Bible in 90 Days

¹⁹ The horses, chariot drivers and chariots of the king of Egypt went into the sea. And the Lord covered them with water from the sea. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry land. ²⁰ Then Aaron’s sister Miriam, who was a prophetess, took a tambourine in her hand. All the women followed her, playing tambourines and dancing. ²¹ Miriam told them:

The Bitter Water

²² Moses led the people of Israel away from the Red Sea. The people went into the Desert of Shur. They traveled for three days in the desert but found no water. ²³ Then they came to Marah, where there was water. But they could not drink it because it was too bitter. That is why the place was named Marah.^{[a] 24} The people grumbled to Moses. They asked, “What will we drink?”

²⁵ Moses cried out to the Lord. So the Lord showed him a tree. Moses threw the tree into the water. And the water became good to drink.

There the Lord gave the people a rule and a law to live by. There he also tested their loyalty to him. ²⁶ He said, “You must obey the Lord, your God. You must do what the Lord said is right. You must obey all his laws and keep his rules. If you do these things, I will not give you any of the sicknesses I gave the Egyptians. I am the Lord. I am the Lord who heals you.”

²⁷ Then the people traveled to Elim. At Elim there were 12 springs of water and 70 palm trees. So the people camped there near the water.

The People Demand Food

16 Then the whole Israelite community left Elim. They came to the Desert of Sin. This place was between Elim and Sinai. They came to this place on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left Egypt. ² Then the whole Israelite community grumbled to Moses and Aaron in the desert. ³ The Israelites said to them, “It would have been better if the Lord had killed us in the land of Egypt. There we had meat to eat. We had all the food we wanted. But you have brought us into this desert. You will starve us to death here.”

⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will cause food to fall like rain from the sky. This food will be for all of you. Every day the people must go out and gather what they need for that day. I will do this to see if the people will do what I teach them. ⁵ On the sixth day of each week, they are to gather twice as much as they gather on other days. Then they are to prepare it.”

⁶ So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites: “This evening you will know that the Lord is the one who brought you out of Egypt. ⁷ Tomorrow morning you will see the greatness of the Lord. He has heard you grumble against him. We are nothing. You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.” ⁸ And Moses said, “Each evening the Lord will give you meat to eat. And every morning he will give you all the bread you want. He will do this because he has heard you grumble against him. You are not grumbling against Aaron and me. You are grumbling against the Lord.”

⁹ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Speak to the whole community of the Israelites. Say to them, ‘Meet together in front of the Lord because he has heard your grumblings.’”

¹⁰ So Aaron spoke to the whole community of the Israelites. While he was speaking, they looked toward the desert. There the greatness of the Lord appeared in a cloud.

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, ¹² “I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel. So tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat. And every morning you will eat all the bread you want. Then you will know I am the Lord, your God.’”

¹³ That evening, quail came and covered the camp. And in the morning dew lay around the camp. ¹⁴ When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost were on the desert ground. ¹⁵ When the Israelites saw it, they asked each other, “What is that?” They asked this question because they did not know what it was.

So Moses told them, “This is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. ¹⁶ The Lord has commanded, ‘Each one of you must gather what he needs. Gather about two quarts for every person in your family.’”

¹⁷ So the people of Israel did this. Some people gathered much, and some gathered little. ¹⁸ Then they measured it. The person who gathered more did not have too much. The person who gathered less did not have too little. Each person gathered just as much as he needed.

¹⁹ Moses said to them, “Don’t keep any of it to eat the next day.” ²⁰ But some of the people did not listen to Moses. They kept part of it to eat the next morning. But it became full of worms and began to stink. So Moses was angry with these people.

²¹ Every morning each person gathered as much food as he needed. But when the sun became hot, it melted away.

²² On the sixth day the people gathered twice as much food. They gathered four quarts for every person. So all the leaders of the community came and told this to Moses. ²³ Moses said to them, “This is what the Lord commanded. Tomorrow is the Sabbath, the Lord’s holy day of rest. Bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil today. But save the rest of the food until tomorrow morning.”

²⁴ So the people saved it until the next morning, as Moses had commanded. And none of it began to stink or have worms in it. ²⁵ Moses told the people, “Eat the food you gathered yesterday. Today is a Sabbath, the Lord’s day of rest. So you will not find any out in the field today. ²⁶ You should gather the food for six days. But the seventh day is a Sabbath day. On that day there will not be any food on the ground.”

²⁷ On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather food, but they couldn’t find any. ²⁸ Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long will all you people refuse to obey my commands and teachings? ²⁹ Look, the Lord has made the Sabbath a day of rest for all of you. So on the sixth day he will give you enough food for two days. But on the Sabbath each of you must stay where you are. Do not leave your house.” ³⁰ So the people rested on the Sabbath.

³¹ The people of Israel called the food manna. The manna was like small white seeds. It tasted like wafers made with honey.

³² Then Moses said, “The Lord said, ‘Save two quarts of this food for your descendants. Then they can see the food that I gave you to eat. I did this in the desert when I brought you out of Egypt.’”

³³ Moses told Aaron, “Take a jar and fill it with two quarts of manna. And save this manna for your descendants.” ³⁴ So Aaron did what the Lord had commanded Moses. Aaron put the jar of manna in front of the Ark of the Covenant. He did this so it could be kept. ³⁵ The Israelites ate manna for 40 years. They ate it until they came to the land where they settled. They ate manna until they came to the edge of the land of Canaan. ³⁶ The measure they used for the manna was two quarts. It was one-tenth of an ephah.^[b]

Water from a Rock

17 The whole Israelite community left the Desert of Sin. They traveled from place to place as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim. But there was no water there for the people to drink. ² So they quarreled with Moses. They said, “Give us water to drink.”

But Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why are you testing the Lord?”

³ But the people were very thirsty for water. So they grumbled against Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Was it to kill us, our children and our farm animals with thirst?”

