Reference: Law of Moses
Easton
is the whole body of the Mosaic legislation (1Ki 2:3; 2Ki 23:25; Ezr 3:2). It is called by way of eminence simply "the Law" (Heb Torah, De 1:5; 4:8,44; 17:18-19; 27:3,8). As a written code it is called the "book of the law of Moses" (2Ki 14:6; Isa 8:20), the "book of the law of God" (Jos 24:26).
The great leading principle of the Mosaic law is that it is essentially theocratic; i.e., it refers at once to the commandment of God as the foundation of all human duty.
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Across the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying:
And what great nation has righteous statutes and ordinances like this entire law I set before you today?
This is the law Moses gave the Israelites.
When he is seated on his royal throne, he is to write a copy of this instruction for himself on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. It is to remain with him, and he is to read from it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, to observe all the words of this instruction, and to do these statutes.
Write all the words of this law on the stones after you cross to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you.
Write clearly all the words of this law on the [plastered] stones."
Joshua recorded these things in the book of the law of God; he also took a large stone and set it up there under the oak next to the sanctuary of the Lord.
and keep your obligation to the Lord your God to walk in His ways and to keep His statutes, commandments, judgments, and testimonies. This is written in the law of Moses, so that you will have success in everything you do and wherever you turn,
However, he did not put the children of the murderers to death, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses where the Lord commanded, "Fathers must not be put to death because of children, and children must not be put to death because of fathers; instead, each one will be put to death for his own sin."
Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers the priests along with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his brothers began to build the altar of Israel's God in order to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.
To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, there will be no dawn for them.
Morish
The law was like a straight edge given by God to make manifest the crookedness of man. "The law entered that the offence might abound " (Ro 5:20), that is, not to increase sin, but to show its offensiveness, and to bring it home to the soul. "By the law is the knowledge of sin." Ro 3:20. The apostle said that he would not have known lust had not the law said, "Thou shalt not covet." Ro 7:7. The object of the law therefore was to evince the heinousness of sin, while it was a test of the obedience of man to God. It was given to Israel only, the one nation which was under God's special dealings, and in which He was trying man in the flesh. The heading of the ten commandments is "I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage," and this could apply only to the Israelites. Again, God says, "You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities." Am 3:2. The Gentiles are described as not having the law, Ro 2:14, though they had the work of the law written in their hearts, and a conscience which bore witness when they did wrong. As the Gentiles became associated with Israel, and heard what God required morally of man, they doubtless became more or less responsible according to the light received. But greater light having come in, the Galatian Christians are sharply rebuked for putting themselves under law, where, as Gentiles, they never had been. Some things forbidden in the law were wrong intrinsically, such as theft, murder, etc.; but other things were wrong only because God had forbidden them, such as the command to abstain from eating certain creatures called 'unclean.'
The law in its enactment of sacrifices and feasts was essentially typical and foreshadowed what was to be fulfilled in Christ. In accordance with this, Paul, as a Jew, could say, "The law was our schoolmaster unto Christ;" and the Lord said, "Had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me." Joh 5:46. This is an important point, for the passage that speaks of the law as the schoolmaster goes on to say that it was in order that they "might be justified by faith." After that faith was come believers were no longer under a schoolmaster. Ga 3:25. A converted Jew was no longer under the law
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I have known only you out of all the clans of the earth; therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities.
"You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder , and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Fool!' will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says, 'You moron!' will be subject to hellfire. read more. So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Reach a settlement quickly with your adversary while you're on the way with him, or your adversary will hand you over to the judge, the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I assure you: You will never get out of there until you have paid the last penny! / 64 of a daily wage "You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery. But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell! "It was also said, Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce. But I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, = fornication, or possibly a violation of Jewish marriage laws causes her to commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. "Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne; or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your word 'yes' be 'yes,' and your 'no' be 'no.' Anything more than this is from the evil one. "You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you, don't resist an evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt, let him have your coat as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to the one who asks you, and don't turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. "You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don't even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing out of the ordinary? Don't even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
They said, "Moses permitted us to write divorce papers and send her away."
For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, because he wrote about Me.
So, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, instinctively do what the law demands, they are a law to themselves even though they do not have the law.
For no flesh will be justified in His sight by the works of the law, for through the law [comes] the knowledge of sin.
The law came along to multiply the trespass. But where sin multiplied, grace multiplied even more,
For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under law but under grace.
What should we say then? Is the law sin? Absolutely not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin if it were not for the law. For example, I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, Do not covet.
Now if the ministry of death, chiseled in letters on stones, came with glory, so that the sons of Israel were not able to look directly at Moses' face because of the glory from his face-a fading [glory]-
But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, described such a slave. This slave was not a teacher.
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
For me, living is Christ and dying is gain.
so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing [to Him], bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God.
Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him,
we encouraged, comforted, and implored each one of you to walk worthy of God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.
For the grace of God has appeared, with salvation for all people, instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age,
Smith
Law of Moses.
It will be the object of this article to give a brief analysis of the substance of this law, to point out its main principles, and to explain the position which it occupies in the progress of divine revelation. In order to do this the more clearly, it seems best to speak of the law, 1st. In relation to the past; 2d. In its own intrinsic character.
1. (a) In reference to the past, it is all-important, for the proper understanding of the law, to remember its entire dependence on the Abrahamic covenant. See
That covenant had a twofold character. It contained the "spiritual promise" of the Messiah; but it contained also the temporal promises subsidiary to the former. (b) The nature of this relation of the law to the promise is clearly pointed out. The belief in God as the Redeemer of man, and the hope of his manifestation as such int he person of the Messiah, involved the belief that the Spiritual Power must be superior to all carnal obstructions, and that there was in man spiritual element which could rule his life by communion with a spirit from above. But it involved also the idea of an antagonistic power of evil, from which man was to be redeemed, existing in each individual, and existing also in the world at large. (c) Nor is it less essential to remark the period of the history at which it was given. It marked and determined the transition of Israel from the condition of a tribe to that of a nation, and its definite assumption of a distinct position and office in the history of the world. (d) Yet, though new in its general conception, it was probably not wholly new in its materials. There must necessarily have been, before the law, commandments and revelations of a fragmentary character, under which Israel had hitherto grown up. So far therefore as they were consistent with the objects of the Jewish law, the customs of Palestine and the laws of Egypt would doubtless be traceable in the Mosaic system. (e) In close connection with, and almost in consequence of, this reference to antiquity, we find an accommodation of the law to the temper and circumstances of the Israelites, to which our Lord refers int he case of divorce,
as necessarily interfering with its absolute perfection. In many cases it rather should be said to guide and modify existing usages than actually to sanction them; and the ignorance of their existence may lead to a conception of its ordinances not only erroneous, but actually the reverse of the truth. (f) In close connection with this subject we observe also the gradual process by which the law was revealed to the Israelites. In Ex 20-23, in direct connection with the revelation from Mount Sinai, that which may be called the rough outline of the Mosaic law is given by God, solemnly recorded by Moses, and accepted by the people. In Ex 25-31, there is a similar outline of the Mosaic ceremonial. On the basis of these it may be conceived that the fabric of the Mosaic system gradually grew up under the requirements of the time. The first revelation of the law in anything like a perfect form is found in the book of Deuteronomy. yet even then the revelation was not final; it was the duty of the prophets to amend and explain it in special points,
... and to bring out more clearly its great principles.
2. In giving an analysis of the substance of the law, it will probably be better to treat it, as any other system of laws is usually treated, by dividing it into-- I. Laws Civil; II. Laws Criminal: III. Laws Judicial and Constitutional; IV. Laws Ecclesiastical and Ceremonial. I. LAWS CIVIL.
1. LAW OF PERSONS. (a) FATHER AND SON. --the power of a father to be held sacred; cursing or smiting,
See Father
See Son
and stubborn and willful disobedience, to be considered capital crimes. But uncontrolled power of life and death was apparently refused to the father, and vested only in the congregation.
De 21:18-21
Right of the first-born to a double portion of the inheritance not to be set aside by partiality.
De 21:15-17
Inheritance by daughters to be allowed in default of sons, provided,
comp. Numb 36:1 ... that heiresses married in their own tribe. Daughters unmarried to be entirely dependent on their father.
(b) HUSBAND AND WIFE. --the power of a husband to be so great that a wife could never be sui juris, or enter independently into any engagement, even before God.
See Husband
See Wife
A widow or a divorced wife became independent, and did not against fall under her father's power. ver.
Divorce (for uncleanness) allowed, but to be formal and irrevocable.
De 24:1-4
Marriage within certain degrees forbidden.
... etc. A slave wife, whether bought or captive, not to be actual property, nor to be sold; if illtreated, to be ipso facto free.
Ex 21:7-9; De 21:10-14
Slander against a wife's virginity to be punished by fine,a nd by deprived of power of divorce; on the other hand, ante-connubial uncleanness in her to be punished by death.
De 22:13-21
the raising up of seed (Levirate law) a formal right to be claimed by the widow, under pain of infamy, with a view to preservation of families.
De 25:5-10
(c) MASTER AND SLAVE. --Power of master so far limited that death under actual chastisement was punishable,
See Slave
and maiming was to give liberty ipso facto. vs.
The Hebrew slave to be freed at the sabbatical year, and provided with necessaries (his wife and children to go with only if they came to his master with him), unless by his own formal act he consented to be a perpetual slave.
Ex 21:1-6; De 15:12-18
In any case, it would seem, to be freed at the jubilee,
with his children. If sold to a resident alien, to be always redeemable, at a price proportioned to the distance of the jubilee.
