Exodus 19-24

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

The Israelites Reach Mount Sinai

19 On the third new moon after the Israelites had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day, they came into the wilderness of Sinai. ² They journeyed from Rephidim, entered the wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness; Israel camped there in front of the mountain.^{(A) 3} Then Moses went up to God; the Lord called to him from the mountain, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the Israelites:^{(B) 4} ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.^{(C) 5} Now, therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples. Indeed, the whole earth is mine,^{(D) 6} but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the Israelites.”^(E)

⁷ So Moses went, summoned the elders of the people, and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. ⁸ The people all answered as one, “Everything that the Lord has spoken we will do.” Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.^{(F) 9} Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, in order that the people may hear when I speak with you and so trust you ever after.”

The People Consecrated

When Moses had told the words of the people to the Lord,^{(G) 10} the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes^{(H) 11} and prepare for the third day, because on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.^{(I) 12} You shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Be careful not to go up the mountain or to touch the edge of it. Any who touch the mountain shall be put to death.^{(J) 13} No hand shall touch them, but they shall be stoned or shot with arrows;^[a] whether animal or human being, they shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they may go up on the mountain.” ¹⁴ So Moses went down from the mountain to the people. He consecrated the people, and they washed their clothes. ¹⁵ And he said to the people, “Prepare for the third day; do not go near a woman.”

¹⁶ On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, as well as a thick cloud on the mountain and a blast of a trumpet so loud that all the people who were in the camp trembled.^{(K) 17} Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God. They took their stand at the foot of the mountain. ¹⁸ Now all of Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the Lord had descended upon it in fire; the smoke went up like the smoke of a kiln, while the whole mountain shook violently.^{(L) 19} As the blast of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses would speak and God would answer him in thunder.^{(M) 20} When the Lord descended upon Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain, the Lord summoned Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. ²¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people not to break through to see the Lord; otherwise many of them will perish.^{(N) 22} Even the priests who approach the Lord must consecrate themselves, or the Lord will break out against them.”^{(O) 23} Moses said to the Lord, “The people are not permitted to come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and keep it holy.’ ”^{(P) 24} The Lord said to him, “Go down, then come back up and bring Aaron with you, but do not let either the priests or the people break through to come up to the Lord; otherwise he will break out against them.” ²⁵ So Moses went down to the people and told them.

The Ten Commandments

20 Then God spoke all these words,^(Q)

² “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery;^{(R) 3} you shall have no other gods before^[b] me.^(S)

⁴ “You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above or that is on the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth.^{(T) 5} You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me^{(U) 6} but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation^[c] of those who love me and keep my commandments.^(V)

⁷ “You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.^(W)

⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.^{(X) 9} Six days you shall labor and do all your work.^{(Y) 10} But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. ¹¹ For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it.^(Z)

¹² “Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.^(AA)

¹³ “You shall not murder.^[d](AB)

¹⁴ “You shall not commit adultery.^(AC)

¹⁵ “You shall not steal.^(AD)

¹⁶ “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.^(AE)

¹⁷ “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female slave, ox, donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”^(AF)

¹⁸ When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking, they were afraid^[e] and trembled and stood at a distance^{(AG) 19} and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen, but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”^{(AH) 20} Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid, for God has come only to test you and to put the fear of him upon you so that you do not sin.”^{(AI) 21} Then the people stood at a distance, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.^(AJ)

The Law concerning the Altar

²² The Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites: You have seen for yourselves how I spoke with you from heaven.^{(AK) 23} You shall not make gods of silver alongside me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold.^{(AL) 24} You need make for me only an altar of earth and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your offerings of well-being, your sheep and your oxen; in every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.^{(AM) 25} But if you make for me an altar of stone, do not build it of hewn stones, for if you use a chisel upon it you profane it.^{(AN) 26} You shall not go up by steps to my altar, so that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.

The Law concerning Slaves

21 “These are the ordinances that you shall set before them:^(AO)

² “When you buy a male Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, but in the seventh he shall go out a free person, without debt.^{(AP) 3} If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, 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 be her master’s, and he shall go out alone. ⁵ But if the slave declares, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out a free person,’ ⁶ then his master shall bring him before God. He shall be brought to the door or the doorpost, and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl, and he shall serve him for life.^(AQ)

⁷ “When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do.^{(AR) 8} If she does not please her master, who designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed; he shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt unfairly with her. ⁹ If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. ¹⁰ If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish the food, clothing, or marital rights of the first wife.^{[f](AS) 11} And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out without debt, without payment of money.