⁴ So Moses cried to the Lord, “What can I do with these people? They are almost ready to kill me with stones.”

⁵ The Lord said to Moses, “Go ahead of the people of Israel. And take some of the elders of Israel with you. Carry with you the walking stick that you used to strike the Nile River. Now go! ⁶ I will stand in front of you on a rock at Mount Sinai. Hit that rock with the stick, and water will come out of it. Then the people can drink.” Moses did these things as the elders of Israel watched. ⁷ Moses named that place Massah^[c] because the Israelites tested the Lord. They asked, “Is the Lord with us or not?” He also named it Meribah^[d] because they quarreled.

The Amalekites Fight Israel

⁸ At Rephidim the Amalekites came and fought the Israelites. ⁹ So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some men and go and fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill. I will hold the stick God gave me to carry.”

¹⁰ Joshua obeyed Moses and went to fight the Amalekites. At the same time Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. ¹¹ As long as Moses held his hands up, the Israelites would win the fight. But when Moses put his hands down, the Amalekites would win. ¹² Later, Moses’ arms became tired. So the men put a large rock under Moses, and he sat on it. Then Aaron and Hur held up Moses’ hands. Aaron was on one side of Moses, and Hur was on the other side. They held his hands up like this until the sun went down. ¹³ So Joshua defeated the Amalekites in this battle.

¹⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write about this battle in a book so people will remember. And be sure to tell Joshua. Tell him because I will completely destroy the Amalekites from the earth.”

¹⁵ Then Moses built an altar. He named it The Lord is my Banner. ¹⁶ Moses said, “I lifted my hands toward the Lord’s throne. The Lord will fight against the Amalekites forever.”

Jethro Visits Moses

18 Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, was the priest of Midian. He heard about everything that God had done for Moses and his people, the Israelites. Jethro heard how the Lord had led the Israelites out of Egypt. ² Moses had sent his wife Zipporah to Jethro, his father-in-law. ³ Moses had also sent his two sons. The first son was named Gershom.^[e] When he was born, Moses said, “I am a stranger in a foreign country.” ⁴ The other son was named Eliezer.^[f] When he was born, Moses said, “The God of my father is my help. He saved me from the king of Egypt.”

⁵ So Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, went to Moses. Moses was camped in the desert near Sinai, the mountain of God. Moses’ wife and his two sons came with Jethro. ⁶ Jethro had sent a message ahead to Moses. He said, “I am Jethro, your father-in-law. I am coming to you with your wife and her two sons.”

⁷ So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law. Moses bowed down and then kissed him. The two men asked about each other’s health. Then they went into Moses’ tent. ⁸ Moses told his father-in-law everything the Lord had done to the king and the Egyptians. The Lord had done these things to help Israel. Moses told about all the problems they had faced along the way. And Moses told him how the Lord had saved them.

⁹ Jethro was very happy when he heard all the good things the Lord had done for Israel. He was happy because the Lord had saved them from the Egyptians. ¹⁰ Jethro said, “Praise the Lord. He has saved all of you from the Egyptians and their king. He has saved the people from the power of the Egyptians. ¹¹ Now I know the Lord is greater than all gods. He did this to those who looked down on Israel.” ¹² Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, gave a whole burnt offering and other sacrifices to God. Aaron and all the elders of Israel came to Moses’ father-in-law. They ate the holy meal together before God.

¹³ The next day Moses solved disagreements among the people. So the people stood around Moses from morning until night. ¹⁴ Moses’ father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people. He asked, “What is all this you are doing for the people? Why are you the only one to solve disagreements? All the people are standing around you from morning until night!”

¹⁵ Then Moses said to his father-in-law, “It is because the people come to me for God’s help in solving their disagreements. ¹⁶ When people have a disagreement, they come to me. I decide who is right. And I tell them God’s laws and teachings.”

¹⁷ Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “You are not doing this right. ¹⁸ You and the people who come to you will get too tired. This is too much work for you. You can’t do it by yourself. ¹⁹ Now listen to me. I will give you some advice. I want God to be with you. You must talk to God for the people. You must tell him about their disagreements. ²⁰ You should tell them the laws and teachings. Tell them the right way to live and what they should do. ²¹ But choose some capable men from among the people. Choose men who respect God and who can be trusted. They will not change their decisions for money. Make these men officers over groups of 1,000, 100, 50 and 10 people. ²² Let these officers solve the disagreements among the people all the time. They can bring the hard cases to you. But they can decide the simple cases themselves. That will make it easier for you. These men will share the work with you. ²³ Do this if it is what God commands. Then you will be able to do your job. And all the people will go home with their disagreements solved.”

²⁴ So Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. ²⁵ He chose capable men from all the Israelites. He made them leaders over the people. They were officers over groups of 1,000, 100, 50 and 10 people. ²⁶ These officers solved disagreements among the people all the time. They brought the hard cases to Moses. But they decided the simple cases themselves.

²⁷ Then Moses let his father-in-law leave. And Jethro went back to his own home.

Israel at Sinai

19 Exactly three months after the Israelites had left Egypt, they reached the Desert of Sinai. ² They had left Rephidim and had come to the Desert of Sinai. The Israelites camped in the desert in front of Mount Sinai. ³ Then Moses went up on the mountain to God. The Lord called to him from the mountain. The Lord said, “Say this to the family of Jacob. And tell this to the people of Israel: ⁴ ‘Every one of you has seen what I did to the people of Egypt. You saw how I carried you out of Egypt. I did it as an eagle carries her young on her wings. And I brought you here to me. ⁵ So now obey me and keep my agreement. Do this, and you will be my own possession, chosen from all nations. Even though the whole earth is mine, ⁶ you will be my kingdom of priests. You will be a nation that belongs to me alone.’ You must tell the Israelites these words.”

⁷ So Moses went down and called the elders of the people together. He told them all the words the Lord had commanded him to say. ⁸ And all the people answered together, “We will do everything he has said.” Then Moses took their answer back to the Lord.

⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “I will come to you in a thick cloud. I will speak to you. The people will hear me talking to you. I will do this so the people will always trust you.” Then Moses told the Lord what the people had said.

¹⁰ The Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and have them spend today and tomorrow preparing themselves. They must wash their clothes ¹¹ and be ready by the day after tomorrow. On that day I, the Lord, will come down on Mount Sinai. And all the people will see me. ¹² But you must set a limit around the mountain. The people are not to cross it. Tell the people not to go up on the mountain. Tell them not to touch the foot of it. Anyone who touches the mountain must be put to death. ¹³ He must be put to death with stones or shot with arrows. No one is allowed to touch him. Whether it is a person or an animal, he will not live. But the trumpet will make a long blast. Only then may the people go up on the mountain.”

¹⁴ So Moses went down from the mountain to the people. He made them prepare themselves for service to God. And the people washed their clothes. ¹⁵ Then Moses said to the people, “Be ready in three days. Do not have physical relations during this time.”

¹⁶ It was the morning of the third day. There was thunder and lightning with a thick cloud on the mountain. And there was a very loud blast from a trumpet. All the people in the camp were frightened. ¹⁷ Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God. They stood at the foot of the mountain. ¹⁸ Mount Sinai was covered with smoke. This happened because the Lord came down on it in fire. The smoke rose from the mountain like smoke from a furnace. And the whole mountain shook wildly. ¹⁹ The sound from the trumpet became louder. Then Moses spoke, and the voice of God answered him.

²⁰ So the Lord came down on the top of Mount Sinai. Then he called Moses to come up to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up. ²¹ The Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people. They must not force their way through to see me. If they do, many of them will die. ²² Even the priests, who may come near me, must first prepare themselves. If they don’t, I, the Lord, will punish them.”

²³ Moses told the Lord, “The people cannot come up Mount Sinai. You yourself told us to set a limit around the mountain. We made it holy.”

²⁴ The Lord said to him, “Go down and bring Aaron with you. But don’t allow the priests or the people to force their way through. They must not come up to the Lord. If they do, I will punish them.”

²⁵ So Moses went down to the people and told them these things.

The Ten Commandments

20 Then God spoke all these words:

² “I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of the land of Egypt where you were slaves.

³ “You must not have any other gods except me.

⁴ “You must not make for yourselves any idols. Don’t make something that looks like anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the water below the land. ⁵ You must not worship or serve any idol. This is because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. A person may sin against me and hate me. I will punish his children, even his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. ⁶ But I will be very kind to thousands who love me and obey my commands.

⁷ “You must not use the name of the Lord your God thoughtlessly. The Lord will punish anyone who is guilty and misuses his name.

⁸ “Remember to keep the Sabbath as a holy day. ⁹ You may work and get everything done during six days each week. ¹⁰ But the seventh day is a day of rest to honor the Lord your God. On that day no one may do any work: not you, your son or daughter, or your men or women slaves. Neither your animals nor the foreigners living in your cities may work. ¹¹ The reason is that in six days the Lord made everything. He made the sky, earth, sea and everything in them. And on the seventh day, he rested. So the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

¹² “Honor your father and your mother. Then you will live a long time in the land. The Lord your God is going to give you this land.

¹³ “You must not murder anyone.

¹⁴ “You must not be guilty of adultery.

¹⁵ “You must not steal.

¹⁶ “You must not tell lies about your neighbor in court.

¹⁷ “You must not want to take your neighbor’s house. You must not want his wife or his men or women slaves. You must not want his ox or his donkey. You must not want to take anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

¹⁸ The people heard the thunder and the trumpet. They saw the lightning on the mountain and smoke rising from the mountain. They shook with fear and stood far away from the mountain. ¹⁹ Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself. Then we will listen. But don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.”

²⁰ Then Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. God has come to test you. He wants you to respect him so you will not sin.”

²¹ The people stood far away from the mountain while Moses went near the dark cloud where God was. ²² Then the Lord told Moses to say these things to the Israelites: “You yourselves have seen that I talked with you from heaven. ²³ You must not use gold or silver to make idols for yourselves. You must not worship these false gods in addition to me.

²⁴ “Make an altar of dirt for me. Offer your whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on this altar as a sacrifice to me. Use your sheep and your cattle to do this. Worship me in every place that I choose. Then I will come and bless you. ²⁵ You may use stones to make an altar for me. But don’t use stones that you have made smooth with tools. You must not use any tools on the stones. If you do, you make them unsuitable for use in worship. ²⁶ And you must not make steps leading up to my altar. If you go up steps, people will be able to see under your clothes.”

Laws for Living

21 Then God said to Moses, “These are the laws for living that you will give to the Israelites:

² “If you buy a Hebrew slave, he will serve you for six years. In the seventh year you are to set him free. And he will have to pay nothing. ³ He might not be married when he becomes your slave. Then he must leave without a wife. The man might be married when he becomes your slave. Then he may take his wife with him. ⁴ The slave’s master might give him a wife, and she might give birth to sons or daughters. Then the woman and her children will belong to the master. When the slave is set free, only he may leave.

⁵ “But the slave might say, ‘I love my master, my wife and my children. I don’t want to go free.’ ⁶ Then the slave’s master will take him to God. The master will take him to a door or doorframe. And he will punch a hole through the slave’s ear using a sharp tool. Then the slave will serve that master all his life.

⁷ “A man might sell his daughter as a slave. There are rules for setting her free. They are different from the rules for setting the men slaves free. ⁸ Maybe the master wanted to marry her but then decided he was not pleased with her. He must let one of her close relatives buy her back. He has no right to sell her to foreigners. This is because he has treated her unfairly. ⁹ The man who bought her might promise to let the woman marry his son. Then he must treat her as a daughter. ¹⁰ The man who bought her might marry another woman. Then he must not keep his slave woman from having food or clothing or physical relations. ¹¹ If he does not give her these three things, she may go free. She owes him no money.