Foreign slaves to be held and inherited as property forever,
and fugitive slaves from foreign nations not to be given up.
De 23:15
(d) STRANGERS. --These seem never to have been sui juris, or able to protect themselves, and accordingly protection and kindness toward them are enjoined as a sacred duty.
2. LAW OF THINGS. (a) LAWS OF LAND (AND PROPERTY).-- (1) All land to be the property of God alone, and its holders to be deemed his tenants.
(2) All sold land therefore to return to its original owners at the jubilee, and the price of sale to be calculated accordingly; and redemption on equitable terms to be allowed at all times.
A house sold to be redeemable within a year; and if not redeemed, to pass away altogether, ch.
But the houses of the Levites, or those in unwalled villages, to be redeemable at all times, in the same way as land; and the Levitical suburbs to be inalienable. ch.
(3) Land or houses sanctified, or tithes, or unclean firstlings, to be capable of being redeemed, at six-fifths value (calculated according to the distance from the jubilee year by the priest); if devoted by the owner and unredeemed, to be hallowed at the jubilee forever, and given to the priests; if only by a possessor, to return to the owner at the jubilee.
(4) Inheritance. (b) LAWS OF DEBT. -- (1) All debts (to an Israelite) to be released at the seventh (sabbatical year; a blessing promised to obedience, and a curse on refusal to lend.
De 15:1-11
(2) Usury (from Israelites) not to be taken.
Ex 22:25-27; De 23:19-20
(3) Pledges not to be insolently or ruinously exacted.
De 24:6,10-13,17-18
(c) TAXATION. -- (1) Census-money, a poll-tax (of a half shekel), to be paid for the service of the tabernacle.
All spoil in war to be halved; of the combatants' half, one five-hundreth, of the people's, one fiftieth, to be paid for a "heave offering" to Jehovah. (2) Tithes.-- (a) Tithes of all produce to be given for maintenance of the Levites.
(Of this one tenth to be paid as a heave offering for maintenance of the priests. vs.
) (b) Second tithe to be bestowed in religious feasting and charity, either at the holy place or (every third year) at home.
De 14:22
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Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they must each select an animal of the flock according to [their] fathers' households, one animal per household. If the household is too small for a [whole] animal, that person and the neighbor nearest his house are to select one based on the combined number of people; you should apportion the animal according to what each person will eat. read more. You must have an unblemished animal, a year-old male; you may take it from either the sheep or the goats. You are to keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembly of the community of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight. They must take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat them. They are to eat the meat that night; they should eat it, roasted over the fire along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat any of it raw or cooked in boiling water, but only roasted over fire-its head as well as its legs and inner organs. Do not let any of it remain until morning; you must burn up any part of it that does remain until morning. Here is how you must eat it: dressed for travel, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in a hurry; it is the Lord's Passover. "I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night and strike every firstborn [male] in the land of Egypt, both man and beast. I am the Lord; I will execute judgments against all the gods of Egypt. The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a distinguishing mark for you; when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No plague will be among you to destroy [you] when I strike the land of Egypt. "This day is to be a memorial for you, and you must celebrate it as a festival to the Lord. You are to celebrate it throughout your generations as a permanent statute. You must eat unleavened bread for seven days. On the first day you must remove yeast from your houses. Whoever eats what is leavened from the first day through the seventh day must be cut off from Israel. You are to hold a sacred assembly on the first day and another sacred assembly on the seventh day. No work may be done on those [days] except for preparing what people need to eat-you may do only that. "You are to observe the [Festival of] Unleavened Bread because on this very day I brought your ranks out of the land of Egypt. You must observe this day throughout your generations as a permanent statute. You are to eat unleavened bread in the first [month], from the evening of the fourteenth day of the month until the evening of the twenty-first day. Yeast must not be found in your houses for seven days. If anyone eats something leavened, that person, whether a foreign resident or native of the land, must be cut off from the community of Israel. Do not eat anything leavened; eat unleavened bread in all your homes." Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go, select an animal from the flock according to your families, and slaughter the Passover lamb. Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and brush the lintel and the two doorposts with some of the blood in the basin. None of you may go out the door of his house until morning. When the Lord passes through to strike Egypt and sees the blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, He will pass over the door and not let the destroyer enter your houses to strike [you]. "Keep this command permanently as a statute for you and your descendants. When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as He promised, you are to observe this ritual. When your children ask you, 'What does this ritual mean to you?' you are to reply, 'It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, for He passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and spared our homes.' " So the people bowed down and worshiped.
"Consecrate every firstborn male to Me, the firstborn from every womb among the Israelites, both man and animal; it is Mine."
you are to present to the Lord every firstborn male of the womb. All firstborn offspring of the livestock you own that are males will be the Lord's. You must redeem every firstborn of a donkey with a flock animal, but if you do not redeem it, break its neck. However, you must redeem every firstborn among your sons.
So Moses chose able men from all Israel and made them leaders over the people [as] officials of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. They judged the people at all times; the hard cases they would bring to Moses, but every minor case they would judge themselves.
Now if you will listen to Me and carefully keep My covenant, you will be My own possession out of all the peoples, although all the earth is Mine, and you will be My kingdom of priests and My holy nation. These are the words that you are to say to the Israelites."
You are to labor six days and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. You must not do any work-you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the foreigner who is within your gates. read more. For the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy.
"These are the ordinances that you must set before them: "When you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve for six years; then in the seventh he is to leave as a free man without paying anything. read more. If he arrives alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrives with a wife, his wife is to leave with him. If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children belong to her master, and the man must leave alone. "But if the slave declares: 'I love my master, my wife, and my children; I do not want to leave as a free man,' his master is to bring him to the judges and then bring him to the door or doorpost. His master must pierce his ear with an awl, and he will serve his master for life. "When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she is not to leave as the male slaves do. If she is displeasing to her master, who chose her for himself, then he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners because he has acted treacherously toward her. Or if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her according to the customary treatment of daughters.
"Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death.
If a person willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him by scheming, you must take him from My altar to be put to death. "Whoever strikes his father or his mother must be put to death.
"Whoever curses his father or his mother must be put to death. "When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or fist, and the injured man does not die but is confined to bed, read more. if he can [later] get up and walk around outside [leaning] on his staff, then the one who struck [him] will be exempt from punishment. Nevertheless, he must pay for his lost work time and provide for [his] complete recovery. "When a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod, and the slave dies under his abuse, the owner must be punished.
"When a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod, and the slave dies under his abuse, the owner must be punished. However, if the slave can stand up after a day or two, the owner should not be punished because he is his [owner's] property. read more. "When men get in a fight, and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born [prematurely], but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman's husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound. "When a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave and destroys it, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his male or female slave, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his tooth. "When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox must be stoned, and its meat may not be eaten, but the ox's owner is innocent. However, if the ox was in the habit of goring, and its owner has been warned yet does not restrain it, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox must be stoned, and its owner must also be put to death. If instead a ransom is demanded of him, he can pay a redemption price for his life in the full amount demanded from him.
"When a man steals an ox or a sheep and butchers it or sells it, he must repay five cattle for the ox or four sheep for the sheep. If a thief is caught in the act of breaking in, and he is beaten to death, no one is guilty of bloodshed. read more. But if this happens after sunrise, there is guilt of bloodshed. A thief must make full restitution. If he is unable, he is to be sold because of his theft. If what was stolen-whether ox, donkey, or sheep-is actually found alive in his possession, he must repay double.
In any case of wrongdoing involving an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or anything [else] lost, and someone claims: That's mine, the case between the two parties is to come before the judges. The one the judges condemn must repay double to his neighbor.
"When a man seduces a virgin who was not promised in marriage, and he has sexual relations with her, he must certainly pay the bridal price for her to be his wife. If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must pay an amount in silver equal to the bridal price for virgins. read more. "You must not allow a sorceress to live.
"Whoever sacrifices to any gods, except the Lord alone, is to be set apart for destruction. "You must not exploit a foreign resident or oppress him, since you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
"If you lend money to My people-to the poor person among you, you must not be like a moneylender to him; you must not charge him interest. "If you ever take your neighbor's cloak as collateral, return it to him before sunset. read more. For it is his only covering; it is the clothing for his body. What will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will listen because I am compassionate.
"You must not hold back [offerings from] your harvest or your vats. Give Me the firstborn of your sons. Do the same with your cattle and your flock. Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but on the eighth day you are to give them to Me.
"You must not spread a false report. Do not join the wicked to be a malicious witness. "You must not follow a crowd in wrongdoing. Do not testify in a lawsuit and go along with a crowd to pervert [justice]. read more. Do not show favoritism to a poor person in his lawsuit.
"If you see the donkey of someone who hates you lying [helpless] under its load, and you want to refrain from helping it, you must help with it. "You must not deny justice to the poor among you in his lawsuit. read more. Stay far away from a false accusation. Do not kill the innocent and the just, because I will not justify the guilty. You must not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and corrupts the words of the righteous. You must not oppress a foreign resident; you yourselves know how it feels to be a foreigner because you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. "Sow your land for six years and gather its produce.
"Sow your land for six years and gather its produce. But during the seventh year you are to let it rest and leave it uncultivated, so that the poor among your people may eat [from it] and the wild animals may consume what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.
But during the seventh year you are to let it rest and leave it uncultivated, so that the poor among your people may eat [from it] and the wild animals may consume what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove. "Do your work for six days but rest on the seventh day so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave as well as the foreign resident may be refreshed.
