Ulangan 21:16

21:16 In the day he divides his inheritance ¹  he must not appoint as firstborn the son of the favorite wife in place of the other ²  wife’s son who is actually the firstborn.

Ulangan 21:1

Laws Concerning Unsolved Murder

21:1 If a homicide victim ³  should be found lying in a field in the land the Lord your God is giving you, ⁴  and no one knows who killed ⁵  him,

1 Tawarikh 5:1

Reuben’s Descendants

5:1 The sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn –

(Now he was the firstborn, but when he defiled his father’s bed, ⁶  his rights as firstborn were given to the sons of Joseph, Israel’s son. So Reuben is not listed as firstborn in the genealogical records. ⁷ 

[21:16]  ¹ tn Heb “when he causes his sons to inherit what is his.”

[21:16]  ² tn Heb “the hated.”

[21:1]  ³ tn Heb “slain [one].” The term חָלָל (khalal) suggests something other than a natural death (cf. Num 19:16; 23:24; Jer 51:52; Ezek 26:15; 30:24; 31:17-18).

[21:1]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text includes “to possess it,” but this has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[21:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “struck,” but in context a fatal blow is meant; cf. NLT “who committed the murder.”

[5:1]  ⁶ sn The phrase when he defiled his father’s bed refers to Reuben having sexual relations with his father Jacob’s concubine Bilhah. This incident is recorded in Gen 35:22.

[5:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “and not to be listed in the genealogical records as (having) the right of the firstborn.”