Bible in 90 Days

Remember What the Lord Has Done

8 Make sure you obey every command I’m giving you today. Then you will live, and there will be many of you. You will enter the land and take it as your own. It’s the land the Lord promised to your people of long ago. ² Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way. He guided you in the desert for these 40 years. He wanted to take your pride away. He wanted to test you to know what was in your hearts. He wanted to see whether you would obey his commands. ³ He took your pride away. He let you go hungry. Then he gave you manna to eat. You and your parents had never even known anything about manna before. He tested you to teach you that man doesn’t live only on bread. He also lives on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. ⁴ Your clothes didn’t wear out during these 40 years. Your feet didn’t swell. ⁵ Here is what I want you to know in your hearts. The Lord your God guides you, just as parents guide their children.

⁶ Obey the commands of the Lord your God. Live as he wants you to live. Have respect for him. ⁷ The Lord your God is bringing you into a good land. It has brooks, streams and deep springs of water. Those springs flow in its valleys and hills. ⁸ It has wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey. ⁹ There is plenty of food in that land. You will have everything you need. Its rocks have iron in them. And you can dig copper out of its hills.

¹⁰ When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God. Praise him for the good land he has given you. ¹¹ Make sure you don’t forget the Lord your God. Don’t fail to obey his commands, laws and rules. I’m giving them to you today. ¹² But suppose you don’t obey his commands. And suppose you have plenty to eat. You build fine houses and live in them. ¹³ The number of your herds and flocks increases. You also get more and more silver and gold. And everything you have multiplies. ¹⁴ Then your hearts will become proud. And you will forget the Lord your God. The Lord brought you out of Egypt. That’s the land where you were slaves. ¹⁵ He led you through that huge and terrible desert. It was a dry land. It didn’t have any water. It had poisonous snakes and scorpions. The Lord gave you water out of solid rock. ¹⁶ He gave you manna to eat in the desert. Your people had never even known anything about manna before. The Lord took your pride away. He tested you. He did it so that things would go well with you in the end. ¹⁷ You might say to yourself, “My power and my strong hands have made me rich.” ¹⁸ But remember the Lord your God. He gives you the ability to produce wealth. That shows he stands by the terms of the covenant he made with you. He promised it to your people of long ago. And he’s still faithful to his covenant today.

¹⁹ Don’t forget the Lord your God. Don’t serve other gods. Don’t worship them and bow down to them. I am a witness against you today that if you do, you will certainly be destroyed. ²⁰ You will be destroyed just like the nations the Lord your God is destroying to make room for you. That’s what will happen if you don’t obey him.

Why the Lord Gave Canaan to Israel

9 Israel, listen to me. You are now about to go across the Jordan River. You will take over the land of the nations that live there. Those nations are greater and stronger than you are. Their large cities have walls that reach up to the sky. ² The people who live there are Anakites. They are strong and tall. You know all about them. You have heard people say, “Who can stand up against the Anakites?” ³ But today you can be sure the Lord your God will go over there ahead of you. He is like a fire that will burn them up. He’ll destroy them. He’ll bring them under your control. You will drive them out. You will put an end to them quickly, just as the Lord has promised you.

⁴ The Lord your God will drive them out to make room for you. When he does, don’t say to yourself, “The Lord has done it because I am godly. That’s why he brought me here to take over this land.” That isn’t true. The Lord is going to drive out those nations to make room for you because they are very evil. ⁵ You are not going in to take over their land because you have done what is right or honest. It’s because those nations are so evil. That’s why the Lord your God will drive them out to make room for you. He will do what he said he would do. He made a promise to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. ⁶ The Lord your God is giving you this good land to take as your own. But you must understand that it isn’t because you are a godly nation. In fact, you are stubborn.

Israel Worshiped the Golden Calf

⁷ Here is something you must remember. Never forget it. You made the Lord your God angry in the desert. You refused to obey him from the day you left Egypt until you arrived here. ⁸ At Mount Horeb you made the Lord angry enough to destroy you. ⁹ I went up the mountain. I went there to receive the tablets of the covenant law. They were made out of stone. It was the covenant the Lord had made with you. I stayed on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights. I didn’t eat any food or drink any water. ¹⁰ The Lord gave me two stone tablets. The words on them were written by the finger of God. All the commandments the Lord gave you were written on the tablets. He announced them to you out of the fire on the mountain. He wrote them on the day you gathered together there.

¹¹ The 40 days and 40 nights came to an end. Then the Lord gave me the two stone tablets. They were the tablets of the covenant law. ¹² The Lord told me, “Go down from here right away. The people you brought out of Egypt have become very sinful. They have quickly turned away from what I commanded them. They have made a statue of a god for themselves.”

¹³ The Lord also said to me, “I have seen these people. They are so stubborn! ¹⁴ Do not try to stop me. I am going to destroy them. I will wipe them out from the earth. Then I will make you into a great nation. Your people will be stronger than they were. There will be more of you than there were of them.”

¹⁵ So I turned and went down the mountain. It was blazing with fire. I was carrying the two tablets of the covenant law. ¹⁶ When I looked, I saw that you had sinned against the Lord your God. You had made for yourselves a metal statue of a god. It looked like a calf. You had quickly turned away from the path the Lord had commanded you to follow. ¹⁷ So I threw the two tablets out of my hands. You watched them break into pieces.

¹⁸ Then once again I fell down flat in front of the Lord with my face toward the ground. I lay there for 40 days and 40 nights. I didn’t eat any food or drink any water. You had committed a terrible sin. You had done an evil thing in the Lord’s sight. You had made him angry. ¹⁹ I was afraid of the Lord’s great anger. He was so angry with you he wanted to destroy you. But the Lord listened to me again. ²⁰ And he was so angry with Aaron he wanted to destroy him too. But at that time I prayed for Aaron. ²¹ I also got that sinful calf you had made. I burned it in the fire. I crushed it and ground it into fine powder. Then I threw the powder into a stream that was flowing down the mountain.

²² You also made the Lord angry at Taberah, Massah and Kibroth Hattaavah.

²³ The Lord sent you out from Kadesh Barnea. He said, “Go up and take over the land I have given you.” But you refused to do what the Lord your God had commanded you to do. You didn’t trust him or obey him. ²⁴ You have been refusing to obey the Lord as long as I’ve known you.