"Do your work for six days but rest on the seventh day so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave as well as the foreign resident may be refreshed. "Pay strict attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips. read more. "Celebrate a festival in My honor three times a year Observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you are to eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, because you came out of Egypt in that month. No one is to appear before Me empty-handed.
"This is what you are to offer regularly on the altar every day: two year-old lambs. In the morning offer one lamb, and at twilight offer the other lamb. read more. With the first lamb offer two quarts of fine flour mixed with one quart of crushed olive oil, and a drink offering of one quart of wine. You are to offer the second lamb at twilight. Offer a grain offering and a drink offering with it, like the one in the morning, as a pleasing aroma, a fire offering to the Lord. This will be a regular burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you.
"When you take a census of the Israelites to register them, each of the men must pay a ransom for himself to the Lord as they are registered. Then no plague will come on them as they are registered. Everyone who is registered must pay half a shekel/ 5 of an ounce of silver according to the sanctuary shekel (20 gerahs to the shekel). This half shekel is a contribution to the Lord. read more. Each man who is registered, 20 years old or more, must give this contribution to the Lord. The wealthy may not give more, and the poor may not give less, than half a shekel when giving the contribution to the Lord to atone for your lives. Take the atonement money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the tent of meeting. It will serve as a reminder for the Israelites before the Lord to atone for your lives."
Then the Lord summoned Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting:
"If his offering is a fellowship sacrifice, and he is presenting [an animal] from the herd, whether male or female, he must present one without blemish before the Lord.
"If his offering is a fellowship sacrifice, and he is presenting [an animal] from the herd, whether male or female, he must present one without blemish before the Lord.
The Lord spoke to Moses: "When someone sins and offends the Lord by deceiving his neighbor in regard to a deposit, a security, or a robbery; or defrauds his neighbor; read more. or finds something lost and lies about it; or swears falsely about any of the sinful things a person may do- once he has sinned and acknowledged [his] guilt-he must return what he stole or defrauded, or the deposit entrusted to him, or the lost item he found, or anything else about which he swore falsely. He must make full restitution for it and add a fifth of its value to it. He is to pay it to its owner on the day he acknowledges [his] guilt. Then he must bring his restitution offering to the Lord: an unblemished ram from the flock, according to your valuation, as a restitution offering to the priest. In this way the priest will make atonement on his behalf before the Lord, and he will be forgiven for anything he may have done to incur guilt." The Lord spoke to Moses: "Command Aaron and his sons: This is the law of the burnt offering; the burnt offering itself must remain on the altar's hearth all night until morning, while the fire of the altar is kept burning on it. The priest is to put on his linen robe and linen undergarments. He is to remove the ashes of the burnt offering the fire has consumed on the altar, and place them beside the altar. Then he must take off his garments, put on other clothes, and bring the ashes outside the camp to a ceremonially clean place. The fire on the altar is to be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest will burn wood on the fire. He is to arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat portions from the fellowship offerings on it. Fire must be kept burning on the altar continually; it must not go out.
"Now this is the law of the fellowship sacrifice that someone may present to the Lord: If he presents it for thanksgiving, in addition to the thanksgiving sacrifice, he is to present unleavened cakes mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers coated with oil, and well-kneaded cakes of fine flour mixed with oil. read more. He is to present as his offering cakes of leavened bread, with his thanksgiving sacrifice of fellowship. From the cakes he must present one [portion] of each offering as a contribution to the Lord. It will belong to the priest who sprinkles the blood of the fellowship offering; it is his. The meat of his thanksgiving sacrifice of fellowship must be eaten on the day he offers it; he may not leave any of it until morning. "If the sacrifice he offers is a vow or a freewill offering, it is to be eaten on the day he presents his sacrifice, and what is left over may be eaten on the next day. But what remains of the sacrificial meat by the third day must be burned up. If any of the meat of his fellowship sacrifice is eaten on the third day, it will not be accepted. It will not be credited to the one who presents it; it is repulsive. The person who eats any of it will be guilty. "Meat that touches anything unclean must not be eaten; it is to be burned up. Everyone who is clean may eat any [other] meat. But the one who eats meat from the Lord's fellowship sacrifice while he is unclean, that person must be cut off from his people. If someone touches anything unclean, whether human uncleanness, an unclean animal, or any unclean, detestable creature, and eats meat from the Lord's fellowship sacrifice, that person must be cut off from his people."
The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: "Tell the Israelites: You may eat all these [kinds] of land animals. read more. You may eat any animal with divided hooves and that chews the cud. But among the ones that chew the cud or have hooves you are not to eat [these]: the camel, though it chews the cud, does not have hooves-it is unclean for you; the hyrax, though it chews the cud, does not have hooves-it is unclean for you; the hare, though it chews the cud, does not have hooves-it is unclean for you; the pig, though it has divided hooves, does not chew the cud-it is unclean for you. Do not eat any of their meat or touch their carcasses-they are unclean for you. "This [is what] you may eat from all that is in the water: You may eat everything in the water that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or streams. But these are to be detestable to you: everything that does not have fins and scales in the seas or streams, among all the swarming things and [other] living creatures in the water. They are to remain detestable to you; you must not eat any of their meat, and you must detest their carcasses. Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales will be detestable to you. "You are to detest these birds. They must not be eaten because they are detestable: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, the kite, the various kinds of falcon, every kind of raven,
the little owl, the cormorant, the long-eared owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey,
"When you reap the harvest of your land, you are not to reap to the very edge of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You must not strip your vineyard bare or gather its fallen grapes. Leave them for the poor and the foreign resident; I am the Lord your God.
You are not to cut off the hair at the sides of your head or mar the edge of your beard.
"Do not turn to mediums or consult spiritists, or you will be defiled by them; I am the Lord your God.
"When a foreigner lives with you in your land, you must not oppress him. You must regard the foreigner who lives with you as the native-born among you. You are to love him as yourself, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God.
The Lord spoke to Moses: "Say to the Israelites: Any Israelite or foreigner living in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be put to death; the people of the country are to stone him. read more. I will turn against that man and cut him off from his people, because he gave his offspring to Molech, defiling My sanctuary and profaning My holy name. But if the people of the country look the other way when that man gives any of his children to Molech, and do not put him to death, then I will turn against that man and his family, and cut off from their people both him and all who follow him, prostituting themselves with Molech.
"If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood is on his own hands.
"If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood is on his own hands.
The Lord said to Moses: "Speak to Aaron's sons, the priests, and tell them: A priest is not to make himself ceremonially unclean for a [dead] person among his relatives,
The Lord said to Moses: "Speak to Aaron's sons, the priests, and tell them: A priest is not to make himself ceremonially unclean for a [dead] person among his relatives,
The Lord spoke to Moses: "Tell Aaron and his sons to deal respectfully with the holy offerings of the Israelites that they have consecrated to Me, so they do not profane My holy name; I am the Lord. read more. Say to them: If any man from any of your descendants throughout your generations is in a state of uncleanness yet approaches the holy offerings that the Israelites consecrate to the Lord, that person will be cut off from My presence; I am the Lord. No man of Aaron's descendants who has a skin disease or a discharge is to eat from the holy offerings until he is clean. Whoever touches anything made unclean by a dead person or by a man who has an emission of semen, or whoever touches any swarming creature that makes him unclean or any person who makes him unclean-whatever his uncleanness- the man who touches any of these will remain unclean until evening and is not to eat from the holy offerings unless he has bathed his body with water. When the sun has set, he will become clean, and then he may eat from the holy offerings, for that is his food. He must not eat an animal that died naturally or was mauled by wild beasts, making himself unclean by it; I am the Lord. They must keep My instruction, or they will be guilty and die because they profane it; I am the Lord who sets them apart.
"These are the Lord's appointed times, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times The Passover to the Lord comes in the first month, at twilight on the fourteenth day of the month.
"You are to count seven complete weeks starting from the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the presentation offering.
The Lord spoke to Moses: "Tell the Israelites: In the seventh month, on the first [day] of the month, you are to have a day of complete rest, commemoration and jubilation-a sacred assembly. read more. You must not do any daily work, but you must present a fire offering to the Lord." The Lord again spoke to Moses: "The tenth [day] of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You are to hold a sacred assembly and practice self-denial; you are to present a fire offering to the Lord. On this particular day you are not to do any work, for it is a Day of Atonement to make atonement for yourselves before the Lord your God. If any person does not practice self-denial on this particular day, he must be cut off from his people. I will destroy among his people anyone who does any work on this same day. You are not to do any work. This is a permanent statute throughout your generations wherever you live. It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must practice self-denial. You are to observe your Sabbath from the evening of the ninth [day] of the month until the [following] evening." The Lord spoke to Moses: "Tell the Israelites: The Festival of Booths to the Lord begins on the fifteenth day of this seventh month and continues for seven days. There is to be a sacred assembly on the first day; you are not to do any daily work. You are to present a fire offering to the Lord for seven days. On the eighth day you are to hold a sacred assembly and present a fire offering to the Lord. It is a solemn gathering; you are not to do any daily work. "These are the Lord's appointed times that you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for presenting fire offerings to the Lord, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its [designated] day. These are in addition to the offerings for the Lord's Sabbaths, your gifts, all your vow offerings, and all your freewill offerings that you give to the Lord. "You are to celebrate the Lord's festival on the fifteenth day of the seventh month for seven days after you have gathered the produce of the land. There will be complete rest on the first day and complete rest on the eighth day. On the first day you are to take the product of majestic trees-palm fronds, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook-and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. You are to celebrate it as a festival to the Lord seven days each year. This is a permanent statute for you throughout your generations; you must celebrate it in the seventh month. You are to live in booths for seven days. All the native-born of Israel must live in booths, so that your generations may know that I made the Israelites live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God."
