Exodus 20–22

1And God spoke all these words:

2“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

3You shall have no other gods before Me.

4You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath.

5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

6but showing loving devotion to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.

7You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave anyone unpunished who takes His name in vain.

8Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

9Six days you shall labor and do all your work,

10but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant or livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates.

11For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, but on the seventh day He rested. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.

12Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

13You shall not murder.

14You shall not commit adultery.

15You shall not steal.

16You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

17You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, or his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

18When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sounding of the ram’s horn, and the mountain enveloped in smoke, they trembled and stood at a distance.

19“Speak to us yourself and we will listen,” they said to Moses. “But do not let God speak to us, or we will die.”

20“Do not be afraid,” Moses replied. “For God has come to test you, so that the fear of Him may be before you, to keep you from sinning.”

21And the people stood at a distance as Moses approached the thick darkness where God was.

22Then the LORD said to Moses, “This is what you are to tell the Israelites: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven.

23You are not to make any gods alongside Me; you are not to make for yourselves gods of silver or gold.

24You are to make for Me an altar of earth, and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and peace offerings, your sheep and goats and cattle. In every place where I cause My name to be remembered, I will come to you and bless you.

25Now if you make an altar of stones for Me, you must not build it with stones shaped by tools; for if you use a chisel on it, you will defile it.

26And you must not go up to My altar on steps, lest your nakedness be exposed on it.’

1“These are the ordinances that you are to set before them:

2If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free without paying anything.

3If he arrived alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrived with a wife, she is to leave with him.

4If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her master, and only the man shall go free.

5But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children; I do not want to go free,’

6then his master is to bring him before the judges. And he shall take him to the door or doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he shall serve his master for life.

7And if a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as the menservants do.

8If she is displeasing in the eyes of her master who had designated her for himself, he must allow her to be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, since he has broken faith with her.

9And if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her as with a daughter.

10If he takes another wife, he must not reduce the food, clothing, or marital rights of his first wife.

11If, however, he does not provide her with these three things, she is free to go without monetary payment.

12Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.

13If, however, he did not lie in wait, but God allowed it to happen, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.

14But if a man schemes and acts willfully against his neighbor to kill him, you must take him away from My altar to be put to death.

15Whoever strikes his father or mother must surely be put to death.

16Whoever kidnaps another man must be put to death, whether he sells him or the man is found in his possession.

17Anyone who curses his father or mother must surely be put to death.

18If men are quarreling and one strikes the other with a stone or a fist, and he does not die but is confined to bed,

19then the one who struck him shall go unpunished, as long as the other can get up and walk around outside with his staff. Nevertheless, he must compensate the man for his lost work and see that he is completely healed.

20If a man strikes his manservant or maidservant with a rod, and the servant dies by his hand, he shall surely be punished.

21However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property.

22If men who are fighting strike a pregnant woman and her child is born prematurely, but there is no further injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband demands and as the court allows.

23But if a serious injury results, then you must require a life for a life—

24eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,

25burn for burn, wound for wound, and stripe for stripe.

26If a man strikes and blinds the eye of his manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free as compensation for the eye.

27And if he knocks out the tooth of his manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free as compensation for the tooth.

28If an ox gores a man or woman to death, the ox must surely be stoned, and its meat must not be eaten. But the owner of the ox shall not be held responsible.

29But if the ox has a habit of goring, and its owner has been warned yet does not restrain it, and it kills a man or woman, then the ox must be stoned and its owner must also be put to death.

30If payment is demanded of him instead, he may redeem his life by paying the full amount demanded of him.

31If the ox gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.

32If the ox gores a manservant or maidservant, the owner must pay thirty shekels of silver to the master of that servant, and the ox must be stoned.

33If a man opens or digs a pit and fails to cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,

34the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he must pay its owner, and the dead animal will be his.

35If a man’s ox injures his neighbor’s ox and it dies, they must sell the live one and divide the proceeds; they also must divide the dead animal.

36But if it was known that the ox had a habit of goring, yet its owner failed to restrain it, he shall pay full compensation, ox for ox, and the dead animal will be his.

1“If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters or sells it, he must repay five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep.

2If a thief is caught breaking in and is beaten to death, no one shall be guilty of bloodshed.

3But if it happens after sunrise, there is guilt for his bloodshed. A thief must make full restitution; if he has nothing, he himself shall be sold for his theft.

4If what was stolen is actually found alive in his possession—whether ox or donkey or sheep—he must pay back double.

5If a man grazes his livestock in a field or vineyard and allows them to stray so that they graze in someone else’s field, he must make restitution from the best of his own field or vineyard.

6If a fire breaks out and spreads to thornbushes so that it consumes stacked or standing grain, or the whole field, the one who started the fire must make full restitution.

7If a man gives his neighbor money or goods for safekeeping and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house, the thief, if caught, must pay back double.

8If the thief is not found, the owner of the house must appear before the judges to determine whether he has taken his neighbor’s property.

9In all cases of illegal possession of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or any lost item that someone claims, ‘This is mine,’ both parties shall bring their cases before the judges. The one whom the judges find guilty must pay back double to his neighbor.

10If a man gives a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any other animal to be cared for by his neighbor, but it dies or is injured or stolen while no one is watching,

11an oath before the LORD shall be made between the parties to determine whether or not the man has taken his neighbor’s property. The owner must accept the oath and require no restitution.

12But if the animal was actually stolen from the neighbor, he must make restitution to the owner.

13If the animal was torn to pieces, he shall bring it as evidence; he need not make restitution for the torn carcass.

14If a man borrows an animal from his neighbor and it is injured or dies while its owner is not present, he must make full restitution.

15If the owner was present, no restitution is required. If the animal was rented, the fee covers the loss.

16If a man seduces a virgin who is not pledged in marriage and sleeps with her, he must pay the full dowry for her to be his wife.

17If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, the man still must pay an amount comparable to the bridal price of a virgin.

18You must not allow a sorceress to live.

19Whoever lies with an animal must surely be put to death.

20If anyone sacrifices to any god other than the LORD alone, he must be set apart for destruction.

21You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

22You must not mistreat any widow or orphan.

23If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to Me in distress, I will surely hear their cry.

24My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword; then your wives will become widows and your children will be fatherless.

25If you lend money to one of My people among you who is poor, you must not act as a creditor to him; you are not to charge him interest.

26If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset,

27because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

28You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

29You must not hold back offerings from your granaries or vats. You are to give Me the firstborn of your sons.

30You shall do likewise with your cattle and your sheep. Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but on the eighth day you are to give them to Me.

31You are to be My holy people. You must not eat the meat of a mauled animal found in the field; you are to throw it to the dogs.