Deuteronomy 19:21

Amplified Bible

"You shall not show pity [to the guilty one]: it shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Do not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.

Hebrew Names Version
Your eyes shall not pity; life [shall go] for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

King James Version
And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Lexham English Bible
You must show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot."

English Standard Version
Your eye shall not pity. It shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

New Century Version
Show no mercy. A life must be paid for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot.

New English Translation
You must not show pity; the principle will be a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, and a foot for a foot.

New American Standard Bible
"So you shall not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Therefore thine eye shall have no compassion, but life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foote for foote.

Legacy Standard Bible
Thus your eye shall not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Complete Jewish Bible
Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Darby Translation
And thine eye shall not spare: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Easy-to-Read Version
"Don't feel sorry about punishing someone who does wrong. If a life is taken, a life must be paid for it. The rule is an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot—the punishment must equal the crime.

George Lamsa Translation
And your eye shall not pity; but life shall be for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Good News Translation
In such cases show no mercy; the punishment is to be a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, and a foot for a foot.

Literal Translation
And your eye shall not pity; life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Thine eye shall not pitie him. Soule for soule, eye for eye, tothe for tothe, hande for hande, fote for fote.

American Standard Version
And thine eyes shall not pity; life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Bible in Basic English
Have no pity; let life be given for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And thine eye shall haue no copassion, but lyfe for lyfe, eye for eye, toothe for toothe, hande for hande, foote for foote.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And thine eye shall not pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

King James Version (1611)
And thine eye shall not pitie, but life shall goe for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Thine eye shall not spare him: thou shalt exact life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

English Revised Version
And thine eye shall not pity; life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Berean Standard Bible
You must show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Thou schalt not haue mercy on hym, but thou schalt axe lijf for lijf, iye for iye, tooth for tooth, hond for hond, foot for foot.

Young's Literal Translation
and thine eye doth not pity -- life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Update Bible Version
And your eyes shall not pity; life [shall go] for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Webster's Bible Translation
And thy eye shall not pity; [but] life [shall go] for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

World English Bible
Your eyes shall not pity; life [shall go] for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

New King James Version
Your eye shall not pity: life shall be for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

New Living Translation
You must show no pity for the guilty! Your rule should be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

New Life Bible
Do not pity him. It will be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

New Revised Standard
Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
neither shall thine eye pity, - life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou shalt not pity him, but shalt require life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Revised Standard Version
Your eye shall not pity; it shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Thus you shall not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Contextual Overview

¹⁴"You shall not move your neighbor's boundary mark, which the forefathers [who first divided the territory] have set, in the land which you will inherit in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess. ¹⁵"A single witness shall not appear in a trial against a man for any wrong or any sin which he has committed; [only] on the testimony or evidence of two or three witnesses shall a charge be confirmed. ¹⁶"If a malicious witness rises up against a man to [falsely] accuse him of wrongdoing, ¹⁷then both parties to the controversy shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges who will be in office at that time. ¹⁸"The judges shall investigate thoroughly, and if the witness is a false witness, and he has accused his brother falsely, ¹⁹then you shall do to him just as he had intended to do to his brother. So you shall remove the evil from among you. ²⁰"Those who remain will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such an evil thing among you. ²¹"You shall not show pity [to the guilty one]: it shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

thine eye: Deuteronomy 19:13

life shall: Exodus 21:23-25, Leviticus 24:17-21, Matthew 5:38, Matthew 5:39

Reciprocal: Genesis 45:20 - regard not Exodus 21:20 - smite Exodus 21:24 - General Leviticus 24:19 - General Leviticus 24:20 - General Deuteronomy 7:16 - thine eye Deuteronomy 25:12 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 4:7
"If you do well [believing Me and doing what is acceptable and pleasing to Me], will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well [but ignore My instruction], sin crouches at your door; its desire is for you [to overpower you], but you must master it."

Genesis 12:2
And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you [abundantly], And make your name great (exalted, distinguished); And you shall be a blessing [a source of great good to others];

Genesis 18:24
"Suppose there are fifty righteous [people] within the city; will You really sweep it away and not spare it for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it?

Genesis 19:8
"See here, I have two daughters who have not known a man [intimately]; please let me bring them out to you [instead], and you can do as you please with them; only do nothing to these men, because they have in fact come under the shelter of my roof [for protection]."

Genesis 19:9
But they said, "Get out of the way!" And they said, "This man (Lot) came [as an outsider] to live here temporarily, and now he is acting like a judge. Now we will treat you worse than your visitors!" So they rushed forward and pressed violently against Lot and came close to breaking down the door [of his house].

Genesis 19:15
When morning dawned, the angels urged Lot [to hurry], saying, "Get up! Take your wife and two daughters who are here [and go], or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city."

Genesis 19:16
But Lot hesitated and lingered. The men took hold of his hand and the hand of his wife and the hands of his two daughters, because the LORD was merciful to him [for Abraham's sake]; and they brought him out, and left him outside the city [with his family].

Psalms 34:15
The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous [those with moral courage and spiritual integrity] And His ears are open to their cry.

Psalms 102:17
He has regarded the prayer of the destitute, And has not despised their prayer.

Psalms 145:19
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear and worship Him [with awe-inspired reverence and obedience]; He also will hear their cry and will save them.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And thine eye shall not pity,.... The false witness when convicted; this is directed to the judges, who should not spare such an one through favour or affection, but pronounce a righteous sentence on him, and see it executed, in proportion to the crime, and that according to the law of retaliation:

but life shall go for life; in such a case where the life of a person must have gone, if the falsehood of the testimony had not been discovered, the false witness must suffer death; in other cases, where a member would have been lost, or the price of it paid for, the same penalty was to be inflicted:

eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot; that is, the price of an eye an eye, &c. see Exodus 21:23.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See the marginal references.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Deuteronomy 19:21. Life - for life, eye for eye, c. — The operation of such a law as this must have been very salutary: if a man prized his own members, he would naturally avoid injuring those of others. It is a pity that this law were not still in force: it would certainly prevent many of those savage acts which now both disgrace and injure society. I speak this in reference to law generally, and the provision that should be made to prevent and punish ferocious and malevolent offences. A Christian may always act on the plan of forgiving injuries and where the public peace and safety may not be affected, he should do so; but if law did not make a provision for the safety of the community by enactment against the profligate, civil society would soon be destroyed.