²⁵ I lay down in front of the Lord with my face toward the ground for 40 days and 40 nights. I did it because the Lord had said he would destroy you. ²⁶ I prayed to him. “Lord and King,” I said, “don’t destroy your people. They belong to you. You set them free by your great power. You used your mighty hand to bring them out of Egypt. ²⁷ Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Forgive the Israelites for being so stubborn. Don’t judge them for the evil and sinful things they’ve done. ²⁸ If you do, the Egyptians will say, ‘The Lord wasn’t able to take them into the land he had promised to give them. He hated them. So he brought them out of Egypt to put them to death in the desert.’ ²⁹ But they are your people. They belong to you. You used your great power to bring them out of Egypt. You reached out your mighty arm and saved them.”

The New Stone Tablets

10 At that time the Lord spoke to me. He said, “Carve out two stone tablets, just like the first ones. Then come up to me on the mountain. Also make a wooden ark. ² I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. Then you must put the tablets in the ark.”

³ So I made the ark out of acacia wood. I carved out two stone tablets that were just like the first ones. I went up the mountain. I carried the two tablets in my hands. ⁴ The Lord wrote on the tablets what he had written before. It was the Ten Commandments. He had announced them to you out of the fire on the mountain. It was on the day you had gathered together there. So the Lord gave the tablets to me. ⁵ Then I came back down the mountain. I put the tablets in the ark I had made, just as the Lord had commanded me. And that’s where they are now.

⁶ Remember how the Israelites traveled from the wells of Bene Jaakan to Moserah. That’s where Aaron died. And his body was buried there. His son Eleazar became the next priest after him. ⁷ From Moserah the people traveled to Gudgodah. Then they went on to Jotbathah. That land has streams of water. ⁸ At that time the Lord set the tribe of Levi apart. He appointed them to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord. He wanted them to serve him. He told them to bless the people in his name. And they still do it today. ⁹ That’s why the Levites don’t have any part of the land the Lord gave the other tribes in Israel. They don’t have any share among them. The Lord himself is their share. That’s what the Lord your God told them.

¹⁰ I had stayed on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights, just as I did the first time. The Lord listened to me that time also. He didn’t want to destroy you. ¹¹ “Go,” the Lord said to me. “Lead the people on their way. Then they can enter the land and take it over. I have given my word. I promised I would give the land to their fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”

Honor the Lord

¹² And now, Israel, what is the Lord your God asking you to do? Honor him. Live exactly as he wants you to live. Love him. Serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. ¹³ Obey the Lord’s commands and rules. I’m giving them to you today for your own good.

¹⁴ The heavens belong to the Lord your God. Even the highest heavens belong to him. He owns the earth and everything in it. ¹⁵ But the Lord loved your people of long ago very much. You are their children. And he chose you above all the other nations. His love and his promise remain with you to this very day. ¹⁶ So don’t be stubborn anymore. Obey the Lord. ¹⁷ The Lord your God is the greatest God of all. He is the greatest Lord of all. He is the great God. He is mighty and wonderful. He treats everyone the same. He doesn’t accept any money from those who want special favors. ¹⁸ He stands up for widows and for children whose fathers have died. He loves outsiders living among you. He gives them food and clothes. ¹⁹ So you also must love outsiders. Remember that you yourselves were outsiders in Egypt. ²⁰ Honor the Lord your God. Serve him. Remain true to him. When you make promises, do so in his name. ²¹ He is the one you should praise. He’s your God. With your own eyes you saw the great and amazing things he did for you. ²² Long ago, your people went down into Egypt. The total number of them was 70. And now the Lord your God has made you as many as the stars in the sky.

Love and Obey the Lord

11 Love the Lord your God. Do what he requires. Always obey his rules, laws and commands. ² Remember today that your children weren’t the ones the Lord your God guided and corrected. They didn’t see his majesty. They weren’t in Egypt when he reached out his mighty hand and powerful arm. ³ They didn’t see the signs and the other things he did in Egypt. They didn’t see what he did to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and to his whole country. ⁴ They weren’t there when the Lord destroyed the army of Egypt and its horses and chariots. He swept the waters of the Red Sea over the Egyptians while they were chasing you. He wiped them out forever. ⁵ Your children didn’t see what he did for you in the desert before you arrived here. ⁶ They didn’t see what he did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. Eliab was from the tribe of Reuben. The earth opened its mouth right in the middle of the Israelite camp. It swallowed up Dathan and Abiram. It swallowed them up together with their families, tents and every living thing that belonged to them. ⁷ But with your own eyes you saw all the great things the Lord has done.

⁸ So obey all the commands I’m giving you today. Then you will be strong enough to go in and take over the land. You will go across the Jordan River and take the land as your own. ⁹ You will live there for a long time. It’s the land the Lord promised to give to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children after them. He gave his word when he made that promise. The land has plenty of milk and honey. ¹⁰ You will enter it and take it over. It isn’t like the land of Egypt. That’s where you came from. You planted your seeds there. You had to water them, just as you have to water a vegetable garden. ¹¹ But you will soon go across the Jordan River. The land you are going to take over has mountains and valleys in it. It drinks rain from heaven. ¹² It’s a land the Lord your God takes care of. His eyes always look on it with favor. He watches over it from the beginning of the year to its end.

¹³ So be faithful. Obey the commands the Lord your God is giving you today. Love him. Serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. ¹⁴ Then the Lord will send rain on your land at the right time. He’ll send rain in the fall and in the spring. You will be able to gather your grain. You will also be able to make olive oil and fresh wine. ¹⁵ He’ll provide grass in the fields for your cattle. You will have plenty to eat.

¹⁶ But be careful. Don’t let anyone tempt you to do something wrong. Don’t turn away and worship other gods. Don’t bow down to them. ¹⁷ If you do, the Lord will be very angry with you. He’ll close up the sky. It won’t rain. The ground won’t produce its crops. Soon you will die. You won’t live to enjoy the good land the Lord is giving you. ¹⁸ So keep my words in your hearts and minds. Write them down and tie them on your hands as a reminder. Also tie them on your foreheads. ¹⁹ Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home. Talk about them when you walk along the road. Speak about them when you go to bed. And speak about them when you get up. ²⁰ Write them on the doorframes of your houses. Also write them on your gates. ²¹ Then you and your children will live for a long time in the land. The Lord promised to give the land to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Your family line will continue as long as the heavens remain above the earth.