And tell the Israelites: If anyone curses his God, he will bear the consequences of his sin. Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death; the whole community must stone him. If he blasphemes the Name, he is to be put to death, whether the foreign resident or the native.
If any man inflicts a permanent injury on his neighbor, whatever he has done is to be done to him: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Whatever injury he inflicted on the person, the same is to be inflicted on him.
The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai: "Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you enter the land I am giving you, the land will observe a Sabbath to the Lord. read more. You may sow your field for six years, and you may prune your vineyard and gather its produce for six years. But there will be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land in the seventh year, a Sabbath to the Lord: you are not to sow your field or prune your vineyard. You are not to reap what grows by itself from your crop, or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. It must be a year of complete rest for the land. [Whatever] the land [produces during] the Sabbath year can be food for you; for yourself, your male or female slave, and the hired hand or foreigner who stays with you. All of its growth may serve as food for your livestock and the wild animals in your land. "You are to count seven sabbatic years, seven times seven years, so that the time period of the seven sabbatic years amounts to 49. Then you are to sound a trumpet loudly in the seventh month, on the tenth [day] of the month; you will sound it throughout your land on the Day of Atonement. You are to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim freedom in the land for all its inhabitants. It will be your Jubilee, when each of you is to return to his property and each of you to his clan.
You are to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim freedom in the land for all its inhabitants. It will be your Jubilee, when each of you is to return to his property and each of you to his clan. The fiftieth year will be your Jubilee; you are not to sow, reap what grows by itself, or harvest its untended vines. read more. It is to be holy to you because it is the Jubilee; you may [only] eat its produce [directly] from the field. "In this Year of Jubilee, each of you will return to his property. If you make a sale to your neighbor or a purchase from him, do not cheat one another. You are to make the purchase from your neighbor based on the number of years since the last Jubilee. He is to sell to you based on the number of [remaining] harvest years. You are to increase its price in proportion to a greater amount of years, and decrease its price in proportion to a lesser amount of years, because what he is selling to you is a number of harvests.
"The land is not to be permanently sold because it is Mine, and you are only foreigners and temporary residents on My land.
If your brother becomes destitute and sells part of his property, his nearest relative may come and redeem what his brother has sold. If a man has no family redeemer, but he prospers and obtains enough to redeem his land, read more. he may calculate the years since its sale, repay the balance to the man he sold it to, and return to his property.
"If a man sells a residence in a walled city, his right of redemption will last until a year has passed after its sale; his right of redemption will last a year. If it is not redeemed by the end of a full year, then the house in the walled city is permanently transferred to its purchaser throughout his generations. It is not to be released on the Jubilee. read more. But houses in villages that have no walls around them are to be classified as open fields. The right to redeem [such] houses stays in effect, and they are to be released at the Jubilee. "Concerning the Levitical cities, the Levites always have the right to redeem houses in the cities they possess. Whatever [property] one of the Levites can redeem-a house sold in a city they possess-must be released at the Jubilee, because the houses in the Levitical cities are their possession among the Israelites. The open pastureland around their cities may not be sold, for it is their permanent possession.
You may also purchase them from the foreigners staying with you, or from their families living among you-those born in your land. These may become your property. You may leave them to your sons after you to inherit as property; you can make them slaves for life. But concerning your brothers, the Israelites, you must not rule over one another harshly. read more. "If a foreigner or temporary resident [living] among you prospers, but your brother [living] near him becomes destitute and sells himself to the foreigner living among you, or to a member of the foreigner's clan, he has the right of redemption after he has been sold. One of his brothers may redeem him. His uncle or cousin may redeem him, or any of his close relatives from his clan may redeem him. If he prospers, he may redeem himself. The one who purchased him is to calculate [the time] from the year he sold himself to him until the Year of Jubilee. The price of his sale will be [determined] by the number of years. It will be [set] for him like the daily wages of a hired hand. If many years are still left, he must pay his redemption price in proportion to them based on his purchase price. If only a few years remain until the Year of Jubilee, he will calculate and pay the price of his redemption in proportion to his [remaining] years. He will stay with him like a man hired year by year. A foreign owner is not to rule over him harshly in your sight. If he is not redeemed in any of these [ways], he and his children are to be released at the Year of Jubilee.
"When a man consecrates his house as holy to the Lord, the priest will assess its value, whether high or low. The price will stand just as the priest assesses it. But if the one who consecrated his house redeems [it], he must add a fifth to the valuation price, and it will be his. read more. "If a man consecrates to the Lord any part of a field that he possesses, your valuation will be proportional to the seed needed to sow it, at the rate of 50 silver shekels for [every] five bushels of barley seed. If he consecrates his field during the Year of Jubilee, the price will stand according to your valuation. But if he consecrates his field after the Jubilee, the priest will calculate the price for him in proportion to the years left until the [next] Year of Jubilee, so that your valuation will be reduced. If the one who consecrated the field decides to redeem it, he must add a fifth to the valuation price, and the field will transfer back to him. But if he does not redeem the field or if he has sold it to another man, it is no longer redeemable. When the field is released in the Jubilee, it will be holy to the Lord like a field permanently set apart; it becomes the priest's property. "If a person consecrates to the Lord a field he has purchased that is not part of his inherited landholding, then the priest will calculate for him the amount of the valuation up to the Year of Jubilee, and the person will pay the valuation on that day as a holy offering to the Lord. In the Year of Jubilee the field will return to the one he bought it from, the original owner. All your valuations will be [measured] by the standard sanctuary shekel, 20 gerahs to the shekel. "But no one can consecrate a firstborn of the livestock, whether an animal from the herd or flock, to the Lord, because a firstborn [already] belongs to the Lord. If it is one of the unclean livestock, it must be ransomed according to your valuation by adding a fifth of its value to it. If it is not redeemed, it can be sold according to your valuation. "Nothing that a man permanently sets apart to the Lord from all he owns, whether a person, an animal, or his inherited landholding, can be sold or redeemed; everything set apart is especially holy to the Lord. No person who has been set apart [for destruction] is to be ransomed; he must be put to death. "Every tenth of the land's produce, grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord. If a man decides to redeem any part of this tenth, he must add one-fifth to its value. Every tenth animal from the herd or flock, which passes under the [shepherd's] rod, will be holy to the Lord. He is not to inspect whether it is good or bad, and he is not to make a substitution for it. But if he does make a substitution, both the animal and its substitute will be holy; they cannot be redeemed." These are the commands the Lord gave Moses for the Israelites on Mount Sinai.
Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. He brought 70 men from the elders of the people and had them stand around the tent. Then the Lord descended in the cloud and spoke to him. He took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and placed [the Spirit] on the 70 elders. As the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they never did it again. read more. Two men had remained in the camp, one named Eldad and the other Medad; the Spirit rested on them-they were among those listed, but had not gone out to the tent-and they prophesied in the camp. A young man ran and reported to Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp." Joshua son of Nun, assistant to Moses since his youth, responded, "Moses, my lord, stop them!" But Moses asked him, "Are you jealous on my account? If only all the Lord's people were prophets, and the Lord would place His Spirit on them." Then Moses returned to the camp along with the elders of Israel.
While the Israelites were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day.
So the entire community brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
The Lord said to Aaron, "You, your sons, and your ancestral house will be responsible for sin against the sanctuary. You and your sons will be responsible for sin involving your priesthood.
Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, "Look, I have put you in charge of the contributions brought to Me. As for all the holy offerings of the Israelites, I have given them to you and your sons as a portion and a perpetual statute. A portion of the holiest offerings [kept] from the fire will be yours; every one of their offerings that they give Me, whether the grain offering, sin offering, or restitution offering will be most holy for you and your sons. read more. You are to eat it as a most holy offering. Every male may eat it; it is to be holy to you. "The contribution of their gifts also belongs to you. I have given all the Israelites' presentation offerings to you and to your sons and daughters as a perpetual statute. Every ceremonially clean person in your house may eat it. I am giving you all the best of the fresh olive oil, new wine, and grain, which the Israelites give to the Lord as their firstfruits.
I am giving you all the best of the fresh olive oil, new wine, and grain, which the Israelites give to the Lord as their firstfruits. The firstfruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to the Lord, belong to you. Every clean person in your house may eat them.
The firstfruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to the Lord, belong to you. Every clean person in your house may eat them. "Everything in Israel that is permanently dedicated [to the Lord] belongs to you. read more. The firstborn of every living thing, man or animal, presented to the Lord belongs to you. But you must certainly redeem the firstborn of man, and redeem the firstborn of an unclean animal.
The firstborn of every living thing, man or animal, presented to the Lord belongs to you. But you must certainly redeem the firstborn of man, and redeem the firstborn of an unclean animal. You will pay the redemption price for a month-old male according to your valuation: five shekels of silver by the standard sanctuary shekel, which is 20 gerahs.
You will pay the redemption price for a month-old male according to your valuation: five shekels of silver by the standard sanctuary shekel, which is 20 gerahs. "However, you must not redeem the firstborn of an ox, a sheep, or a goat; they are holy. You are to sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as a fire offering for a pleasing aroma to the Lord.
"However, you must not redeem the firstborn of an ox, a sheep, or a goat; they are holy. You are to sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as a fire offering for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. But their meat belongs to you. It belongs to you like the breast of the presentation offering and the right thigh.
