Exodus 23:1-33, NLT
Exodus 23
A Call for Justice
1“You must not pass along false rumors. You must not cooperate with evil people by lying on the witness stand.
2“You must not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you are called to testify in a dispute, do not be swayed by the crowd to twist justice.
4“If you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey that has strayed away, take it back to its owner.
6“In a lawsuit, you must not deny justice to the poor.
7“Be sure never to charge anyone falsely with evil. Never sentence an innocent or blameless person to death, for I never declare a guilty person to be innocent.
8“Take no bribes, for a bribe makes you ignore something that you clearly see. A bribe makes even a righteous person twist the truth.
9“You must not oppress foreigners. You know what it’s like to be a foreigner, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.
10“Plant and harvest your crops for six years,
12“You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but on the seventh day you must stop working. This gives your ox and your donkey a chance to rest. It also allows your slaves and the foreigners living among you to be refreshed.
13“Pay close attention to all my instructions. You must not call on the name of any other gods. Do not even speak their names.
Three Annual Festivals
14“Each year you must celebrate three festivals in my honor.
16“Second, celebrate the Festival of Harvest,*23:16a Or Festival of Weeks. This was later called the Festival of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1). It is celebrated today as Shavuot (or Shabuoth). when you bring me the first crops of your harvest.
“Finally, celebrate the Festival of the Final Harvest*23:16b Or Festival of Ingathering. This was later called the Festival of Shelters or Festival of Tabernacles (see Lev 23:33-36). It is celebrated today as Sukkot (or Succoth). at the end of the harvest season, when you have harvested all the crops from your fields.
18“You must not offer the blood of my sacrificial offerings together with any baked goods containing yeast. And do not leave the fat from the festival offerings until the next morning.
19“As you harvest your crops, bring the very best of the first harvest to the house of the Lord your God.
“You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.
A Promise of the Lord’s Presence
20“See, I am sending an angel before you to protect you on your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you.
25“You must serve only the Lord your God. If you do, I*23:25 As in Greek and Latin versions; Hebrew reads he. will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness.
27“I will send my terror ahead of you and create panic among all the people whose lands you invade. I will make all your enemies turn and run.
32“Make no treaties with them or their gods.