Deuteronomy 21 18

Deuteronomy 21:18 kjv

If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them:

Deuteronomy 21:18 nkjv

"If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and who, when they have chastened him, will not heed them,

Deuteronomy 21:18 niv

If someone has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and will not listen to them when they discipline him,

Deuteronomy 21:18 esv

"If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they discipline him, will not listen to them,

Deuteronomy 21:18 nlt

"Suppose a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey his father or mother, even though they discipline him.

Deuteronomy 21 verses

Deuteronomy 21 18 Meaning

This verse introduces the criteria for a severe case within the ancient Israelite community: a son who exhibits consistent and entrenched defiance toward his parents. This is not casual disobedience, but a deep-seated resistance to all parental authority and discipline. Despite their earnest efforts to instruct and correct him, he willfully refuses to listen or conform, demonstrating a pattern of unresponsiveness to correction. The inclusion of both father and mother emphasizes the joint nature of parental authority and the severity of defying either.

Deuteronomy 21 18 Context

Deuteronomy 21 is a collection of diverse laws emphasizing justice, purity, and the proper ordering of life within the covenant community of Israel. Immediately preceding the law of the stubborn and rebellious son are regulations concerning family inheritance (21:15-17), particularly issues related to primogeniture when a man has two wives. This placement highlights the Mosaic law's profound concern for maintaining order and rectitude within the family, which was the foundational unit of Israelite society. Historically, ancient Near Eastern societies, including Israel, placed immense importance on family integrity and the honoring of parents. The family served as the primary educator and moral shaper of individuals, and consistent defiance against its core authorities (father and mother) was seen as a direct threat to the very fabric of society and its covenant relationship with God. The law here describes an extreme, persistent state of rebellion, one where all attempts at discipline and persuasion by the parents have failed, leaving them with no recourse and potentially endangering the wider community through the son's corrupting influence. This regulation served both as a stern warning and as a legal framework for handling a situation that could destabilize the entire social order.

Deuteronomy 21 18 Word analysis

• If a man has:

  • This phrase indicates a specific, rather than a universal, condition. It posits a grave, tragic scenario that requires communal intervention, underscoring its exceptional nature rather than common occurrence.

• stubborn:

  • Hebrew: sorer (סורר). This term means "wayward," "rebellently turning aside," "unruly," or "refractory." It conveys an inherent disposition to deviate from the correct path, an obstinate and unyielding refusal to be guided.
  • Significance: It implies an deep-seated disposition that actively resists efforts to be straightened or controlled, like an animal that resists the yoke.

• and rebellious:

  • Hebrew: marah (מרה). This term signifies "disobedient," "contumacious," "openly defiant," or "bitter" in a behavioral sense. It speaks of a confrontational and active resistance to authority.
  • Significance: This word reinforces and intensifies sorer, pointing to overt acts of defiance in addition to internal stubbornness, making the son's conduct one of willful, open antagonism.

• son:

  • Hebrew: ben (בֵּן). This explicitly refers to a male offspring. In a patriarchal society, the son bore significant responsibility for carrying on the family line, name, and inheritance. His profound rebellion was therefore a grave threat not just to his immediate parents, but to the generational and communal order.
  • Significance: Highlights the patriarchal context where a son's rebellion had specific implications for the perpetuation of the family unit and societal stability.

• who will not obey:

  • Hebrew: lo' shama' (לא שׁמע). This phrase means "will not hear" or "will not listen." In biblical thought, "to hear" often includes the act of obedience or heeding instruction.
  • Significance: It points to a profound and persistent refusal to even register, let alone act upon, the directives given. It's a fundamental rejection of vocal instruction and authority.

• the voice of his father or the voice of his mother:

  • Hebrew: qol av (קול אב) and qol em (קול אם). "Voice" here represents the spoken instruction, command, authority, and guidance. The explicit inclusion of the mother alongside the father is crucial.
  • Significance: This underscores the joint parental authority structure within the Israelite family. Disrespect for either parent’s legitimate command constitutes a serious transgression, demonstrating that the mother's authority was legally recognized and supported by the community.

