Exodus 19:1-35:4

The Voice

Eternal One: This is what I want you to say to the house of Jacob—to all the people of Israel: ⁴ “You are eyewitnesses of all that I did to the Egyptians. You saw how I snatched you from the bonds of slavery and carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. ⁵ Now if you will hear My voice, obey what I say, and keep My covenant, then you—out of all the nations of the world—will be My treasured people. After all, the earth belongs to Me. ⁶ You will be My kingdom of priests, a nation holy and set apart.” Tell the Israelites exactly what I have told to you.

Israelites: ⁸ We will do everything the Eternal has told us to do!

Eternal One (to Moses): ⁹ I will come to you in a thick cloud so that the people will be able to hear My voice when I speak to you. That way they will trust you forever.

Eternal One (to Moses): ^10-11 Go down to the people and get them ready to meet Me today and tomorrow by purifying themselves and washing their garments. By the third day, they need to be ready, for on that day I will descend from Mount Sinai so that everyone can see. ¹² You are to set up boundaries all around the mountain and tell the people, “Be careful that you do not cross the boundaries and go up on the mountain or even touch the edge of it. If anyone so much as touches the mountain, he should be put to death. ¹³ No one is to touch the person or animal who crosses the boundary; stone them or shoot them with arrows but do not touch them. It doesn’t matter whether it is a human or an animal, it must be put to death.” But when they hear the long blast of the ram’s horn, then they are permitted to make their way up on the mountain.

Moses: Be ready for the third day. Do not have sexual relations with your spouse between now and then.

Eternal One (to Moses): ²¹ Go down, and warn the people not to cross the boundaries in order to try to see Me, or else many of them will die. ²² Any of the priests who draw near to Me must first rid themselves of any impurity so that I do not break loose and kill them.

Moses (to the Eternal): ²³ No one can approach Mount Sinai because You warned them when You said, “Set up boundaries around the mountain and keep the area holy and separate.”

Eternal One: ²⁴ Go back down and bring Aaron with you next time. But do not let any of the people (including priests) cross those boundaries to come up and meet Me, unless they want Me to break loose and kill them.

Eternal One: ² I am the Eternal your God. I led you out of Egypt and liberated you from lives of slavery and oppression.

³ You are not to serve any other gods before Me.

⁴ You are not to make any idol or image of other gods. In fact, you are not to make an image of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath. ⁵ You are not to bow down and serve any image, for I, the Eternal your God, am a jealous God. As for those who are not loyal to Me, their children will endure the consequences of their sins for three or four generations. ⁶ But for those who love Me and keep My directives, their children will experience My loyal love for a thousand generations.

⁷ You are not to use My name for your own idle purposes, for the Eternal will punish anyone who treats His name as anything less than sacred.

⁸ You and your family are to remember the Sabbath Day; set it apart, and keep it holy. ⁹ You have six days to do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is to be different; it is the Sabbath of the Eternal your God. Keep it holy by not doing any work—not you, your sons, your daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, or any outsiders living among you. ¹¹ For the Eternal made the heavens above, the earth below, the seas, and all the creatures in them in six days. Then, on the seventh day, He rested. That is why He blessed the Sabbath Day and made it sacred.

¹² You are to honor your father and mother. If you do, you and your children will live long and well in the land the Eternal your God has promised to give you.

¹³ You are not to murder.

¹⁴ You are not to commit adultery.

¹⁵ You are not to take what is not yours.

¹⁶ You are not to give false testimony against your neighbor.

¹⁷ You are not to covet what your neighbor has or set your heart on getting his house, his wife, his male or female servants, his ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.

Israelites (to Moses): ¹⁹ We are afraid to have God speak directly to us; we are certain that we will die. You speak to us instead; we promise to listen.

Moses: ²⁰ Don’t be afraid. These powerful manifestations are God’s way of instilling awe and fear in you so that you will not sin; He is testing you for your own good.

Eternal One (to Moses): ²² This is what I want you to tell the people of Israel: “You yourselves witnessed that I have spoken to you from heaven. ²³ It is essential that you not make any idols to rival Me. Do not make any idols out of silver or gold for yourselves! ²⁴ Take earth and build an altar to Me and sacrifice all of your burnt offerings and peace offerings there. Offer Me the best of your sheep and oxen. Wherever I choose for My name to be remembered, I will come to you and shower blessings upon you. ²⁵ But if you decide to build an altar out of stones for Me, use only natural stones, not hand-cut stones, because any attempt to shape them with your tools will desecrate the altar. ²⁶ Also, do not approach My altar by walking up steps, for you might profane the altar by exposing your nakedness.”

21 Eternal One (to Moses): These are other rules and guiding principles that you must present to the Israelites:

² If you purchase a male Hebrew slave, he will be your servant for six years only. When the seventh year arrives, he will go free without having to pay a price for his freedom.

³ If you acquire a slave who is not married, then he will depart as a single man. But if you acquire a man who is married, then his wife will also leave when he goes free.

⁴ If his master provides a wife for him, and the wife gives him sons and daughters, then both the wife and the children belong to the master, and only the slave will leave the master’s service when the seventh year arrives.

⁵ But if the seventh year arrives and the slave freely renounces his right to freedom, saying, “My heart is full of love for my master, my wife, and my children. I will not leave my master’s service as a free man,” ⁶ then his master will present him to the True God.^[a] Next his master will escort him to the doorway and pierce his ear against the doorpost with an awl. Then everyone will know this slave will serve his master for life.

⁷ Women are to be treated differently. If a man decides to sell his daughter as a slave, she will not be freed as male slaves are when the seventh year arrives. ⁸ If for any reason she does not please her master who handpicked her for a wife, then he is to allow her to be bought by another. He has no right to sell her to a foreign people because he has broken the agreement with her.

⁹ If the master chooses her as a wife for his son, then the master must treat her just as he would his own daughter.

¹⁰ If the master decides he wants to marry an additional wife, then he must not reduce his slave-wife’s food or clothing or any other marital rights. ¹¹ If he does not provide these three things for her, then she is free to leave without owing him any money for her freedom.

¹² If a man attacks another and the victim dies from the attack, then the attacker must be put to death. ¹³ But if God allows a person to die at the hands of another who never intended to kill him in the first place, then I will appoint a place where he can run and take refuge from those who would exact revenge. ¹⁴ But if a man plans an attack and cunningly kills his victim, then he will find no refuge at my altar. Take him from there and put him to death.

¹⁵ Also, anyone who strikes one of his parents must be put to death.

¹⁶ Anyone who kidnaps another—whether he has already sold his victim or still has him when he is caught—must be put to death.