²² So be careful. Obey all the commands I’m giving you to follow. Love the Lord your God. Live exactly as he wants you to live. Remain true to him. ²³ Then the Lord will drive out all the nations to make room for you. They are larger and stronger than you are. But you will take their land. ²⁴ Every place you walk on will belong to you. Your territory will go all the way from the desert to Lebanon. It will go from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea. ²⁵ No one will be able to stand up against you. The Lord your God will throw the whole land into a panic because of you. He’ll do it everywhere you go, just as he promised you.

²⁶ Listen to me. I’m setting a blessing and a curse in front of you today. ²⁷ I’m giving you the commands of the Lord your God today. You will be blessed if you obey them. ²⁸ But you will be cursed if you don’t obey them. So don’t turn away from the path I’m now commanding you to take. Don’t turn away by worshiping other gods you didn’t know before. ²⁹ The Lord your God will bring you into the land to take it over. When he does, you must announce the blessings from Mount Gerizim. You must announce the curses from Mount Ebal. ³⁰ As you know, those mountains are across the Jordan River. They are on the west side of the Jordan toward the setting sun. They are near the large trees of Moreh. The mountains are in the territory of the Canaanites, who live in the Arabah Valley near Gilgal. ³¹ You are about to go across the Jordan River. You will enter the land and take it over. The Lord your God is giving it to you. You will take it over and live there. ³² When you do, make sure you obey all the rules and laws I’m giving you today.

Worship Only Where the Lord Wants You To

12 Here are the rules and laws you must obey. Be careful to obey them in the land the Lord has given you to take as your own. He’s the God of your people who lived long ago. Obey these rules and laws as long as you live in the land. ² You will soon drive the nations out of it. Completely destroy all the places where they worship their gods. Destroy them on the high mountains, on the hills and under every green tree. ³ Break down their altars. Smash their sacred stones. Burn up the poles they use to worship the female god named Asherah. Cut down the statues of their gods. Wipe out the names of their gods from those places.

⁴ You must not worship the Lord your God the way those nations worship their gods. ⁵ Instead, go to the special place he will choose from among all your tribes. He will put his Name there. That’s where you must go. ⁶ Take your burnt offerings and sacrifices to that place. Bring your special gifts and a tenth of everything you produce. Take with you what you have promised to give. Bring any other offerings you choose to give. And bring the male animals among your livestock that were born first to their mothers. ⁷ You and your families will eat at the place the Lord your God will choose. He will be with you there. You will find joy in everything you have done. That’s because he has blessed you.

⁸ You must not do as we’re doing here today. All of us are doing only what we think is right. ⁹ That’s because you haven’t yet reached the place the Lord is giving you. Your God will give you peace and rest there. ¹⁰ But first you will go across the Jordan River. You will settle in the land he’s giving you. It will belong to you as your share. He will give you peace and rest from all your enemies around you. You will live in safety. ¹¹ The Lord your God will choose a special place. He will put his Name there. That’s where you must bring everything I command you to bring. That includes your burnt offerings and sacrifices. It includes your special gifts and a tenth of everything you produce. It also includes all the things of value that you promised to give to the Lord. ¹² Be filled with joy there in the sight of the Lord your God. Your children should also be joyful. So should your male and female servants. And so should the Levites from your towns. The Levites won’t receive any part of the land as their share. ¹³ Be careful not to sacrifice your burnt offerings anywhere you want to. ¹⁴ Offer them only at the place the Lord will choose in one of your tribes. There you must obey everything I command you.

¹⁵ But you can kill your animals in any of your towns. You can eat as much of the meat as you want to. You can eat it as if it were antelope or deer meat. That is part of the blessing the Lord your God is giving you. Those who are “clean” and those who are not can eat it. ¹⁶ But you must not eat meat that still has blood in it. Pour the blood out on the ground like water. ¹⁷ Here are the things you must not eat in your own towns. You must not eat the tenth part of your grain, olive oil and fresh wine. It belongs to the Lord. You must not eat the male animals among your livestock that were born first to their mothers. Don’t eat anything you have promised to give. Don’t eat any offerings you have chosen to give. And you must not eat any of your special gifts. ¹⁸ Instead, you must eat all those things in the sight of the Lord your God. Do it at the place he will choose. You, your children, your male and female servants and the Levites from your towns can eat them. Be filled with joy in the sight of the Lord your God. Be joyful in everything you do. ¹⁹ Don’t forget to take care of the Levites as long as you live in your land.

²⁰ The Lord your God will increase your territory, just as he has promised you. When he does, you might get hungry for meat. You might say, “I’d really like some meat.” Then you can eat as much of it as you want to. ²¹ The Lord your God will choose a special place. He will put his Name there. But suppose that place is too far away from you. Then you can kill animals from the herds and flocks the Lord has given you. Do it just as I have commanded you. In your own towns you can eat as much of the meat as you want to. ²² Eat it as you would eat antelope or deer meat. Those who are “clean” and those who are not can eat it. ²³ But be sure you don’t eat meat that still has blood in it. The blood is the animal’s life. So you must not eat the life along with the meat. ²⁴ You must not eat the blood. Pour it out on the ground like water. ²⁵ Don’t eat it. Then things will go well with you and your children after you. You will be doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

²⁶ But go to the place the Lord will choose. Take with you the things you have set apart for him. Bring what you have promised to give him. ²⁷ Sacrifice your burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord your God. Offer the meat and the blood there. The blood of your sacrifices must be poured out beside his altar. But you can eat the meat. ²⁸ Make sure you obey all the rules I’m giving you. Then things will always go well with you and your children after you. That’s because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord your God.

²⁹ You are about to attack the land and take it over as your own. When you do, the Lord your God will destroy the nations who live there. He will do it to make room for you. You will drive them out. You will settle in their land. ³⁰ They will be destroyed to make room for you. But when they are destroyed, be careful. Don’t be trapped. Don’t ask questions about their gods. Don’t say, “How do these nations serve their gods? We’ll do it in the same way.” ³¹ You must not worship the Lord your God the way they worship their gods. When they worship, they do all kinds of evil things the Lord hates. They even burn up their children in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.

³² Be sure you do everything I am commanding you to do. Do not add anything to my commands. And do not take anything away from them.

Do Not Worship Other Gods

13 Suppose a prophet appears among you. Or someone comes who uses dreams to tell what’s going to happen. He tells you that a sign or something amazing is going to take place. ² The sign or amazing thing he has spoken about might really take place. And then the prophet might say, “Let’s serve other gods. Let’s worship them.” But you haven’t known anything about those gods before. ³ So you must not listen to what that prophet or dreamer has said. The Lord your God is testing you. He wants to know whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁴ You must worship him. You must honor him. Keep his commands. Obey him. Serve him. Remain true to him. ⁵ That prophet or dreamer must be put to death. He told you not to obey the Lord your God. The Lord brought you out of Egypt. He set you free from the land where you were slaves. He commanded you to live the way he wants you to. But that prophet or dreamer has tried to get you to be unfaithful to the Lord. Get rid of that evil person.