But their meat belongs to you. It belongs to you like the breast of the presentation offering and the right thigh. "I give to you and to your sons and daughters all the holy contributions that the Israelites present to the Lord as a perpetual statute. It is a perpetual covenant of salt before the Lord for you as well as your offspring." read more. The Lord told Aaron, "You will not have an inheritance in their land; there will be no portion among them for you. I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites.
The Lord told Aaron, "You will not have an inheritance in their land; there will be no portion among them for you. I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites. "Look, I have given the Levites every tenth in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the work of the tent of meeting.
"Look, I have given the Levites every tenth in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the work of the tent of meeting. The Israelites must never again come near the tent of meeting, or they will incur guilt and die.
The Israelites must never again come near the tent of meeting, or they will incur guilt and die. The Levites will do the work of the tent of meeting, and they will bear the [consequences] of their sin. The Levites will not receive an inheritance among the Israelites; this is a perpetual statute throughout your generations.
The Levites will do the work of the tent of meeting, and they will bear the [consequences] of their sin. The Levites will not receive an inheritance among the Israelites; this is a perpetual statute throughout your generations. For I have given them the tenth that the Israelites present to the Lord as a contribution for [their] inheritance. That is why I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites."
For I have given them the tenth that the Israelites present to the Lord as a contribution for [their] inheritance. That is why I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites."
For I have given them the tenth that the Israelites present to the Lord as a contribution for [their] inheritance. That is why I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites." The Lord instructed Moses,
The Lord instructed Moses, "Speak to the Levites and tell them: When you receive from the Israelites the tenth that I have given you as your inheritance, you must present part of it as an offering to the Lord-a tenth of the tenth.
"Speak to the Levites and tell them: When you receive from the Israelites the tenth that I have given you as your inheritance, you must present part of it as an offering to the Lord-a tenth of the tenth. Your offering will be credited to you as if [it were your] grain from the threshing floor or the full harvest from the winepress.
Your offering will be credited to you as if [it were your] grain from the threshing floor or the full harvest from the winepress. You are to present an offering to the Lord from every tenth you receive from the Israelites. Give some of it to Aaron the priest as an offering to the Lord.
You are to present an offering to the Lord from every tenth you receive from the Israelites. Give some of it to Aaron the priest as an offering to the Lord. You must present the entire offering due the Lord from all your gifts. The best part of the tenth is to be consecrated.
You must present the entire offering due the Lord from all your gifts. The best part of the tenth is to be consecrated. "Tell them further: Once you have presented the best part of the tenth, and it is credited to you Levites as the produce of the threshing floor or the winepress,
"Tell them further: Once you have presented the best part of the tenth, and it is credited to you Levites as the produce of the threshing floor or the winepress, then you and your household may eat it anywhere. It is your wage in return for your work at the tent of meeting.
then you and your household may eat it anywhere. It is your wage in return for your work at the tent of meeting. You will not incur guilt because of it once you have presented the best part of it, but you must not defile the Israelites' holy offerings, so that you will not die."
You will not incur guilt because of it once you have presented the best part of it, but you must not defile the Israelites' holy offerings, so that you will not die."
and the Lord answered him, "What Zelophehad's daughters say is correct. You are to give them hereditary property among their father's brothers and transfer their father's inheritance to them. read more. Tell the Israelites: When a man dies without having a son, transfer his inheritance to his daughter.
"When a woman in her father's house during her youth makes a vow to the Lord or puts [herself] under an obligation, and her father hears about her vow or the obligation she put herself under, and he says nothing to her, all her vows and every obligation she put herself under are binding. read more. But if her father prohibits her on the day he hears [about it], none of her vows and none of the obligations she put herself under are binding. The Lord will absolve her because her father has prohibited her.
"Every vow a widow or divorce puts herself under is binding on her.
The Lord said to Moses, "Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, read more. designate cities to serve as cities of refuge for you, so that a person who kills someone unintentionally may flee there. You will have the cities as a refuge from the avenger, so that the one who kills someone will not die until he stands trial before the assembly. The cities you select will be your six cities of refuge. Select three cities across the Jordan and three cities in the land of Canaan to be cities of refuge. These six cities will serve as a refuge for the Israelites and for the foreigner or temporary resident among them, so that anyone who kills a person unintentionally may flee there. "If anyone strikes a person with an iron object and death results, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death. If a man has in his hand a stone capable of causing death and strikes another man and he dies, the murderer must be put to death. If a man has in his hand a wooden object capable of causing death and he dies, the murderer must be put to death. The avenger of blood himself is to kill the murderer; when he finds him, he is to kill him. Likewise, if anyone in hatred pushes a person or throws [an object] at him with malicious intent and he dies, or if in hostility he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must be put to death; he is a murderer. The avenger of blood is to kill the murderer when he finds him. "But if anyone suddenly pushes a person without hostility or throws any object at him without malicious intent or drops a stone without looking that could kill a person and he dies, but he was not his enemy and wasn't trying to harm him, the assembly is to judge between the slayer and the avenger of blood according to these ordinances. The assembly is to protect the one who kills someone from the hand of the avenger of blood. Then the assembly will return him to the city of refuge he fled to, and he must live there until the death of the high priest who was anointed with the holy oil. "If the one who kills someone ever goes outside the border of the city of refuge he fled to, and the avenger of blood finds him outside the border of his city of refuge and kills him, the avenger will not be guilty of bloodshed, for the one who killed a person was supposed to live in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest. Only after the death of the high priest may the one who has killed a person return to the land he possesses.
"If anyone kills a person, the murderer is to be put to death based on the word of witnesses. But no one is to be put to death based on the testimony of one witness.
The family leaders from the clan of the descendants of Gilead-the son of Machir, son of Manasseh-one of the clans of the sons of Joseph approached and addressed Moses and the leaders who were over the Israelite families.
"So I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and respected men, and set them over you as leaders: officials for thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and officers for your tribes. I commanded your judges at that time: Hear [the cases] between your brothers, and judge rightly between a man and his brother or a foreign resident. read more. Do not show partiality when rendering judgment; listen to small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it. At that time I commanded you about all the things you were to do.
Then Moses set apart three cities across the Jordan to the east, where one could flee who committed manslaughter and killed his neighbor accidentally without previously hating him. He could flee to one of these cities and stay alive: read more. Bezer in the wilderness on the plateau land, belonging to the Reubenites; Ramoth in Gilead, belonging to the Gadites; or Golan in Bashan, belonging to the Manassites.
"Be careful to follow these statutes and ordinances in the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess all the days you live on the earth.
"Be careful to follow these statutes and ordinances in the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess all the days you live on the earth.
"You are sons of the Lord your God; do not cut yourselves or make a bald spot on your head on behalf of the dead,
"You are sons of the Lord your God; do not cut yourselves or make a bald spot on your head on behalf of the dead, for you are a holy people belonging to the Lord your God. The Lord has chosen you to be His special people out of all the peoples on the face of the earth. read more. "You must not eat any detestable thing. These are the animals you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain sheep. You may eat any animal that has hooves divided in two and chews the cud. But among the ones that chew the cud or have divided hooves, you are not to eat these: the camel, the hare, and the hyrax, though they chew the cud, they do not have hooves- they are unclean for you; and the pig, though it has hooves, it does not [chew] the cud- it is unclean for you. You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses. "You may eat everything from the water that has fins and scales, but you may not eat anything that does not have fins and scales-it is unclean for you. "You may eat every clean bird, but these are the ones you may not eat: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, the kite, the various kinds of falcon, every kind of raven, the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the gull, the various kinds of hawk, the little owl, the long-eared owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, the cormorant, the stork, the various kinds of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat. All winged insects are unclean for you; they may not be eaten. But you may eat every clean flying creature. "You are not to eat any carcass; you may give it to a resident alien within your gates, and he may eat it, or you may sell it to a foreigner. For you are a holy people belonging to the Lord your God. You must not boil a young goat in its mother's milk. "Each year you are to set aside a tenth of all the produce grown in your fields.
"Each year you are to set aside a tenth of all the produce grown in your fields. You are to eat a tenth of your grain, new wine, and oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, in the presence of the Lord your God at the place where He chooses to have His name dwell, so that you will always learn to fear the Lord your God.
You are to eat a tenth of your grain, new wine, and oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, in the presence of the Lord your God at the place where He chooses to have His name dwell, so that you will always learn to fear the Lord your God. But if the distance is too great for you to carry it, since the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far away from you and since the Lord your God has blessed you,
But if the distance is too great for you to carry it, since the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far away from you and since the Lord your God has blessed you, then exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place the Lord your God chooses.
then exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place the Lord your God chooses. You may spend the money on anything you want: cattle, sheep, wine, beer, or anything you desire. You are to feast there in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice with your family.
You may spend the money on anything you want: cattle, sheep, wine, beer, or anything you desire. You are to feast there in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice with your family. Do not forget the Levite within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you.
Do not forget the Levite within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you. "At the end of [every] three years, bring a tenth of all your produce for that year and store [it] within your gates.
"At the end of [every] three years, bring a tenth of all your produce for that year and store [it] within your gates. Then the Levite, who has no portion or inheritance among you, the foreign resident, fatherless, and widow within your gates may come, eat, and be satisfied. And the Lord your God will bless you in all the work of your hands that you do.
