those provisions made for the poor by this law, (Lev 19:9-10; Lev 23:22,) wherein they are ordered not to be over exact in reaping the fruits of their fields and vineyards, but to leave something to be gathered by their poor neighbours. When thou beatest thine olive-tree — As they were wont to do, with sticks, to bring down the olives. It shall be for the fatherless, &c. — Surely nothing can be more just, humane, or merciful, than all these laws here recited.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Forget. The Rabbins say, that both the owner and…
Forget. The Rabbins say, that both the owner and the labourers must forget the sheaf: but his is a vain subtlety. (Calmet) --- Josephus ([Antiquities?] iv. 8,) is more agreeable to the spirit of the law, when he (Haydock) observes that gleanings, and some of the fruit of the vine and olive trees, were to be left on purpose for the poor, Leviticus xix. 9. (Menochius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field--The…
When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field--The grain, pulled up by the roots or cut down with a sickle, was laid in loose sheaves; the fruit of the olive was obtained by striking the branches with long poles; and the grape clusters, severed by a hook, were gathered in the hands of the vintager. Here is a beneficent provision for the poor. Every forgotten sheaf in the harvest-field was to lie; the olive tree was not to be beaten a second time; nor were grapes to be gathered, in order that, in collecting what remained, the hearts of the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow might be gladdened by the bounty of Providence.
Next: Deuteronomy Chapter 25
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 19-22. Harvest… olive tree… grapes — Strangers, widows, and…
19-22. Harvest… olive tree… grapes — Strangers, widows, and orphans were to be allowed to glean in the time of the harvest and the vintage. Comp. Lev_19:9-10; Lev_23:22.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 19–22. Of Generosity to the Landless. To the gçr,…
19–22. Of Generosity to the Landless. To the gçr, the orphan and the widow shall be left the gleanings of fields, olive-groves and vineyards. It is interesting that no parallels are found in the earlier legislation of J or E. H, Lev_19:9 f. forbids the full reaping of the corners of the field and gathering of the gleanings (repeated Deu_23:22) and the gleaning of the vines and their fallen fruit; these are for the poor and the gçr. This seems not earlier (Dillm., etc.), but later than D, for the deliberate reservation of the corners is a more developed provision than the allotment of what was left through carelessness. Why D alone includes olives is not clear, except that this agrees with its careful regard of the details of rural life. Both laws sanction an existing practice described in Ruth 2 as dependent on the generosity of the cultivator.
Was there anything more behind it? Attention has been drawn to the fact that some peoples leave the last sheaf on the field under the superstition that it contains the corn-spirit, and being therefore dangerous is easily relinquished to strangers (Frazer, Golden Bough, ii. 171 f., 232 f.). I am told that in the shires of Lincoln and Norfolk it was the practice till 60 or 80 years ago to shape part of a sheaf into a ‘corn-baby’ and to bury it in the field, in order to ensure the next crop. It is possible that in some cases the custom of leaving the gleanings to the poor may have started from such superstitions. But those who see in these the sole origin of the custom ignore the natural promptings of the hearts of simple, peasant peoples to care for the needy. There are no traces of the superstition in D, H or Ruth 2. D’s appeal to the self-interest of the harvesters (that thy God may bless thee, etc.) is rather one of his many illustrations of his favourite principle that obedience to God’s ethical demands will be rewarded by prosperity (cp. Deu_14:29, Deu_15:4 f., 10, 18, Deu_23:20; cp. Deu_17:20). Otherwise the motives of the laws are purely humane and in both sets the humanity is enforced by religious considerations. In D the motive is characteristically gratitude to God (Deu_24:22), in H it is as characteristically the simple fact: I am Jehovah thy God.—The duties enforced are observed at this day in Palestine. ‘The poorest among the people, the widow and the orphan, are not infrequently seen following the reapers’; and ‘the poor are often seen after the gathering in of the crop going from tree to tree and collecting the few olives that may have been left’ (Van Lennep, Bible Lands, etc., 78, 128). ‘It is natural with them not to gather stray ears or to cut all the standing ones which would be looked upon as avarice; every bad act is avoided as much as possible “before the blessing,” as the corn is very often called; the law of Moses … is innate with them. The produce of the gleanings … may enable a widow to have bread enough for the winter’ (Baldensperger, PEFQ, 1907, 19). On the Arabs kindness to the sojourner see Doughty, i. 345.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 19-22. (cf. Lev_19:9, 10 23:23) Not only was…
Vers. 19-22. (cf. Lev_19:9, 10 23:23) Not only was no injustice to be done to the poor, but, out of the abundance of those in better estate, were they to be helped.
Vers. 19-22. Autumn generosity.
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If a man is not generous towards his poorer neighbors in time of harvest, he will never be generous. If the profuse generosity of God be lavished upon him in vain, his moral nature must be hard indeed. As men "make hay while the sun shines," so should we yield to benevolent impulses while God surrounds us with sunshine of kindness. As we are undeserving recipients, we should share our unpurchased bounty with others.
I WE HAVE HERE A FITTING OCCASION FOR GENEROSITY. God supplies us with fitting seasons for getting good and for doing good. It is not always autumn. We cannot gather corn and olives when we please. We have to wait the arrival of the season, and this season is God"s provision. We must gather then or never. Opportunity can never be trifled with. If abundance has been put into our bands, let us forthwith use it well, or it may be suddenly taken from us. If an unusual generous impulse be upon us, it is wisest to respond to it freely, to give it largest scope, for this is a visit of God to us for good.