¹⁷ And anyone who curses either of his parents must be put to death.^[b]

¹⁸ If people are engaged in an argument and one hits the other with a rock or his fist, and the victim does not die but is bedridden for a time and unable to work, ¹⁹ then the one who struck him will not be punished as long as the injured party recovers enough to be able to get out of bed and walk around with the help of his staff; however, he must pay his victim for lost time and wages, and make sure he has the care he needs until he recovers. ²⁰ If a person hits his male or female slave with a rod, and the slave dies because of the blow, then that person must be punished. ²¹ But if the slave survives a couple of days, then there will be no penalty because the slave belongs to the master.

²² If two men are fighting with each other and happen to hit a pregnant woman during the quarrel causing her to give birth prematurely (but no other harm is done), then the one who hit her must pay whatever fine the judges determine based upon the amount demanded by the woman’s husband.

²³ But if any further harm comes, then the standard for the punishment is reciprocal justice: a life for a life, ²⁴ an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth,^[c] a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot, ²⁵ a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, a bruise for a bruise.

²⁶ If anyone hits one of his slaves (male or female) in the eye and blinds him in that eye, then the master is to free the slave to compensate for the loss of the eye. ²⁷ If anyone hits one of his slaves (male or female) and knocks out a tooth, then the master is to free the slave to compensate for the loss of the tooth.

²⁸ If a bull gores a man or woman and the injury leads to the victim’s death, then the bull must be put to death by stoning. No one is allowed to eat the bull meat, and the owner of the bull has no further liability. ²⁹ But if a bull has gored people before and its owner is aware of the problem but has not confined it, and if that bull kills a man or woman, then the bull must be stoned and the owner must also be put to death.

³⁰ There is an exception. If the relatives of the dead demand money instead of his life, then the owner of the bull may redeem his life in exchange for whatever is required of him. ³¹ The same rule applies whether the bull gores someone’s son or daughter. ³² If the bull gores a slave (male or female), then the owner of the bull is to give the dead slave’s master 12 ounces of silver, and the bull must be stoned.

³³ If someone uncovers an old pit or digs a new pit and leaves it uncovered, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, ³⁴ then the person who owns the pit will be held responsible and must compensate the owner for the full cost of the animal; but the dead animal at the bottom of the pit belongs to the man who owns it.

³⁵ If a person’s bull injures another’s bull and it dies, then together they must sell the living bull and split the money equally; they must also divide the dead bull equally. ³⁶ Now if the bull already has a reputation for goring and the owner has not confined it, then the owner of the living bull must pay a healthy bull for the dead one, but he may keep the dead bull for himself.

22 Eternal One: If someone steals an ox or a sheep and either kills or sells it for profit, then he must pay five oxen for the one ox he stole or four sheep for the one sheep he stole. ⁴ But if the stolen animal—the ox or donkey or sheep—is still alive and in his possession when he is caught, then the thief must pay the owner double. ^3b A thief must make restitution for what he has taken. If he has no means of doing so, he must be sold to pay for his theft.

² If a person attacks a thief in the act of breaking into his house and the thief is killed during the attack, then the homeowner is innocent of blood guilt. ^3a It is different if the sun has already risen; so any homeowner who kills a thief during the day must be considered guilty of bloodshed.^[d]

Eternal One: ⁵ If someone allows his animals to graze a field or vineyard until it is bare and then lets his animals wander over onto a neighbor’s field, then he must compensate his neighbor from the very best of his field and vineyard.

⁶ If someone starts a fire and the fire spreads and sets the thorn bushes ablaze, and eventually that fire burns up stacks of harvested grain and everything growing in the fields, then the person who started the fire is responsible and must pay reparations for what was lost.

⁷ If someone gives his neighbor money or items to keep for him and it is stolen from his neighbor’s house, then if the thief is captured, he must pay double for what he stole. ⁸ If the thief is not found, then the person who owned the house that was burglarized must go stand before God’s presence so that He can decide whether he is the one who stole the property.

⁹ Whenever there is a breach of trust—regarding an ox, a donkey, a lamb, a piece of clothing, or any lost item—and the contested item is discovered in the possession of a neighbor and claimed by two different parties, then both sides must appear before God. If God finds the neighbor guilty, he must pay double for what he stole.

¹⁰ If someone leaves a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any other kind of livestock in his friend’s keeping, and the animal dies or is injured or disappears while no one is watching, ¹¹ then the two are to make an oath in the presence of the Eternal. The neighbor must swear he had nothing to do with the loss of the animal, and the owner of the animal must accept his statement and not demand any compensation for the loss.

¹² But if the animal was stolen while in his neighbor’s care, then the neighbor must compensate the owner. ¹³ If it was torn to pieces by another animal, then the neighbor may use the remains as evidence, and not have to pay any compensation for the torn animal.

¹⁴ If someone borrows an animal from a neighbor and it is harmed or dies while not in the possession of the owner, then the borrower must compensate the owner in full. ¹⁵ But if the owner was there when the animal dies or is harmed, then no compensation is required. If the animal has been rented and not borrowed, then the rental fee paid shall cover the loss of the animal.

¹⁶ If a man entices a virgin who is not promised to another man to have sex with him, then he must pay her father the bride-price and marry her. ¹⁷ If the young woman’s father refuses the marriage offer because he disapproves of the man, then the man still must pay the amount of money that is customary for the bride-price for virgins.

¹⁸ You are not to allow a sorceress to live.

¹⁹ Anyone who has sex with an animal must be put to death.

²⁰ Anyone who dares to sacrifice to any god other than the Eternal must be declared under the ban and destroyed.

²¹ Do not wrong or oppress any outsiders living among you, for there was a time when you lived as outsiders in the land of Egypt.

²² You must not take advantage of any widow or orphan. ²³ If you do oppress them and they cry out to Me, I will certainly hear them, ²⁴ and My wrath will be kindled. I will make sure you are slaughtered by your enemy’s sword, and your own wives and children will become widows and orphans.

²⁵ If you loan money to any of the poor among My people, do not treat them as borrowers and act as their creditors by charging interest. ²⁶ If your neighbor gives his coat to you as collateral, then be sure to give it back before night falls—even if he has not repaid you in full. ²⁷ You see that coat covers his body and may be his only protection against the cold. What do you think he would sleep in? When he calls out for Me, I will hear his cry. I am kind and compassionate as you should be when a fellow Israelite is in need.

²⁸ Do not curse the one True God or any rulers of your people.^[e]

²⁹ You must not hold back or delay your offering from the bounty of your harvest or the juice of your vineyard.^[f] Dedicate every one of your firstborn sons to Me. ³⁰ But dedicate your livestock—your ox and sheep—to Me in sacrifice. The firstborn of your livestock may stay with its mother for the first seven days. When the eighth day arrives, give the firstborn to Me. ³¹ You must be holy before Me. Do not eat any animal that has been torn to pieces by wild beasts in the field. Toss its remains to the dogs.