"At the end of [every] seven years you must cancel debts. This is how to cancel debt: Every creditor is to cancel what he has lent his neighbor. He is not to collect [anything] from his neighbor or brother, because the Lord's release of debts has been proclaimed. read more. You may collect [something] from a foreigner, but you must forgive whatever your brother owes you. "There will be no poor among you, however, because the Lord is certain to bless you in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance- if only you obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow every one of these commands I am giving you today. When the Lord your God blesses you as He has promised you, you will lend to many nations but not borrow; you will rule over many nations, but they will not rule over you. "If there is a poor person among you, one of your brothers within any of your gates in the land the Lord your God is giving you, you must not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him enough for whatever need he has. Be careful that there isn't this wicked thought in your heart, 'The seventh year, the year of canceling debts, is near,' and you are stingy toward your poor brother and give him [nothing]. He will cry out to the Lord against you, and you will be guilty. Give to him, and don't have a stingy heart when you give, and because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you do. For there will never cease to be poor people in the land; that is why I am commanding you, 'You must willingly open your hand to your afflicted and poor brother in your land.' "If your fellow Hebrew, a man or woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, you must set him free in the seventh year. When you set him free, do not send him away empty-handed. Give generously to him from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. You are to give him whatever the Lord your God has blessed you with. Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you; that is why I am giving you this command today. But if your slave says to you, 'I don't want to leave you,' because he loves you and your family, and is well off with you, take an awl and pierce through his ear into the door, and he will become your slave for life. Also treat your female slave the same way. Do not regard it as a hardship when you set him free, because he worked for you six years-worth twice the wages of a hired hand. Then the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.
"Appoint judges and officials for your tribes in all your towns the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.
The one condemned to die is to be executed on the testimony of two or three witnesses. No one is to be executed on the testimony of a single witness. The witnesses' hands are to be the first in putting him to death, and after that, the hands of all the people. You must purge the evil from you. read more. "If a case is too difficult for you-concerning bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults-cases disputed at your gates, you must go up to the place the Lord your God chooses.
"If a case is too difficult for you-concerning bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults-cases disputed at your gates, you must go up to the place the Lord your God chooses. You are to go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who presides at that time. Ask, and they will give you a verdict in the case.
You are to go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who presides at that time. Ask, and they will give you a verdict in the case. You must abide by the verdict they give you at the place the Lord chooses. Be careful to do exactly as they instruct you.
You must abide by the verdict they give you at the place the Lord chooses. Be careful to do exactly as they instruct you. You must abide by the instruction they give you and the verdict they announce to you. Do not turn to the right or the left from the decision they declare to you.
You must abide by the instruction they give you and the verdict they announce to you. Do not turn to the right or the left from the decision they declare to you. The person who acts arrogantly, refusing to listen either to the priest who stands there serving the Lord your God or to the judge, must die. You must purge the evil from Israel.
The person who acts arrogantly, refusing to listen either to the priest who stands there serving the Lord your God or to the judge, must die. You must purge the evil from Israel. Then all the people will hear [about it], be afraid, and no longer behave arrogantly.
Then all the people will hear [about it], be afraid, and no longer behave arrogantly. "When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, take possession of it, live in it, and say, 'We want to appoint a king over us like all the nations around us,' read more. you are to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses. Appoint a king from your brothers. You are not to set a foreigner over you, or one who is not of your people. However, he must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire many horses, for the Lord has told you, 'You are never to go back that way again.' He must not acquire many wives for himself so that his heart won't go astray. He must not acquire very large amounts of silver and gold for himself. When he is seated on his royal throne, he is to write a copy of this instruction for himself on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. It is to remain with him, and he is to read from it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, to observe all the words of this instruction, and to do these statutes. Then his heart will not be exalted above his countrymen, he will not turn from this command to the right or the left, and he and his sons will continue ruling many years over Israel.
"The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, will have no portion or inheritance with Israel. They will eat the Lord's fire offerings; that is their inheritance. Although Levi has no inheritance among his brothers, the Lord is his inheritance, as He promised him. read more. This is the priests' share from the people who offer a sacrifice, whether it is an ox, a sheep, or a goat; the priests are to be given the shoulder, jaws, and stomach. You are to give him the firstfruits of your grain, new wine, and oil, and the first sheared [wool] of your flock. For the Lord your God has chosen him and his sons from all your tribes to stand and minister in the Lord's name from now on. When a Levite leaves one of your towns where he lives in Israel and wants to go to the place the Lord chooses,
"When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not imitate the detestable customs of those nations. No one among you is to make his son or daughter pass through the fire, practice divination, tell fortunes, interpret omens, practice sorcery, read more. cast spells, consult a medium or a familiar spirit, or inquire of the dead. Everyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord, and the Lord your God is driving out the nations before you because of these detestable things. You must be blameless before the Lord your God. Though these nations you are about to drive out listen to fortune-tellers and diviners, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do this. "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him. This is what you requested from the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, 'Let us not continue to hear the voice of the Lord our God or see this great fire any longer, so that we will not die!' Then the Lord said to me, 'They have spoken well. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put My words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. I will hold accountable whoever does not listen to My words that he speaks in My name. But the prophet who dares to speak in My name a message I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods-that prophet must die.' You may say to yourself, 'How can we recognize a message the Lord has not spoken?' When a prophet speaks in the Lord's name, and the message does not come true or is not fulfilled, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.
"Here is the law concerning a case of someone who kills a person and flees there to save his life, having killed his neighbor accidentally without previously hating him: If he goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut timber, and his hand swings the ax to chop down a tree, but the blade flies off the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies, that person may flee to one of these cities and live. read more. Otherwise, the avenger of blood in the heat of his anger might pursue the one who committed manslaughter, overtake him because the distance is great, and strike him dead. Yet he did not deserve to die, since he did not previously hate his neighbor. This is why I am commanding you to set apart three cities for yourselves. If the Lord your God enlarges your territory as He swore to your fathers, and gives you all the land He promised to give them- provided you keep every one of these commands I am giving you today and follow them, loving the Lord your God and walking in His ways at all times-you are to add three more cities to these three. In this way, innocent blood will not be shed, and you will not become guilty of bloodshed in the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance. But if someone hates his neighbor, lies in ambush for him, attacks him, and strikes him fatally, and flees to one of these cities, the elders of his city must send [for him], take him from there, and hand him over to the avenger of blood and he will die. You must not look on him with pity but purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, and you will prosper.
"If a malicious witness testifies against someone accusing him of a crime, the two people in the dispute must stand in the presence of the Lord before the priests and judges in authority at the time. read more. The judges are to make a careful investigation, and if the witness turns out to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother, you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. You must purge the evil from you. Then everyone else will hear and be afraid, and they will never again do anything evil like this among you. You must not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.
"If a murder victim is found lying in a field in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess, and it is not known who killed him, your elders and judges must come out and measure [the distance] from the victim to the nearby cities. read more. The elders of the city nearest to the victim are to get a cow that has not been yoked or used for work. The elders of that city will bring the cow down to a continually flowing stream, to a place not tilled or sown, and they will break the cow's neck there by the stream. Then the priests, the sons of Levi, will come forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to serve Him and pronounce blessings in the Lord's name, and they are to give a ruling in every dispute and [case of] assault. All the elders of the city nearest to the victim will wash their hands by the stream over the heifer whose neck has been broken. They will declare, 'Our hands did not shed this blood; our eyes did not see [it]. Lord, forgive Your people Israel You redeemed, and do not hold the shedding of innocent blood against them.' Then they will be absolved of responsibility for bloodshed. You must purge from yourselves the guilt of shedding innocent blood, for you will be doing what is right in the Lord's sight. "When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God hands them over to you and you take some of them prisoner, and if you see a beautiful woman among the captives, desire her, and want to take her as your wife, you are to bring her into your house. She must shave her head, trim her nails, remove the clothes she was wearing when she was taken prisoner, live in your house, and mourn for her father and mother a full month. After that, you may have sexual relations with her and be her husband, and she will be your wife. Then if you are not satisfied with her, you are to let her go where she wants, but you must not sell her for money or treat her as merchandise, because you have humiliated her. "If a man has two wives, one loved and the other unloved, and both the loved and the unloved bear him sons, and if the unloved wife has the firstborn son, when that man gives what he has to his sons as an inheritance, he is not to show favoritism to the son of the loved [wife] as his firstborn over the firstborn of the unloved wife. He must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of everything that belongs to him, for he is the firstfruits of his virility; he has the rights of the firstborn. "If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father or mother and doesn't listen to them even after they discipline him,
"If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father or mother and doesn't listen to them even after they discipline him, his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown.
his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown. They will say to the elders of his city, 'This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he doesn't obey us. He's a glutton and a drunkard.'
They will say to the elders of his city, 'This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he doesn't obey us. He's a glutton and a drunkard.' Then all the men of his city will stone him to death. You must purge the evil from you, and all Israel will hear and be afraid.
Then all the men of his city will stone him to death. You must purge the evil from you, and all Israel will hear and be afraid.
"If a man marries a woman, has sexual relations with her, and comes to hate her,
"If a man marries a woman, has sexual relations with her, and comes to hate her, and accuses [her] of shameful conduct, and gives her a bad name, saying, 'I married this woman and was intimate with her, but I didn't find [any] evidence of her virginity,'
and accuses [her] of shameful conduct, and gives her a bad name, saying, 'I married this woman and was intimate with her, but I didn't find [any] evidence of her virginity,' the young woman's father and mother will take the evidence of her virginity and bring [it] to the city elders at the gate.
the young woman's father and mother will take the evidence of her virginity and bring [it] to the city elders at the gate. The young woman's father will say to the elders, 'I gave my daughter to this man as a wife, but he hates her.
