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22 If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall pay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. If the thief be found breaking in, and be smitten so that he dieth, there shall be no [a]bloodguiltiness for him. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be bloodguiltiness for him; he shall make restitution: if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. If the theft be found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall pay double.

If a man shall cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall let his beast loose, and it feed in another man’s field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution.

If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the shocks of grain, or the standing grain, or the field are consumed; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.

If a man shall deliver unto his neighbor money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, he shall pay double. If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall come near unto God, to see whether he have not put his hand unto his neighbor’s goods. For every matter of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, whereof one saith, This is it, the cause of both parties shall come before [b]God; he whom [c]God shall condemn shall pay double unto his neighbor.

10 If a man deliver unto his neighbor an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it: 11 the oath of Jehovah shall be between them both, whether he hath not put his hand unto his neighbor’s goods; and the owner thereof shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution. 12 But if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof. 13 If it be torn in pieces, let him bring it for witness; he shall not make good that which was torn.

14 And if a man [d]borrow aught of his neighbor, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof not being with it, he shall surely make restitution. 15 If the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good: if it be a hired thing, [e]it came for its hire.

16 And if a man entice a virgin that is not betrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely pay a dowry for her to be his wife. 17 If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.

18 Thou shalt not suffer a sorceress to live.

19 Whosoever lieth with a beast shall surely be put to death.

20 He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto Jehovah only, shall be [f]utterly destroyed. 21 And a sojourner shalt thou not wrong, neither shalt thou oppress him: for ye were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 22 Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. 23 If thou afflict them at all, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; 24 and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

25 If thou lend money to any of my people with thee that is poor, thou shalt not be to him as a creditor; neither shall ye lay upon him interest. 26 If thou at all take thy neighbor’s garment to pledge, thou shalt restore it unto him before the sun goeth down: 27 for that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin: wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he crieth unto me, that I will hear; for I am gracious.

28 Thou shalt not revile [g]God, nor curse a ruler of thy people. 29 Thou shalt not delay to offer of [h]thy harvest, and of the outflow of thy presses. The first-born of thy sons shalt thou give unto me. 30 Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with its dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me. 31 And ye shall be holy men unto me: therefore ye shall not eat any flesh that is torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs.

23 Thou shalt not take up a false report: put not thy hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness. Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou [i]speak in a cause to turn aside after a multitude to wrest justice: neither shalt thou favor a poor man in his cause.

If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, [j]thou shalt forbear to leave him, thou shalt surely release it with him.

Thou shalt not wrest the justice due to thy poor in his cause. Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked. And thou shalt take no bribe: for a bribe blindeth them that have sight, and perverteth the [k]words of the righteous. And a sojourner shalt thou not oppress: for ye know the heart of a sojourner, seeing ye were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

10 And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the increase thereof: 11 but the seventh year thou shalt [l]let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beast of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard. 12 Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt [m]rest; that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the sojourner, may be refreshed. 13 And in all things that I have said unto you take ye heed: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.

14 Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. 15 The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep: seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, at the time appointed in the month Abib (for in it thou camest out from Egypt); and none shall appear before me empty: 16 and the feast of harvest, the first-fruits of thy labors, which thou sowest in the field: and the feast of ingathering, at the end of the year, when thou gatherest in thy labors out of the field. 17 Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord Jehovah.

18 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my feast remain all night until the morning. 19 The first of the first-fruits of thy ground thou shalt bring into the house of Jehovah thy God. Thou shalt not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.

20 Behold, I send an angel before thee, to keep thee by the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. 21 Take ye heed before him, and hearken unto his voice; [n]provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgression: for my name is in him. 22 But if thou shalt indeed hearken unto his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. 23 For mine angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: and I will cut them off. 24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works; but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and break in pieces their [o]pillars. 25 And ye shall serve Jehovah your God, and he will bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. 26 There shall none cast her young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil. 27 I will send my terror before thee, and will discomfit all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. 28 And I will send the hornet before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. 29 I will not drive them out from before thee in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the beasts of the field multiply against thee. 30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land. 31 And I will set thy border from the Red Sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness unto [p]the River: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee. 32 Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. 33 They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me; for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee.

24 And he said unto Moses, Come up unto Jehovah, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off: and Moses alone shall come near unto Jehovah; but they shall not come near; neither shall the people go up with him. And Moses came and told the people all the words of Jehovah, and all the ordinances: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which Jehovah hath spoken will we do. And Moses wrote all the words of Jehovah, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the mount, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto Jehovah. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that Jehovah hath spoken will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which Jehovah hath made with you [q]concerning all these words.

Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: 10 and they saw the God of Israel; and there was under his feet as it were [r]a paved work of sapphire stone, and as it were the very heaven for clearness. 11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: and they beheld God, and did eat and drink.