⁶ Suppose your very own brother or sister secretly tempts you to do something wrong. Or your child or the wife you love tempts you. Or your closest friend does it. Suppose one of them says, “Let’s go and worship other gods.” But you and your people of long ago hadn’t known anything about those gods before. ⁷ They are the gods of the nations around you. Those nations might be near or far away. In fact, they might reach from one end of the land to the other. ⁸ Don’t give in to those who are tempting you. Don’t listen to them. Don’t feel sorry for them. Don’t spare them or save them. ⁹ You must certainly put them to death. You must be the first to throw stones at them. Then all the people must do the same thing. ¹⁰ Put them to death by throwing stones at them. They tried to turn you away from the Lord your God. He brought you out of Egypt. That’s the land where you were slaves. ¹¹ After you kill those who tempted you, all the Israelites will hear about it. And they will be too scared to do an evil thing like that again.

¹² The Lord your God is giving you towns to live in. But suppose you hear something bad about one of those towns. ¹³ You hear that people who cause trouble have appeared among you. They’ve tried to get the people of their town to do something wrong. They’ve said, “Let’s go and worship other gods.” But you haven’t known anything about those gods before. ¹⁴ So you must ask people some questions. You must check out the matter carefully. If it’s true, an evil thing has really happened among you. It’s something the Lord hates. ¹⁵ Then you must certainly kill with your swords everyone who lives in that town. You must destroy it completely. You must wipe out its people and livestock. ¹⁶ You must gather all the goods of that town into the middle of the main street. You must burn the town completely. You must burn up everything in it. It’s a whole burnt offering to the Lord your God. The town must remain a pile of stones forever. It must never be built again. ¹⁷ Don’t keep anything that should be destroyed. Then the Lord will turn away from his great anger. He will show you mercy. He’ll have deep concern for you. He’ll cause there to be many of you. That’s what he promised your people of long ago. He gave his word when he made the promise. ¹⁸ The Lord your God will do those things if you obey him. I’m giving you his commands today. And you must obey all of them. You must do what is right in his eyes.

“Clean” and “Unclean” Food

14 You are the children of the Lord your God. Don’t cut yourselves to honor the dead. Don’t shave the front of your heads to honor the dead. ² You are a holy nation. The Lord your God has set you apart for himself. He has chosen you to be his special treasure. He chose you out of all the nations on the face of the earth.

³ Don’t eat anything the Lord hates. ⁴ Here are the only animals you can eat. You can eat oxen, sheep, goats, ⁵ deer, gazelles, roe deer, wild goats, ibexes, antelope and mountain sheep. ⁶ You can eat any animal that has a divided hoof. But it must also chew the cud. ⁷ Some animals only chew the cud. Others only have a divided hoof. The camel, rabbit and rock badger chew the cud, but they don’t have a divided hoof. So you can’t eat them. They are not “clean” for you. ⁸ Pigs aren’t “clean” for you either. They have a divided hoof, but they don’t chew the cud. So don’t eat their meat. And don’t touch their dead bodies.

⁹ Many creatures live in water. You can eat all the ones that have fins and scales. ¹⁰ But don’t eat anything that doesn’t have fins and scales. It isn’t “clean” for you.

¹¹ You can eat any “clean” bird. ¹² But there are many birds you can’t eat. They include eagles, vultures, and black vultures. ¹³ They include red kites, black kites and all kinds of falcons. ¹⁴ They include all kinds of ravens. ¹⁵ They include horned owls, screech owls, gulls and all kinds of hawks. ¹⁶ They include little owls, great owls, white owls ¹⁷ and desert owls. They include ospreys and cormorants. ¹⁸ They include storks and all kinds of herons. They also include hoopoes and bats.

¹⁹ All flying insects are “unclean” for you. So don’t eat them. ²⁰ But you can eat any creature that has wings and is “clean.”

²¹ If you find something that’s already dead, don’t eat it. You can give it to an outsider living in any of your towns. They may eat it. Or you can sell it to someone from another country. But you are a holy nation. The Lord your God has set you apart for himself.

Don’t cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Give a Tenth of What You Produce

²² Be sure to set apart a tenth of everything your fields produce each year. ²³ Here are the things you should eat in the sight of the Lord your God. You should eat a tenth part of your grain, olive oil and fresh wine. You should also eat the male animals among your livestock that were born first to their mothers. Eat all these things at the special place the Lord your God will choose. He will put his Name there. You will learn to honor him always. ²⁴ But suppose the place the Lord will choose for his Name is too far away from you. And suppose your God has blessed you. And your tenth part is too heavy for you to carry. ²⁵ Then sell it for silver. Take the silver with you. Go to the place the Lord your God will choose. ²⁶ Use the silver to buy anything you like. It can be cattle or sheep. It can be any kind of wine. In fact, it can be anything else you wish. Then you and your family can eat there in the sight of the Lord your God. You can be filled with joy. ²⁷ Don’t forget to take care of the Levites who will live in your towns. They won’t receive any part of the land as their share.

²⁸ At the end of every three years, bring a tenth of everything you produce that year. Store it in your towns. ²⁹ Then the Levites can come and eat. That’s because they won’t receive any part of the land as their share. The outsiders and widows who live in your towns can come. So can the children whose fathers have died. Everyone can have plenty to eat. Then the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.

The Year for Forgiving People What They Owe

15 At the end of every seven years you must forgive people what they owe you. ² Have you made a loan to one of your own people? Then forgive what is owed to you. You can’t require that person to pay you back. The Lord’s time to forgive what is owed has been announced. ³ You can require someone from another nation to pay you back. But you must forgive what any of your own people owes you. ⁴ There shouldn’t be any poor people among you. The Lord will greatly bless you in the land he is giving you. You will take it over as your own. ⁵ The Lord your God will bless you if you obey him completely. Be careful to follow all the commands I’m giving you today. ⁶ The Lord your God will bless you, just as he has promised. You will lend money to many nations. But you won’t have to borrow from any of them. You will rule over many nations. But none of them will rule over you.

