If you have no delight in her: that is, “if she doesn’t please you any longer,” “if you lose your desire for her,” or “if you no longer want to have sex with her.”

You shall let her go: the Hebrew verb is used in the context of divorce in 22.19, 29 (Contemporary English Version “you can divorce her”). Other ways to express “divorce her” are “send her away,” or perhaps “return her to her own people.”

Where she will: this is important; she’s a free (Israelite) woman, and no restrictions are placed on her freedom to go anywhere she wants to.

You shall not sell her for money: in Hebrew the verb form is emphatic.

You shall not treat her as a slave: the Hebrew verb is used only here and in 24.7, and its precise meaning is disputed. Revised English Bible has “treat her harshly,” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh “enslave her,” and Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje “mistreat her.” Some commentators take the meaning to be “treat her as merchandise.” It seems best to follow Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation here. For slave see 5.6.

You have humiliated her: as Good News Translation makes clear, this refers to his having had intercourse with her; she had no choice in the matter and was forced to have sex with him. Contemporary English Version has “But you have slept with her as your wife.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .