Text: Deuteronomy 14:21
OT Text Referred to: Exodus 23:19
Subject: prohibition against boiling kid in mother's milk
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Direct Quotation
Connection Method(s): None
Significance: Exodus 23:19 prohibits "boiling a young goat in its mother's milk" (לֹא תְבַשֵּׁל גְּדִי בַּחֲלֵב אִמּוֹ, lo tevashel gedi bachalev immo), and Deuteronomy 14:21 repeats the prohibition verbatim. This is one of only three laws repeated three times in the Torah (also Exod 34:26), underscoring its significance. The prohibition likely opposes a Canaanite fertility ritual that perverted the natural maternal relationship between mother and offspring, using the life-giving substance (milk) to prepare the very creature it was meant to nourish. The triple repetition across three distinct legal contexts (Book of the Covenant, Covenant Renewal, Deuteronomic Code) ensures this boundary between Israelite and Canaanite worship practice cannot be overlooked.