The young woman's father will say to the elders, 'I gave my daughter to this man as a wife, but he hates her. He has accused her of shameful conduct, saying: 'I didn't find [any] evidence of your daughter's virginity, but here is the evidence of my daughter's virginity.' They will spread out the cloth before the city elders.
He has accused her of shameful conduct, saying: 'I didn't find [any] evidence of your daughter's virginity, but here is the evidence of my daughter's virginity.' They will spread out the cloth before the city elders. Then the elders of that city will take the man and punish him.
Then the elders of that city will take the man and punish him.
Then the elders of that city will take the man and punish him. They will also fine him 100 silver [shekels] and give [them] to the young woman's father, because that man gave an Israelite virgin a bad name. She will remain his wife; he cannot divorce her as long as he lives.
They will also fine him 100 silver [shekels] and give [them] to the young woman's father, because that man gave an Israelite virgin a bad name. She will remain his wife; he cannot divorce her as long as he lives.
They will also fine him 100 silver [shekels] and give [them] to the young woman's father, because that man gave an Israelite virgin a bad name. She will remain his wife; he cannot divorce her as long as he lives. But if this accusation is true and no evidence of the young woman's virginity is found,
But if this accusation is true and no evidence of the young woman's virginity is found, they will bring the woman to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city will stone her to death. For she has committed an outrage in Israel by being promiscuous in her father's house. You must purge the evil from you.
they will bring the woman to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city will stone her to death. For she has committed an outrage in Israel by being promiscuous in her father's house. You must purge the evil from you. "If a man is discovered having sexual relations with [another] man's wife, both the man who had sex with the woman and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel. read more. If there is a young woman who is a virgin engaged to a man, and [another] man encounters her in the city and has sex with her, you must take the two of them out to the gate of that city and stone them to death-the young woman because she did not cry out in the city and the man because he has violated his neighbor's fiance. You must purge the evil from you. But if the man encounters the engaged woman in the open country, and he seizes and rapes her, only the man who raped her must die. Do nothing to the young woman, because she is not guilty of an offense deserving death. This case is just like one in which a man attacks his neighbor and murders him. When he found her in the field, the engaged woman cried out, but there was no one to rescue her. If a man encounters a young woman, a virgin who is not engaged, takes hold of her and rapes her, and they are discovered, the man who raped her must give the young woman's father 50 silver [shekels], and she must become his wife because he violated her. He cannot divorce her as long as he lives.
"No man whose [testicles] have been crushed or whose penis has been cut off may enter the Lord's assembly. No one of illegitimate birth may enter the Lord's assembly; none of his descendants, even to the tenth generation, may enter the Lord's assembly. read more. No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the Lord's assembly; none of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, may ever enter the Lord's assembly. This is because they did not meet you with food and water on the journey after you came out of Egypt, and because Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram-naharaim was hired to curse you.#fn
"Do not return a slave to his master when he has escaped from his master to you.
"Do not charge your brother interest on money, food, or anything that can earn interest You may charge a foreigner interest, but you must not charge your brother interest, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you do in the land you are entering to possess.
"When you enter your neighbor's vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you want until you are full, but you must not put [any] in your container. When you enter your neighbor's standing grain, you may pluck heads of grain with your hand, but you must not put a sickle to your neighbor's grain.
"If a man marries a woman, but she becomes displeasing to him because he finds something improper about her, he may write her a divorce certificate, hand it to her, and send her away from his house. If after leaving his house she goes and becomes another man's wife, read more. and the second man hates her, writes her a divorce certificate, hands it to her, and sends her away from his house or if he dies, the first husband who sent her away may not marry her again after she has been defiled, because that would be detestable to the Lord. You must not bring guilt on the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.
"Do not take a pair of millstones or an upper millstone as security for a debt, because that is like taking a life as security.
"When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, do not enter his house to collect what he offers as security. You must stand outside while the man you are making the loan to brings the security out to you. read more. If he is a poor man, you must not sleep in [the garment] he has given as security. Be sure to return it to him at sunset. Then he will sleep in it and bless you, and this will be counted as righteousness to you before the Lord your God.
You are to pay him his wages each day before the sun sets, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he will cry out to the Lord against you, and you will be held guilty. "Fathers are not to be put to death for [their] children or children for [their] fathers; each person will be put to death for his own sin. read more. Do not deny justice to a foreign resident [or] fatherless child, and do not take a widow's garment as security. Remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. Therefore I am commanding you to do this. "When you reap the harvest in your field, and you forget a sheaf in the field, do not go back to get it. It is to be left for the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you knock down the fruit from your olive tree, you must not go over the branches again. What remains will be for the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you must not glean what is left. What remains will be for the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow. Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt. Therefore I am commanding you to do this.
"If there is a dispute between men, they are to go to court, and the judges will hear their case. They will clear the innocent and condemn the guilty. If the guilty party deserves to be flogged, the judge will make him lie down and be flogged in his presence with the number [of lashes] appropriate for his crime. read more. He may be flogged with 40 lashes, but no more. Otherwise, if he is flogged with more lashes than these, your brother will be degraded in your sight.
He may be flogged with 40 lashes, but no more. Otherwise, if he is flogged with more lashes than these, your brother will be degraded in your sight.
"When brothers live on the same property and one of them dies without a son, the wife of the dead man may not marry a stranger outside [the family]. Her brother-in-law is to take her as his wife, have sexual relations with her, and perform the duty of a brother-in-law for her. The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so his name will not be blotted out from Israel. read more. But if the man doesn't want to marry his sister-in-law, she must go to the elders at the [city] gate and say, 'My brother-in-law refuses to preserve his brother's name in Israel. He isn't willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.' The elders of his city will summon him and speak with him. If he persists and says, 'I don't want to marry her,' then his sister-in-law will go up to him in the sight of the elders, remove his sandal from his foot, and spit in his face. Then she will declare, 'This is what is done to a man who will not build up his brother's house.' And his [family] name in Israel will be called 'The house of the man whose sandal was removed.'
"When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you take possession of it and live in it, you must take some of the first of all the soil's produce that you harvest from the land the Lord your God is giving you and put [it] in a container. Then go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to have His name dwell. read more. When you come before the priest who is serving at that time, you must say to him, 'Today I acknowledge to the Lord your God that I have entered the land the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.' "Then the priest will take the container from your hand and place it before the altar of the Lord your God. You are to respond by saying in the presence of the Lord your God: My father was a wandering Aramean. He went down to Egypt with a few people and lived there. There he became a great, powerful, and populous nation. But the Egyptians mistreated and afflicted us, and forced us to do hard labor. So we called out to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our cry and saw our misery, hardship, and oppression. Then the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, with terrifying power, and with signs and wonders. He led us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. I have now brought the first of the land's produce that You, Lord, have given me. You will then place the container before the Lord your God and bow down to Him. You, the Levite, and the foreign resident among you will rejoice in all the good things the Lord your God has given you and your household. "When you have finished paying all the tenth of your produce in the third year, the year of the tenth, you are to give [it] to the Levite, the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. Then you will say in the presence of the Lord your God: I have taken the consecrated portion out of my house; I have also given it to the Levite, the foreign resident, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all the commands You gave me. I have not violated or forgotten Your commands. I have not eaten any of it while in mourning, or removed any of it while unclean, or offered any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the Lord my God; I have done all You commanded me. Look down from Your holy dwelling, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land You have given us as You swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.
So Joshua established peace with them and made a treaty to let them live, and the leaders of the community swore an oath to them.
The Lord said to Joshua, "Do not be afraid of them, for at this time tomorrow I will hand all of them over dead to Israel. You are to hamstring their horses and burn up their chariots."
Samuel told all the Lord's words to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, "These are the rights of the king who will rule over you: He can take your sons and put them to his use in his chariots, on his horses, or running in front of his chariots. read more. He can appoint them for his use as commanders of thousands or commanders of fifties, to plow his ground or reap his harvest, or to make his weapons of war or the equipment for his chariots. He can take your daughters to become perfumers, cooks, and bakers. He can take your best fields, vineyards, and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He can take a tenth of your grain and your vineyards and give them to his officials and servants. He can take your male servants, your female servants, your best young men, and your donkeys and use them for his work. He can take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves can become his servants. When that day comes, you will cry out because of the king you've chosen for yourselves, but the Lord won't answer you on that day."
Samuel proclaimed to the people the rights of kingship. He wrote them on a scroll, which he placed in the presence of the Lord. Then, Samuel sent all the people away, each to his home.
Nahash the Ammonite came up and laid siege to Jabesh-gilead. All the men of Jabesh said to him, "Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you."
The king sent [messengers] to summon Ahimelech the priest, son of Ahitub, and his father's whole family, who were priests in Nob. All of them came to the king. Then Saul said, "Listen, son of Ahitub!" "I'm at your service, my lord," he said. read more. Saul asked him, "Why did you and Jesse's son conspire against me? You gave him bread and a sword and inquired of God for him, so he could rise up against me and wait in ambush, as [is the case] today." Ahimelech replied to the king: "Who among all your servants is as faithful as David? He is the king's son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard, and honored in your house. Was today the first time I inquired of God for him? Of course not! Please don't let the king make an accusation against your servant or any of my father's household, for your servant didn't have any idea about all this." But the king said, "You will die, Ahimelech-you and your father's whole family!" Then the king ordered the guards standing by him, "Turn and kill the priests of the Lord because they sided with David. For they knew he was fleeing, but they didn't tell me." But the king's servants would not lift a hand to execute the priests of the Lord.
