This verse is often misinterpreted as a blanket prohibition against all children of unmarried parents or a racial exclusionary rule applicable to modern churches, ignoring the Hebrew term 'mamzer' which specifically denotes offspring from forbidden sexual relations within Israel rather than mere illegitimacy, and overlooking its Old Testament context of ceremonial cleanliness superseded by the New Testament's emphasis on grace, faith, and inclusion through Christ for all who repent regardless of lineage.
Deuteronomy 23:2
King James Version (1769)
2 A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 23:2 establishes a boundary for Israel's covenant community by excluding a 'bastard'—referring to someone born from an illicit union such as incest or adultery—from entering the congregation of the Lord for ten generations, emphasizing God's demand for ritual and moral purity among His chosen people to prevent the defilement of worship and maintain separation from surrounding pagan influences, reflecting the holiness code that permeates the Mosaic Law.