Bible in 90 Days

Laws about the House Where the Person with a Bad Skin Disease Lived

³³ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ³⁴ “When you come into the land of Canaan, which I give you for your own, and I put a mark of a bad skin disease on a house in your land, ³⁵ then the one who owns the house will come and tell the religious leader, ‘I see something like a mark of a bad skin disease in my house.’ ³⁶ Then the religious leader will tell them to empty the house before he goes in to look at the mark, so he will not say that everything in the house is unclean. After this the religious leader will go in to look at the house. ³⁷ He will look at the mark of the disease. If the mark is in the walls of the house with green or red spots deep in the walls, ³⁸ the religious leader will go out the door and shut up the house for seven days. ³⁹ He will come again on the seventh day and look. If the disease has spread in the walls of the house, ⁴⁰ the religious leader will tell them to tear out the stones with the disease in them and throw them away outside the city at an unclean place. ⁴¹ He will have the walls and floors of the house cleaned inside. And they will take the pieces that are rubbed off to an unclean place outside the city. ⁴² Then they will take other stones to put in the place of those stones. And he will cover the walls with a new covering.

⁴³ “If the disease comes again in the house, after he has taken out the stones, cleaned the house inside and covered the walls again, ⁴⁴ then the religious leader will come and look. If the disease has spread in the house, it is a very bad disease in the house. It is unclean. ⁴⁵ He will tear down the house, its stones, wood, and all the covering of the house. And he will take the pieces outside the city to an unclean place. ⁴⁶ Anyone who goes into the house during the time it is shut up will be unclean until evening. ⁴⁷ Whoever lies down in the house will wash his clothes. And whoever eats in the house will wash his clothes.

⁴⁸ “But the religious leader may come in and find that the disease has not spread in the house after its walls have been covered again. Then the religious leader will say the house is clean, because the mark of the disease cannot be seen. ⁴⁹ He will take two birds, cedar wood, a red string and hyssop to make the house clean. ⁵⁰ He will kill one of the birds in a clay pot over flowing water. ⁵¹ Then he will take the cedar wood and the hyssop and the red string, with the live bird, and put them in the blood of the killed bird and in the flowing water. And he will put some of the blood and water on the house seven times. ⁵² He will make the house clean with the blood of the bird, the flowing water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop and the red string. ⁵³ He will let the live bird go free outside the city into the open field. So he will take away sin from the house, and it will be clean.”

⁵⁴ This is the law for any very bad skin disease, even a sore, ⁵⁵ and for a disease in clothing or in a house, ⁵⁶ and for a growing sore, and what is left of a sore, and for a bright spot. ⁵⁷ It is to teach when they are unclean, and when they are clean. This is the law of the very bad skin disease.

Laws about Flows from the Body

15 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘When a man has something flowing from his body, what is flowing is unclean. ³ If it flows, or if it fills up and stops flowing, he will be unclean. ⁴ Every bed on which the person with the flow lies will be unclean. ⁵ Whoever touches his bed must wash his clothes and wash himself in water. And he will be unclean until evening. ⁶ Whoever sits where the man with the flow has been sitting must wash his clothes and wash himself with water. He will be unclean until evening. ⁷ Whoever touches the person with the flow must wash his clothes and wash himself in water. And he will be unclean until evening. ⁸ If the man with the flow spits on one who is clean, then he must wash his clothes, wash himself in water, and be unclean until evening. ⁹ Any leather seat on which the man who is unclean has been sitting will be unclean. ¹⁰ Whoever touches anything that was under him will be unclean until evening. ¹¹ Anyone the man with the flow touches must wash his clothes and wash himself in water. He will be unclean until evening. ¹² The clay pot that the man with the flow touches must be broken. And anything made of wood must be washed in water.

¹³ ‘When the flow of the man stops, he will take seven days to make himself clean. Then he will wash his clothes and wash his body in running water. And he will be clean. ¹⁴ On the eighth day he will take two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, come before the Lord at the door of the meeting tent, and give them to the religious leader. ¹⁵ The religious leader will give them, one for a sin gift, and the other for a burnt gift. So the religious leader will pay for his sins before the Lord because of his flow.

¹⁶ ‘If a man’s seed comes from his sex part, he must wash his whole body in water. And he will be unclean until evening. ¹⁷ Any clothing or leather on which the seed touches must be washed with water. It will be unclean until evening. ¹⁸ If a man lies with a woman so that seed goes out from him, they must both wash themselves in water and will be unclean until evening.

¹⁹ ‘When a woman has something flowing from her body, and if it is blood, she will be unclean for seven days. Whoever touches her will be unclean until evening. ²⁰ Everything she lies on while she is unclean will be unclean. And everything she sits on will be unclean. ²¹ Whoever touches her bed must wash his clothes and wash himself in water and be unclean until evening. ²² Whoever touches anything she sits on must wash his clothes and wash himself in water and be unclean until evening. ²³ If he touches anything on her bed or where she sat, he will be unclean until evening. ²⁴ If a man lies with her so that her blood is on him, he will be unclean for seven days. And every bed he lies on will be unclean.

²⁵ ‘If a woman has a flow of blood for many days, at a different time than when it happens each month, or if the blood flows longer at that time, all the days the blood flows she will be unclean. It will be as if it were the time when she is unclean each month. She will be unclean. ²⁶ Any bed she lies on while her blood is flowing will be like the bed during the time she is unclean and whatever she sits on will be unclean. ²⁷ Whoever touches them will be unclean. He must wash his clothes and wash himself in water and be unclean until evening. ²⁸ When she becomes clean from her flow, she will wait seven days. After that she will be clean. ²⁹ On the eighth day she will take two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, and bring them to the religious leader at the door of the meeting tent. ³⁰ The religious leader will give one for a sin gift and the other for a burnt gift. In this way the woman will be clean before the Lord from the flow of blood that made her unclean.’