12 And Jehovah said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee the tables of stone, and the law and the commandment, which I have written, that thou mayest teach them. 13 And Moses rose up, and Joshua his minister: and Moses went up into the mount of God. 14 And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you; whosoever hath a cause, let him come near unto them. 15 And Moses went up into the mount, and the cloud covered the mount. 16 And the glory of Jehovah abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 And the appearance of the glory of Jehovah was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. 18 And Moses entered into the midst of the cloud, and went up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 22:2 Hebrew blood.
  2. Exodus 22:9 Or, the judges
  3. Exodus 22:9 Or, the judges
  4. Exodus 22:14 Hebrew ask.
  5. Exodus 22:15 Or, it is reckoned in (Hebrew cometh into) its hire
  6. Exodus 22:20 Hebrew devoted.
  7. Exodus 22:28 Or, the judges
  8. Exodus 22:29 Hebrew thy fulness and thy tear.
  9. Exodus 23:2 Or, bear witness
  10. Exodus 23:5 Or, and wouldest forbear to release it for him, thou shalt surely release it with him
  11. Exodus 23:8 Or, cause
  12. Exodus 23:11 Or, release it and let it lie fallow. See Dt. 15:2.
  13. Exodus 23:12 Or, keep sabbath
  14. Exodus 23:21 Or, be not rebellious against him
  15. Exodus 23:24 Or, obelisks
  16. Exodus 23:31 That is, the Euphrates.
  17. Exodus 24:8 Or, upon all these conditions
  18. Exodus 24:10 Or, work of bright sapphire

Protection of Property

22 [a]“Whoever steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it must pay back(A) five head of cattle for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.

“If a thief is caught breaking in(B) at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed;(C) but if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed.

“Anyone who steals must certainly make restitution,(D) but if they have nothing, they must be sold(E) to pay for their theft. If the stolen animal is found alive in their possession(F)—whether ox or donkey or sheep—they must pay back double.(G)

“If anyone grazes their livestock in a field or vineyard and lets them stray and they graze in someone else’s field, the offender must make restitution(H) from the best of their own field or vineyard.

“If a fire breaks out and spreads into thornbushes so that it burns shocks(I) of grain or standing grain or the whole field, the one who started the fire must make restitution.(J)

“If anyone gives a neighbor silver or goods for safekeeping(K) and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house, the thief, if caught, must pay back double.(L) But if the thief is not found, the owner of the house must appear before the judges,(M) and they must[b] determine whether the owner of the house has laid hands on the other person’s property. In all cases of illegal possession of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or any other lost property about which somebody says, ‘This is mine,’ both parties are to bring their cases before the judges.[c](N) The one whom the judges declare[d] guilty must pay back double to the other.

10 “If anyone gives a donkey, an ox, a sheep or any other animal to their neighbor for safekeeping(O) and it dies or is injured or is taken away while no one is looking, 11 the issue between them will be settled by the taking of an oath(P) before the Lord that the neighbor did not lay hands on the other person’s property. The owner is to accept this, and no restitution is required. 12 But if the animal was stolen from the neighbor, restitution(Q) must be made to the owner. 13 If it was torn to pieces by a wild animal, the neighbor shall bring in the remains as evidence and shall not be required to pay for the torn animal.(R)

14 “If anyone borrows an animal from their neighbor and it is injured or dies while the owner is not present, they must make restitution.(S) 15 But if the owner is with the animal, the borrower will not have to pay. If the animal was hired, the money paid for the hire covers the loss.(T)

Social Responsibility

16 “If a man seduces a virgin(U) who is not pledged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price,(V) and she shall be his wife. 17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must still pay the bride-price for virgins.

18 “Do not allow a sorceress(W) to live.

19 “Anyone who has sexual relations with an animal(X) is to be put to death.

20 “Whoever sacrifices to any god(Y) other than the Lord must be destroyed.[e](Z)

21 “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner,(AA) for you were foreigners(AB) in Egypt.

22 “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless.(AC) 23 If you do and they cry out(AD) to me, I will certainly hear their cry.(AE) 24 My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless.(AF)

25 “If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not treat it like a business deal; charge no interest.(AG) 26 If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge,(AH) return it by sunset, 27 because that cloak is the only covering your neighbor has. What else can they sleep in?(AI) When they cry out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.(AJ)

28 “Do not blaspheme God[f](AK) or curse(AL) the ruler of your people.(AM)

29 “Do not hold back offerings(AN) from your granaries or your vats.[g]

“You must give me the firstborn of your sons.(AO) 30 Do the same with your cattle and your sheep.(AP) Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but give them to me on the eighth day.(AQ)

31 “You are to be my holy people.(AR) So do not eat the meat of an animal torn by wild beasts;(AS) throw it to the dogs.

Laws of Justice and Mercy

23 “Do not spread false reports.(AT) Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness.(AU)

“Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice(AV) by siding with the crowd,(AW) and do not show favoritism(AX) to a poor person in a lawsuit.

“If you come across your enemy’s(AY) ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to return it.(AZ) If you see the donkey(BA) of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help them with it.