23 Eternal One: Do not pass along a false report. Do not plot with evil people to give a false witness.

² Even if the majority of people are doing evil, do not follow them. Also when you are called to give testimony in a dispute, do not let the crowd pressure you into perverting justice. ³ In the same way, do not side with the poor in a complaint just because he is poor.

⁴ If you are walking along and come across your enemy’s ox or donkey that has wandered away, then you must return it to its owner. ⁵ If you see the donkey of someone you know who hates you and it has fallen beneath its load, you must not leave it there. You must stop and help the donkey recover the load.

⁶ Do not deny justice to the poor among you in their disputes. ⁷ Stay far away from false accusations, and do not condemn the innocent or righteous to death. Understand this: I will not acquit those who commit such miscarriages of justice.

⁸ Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe can blind those who see and twist the words of those who are in the right. ⁹ Do not oppress an outsider. You know well what it is like to be an outsider living in a foreign land, for you were strangers once in the land of Egypt.

¹⁰ You have six years to plant your fields and harvest your crops. ¹¹ When the seventh year arrives, let your land rest and lie fallow. Let the poor and hungry among you come and harvest the volunteer crops that spring up in your fields. Whatever is left over, the beasts may eat. Do the same thing with your vineyards and your olive groves. ¹² You have six days to work. When the seventh day arrives, stop all work so that your ox and donkey can rest. When you observe the Sabbath Day, your female slave’s son and any outsider serving you have a chance to catch their breath and relax.

¹³ Be careful to do all that I have instructed you. Do not even acknowledge the names of other gods or let their names spill from your lips.

¹⁴ I want you to celebrate a feast in My honor three times a year. ¹⁵ First, celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As I instructed you before, you are to eat only bread made without yeast for the seven feast days beginning at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for that is when you fled out of Egypt. During this time, no one is to come before Me without some offering. ¹⁶ Second, celebrate the Feast of Harvest in the spring when you bring to Me the first and best of the wheat crop you planted in the field. Third, celebrate the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the harvest season when you gather your crops from the fields, orchards, and groves. ¹⁷ All of your men must come before the Eternal your Lord, these three times a year.

¹⁸ When you make offerings before Me, do not present any bread made with yeast along with an animal sacrifice. Do not let the fat of the sacrifice remain until the next morning. ¹⁹ Bring only the best crops from your first harvest into the house of the Eternal your God. You must not boil a baby goat in its mother’s milk.

²⁰ Look! I am going to send a heavenly messenger before you to protect you during your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you. ²¹ Pay attention to all he shows you and obey whatever he tells you. Do not cause him any trouble. He will not forgive you if you rebel against him for he carries My name in him.

²² If you are obedient to his voice and follow all of My instructions, then I will be an enemy to all of those who are against you, and I will oppose all those who oppose you. ²³ When My messenger moves ahead of you and leads you to the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites—I will annihilate them. ²⁴ Do not bow down to their gods, worship, or serve them in any way. Do not engage in any of their wicked practices. Instead, you must destroy every idol you find and shatter their sacred pillars into tiny pieces.

²⁵ Worship and serve only the Eternal your God, and I will bless you with an ample supply of wholesome food and clean water. I will take away all sickness from you, ²⁶ prevent miscarriages and barrenness, and give you long, productive lives. ²⁷ My fear and My dread will move ahead of you, and wherever you go people will greet you with panic and confusion. I will see to it that all of your enemies turn and run from you. ²⁸ I will unleash hornets ahead of you; and they will drive out the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites from the land before you. ²⁹ Now I will not do all this in a single year, because the land would become a wasteland, overpopulated with wild animals that would roam unchecked. ³⁰ Rather, I will drive them out a little at a time—a few here, a few there—until your numbers grow and you are strong enough to take over the land and its care. ³¹ I will set your borders from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea west of where the Philistines live and from the desert to the Euphrates River. I will give to you all those who inhabit the land, and you will drive them all out. ³² But do not make a covenant-treaty with them or agree to serve their gods. ³³ They must not be allowed to live in your land; otherwise they will cause you to sin against Me, the only True God. If you serve their gods, you will be trapped and be drawn into sin.

24 Eternal One (to Moses): Come up the mountain to Me, Moses, and this time bring with you Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and 70 elders of Israel. These may come, but you must worship from a distance. ² Only Moses is permitted to approach Me; but be careful, for the others must stay at a distance. The rest of the people of Israel must stay below; they are not to come up the mountain with you.

People (answering together): We will do all that the Eternal has asked us to do!

People (responding): We will do all that the Eternal has said! We will obey every word of His command!

Moses (to the people): Look! Here is the blood signifying the covenant that God has established with you according to all He has said and all we have promised.

Eternal One (to Moses): ¹² Come up the mountain to Me and stay here with Me for a while. I will give you stone tablets inscribed with My law and commandments in order to provide instruction and guidance for the people.

Moses (to the elders): ¹⁴ Wait here for our return. Aaron and Hur will stay with you. If anyone has a complaint, then they can speak to them.

Eternal One (to Moses): ^2-3 Instruct the Israelites to bring Me a sacred offering. All those whose hearts move them are to make an offering to the One who delivered them from bondage. You should accept only the finest things: gold, silver, and bronze metals; ⁴ blue, purple, and scarlet thread and fabric; fine linen and goat-hair garments; ⁵ ram skins (dyed red) and sea-cow^[i] leathers; acacia wood; ⁶ olive oil for the lamps; spices for anointing oil and incense; and ⁷ onyx and other gems for the ceremonial vestment and the breast piece worn by the high priest.

⁸ Direct them to build a holy sanctuary in My honor so that I can dwell among them. ⁹ Instruct the people to follow the pattern I am about to show you for the congregation tent and its furnishings.

¹⁰ I want them to build a covenant chest made from acacia wood. It should be 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high. ¹¹ Overlay it inside and out with pure gold, and decorate it with gold trim around the outside. ¹² Cast four gold rings and attach them to the four corners—two rings on each side. ¹³ Also, make poles out of acacia wood and overlay them with pure gold. ¹⁴ Slide the poles through the rings on the chest in order to carry it. ¹⁵ The poles must remain in the rings of the chest at all times; they are not to be removed. ¹⁶ Inside the chest you are to store the stone tablets that I will give you as a witness to our agreement. ¹⁷ Build a cover for the chest out of pure gold. It will be known as the seat of mercy—where sins are atoned—and it should be 45 inches long and 27 inches wide. ^18-19 Fashion two winged guardians^[j] out of hammered gold, and place them at both ends of the seat of mercy. Put one winged guardian at each end, but have your artisans make them appear as one solid piece with the cover. ²⁰ The guardians must face one another with bowed heads, their wings spread so that they reach up and cover the seat of mercy. ²¹ After you put the stone tablets that I will give you as a witness to our agreement in the chest, place the seat of mercy—where sins are atoned—as a lid to cover the chest. ²² I will meet with you there. I will speak to you from above the seat of mercy between the two winged creatures that sit atop the covenant chest. From there, I will speak to you about all the commands and instructions I have for the people of Israel.