The Law concerning Violence

¹² “Whoever strikes a person mortally shall be put to death.^{(AT) 13} If it was not premeditated but came about by an act of God, then I will appoint for you a place to which the killer may flee.^{(AU) 14} But if someone willfully attacks and kills another by treachery, you shall take the killer from my altar for execution.^(AV)

¹⁵ “Whoever strikes father or mother shall be put to death.

¹⁶ “Whoever kidnaps a person, whether that person has been sold or is still held in possession, shall be put to death.^(AW)

¹⁷ “Whoever curses father or mother shall be put to death.^(AX)

¹⁸ “When individuals quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or fist so that the injured party, though not dead, is confined to bed ¹⁹ but recovers and walks around outside with the help of a staff, then the assailant shall be free of liability, except to pay for the loss of time and to arrange for full recovery.

²⁰ “When a slaveowner strikes a male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies immediately, the owner shall be punished. ²¹ But if the slave survives a day or two, there is no punishment, for the slave is the owner’s property.^(AY)

²² “When people who are fighting injure a pregnant woman so that there is a miscarriage and yet no further harm follows, the one responsible shall be fined what the woman’s husband demands, paying as much as the judges determine. ²³ If any harm follows, then you shall give life for life,^{(AZ) 24} eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,^{(BA) 25} burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

²⁶ “When a slaveowner strikes the eye of a male or female slave, destroying it, the owner shall let the slave go, a free person, to compensate for the eye. ²⁷ If the owner knocks out a tooth of a male or female slave, the slave shall be let go, a free person, to compensate for the tooth.

Laws concerning Property

²⁸ “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable.^{(BB) 29} If the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past and its owner has been warned but did not restrain 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 imposed on the owner, then the owner shall pay whatever is imposed for the redemption of the victim’s life.^{(BC) 31} If it gores a boy or a girl, the owner shall be dealt with according to this same rule. ³² If the ox gores a male or female slave, the owner shall pay to the slaveowner thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.^(BD)

³³ “If someone leaves a pit open or digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,^{(BE) 34} the owner of the pit shall make restitution, giving money to its owner but keeping the dead animal.

³⁵ “If someone’s ox hurts the ox of another, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide the price of it, and the dead animal they shall also divide. ³⁶ But if it was known that the ox was accustomed to gore in the past and its owner did not restrain it, the owner shall restore ox for ox but keep the dead animal.

Laws of Restitution

22 ^[g]“When someone steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, the thief shall pay five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep. ^2 [h](If the thief is found breaking in and is struck dead, no bloodguilt is incurred;^{(BF) 3} but if it happens after sunrise, bloodguilt is incurred.) The thief shall make full restitution or, if unable to do so, shall be sold for the theft.^{(BG) 4} When the animal, whether ox or donkey or sheep, is found alive in the thief’s possession, the thief shall pay double.

⁵ “When someone causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over or lets livestock loose to graze in someone else’s field, restitution shall be made from the best in the owner’s field or vineyard.

⁶ “When fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, the one who started the fire shall make full restitution.

⁷ “When someone delivers to a neighbor money or goods for safekeeping and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house, then the thief, if caught, shall pay double.^{(BH) 8} If the thief is not caught, the owner of the house shall be brought before God, to determine whether or not the owner had laid hands on the neighbor’s goods.^(BI)

⁹ “In any case of disputed ownership involving ox, donkey, sheep, clothing, or any other loss, of which one party says, ‘This is mine,’ the case of both parties shall come before God; the one whom God condemns shall pay double to the other.^(BJ)

¹⁰ “When someone delivers to another a donkey, ox, sheep, or any other animal for safekeeping and it dies or is injured or is carried off without anyone seeing it, ¹¹ an oath before the Lord shall decide between the two of them that the one has not laid hands on the property of the other; the owner shall accept the oath, and no restitution shall be made.^{(BK) 12} But if it was stolen, restitution shall be made to its owner.^{(BL) 13} If it was mangled by beasts, let it be brought as evidence; restitution shall not be made for the mangled remains.

¹⁴ “When someone borrows an animal from another and it is injured or dies, the owner not being present, full restitution shall be made. ¹⁵ If the owner was present, there shall be no restitution; if it was hired, only the hiring fee is due.

Social and Religious Laws

¹⁶ “When a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her his wife.^{(BM) 17} But if her father refuses to give her to him, he shall pay an amount equal to the bride-price for virgins.

¹⁸ “You shall not permit a female sorcerer to live.^(BN)

¹⁹ “Whoever has intercourse with an animal shall be put to death.^(BO)

²⁰ “Whoever sacrifices to any god other than the Lord alone shall be devoted to destruction.^(BP)

²¹ “You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.^{(BQ) 22} You shall not abuse any widow or orphan.^{(BR) 23} If you do abuse them, when they cry out to me, I will surely heed their cry;^{(BS) 24} my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children orphans.^(BT)

²⁵ “If you lend money to my people, to the poor among you, you shall not deal with them as a creditor; you shall not exact interest from them.^{(BU) 26} If you take your neighbor’s cloak as guarantee, you shall restore it before the sun goes down, ²⁷ for it may be your neighbor’s only clothing to use as a cover. In what else shall that person sleep? And when your neighbor cries out to me, I will listen, for I am compassionate.

²⁸ “You shall not revile God or curse a leader of your people.^(BV)

²⁹ “You shall not delay to make offerings from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses.^[i]

“The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me.^{(BW) 30} You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall remain with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.^(BX)

³¹ “You shall be people consecrated to me, so you shall not eat any meat that is mangled by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.^(BY)

Justice for All

23 “You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with the wicked to act as a malicious witness.^{(BZ) 2} You shall not follow a majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall not side with the majority so as to pervert justice,^{[j](CA) 3} nor shall you be partial to the poor in a lawsuit.

⁴ “When you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.^(CB)

⁵ “When you see the donkey of one who hates you struggling under its burden and you would hold back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.^(CC)

⁶ “You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits.^{(CD) 7} Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the right, for I will not acquit the guilty.^{(CE) 8} You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds officials and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.^(CF)

⁹ “You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.^(CG)

Sabbatical Year and Sabbath

¹⁰ “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield,^{(CH) 11} but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow so that the poor of your people may eat, and what they leave the wild animals may eat. You shall do the same with your vineyard and with your olive orchard.

¹² “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest so that your ox and your donkey may have relief and your homeborn slave and the resident alien may be refreshed.^{(CI) 13} Be attentive to all that I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips.

The Annual Festivals

¹⁴ “Three times in the year you shall hold a festival for me. ¹⁵ You shall observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread; as I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt.

“No one shall appear before me empty-handed.^(CJ)

¹⁶ “You shall observe the Festival of Harvest, of the first fruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall observe the Festival of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor.^{(CK) 17} Three times in the year all your males shall appear before the Lord God.

¹⁸ “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened or let the fat of my festival remain until the morning.

¹⁹ “The choicest of the first fruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God.

“You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.^(CL)

The Conquest of Canaan Promised

²⁰ “I am going to send an angel in front of you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared.^{(CM) 21} Be attentive to him and listen to his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression, for my name is in him.^(CN)

²² “But if you listen attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.^(CO)

²³ “When my angel goes in front of you and brings you to the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, and I blot them out,^{(CP) 24} you shall not bow down to their gods or serve them or follow their practices, but you shall utterly demolish them and break their pillars in pieces.^{(CQ) 25} You shall serve the Lord your God, and I^[k] will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you.^{(CR) 26} No one shall miscarry or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.^{(CS) 27} I will send my terror in front of you and will throw into confusion all the people against whom you shall come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. ²⁸ And I will send swarms of hornets^[l] in front of you, which shall drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites from before you.^{(CT) 29} I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild animals multiply against you.^{(CU) 30} Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land. ³¹ I will set your borders from the Red Sea^[m] to the sea of the Philistines and from the wilderness to the Euphrates, for I will hand over to you the inhabitants of the land, and you shall drive them out before you.^{(CV) 32} You shall make no covenant with them and their gods.^{(CW) 33} They shall not live in your land, lest they make you sin against me, for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”^(CX)

The Blood of the Covenant

24 Then he said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship at a distance.^{(CY) 2} Moses alone shall come near the Lord, but the others shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him.”

³ Moses went and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the ordinances, and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that the Lord has spoken we will do.”^{(CZ) 4} And Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He rose early in the morning, built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and set up twelve pillars, corresponding to the twelve tribes of Israel.^{(DA) 5} He sent young men of the Israelites, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed oxen as offerings of well-being to the Lord. ⁶ Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he dashed against the altar.^{(DB) 7} Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”^{(DC) 8} Moses took the blood and dashed it on the people, and said, “Here is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”^(DD)

On the Mountain with God

⁹ Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up,^{(DE) 10} and they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there was something like a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness.^{(DF) 11} God^[n] did not lay his hand on the chief men of the Israelites; they beheld God, and they ate and drank.

¹² The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there; I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” ¹³ So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up onto the mountain of God. ¹⁴ To the elders he had said, “Wait here for us, until we come back to you. Look, Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a dispute may go to them.”

¹⁵ Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain.^{(DG) 16} The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud.^{(DH) 17} Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the Israelites.^{(DI) 18} Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.^(DJ)