Injuries

¹² “Anyone who hits a person and kills him must be put to death. ¹³ But if a person kills someone accidentally, God allowed that to happen. So the person must go to a place I will choose. ¹⁴ A person might plan and murder another person on purpose. Put him to death, even if he has run to my altar for safety.

¹⁵ “Anyone who hits his father or his mother must be put to death.

¹⁶ “A person might kidnap someone. Then he either sells him as a slave or still has him when he is caught. That person must be put to death.

¹⁷ “Anyone who says cruel things to his father or mother must be put to death.

¹⁸ “Two men might argue. And one might hit the other with a rock or with his fist. The hurt man might not be killed. But he might have to stay in bed. ¹⁹ Later he might be able to get up. And he might be able to walk around outside with his walking stick. Then the one who hit him is not to be punished. But he must pay the injured man for the loss of his time. And he must support the injured man until he is completely healed.

²⁰ “A man might beat his male or female slave with a stick. And the slave might die on the spot. Then the owner must be punished. ²¹ But the slave might get well after a day or two. Then that owner will not be punished since the slave belongs to him.

²² “Two men might be fighting, and they might hit a pregnant woman so that the baby comes out. But there is no further injury. Then the man who caused the injury must pay money. He must pay what the woman’s husband says and the court allows. ²³ But if there is further injury, then the punishment is that life must be paid for life, ²⁴ eye for eye, tooth for tooth. It is also hand for hand, foot for foot, ²⁵ burn for burn, wound for wound and bruise for bruise.

²⁶ “A man might hit his male or female slave in the eye. And the eye might be blinded. Then the man is to free the slave to pay for the eye. ²⁷ A master might knock out a tooth of his male or female slave. Then the man is to free the slave to pay for the tooth.

²⁸ “A man’s bull might kill a man or woman. Then you must kill that bull with stones. You should not eat the bull. But the owner of the bull is not guilty. ²⁹ But the bull might have hurt people in the past. The owner might have been warned. If he did not keep it in a pen and then it kills a man or woman, the bull must be killed with stones. And the owner must also be put to death. ³⁰ But the family of the dead man might accept money. Then the man who owned the bull may buy back his life. But he must pay whatever is demanded. ³¹ Use this same law if the bull kills a person’s son or daughter. ³² But the bull might kill a male or female slave. Then the owner must pay the master the price for a new slave. That is 12 ounces of silver. And the bull must also be killed with stones.

³³ “A man might take the cover off a pit. Or he might dig one and not cover it. Another man’s ox or donkey might come and fall into it. ³⁴ The owner of the pit must pay the owner of the animal for his loss. The dead animal will belong to the one who pays.

³⁵ “One man’s bull might kill another man’s bull. Then they must sell the bull that is alive. Both men get half of the money. And both men will also get half of the bull that was killed. ³⁶ A man’s bull might have hurt other animals in the past. But the owner might not have kept it in a pen. Then that owner must pay bull for bull. And the dead animal is his.

Property Laws

22 “A man might steal a bull or a sheep and kill or sell it. Then he must pay back five bulls for the one bull he stole. Or he must pay back four sheep for the one sheep he stole.

^2-4 “The robber who is caught must pay back what he stole. He might own nothing. Then he must be sold as a slave to pay for what he stole. The stolen animal might be found alive with the robber. Then he must give the owner two animals for every animal he stole. He must pay, whether he stole a bull, donkey or sheep.

“A thief might be killed while breaking into a house at night. Then the one who killed him is not guilty of murder. But if this happens during the day, he is guilty of murder.

⁵ “A person might let his farm animal graze in his field or vineyard. And it might wander into another person’s field or vineyard. Then the owner of the animal must pay back the loss. The payment must come from the best of his crop.

⁶ “A man might start a fire that spreads through the thornbushes to his neighbor’s field. The fire might burn his neighbor’s growing grain or grain that has been stacked. Or it might burn his whole field. Then the person who started the fire must pay for what was burned.

⁷ “A man might give his neighbor money or other things to keep for him. Those things might be stolen from the neighbor’s house. And the thief might be caught. Then he must pay back twice as much as he stole. ⁸ But maybe the thief is never found. Then the owner of the house must make a promise before God. He must promise that he has not stolen his neighbor’s things.

⁹ “Two men might disagree about who owns something. It might be an ox, donkey, sheep or clothing. Or it might be something else that is lost. Each says, ‘This is mine.’ Each man must bring his case to God. God’s judges will decide who is guilty. Then he must pay the other man twice as much as the thing is worth.

¹⁰ “A man might ask his neighbor to keep his animal for him. This animal might be a donkey, ox, sheep or some other animal. And that animal might die, be hurt or be taken away. And no one saw what happened. ¹¹ That neighbor must promise before the Lord that he did not harm or kill the other man’s animal. The owner of the animal must accept his promise made before God. The neighbor does not have to pay the owner for the animal. ¹² But the animal might have been stolen from the neighbor. Then he must pay the owner for it. ¹³ Wild animals might have killed the animal. Then the neighbor must bring the body as proof. He will not have to pay for the animal that was killed.

¹⁴ “A man might borrow an animal from his neighbor. It might get hurt or die while the owner is not there. Then the one who borrowed it must pay the owner for the animal. ¹⁵ The owner might be with the animal. Then the one who borrowed it does not have to pay. If the animal was rented, the rental price covers the loss.

Laws and Relationships

¹⁶ “A man might find a woman who is not pledged to be married. She has never had physical relations with a man. He might trick her into having physical relations with him. Then he must give her family the payment to marry her. And she will be his wife. ¹⁷ But her father might refuse to allow his daughter to marry him. Then the man must still give the payment for a bride. He must pay the usual charge for a woman who is a virgin.

¹⁸ “Put to death any woman who does evil magic.

¹⁹ “Put to death anyone who has unnatural physical relations with an animal.

