Exodus 20

The Ten Commandments

1 Then God spoke all these words, saying,

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

3 "You shall have no other gods tbefore Me.

4 "You shall not make for yourself tan idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

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

8 "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,10 but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you.11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.

12 "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you.

13 "You shall not murder.

14 "You shall not commit adultery.

15 "You shall not steal.

16 "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

17 "You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor."

18 All the people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance.19 Then they said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die."20 Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him may remain with you, so that you may not sin."21 So the people stood at a distance, while Moses approached the thick cloud where God was.

22 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'You yourselves have seen that I have spoken to you from heaven.23 You shall not make other gods besides Me; gods of silver or gods of gold, you shall not make for yourselves.24 You shall make an altar of earth for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen; in every place where I cause My name to be remembered, I will come to you and bless you.25 If you make an altar of stone for Me, you shall not build it of cut stones, for if you wield your tool on it, you will profane it.26 And you shall not go up by steps to My altar, so that your nakedness will not be exposed on it.'

Exodus 21

Ordinances for the People

1 "Now these are the ordinances which you are to set before them:

2 "If you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve for six years; but on the seventh he shall go out as a free man without payment.3 If he comes alone, he shall go out alone; if he is the husband of a wife, then his wife shall go out with him.4 If his master gives him a wife, and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall belong to her master, and he shall go out alone.5 But if the slave plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife and my children; I will not go out as a free man,'6 then his master shall bring him to tGod, then he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him permanently.

7 "If a man sells his daughter as a female slave, she is not to go free as the male slaves do.8 If she is displeasing in the eyes of her master who designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He does not have authority to sell her to a foreign people because of his unfairness to her.9 If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.10 If he takes to himself another woman, he may not reduce her food, her clothing, or her conjugal rights.11 If he will not do these three things for her, then she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.

Personal Injuries

12 "He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death.13 But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint you a place to which he may flee.14 If, however, a man acts presumptuously toward his neighbor, so as to kill him craftily, you are to take him even from My altar, that he may die.

15 "He who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

16 "He who kidnaps a man, whether he sells him or he is found in his possession, shall surely be put to death.

17 "He who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

18 "If men have a quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but remains in bed,19 if he gets up and walks around outside on his staff, then he who struck him shall go unpunished; he shall only pay for his loss of time, and shall take care of him until he is completely healed.

20 "If a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod and he dies at his hand, he shall be punished.21 If, however, he survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for he is his property.

22 "If men struggle with each other and strike a woman with child so that she gives birth prematurely, yet there is no injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman's husband may demand of him, and he shall pay as the judges decide. 23 But if there is any further injury, then you shall appoint as a penalty life for life,24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,25 burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.

26 "If a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave, and destroys it, he shall let him go free on account of his eye.27 And if he knocks out a tooth of his male or female slave, he shall let him go free on account of his tooth.

28 "If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall surely be stoned and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall go unpunished.29 If, however, an ox was previously in the habit of goring and its owner has been warned, yet he does not confine it and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death.30 If a ransom is demanded of him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is demanded of him.31 Whether it gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.32 If the ox gores a male or female slave, the owner shall give his or her master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

33 "If a man opens a pit, or digs a pit and does not cover it over, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,34 the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he shall give money to its owner, and the dead animal shall become his.

35 "If one man's ox hurts another's so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide its price equally; and also they shall divide the dead ox. 36 Or if it is known that the ox was previously in the habit of goring, yet its owner has not confined it, he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal shall become his.

Exodus 22

Property Rights

1 "If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.

2 "If the thief is caught while breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account.3  But if the sun has risen on him, there will be bloodguiltiness on his account. He shall surely make restitution; if he owns nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.4 If what he stole is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.

5 "If a man lets a field or vineyard be grazed bare and lets his animal loose so that it grazes in another man's field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard.

6 "If a fire breaks out and spreads to thorn bushes, so that stacked grain or the standing grain or the field itself is consumed, he who started the fire shall surely make restitution.

7 "If a man gives his neighbor money or goods to keep for him and it is stolen from the man's house, if the thief is caught, he shall pay double.8 If the thief is not caught, then the owner of the house shall appear before the judges, to determine whether he laid his hands on his neighbor's property.9 For every breach of trust, whether it is for ox, for donkey, for sheep, for clothing, or for any lost thing about which one says, 'This is it,' the case of both parties shall come before the judges; he whom the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor.

10 "If a man gives his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep for him, and it dies or is hurt or is driven away while no one is looking,11 an oath before the LORD shall be made by the two of them that he has not laid hands on his neighbor's property; and its owner shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution.12 But if it is actually stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner.13 If it is all torn to pieces, let him bring it as evidence; he shall not make restitution for what has been torn to pieces.

14 "If a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it is injured or dies while its owner is not with it, he shall make full restitution.15 If its owner is with it, he shall not make restitution; if it is hired, it came for its hire.

Sundry Laws

16 "If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and lies with her, he must pay a dowry for her to be his wife.17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money equal to the dowry for virgins.

18 "You shall not allow a sorceress to live.

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

20 "He who sacrifices to any god, other than to the LORD alone, shall be utterly destroyed.

21 "You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.22 You shall not afflict any widow or orphan.23 If you afflict him at all, and if he does cry out to Me, I will surely hear his cry;24 and My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.

25 "If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, you are not to act as a creditor to him; you shall not charge him interest.26 If you ever take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge, you are to return it to him before the sun sets,27 for that is his only covering; it is his cloak for his body. What else shall he sleep in? And it shall come about that when he cries out to Me, I will hear him, for I am gracious.

28 "You shall not curse God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

29 "You shall not delay the offering from your harvest and your vintage. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me.30 You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.

31 "You shall be holy men to Me, therefore you shall not eat any flesh torn to pieces in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.