⁷ Suppose someone is poor among you. And suppose they live in one of the towns in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Then don’t be mean to them. They are poor. So don’t hold back money from them. ⁸ Instead, open your hands and lend them what they need. Do it freely. ⁹ Be careful not to have an evil thought in your mind. Don’t say to yourself, “The seventh year will soon be here. It’s the year for forgiving people what they owe.” If you think like that, you might treat the needy people among you badly. You might not give them anything. Then they might make their appeal to the Lord against you. And he will find you guilty of sin. ¹⁰ So give freely to needy people. Let your heart be tender toward them. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all your work. He will bless you in everything you do. ¹¹ There will always be poor people in the land. So I’m commanding you to give freely to those who are poor and needy in your land. Open your hands to them.

Set Your Hebrew Servants Free

¹² Suppose any Hebrew men or women sell themselves to you. If they do, they will serve you for six years. Then in the seventh year you must let them go free. ¹³ But when you set them free, don’t send them away without anything to show for all their work. ¹⁴ Freely give them some animals from your flock. Also give them some of your grain and wine. The Lord your God has blessed you richly. Give to them as he has given to you. ¹⁵ Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. The Lord your God set you free. That’s why I’m giving you this command today.

¹⁶ But suppose your servant says to you, “I don’t want to leave you.” He loves you and your family. And you are taking good care of him. ¹⁷ Then take him to the door of your house. Poke a hole through his earlobe into the doorpost. And he will become your servant for life. Do the same with your female servant.

¹⁸ Don’t think you are being cheated when you set your servants free. After all, they have served you for six years. The service of each of them has been worth twice as much as the service of a hired worker. And the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.

Male Animals Born First to Their Mothers

¹⁹ Set apart every male animal among your livestock that was born first to its mother. Set it apart to the Lord your God. Don’t put a firstborn cow to work. Don’t clip the wool from a firstborn sheep. ²⁰ Each year you and your family must eat them. Do it in front of the Lord your God at the place he will choose. ²¹ Suppose an animal has something wrong with it. It might not be able to see or walk. Or it might have a bad flaw. Then you must not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. ²² You must eat it in your own towns. Those who are “clean” and those who are “unclean” can eat it. Eat it as if it were antelope or deer meat. ²³ But you must not eat meat that still has blood in it. Pour the blood out on the ground like water.

The Passover Feast

16 Celebrate the Passover Feast of the Lord your God in the month of Aviv. In that month he brought you out of Egypt at night. ² Sacrifice an animal from your flock or herd. It is the Passover sacrifice to honor the Lord your God. Sacrifice it at the special place the Lord will choose. He will put his Name there. ³ Don’t eat the animal along with bread made with yeast. Instead, for seven days eat bread made without yeast. It’s the bread that reminds you of how much you suffered. Remember that you left Egypt in a hurry. Remember it all the days of your life. Don’t forget the day you left Egypt. ⁴ Don’t keep any yeast anywhere in your land for seven days. You will sacrifice the Passover animal on the evening of the first day. Do not let any of its meat be left over until the next morning.

⁵ You must not sacrifice the Passover animal in just any town the Lord your God is giving you. ⁶ Sacrifice it only in the special place he will choose for his Name. Sacrifice it there in the evening when the sun goes down. Do it on the same day every year. Be sure it’s the day you left Egypt. ⁷ Cook the animal and eat it. Do it at the place the Lord your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents. ⁸ For six days eat bread made without yeast. On the seventh day come together for a service to honor the Lord your God. Don’t do any work on that day.

The Feast of Weeks

⁹ Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to cut your grain in the field. ¹⁰ Then celebrate the Feast of Weeks to honor the Lord your God. Give to the Lord anything you choose to give as an offering. Give, just as the Lord has given to you. ¹¹ Be filled with joy in the sight of the Lord your God. Be joyful at the special place he will choose for his Name. You, your children, and your male and female servants should be joyful. So should the Levites living in your towns. So should the outsiders and widows living among you. And so should the children whose fathers have died. ¹² Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. Be careful to obey the rules I’m giving you.

The Feast of Booths

¹³ Gather the grain from your threshing floors. Take the fresh wine from your winepresses. Then celebrate the Feast of Booths for seven days. ¹⁴ Be filled with joy at your feast. You, your children, and your male and female servants should be joyful. So should the Levites, the outsiders, and the widows living in your towns. And so should the children whose fathers have died. ¹⁵ For seven days celebrate the feast to honor the Lord your God. Do it at the place he will choose. The Lord will bless you when you gather all your crops. He’ll bless you in everything you do. And you will be full of joy. ¹⁶ All your men must appear in front of the Lord your God at the holy tent. They must go to the place he will choose. They must do it three times a year. They must go there to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Booths. None of your men should appear in front of the Lord without bringing something with him. ¹⁷ Each of you must bring a gift. Give to the Lord your God, just as he has given to you.

Appoint Judges and Officials

¹⁸ Appoint judges and officials for each of your tribes. Do it in every town the Lord your God is giving you. They must judge the people fairly. ¹⁹ Do what is right. Treat everyone the same. Don’t take money from people who want special favors. It makes those who are wise close their eyes to the truth. It twists the words of those who have done nothing wrong. ²⁰ Do only what is right. Then you will live. You will take over the land the Lord your God is giving you.

Don’t Worship Other Gods

²¹ Don’t set up a wooden pole used to worship the female god named Asherah. Don’t set it up beside the altar you build to worship the Lord your God. ²² Don’t set up a sacred stone to honor another god. The Lord your God hates Asherah poles and sacred stones.

17 Suppose an ox or sheep has anything at all wrong with it. Then don’t sacrifice it to the Lord your God. He hates it.

² Someone living among you might do what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God. It might happen in one of the towns the Lord is giving you. That person is breaking the Lord’s covenant. ³ The person might have worshiped or bowed down to other gods. That person might have bowed down to the sun or moon or stars in the sky. I have commanded you not to do these things. ⁴ When you hear that people have done something like that, check the matter out carefully. If it’s true, an evil thing has been done in Israel. The Lord hates that. ⁵ So take the person who has done that evil thing to your city gate. Put that person to death by throwing stones at them. ⁶ Two or three witnesses are required to put someone to death. No one can be put to death because of what only one witness says. Two or three witnesses are required. ⁷ The witnesses must throw the first stones. Then the rest of the people must also throw stones. Get rid of that evil person.