³¹ “In this way you will keep the people of Israel away from whatever makes them unclean or they will die because of making My meeting tent unclean that is among them.” ³² This is the law for him who has something flowing from his body, and for the man whose seed flows from his sex part and makes him unclean. ³³ And this is the law for the woman who is sick because of her flow of blood, and for the man or woman who has something flowing from the body, and for the man who lies with a woman who is unclean.

Animals Pay the Price for Man’s Sin

16 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron’s two sons, when they had come near the Lord and died. ² The Lord said to Moses, “Tell your brother Aaron that he must not come just any time into the holy place inside the curtain, in front of the mercy-seat on the special box of the agreement or he will die. For I will show Myself in the cloud over the mercy-seat. ³ Only this way will Aaron go into the holy place, with a bull for a sin gift and a ram for a burnt gift. ⁴ He will put on the holy linen coat. And the linen under-clothing will be next to his body. He will be wearing the linen belt and the linen head-covering. These are holy clothing. He will wash his body in water and then dress himself. ⁵ He will take from the people of Israel two male goats for a sin gift and one ram for a burnt gift. ⁶ Then Aaron will give the bull as a sin gift for himself, to pay for the sins of himself and those in his house. ⁷ He will take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the door of the meeting tent. ⁸ Aaron will draw names for the two goats, choosing one for the Lord and the other to be sent away. ⁹ Then Aaron will bring the goat that was chosen for the Lord and give it as a sin gift. ¹⁰ But the goat that was chosen to be sent away will be brought alive before the Lord, for the taking away of sin. And it will be sent into the desert.

¹¹ “Then Aaron will give the bull as the sin gift for himself, to pay for the sins of himself and those in his house. He will kill the bull as the sin gift for himself. ¹² He will take a fire pan full of fire from the altar before the Lord, and enough fine, ground, sweet perfume to fill two hands. And he will bring it inside the curtain. ¹³ He will put the special perfume on the fire before the Lord so that the cloud of the special perfume covers the mercy-seat on the special box of the agreement or he will die. ¹⁴ He will take some of the bull’s blood and put it with his finger on the east side of the mercy-seat. And with his finger he will put some of the blood seven times in front of the mercy-seat.

¹⁵ “Then he will kill the goat as the sin gift for the people. He will bring its blood inside the curtain, and do the same with its blood as he did with the bull’s blood. He will put it on the seat and in front of the mercy-seat. ¹⁶ He will make the holy place, and also the meeting tent which is in the center of the camp, clean and pure because all the sins of the people make them unclean. ¹⁷ When he goes in to pay for sins in the holy place, no one will be in the meeting tent until he comes out. He will pay for the sins of himself, of those in his house, and of all the people of Israel. ¹⁸ Then he will go out to the altar before the Lord and make it clean and pure. He will take some of the bull’s blood and goat’s blood and put it on the horns of the altar on all sides. ¹⁹ With his finger he will put some of the blood on the altar seven times so it will be clean. He will set it apart from what is unclean among the people of Israel.

²⁰ “When he finishes making the holy place, the meeting tent and the altar free from sin, he will give the live goat. ²¹ Aaron will lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and tell of all the sins and wrong-doings of the people of Israel. He will lay them upon the head of the goat and send it away into the desert by the hand of a man ready to help. ²² The goat will carry upon itself all their sins to a land where no one lives. Then the man will let the goat go free there.

²³ “Aaron will come into the meeting tent. He will take off the linen clothing he put on when he went into the holy place. And he will leave them there. ²⁴ He will wash his body with water in a holy place and put on his clothes. Then he will come out and give his burnt gift and the people’s burnt gift, to pay for the sins of himself and the people. ²⁵ He will burn the fat of the sin gift on the altar. ²⁶ The man who let the goat carry away the sins will wash his clothes and wash his body with water. Then he may come among the tents. ²⁷ The bull and the goat for the sin gift, whose blood was brought in to pay for sins in the holy place, will be taken away from the tents. Their skin, their flesh and their waste will be burned with fire. ²⁸ Whoever burns them will wash his clothes and wash his body with water. Then he may come among the tents.

²⁹ “This will be a Law forever for you. On the tenth day of the seventh month, you must get rid of your pride and not do any work, both those who live in the land and those who visit from another land. ³⁰ For on this day your sin will be taken away and you will be clean. You will be made free from all your sins before the Lord. ³¹ It is to be a special Day of Rest for you, that you may be free from pride. It is a Law forever. ³² The chosen religious leader who is set apart to work as religious leader in his father’s place will pay for the sin. He will put on the holy linen clothing ³³ and make the holy place, the meeting tent and the altar free from sin. He will make the religious leaders and all the people free from sin also. ³⁴ This will be a Law forever for you. The people of Israel must be made free from all their sins once a year.” And Moses did what the Lord told him to do.

Blood Must Not Be Eaten

17 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to Aaron and his sons and to all the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord has told us to do. ³ If any man of the house of Israel kills a bull, lamb or goat, among the tents or away from the tents, ⁴ and has not brought it to the door of the meeting tent to give it to the Lord, he will be guilty for that blood, and will not be among God’s people. ⁵ The reason is so that the people of Israel may bring their gifts which were killed in the open field to the Lord, to the religious leader at the door of the meeting tent. Then they can be given as peace gifts to the Lord. ⁶ The religious leader will put the blood on the altar of the Lord at the door of the meeting tent. And he will burn the fat for a pleasing smell to the Lord. ⁷ So they will no longer give their gifts to the goat-like gods to whom they sell themselves. This will be a Law to them for all their people forever.’