“Do not deny justice(BB) to your poor people in their lawsuits. Have nothing to do with a false charge(BC) and do not put an innocent(BD) or honest person to death,(BE) for I will not acquit the guilty.(BF)

“Do not accept a bribe,(BG) for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the innocent.

“Do not oppress a foreigner;(BH) you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt.

Sabbath Laws

10 “For six years you are to sow your fields and harvest the crops, 11 but during the seventh year let the land lie unplowed and unused.(BI) Then the poor among your people may get food from it, and the wild animals may eat what is left. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.

12 “Six days do your work,(BJ) but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the slave born in your household and the foreigner living among you may be refreshed.(BK)

13 “Be careful(BL) to do everything I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods;(BM) do not let them be heard on your lips.(BN)

The Three Annual Festivals

14 “Three times(BO) a year you are to celebrate a festival to me.

15 “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread;(BP) for seven days eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you. Do this at the appointed time in the month of Aviv,(BQ) for in that month you came out of Egypt.

“No one is to appear before me empty-handed.(BR)

16 “Celebrate the Festival of Harvest(BS) with the firstfruits(BT) of the crops you sow in your field.

“Celebrate the Festival of Ingathering(BU) at the end of the year, when you gather in your crops from the field.(BV)

17 “Three times(BW) a year all the men are to appear before the Sovereign Lord.

18 “Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to me along with anything containing yeast.(BX)

“The fat of my festival offerings must not be kept until morning.(BY)

19 “Bring the best of the firstfruits(BZ) of your soil to the house of the Lord your God.

“Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.(CA)

God’s Angel to Prepare the Way

20 “See, I am sending an angel(CB) ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared.(CC) 21 Pay attention to him and listen(CD) to what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive(CE) your rebellion,(CF) since my Name(CG) is in him. 22 If you listen carefully to what he says and do(CH) all that I say, I will be an enemy(CI) to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you. 23 My angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites,(CJ) and I will wipe them out. 24 Do not bow down before their gods or worship(CK) them or follow their practices.(CL) You must demolish(CM) them and break their sacred stones(CN) to pieces. 25 Worship the Lord your God,(CO) and his blessing(CP) will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness(CQ) from among you, 26 and none will miscarry or be barren(CR) in your land. I will give you a full life span.(CS)

27 “I will send my terror(CT) ahead of you and throw into confusion(CU) every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn their backs and run.(CV) 28 I will send the hornet(CW) ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites(CX) out of your way. 29 But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals(CY) too numerous for you. 30 Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession(CZ) of the land.

31 “I will establish your borders from the Red Sea[h] to the Mediterranean Sea,[i] and from the desert to the Euphrates River.(DA) I will give into your hands the people who live in the land, and you will drive them out(DB) before you. 32 Do not make a covenant(DC) with them or with their gods. 33 Do not let them live in your land or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare(DD) to you.”

The Covenant Confirmed

24 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron,(DE) Nadab and Abihu,(DF) and seventy of the elders(DG) of Israel. You are to worship at a distance, but Moses alone is to approach(DH) the Lord; the others must not come near. And the people may not come up with him.”

When Moses went and told the people all the Lord’s words and laws,(DI) they responded with one voice, “Everything the Lord has said we will do.”(DJ) Moses then wrote(DK) down everything the Lord had said.

He got up early the next morning and built an altar(DL) at the foot of the mountain and set up twelve stone pillars(DM) representing the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings(DN) and sacrificed young bulls as fellowship offerings(DO) to the Lord. Moses(DP) took half of the blood(DQ) and put it in bowls, and the other half he splashed(DR) against the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant(DS) and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.”(DT)

Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people(DU) and said, “This is the blood of the covenant(DV) that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders(DW) of Israel went up 10 and saw(DX) the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of lapis lazuli,(DY) as bright blue as the sky.(DZ) 11 But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites; they saw(EA) God, and they ate and drank.(EB)

12 The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone(EC) with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.”

13 Then Moses set out with Joshua(ED) his aide, and Moses went up on the mountain(EE) of God. 14 He said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. Aaron and Hur(EF) are with you, and anyone involved in a dispute(EG) can go to them.”

15 When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud(EH) covered it, 16 and the glory(EI) of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai.(EJ) For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud.(EK) 17 To the Israelites the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire(EL) on top of the mountain. 18 Then Moses entered the cloud as he went on up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty(EM) days and forty nights.(EN)

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 22:1 In Hebrew texts 22:1 is numbered 21:37, and 22:2-31 is numbered 22:1-30.
  2. Exodus 22:8 Or before God, and he will
  3. Exodus 22:9 Or before God
  4. Exodus 22:9 Or whom God declares
  5. Exodus 22:20 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
  6. Exodus 22:28 Or Do not revile the judges
  7. Exodus 22:29 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  8. Exodus 23:31 Or the Sea of Reeds
  9. Exodus 23:31 Hebrew to the Sea of the Philistines