²³ I want you to build a table made of acacia wood. It should be 36 inches long, 18 inches wide, and 27 inches high. ²⁴ Overlay it with pure gold, and decorate it with gold trim around the edge. ²⁵ Put a three-inch-wide^[k] rim around it, and place gold trim around the rim. ²⁶ Then make four gold rings, and attach them to each of the table’s four corners at its four legs. ²⁷ The rings need to be near the rim, so that they can hold the poles that carry the table. ²⁸ Make the poles out of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. You will use them to carry the table.

²⁹ Have your artisans make different kinds of dishes for the table—platters, pans, pitchers, and bowls—out of pure gold. ³⁰ Place the bread of the Presence on the table and keep it before Me at all times.

Eternal One: ³¹ Fashion a lampstand out of pure, hammered gold. Make it and all its parts—its base, trunk, branches, decorative buds and blossoms, and lamp cups—out of one solid piece. ³² Six branches will extend from the trunk’s sides—three on one side and three on the other. ³³ Each of the six branches will have three decorative cups shaped like almond blossoms whose buds have just flowered. ³⁴ On the trunk of the lampstand, there are to be four cups shaped like almond blossoms whose buds have just flowered. ³⁵ A single almond bud will sit beneath each pair of branches extending out from the trunk of the lampstand. ³⁶ All the buds and branches are to be crafted out of pure, hammered gold and made to look as one solid piece. ³⁷ Make seven lamps for the lampstand, and position them so that they illuminate the area in front of it. ³⁸ The tools and accessories for trimming the wicks and caring for the lamps are to be made of pure gold as well. ³⁹ The lampstand and all its accessories will require 75 pounds^[l] of your finest gold. ⁴⁰ Be sure that you make the covenant chest, table, lampstand and all their accessories according to the pattern I have shown you on the mountain.^[m]

26 Eternal One: Make the interior of the congregation tent out of 10 curtains made of the finest woven linens. Decorate it with blue, purple, and scarlet threads, beautifully embroidered by skilled workers with images of winged guardians. ² Make each curtain 42 feet long and 6 feet wide. ³ Attach five of the curtains together to form one larger curtain. Then take the other five, and attach them to form a second curtain. ⁴ Make loops out of material dyed blue and attach them on the outer edge of both sets of curtains. ⁵ Attach 50 more loops to the long edge on both sets of curtains so that the loops match up with one another. ⁶ Make 50 gold clasps to connect the curtains together so that all the curtains for the interior of the congregation tent form one continuous piece.

⁷ Next make 11 panels of tent fabric out of goat hair to cover the congregation tent and protect the beautiful embroidered curtains inside. ⁸ Each of the 11 panels is to be 45 feet long and 6 feet wide. ⁹ Attach five panels together to form a single wide panel. Then attach the remaining six to form a second panel. Fold the larger panel over at the front of the tent. ¹⁰ Make 50 loops on the long edge of each of these panels and ¹¹ 50 bronze clasps to connect the panels together, so that this covering for the congregation tent may function as one continuous piece. ¹² The extra length of the leather tent panels—the remaining half panel—will hang over the back of the congregation tent. ¹³ The extra length in the sides of the tent panels should be left to overlap so that the tent is covered completely. ¹⁴ You must add two more layers to protect the congregation tent: an inner layer made of red-dyed rams’ skins and an outer layer made of sea-cow hides.

¹⁵ Construct the supporting frame panels for the congregation tent out of the acacia wood. ¹⁶ Each panel should be 15 feet high and 27 inches wide. ¹⁷ For every panel, carve two tenons so that one panel fits perfectly into the next. ¹⁸ You will need 20 frame panels for the south wall of the congregation tent. ¹⁹ Make 40 silver bases to support the 20 frame panels, two bases beneath each panel so that each fits securely into the bases for support.

²⁰ Make 20 frame panels for the north^[n] wall of the tent as well, ²¹ sitting on 40 silver bases—two bases beneath each of the 20 panels.

²² For the back wall of the congregation tent (the side that faces west), make six frame panels. ²³ Make two special panels for each corner on the back side of the tent. ²⁴ They are to come together with the side panels at the bottom to make a strong corner and attach at the top to the first ring. This is how both corner panels should be made. ²⁵ So there are to be eight frame panels on the back wall that fit into 16 silver bases—two bases beneath each panel.

^26-27 Make five crossbars of acacia wood to connect the frame panels on each of three sides of the tent: north, south, and west. ²⁸ Run one bar from corner to corner in the middle, halfway up the panels. ²⁹ Overlay the frame panels with gold and make gold rings to hold the crossbars. Overlay the crossbars with gold as well. ³⁰ Set up the congregation tent according to the pattern you were shown on the mountain.

³¹ As for the interior of the congregation tent, have your skilled workers take the blue, purple, and scarlet threads, as well as the finest woven linens, and make a veil that is richly decorated with images of winged guardians. ³² Erect four posts made of acacia wood overlaid with gold onto four silver bases. When the veil is complete, hang it on the four posts using gold hooks ³³ suspended beneath the clasps that hold together the curtains; and place the covenant chest, which holds the sacred tablets, behind the veil. The veil will separate the two rooms and serve to divide the holy place from the most holy place.

³⁴ Place the seat of mercy—where sins are atoned—on top of the covenant chest in the most holy place. ³⁵ Put the table outside the veil on the north side of the tent, and set the lampstand facing it on the south side.

³⁶ As for the entrance to the congregation tent, have your skilled workers take the blue, purple, and scarlet threads, as well as the finest woven linens, and make another richly embroidered curtain. ³⁷ Erect five posts made of acacia overlaid with gold onto five bases cast in bronze. Hang the richly embroidered curtain on the five posts using gold hooks.

27 Eternal One: Make the altar of burnt offering from acacia wood. It should be square and measure seven and a half feet by seven and a half feet. Make it four and a half feet high. ² Construct it with horns on each of the four corners so that the top forms one whole piece, and overlay it with bronze. ³ Fashion buckets and shovels for the ashes, basins, forks, and fire pans out of bronze. ⁴ Make a grate out of bronze, and attach four bronze rings at each of its four corners. ⁵ Place the grate beneath the ledge of the altar, halfway up from the base. ⁶ Make poles out of acacia wood for the altar, and overlay them with bronze. ⁷ Slide the poles through the rings on both sides of the altar so that it can be moved. ⁸ Make the altar out of wooden planks, and make it hollow—exactly like the pattern you were shown on the mountain.

