Deuteronomy 23:17-19
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
17 Let them live among you in any place they choose, in any one of your communities[a] that seems good to them. Do not oppress them.
18 There shall be no temple prostitute[b] among the Israelite women, nor a temple prostitute among the Israelite men.(A) 19 You shall not offer a prostitute’s fee or a dog’s pay[c] as any kind of votive offering in the house of the Lord, your God; both these things are an abomination to the Lord, your God.(B)
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- 23:17 In any one of your communities: from this it would seem that the slave in question is a fugitive from a foreign country.
- 23:18–19 Temple prostitute: Heb. qedesha, lit., “holy one,” a title of the goddess of fertility. The role or function of the qedesha is debated; some see this as simply a term for a prostitute (Heb. zona). Others see it as designating a cultic role but not necessarily one involving sexual activity. The evidence is insufficient to give a final answer.
- 23:19 Dog’s pay: “dog” is a derogatory term for a male temple prostitute.
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