Deuteronomy 27:25

Hebrew Bible

23 ‘Cursed is the one who goes to bed with his mother-in-law.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Amen!’ 24 ‘Cursed is the one who kills his neighbor in private.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Amen!’ 25Cursed is the one who takes a bribe to kill an innocent person.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Amen!’ 26 ‘Cursed is the one who refuses to keep the words of this law.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Amen!’

Matthew 27:24

New Testament

23 He asked, “Why? What wrong has he done?” But they shouted more insistently, “Crucify him!” 24 When Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but that instead a riot was starting, he took some water, washed his hands before the crowd and said, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. You take care of it yourselves!” 25 In reply all the people said, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!”

 Notes and References

"... What matters here in terms of divine service and masculinity is Judas’s acknowledgement that he has not acted as a disciple or divine servant, but instead handed over God’s servant. Judas returns to the chief priests and elders to confess his sin, saying that he has handed over “innocent blood” (αἷμα ἀθῷον). As discussed in the previous section, the phrase “innocent blood” recalls Deuteronomy 27:25, which curses anyone who takes a bribe to shed innocent blood. (Luz notes that this phrase is used “about 19 times” in the Septuagint. Luz, Matthew, 470, note 33. Carter highlights its use in 2 Kings 21:16; 24:1-4; Jeremiah 7:5-7; 1 Maccabees 1:37; 2 Maccabees 1:7-8, as well as the presence of blood of the innocent in Jeremiah 19:4, which includes the purchase of a potter’s field.) It also anticipates 27:24, when Pilate will claim his own innocence with respect to Jesus using the same expression, stating Jesus’s innocence by implication ..."

Mohn, Kendra Allison Real Men: Masculinities in the Gospel of Matthew (pp. 267-268) Brite Divinity School, 2018

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