Texts in Conversation
Proverbs 22 and Deuteronomy 19 both warn against moving an ancestral boundary, connecting legal and moral order to respect for inherited land. This instruction reflects a common ancient Near Eastern concern with preserving ancestral inheritance and social stability.
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Deuteronomy 19:14
Hebrew Bible
12 The elders of his own city must send for him and remove him from there to deliver him over to the blood avenger to die. 13 You must not pity him, but purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, so that it may go well with you. 14 You must not move your neighbor’s boundary marker,28 which will have been defined in the inheritance you will obtain in the land the Lord your God is giving you. 15 A single witness may not testify against another person for any trespass or sin that he commits. A matter may be legally established only on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 16 If a false witness testifies against another person and accuses him of a crime,
Date: 6th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
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Proverbs 22:28
Hebrew Bible
26 Do not be one who strikes hands in pledge or who puts up security for debts. 27 If you do not have enough to pay, your bed will be taken right out from under you! 28 Do not move an ancient boundary stone that was put in place by your ancestors. 29 You have seen a person skilled in his work—he will take his position before kings; he will not take his position before obscure people.
Date: 6th-3rd Centuries B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... set up by previous generations ... That is, ancestors. Compare Proverbs 22:28, “Do not move the ancient boundary stone that your ancestors set up.” The fact that the boundaries were established by earlier generations made their inviolability more than an objective matter of property rights. Landowners felt a deep attachment to the land they inherited from their ancestors. This is well illustrated by Naboth’s reaction to King Ahab’s offer of a better field in exchange for his: “The Lord forbid that I should give up to you what I have inherited from my fathers!” (1 Kings 21:3). In halakhic literature this admonition against encroachment was widely expanded to encompass other types of misappropriation, such as wrong, attributions of rabbinic dicta, and eventually to copyright violations. In Jewish law and ethics the phrase “moving landmarks” (hassagat gevul), in the sense of “violating boundaries,” refers to unfair competition that encroaches on another’s livelihood and other rights ..."
Tigay, Jeffrey H.
Deuteronomy: The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation
(p. 183) Jewish Publication Society, 1996
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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