Law Courts

⁸ People will bring their cases to your courts. But some cases will be too hard for you to judge. They might be about murders, attacks or other crimes. Then take those hard cases to the place the Lord your God will choose. ⁹ Go to a priest, who is a Levite. And go to the judge who is in office at that time. Ask them for their decision. They will give it to you. ¹⁰ They’ll hand down their decisions at the place the Lord will choose. You must do what they decide. Be careful to do everything they tell you to do. ¹¹ Act according to whatever they teach you. Accept the decisions they give you. Don’t turn away from what they tell you. Don’t turn to the right or the left. ¹² Someone might show that they don’t respect the judge. Or they will show that they don’t respect the priest. The priest will serve the Lord your God at the place God will choose. If anyone doesn’t show respect for these people, that person must be put to death. Remove that evil person from Israel. ¹³ All the Israelites will hear about it. And they will be afraid to disrespect a judge or priest again.

Appoint the King the Lord Chooses

¹⁴ You will enter the land the Lord your God is giving you. You will take it as your own. You will make your homes in it. When you do, you will say, “Let’s appoint a king over us, just like all the nations around us.” ¹⁵ When that happens, make sure you appoint over yourselves a king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your own people. Don’t appoint over yourselves someone from another country. Don’t choose anyone who isn’t from one of the tribes of Israel. ¹⁶ The king must not get large numbers of horses for himself. He must not make the people return to Egypt to get more horses. The Lord has told you, “You must not go back there again.” ¹⁷ The king must not have many wives. If he does, they will lead him astray. He must not store up large amounts of silver and gold.

¹⁸ When he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he must make for himself a copy of the law. He must write on a scroll the law that I am teaching you. He must copy it from the scroll of a priest, who is a Levite. ¹⁹ The king must keep the scroll close to him at all times. He must read it all the days of his life. Then he can learn to have respect for the Lord his God. He can carefully obey all the words of this law and these rules. ²⁰ He won’t think of himself as being better than his people are. He won’t turn away from the law. He won’t turn to the right or the left. Then he and his sons after him will rule over his kingdom in Israel for a long time.

Offerings for Priests and Levites

18 The priests, who are Levites, won’t receive any part of the land of Israel. That also applies to the whole tribe of Levi. They will eat the food offerings presented to the Lord. That will be their share. ² They won’t have any part of the land the Lord gave the other tribes in Israel. The Lord himself is their share, just as he promised them.

³ Anyone who sacrifices a bull or a sheep owes a share of it to the priests. Their share is the shoulder, the inside parts and the meat from the head. ⁴ You must give the priests the first share of the harvest of your grain, olive oil and fresh wine. You must also give them the first wool you clip from your sheep. ⁵ The Lord your God has chosen the Levites and their sons after them to serve him in his name always. He hasn’t chosen priests from any of your other tribes.

⁶ Sometimes a Levite will move from the town in Israel where he’s living. And he will come to the place the Lord will choose. He’ll do it because he really wants to. ⁷ Then he can serve in the name of the Lord his God. He’ll be like all the other Levites who serve the Lord there. ⁸ He must have an equal share of the good things they have. That applies even if he has already received money by selling things his family owned.

Practices the Lord Hates

⁹ You will enter the land the Lord your God is giving you. When you do, don’t copy the practices of the nations there. The Lord hates those practices. ¹⁰ Here are things you must not do. Don’t sacrifice your children in the fire to other gods. Don’t practice any kind of evil magic at all. Don’t use magic to try to explain the meaning of warnings in the sky or of any other signs. Don’t take part in worshiping evil powers. ¹¹ Don’t put a spell on anyone. Don’t get messages from those who have died. Don’t talk to the spirits of the dead. Don’t get advice from the dead. ¹² The Lord your God hates it when anyone does these things. The nations in the land he’s giving you do these things he hates. So he will drive out those nations to make room for you. ¹³ You must be without blame in the sight of the Lord your God.

The Prophet of the Lord

¹⁴ You will take over the nations that are in the land the Lord is giving you. They listen to those who practice all kinds of evil magic. But you belong to the Lord your God. He says you must not do these things. ¹⁵ The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me. He will be one of your own people. You must listen to him. ¹⁶ At Mount Horeb you asked the Lord your God for a prophet. You asked him on the day you gathered together. You said, “We don’t want to hear the voice of the Lord our God. We don’t want to see this great fire anymore. If we do, we’ll die.”

¹⁷ The Lord said to me, “What they are saying is good. ¹⁸ I will raise up for them a prophet like you. He will be one of their own people. I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him to say. ¹⁹ The prophet will speak in my name. But someone might not listen to what I say through the prophet. I will hold that person responsible for not listening. ²⁰ But suppose a prophet dares to speak in my name something I have not commanded. Or he speaks in the name of other gods. Then that prophet must be put to death.”

²¹ You will say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message hasn’t been spoken by the Lord?” ²² Sometimes a prophet will announce something in the name of the Lord. And it won’t take place or come true. Then that’s a message the Lord hasn’t told him to speak. That prophet has dared to speak on his own authority. So don’t be afraid of what he says.

Cities to Run to for Safety

19 The Lord your God will destroy the nations whose land he is giving you. You will drive them out. And you will make your homes in their towns and their houses. ² When you do, set apart for yourselves three cities in the land. It’s the land the Lord your God is giving you to take as your own. ³ Figure out the distances and then separate the land into three parts. Then anyone who kills another person can run to one of these cities for safety. They are in the land the Lord your God is giving you as your own.

⁴ Here is the rule about a person who kills someone. That person can run to one of those cities for safety. The rule applies to anyone who kills a neighbor they didn’t hate and didn’t mean to kill. ⁵ For example, suppose a man goes into a forest with his neighbor to cut wood. When he swings his ax to chop down a tree, the head of the ax flies off. And it hits his neighbor and kills him. Then that man can run to one of those cities and save his life. ⁶ If he doesn’t go to one of those cities, the dead man’s nearest male relative might become very angry. He might chase the man. If the city is too far away, he might catch him and kill him. But the man running to the city isn’t worthy of death, because he didn’t hate his neighbor. ⁷ That’s why I command you to set apart for yourselves three cities.

⁸ The Lord your God will increase the size of your territory. He promised your people of long ago that he would do it. He will give you the whole land he promised them. ⁹ But he’ll do it only if you are careful to obey all the laws I’m commanding you today. I command you to love the Lord your God. You must always live as he wants you to live. Suppose you are careful to obey, and the Lord your God gives you more land. Then you must set apart three more cities. ¹⁰ Do it to protect those not guilty of murder. Then you won’t spill their blood in your land. It’s the land the Lord your God is giving you as your own.

