Exodus 19-22
Israel at Mount Sinai
On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they acame into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 They set out from aRephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before bthe mountain, 3 while aMoses went up to God. bThe Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 a‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how bI bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be amy treasured possession among all peoples, for ball the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a akingdom of priests and ba holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. 8 aAll the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord. 9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you ain a thick cloud, that bthe people may hear when I speak with you, and may also cbelieve you forever.”
When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, 10 the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and aconsecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them bwash their garments 11 and be ready for the third day. For on the third day athe Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. aWhoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. 13 No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When athe trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14 So Moses awent down from the mountain to the people and bconsecrated the people; cand they washed their garments. 15 And he said to the people, “Be ready for the athird day; bdo not go near a woman.”
16 On the morning of the athird day there were bthunders and lightnings and ca thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud dtrumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp etrembled. 17 Then aMoses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now aMount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and bthe whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the asound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and bGod answered him in thunder. 20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
21 And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the Lord ato look and many of them perish. 22 Also let the priests who come near to the Lord aconsecrate themselves, lest the Lord bbreak out against them.” 23 And Moses said to the Lord, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, a‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it.’” 24 And the Lord said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people abreak through to come up to the Lord, lest he break out against them.” 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them.
The Ten Commandments
aAnd bGod spoke all these words, saying,
2 a“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 a“You shall have no other gods before me.
4 a“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 aYou shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am ba jealous God, cvisiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 a“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
8 a“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 aSix days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the aseventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the bsojourner who is within your gates. 11 For ain six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 a“Honor your father and your mother, bthat your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
13 a“You shall not murder.
14 a“You shall not commit adultery.
15 a“You shall not steal.
16 a“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17 a“You shall not covet byour neighbor’s house; cyou shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
18 Now when all the people saw athe thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, a“You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 aMoses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to btest you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the athick darkness where God was.
Laws About Altars
22 And the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have atalked with you from heaven. 23 aYou shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. 24 An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. aIn every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bbless you. 25 aIf you make me an altar of stone, byou shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. 26 And you shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness be not exposed on it.’
Laws About Slaves
“Now these are the arules that you shall set before them. 2 aWhen you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. 3 If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. 4 If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out alone. 5 But aif the slave plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’ 6 then his master shall bring him to aGod, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever.
7 “When a man asells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. 8 If she does not please her master, who has designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has broken faith with her. 9 If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. 10 If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or aher marital rights. 11 And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.
12 a“Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. 13 aBut if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then bI will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. 14 But if a man willfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, ayou shall take him from my altar, that he may die.
15 “Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death.
16 a“Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found bin possession of him, shall be put to death.
17 a“Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.
18 “When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, 19 then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed.
20 “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. 21 But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the aslave is his money.
22 “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and ahe shall pay as the bjudges determine. 23 But if there is harm, then you shall pay alife for life, 24 aeye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
26 “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. 27 If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.
28 “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the aox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable. 29 But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. 30 If aa ransom is imposed on him, then bhe shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him. 31 If it gores a man’s son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule. 32 If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master athirty shekels of silver, and bthe ox shall be stoned.
Laws About Restitution
33 “When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34 the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.
35 “When one man’s ox butts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and share its price, and the dead beast also they shall share. 36 Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall repay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his. “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and afour sheep for a sheep. 2 If a thief is found abreaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, 3 but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then ahe shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the stolen beast ais found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, bhe shall pay double.
5 “If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets his beast loose and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best in his own field and in his own vineyard.
6 “If fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, he who started the fire shall make full restitution.
7 “If a man gives to his neighbor money or goods to keep safe, and it is stolen from the man’s house, then, if the thief is found, ahe shall pay double. 8 If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to God to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. 9 For every breach of trust, whether it is for an ox, for a donkey, for a sheep, for a cloak, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before God. The one whom God condemns shall pay double to his neighbor.
10 “If a man gives to his neighbor a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any beast to keep safe, and it dies or is injured or is driven away, without anyone seeing it, 11 aan oath by the Lord shall be between them both to see whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. The owner shall accept the oath, and he shall not make restitution. 12 But if ait is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13 If it is torn by beasts, let him bring it as evidence. He shall not make restitution for what has been torn.
14 “If a man borrows anything of his neighbor, and it is injured or dies, the owner not being with it, he shall make full restitution. 15 If the owner was with it, he shall not make restitution; if it was hired, it came for its hiring fee.
Laws for a Just Community
16 a“If a man seduces a virgin who is not betrothed and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her his wife. 17 If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, ahe shall pay money equal to the bbride-price for virgins.
18 a“You shall not permit a sorceress to live.
19 a“Whoever lies with an animal shall be put to death.
20 a“Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the Lord alone, shall be devoted to destruction.
21 a“You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 22 aYou shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. 23 If you do mistreat them, and they acry out to me, I will surely bhear their cry, 24 and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and ayour wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.
25 a“If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him. 26 aIf ever you take your neighbor’s cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, 27 for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he acries to me, I will hear, for I am bcompassionate.
28 a“You shall not revile God, nor acurse a ruler of your people.
29 “You shall not delay to offer from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses. aThe firstborn of your sons you shall give to me. 30 aYou shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: bseven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.
31 a“You shall be consecrated to me. Therefore byou shall not eat any flesh that is torn by beasts in the field; cyou shall throw it to the dogs.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway,
a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.