²⁰ “Destroy completely any person who makes a sacrifice to any god except the Lord.

²¹ “Do not cheat or hurt a foreigner. Remember that you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

²² “Do not cheat a widow or an orphan. ²³ If you do, they will cry out to me for help. I certainly will hear their cry. ²⁴ And I will be very angry and kill you in war. Then your wives will become widows, and your children will become orphans.

²⁵ “You might lend money to one of my people who is poor. Then do not treat him as a moneylender would. Charge him nothing for using your money. ²⁶ Your neighbor might give you his coat as a promise. He is promising to pay you the money he owes you. But you must give it back to him by sunset. ²⁷ That coat is the only cover to keep his body warm. He has nothing else to sleep in. If he cries out to me for help, I will listen because I am merciful.

²⁸ “You must not speak against God. You must not curse a leader of your people.

²⁹ “Do not hold back your offering from the first of your harvest. Give me the first grain that you harvest. Give me the first wine that you make. Also, you must give me your firstborn sons. ³⁰ You must do the same with your bulls and your sheep. Let the firstborn males stay with their mothers for seven days. On the eighth day you must give them to me.

³¹ “You are to be my holy people. You must not eat the meat of any animal that has been killed by wild animals. Instead, give it to the dogs.

Laws About Fairness

23 “You must not tell lies. You might be a witness in court. Don’t help a bad person by telling lies.

² “You must not do wrong just because everyone else is doing it. You might be a witness in court. Then you must not ruin a fair trial. You must not tell lies just because everyone else is. ³ A poor man might be in court. You must not take his side just because he is poor.

⁴ “You might see your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering away. Then you must return it to him. ⁵ You might see that your enemy’s donkey has fallen because its load is too heavy. You must not leave it there. You must help your enemy get the donkey back on its feet.

⁶ “You must not be unfair to a poor man when he is in court. ⁷ You must not lie when you accuse someone in court. Never allow an innocent or honest person to be put to death as punishment. This is because I will not treat guilty people as if they were innocent.

⁸ “You must not accept money from a person who wants you to lie in court. Such money will not let you see what is right. Such money makes good people tell lies.

⁹ “You must not mistreat a foreigner. You know how it feels to be a foreigner. You were foreigners in Egypt.

Laws for the Sabbath

¹⁰ “For six years you are to plant and harvest crops on your land. ¹¹ Then during the seventh year, do not plow or plant your land. If any food grows there, allow the poor people to have it. And let the wild animals eat what is left. You should do the same with your vineyards and your orchards of olive trees.

¹² “You should work six days a week. But on the seventh day you must rest. This lets your ox and your donkey rest. This also lets the slave born in your house and the foreigner be refreshed.

¹³ “Be sure to do all that I have said to you. You must not even say the names of other gods. The names of those gods must not come out of your mouth.

Three Yearly Feasts

¹⁴ “Three times each year you must hold a feast to honor me. ¹⁵ You must celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Do this in the way I commanded you. For seven days you must eat bread that is made without yeast. You must do this at the set time during the month of Abib. This is the month when you came out of Egypt. No one is to come to worship me without bringing an offering.

¹⁶ “You must celebrate the Feast of Harvest. Offer to God the first things you harvest. These are from the crops you planted in your fields.

“You must celebrate the Feast of Tents in the fall. Do this when you gather all the crops from your fields.

¹⁷ “So three times during every year all men must come to worship the Lord God.

¹⁸ “You must not offer animal blood along with anything that has yeast in it.

“You must not save any of the fat from the sacrifice for the next day.

¹⁹ “You must bring the best of the firstfruits of your land. Bring them to the Holy Tent^[g] of the Lord your God.

“You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Promises

²⁰ “I am sending an angel ahead of you. He will protect you as you travel. He will lead you to the place I have prepared. ²¹ Pay attention to the angel and obey him. Do not turn against him. He will not forgive such turning against him because my power is in him. ²² You must listen carefully to all he says. You must do everything that I tell you. If you do this, I will be an enemy to your enemies. I will fight all who fight against you. ²³ My angel will go ahead of you. He will take you into the land of these people: the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites. And I will destroy them.

²⁴ “You must not bow down to their gods or worship those gods. You must not live the way those people live. You must destroy their idols. And you must break into pieces stone pillars they use in worship. ²⁵ You must worship the Lord your God. If you do, I will bless your bread and your water. I will take away sickness from you. ²⁶ None of your women will have her baby die before it is born. All women will have children. I will allow you to live long lives.

²⁷ “I will make your enemies afraid of me. I will confuse any people you fight against. I will make all your enemies run away from you. ²⁸ I will send something like hornets ahead of you. They will force the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. ²⁹ But I will not force all those people out in only one year. If I did, the land would become a desert. Then the wild animals would become too many for you. ³⁰ Instead, I will force those people out of your land very slowly. I will wait until there are enough of you to take over the land.

³¹ “I will give you the land from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Mediterranean Sea. And I will give you the land between the desert and the Euphrates River. I will give you power over the people who now live in the land. You will force them out ahead of you. ³² You must not make an agreement with those people or with their gods. ³³ You must not let them live in your land. If they live there, they will make you sin against me. If you worship their gods, you will be like someone caught in a trap.”

God and Israel Make Their Agreement

24 The Lord told Moses, “You, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and 70 of the elders of Israel must come up to me. You must worship me from a distance. ² Then Moses alone must come near me. The other men must not come near. And the rest of the people must not come up the mountain with Moses.”

³ So Moses told the people all the Lord’s words and laws for living. Then all of the people answered out loud together. They said, “We will do all the things that the Lord has said.” ⁴ So Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. And he got up early the next morning. He built an altar near the bottom of the mountain. He set up 12 stones, 1 stone for each of the 12 tribes of Israel. ⁵ Then Moses sent young Israelite men to offer whole burnt offerings. They also sacrificed young bulls as fellowship offerings to the Lord. ⁶ Moses took the blood of these animals. He put half of it in bowls. And he sprinkled the other half of the blood on the altar. ⁷ Then Moses took the book with the agreement written in it. He read it so the people could hear him. And they said, “We will do everything that the Lord has said. We will obey.”