⁸ “Then say to them, ‘Any man of the house of Israel, or visiting from another land, who gives a burnt gift or other gift, ⁹ and does not bring it to the door of the meeting tent to give it to the Lord, will be cut off from his people.

¹⁰ ‘If any man of the house of Israel, or visiting from another land, eats any blood, I will turn against that person who eats blood, and he will not be among God’s people. ¹¹ For the life of the flesh is in the blood. I have given it to you on the altar to make your souls free from sin. For the blood makes you free from sin because of the life in it.’ ¹² So I have said to the people of Israel, ‘None of you should eat blood. And the man who visits you from another land should not eat blood.’ ¹³ If any man from the people of Israel, or from other people living among them, catches an animal or bird which may be eaten, he should pour out its blood and cover it with dust.

¹⁴ “For blood is the life of every living thing. So I said to the people of Israel, ‘Do not eat the blood of any living thing. For the life of every living thing is its blood. Whoever eats it will be cut off.’ ¹⁵ Every person, both living in the land or one who has come from another land, who eats an animal that dies or is killed by wild animals, must wash his clothes and wash himself in water. He will be unclean until evening. Then he will be clean. ¹⁶ But if he does not wash them or wash his body, he will suffer for his own sin.”

Laws about Sex

18 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord your God. ³ Do not do what is done in the land of Egypt where you lived. And do not do what is done in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you. Do not follow their laws. ⁴ You are to do what I say and keep My Laws and live by them. I am the Lord your God. ⁵ So keep My Laws and do what I say. If a man obeys them, My Laws will be life for him. I am the Lord.

⁶ ‘You should not go near a person of your own family to have sex. I am the Lord. ⁷ Do not put your father to shame by taking the clothes off your mother. She is your mother. Do not take her clothes off. ⁸ Do not take the clothes off your father’s wife. Her body is for your father. ⁹ Do not take the clothes off your sister, the daughter of your father or of your mother, if she is born at home or away from home. ¹⁰ Do not take the clothes off your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter. For they are of your own family. ¹¹ Do not take the clothes off your father’s wife’s daughter, born to your father. She is your sister. ¹² Do not take the clothes off your father’s sister. She is of your father’s own family. ¹³ Do not take the clothes off your mother’s sister. She is of your mother’s own family. ¹⁴ Do not put your father’s brother to shame. Do not go near to take the clothes off his wife. She is of your family. ¹⁵ Do not take the clothes off your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife. Do not take her clothes off. ¹⁶ Do not take the clothes off your brother’s wife. Her body is for your brother. ¹⁷ Do not take the clothes off a woman and her daughter. And do not take the clothes off her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter. They are of her own family. It is sin. ¹⁸ While your wife is still living do not marry her sister making her as important to you. Do not take off her sister’s clothes.

¹⁹ ‘And you are not to go near a woman to take off her clothes during the time when she has a flow of blood. ²⁰ Do not have sex with your neighbor’s wife. You would be unclean. ²¹ Do not give any of your children as a gift on an altar to the false god Molech. Do not put the name of your God to shame. I am the Lord. ²² Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman. It is a sinful thing. ²³ Do not have sex with any animal, or you will be unclean. And no woman should give herself to an animal to lie with it. It is a sin.

²⁴ ‘Do not allow yourself to sin in any of these ways. For by doing all these things the nations that I am driving out in front of you became unclean. ²⁵ For the land is unclean. So I have punished its sin. The land has spit out its people. ²⁶ But as for you, you are to keep My Laws and do what I have decided. Do not do any of these sinful things, not you or the man who lives among you from another land. ²⁷ For the men who have lived in the land before you have done all of these sinful things. The land is unclean. ²⁸ Do none of these things or the land will spit you out when you make it sinful, as it has spit out the nation that was before you. ²⁹ Whoever does any of these sinful things will be cut off from his people. ³⁰ So do what I say. Do not do any of these sinful things that were done before you. Do not make yourselves sin by doing them. I am the Lord your God.’”

Laws about Right Living

19 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to all the people of Israel, ‘Be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. ³ Every one of you must have respect for his mother and his father. And keep My Days of Rest. I am the Lord your God. ⁴ Do not turn to false gods or make gods for yourselves. I am the Lord your God.

⁵ ‘When you give the Lord a peace gift, give it so you will be pleasing Him. ⁶ It will be eaten the same day you give it, and the next day. But what is left until the third day will be burned with fire. ⁷ If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is a sin. It will not be received. ⁸ Every one who eats it will carry his guilt. For he has made the holy thing of the Lord sinful. That person will not be among God’s people.

⁹ ‘When you pick the food of your land at gathering time, do not pick all the way to the corners of your field. And do not gather the food left on the ground there after you have picked. ¹⁰ Do not gather what is left among your vines, or gather the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for those in need and for the stranger. I am the Lord your God.

¹¹ ‘Do not steal. Be honest in what you do. Do not lie to one another. ¹² Do not lie when you make a promise in My name, and so put the name of your God to shame. I am the Lord.

¹³ ‘Do not make it hard for your neighbor or rob him. You should not keep the pay of a man who works for you until the next morning. ¹⁴ Do not say bad things against a man who cannot hear. Do not put something in the way of a man who cannot see. But fear your God. I am the Lord.

¹⁵ ‘Be fair in how you judge. Do not show favor to the poor or to the great. Be fair in how you judge your neighbor. ¹⁶ Do not go around saying things that hurt your people. Do not do things against the life of your neighbor. I am the Lord.