¹¹ But suppose a man hates his neighbor. So he hides and waits for him. Then he attacks him and kills him. And he runs to one of those cities for safety. ¹² If he does, the elders of his own town must send for him. He must be brought back from the city. He must be handed over to the dead man’s nearest male relative. Then the relative will kill him. ¹³ Don’t feel sorry for him. He has killed someone who hadn’t done anything wrong. Crimes like that must be punished in Israel. Then things will go well with you.

¹⁴ Don’t move your neighbor’s boundary stone. It was set up by people who lived there before you. It marks the border of a field in the land you will receive as your own. The Lord your God is giving you that land. You will take it over.

Witnesses

¹⁵ Suppose someone is charged with committing a crime of any kind. Then one witness won’t be enough to prove that person is guilty. Every matter must be proved by the words of two or three witnesses.

¹⁶ Suppose a witness who tells lies goes to court and brings charges against someone. The witness says someone committed a crime. ¹⁷ Then the two people in the case must stand in front of the Lord. They must stand in front of the priests and the judges who are in office at that time. ¹⁸ The judges must check out the matter carefully. And suppose the witness is proved to be lying. Then he has said something false in court against another Israelite. ¹⁹ So do to the lying witness what he tried to do to the other person. Get rid of that evil witness. ²⁰ The rest of the people will hear about it. And they will be afraid. They won’t allow such an evil thing to be done among them again. ²¹ Don’t feel sorry for that evil person. A life must be taken for a life. An eye must be put out for an eye. A tooth must be knocked out for a tooth. A hand must be cut off for a hand and a foot for a foot.

Going to War

20 When you go to war against your enemies, you might see that they have horses and chariots. They might even have an army stronger than yours. But don’t be afraid of them. The Lord your God will be with you. After all, he brought you up out of Egypt. ² Just before you go into battle, the priest will come forward. He’ll speak to the army. ³ He’ll say, “Men of Israel, listen to me. Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Don’t be scared. Don’t be afraid. Don’t panic or be terrified by them. ⁴ The Lord your God is going with you. He’ll fight for you. He’ll help you win the battle over your enemies.”

⁵ The officers will speak to the army. They will say, “Has anyone built a new house and not started to live in it? Let him go home. If he doesn’t, he might die in battle. Then someone else will live in his house. ⁶ Has anyone planted a vineyard and not started to enjoy it? Let him go home. If he doesn’t, he might die in battle. Then someone else will enjoy his vineyard. ⁷ Has anyone promised to be married to a woman but hasn’t done it yet? Let him go home. If he doesn’t, he might die in battle. Then someone else will marry her.” ⁸ The officers will continue, “Is anyone afraid or scared? Let him go home. Then the other soldiers won’t lose hope too.” ⁹ The officers will finish speaking to the army. When they do, they’ll appoint commanders over it.

¹⁰ Suppose you march up to attack a city. Before you attack it, offer to make peace with its people. ¹¹ Suppose they accept your offer and open their gates. Then force all the people in the city to be your slaves. They will have to work for you. ¹² But suppose they refuse your offer of peace and prepare for battle. Then surround that city. Get ready to attack it. ¹³ The Lord your God will hand it over to you. When he does, kill all the men with your swords. ¹⁴ But you can take the women and children for yourselves. You can also take the livestock and everything else in the city. What you have captured from your enemies you can use for yourselves. The Lord your God has given it to you. ¹⁵ That’s how you must treat all the cities far away from you. Those cities don’t belong to the nations that are nearby.

¹⁶ But what about the cities the Lord your God is giving you as your own? Kill everything that breathes in those cities. ¹⁷ Completely destroy them. Wipe out the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. That’s what the Lord your God commanded you to do. ¹⁸ If you don’t destroy them, they’ll teach you to do all the things the Lord hates. He hates the way they worship their gods. If you do those things, you will sin against the Lord your God.

¹⁹ Suppose you surround a city and get ready to attack it. And suppose you fight against it for a long time in order to capture it. Then don’t chop down its trees and destroy them. You can eat their fruit. So don’t cut them down. Are the trees people? So why should you attack them? ²⁰ But you can cut down trees that you know aren’t fruit trees. You can build war machines out of their wood. You can use them until you capture the city you are fighting against.

What to Do When You Don’t Know Who Killed Someone

21 Suppose you find someone who has been killed. The body is lying in a field in the land the Lord your God is giving you as your own. But no one knows who the killer was. ² Then your elders and judges will go out to the field. They will measure the distance from the body to the nearby towns. ³ The elders from the town that is nearest to the body will get a young cow. It must never have been used for work. It must never have pulled a load. ⁴ The elders must lead it down into a valley. The valley must not have been farmed. There must be a stream flowing through it. There in the valley the elders must break the cow’s neck. ⁵ The priests, who are sons of Levi, will step forward. The Lord your God has chosen them to serve him. He wants them to bless the people in his name. He wants them to decide all cases that have to do with people arguing and attacking others. ⁶ Then all the elders from the town that is nearest to the body will wash their hands. They will wash them over the young cow whose neck they broke in the valley. ⁷ They’ll say to the Lord, “We didn’t kill that person. We didn’t see it happen. ⁸ Accept this payment for the sin of your people Israel. Lord, you have set your people free. Don’t hold them guilty for spilling the blood of someone who hasn’t done anything wrong.” That will pay for the death of that person. ⁹ So you will get rid of the guilt of killing someone who didn’t do anything wrong. That’s because you have done what is right in the Lord’s eyes.

Marrying a Woman Who Is Your Prisoner

¹⁰ Suppose you go to war against your enemies. And the Lord your God hands them over to you and you take them as prisoners. ¹¹ Then you notice a beautiful woman among them. If you like her, you may marry her. ¹² Bring her home. Have her shave her head and cut her nails. ¹³ Have her throw away the clothes she was wearing when she was captured. Let her live in your house and mourn the loss of her parents for a full month. Then you can go to her and be her husband. And she will be your wife. ¹⁴ But suppose you aren’t pleased with her. Then let her go where she wants to. You must not sell her. You must not treat her as a slave. You have already brought shame on her.

The Rights of the Oldest Son

¹⁵ Suppose a man has two wives. He loves one but not the other. And both of them have sons by him. But the oldest son is the son of the wife the man doesn’t love. ¹⁶ Someday he’ll leave his property to his sons. When he does, he must not give the rights of the oldest son to the son of the wife he loves. He must give those rights to his oldest son. He must do it even though his oldest son is the son of the wife he doesn’t love. ¹⁷ He must recognize the full rights of the oldest son. He must do it, even though that son is the son of the wife he doesn’t love. He must give that son a double share of everything he has. That son is the first sign of his father’s strength. So the rights of the oldest son belong to him.