^9-10 Then enclose the courtyard in front of the congregation tent with large fabric panels made of finely woven linen on the south side that run 150 feet on silver hooks and rings supported by 20 bronze posts set securely into 20 bronze bases. ¹¹ The north side is to be made the same way: hang a series of panels for 150 feet on silver hooks and rings supported by 20 bronze posts set securely into 20 bronze bases. ¹² The fabric panels on the west end of the court are to run 75 feet (10 posts set into 10 bases). ¹³ The east end of the court facing the sunrise is to be 75 feet wide. ^14-15 Fabric panels, measuring 22½ feet wide, are to be hung on each end of the east entrance, held up by three posts set into three bases. ¹⁶ The entrance to the court is to be a 30-foot fabric screen, made out of finely woven linen richly embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet thread. It is to be held up by four posts set into four bases.

¹⁷ All the posts that define the courtyard are to have silver bands and silver hooks, and be set into bronze bases. ¹⁸ The courtyard itself is to be 150 feet long and 75 feet wide. The finely woven linen panels should be seven and a half feet high including the height of the bronze bases. ¹⁹ As for the items used in the ceremonies held in the congregation tent and the tent pegs used both inside and outside the tent, they are to be made of bronze.

²⁰ Direct the Israelites to bring you oil from olives whipped until it is clear in order to keep the lamps burning continually and producing the best light possible. ²¹ From dusk till dawn—inside the tent but outside the veil shrouding the most holy place—Aaron and his sons are to keep the lamps burning in My presence. This directive stands forever and must be carried out by the priests and people of Israel throughout all generations.

28 Eternal One: Have your brother, Aaron, and his sons (Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar) brought to you and appoint them to serve Me as priests for the people of Israel. ² In order to reflect the glory and beauty of their office, create sacred garments for your brother, Aaron. ³ Talk with all the skilled workers—those whom I have gifted with talent and the spirit of wisdom—and instruct them to create distinct garments that set Aaron apart from others whenever he is serving Me as priest. ⁴ Here are the ceremonial garments they need to make: a breast piece, a special vest, a robe, a checkered tunic, a turban, and a sash. The craftsmen are to make these sacred items for Aaron your brother and his sons to wear when they come before Me in priestly service. ⁵ They are to make the garments out of similar materials used for the congregation tent: gold, finely woven linen, and blue, purple, and scarlet thread.

⁶ Skilled workers are to make the special vest worn by the high priest out of finely woven linen embroidered with gold and with blue, purple, and scarlet thread. ⁷ It is to be made of two pieces joined together at the shoulders so that front and back form one piece. ⁸ The waistband should also be made by skilled workers from the finest quality materials: from gold; from blue, purple, and scarlet thread; and from finely woven linen. ⁹ Then take two onyx stones and engrave the names of Israel’s twelve sons upon them. ¹⁰ Carve six names onto each stone in the order of their birth. ¹¹ Engrave the twelve names upon the two stones, just as a jeweler would engrave a seal. Mount each stone into ornamental gold settings, and ¹² fasten them on the shoulder pieces of the vest to represent Israel’s sons. Aaron must wear the names on both shoulders as a memorial before Me. ¹³ Create ornamental gold settings at the shoulders of the vest ¹⁴ and attach to them two chains made of pure gold braided together like cords.

¹⁵ Have your skilled workers make a breast piece of judgment out of the same quality materials and in the same style as the vest. Use finely woven linen; blue, purple, and scarlet thread; and gold. ¹⁶ Make it square and fold it over to double the material, and create a pouch nine inches by nine inches. ¹⁷ Attach four rows of stones to the breast piece. The first row is to be a ruby, topaz, and emerald; ¹⁸ the second row is turquoise, sapphire, and diamond; ¹⁹ the third row is jacinth, agate, and amethyst; ²⁰ the fourth row is beryl, onyx, and jasper. Attach all the stones to the breast piece with ornamental gold settings. ²¹ These stones stand for the twelve tribes of Israel. Each will be engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes. ²² Also braid strands of gold into chains and attach them to the breast piece. ²³ Fashion two gold rings for the breast piece as well and attach them to the two ends. ²⁴ Fasten the two gold chains to the two gold rings at the ends of the breast piece. ²⁵ Fasten the loose ends of the chains on the two ornamental gold settings to the shoulders of the special vest. ²⁶ Fashion two more gold rings and attach them to the breast piece at the inside edge next to the vest. ²⁷ Make two additional gold rings and attach them to the front of the vest below the shoulders near the seam just above the waistband. ²⁸ Connect the rings on the breast piece to the rings on the vest using a blue cord. This way, it will be attached above the waistband and not come loose from the vest. ²⁹ Aaron must keep the names of the tribes of Israel in the breast piece of judgment over his heart whenever he enters the holy place; and this will serve as a memorial before the Eternal One, a constant reminder of the covenant.

Eternal One: ³⁰ Keep the Urim and Thummim in a special pouch on the front of the breast piece of judgment. Aaron must wear these two objects over his heart whenever he enters My presence. This way he will always have with him a way to know My will and make sound decisions for the people of Israel.

³¹ Make the robe worn under the vest blue. ³² Make a hole for the head in the center of it. Form a collar around the hole by lining it with an extra layer of woven material so it will not tear. ³³ Embroider pomegranates out of the blue, purple, and scarlet thread and attach them to the hem of the robe. Fashion bells out of gold, and place them all around the hem between the pomegranates. ³⁴ Use an alternating pattern: bell, pomegranate, bell, pomegranate, and so on. ³⁵ Whenever he serves as priest, Aaron must wear the robe so that he will not die, because the tinkling of the bells will announce that he intends to enter or leave My presence in the holy place.

³⁶ Make a medallion out of pure gold, and engrave it like you were engraving a seal with the inscription: “Holy to the Eternal.” ³⁷ Fasten it with a blue cord to the front of Aaron’s turban. ³⁸ Aaron must wear it on his forehead in order to take on any guilt from the sacred gifts—regardless of what they are—which the Israelites dedicate to Me. Aaron must always wear it on his forehead, so that the gifts they offer may be acceptable to Me.

Eternal One: ³⁹ The tunic is to be made of finely woven checkered linen. Make the turban out of fine linen as well, and have skilled workers embroider the sash. ⁴⁰ As for the rest of Aaron’s sons, make tunics, sashes, and special caps to reflect the glory and beauty of their office. ⁴¹ When they serve as priests, dress Aaron, your brother, and his sons in these ceremonial garments; anoint them, ordain them, and consecrate them. ⁴² Furnish them with linen undergarments, so that they are covered from their waists to their thighs. ⁴³ Aaron and his sons are to put them on whenever they go into the congregation tent or go near the altar to minister in the holy place. They must do this so that they don’t incur guilt and die. This directive stands forever for Aaron and all those who come after him.

