Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.

Thou shalt not speak evil of the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind: but thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, because I am the Lord.

Thou shalt not revile a deaf person, and thou shalt not put a stumbling-block before a blind one; but thou shalt fear thy God: I am Jehovah.

Thou dost not revile the deaf; and before the blind thou dost not put a stumbling block; and thou hast been afraid of thy God; I am Jehovah.

Do not put a curse on those who have no hearing, or put a cause of falling in the way of the blind, but keep the fear of your God before you: I am the Lord.

You shall not speak evil of the deaf, nor shall you place a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear the Lord your God, for I am the Lord.

The meaning appears to be, "Thou shalt not utter curses to the deaf because he cannot hear thee, neither shalt thou put a stumbling-block in the way of the blind because he cannot see thee (compare Deuteronomy 27:18), but thou shalt remember that though the weak and poor cannot resist, nor the deaf hear, nor the blind see, God is strong, and sees and hears all that thou doest." Compare Job 29:15.

Thou shalt not curse the deaf - Or speak evil of him, because he cannot hear, and so cannot vindicate his own character.
Nor put a stumbling - block before the blind - He who is capable of doing this, must have a heart cased with cruelty. The spirit and design of these precepts are, that no man shall in any case take advantage of the ignorance, simplicity, or inexperience of his neighbor, but in all things do to his neighbor as he would, on a change of circumstances, that his neighbor should do to him.

Thou shalt not curse the deaf,.... Who are naturally so, born deaf, or become so through some accident, and cannot hear what is objected to them, and they are cursed for; and so cannot reply in their own defence, and remove the calumny cast upon them, if it be such which is the cause of their being cursed; and therefore there is something mean and base as well as wicked in cursing such: the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan render it, "him that heareth not", and respects any absent person who is not within the hearing of the curse, and so equally incapable of answering for himself as a deaf man: Gersom observes, that this is a caution not to curse any Israelite; for if we are cautioned, says he, not to curse a deaf man who hears not, and therefore cannot be moved at it, much less should we curse him that is not deaf, from whence quarrels and fightings arise:
nor put a stumblingblock before the blind: to cause him to fall; and in this negative is implied, that a man should be serviceable and helpful to the blind as much as may be; as to lead, and guide, and direct them in the way, and not put them out of it, as well as not do anything to cause them to stumble in it; Jarchi and Ben Gersom interpret this figuratively, of ignorant persons imposed upon by the bad advice of others: on the other hand, agreeably to this sense, Job says, he was "eyes to the blind", Job 29:15; gave good advice to the ignorant, instructed them what ways and methods to take to do themselves justice, or obtain it, which otherwise they knew not:
but shalt fear thy God: who, as Aben Ezra observes, can punish thee by making thee deaf and blind also; by striking them with deafness and blindness at once; wherefore the awe and fear of God should be on persons, and make them cautious and fearful how they abused those in such circumstances:
I am the Lord; the Lord God, omnipresent and omniscient, that hears when the deaf are cursed, though they do not; and sees the stumblingblocks laid before the blind, and knows who laid them, though they do not, and will revenge such abuses and injuries: the apostle seems to have respect to this law in Romans 14:13.

They were not to do an injury to an infirm person: neither to ridicule or curse the deaf, who could not hear the ridicule or curse, and therefore could not defend himself (Psalm 38:15); nor "to put a stumblingblock before the blind," i.e., to put anything in his way over which he might stumble and fall (compare Deuteronomy 27:18, where a curse is pronounced upon the man who should lead the blind astray). But they were to "fear before God," who hears, and sees, and will punish every act of wrong (cf. Leviticus 19:32, Leviticus 25:17, Leviticus 25:36, Leviticus 25:43).

Before the blind - To make them fall. Under these two particulars are manifestly forbidden all injuries done to such as are unable to right or defend themselves; of whom God here takes the more care, because they are not able to secure themselves. Fear thy God - Who both can and will avenge them.