John Gill Commentary Deuteronomy 22:7

"thou shalt surely let the dam go, but the young thou mayest take unto thyself; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days." — Deuteronomy 22:7 (ASV)

But you shall in any wise let the dam go, and take the young
to you
Or "in letting go, let go", or "in sending, send away" {a}; that is, willingly, certainly, entirely, frequently, always; so the Jewish canons ^F2 , "if anyone lets her go, and she returns, even four or five times, he is obliged to let her go, as it is said, 'in letting go, let go';" nay, Maimonides says ^F3 , even a thousand times; the canon proceeds, "if anyone says, lo, I take the dam and let go the young, he is obliged to let her go; if he takes the young, and returns them again to the nest, and after that returns the dam to them, he is free from letting her go;"

that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days ;
the Targum of Jonathan is, "that it may be well with you in this world, and you may prolong your days in the world to come:"

The same blessing that is promised to observers of the fifth command, which is one of the weightier matters of the law, is made to this; which the Jews say ^F4 is but as the value of a farthing, or of little account in comparison of others.

Wherefore, as Fagius rightly observes {e}, God, in bestowing such rewards, has regard not to the works of men, but to his own grace and kindness; for what merit can there be in letting go or preserving the life of a little bird?

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FOOTNOTES:

• F2: Misn. Cholin, c. 12. sect. 3.
• F3: In Misn. ib.
• F4: Misn. ib. sect. 5.