29 Eternal One: Here is how to conduct the ceremony that consecrates Aaron and his sons as priests: select one flawless young bull and two flawless rams. ² Using a good quality wheat flour, make bread without yeast, cakes without yeast with oil, and wafers without yeast spread with oil. ³ Place all these baked goods in a basket, and offer them to God along with the young bull and two rams.

⁴ Then escort Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the congregation tent, and wash them carefully with water. ⁵ Take all the ceremonial garments and put them on Aaron: the tunic, the robe worn under the vest, the vest, and the breast piece. Fasten the vest’s waistband around him as well. ⁶ Place the turban on his head and attach the sacred medallion to the front of it. ⁷ When he is completely dressed, pour the anointing oil over his head.

⁸ Then escort Aaron’s sons to the congregation tent, and dress them in tunics as well. ⁹ Fasten sashes around the waists of Aaron and his sons and put special caps on their heads. This is how you are to ordain^[o] them.

¹⁰ Then bring the young bull to the entrance of the congregation tent, and Aaron and his sons will lay their hands on its head. ¹¹ Slaughter the bull in My presence at the entrance of the congregation tent. ¹² Take some of the bull’s blood and smear it on the horns of the altar with your finger. Pour out any remaining blood at the foot of the altar. ¹³ Remove all the fat from around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, the two kidneys, and the fat surrounding them and burn them on the altar. ¹⁴ All the remaining parts of the bull—its hide, meat, and refuse—are to be burned as a sin offering away from the camp.

¹⁵ Select one of the rams and have Aaron and his sons lay their hands on its head. ¹⁶ Slaughter the ram and splatter its blood on all sides of the altar. ¹⁷ Then cut the ram up into pieces. Clean out the intestines and wash off the legs so nothing unclean is mixed with the sacrifice. Then place them alongside the other pieces, including the head, ¹⁸ and burn the entire animal as a burnt offering to Me. This offering by fire presented to Me will give off a pleasing aroma.

¹⁹ Then bring the other ram, and have Aaron and his sons lay their hands on its head. ²⁰ Slaughter the ram, and smear some of its blood on the right earlobe of Aaron and his sons. Then smear it on the thumbs of their right hands and the big toes of their right feet. Splatter the remaining blood on all sides of the altar. ²¹ Collect some of the blood from the altar and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and his garments and on his sons and their garments. This is how you are to consecrate Aaron, his sons, and their garments. ²² Next remove the fat from the ram, the fat tail, the fat from around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, the two kidneys and the fat surrounding them, and the right thigh (because this is an offering for ordination). ²³ Take one loaf of bread, one cake of bread with oil, and one wafer from the basket of yeastless bread that was placed before Me. ²⁴ Place all of these in the hands of Aaron and his sons to lift up as a wave offering to Me. ²⁵ Then take them from their hands and burn them on the altar along with the burnt offering. This offering by fire presented to Me will give off a pleasing aroma.

²⁶ Then take the breast from Aaron’s ordination ram, and lift it up before Me as a wave offering. This will be your portion of the sacrifice. ²⁷ Consecrate the breast and the thigh which were lifted up before Me as a wave offering from the ordination ram. They belong to Aaron and his sons. ²⁸ From now on when the people of Israel offer a peace offering, Aaron and his descendants must receive a share of what the people offer Me in that sacrifice. It is their due for their priestly service.

²⁹ When Aaron dies, his sacred garments must be passed down to his descendants. They will wear them when they are anointed and ordained. ³⁰ Aaron’s son who succeeds him as high priest to minister in the congregation tent and holy place will wear these clothes for seven days.

Eternal One: ³¹ Take the meat of the ordination ram and boil it in a sacred place. ³² Aaron and his sons are to eat it and the bread from the basket at the entrance to the congregation tent. ³³ Only they are allowed to eat the bread and meat which was part of their purification rite in the ordination ceremony. An outsider may not eat them because they are holy. ³⁴ If any meat or bread is left over from the ordination ceremony the next morning, burn it completely. No one is allowed to eat it, for it is holy.

³⁵ The ordination period is to last for seven days. Here is what you must do to ordain Aaron and his sons to My priestly service. ³⁶ Offer a bull as an offering every day for seven days to purify them from sin. Cleanse the altar and consecrate it by anointing it with oil. ³⁷ For seven days you must purify the altar and consecrate it. As a result of these rituals it will be most holy and anything that touches the altar will become holy.

³⁸ Here are the sacrifices you are to offer on the altar: every day offer two one-year-old lambs. ³⁹ Offer one lamb in the morning, and the other at twilight. ⁴⁰ With the lamb offered in the morning bring two quarts of fine flour mixed together with one quart of beaten olive oil, and one quart of wine for the drink offering. ⁴¹ With the second lamb offered at twilight, bring the same gifts of grain and drink that you offered with the morning lamb. These offerings by fire presented to Me will give off a pleasing aroma. ⁴² From generation to generation, the ritual of the burnt offering is to begin daily at the entrance of the congregation tent in My presence. I will meet with you and talk with you there. ⁴³ I will meet with My people Israel there, for My glory will make that place sacred. ⁴⁴ I will sanctify the congregation tent and the altar. I will also consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve as My priests. ⁴⁵ I will live among the Israelites and be their God. ⁴⁶ And they will know that I am the Eternal their God, who led them out of Egypt so that I could live among them. I am the Eternal One their God.

30 Eternal One: Make an altar out of acacia wood for burning incense ² in the shape of a square—18 inches long, 18 inches wide, and 36 inches high. Carve the horns and the top of the altar out of one piece of wood. ³ Overlay the top, sides, and horns with pure gold, and attach gold trim around its edges. ⁴ Fashion two gold rings, and attach them beneath the trim on the two opposite sides; the rings are to hold the poles so that the altar can be carried. ⁵ Make the poles out of acacia wood as well and overlay them with gold. ⁶ Place this altar just outside of the veil that conceals the covenant chest and the seat of mercy that sits on top of the covenant chest. I will meet with you there.

⁷ Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he trims the lamps’ wicks ⁸ and every evening when he lights the lamps. Incense must be burned in My presence throughout all your generations. ⁹ Do not burn any strange incense, burnt offerings, or grain offerings at this altar. Also, do not pour out any drink offerings on it. ¹⁰ Since this altar is sacred to Me, Aaron is to cleanse it once each year by smearing blood from the sin offering on its horns. Throughout all your generations, the high priests are to perform this ritual.