A Stubborn Son

¹⁸ Suppose someone has a very stubborn son. He doesn’t obey his father and mother. And he won’t listen to them when they try to correct him. ¹⁹ Then his parents will take hold of him and bring him to the elders at the gate of his town. ²⁰ They will say to the elders, “This son of ours is very stubborn. He won’t obey us. He eats too much. He’s always getting drunk.” ²¹ Then all the people in his town will put him to death by throwing stones at him. Get rid of that evil person. All the Israelites will hear about it. And they will be afraid to disobey their parents.

Several Other Laws

²² Suppose someone is put to death for a crime worthy of death. And a pole is stuck through their body and set up where people can see it. ²³ Then you must not leave the body on the pole all night. Make sure you bury it that same day. Everyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse. You must not make the land “unclean.” The Lord your God is giving it to you as your own.

22 Suppose you see your neighbor’s ox or sheep wandering away. Then don’t act as if you didn’t see it. Instead, make sure you take it back to its owner. ² Its owner might not live near you. Or you might not know who owns it. So take the animal home with you. Keep it until the owner comes looking for it. Then give it back to them. ³ Do the same thing if you find their donkey, coat or anything they have lost. Don’t act as if you didn’t see it.

⁴ Suppose you see your neighbor’s donkey or ox that has fallen down on the road. Then don’t act as if you didn’t see it. Help the owner get it up on its feet again.

⁵ A woman must not wear men’s clothes. And a man must not wear women’s clothes. The Lord your God hates it when anyone does this.

⁶ Suppose you happen to find a bird’s nest beside the road. It might be in a tree or on the ground. And suppose the mother bird is sitting on her little birds or on the eggs. Then don’t take the mother along with the little ones. ⁷ You can take the little ones. But make sure you let the mother go. Then things will go well with you. You will live for a long time.

⁸ If you build a new house, put a low wall around the edge of your roof. Then you won’t be responsible if someone falls off your roof and dies.

⁹ Don’t plant two kinds of seeds in your vineyard. If you do, the crops you grow there will be impure. Your grapes will also be impure.

¹⁰ Don’t let an ox and a donkey pull the same plow together.

¹¹ Don’t wear clothes made out of wool and linen woven together.

¹² Make tassels on the four corners of the coat you wear.

Breaking Marriage Laws

¹³ Suppose a man marries a woman and sleeps with her. But then he doesn’t like her. ¹⁴ So he tells lies about her and says she’s a bad woman. He says, “I married this woman. But when I slept with her, I discovered she wasn’t a virgin.” ¹⁵ Then the young woman’s parents must bring proof that she was a virgin. They must give the proof to the elders at the gate of the town. ¹⁶ Her father will speak to the elders. He’ll say, “I gave my daughter to this man to be his wife. But he doesn’t like her. ¹⁷ So now he has told lies about her. He has said, ‘I discovered that your daughter wasn’t a virgin.’ But here’s the proof that my daughter was a virgin.” Then her parents will show the elders of the town the cloth that has her blood on it. ¹⁸ The elders will punish the man. ¹⁹ They’ll make him weigh out two and a half pounds of silver. They’ll give it to the young woman’s father. That’s because the man has said an Israelite virgin is a bad woman. She will continue to be his wife. He must not divorce her as long as he lives.

²⁰ But suppose the charge is true. And there isn’t any proof that the young woman was a virgin. ²¹ Then she must be brought to the door of her father’s house. There the people of her town will put her to death by throwing stones at her. She has done a very terrible thing in Israel. She has slept with a man before she was married. Get rid of that evil person.

²² Suppose a man is seen sleeping with another man’s wife. Then the man and the woman must both die. Get rid of those evil people.

²³ Suppose a man happens to see a virgin in a town. And she has promised to marry another man. But the man who happens to see her sleeps with her. ²⁴ Then you must take both of them to the gate of that town. You must put them to death by throwing stones at them. You must kill the young woman because she was in a town and didn’t scream for help. And you must kill the man because he slept with another man’s wife. Get rid of those evil people.

²⁵ But suppose a man happens to see a young woman out in the country. And she has promised to marry another man. But the man who happens to see her rapes her. Then only the man who has done that will die. ²⁶ Don’t do anything to the woman. She hasn’t committed a sin worthy of death. That case is like the case of someone who attacks and murders a neighbor. ²⁷ The man found the young woman out in the country. And she screamed for help. But there wasn’t anyone around who could save her.

²⁸ Suppose a man happens to see a virgin who hasn’t promised to marry another man. And the man who happens to see her rapes her. But someone discovers them. ²⁹ Then the man must weigh out 20 ounces of silver. He must give it to her father. The man must marry the young woman, because he raped her. And he can never divorce her as long as he lives.

³⁰ A man must not marry his stepmother. He must not bring shame on his father by sleeping with her.

Who Can Join in Worship With the Lord’s People?

23 No man whose sex organs have been crushed or cut can join in worship with the Lord’s people.

² No one born to an unmarried woman can join in worship with the Lord’s people. That also applies to the person’s children for all time to come.

³ The people of Ammon and Moab can’t join in worship with the Lord’s people. That also applies to their children after them for all time to come. ⁴ The Ammonites and Moabites didn’t come to meet you with food and water on your way out of Egypt. They even hired Balaam from Pethor in Aram Naharaim to put a curse on you. Balaam was the son of Beor. ⁵ The Lord your God wouldn’t listen to Balaam. Instead, he turned the curse into a blessing for you. He did it because he loves you. ⁶ So don’t make a peace treaty with the Ammonites and Moabites as long as you live.

⁷ Don’t hate the people of Edom. They are your relatives. Don’t hate the people of Egypt. After all, you lived as outsiders in their country. ⁸ The great-grandchildren of the Edomites and Egyptians can join in worship with the Lord’s people.

Keep the Camp of the Soldiers Pure and “Clean”

⁹ There will be times when you are at war with your enemies. And your soldiers will be in camp. Then keep away from anything that isn’t pure and “clean.” ¹⁰ Suppose semen flows from the body of one of your soldiers during the night. Then that will make him “unclean.” He must go outside the camp and stay there. ¹¹ But as evening approaches, he must wash himself. When the sun goes down, he can return to the camp.