II FITTING OBJECTS FOR GENEROSITY ARE PROVIDED. Were it not for the existence of the poor, there would be no outlet for generosity in a practical and material form. There would be no discipline for the best part of our nature. It would be a pain and a loss to us if the instinct of benevolence within us found no field for its exercise. Thankful ought we to be that the poor shall not cease out of the land. The fatherless and the widow come to us as the sent of God, to loosen the sluices of our generosity, and to do us good. We are almoners of God"s royal bounty.
III DELICATE PLANS FOR CONVEYING GENEROSITY. The finer forces of our bodily nature are conveyed to every part by most delicate, almost invisible, ducts. Nerve-power is distributed from the center to the circumference by minutest channels. So, too, should we employ the most refined delicacy in relieving the necessities of the poor. Let not our gift be spoilt by any assumption of superiority, nor by any arrogant rudeness. It is a noble thing to respect the manly feelings of the poor, and to touch with fairy finger the sensibilities of the suffering. We are to study, not only how much we can give, but especially how best to give it. From the harvest-field and the olive-grove we may learn this delicacy of kindness. Both the quantity and the quality of our service are important in God"s esteem.
IV THE POTENT MOTIVE TO GENEROSITY. Remembrance of their own redemption was the mighty motive for all good deeds. This is the constant refrain of God"s message. As God is not wearied in reiterating the lesson, neither should we be wearied in hearing it. We are the objects of God"s tenderest love. He has set in motion his most prodigious energies to rescue us from misery. He has emptied his treasury of blessings so as to enrich us, and the end for which he has enriched us is that we may enrich others. Ye have been ineffably blessed, do you bless in return. D.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain It shall be for the stranger.
Deu_24:19-21
It shall be for the stranger.
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Care for others
This beautiful passage speaks of the harvest, of the olive, and of the grape. You say, Well, I am not a farmer, I know nothing of the harvest. Olives do not grow in this cold country. And it is only a few people in England who can grow grapes. What is the meaning of this? I will tell you what it means, because when God tells us to deal in this way with the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, He means us to do it. You know what the harvest means. It was the in-gathering of the corn, and you know what that was for--to be made into bread. And you know what bread was for--to give strength. The olive was a symbol of fruitfulness, and the grape typified joy. So that the three things God teaches us here to do, are to give strength and peace and joy to the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. How can we do that? Turn to Pro_12:25, and let us see how we can do it for the Master. (I am going to take the very lowest thing it is possible for a child of God to do. I am not going to speak to those who can give their hundreds and thousands of pounds and be none the poorer; but let the very poorest of us here today see if we cannot be the means of bringing strength and peace and joy to those who need it.) Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop. We all know that is true. What is going to make it glad? A fifty-pound note? No! But a good word maketh it glad. It is not only the wealth or the riches that God speaks about. Here it is a kind, loving word, a good word, that makes the heart glad. I was thinking only today about the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, and about the works, the miracles of Christ. Why, the Lord Jesus accomplished more by His words than by His miracles. And He wants us to be imitators of Him. When He was here He had no long purse, but He had a kind word for everybody except the self-satisfied, the self-righteous, the Scribes and Pharisees. We too can give these and be none the poorer for it. Turn to Isa_50:4 : The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary. Perhaps you say, Oh, I would like to have the tongue of the learned to show people how clever I am! The Lord Jesus had the tongue of the learned for one purpose, and that was to know how to speak a word in season to him that was weary. Here again it is the word; it is not the power or the miracle. Read also in Col_3:17 : Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him. Has it ever struck you that this is a very strange way of putting it, Whatsoever ye do in word or deed? We may be disposed to think it ought to have been, Whatsoever ye say in word or do in deed. But it is not so: Whatsoever ye do in word or deed. As if God said, Every word you speak for Me is a good work. And what we want is to have the tongue of the learned, to know how to speak a word to those that are weary. If we want to be happy, if we want to be joyful and glad, let us try to make others glad. Let us try to give them strength and peace and joy. The most miserable man here today is the man who lives for self; the happiest man is the one who forgets self, and lives for others. What a sweet thing it is to know that God has told us, Whatsoever ye do in word. Up yonder He is keeping a record of it. (H. Moorhouse.)
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The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Moses speaks to the Israelites as if they were one man, so the words "you" and "your" here are singular. (See: Forms of You)
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When you reap your harvest in your field
"When you cut down the grain in your field"
an omer of grain
Some versions translate this as "a sheaf." Either translation refers to stalks of grain, enough to be easily carried, possibly tied in a bundle.
it must be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, or for the widow
You can make clear the understood information. AT: "you must leave the sheaf so a foreigner, an orphan, or a widow can take it" (See: Ellipsis)
in all the work of your hands
Here "hands" refers to the whole person. AT: "in all the work that you do" (See: Synecdoche)
When you shake your olive tree
You can make clear the understood information. AT: "When you shake the branches of your olive tree, causing the olives to fall to the ground so you can pick them up" (See: Ellipsis)
you must not go over the branches again
"do not pick every single olive from the tree"
it will be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, or for the widow
You can make clear the understood information. AT: "the olives that stay on the branches are for foreigners, orphans, and widows to pick and take with them" (See: Ellipsis)
translationWords
reap
harvest
alien
bless
works
olive
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.