¹⁷ ‘In your heart do not hate someone from your own country. You may speak sharp words to your neighbor, but do not sin because of him. ¹⁸ Do not hurt someone who has hurt you. Do not keep on hating the sons of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.

¹⁹ ‘Keep My Laws. Do not let your cattle have young by a different kind. Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing made of two kinds of cloth. ²⁰ If a man lies with a woman who is a servant, promised to another man, but has not been paid for or made free, they must be punished. But they will not be put to death, because she was not free. ²¹ He will bring his guilt gift to the Lord at the door of the meeting tent. A ram will be used for the guilt gift before the Lord. ²² With it the religious leader will go through the worship of washing to take away the man’s sin, and he will be forgiven for the sin he has done.

²³ ‘When you come into the land and plant all kinds of trees for food, think of their fruit as being something you should not touch. You should not touch it for three years. It must not be eaten. ²⁴ But in the fourth year all their fruit will be holy, a gift of praise to the Lord. ²⁵ In the fifth year you may eat of their fruit, so they may give more food for you. I am the Lord your God.

²⁶ ‘Do not eat anything with the blood in it. Do not tell the future or do witchcraft. ²⁷ Do not cut the hair on the side of your head or face. ²⁸ Do not make any cuts on your body for the dead. Do not burn any pictures that will stay on your body. I am the Lord.

²⁹ ‘Do not put your daughter to shame by making her sell the use of her body. Or the land will become full of shame and sin. ³⁰ Keep My Days of Rest and honor My holy place. I am the Lord.

³¹ ‘Do not ask what you should do from those who speak with bad spirits or talk to the dead. Do not find them or you will be unclean. I am the Lord your God.

³² ‘Show respect to the person with white hair. Honor an older person and you will honor your God. I am the Lord.

³³ ‘If a stranger lives with you in your land, do not do wrong to him. ³⁴ You should act toward the stranger who lives among you as you would toward one born among you. Love him as you love yourself. For you were strangers in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.

³⁵ ‘Do not lie about the weight or price of anything. ³⁶ Always tell the truth about it. I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt. ³⁷ Keep all My Laws and do all that I tell you. I am the Lord.’”

Punishment for Those Who Do Not Obey the Law

20 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘Any man of Israel or of the strangers living in Israel, who gives any of his children to the false god Molech, must be put to death. The people of the land will kill him with stones. ³ I Myself will go against that man and he will not be numbered among God’s people, because he has given some of his children to Molech, making My holy place sinful and bringing shame on My holy name. ⁴ If the people of the land close their eyes when a man gives any of his children to Molech, and do not put him to death, ⁵ then I Myself will go against that man and his family. They will not be numbered among God’s people, and all who follow him to sell themselves to Molech.

⁶ ‘I will go against the person who turns to those who speak with bad spirits and talk to the dead. In doing this, he sells himself to them. He will not be numbered among God’s people. ⁷ So you should set yourselves apart and be holy. For I am the Lord your God. ⁸ Keep My Laws and live by them. I am the Lord Who sets you apart.

⁹ ‘If there is anyone who curses his father or mother, he will for sure be put to death. Because he has cursed his father or mother, his blood will be on his own head.

¹⁰ ‘If a man does sex sins with another man’s wife, even his friend’s wife, both the sinful man and woman must be put to death. ¹¹ If a man lies with his father’s wife, he has put his father to shame. Both of the guilty ones must be put to death. They will suffer for their own sin. ¹² If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them must be put to death. They have done a bad sex sin. They will suffer for their own sin. ¹³ If a man lies with a male as if he were a woman, both of them have done a very sinful act. They must be put to death. They will suffer for their own sin. ¹⁴ If a man marries a woman and her mother, it is sin. Both he and they will be burned with fire, so this kind of sin will not be among you. ¹⁵ If a man lies with an animal, he must be put to death. Kill the animal also. ¹⁶ If a woman goes near any animal to have sex with it, you must kill the woman and the animal. They must be put to death. They will suffer for their own sin.

¹⁷ ‘If a man takes his sister, his father’s or mother’s daughter, and he sees her without clothes on and she sees him, it is a shame. They will be punished in front of their people. He has taken off his sister’s clothes. He will suffer for his own sin. ¹⁸ If a man lies with a woman who has a flow of blood, and takes her clothes off, he has made her flow to show. And she has shown the flow of her blood. So both of them will not be numbered among God’s people. ¹⁹ Do not take the clothes off your mother’s sister or father’s sister. For that is putting to shame one of your own family. They will suffer for their own sin. ²⁰ If a man lies with the wife of his father’s or mother’s brother, he has put to shame his father’s or mother’s brother. They will suffer for their own sin. They will die without children. ²¹ If a man takes his brother’s wife, it is sin. He has put his brother to shame. They will have no children.

²² ‘Keep all My Laws and do what I tell you, so the land where I am bringing you to live will not spit you out. ²³ Do not follow the ways of the nation which I am driving out before you. For they did all these things, and so I hated them. ²⁴ But I have said to you, “Their land will belong to you. I Myself will give it to you for your own, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the Lord your God, Who has set you apart from all other peoples. ²⁵ You are to know the difference between the clean animal and the animal that is unclean, and between the clean bird and the bird that is unclean. Do not make yourselves a sinful people with animal or bird or anything that moves on the ground, which I have set apart from you as being unclean. ²⁶ Be holy to Me, for I the Lord am holy. I have divided you from the nations, so you belong to Me.

