The Daily Audio Bible
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22 “If two men are fighting and they strike a pregnant woman and her children are born prematurely,[a] but there is no harm, he is certainly to be fined as the husband of the woman demands of him, and he will pay as the court decides.[b] 23 If there is harm, then you are to require[c] life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, and bruise for bruise.
26 “If a man strikes the eye of his male or female servant and destroys it, he is to release him as a free man in exchange for his eye. 27 If he knocks out the tooth of his male[d] or female servant,[e] he is to release him as a free man in exchange for his tooth.
28 “If an ox gores a man or woman so that they die, the ox is certainly to be stoned and its flesh may not be eaten, but the owner of the ox is free from liability. 29 But if the ox has gored previously, and its owner has been warned about it but didn’t restrain it, and it kills a man or woman, the ox is to be stoned and its owner also is to be put to death. 30 If a fine is imposed on him, he may pay all that was imposed on him as a ransom for his life. 31 This same ordinance applies[f] if it gores a son or daughter.
32 “If the ox gores a male or female servant, the owner is to give 30 shekels[g] of silver to the servant’s[h] master, and the ox is to be stoned. 33 If a man opens a pit or digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or donkey falls into it,[i] 34 the owner of the pit is to make restitution. He is to pay money to its owner, and the dead animal will become his.
35 “If a man’s ox strikes his neighbor’s ox and it dies, they are to sell the live ox and divide the money. They also are to divide the dead animal. 36 But if it was known that the ox had gored previously, and its owner didn’t restrain it, he is certainly to repay ox for ox, and the dead ox is to become his.”
Laws Concerning Theft of Personal Property
22 [j]“If a man steals an ox or sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he is to repay five oxen[k] for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.
2 “If a thief is found while breaking into a house,[l] and is struck down and dies, it is not a capital crime[m] in that case,[n] 3 but if the sun has risen on him, then it is a capital crime[o] in that case.[p] A thief[q] is certainly to make restitution, but if he has nothing, he is to be sold[r] for his theft. 4 If what was stolen is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox, a donkey or a sheep, he is to repay double.
5 “When a man lets a field or vineyard be grazed over or releases his livestock so that they graze in another man’s field, he is to make restitution from the best of his field or vineyard.[s]
6 “When a fire breaks out and spreads into thorn bushes and consumes stacked grain or standing grain or the field, the one who started the fire certainly is to make restitution.
7 “When a man gives his neighbor money or goods for safekeeping and it’s stolen from the neighbor’s house, the thief, if found, is to repay double. 8 If the thief is not found, the owner of the house is to appear before the judges[t] to see[u] whether or not the thief took[v] his neighbor’s property.
9 “In every ownership dispute[w] involving an ox, donkey, sheep, garment, or anything that is lost where a person says, ‘This is mine,’[x] the case between the two of them is to come before the judges,[y] and the one that the judges[z] declare guilty is to repay double to his neighbor.
10 “When a man gives a donkey, ox, sheep, or any animal to his neighbor for safe keeping, and it dies or is injured or is driven away when no one is looking, 11 the two of them are to take an oath in the Lord’s presence that the accused[aa] has not taken[ab] his neighbor’s property. Its owner is to accept this, and the neighbor[ac] is not to make restitution. 12 But if it was actually stolen from him, the neighbor[ad] is to make restitution to its owner. 13 If it was torn to pieces, let the neighbor[ae] bring the remains[af] as evidence, and he is not to make restitution for what was torn apart.
14 “When a man borrows[ag] an animal from his neighbor, and it’s injured or dies while its owner was not with it, he is certainly to make restitution. 15 If its owner was with it, he is not to make restitution. If it was hired, its fee covers the loss.”[ah]
Various Other Laws
16 “When a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married and has sexual relations with her, he must pay her bride price, and she is to become his wife. 17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he is to pay an amount[ai] equal to the bride price for virgins.
18 “You are not to allow a sorceress to live.
19 “Whoever has sexual relations with an animal is certainly to be put to death.
20 “Anyone who sacrifices to a god, except the Lord alone, is to be utterly destroyed.
21 “You are not to wrong or oppress an alien, because you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
22 “You are not to mistreat any widow or orphan. 23 If you do mistreat them, they’ll certainly cry out to me, and I’ll immediately hear their cry. 24 And I’ll be angry and will kill you with swords,[aj] and your wives will become widows and your children orphans.
25 “If you loan money to my people, to the poor among you, don’t be like a creditor to them and don’t impose interest on them. 26 If you take your neighbor’s coat as collateral, you are to return it to him by sunset, 27 for it’s his only covering; it’s his outer garment,[ak] for what else can he sleep in? And when he cries out to me, I’ll hear him, for I am gracious.
28 “You are not to blaspheme God or curse a ruler of your people.
29 “You are not to hold back the fullness of your harvest[al] and the outflow of your wine presses.[am] You are to give to me the firstborn of your sons. 30 You are to do the same with your oxen and your sheep. They are to be with their mother for seven days and then on the eighth day you are to give them to me.
31 “You are to be people set apart[an] for me. You are not to eat flesh torn apart in the field; you are to throw it to the dogs.”
Laws about Truthful Testimony
23 “You are not to spread a false report, nor are you to join forces[ao] with the wicked to be a malicious witness. 2 You are not to follow the majority[ap] in doing wrong, and you are not to testify in a lawsuit so as to follow the majority and pervert justice. 3 You are not to show partiality to a poor man in his lawsuit.