Eternal One (to Moses): ¹² When you take a census of the population of Israel, each person should pay a ransom to Me so that no disease will spread among them when you count them. ¹³ Everyone who is counted must bring ⅕ ounce of silver—a weight based on the sanctuary’s measure, where ⅖ ounce equals 20 gerahs^[p]—and it is to be given to Me as an offering. ¹⁴ Everyone who is 20 years old and older will be counted and must give this offering to Me. ¹⁵ The rich will not pay more, and the poor will not pay less than ⅕ of an ounce. This money will go to Me in order to ransom your lives. ¹⁶ Take all the money collected from the people of Israel and use it to provide for the service of the congregation tent. This will serve as a constant reminder of My covenant with Israel and provide a way to atone for your lives.

Eternal One: ¹⁸ Make a bronze basin for ceremonial washing and set it on a bronze stand. Place it between the congregation tent and the altar. Keep water in it at all times. ^19-20 When Aaron and his sons enter the congregation tent, or when they approach the altar to minister before Me by offering a sacrifice by fire, they must wash their feet and hands so that they will not die. ²¹ It is important that they are to wash their hands and feet, so that they will not die. This directive stands forever for Aaron and his descendants, and they must observe it throughout all generations.

Eternal One: ²³ Collect the best spices: twelve and a half pounds of liquid myrrh, six pounds of fragrant cinnamon, six pounds of fragrant cane, ²⁴ and twelve and a half pounds of cassia—in accordance with the sanctuary weights—and one gallon of olive oil. ²⁵ Blend all these spices together like a skillful perfumer to make a holy anointing oil; this fragrant mixture will be used as a holy anointing oil. ²⁶ Use it to anoint the congregation tent and the covenant chest, ²⁷ the table and all its accessories, the lampstand and its tools, the altar of incense, ²⁸ the altar for the burnt offering and all its tools, and the basin and its stand. ²⁹ Consecrate all these furnishings and their utensils so that they are most holy. Anything that touches them will become holy.

³⁰ Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them, so that they are able to serve as My priests. ³¹ Address the Israelites and say, “This is My sacred anointing oil that you will use for all generations. ³² It must not be poured on anyone else. Do not attempt to make an anointing oil for your own purposes with the same ingredients in the same proportions. It is sacred, and it is to be sacred to you. ³³ Whoever makes a similar blend or anoints anyone who is not ordained as a priest will be cut off from the community.”

Eternal One: Gather three aromatic spices—stacte, onycha, galbanum—and mix them with pure frankincense in equal measure. ³⁵ Have a perfumer take this mixture and blend it carefully with salt in order to create a pure and sacred incense. ³⁶ Grind it into a fine powder, and place some of it in front of the covenant chest in the congregation tent where I will meet with you. It will be most holy to you. ³⁷ Do not attempt to make incense for yourselves with the same ingredients in the same proportion. You must regard this as perfectly sacred to Me. ³⁸ Whoever makes an incense like it and uses it for themselves will be cut off from the community.

Eternal One: ² Look, I have a special calling upon one of the sons of Judah. His name is Bezalel (the son of Uri, son of Hur). ³ I have filled him with God’s Spirit, gifted him with wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and skills with a variety of crafts. ⁴ He is an expert designer and works well with gold, silver, and bronze. ⁵ He is able to cut and set gems, work with wood, and skillfully perform any craft needed to help construct the congregation tent and its furnishings. ⁶ I have appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan to assist Bezalel. I have gifted all of Israel’s artisans with the skills needed to build everything I have instructed you: ⁷ the congregation tent, the covenant chest, the seat of mercy that covers it, all the furnishings for the tent, ⁸ the table and its accessories, the pure gold lampstand with all its tools, the altar of incense, ⁹ the altar for burnt offering with all its utensils, the washing basin and its stand, ¹⁰ the woven garments, Aaron’s sacred priestly garments, the clothes worn by Aaron’s sons when they serve as My priests, ¹¹ the anointing oil, and the fragrant incense to be used in the holy place. The craftsmen are to design and build all of these exactly as I have instructed you.

Eternal One: ¹³ Speak to the Israelites and tell them, “You must be careful to observe My Sabbaths. For the Sabbath Day serves as a sign between Me and you for all generations, so that you will know I am the Eternal One who has set you apart from all the other nations. ¹⁴ Keep the Sabbath because it is a sacred day for you, different from all other days. Anyone who violates the Sabbath or defiles it must be executed; anyone who works on the Sabbath will be cut off from the community. ¹⁵ You have six days out of every week to do whatever work is needed, but the seventh day is the Sabbath, a day set aside for rest and only rest. It is sacred to Me. Anyone who works on the Sabbath must be executed. ¹⁶ Therefore, the Israelites are to keep the Sabbath and celebrate it throughout all their generations as an everlasting covenant. ¹⁷ The Sabbath exists as a sign forever of the covenant between Me and the people of Israel for I made heaven and earth in six days, but then on the seventh day I stopped My work and was refreshed.”

People: We have no idea what happened to this fellow Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt.^[q] He left you in charge, so get up and make us gods who will lead us from here.

Aaron: ² I want you to bring me the gold earrings your wives, sons, and daughters are wearing.

People (seeing the calf): Israel, these are your gods—the ones who led you out of the land of Egypt.

Aaron: We are going to have a feast to the Eternal tomorrow.

Eternal One: Go back down the mountain immediately, because your people whom you led out of Egypt have corrupted themselves. ⁸ They have quickly abandoned the way of life I require of them. They have fashioned a calf out of gold, bowed down to it, and offered it sacrifices. They are even crediting My work to that detestable idol, saying, “Israel, these are your gods—the ones who brought you out of the land of Egypt!”

⁹ I know these people, and they are unbelievably stubborn. ¹⁰ Leave Me alone so that My anger can flare up and destroy them. Then I will start over and continue My plans without them and make a great nation out of you.

Moses (begging): ¹¹ Eternal One, why are You so angry? Why does Your anger flare up against the people You led out of Egypt with so much power and a strong hand? ¹² Do You really want the Egyptians to say: “You deceived them and led them into the mountains in order to kill them and to wipe their memory from the earth”? I beg you to curb Your anger, and change your mind. Don’t harm Your people. ¹³ Remember the sacred promise You made to Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. You swore, “I will make your descendants as many as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all of this land as I promised. It will be their everlasting inheritance.”

Joshua (to Moses): It sounds like a battle going on down at the camp.

Moses: ¹⁸ It is not the sound of victory, and it’s not the sound of defeat, but I do hear singing and celebration.

Moses (to Aaron): ²¹ How could you lead these people into such a heinous sin? What did they do to you?

