Deuteronomy 21:9

So you shall purge from among you the guilt of shedding innocent blood, since you have done what is right in the eyes of the LORD.

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — Moses addresses the Israelite community regarding the procedure for an unsolved homicide. The directive follows the elders' ritual atonement in verse 8 and precedes regulations on wartime captivity in verse 10.

The words — תְּבַעֵ֛ר (te.va.'Er) translates literally as "you will remove" or "purge," paired with הַ/נָּקִ֖י (ha./na.Ki) meaning "the innocent." The text commands the community to eliminate the guilt of innocent bloodshed from their midst.

The thread — The motif of doing what is right in God's sight appears in Deuteronomy 13:18 and 2 Kings 10:30, with the latter explicitly using "in My sight" (בְּעֵינַ֔י) rather than "in the eyes of the LORD." Deuteronomy 19:12 provides the parallel procedure for handing over a murderer to the avenger of blood.

Why it lands — The text requires the community to actively remove the moral and ritual liability of unavenged murder. Compliance is presented as the condition for maintaining right standing before God.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

וְאַתָּ֗הve./'a.Tahand/ you תְּבַעֵ֛רte.va.'Eryou will remove הַדָּ֥םha./Damthe/ blood הַנָּקִ֖יha./na.Ki<the>/ innocent מִקִּרְבֶּ֑ךָmi./kir.Be./chafrom/ midst/ your כִּֽי־ki-for תַעֲשֶׂ֥הta.'a.Sehyou will do הַיָּשָׁ֖רhai./ya.Sharthe/ right בְּעֵינֵ֥יbe./'ei.Neiin/ [the] eyes of יְהוָֽה׃ סYah.wehYahweh

King James Version

So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the Lord.

Cross-references

Deuteronomy 13:18 because you obey the LORD your God, keeping all His commandments I am giving you today and doing what is right in the eyes of the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy 19:12 the elders of his city must send for him, bring him back, and hand him over to the avenger of blood to die.
2 Kings 10:30 Nevertheless, the LORD said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in carrying out what is right in My sight and have done to the house of Ahab all that was in My heart, four generations of your sons will sit on the throne of Israel.”