Verses 1-4 deal with a single theme: providing help to a fellow-Israelite in case his animals wander off or lie helpless on the ground (see Exo 23.4-5, where the same kind of help is to be given to an enemy). In all these verses brother (also New English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible) is a “fellow Israelite” (Good News Translation, Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje), or “fellow countryman” (Revised English Bible, BÍBLIA para todos Edição Comum, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, Bible en français courant); New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh “your fellow” is not natural, and New Revised Standard Version “your neighbor” carries the wrong meaning.
If this is the beginning of a new section, Moses should be reintroduced as the speaker.
You shall not see … and withhold: it is better to structure as Good News Translation does, “If you see … do not ignore it.”
You: in the nature of the case, this is singular; so Biblia Dios Habla Hoy has “one of you.”
Ox: Good News Translation “cow” seems better in referring to cattle as a class (bovines). For “cow” see 5.14.
Sheep: the Hebrew term may apply to the young of sheep or goats; so Bible en français courant has “goat or sheep.” For sheep see 17.1.
Go astray: that is, the animal has wandered off. Contemporary English Version has “wandering around lost.”
Withhold your help: as the Revised Standard Version footnote indicates, this translates the Hebrew “hide yourself.” In English other ways to say this are “do not ignore it” (Good News Translation, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, New International Version) and “you must not disregard it” (New Jerusalem Bible); other possible translations are “don’t act as though you didn’t see it” (Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje); “don’t pass by unconcernedly” (BÍBLIA para todos Edição Comum).
Take them back: since the likelihood is that it is one animal or the other, not both an ox and a sheep, it is better to use the singular “it.”
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 .