Deuteronomy 25:3

 Deuteronomy 25:3

Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed: lest, if he should exceed, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee.

a. NLT: But never give more than forty lashes; more than forty lashes would publicly humiliate your neighbor. [Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.]

b. ASV: Forty stripes he may give him, he shall not exceed; lest, if he should exceed, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee. [Thomas Nelson & Sons first published the American Standard Version in 1901. This translation of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. YLT: forty times he doth smite him -- he is not adding, lest, he is adding to smite him above these -- many stripes, and thy brother is lightly esteemed in thine eyes. [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]

d. Classic Amplified: Forty stripes may be given him but not more, lest, if he should be beaten with many stripes, your brother should [be treated like a beast and] seem low and worthless to you. Forty stripes may be given him but not more, lest, if he should be beaten with many stripes, your brother should [be treated like a beast and] seem low and worthless to you. [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

e. Septuagint: And they shall scourge him with forty stripes in number, they shall not inflict more; for if thou shouldest scourge him [with] more stripes beyond these stripes, thy brother will be disgraced before thee.

f. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/ Writings: Forty shall he strike him, he shall not add; lest he strike him an additional blow beyond these, and your brother will be degraded before your eye. [The Artscroll Series/Stone Edition, THE TANACH--STUDENT SIZE EDITION Copyright 1996, 1998 by Mesorah Publications, Ldt.]

1. “Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed…”

a. Forty [Strong: 705 'arba`iym ar-baw-eem' multiple of 702; forty:---forty.]

b. stripes [he may give him] [Strong: 5221 nakah naw-kaw' a primitive root; to strike (lightly or severely, literally or figuratively):--beat, cast forth, clap, give (wounds), X go forward, X indeed, kill, make (slaughter), murderer, punish, slaughter, slay(-er, -ing), smite(-r, -ing), strike, be stricken, (give) stripes, X surely, wound.]

c. [and] not [Strong: 3808 lo' lo or lowi {lo}; or loh (Deut. 3:11) {lo}; a primitive particle; not (the simple or abs. negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles (as follows):--X before, + or else, ere, + except, ig(-norant), much, less, nay, neither, never, no((-ne), -r, (-thing)), (X as though...,(can-), for) not (out of), of nought, otherwise, out of, + surely, + as truly as, + of a truth, + verily, for want, + whether, without.]

d. exceed [Strong: 3254 yacaph yaw-saf' a primitive root; to add or augment (often adverbial, to continue to do a thing):--add, X again, X any more, X cease, X come more, + conceive again, continue, exceed, X further, X gather together, get more, give more-over, X henceforth, increase (more and more), join, X longer (bring, do, make, much, put), X (the, much, yet) more (and more), proceed (further), prolong, put, be (strong-) er, X yet, yield.]

2. “...lest, if he should exceed, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee.”

a. lest [Strong: 6435 pen pane from 6437; properly, removal; used only (in the construction) adverb as conjunction, lest:--(lest) (peradventure), that...not.]

b. [if he should] exceed [Strong: 3254 yacaph yaw-saf' a primitive root; to add or augment (often adverbial, to continue to do a thing):--add, X again, X any more, X cease, X come more, + conceive again, continue, exceed, X further, X gather together, get more, give more-over, X henceforth, increase (more and more), join, X longer (bring, do, make, much, put), X (the, much, yet) more (and more), proceed (further), prolong, put, be (strong-) er, X yet, yield.]

c. [and] beat [him] [Strong: 5221 nakah naw-kaw' a primitive root; to strike (lightly or severely, literally or figuratively):--beat, cast forth, clap, give (wounds), X go forward, X indeed, kill, make (slaughter), murderer, punish, slaughter, slay(-er, -ing), smite(-r, -ing), strike, be stricken, (give) stripes, X surely, wound.]

d. above [Strong: 5921 `al al properly, the same as 5920 used as a preposition (in the singular or plural often with prefix, or as conjunction with a particle following); above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications (as follow):--above, according to(-ly), after, (as) against, among, and, X as, at, because of, beside (the rest of), between, beyond the time, X both and, by (reason of), X had the charge of, concerning for, in (that), (forth, out) of, (from) (off), (up-)on, over, than, through(-out), to, touching, X with.]