⁸ Then Moses took the blood from the bowls. He sprinkled it on the people. He said, “This is the blood that begins the agreement. This is the agreement which the Lord has made with you about all these things.”

⁹ Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and 70 of the elders of Israel went up the mountain. ¹⁰ They saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was a surface. It looked as if it were paved with blue sapphire stones. And it was as clear as the sky! ¹¹ These leaders of the Israelites saw God. But God did not destroy them. Then they ate and drank together.

Moses Gets the Stone Tablets

¹² The Lord said to Moses, “Come up the mountain to me. Wait there, and I will give you two stone tablets. On these are the teachings and the commandments. I have written these to teach the people.”

¹³ So Moses and his helper Joshua set out. Moses went up Sinai, the mountain of God. ¹⁴ Moses said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. Aaron and Hur are with you. Anyone who has a disagreement with others can take it to them.”

Moses Meets with God

¹⁵ When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it. ¹⁶ The greatness of the Lord came down on Mount Sinai. The cloud covered the mountain for six days. On the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from inside the cloud. ¹⁷ The Israelites could see the greatness of the Lord. It looked like a fire burning on top of the mountain. ¹⁸ Then Moses went into the cloud and went higher up the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights.

Gifts for the Lord

25 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the Israelites to bring me gifts. Receive for me the gifts each man wants to give. ³ These are the gifts that you should receive from them: gold, silver, bronze, ⁴ blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen. Receive cloth made of goat hair. ⁵ Receive the male sheep skins that are dyed red. Receive fine leather, acacia wood ⁶ and olive oil to burn in the lamps. And receive spices for sweet-smelling incense and the special olive oil poured on a person’s head to make him a priest. ⁷ Also accept onyx stones and other jewels to be put on the holy vest and the chest covering.

⁸ “The people must build a holy place for me. Then I can live among them. ⁹ Build this Holy Tent and everything in it by the plan I will show you.

The Ark of the Covenant

¹⁰ “Use acacia wood and build an Ark. It must be 45 inches long, 27 inches wide and 27 inches high. ¹¹ Cover the Ark of the Covenant inside and out with pure gold. And put a gold strip all around it. ¹² Make four gold rings for the Ark of the Covenant. Attach the gold rings to its four feet, two rings on each side. ¹³ Then make poles from acacia wood and cover them with gold. ¹⁴ Put the poles through the rings on the sides of the Ark. Use these poles to carry the Ark of the Covenant. ¹⁵ These poles must always stay in the rings of the Ark of the Covenant. Do not take the poles out. ¹⁶ Then put the two flat stones in the Ark of the Covenant. I will give you these stones on which the commands are written.

¹⁷ “Then make a lid of pure gold for the Ark of the Covenant. This lid is the mercy seat. Make it 45 inches long and 27 inches wide. ¹⁸ Then hammer gold to make two creatures with wings. Put one on each end of the lid. ¹⁹ Put one creature with wings on one end of the lid. And put the other creature with wings on the other end. Attach the creatures with wings to the lid so that they will all be one piece. ²⁰ The creatures’ wings should be spread out over the lid. The creatures are to face each other across the lid. ²¹ Put this lid on top of the Ark of the Covenant. Also put in this Ark of the Covenant the agreement which I will make with you. ²² I will meet with you there, above the lid between the two creatures with wings. These are on the Ark of the Covenant. There I will give you all my commands for the Israelites.

The Table

²³ “Make a table out of acacia wood. It must be 36 inches long, 18 inches wide and 27 inches high. ²⁴ Cover it with pure gold. Put a gold strip around it. ²⁵ Then make a frame three inches high that stands up all around the edge. Put a gold strip around the frame. ²⁶ Then make four gold rings. Attach them to the four corners of the table where the four legs are. ²⁷ Put the rings close to the frame around the top of the table. These rings will hold the poles for carrying the table. ²⁸ Make the poles out of acacia wood and cover them with gold. Carry the table with these poles. ²⁹ Make the plates and bowls for the table out of pure gold. Make the jars and cups out of pure gold. They will be used for pouring out the drink offerings. ³⁰ On this table put the bread that shows you are in my presence. It must always be there in front of me.

The Lampstand

³¹ “Hammer pure gold to make a lampstand. Its base, stand, flower-like cups, buds and petals must all be joined together in one piece. ³² The lampstand must have three branches on one side and three branches on the other. ³³ Each branch must have three cups shaped like almond flowers on it. Each cup must have a bud and a petal. ³⁴ And there must be four more cups made like almond flowers on the lampstand itself. These cups must also have buds and petals. ³⁵ Put a bud under each pair of branches that goes out from the lampstand. ³⁶ The branches, buds and lampstand must be one piece of pure, hammered gold.

³⁷ “Then make seven small oil lamps and put them on the lampstand. They will give light to the area in front of the lampstand. ³⁸ The wick trimmers and trays must be made of pure gold. ³⁹ Use 75 pounds of pure gold to make the lampstand and everything with it. ⁴⁰ Be very careful to make them by the plan I showed you on the mountain.

The Holy Tent

26 “Make the Holy Tent with ten pieces of cloth. These pieces must be made of fine linen and blue, purple and red thread. Have a skilled craftsman sew designs of creatures with wings on the pieces of cloth. ² Make each piece the same size. Each piece should be 42 feet long and 6 feet wide. ³ Sew five pieces of cloth together for one set. Sew the other pieces together for the second set. ⁴ Make loops of blue cloth down the edge of the end piece of each set. ⁵ Make 50 loops on the end piece of the first set. And make 50 loops on the end piece of the second set. These loops must be opposite each other. ⁶ And make 50 gold hooks. Use these to join the two sets of cloth. This will make the Holy Tent one piece.