Aaron: ²² Control your anger, my master. You know these people. You know how evil they can be. ²³ They told me, “We have no idea what happened to this fellow Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt. He left you in charge, so get up and make us some gods to lead us from here.” ²⁴ So I told them, “If you are wearing any gold, take it off.” So they gave me all their gold and I just tossed it into the fire, and out came this calf!

Moses: If you are on the side of the Eternal One, stand over here with me!

Moses (to the Levites): ²⁷ This is the message of the Eternal One, Israel’s True God: “Every one of you strap on your sword and move throughout the entire camp. Kill your brother, friend, and neighbor.”

Moses (to the Levites): ²⁹ Dedicate your lives to the Eternal today—for every one of you has moved against sons and brothers. Because of your devotion to God, you have earned His blessing today.

Moses: You are guilty of a great sin. Now I am going back to the Eternal One, and I hope to make atonement for your wickedness.

Moses: These people are guilty of a great sin against You. They fashioned gods out of gold for themselves. ³² If You will only forgive their sin, but if You do not, then erase me from the book You have written.

Eternal One: ³³ I will erase from My book the name of everyone who has sinned against Me. ³⁴ It’s time to go and leave this mountain. Lead the people to the place I told you. Look, My messenger will guide you there. When the time comes, I will punish them for what they have done.

33 Eternal One (instructing Moses): The time has now arrived. Leave, and take all the people you have led out of Egypt with you. Go to the land I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom I said, “I will give this land to your future generations.” ² I will send a messenger to guide you, and I will force out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and the Jebusites. ³ Travel to the land that flows with milk and honey, the land of your inheritance. However, because you are such an incredibly stubborn people, I will not be going with you. Otherwise, I would completely destroy you during the journey.

Moses (to the Lord): ¹² Look, You tell me, “Lead these people!” but You haven’t yet told me whom You will send to accompany me. Yet You tell me, “I know you by name, and you have gained My trust and blessing.” ¹³ If I have gained Your trust and blessing, reveal Your way to me so that I can truly know You, and so that I may gain Your favor. Remember that this nation is Your covenant people.

Eternal One: ¹⁴ My presence will travel with you, and I will give you rest.

Moses: ¹⁵ If Your presence doesn’t travel with me, then don’t lead us away from here. ¹⁶ How will the people know that I have gained Your trust and blessing if You do not travel with us? Isn’t it the very fact that Your presence travels with us that distinguishes us from every other people on earth?

Eternal One: ¹⁷ I will do what you have said because you have gained My trust and blessing, and I know you by name.

Moses: ¹⁸ If Your presence will go with us, then let me see Your glory!

Eternal One: ¹⁹ I will cause all My goodness to pass before you, and I will declare My name, the Eternal One, before you. I will show mercy to whomever I choose to show mercy, and I will demonstrate compassion on whomever I choose to have compassion.^{[t] 20} You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live. ²¹ Look, there is a place next to Me on the rock where you may stand. ²² While My glory is passing by you, I will place you in a large crevice of the rock and hide you beneath My hand until I have completely passed by. ²³ Then I will remove My hand, and you will see only My back. But you won’t be able to see My face.

34 Eternal One (to Moses): I want you to cut two stone tablets exactly like the first ones I gave you. I will write the same words on these tablets that were on the tablets you shattered. ² Make sure you are ready when morning arrives. Climb up to the summit of Mount Sinai and present yourself to Me. ³ No one is allowed to accompany you this time. No one is allowed to be anywhere on the mountain. This goes for your flocks and herds as well; take them to graze away from the mountain.

Eternal One: The Eternal God, full of compassion and mercy, slow to anger, and abundant in loyal love and truth, ⁷ who maintains loyal love to thousands of people, who forgives wrongdoing, rebellion, and sin; yet does not allow sin to go unpunished, extending the consequences of a father’s sin to his children, his grandchildren, and even to the third and fourth generations.

Moses: ⁹ If I have gained Your trust and blessing, Lord, please go with us, despite the incredible stubbornness of this people. I also ask that You forgive our wrongdoing and our sins, and receive us as Your very own people, Your inheritance.

Eternal One: ¹⁰ Look, I am about to make an extraordinary covenant with you. Before the eyes of all your people, I will do miraculous things that have never been done among any nation on earth. All of the nations living around you will witness the work that I do, for everything I do among you will inspire fear and awe. ¹¹ You must be careful to obey the instructions I give you today. I am about to force the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites out of the land you will inherit. ¹² Be careful. Do not make a covenant with the people who now live in the land where you are going. Any promises you make to these people could entrap you. ¹³ Destroy their altars and pillars, and cut down their sacred poles ¹⁴ because you must not worship any god except for Me. My name is Jealous, and I am a jealous God. ¹⁵ Do not make a covenant with the people who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves with their so-called gods and sacrifice to them, they will coax you and you will feast upon their sacrifices. ¹⁶ And when you take some of their daughters as wives for your sons—the daughters who prostitute themselves with other gods—they will seduce your sons into joining them in chasing after other gods.

¹⁷ You are not to cast metal images for yourselves of any gods.

¹⁸ You are to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread every year as I have instructed you. Eat bread made without yeast for seven days at the designated time in the month of Abib, the month that you departed from Egypt. ¹⁹ All the firstborn belong to Me. Every male animal from your livestock, both cattle and sheep, that opens the womb is Mine. ²⁰ You may redeem the firstborn of a donkey with a lamb. If you choose not to redeem it, then you are to break its neck. Redeem all of your firstborn sons as well. No one may appear before Me empty-handed.

²¹ You are to work for six days; but when the seventh day arrives, you are to observe the Sabbath and rest. Even when it is the time to plow and harvest, you must still rest on the seventh day. ²² Also, you are to celebrate the Feast of Weeks, when the firstfruits from the wheat harvest are gathered. And when one year ends and another begins, celebrate the Ingathering Feast. ²³ All your men are to appear before Me, the Lord and one True God of Israel, three times a year at these feasts. ²⁴ For I will force the people out of the land before you and expand your borders. No one will try to take your land while you are going up those three times a year to appear before Me, your God.

²⁵ You are not to offer blood from a sacrifice with bread made with yeast. Do not leave any of the meat from the Passover sacrifice until morning. ²⁶ Offer only the best of your harvest when you bring a gift to the house of the Eternal One your God. Also you are not to boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

²⁷ (to Moses) Be sure to write down all that I have said to you. By these words of Mine, I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.

Moses: These are the instructions the Eternal One has commanded you to do: ² “You are to work for six days; but when the seventh day arrives, you are to observe a day of solemn rest on the Sabbath. You are to regard this day as holy to the Eternal. Anyone who works on this sacred day must be executed. ³ Do not even start a fire in any of your houses on the Sabbath.”

⁴ These are the instructions The Eternal One has commanded you to do: