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22 “If men struggle with each other and strike a woman with child so that [a]she gives birth prematurely, yet there is no injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband [b]may demand of him, and he shall (A)pay [c]as the judges decide. 23 But if there is any further injury, (B)then you shall appoint as a penalty life for life, 24 (C)eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, [d]bruise for bruise.
26 “If a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave, and destroys it, he shall let him go free on account of his eye. 27 And if he [e]knocks out a tooth of his male or female slave, he shall let him go free on account of his tooth.
28 “If an ox gores a man or a woman [f]to death, (D)the ox shall surely be stoned and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall go unpunished. 29 If, however, an ox was previously in the habit of goring and its owner has been warned, yet he does not confine it and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. 30 If a ransom is [g]demanded of him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is [h]demanded of him. 31 Whether it gores a son or [i]a daughter, it shall be done to him according to [j]the same rule. 32 If the ox gores a male or female slave, [k]the owner shall give his or her master (E)thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.
33 “If a man opens a pit, or [l]digs a pit and does not cover it over, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34 the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he shall [m]give money to its owner, and the dead animal shall become his.
35 “If one man’s ox hurts another’s so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide its price equally; and also they shall divide the dead ox. 36 Or if it is known that the ox was previously in the habit of goring, yet its owner has not confined it, he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal shall become his.
Property Rights
22 “[n]If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox and (F)four sheep for the sheep.
2 “[o]If the (G)thief is [p]caught while breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account. 3 But if the sun has risen on him, there will be bloodguiltiness on his account. He shall surely make restitution; if he owns nothing, then he shall be (H)sold for his theft. 4 If what he stole is actually found alive in his [q]possession, whether an ox or a donkey or a sheep, (I)he shall pay double.
5 “If a man lets a field or vineyard be grazed bare and lets his animal loose so that it grazes in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard.
6 “If a fire breaks out and spreads to thorn bushes, so that stacked grain or the standing grain or the field itself is consumed, he who started the fire shall surely make restitution.
7 “(J)If a man gives his neighbor money or goods to keep for him and it is stolen from the man’s house, if the thief is [r]caught, he shall pay double. 8 If the thief is not [s]caught, then the owner of the house shall [t]appear before [u](K)the judges, to determine whether he [v]laid his hands on his neighbor’s property. 9 For every [w]breach of trust, whether it is for ox, for donkey, for sheep, for clothing, or for any lost thing about which one says, ‘This is it,’ the [x]case of both parties shall come before [y](L)the judges; he whom [z]the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor.
10 “If a man gives his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep for him, and it dies or is hurt or is driven away while no one is looking, 11 an (M)oath before the Lord shall be made by the two of them [aa]that he has not [ab]laid hands on his neighbor’s property; and its owner shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution. 12 But if it is actually stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13 If it is all torn to pieces, let him bring it as evidence; he shall not make restitution for what has been torn to pieces.
14 “If a man [ac]borrows anything from his neighbor, and it is injured or dies while its owner is not with it, he shall make full restitution. 15 If its owner is with it, he shall not make restitution; if it is hired, it came for its hire.
Sundry Laws
16 “(N)If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and lies with her, he must pay a dowry for her to be his wife. 17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he shall [ad]pay money equal to the (O)dowry for virgins.
18 “You shall not allow a (P)sorceress to live.
19 “(Q)Whoever lies with an animal shall surely be put to death.
20 “(R)He who sacrifices to [ae]any god, other than to the Lord alone, shall be [af]utterly destroyed.
21 “(S)You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. 22 (T)You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. 23 If you afflict him at all, and (U)if he does cry out to Me, (V)I will surely hear his cry; 24 and My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword, (W)and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.
25 “(X)If you lend money to My people, to the poor [ag]among you, you are not to [ah]act as a creditor to him; you shall not [ai]charge him (Y)interest. 26 If you ever take your neighbor’s cloak (Z)as a pledge, you are to return it to him before the sun sets, 27 for that is his only covering; it is his cloak for his [aj]body. What else shall he sleep in? And it shall come about that (AA)when he cries out to Me, I will hear him, for (AB)I am gracious.
28 “You shall not [ak](AC)curse God, (AD)nor curse a ruler of your people.
29 “(AE)You shall not delay the offering from [al]your harvest and your vintage. (AF)The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me. 30 (AG)You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; (AH)on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.
31 “(AI)You shall be holy men to Me, therefore (AJ)you shall not eat any flesh torn to pieces in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.
Sundry Laws
23 “(AK)You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a (AL)malicious witness. 2 You shall not follow [am]the masses in doing evil, nor shall you [an]testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after [ao]a multitude in order to (AM)pervert justice; 3 (AN)nor shall you [ap]be partial to a poor man in his dispute.
4 “(AO)If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey wandering away, you shall surely return it to him. 5 (AP)If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying helpless under its load, you shall refrain from leaving it to him, you shall surely release it with him.
6 “(AQ)You shall not pervert the justice due to your needy brother in his dispute. 7 (AR)Keep far from a false charge, and (AS)do not kill the innocent or the righteous, for (AT)I will not acquit the guilty.
8 “(AU)You shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and [aq]subverts the cause of the just.
9 “(AV)You shall not oppress a [ar]stranger, since you yourselves know the [as]feelings of a [at]stranger, for you also were [au]strangers in the land of Egypt.
The Sabbath and Land
10 “(AW)You shall sow your land for six years and gather in its yield, 11 but on the seventh year you shall let it [av]rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat. You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.
12 “(AX)Six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave, as well as [aw]your stranger, may refresh themselves. 13 Now (AY)concerning everything which I have said to you, be on your guard; and (AZ)do not mention the name of other gods, nor let them be heard [ax]from your mouth.
Signs of Christ’s Return
24 (A)Jesus (B)came out from the temple and was going away [a]when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. 2 And He said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, (C)not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”
3 As He was sitting on (D)the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of (E)Your coming, and of the [b]end of the age?”
4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “(F)See to it that no one misleads you. 5 For (G)many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the [c]Christ,’ and will mislead many. 6 You will be hearing of (H)wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. 7 For (I)nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be (J)famines and earthquakes. 8 (K)But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.
9 “(L)Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and (M)you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 At that time many will [d](N)fall away and will [e]betray one another and hate one another. 11 Many (O)false prophets will arise and will mislead many. 12 Because lawlessness is increased, [f]most people’s love will grow cold. 13 (P)But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. 14 This (Q)gospel of the kingdom (R)shall be preached in the whole [g](S)world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.
Perilous Times
15 “Therefore when you see the (T)abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in (U)the holy place ((V)let the reader understand), 16 then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. 17 [h]Whoever is on (W)the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house. 18 [i]Whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. 19 But (X)woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 But pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. 21 For then there will be a (Y)great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. 22 Unless those days had been cut short, no [j]life would have been saved; but for (Z)the sake of the [k]elect those days will be cut short. 23 (AA)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the [l]Christ,’ or ‘[m]There He is,’ do not believe him. 24 For false Christs and (AB)false prophets will arise and will [n]show great [o](AC)signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even (AD)the [p]elect. 25 Behold, I have told you in advance. 26 So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. 27 (AE)For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the (AF)coming of the (AG)Son of Man be. 28 (AH)Wherever the corpse is, there the [q]vultures will gather.
The Voice of the Lord in the Storm.
A Psalm of David.
29 (A)Ascribe to the Lord, O [a]sons of the mighty,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2 Ascribe to the Lord the glory [b]due to His name;
Worship the Lord (B)in [c]holy array.
3 The (C)voice of the Lord is upon the waters;
The God of glory (D)thunders,
The Lord is over [d](E)many waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is (F)powerful,
The voice of the Lord is majestic.
5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars;
Yes, the Lord breaks in pieces (G)the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes Lebanon (H)skip like a calf,
And (I)Sirion like a young wild ox.
7 The voice of the Lord hews out [e]flames of fire.
8 The voice of the Lord [f]shakes the wilderness;
The Lord shakes the wilderness of (J)Kadesh.
9 The voice of the Lord makes (K)the deer to calve
And strips the forests bare;
And (L)in His temple everything says, “Glory!”
6 For (A)at the window of my house
I looked out (B)through my lattice,
7 And I saw among the [a](C)naive,
And discerned among the [b]youths
A young man (D)lacking [c]sense,
8 Passing through the street near (E)her corner;
And he [d]takes the way to (F)her house,
9 In the (G)twilight, in the [e]evening,
In the [f]middle of the night and in the darkness.
10 And behold, a woman comes to meet him,
(H)Dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart.
11 She is (I)boisterous and rebellious,
Her (J)feet do not remain at home;
12 She is now in the streets, now (K)in the squares,
And (L)lurks by every corner.
13 So she seizes him and kisses him
[g]And with a (M)brazen face she says to him:
14 “[h]I was due to offer (N)peace offerings;
Today I have (O)paid my vows.
15 “Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you.
16 “I have spread my couch with (P)coverings,
With colored (Q)linens of Egypt.
17 “I have sprinkled my bed
With (R)myrrh, aloes and (S)cinnamon.
18 “Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning;
Let us delight ourselves with caresses.
19 “For [i]my husband is not at home,
He has gone on a long journey;
20 He has taken a (T)bag of money [j]with him,
At the full moon he will come home.”
21 With her many persuasions she entices him;
With her [k](U)flattering lips she seduces him.
22 Suddenly he follows her
As an ox goes to the slaughter,
Or as [l]one in fetters to the discipline of a fool,
23 Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a (V)bird hastens to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.