²⁷ ‘A man or woman who speaks with bad spirits or who talks to the dead must be put to death. They will be killed with stones. They will suffer for their own sin.’”

How the Religious Leaders Should Live

21 The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the religious leaders, the sons of Aaron, ‘No one should make himself unclean for a dead person among his people, ² except for his own family, his mother, father, son, daughter and brother, ³ or his young sister who is near to him because she has had no husband. For her he may make himself unclean. ⁴ He should not make himself unclean as a husband among his people, and so make himself sinful. ⁵ They should not cut all the hair from any part on their heads, or cut part of the hair off their face, or make cuts in their flesh. ⁶ They should be holy to their God and not put the name of their God to shame. For they give the gifts by fire to the Lord, the bread of their God. So they must be holy. ⁷ They should not take a woman who is unclean because of selling the use of her body. They should not take a woman who is divorced from her husband. For the religious leader is holy to his God. ⁸ So you must set him apart, for he gives the bread of your God. He will be holy to you. For I, the Lord Who sets you apart, am holy. ⁹ If the daughter of any religious leader makes herself sinful by selling the use of her body, she puts her father to shame. She will be burned with fire.

¹⁰ ‘The head religious leader on whose head the holy oil has been poured, and who has been set apart to wear the clothing, must not take the covering off his head or tear his clothes. ¹¹ He must not go near any dead person or make himself unclean even for his father or mother. ¹² He must not go out of the holy place or sin against the holy place of his God. For the crown of the holy oil of his God is on him. I am the Lord. ¹³ He should take a wife who has never had a man before. ¹⁴ He should not marry a woman whose husband has died, or a divorced woman, or one who has made herself sinful by selling the use of her body. But he should marry a woman from his own people, who has never had a man. ¹⁵ By doing this he will not sin against his children among his people. For I am the Lord Who makes him holy.’”

¹⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁷ “Say to Aaron, ‘None of your children or their children who has something wrong with his body should go near to give the bread as a gift to his God. ¹⁸ For no one whose body is not perfect should come near, no blind man, or man who cannot walk, or one with a marked face, or a bad arm or leg, ¹⁹ or a man who has a broken foot or hand, ²⁰ or a man with a crooked upper back from birth, or a very little man, or one who has a bad eye or skin trouble or sores, or one whose sex parts have been crushed. ²¹ No man among the children of Aaron the religious leader, who has something wrong with his body, should come near to give the Lord’s gifts by fire. He should not come near to give the bread of his God, because he has something wrong with him. ²² He may eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy and of the holy. ²³ But he should not come near the curtain or the altar, because he has something wrong with him, and so he may not sin against My holy places. For I am the Lord Who makes them holy.’” ²⁴ So Moses spoke to Aaron and to his sons and to all the people of Israel.

22 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell Aaron and his sons to be careful with the holy gifts that the people of Israel set apart for Me. So they will not sin against My holy name. I am the Lord. ³ Say to them, ‘If any one of all your children comes near the holy gifts that the people of Israel set apart for the Lord, while he is unclean, he will be cut off from My holy place. I am the Lord. ⁴ None of the children of Aaron who has a bad skin disease or something flowing from his body may eat of the holy gifts until he is clean. If one touches anything that is unclean because of a dead body, or has had his seed come from his sex part, ⁵ or touches anything that is unclean that moves on the ground, or touches any man who makes him unclean, for whatever reason, ⁶ the man who touches any such thing will be unclean until evening. He must not eat of the holy gifts unless he has washed his body in water. ⁷ When the sun has gone down, he will be clean. After that he may eat of the holy gifts, for they are his food. ⁸ He should not eat an animal that dies of itself or is killed by wild animals. He will be unclean if he does. I am the Lord. ⁹ The religious leaders must obey My Law, so they will not be sinful because of it and die because they sin against My Law. I am the Lord Who makes them holy.

¹⁰ ‘But no one who is not a religious leader may eat the holy gift. One who is visiting the religious leader or working for him must not eat of the holy gift. ¹¹ But a person whom the religious leader buys to work for him with his own money may eat of it. And those who are born in his house may eat of his food. ¹² If a religious leader’s daughter is married to a man who is not a religious leader, she must not eat of the holy gifts. ¹³ But if a religious leader’s daughter loses her husband by death or divorce, and has no child and returns to her father’s house as when she was young, she may eat of her father’s food. But no stranger may eat of it. ¹⁴ If a man eats a holy gift by mistake, he must add a fifth of its worth to it and give the holy gift to the religious leader. ¹⁵ The religious leaders must not make the holy gifts unclean that the people of Israel give to the Lord. ¹⁶ This would bring sin upon them when they eat their holy gifts. For I am the Lord Who makes them holy.’”

Gifts That Are Not Good Enough

¹⁷ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁸ “Say to Aaron and to his sons and to all the people of Israel, ‘When any man of the house of Israel or of the strangers in Israel gives his gift for a burnt gift to the Lord, to pay a promise or as a free-will gift ¹⁹ to please the Lord, it must be a male that is perfect from the cattle, sheep or goats. ²⁰ Do not give anything that is not perfect, for you will not please the Lord. ²¹ When a man gives a peace gift to the Lord to keep a special promise or for a free-will gift from the cattle or the flock, it must be perfect to be received. It must have nothing wrong with it. ²² You must not give to the Lord or make a gift by fire on the altar to the Lord any animals that are blind or broken or hurt or have a flowing sore or a skin disease. ²³ You may give for a free-will gift a bull or lamb which has some part too long or too short. But it will not be received if it is to pay a promise. ²⁴ Do not give to the Lord any animal with its sex parts hurt or crushed or torn or cut. Do not give such animals on the altar in your land. ²⁵ And do not receive such animals from a man from another land to give as the food of your God. For they are unclean. They are not perfect. They will not be received from you.’”

²⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁷ “When a bull or sheep or goat is born, it must stay seven days with its mother. After that it will be received as a gift by fire to the Lord. ²⁸ But do not kill a cow or female sheep and her young on the same day. ²⁹ When you give thanks to the Lord by giving a gift in worship, give it the right way so you will be received. ³⁰ It must be eaten on the same day. Do not leave any of it until morning. I am the Lord.

³¹ “So keep My Laws and obey them. I am the Lord. ³² Do not sin against My holy name. I will be honored among the people of Israel. I am the Lord Who makes you holy. ³³ I brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord.”

Religious Suppers

23 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘These are the special suppers of the Lord, which you will keep for holy meetings. These are My special suppers. ³ Work may be done for six days. But the seventh day is the Day of Rest, a holy meeting when you do no work at all. It is the Day of Rest to the Lord in all your homes.

The Supper of Bread without Yeast

⁴ ‘These are the special suppers of the Lord, the holy meetings you will keep at the right times. ⁵ On the fourteenth day of the first month in the evening begins the Lord’s religious gathering to remember how His people left Egypt. ⁶ On the fifteenth day of the same month is the Lord’s special supper of bread without yeast. For seven days you will eat bread made without yeast. ⁷ On the first day you will have a holy meeting. You will not do any hard work. ⁸ But you will give a gift by fire to the Lord for seven days. On the seventh day is a holy meeting. You will not do any hard work.’”

The Supper of First Fruits

⁹ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁰ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘When you come into the land I am going to give you and gather its grain, bring some of the first fruits of your grain to the religious leader. ¹¹ He will wave the grain before the Lord for you to be received. The religious leader will wave it on the day after the Day of Rest. ¹² On the day when you wave the grain, you will give a perfect, one year old male lamb as a burnt gift to the Lord. ¹³ The grain gift with it will be one-fifth part of a basket of fine flour mixed with oil. It is a gift by fire to the Lord for a pleasing smell. And the drink gift with it will be a jar of wine. ¹⁴ Do not eat bread or dry grain or new grain until this same day, when you have brought the gift to your God. It is to be a Law forever for all your people in all your homes.

The Supper of Weeks

¹⁵ ‘Number seven full weeks from the day after the Day of Rest, from the day when you give the grain for the wave gift. There will be seven whole Days of Rest. ¹⁶ Number fifty days to the day after the seventh Day of Rest. Then give a new grain gift to the Lord. ¹⁷ Bring from your homes two loaves of bread for a wave gift, made of one-fifth part of a basket of fine flour. They will be made with yeast, as first-fruits to the Lord. ¹⁸ With the bread give seven one year old male lambs that are perfect, and one young bull, and two rams. They will be a burnt gift to the Lord, with their grain gift and their drink gift. It is a gift by fire with a pleasing smell to the Lord. ¹⁹ Then give one male goat for a sin gift and two male lambs one year old for a peace gift. ²⁰ The religious leader will wave them with the bread of the first-fruits as a wave gift before the Lord, with the two lambs. They will be holy to the Lord for the religious leader. ²¹ On this same day call together a holy meeting. Do no hard work. It is a Law forever in all your homes for all your people.

²² ‘When you gather the food of your land, do not pick all the way to the corners of your field. And do not gather the food that falls. Leave it for those in need and the stranger. I am the Lord your God.’”

The Supper of Horns

²³ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁴ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘On the first day of the seventh month, you will have a Day of Rest. It will be a day of remembering, made known by the blowing of horns, a holy meeting. ²⁵ Do not do any hard work. But give a gift by fire to the Lord.’”

A Day to Be Made Free from Sin

²⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, ²⁷ “The tenth day of this seventh month is the day to be made free from sin. It will be a holy meeting for you. You will be without pride and give a gift by fire to the Lord.

²⁸ “Do no work on this day. For it is a day to be made free from sin, to be made free from your sin before the Lord your God. ²⁹ If there is any person who will not be free from his pride on this day, he will be kept away from his people. ³⁰ Whoever does any work on this day, I will destroy from among his people. ³¹ Do no work at all. It is a Law forever for all your people in all your homes. ³² It will be a Day of Rest for you. And you must be without pride. You will keep your Day of Rest from evening until evening on the ninth day of the month.”

Supper of Tents

³³ The Lord said to Moses, ³⁴ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the special supper of tents to the Lord. It will last seven days. ³⁵ A holy meeting will be on the first day. Do no hard work of any kind. ³⁶ Give a gift by fire to the Lord for seven days. On the eighth day have a holy meeting and give a gift by fire to the Lord. It is a special gathering. Do no hard work.

³⁷ ‘These are the special suppers, the holy meetings you will keep at the right times. They will be for giving to the Lord gifts by fire, burnt gifts and grain gifts, gifts of animals and drink gifts, each on its own day. ³⁸ These are to be added to the Days of Rest of the Lord, and your gifts, both those that are promised and your free-will gifts that you give to the Lord.

³⁹ ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered the food of your land, you will have the special supper of the Lord for seven days. The first day and the eighth day will be Days of Rest. ⁴⁰ On the first day, you will take the leaves of beautiful trees, branches of trees with big leaves and of trees beside the river. And be full of joy before the Lord your God for seven days. ⁴¹ You will keep it as a special supper to the Lord seven days in the year. It will be a Law forever for all your people. You will have it in the seventh month. ⁴² You will live in tents for seven days. All who were born in Israel will live in tents. ⁴³ So all your people to come may know that I had the people of Israel live in tents when I brought them out of the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’” ⁴⁴ So Moses made known to the people of Israel the special suppers of the Lord.