• and though they discipline him:

  • Hebrew: v'yis'ru otam (ויסרו אתם). "Discipline" (from the root yasar) encompasses more than mere punishment; it includes chastisement, instruction, correction, and training. It implies deliberate, repeated, and corrective efforts by the parents.
  • Significance: This crucial detail indicates that the parents have fulfilled their obligation to instruct and correct their son through various means. The law applies only after their efforts have been diligently applied and consistently met with defiance, making the son's state of rebellion irremediable through normal parental means.

• will not listen to them:

  • Hebrew: lo' yishma' (לא ישׁמע) – a repetition of the earlier phrase "will not obey."
  • Significance: This reiteration emphasizes the chronic and unyielding nature of the son's defiance. His rebellion is not an isolated incident but a hardened state, impervious to repeated instruction and corrective measures, indicating an incorrigible and habitual disobedience despite all attempts at reform.

• Words-group Analysis:

  • "stubborn and rebellious son": This pairing describes a unique and profound character flaw. It's not youthful indiscretion but a persistent, hardened disposition of insolence and defiance against all parental guidance, which if unchecked, threatens the foundational order of family and society. It indicates a deliberate rejection of formative influence.
  • "who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and though they discipline him, will not listen to them": This entire phrase delineates the extent and intractability of the son's rebellion. It specifies that the defiance is total, rejecting the commands of both parents, and is impervious even to sustained disciplinary efforts. This repeated failure to "listen" or "obey" establishes that the parents have exhausted their options and that the son's unresponsiveness is entrenched, indicating a threat to the community's moral health.

Deuteronomy 21 18 Bonus section

• Rare Application: While severe, evidence suggests this law was rarely, if ever, executed in Israelite history. Rabbinic tradition heavily qualified it, making its conditions almost impossible to meet in practice, often interpreting it more as a warning and an "ideal type" of utter depravity rather than a literal capital punishment guideline. It served more as a teaching tool to emphasize the sanctity of parental authority.
• Communal Oversight: Crucially, this law mandated that the parents themselves could not administer the ultimate punishment. They had to bring their son to the elders at the city gate. This established vital communal oversight, ensuring due process, preventing private parental abuse of power, and demonstrating that rebellion against family authority was a societal concern.
• Moral Decay Indicator: The subsequent verse (21:20) describes this son as "a glutton and a drunkard." These vices were often seen as expressions of moral depravity and a lack of self-control, symptomatic of a deeper rebellion against divine and human order, further justifying the communal intervention against one who consumed and corrupted the communal resources without contributing to or respecting society's norms.
• Ethical Framing: This law underlines the absolute necessity of children's respect for parents, which was foundational to the entire covenant with God. To dishonor or stubbornly defy one's parents was a severe rupture in the divinely ordained hierarchy, akin to rebellion against God Himself.

Deuteronomy 21 18 Commentary

Deuteronomy 21:18 outlines the initiation of a solemn process for addressing an extremely severe societal threat: a son whose defiance is so profound and persistent that he rejects all parental authority and discipline. This law is remarkable in several ways: it acknowledges the shared authority of both father and mother, underlines the expectation that parents would first exhaust all forms of corrective discipline, and highlights that only an incorrigible, deeply resistant "stubborn and rebellious" son falls under this category. This was likely an extraordinary and rarely invoked law, serving primarily as a potent deterrent. Its ultimate purpose was not simply punitive but aimed at protecting the family unit and, by extension, the purity and order of the entire Israelite community. It was designed to address a fundamental breakdown in authority that could propagate disorder, emphasizing the dire consequences of entrenched rebellion against those entrusted with instruction and upbringing. The extreme nature of the consequence highlights the high value God placed on the family as the cornerstone of a covenant community.