e. these [Strong: 428 'el-leh ale'-leh prolonged from 411; these or those:--an- (the) other; one sort, so, some, such, them, these (same), they, this, those, thus, which, who(-m).]

f. [with] many [Strong: 7227 rab rab by contracted from 7231; abundant (in quantity, size, age, number, rank, quality):--(in) abound(-undance, -ant, -antly), captain, elder, enough, exceedingly, full, great(-ly, man, one), increase, long (enough, (time)), (do, have) many(-ifold, things, a time), ((ship-))master, mighty, more, (too, very) much, multiply(-tude), officer, often(-times), plenteous, populous, prince, process (of time), suffice(-lent).]

g. stripes [Strong: 4347 makkah mak-kaw' or (masculine) makkeh {muk-keh'}; (plural only) from 5221; a blow (in 2Chronicles 2:10, of the flail); by implication, a wound; figuratively, carnage, also pestilence:--beaten, blow, plague, slaughter, smote, X sore, stripe, stroke, wound((-ed)).]

h. [then thy] brother [Strong: 251 'ach awkh a primitive word; a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like 1)):--another, brother(-ly); kindred, like, other.]

i. [should seem] vile [Strong: 7034 qalah kaw-law' a primitive root; to be light (as implied in rapid motion), but figuratively, only (be (causatively, hold) in contempt):--base, contemn, despise, lightly esteem, set light, seem vile.]

j. [unto] thee [Strong: 5869 `ayin ah'-yin probably a primitive word; an eye (literally or figuratively); by analogy, a fountain (as the eye of the landscape):--affliction, outward appearance, + before, + think best, colour, conceit, + be content, countenance, + displease, eye((-brow), (-d), -sight), face, + favour, fountain, furrow (from the margin), X him, + humble, knowledge, look, (+ well), X me, open(-ly), + (not) please, presence, + regard, resemblance, sight, X thee, X them, + think, X us, well, X you(-rselves).]

1). Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible: According to his fault, by a certain number; as his crime and wickedness was more or less heinous, more or fewer stripes were to be laid on him; as ten or twenty, fewer or more, according to the nature of his offence, as Aben Ezra observes, only he might not add above forty; though he says there are some who say that according to his fault the stripes are larger or lesser, but all of them in number forty.

2). In the case of the Apostle Paul he was given the full punishment of 39 stripes 5 times. They viewed his preaching of Christ Jesus worthy of the full punishment.

3). The Apostle Paul cited this punishment in his list of things he experienced because of his following Christ.

a). 2 Corinthians 11:24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.

4). These incidents of getting beaten by the Jewish authorities is not in the record of Acts. What we can take from this record is that during Paul’s journeys, probably the early ones, Paul ministered to Jewish synagogues and constantly ran into persecution. I personally believe between the time he fled from Jerusalem and sent to Tarsus in Acts 9:30, and the time Barnabas came to Tarsus to bring him to Antioch in Acts 11:25, 26, that Saul experienced many of these incidents.

5). William M. Ramsay who wrote Saint Paul the Traveler and the Roman Citizen, theorizes that Saul spent at least 8 years in Tarsus. Given the zeal that he had before he was sent to Tarsus to protect his life, I don’t believe that Saul remained idle and silent. While in Arabia, probably on Mt. Sinai Paul received either a large portion of the New Covenant or all of it, (Galatians 1:15-17; Galatians 4:25). He received it directly from Jesus, Galatians 1:11, 12. The revelation he received fueled his zeal to the point during the first three years of his Christian experience Saul had to flee for his life at least twice. But I don’t believe trying to kill Saul was the first reaction to Saul’s message, which from their Jewish perspective, was heresy. The Jewish community tries to follow the law and in light of that I believe their first reaction to Saul’s message was that he needs to be disciplined according to the law first. I think that all of the “five times” getting 39 stripes from the Jews is referring to this. Where and when exactly all this happened I don’t know, but my reasoning I believe is sound.