Deuteronomy 20:6

6 Has anyone planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy it? He may go home, because he might die in battle and someone else would enjoy his vineyard.

Deuteronomy 20:6 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 20:6

And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not
yet eaten of it?
&c.] Which he has a right to do, and it is hard for him to be deprived of it, ( 1 Corinthians 9:7 ) or "hath not made it common" F11; according to the law in ( Leviticus 19:23-25 ) . Three years the fruit of trees, and so of vines, might not be eaten; in the fourth, they were devoted to the Lord, and might be redeemed from the priest, and so made common; and on the fifth year were eaten in course; so the Targums of Jerusalem, Jonathan, and Jarchi, interpret it: "let him also go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it"; or make it common, according to the above law: Aben Ezra seems to have another sense of this passage, deriving the word from another, which signifies piping and dancing, and observes, that it was a custom to sing, pipe, and dance in vineyards; and the Septuagint version is, "hath not been made merry of it"; though that may signify not having drank of the wine of it, to be made merry with it.


FOOTNOTES:

F11 (wllx al) "necdum fecit eam esse communem", V. L. "et non fecit eam communem", Vatablus, Fagius.

Deuteronomy 20:6 In-Context

4 because the Lord your God goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies and to save you."
5 The officers should say to the army, "Has anyone built a new house but not given it to God? He may go home, because he might die in battle and someone else would get to give his house to God.
6 Has anyone planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy it? He may go home, because he might die in battle and someone else would enjoy his vineyard.
7 Is any man engaged to a woman and not yet married to her? He may go home, because he might die in battle and someone else would marry her."
8 Then the officers should also say, "Is anyone here afraid? Has anyone lost his courage? He may go home so that he will not cause others to lose their courage, too."
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.