Oil for the Lamps

24 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the people of Israel to bring you pure oil from beaten olives for the light to keep a lamp burning all the time. ³ Outside the curtain of the Law in the meeting tent, Aaron will keep it burning from evening to morning before the Lord always. It will be a Law forever for all your people. ⁴ He will take care of the lamps on the pure gold lamp-stand before the Lord all the time.

The Bread Gift

⁵ “Then take fine flour and bake twelve loaves of bread. Use two jars of flour for each loaf. ⁶ Set them side by side in two rows, six in each row, on the pure gold table before the Lord. ⁷ Put pure, sweet-smelling spices on each row to go with the bread as something to be remembered. It is a gift by fire to the Lord. ⁸ Every Day of Rest he will set it before the Lord all the time. It is a Law forever for the people of Israel. ⁹ The bread is for Aaron and his sons who will eat it in a holy place. It is a most holy part for him out of the gifts by fire to the Lord. It is his share forever.”

Punishment for a Person Who Spoke against God

¹⁰ Now the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went among the people of Israel. And the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought with each other among the tents. ¹¹ The son of the Israelite woman swore against the name of the Lord. So they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the family of Dan.) ¹² And they kept him shut up until the will of the Lord might be made known to them.

¹³ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁴ “Take the one who has sworn against Me away from the tents. Let all who heard him lay their hands on his head. Then let all the people kill him by throwing stones. ¹⁵ Say to the people of Israel, ‘If anyone swears against his God, he will suffer for his own sin. ¹⁶ The one who speaks against the name of the Lord will be put to death for sure. All the people will kill him with stones. Both the stranger and those born in the land will be put to death when he speaks against the name of the Lord.

¹⁷ ‘If a man takes the life of any human being, he will be put to death for sure. ¹⁸ The one who takes the life of an animal will pay for it, a life for a life. ¹⁹ If a man hurts his neighbor, it will be done to him just as he has done, ²⁰ broken bone for broken bone, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Just as he has hurt a man, so he will be hurt. ²¹ So the one who kills an animal will pay for it with an animal. But the one who kills a man will be put to death. ²² You will have the same Law for the stranger and for the one born among you. For I am the Lord your God.’”

²³ Then Moses spoke to the people of Israel. And they took the one who swore against God and brought him away from the tents and killed him with stones. So the people of Israel did as the Lord told Moses.

The Seventh Year—a Year of Rest for the Lord

25 The Lord said to Moses at Mount Sinai, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘When you come to the land I will give you, then the land will have a Year of Rest to the Lord. ³ Six years you will plant seeds in your field. Six years you will take care of your vines and gather their fruit. ⁴ But the seventh year will be a Year of Rest for the land, a Year of Rest to the Lord. You will not plant seeds in your field or take care of your vines. ⁵ You will not gather what grows of itself in your field. And do not gather the fruit of the vines that have not been cared for. The land will have a Year of Rest. ⁶ During the Year of Rest the land will give food for you, for your men and women servants, the man you pay to work for you, and the stranger who lives with you. ⁷ Even your cattle and the animals in your land will have food to eat.

The Fiftieth Year

⁸ ‘You are to number seven Years of Rest for yourself, seven times seven years. The time of the seven Years of Rest will be forty-nine years. ⁹ Then let the horn be heard on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the day to be made free from sin you will let a horn be heard all through your land. ¹⁰ You will honor the fiftieth year as holy. And let it be known in all the land that all who are living there are free. It will be a happy time for you. Each of you will return to what is his. Each will return to his family. ¹¹ That fiftieth year will be a happy time for you. You will not plant seeds in the field, or gather the food that grows of itself, or gather fruit from the vines that are not cared for. ¹² This is a happy time. It will be holy to you. You will eat from what the field gives.

¹³ ‘In this Year of Jubilee each one will have what was his. ¹⁴ If you sell anything to your neighbor, or buy from your neighbor, do not do wrong to one another. ¹⁵ You will pay your neighbor by the number of years since the Year of Jubilee. And he will sell to you by the number of years the food may be gathered. ¹⁶ You will make the price more if there are many years, and make the price less if there are few years. For he is selling you the food that is gathered each year. ¹⁷ Do not do wrong to one another, but fear your God. I am the Lord your God.

The Seventh Year

¹⁸ ‘So keep My Laws and do what I say, and you will be safe living in the land. ¹⁹ Then the land will give its food, so you can eat all you want and be safe living there. ²⁰ If you say, “What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant seeds or gather in the food of our field?” ²¹ I will let My good come upon you in the sixth year, so it will give you enough food for three years. ²² When you are planting seeds in the eighth year, you can still eat from the old store of food. You can eat the old food until the food of the ninth year is gathered.

²³ ‘The land will not be sold to be kept forever. For the land is Mine. You are only strangers staying with Me. ²⁴ For all the land you have, you must be willing to let it go. ²⁵ When your brother becomes poor and sells some of his land, then one in his family who is near to him is to come and buy what his brother has sold. ²⁶ But a man may have no one to buy his land, and he himself may become able to buy it again. ²⁷ Then he should add up the years since he sold it, and pay what is left of the price to the man to whom he sold it. So he will return to his own land. ²⁸ But if he is not able to buy it again for himself, then what he has sold will belong to the one who bought it until the Year of Jubilee. In the Year of Jubilee it will be let go and he may return to it.