⁷ “Then make another tent that will cover the Holy Tent. Make this tent of 11 pieces of cloth made from goat hair. ⁸ All these pieces of cloth must be the same size. They must be 45 feet long and 6 feet wide. ⁹ Sew five of the pieces together into one set. Then sew the other six pieces together into the second set. Fold the sixth piece double over the front of the Tent. ¹⁰ Make 50 loops down the edge of the end piece of one set. Do the same for the end piece of the other set. ¹¹ Then make 50 bronze hooks. Put these in the loops to join the two sets of cloth. This will make the covering one piece. ¹² Let the extra half piece of cloth hang over the back of the Holy Tent. ¹³ There will be 18 inches hanging over the sides of the Holy Tent. This will protect the Tent. ¹⁴ Make two more coverings for the Holy Tent. One should be made from male sheep skins colored red. The outer covering should be from fine leather.

¹⁵ “Use acacia wood to make upright frames for the Holy Tent. ¹⁶ Each frame must be 15 feet long and 27 inches wide. ¹⁷ Every frame must be made the same way. There must be two pegs side by side in each frame. ¹⁸ Make 20 frames for the south side of the Holy Tent. ¹⁹ Each frame must have 2 silver bases to go under it. A peg fits into each silver base. You must make 40 silver bases for the frames. ²⁰ Make 20 more frames for the north side of the Holy Tent. ²¹ Make 40 silver bases for them. Make 2 bases for each frame. ²² You must make 6 frames for the rear or west end of the Holy Tent. ²³ Make 2 frames for each corner at the rear. ²⁴ The 2 frames at each corner are to be joined together. Hold them together from bottom to top with a metal ring. Both corner frames must be made this way. ²⁵ So there will be a total of 8 frames at the rear of the Tent. And there will be 16 silver bases—2 bases under each frame.

²⁶ “Make crossbars of acacia wood to connect the upright frames of the Holy Tent. Make five crossbars to hold the frames together on one side. ²⁷ Also make five crossbars to hold the frames together on the other side. And make crossbars to hold the frames together on the west end, at the rear. ²⁸ The middle crossbar is to be set halfway up the frames. It is to run along the entire length of each side and rear. ²⁹ Make gold rings on the sides of the frames. Pass the crossbars through the rings. Cover the frames and the crossbars with gold. ³⁰ Set up the Holy Tent by the plan shown to you on the mountain.

³¹ “Make a curtain of fine linen and blue, purple and red thread. Have a skilled craftsman sew designs of creatures with wings on the curtain. ³² Hang the curtain by gold hooks on four posts of acacia wood. Cover these posts with gold and set them in four silver bases. ³³ Hang the curtain from the hooks in the roof. Put the Ark of the Covenant containing the two flat stones behind the curtain. This curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. ³⁴ Put the lid on the Ark of the Covenant in the Most Holy Place.

³⁵ “Outside the curtain, put the table on the north side of the Holy Tent. And put the lampstand on the south side of the Holy Tent. This will be across from the table.

The Entrance of the Holy Tent

³⁶ “Then make a curtain for the entrance of the Tent. Make it with fine linen and blue, purple and red thread. Someone who can sew well is to sew designs on it. ³⁷ Make five posts of acacia wood covered with gold. Make five gold hooks on which to hang the curtain from the posts. And make five bronze bases for the five posts.

The Altar

27 “Make an altar for burnt offerings out of acacia wood. Make it 4½ feet high. It should be square: 7½ feet long and 7½ feet wide. ² Make each of the four corners of the altar stick out like a horn. The corners with their horns must be all one piece. Then cover the whole altar with bronze.

³ “Use bronze to make all the tools and dishes that will be used on the altar. Make pots to remove the ashes. Make shovels, bowls for sprinkling blood, meat forks and pans for carrying the burning wood.

⁴ “Make a large, bronze screen to hold the burning wood. And put a bronze ring at each of the four corners of the screen. ⁵ Put the screen inside the altar, under its rim, halfway up from the bottom.

⁶ “Make poles of acacia wood for the altar. And cover them with bronze. ⁷ Put the poles through the rings on both sides of the altar to carry it. ⁸ Make the altar out of boards and leave the inside hollow. Make it as you were shown on the mountain.

The Courtyard of the Holy Tent

⁹ “Make a wall of curtains to form a courtyard around the Holy Tent. The south side should have a wall of fine linen curtains 150 feet long. ¹⁰ Hang the curtain with silver hooks and bands. Put these on 20 bronze posts on 20 bronze bases. ¹¹ The north side must also be 150 feet long. Hang its curtains on silver hooks and bands. Put these on 20 bronze posts on 20 bronze bases.

¹² “The west end of the courtyard must have a wall of curtains 75 feet long. It must have 10 posts and 10 bases on that wall. ¹³ The east end of the courtyard must also be 75 feet long. ¹⁴ On one side of the entry, there is to be a wall of curtains. It is to be 22½ feet long. It is to be held up by 3 posts on 3 bases. ¹⁵ On the other side of the entry, there is to be a wall of curtains. It is to be 22½ feet long. It is to be held up by 3 posts on 3 bases.

¹⁶ “The entry to the courtyard is to be a curtain 30 feet wide. It is to be made of fine linen with blue, purple and red thread. Someone who can sew well is to sew designs on it. It is to be held up by 4 posts on 4 bases. ¹⁷ All the posts around the courtyard must have silver bands and hooks and bronze bases. ¹⁸ The courtyard must be 150 feet long and 75 feet wide. The wall of curtains around it should be 7½ feet high. They must be made of fine linen. The bases in which the posts are set must be bronze. ¹⁹ All the things used in the Holy Tent must be made of bronze. And all the tent pegs for the Holy Tent and the wall around the courtyard must be made of bronze.