4 “If you come across your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering off, you are to certainly return it to him. 5 If you see your enemy’s donkey lying helpless under its load, you must not abandon it; rather, you are certainly to return it to him.[aq]
6 “You are not to pervert justice for the poor among you[ar] in their lawsuits.[as] 7 Stay far away from a false charge, and don’t kill the innocent or the righteous, because I won’t acquit the guilty. 8 You are not to take a bribe because a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and distorts the words of the righteous. 9 You are not to oppress the resident alien, because you were aliens in the land of Egypt.”
Instructions for Sabbaths and Sabbatical Years
10 “You are to sow your land and gather its crops for six years, 11 but you are to let it rest the seventh year, leaving it unplanted. The poor of your people may eat from it,[at] and the wild animals may eat what they leave. You are to do the same with your vineyards and olive groves. 12 You are to do your work for six days, but on the seventh day you are to refrain from work so that your ox and donkey[au] may rest, and so the son of your maidservant and the alien may be refreshed.
13 “Be careful about everything I’ve told you, and don’t mention the name of other gods. Don’t let them be heard in your mouth!”
Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple(A)
24 After Jesus had left the Temple and was walking away, his disciples came up to him to point out to him the Temple buildings. 2 But in reply he responded to them, “You see all these things, don’t you? I tell all of you[a] with certainty, not even a single stone here will be left standing on top of another that won’t be completely demolished.”
Cults, Revolutions, Famines, and Earthquakes(B)
3 Now while Jesus[b] was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 In reply, Jesus told them, “See to it that no one deceives you, 5 because many will come in my name, proclaiming, ‘I’m the Messiah,’[c] and they will deceive many people. 6 You’ll begin to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See to it that you don’t panic. These things must take place, but the end won’t have come yet, 7 because nation will rise up in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 But all these things are only a beginning of agonies.”
Future Persecution, Apostasy, and Evangelism(C)
9 “Then they’ll hand you over to suffer[d] and will kill you, and you’ll be hated by all the nations[e] on account of my name. 10 Then many people will fall away, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people, 12 and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many people will grow cold. 13 But the person who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the inhabited world as a testimony to all nations,[f] and then the end will come.”
Signs of the End(D)
15 “So when you see the destructive desecration, mentioned by the prophet Daniel, standing in the Holy Place (let the reader take note),[g] 16 then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. 17 Anyone who’s on the housetop must not come down to get what is in his house, 18 and anyone who’s in the field must not turn back to get his coat.
19 “How terrible it will be for women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days! 20 Pray that it may not be in winter or on a Sabbath when you flee, 21 because at that time there will be great suffering,[h] the kind that hasn’t happened from the beginning of the world until now and certainly won’t ever happen again. 22 If those days hadn’t been shortened, no one[i] would survive. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be shortened.
23 “At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Look here! The Messiah!’[j] or ‘There he is!’,[k] don’t believe it, 24 because false messiahs[l] and false prophets will have arisen and will produce great signs and startling demonstrations so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 Remember, I’ve told you beforehand. 26 So if they say to you, ‘Look! He’s in the wilderness,’ don’t go out looking for him.[m] And if they say, ‘Look! He’s in the storeroom,’ don’t believe it, 27 because just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever there’s a corpse, there the vultures[n] will gather.
A Davidic Psalm.
Praise to the Majestic Lord
29 Ascribe to the Lord, you heavenly beings;
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
worship the Lord wearing holy attire.
3 The voice of the Lord was heard[a] above the waters;
the God of glory thundered;
the Lord was heard[b] over many waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is powerful;
the voice of the Lord is majestic.
5 The voice of the Lord snaps the cedars;[c]
the Lord snaps the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes them stagger like a calf,
even Lebanon and Sirion[d] like a young wild ox.
7 The voice of the Lord shoots out flashes of fire.
8 The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness;
the voice of the Lord shakes[e] the wilderness of Kadesh.
9 The voice of the Lord causes deer to give birth,
and strips the forest bare.
In his Temple all of them shout, “Glory!”
10 The Lord sat enthroned over the flood,
and the Lord sits as king forever.
11 The Lord will give strength to his people;
the Lord will bless his people with peace.
A Father’s Warning
6 For from a window in my house
I peered through the lattice work,
7 and I noticed among the naïve—
that is, I discerned among the youths—
a senseless young man.
8 Proceeding down the street near her corner,
he makes his way toward her house
9 at twilight, during the evening,
even during the darkest part of the night.
10 Look! A woman makes her way to meet him,
dressed as a prostitute
and intending to entrap him.
11 She is brazen and defiant—
her feet don’t remain at home.
12 Now she is in the street, now in the plazas,
she lurks near every corner.
13 So she grabs hold of him and kisses him,
with a brazen face she speaks to him,
14 “I have given[a] my peace offerings,
and today I fulfilled my vows.
15 Therefore, I’ve come out to meet you,
I’ve looked just for you,
and I found you!
16 I’ve decorated my bed with new coverings—
embroidered linen from Egypt.
17 I’ve perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s make love until dawn;
let’s comfort ourselves with love,
19 because my husband isn’t home.
He left on a long trip.
20 He took a fist full of cash
and he’ll return home in a month.”
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