Then the king ordered the guards standing by him, "Turn and kill the priests of the Lord because they sided with David. For they knew he was fleeing, but they didn't tell me." But the king's servants would not lift a hand to execute the priests of the Lord. So the king said to Doeg, "Go and execute the priests!" So Doeg the Edomite went and executed the priests himself. On that day, he killed 85 men who wore linen ephods.
So the king said to Doeg, "Go and execute the priests!" So Doeg the Edomite went and executed the priests himself. On that day, he killed 85 men who wore linen ephods. He also struck down Nob, the city of the priests, with the sword-both men and women, children and infants, oxen, donkeys, and sheep.
So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron. King David made a covenant with them at Hebron in the Lord's presence, and they anointed David king over Israel.
David captured 1,700 horsemen and 20,000 foot soldiers from him, and he hamstrung all the horses, and he kept 100 chariots.
So the Lord sent Nathan to David. When he arrived, he said to him: There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a large number of sheep and cattle, read more. but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. It lived and grew up with him and his children. It shared his meager food and drank from his cup; it slept in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man could not bring himself to take one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for his guest. David was infuriated with the man and said to Nathan: "As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die!
When the woman from Tekoa came to the king, she fell with her face to the ground in homage and said, "Help me, my king!" "What's the matter?" the king asked her. "To tell the truth, I am a widow; my husband died," she said. read more. "Your servant had two sons. They were fighting in the field with no one to separate them, and one struck the other and killed him. Now the whole clan has risen up against your servant and said, 'Hand over the one who killed his brother so we may put him to death for the life of the brother he murdered. We will destroy the heir!' They would extinguish my one remaining ember by not preserving my husband's name or posterity on earth." The king told the woman, "Go home. I will issue a command on your behalf." Then the woman of Tekoa said to the king, "My lord the king, may any blame be on me and my father's house, and may the king and his throne be innocent." "Whoever speaks to you," the king said, "bring him to me. He will not trouble you again!" She replied, "Please, may the king invoke the Lord your God, so that the avenger of blood will not increase the loss, and they will not eliminate my son!" "As the Lord lives," he vowed, "not a hair of your son will fall to the ground."
He would get up early and stand beside the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone had a grievance to bring before the king for settlement, Absalom called out to him and asked, "What city are you from?" If he replied, "Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel," Absalom said to him, "Look, your claims are good and right, but the king does not have anyone to listen to you." read more. He added, "If only someone would appoint me judge in the land. Then anyone who had a grievance or dispute could come to me, and I would make sure he received justice." When a person approached to bow down to him, Absalom reached out his hand, took hold of him, and kissed him. Absalom did this to all the Israelites who came to the king for a settlement. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.
The king commanded them to quarry large, costly stones to lay the foundation of the temple with dressed stones. So Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders, along with the Gebalites, quarried [the stone] and prepared the timber and stone for the temple's construction.
As for all the peoples who remained of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not Israelites- their descendants who remained in the land after them, those whom the Israelites were unable to annihilate-Solomon imposed forced labor on them; [it is this way] until today. read more. But Solomon did not consign the Israelites to slavery; they were soldiers, his servants, his commanders, his captains, and commanders of his chariots and his cavalry.
for the king had ships of Tarshish at sea with Hiram's fleet, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
Solomon accumulated 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen and stationed them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar as abundant as sycamore in the Judean foothills. read more. Solomon's horses were imported from Egypt and Kue. The king's traders bought them from Kue at the going price. A chariot was imported from Egypt for 15 pounds [of silver], and a horse for about four pounds. In the same way, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Aram through their agents.
A chariot was imported from Egypt for 15 pounds [of silver], and a horse for about four pounds. In the same way, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Aram through their agents.
A man of God came from Judah to Bethel by a revelation from the Lord while Jeroboam was standing beside the altar to burn incense. The man of God cried out against the altar by a revelation from the Lord: "Altar, altar, this is what the Lord says, 'A son will be born to the house of David, named Josiah, and he will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who are burning incense on you. Human bones will be burned on you.' " read more. He gave a sign that day. He said, "This is the sign that the Lord has spoken: 'The altar will now be ripped apart, and the ashes that are on it will be spilled out.' " When the king heard the word that the man of God had cried out against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar and said, "Arrest him!" But the hand he stretched out against him withered, and he could not pull it back to himself. The altar was ripped apart, and the ashes spilled off the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. Then the king responded to the man of God, "Please plead for the favor of the Lord your God and pray for me so that my hand may be restored to me." So the man of God pleaded for the favor of the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it had been at first.
Then seat two wicked men opposite him and have them testify against him, saying, "You have cursed God and king!" Then take him out and stone him to death. The men of his city, the elders and nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had commanded them, as was written in the letters she had sent them. read more. They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the people. The two wicked men came in and sat opposite him. Then the wicked men testified against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, "Naboth has cursed God and king!" So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones. Then they sent [word] to Jezebel, "Naboth has been stoned to death." When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, "Get up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite who refused to give it to you for silver, since Naboth isn't alive, but dead."
Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord, the king, and the people that they would be the Lord's people and [another one] between the king and the people.
[The following were] in charge of the tribes of Israel: For the Reubenites, Eliezer son of Zichri was the chief official; for the Simeonites, Shephatiah son of Maacah; for the Levites, Hashabiah son of Kemuel; for Aaron, Zadok; read more. for Judah, Elihu, one of David's brothers; for Issachar, Omri son of Michael; for Zebulun, Ishmaiah son of Obadiah; for Naphtali, Jerimoth son of Azriel; for the Ephraimites, Hoshea son of Azaziah; for half the tribe of Manasseh, Joel son of Pedaiah; for half the tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, Iddo son of Zechariah; for Benjamin, Jaasiel son of Abner; for Dan, Azarel son of Jeroham. Those were the leaders of the tribes of Israel.
Ezri son of Chelub was in charge of those who worked in the fields tilling the soil. Shimei the Ramathite was in charge of the vineyards. Zabdi the Shiphmite was in charge of the produce of the vineyards for the wine cellars. read more. Baal-hanan the Gederite was in charge of the olive and sycamore trees in the Shephelah. Joash was in charge of the stores of olive oil. Shitrai the Sharonite was in charge of the herds that grazed in Sharon, while Shaphat son of Adlai was in charge of the herds in the valleys.
Shitrai the Sharonite was in charge of the herds that grazed in Sharon, while Shaphat son of Adlai was in charge of the herds in the valleys. Obil the Ishmaelite was in charge of the camels. Jehdeiah the Meronothite was in charge of the donkeys. read more. Jaziz the Hagrite was in charge of the flocks. All these were officials in charge of King David's property.
Jehoshaphat also appointed in Jerusalem some of the Levites and priests and some of the heads of the Israelite families for [rendering] the Lord's judgments and for [settling] disputes of the residents of Jerusalem. He commanded them, saying, "In the fear of the Lord, with integrity, and with a whole heart, you are to do the following: read more. for every dispute that comes to you from your brothers who dwell in their cities-whether it regards differences of bloodguilt, law, commandment, statutes, or judgments-you are to warn them, so they will not incur guilt before the Lord and wrath will not come on you and your brothers. Do this, and you will not incur guilt. "Note that Amariah, the chief priest, is over you in all matters related to the Lord, and Zebadiah son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, in all matters related to the king, and the Levites are officers in your presence. Be strong; may the Lord be with those who do what is good."
But they conspired against him and stoned him at the king's command in the courtyard of the Lord's temple.
When the officials of Judah heard these things, they went up from the king's palace to the Lord's temple and sat at the entrance of the New Gate. Then the priests and prophets said to the officials and all the people, "This man deserves the death sentence because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears." read more. Then Jeremiah said to all the officials and the people, "The Lord sent me to prophesy all the words that you have heard against this temple and city. So now, correct your ways and deeds and obey the voice of the Lord your God so that He might relent concerning the disaster that He warned about. As for me, here I am in your hands; do to me what you think is good and right. But know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, on this city, and on its residents, for it is certain the Lord has sent me to speak all these things directly to you." Then the officials and all the people told the priests and prophets, "This man doesn't deserve the death sentence, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God!" Some of the elders of the land stood up and said to all the assembled people, "Micah the Moreshite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah and said to all the people of Judah, 'This is what the Lord of Hosts says: Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become ruins, and the temple mount a forested hill.' Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all [the people of] Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the Lord and plead for the Lord's favor, and did not the Lord relent concerning the disaster He had pronounced against them? We are about to bring great harm on ourselves!" Another man was also prophesying in the name of the Lord-Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like all those of Jeremiah. King Jehoiakim, all his warriors, and all the officials heard his words, and the king tried to put him to death. When Uriah heard, he fled in fear and went to Egypt. But King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: Elnathan son of Achbor and [certain other] men with him [went] to Egypt. They brought Uriah out of Egypt and took him to King Jehoiakim, who executed him with the sword and threw his corpse into the burial place of the common people. But Ahikam son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death.
The officials then said to the king, "This man ought to die, because he is weakening the morale of the warriors who remain in this city and of all the people by speaking to them in this way. This man is not seeking the well-being of this people, but disaster." King Zedekiah said, "Here he is; he's in your hands since the king can't do anything against you."
"Why then," they asked Him, "did Moses command [us] to give divorce papers and to send her away?" He told them, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your hearts. But it was not like that from the beginning.