Oil for the Lamp

²⁰ “Command the people of Israel to bring you pure olive oil. It is to be made from pressed olives. This is to keep the lamps on the lampstand burning. ²¹ Aaron and his sons must keep the lamps burning before the Lord from evening till morning. This will be in the Meeting Tent. It is outside the curtain which is in front of the Ark of the Covenant. The Israelites and their descendants must obey this rule from now on.

Clothes for the Priests

28 “Tell your brother Aaron to come to you. His sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar must come with him. Separate them from the other Israelites. These men must serve as priests. ² Make holy clothes for your brother Aaron to give him honor and beauty. ³ Speak to all the people to whom I have given the ability to make clothes. Tell these skilled craftsmen to make the clothes for Aaron. Use these clothes to make him belong to me. Then he may serve me as a priest. ⁴ These are the clothes they must make: a chest covering, a holy vest, an outer robe, a woven inner robe, a turban and a cloth belt. The craftsmen must make these holy clothes. They are for your brother Aaron and his sons. Then Aaron and his sons may serve me as priests. ⁵ The craftsmen must use gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen.

The Holy Vest

⁶ “Use gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen to make the holy vest. The craftsmen are to make this holy vest. ⁷ At each top corner of this holy vest there will be a pair of shoulder straps. These are to be tied together over each shoulder.

⁸ “The craftsmen will very carefully weave a belt on the holy vest. Make the belt with gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen.

⁹ “Take two onyx stones. Write the name of the 12 sons of Israel on these jewels. ¹⁰ Write 6 names on one stone and 6 names on the other stone. Write the names in order, from the oldest son to the youngest. ¹¹ Carve the names of the sons of Israel on these stones. Do this the same way a person carves words and designs on the seals. Put gold around the stones to hold them on the holy vest. ¹² Put the two stones on the two straps of the holy vest. These stones are reminders of the 12 sons of Israel. Aaron is to wear their names on his shoulders. They are before the Lord as reminders of the sons of Israel. ¹³ Make two gold pieces to hold the stones. ¹⁴ Then make two chains of pure gold. Twist them together like a rope. Attach the chains to the two gold pieces that hold the stones.

The Chest Covering

¹⁵ “Make a chest covering to help in making decisions. The craftsmen should make it as they made the holy vest. They must use gold and blue, purple and red thread, and fine linen. ¹⁶ The chest covering must be square. It should be nine inches long and nine inches wide. Fold it double to make a pocket. ¹⁷ Put four rows of beautiful gems on the chest covering. The first row of jewels must have a ruby, topaz and yellow quartz. ¹⁸ The second row must have turquoise, a sapphire and an emerald. ¹⁹ The third row must have a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst. ²⁰ The fourth row must have a chrysolite, an onyx and a jasper. Put gold around these jewels to attach them to the chest covering. ²¹ There must be 12 jewels on the chest covering. That is 1 jewel for each of the names of the sons of Israel. Carve the name of one of the 12 tribes on each of the stones. Carve them as you would carve a seal.

²² “Make chains of pure gold for the chest covering. Twist them together like rope. ²³ Make two gold rings. Put them on the two upper corners of the chest covering. ²⁴ Attach the two gold chains to the two rings. These are at the upper corners of the chest covering. ²⁵ Attach the other ends of the two chains to the two gold pieces on the shoulder straps. This will tie the chains to the shoulder straps in the front of the holy vest.

²⁶ “Make two more gold rings. Put them at the two lower corners of the chest covering. Put them on the inside edge of the chest covering next to the holy vest. ²⁷ Make two more gold rings. Attach them to the bottom of the shoulder straps in the front of the holy vest. Put the gold rings close to the seam above the woven belt of the holy vest. ²⁸ Join the rings of the chest covering to the rings of the holy vest with blue ribbon. This will connect it to the woven belt. In this way the chest covering will not swing out from the holy vest.

²⁹ “When Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will wear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart. These names are on the chest covering that helps in making decisions. This will be a continual reminder before the Lord. ³⁰ And put the Urim and Thummim inside the chest covering. These things will be on Aaron’s heart when he goes before the Lord. They will help in making decisions for the Israelites. So Aaron will always carry them with him when he is before the Lord.

³¹ “Make the outer robe to be worn under the holy vest, using only blue cloth. ³² Make a hole in the center for Aaron’s head. And there must be a woven collar around the hole so it will not tear. ³³ Make balls like pomegranates of blue, purple and red thread. Hang these pomegranate balls around the bottom of the outer robe. And hang gold bells between them. ³⁴ So all around the bottom of the outer robe there should be a gold bell and a pomegranate ball, a gold bell and a pomegranate ball. ³⁵ Aaron must wear this robe when he serves as priest. The ringing of the bells will be heard. They will ring when he enters and leaves the Holy Place before the Lord. This way Aaron will not be killed.

³⁶ “Make a strip of pure gold. Carve these words on the gold strip as you would carve on a seal: ‘Holy to the Lord.’ ³⁷ Use blue ribbon to tie a strip of gold to the turban. Put it on the front of the turban. ³⁸ Aaron must wear this on his forehead. In this way, he will be blamed if anything is wrong with the gifts of the Israelites. Aaron must always wear this on his head so the Lord will accept the gifts of the people.

³⁹ “Make the woven inner robe of fine linen. Make the turban of fine linen, also. Make the cloth belt with designs sewn on it. ⁴⁰ Also make woven inner robes, cloth belts and headbands for Aaron’s sons. This will give them honor and beauty. ⁴¹ Put these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons. Then pour olive oil on their heads to appoint them as priests. Make them belong to me so they may serve me as priests.

⁴² “Make for them linen underclothes to cover them from the waist to the upper parts of the legs. ⁴³ Aaron and his sons must wear these underclothes when they enter the Meeting Tent. And they must wear these clothes anytime they come near the altar to serve as priests in the Holy Place. If they do not wear these clothes, they will be guilty of wrong. And they will be killed. This will be a law that will last from now on for Aaron and all his descendants.