Deuteronomy 22:10

Context

Deuteronomy is structured as a series of sermons in which Moses, on the plains of Moab east of the Jordan, expounded the law anew to the people of Israel as they prepared to enter Canaan. Deuteronomy 22:9–11 groups together several regulations against mixing different things: do not sow a vineyard with two kinds of seed, do not work an ox and a donkey together, and do not wear a garment woven of wool and linen. Regulations of the same kind also appear in Leviticus 19:19.

The verse reads, "Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together" (Deuteronomy 22:10). The Korean Bible renders the action with the term gyeori, which refers to a plow drawn by two animals together, or to the practice of pairing two animals to plow a field. The verse forbids binding an ox and a donkey, which differ in size, strength, and gait, under a single yoke (the wooden frame laid across the necks of two animals).

Interpretation

• As a law of care for animals: This view holds that when two animals of differing strength and stride are yoked together, the weaker one becomes exhausted while the stronger one cannot use its full strength. The verse is understood as a law requiring care for animals, like Deuteronomy 25:4, which forbids muzzling the ox that treads out the grain. Some commentaries in the Jewish tradition and many Christian commentaries offer this explanation.
• As a holiness law of separation: Under the law, the ox is a clean animal and the donkey an unclean one. This view takes the prohibitions against mixing as commands to preserve the order established at creation, in which things were distinguished "after his kind," and further interprets them as symbolizing that Israel was a people set apart from the nations.
• Christian application: Many commentators hold that the expression Paul uses in 2 Corinthians 6:14, "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers," recalls this regulation and Leviticus 19:19. They treat the verse as a basis for applying its principle to believers' marriages and business partnerships.

Debates and Issues

As to whether Christians must observe this regulation literally today, many denominations generally hold that they need not. The Reformed tradition divides the law into moral, ceremonial, and civil law, and often regards this regulation as closer to ceremonial law, with only its underlying principle remaining (see Law and Gospel).

The direct application of this verse to marriage has also drawn criticism. Critics argue that a verse originally concerned with agriculture is being detached from its context and used as grounds for prohibiting marriages. Those who hold this view contend that marriage between a believer and an unbeliever should be considered in light of New Testament passages such as 1 Corinthians 7:12–16. How strictly marriage to an unbeliever is viewed varies among denominations and individual congregations.

In the Korean Church

In Korean churches, the words of 2 Corinthians, "Be ye not unequally yoked," are frequently cited in sermons to young adult groups and in marriage counseling, and this verse is often introduced alongside them as the background text. It is also used as an illustration when discussing the choice of ministry partners or business relationships.

Related Passages

• Deuteronomy 22:9–11
• Leviticus 19:19
• Deuteronomy 25:4
• 2 Corinthians 6:14
• 1 Corinthians 9:9