²⁹ ‘If a man sells a house within the walls of a city, he has the right to buy it back for a whole year from the time he sold it. He can buy it during that year. ³⁰ But if it is not bought back again for him within a whole year, then the house within the city walls belongs forever to the family of the one who bought it. It will not be returned to him in the Year of Jubilee. ³¹ But houses in towns that have no walls will be thought of as open fields. They may be let go, and will be returned in the Year of Jubilee. ³² The houses in the cities of the Levites may be returned to the Levites at any time. ³³ If a house is not bought again by a Levite, then the house that was sold in one of their cities will be returned to him in the Year of Jubilee. For the houses of the Levites belong to them among the people of Israel. ³⁴ But the open field of their cities must not be sold. It belongs to them forever.

The Poor Paying Money Back

³⁵ ‘If your brother becomes poor and is not able to pay you what he owes, then you should help him as you would help a stranger or visitor. So he may live with you. ³⁶ Do not make him pay for the use of the money he owes you. But fear your God, so your brother may live with you. ³⁷ Do not make him pay for the use of your money or your food. ³⁸ I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.

About Servants and Workmen

³⁹ ‘If your brother becomes so poor that he sells himself to you, do not make him work as a servant. ⁴⁰ He will be as a man who is paid to work for you, as one who is traveling from place to place, until the Year of Jubilee. ⁴¹ Then he will leave you, he and his children, that he may return to the land of his fathers. ⁴² For I brought them out of the land of Egypt as My servants. They are not to be sold as a servant. ⁴³ Do not make it hard for him, but fear your God. ⁴⁴ Those men and women you may have who are sold as servants will be from the nations around you. ⁴⁵ You may buy from among the children of the strangers who live among you, and from their families that are with you and were born in your land. You may own them. ⁴⁶ You may give them to your children after you, to receive as their own. You can have them as servants forever. But do not make it hard for your brothers, the people of Israel.

⁴⁷ ‘Now a stranger or one visiting you may become rich. And your brother may become so poor that he sells himself to a stranger living among you, or to the children of a stranger’s family. ⁴⁸ Then he may be made free after he has been sold. One of his brothers may pay the price to free him. ⁴⁹ His father’s brother, the son of his father’s brother, or one of his own family may pay the price to free him. Or if he becomes rich he may pay the price himself. ⁵⁰ With the one who bought him he will add the years from the year he sold himself until the Year of Jubilee. The price for him to be set free will be decided upon by the number of years. The time he was with the man who owned him will be as that of a man paid to work for him. ⁵¹ If there are still many years, he will return a part of the price which was given for him. ⁵² If there is only a few years until the Year of Jubilee, he will decide upon the amount of money with his owner. He should pay the price to be set free, decided upon by the number of years. ⁵³ He will be like a man paid to work for him year by year. Make sure his owner does not make it hard for him. ⁵⁴ Even if the price is not paid for him in this way, he will go free in the Year of Jubilee, he and his children. ⁵⁵ Because the people of Israel are My servants. They are My servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.

Good Comes to Those Who Obey

26 ‘Do not make gods for yourselves. Do not set up for yourselves something to look like a god or a holy object. Do not set up something cut from stone in your land to bow down to. For I am the Lord your God. ² Keep My Days of Rest and honor My holy place. I am the Lord. ³ If you live by My Laws and do what I say, ⁴ I will give you rain at the right time. So the land will give its food and the trees will give their fruit. ⁵ The crushing of your grain will last until the grapes are gathered. The grape gathering will last until the seeds are planted. You will eat your food until you are full, and be safe living in your land. ⁶ I will give peace in the land. You will lie down and no one will make you afraid. I will make the land free from the danger of wild animals. And no sword will move through your land. ⁷ You will go after those who hate you, and they will fall in front of you by the sword. ⁸ Five of you will go after a hundred. A hundred of you will go after ten thousand. And those who hate you will fall in front of you by the sword. ⁹ I will care for you and give you many children. I will keep My agreement with you. ¹⁰ You will eat last year’s food, and use it all because you will have new. ¹¹ I will make My home among you. My soul will not turn away from you. ¹² I will walk among you and be your God. And you will be My people. ¹³ I am the Lord your God Who brought you out of the land of Egypt so you would not be their servants. I have broken loose the heavy load from your back and made you walk straight.

Punishment to Those Who Do Not Obey

¹⁴ ‘But if you do not obey Me and do not do all I say, ¹⁵ if you turn away from My Laws and do not want to do what I tell you to do, and do not do it, and so break My agreement, ¹⁶ I will do this to you: I will bring upon you much fear, disease that destroys, and sickness that will waste away the eyes and make the body weak. You will plant your seeds for nothing, for those who hate you will eat it. ¹⁷ I will turn against you so you will fall in front of those who fight you. Those who hate you will rule over you. You will run away when no one is coming after you. ¹⁸ If after all of these things you still do not obey Me, I will punish you seven times more for your sins. ¹⁹ I will break the pride you have of your power. I will make your sky like iron and your earth like brass. ²⁰ You will use your strength for nothing. For your land will not give food, and the trees of the land will not give fruit.

²¹ ‘If you act against Me and will not obey Me, I will bring you seven times more trouble than your sins. ²² I will let the wild animals loose among you. They will rob you of your children and destroy your cattle. They will make you few in number, so that your roads will be empty.

²³ ‘If after these things you do not turn to Me, but still go against Me, ²⁴ then I will go against you. I Myself will punish you seven times for your sins. ²⁵ I will bring a sword upon you that will punish you for breaking the agreement. I will send disease among you when you gather together in your cities. So you will be given into the hands of those who hate you. ²⁶ When I take away your bread of life, ten women will make your bread in one stove. They will give out your bread by weight. And you will eat it and not be filled.