Exodus 22

Protection of Property

“If someone steals an ox or sheep and then kills or sells it, the thief must pay back five oxen for each ox stolen, and four sheep for each sheep stolen.

² “If a thief is caught in the act of breaking into a house and is struck and killed in the process, the person who killed the thief is not guilty of murder. ³ But if it happens in daylight, the one who killed the thief is guilty of murder.

“A thief who is caught must pay in full for everything he stole. If he cannot pay, he must be sold as a slave to pay for his theft. ⁴ If someone steals an ox or a donkey or a sheep and it is found in the thief’s possession, then the thief must pay double the value of the stolen animal.

⁵ “If an animal is grazing in a field or vineyard and the owner lets it stray into someone else’s field to graze, then the animal’s owner must pay compensation from the best of his own grain or grapes.

⁶ “If you are burning thornbushes and the fire gets out of control and spreads into another person’s field, destroying the sheaves or the uncut grain or the whole crop, the one who started the fire must pay for the lost crop.

⁷ “Suppose someone leaves money or goods with a neighbor for safekeeping, and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house. If the thief is caught, the compensation is double the value of what was stolen. ⁸ But if the thief is not caught, the neighbor must appear before God, who will determine if he stole the property.

⁹ “Suppose there is a dispute between two people who both claim to own a particular ox, donkey, sheep, article of clothing, or any lost property. Both parties must come before God, and the person whom God declares guilty must pay double compensation to the other.

¹⁰ “Now suppose someone leaves a donkey, ox, sheep, or any other animal with a neighbor for safekeeping, but it dies or is injured or is taken away, and no one sees what happened. ¹¹ The neighbor must then take an oath in the presence of the Lord. If the Lord confirms that the neighbor did not steal the property, the owner must accept the verdict, and no payment will be required. ¹² But if the animal was indeed stolen, the guilty person must pay compensation to the owner. ¹³ If it was torn to pieces by a wild animal, the remains of the carcass must be shown as evidence, and no compensation will be required.

¹⁴ “If someone borrows an animal from a neighbor and it is injured or dies when the owner is absent, the person who borrowed it must pay full compensation. ¹⁵ But if the owner was present, no compensation is required. And no compensation is required if the animal was rented, for this loss is covered by the rental fee.

Social Responsibility

¹⁶ “If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to anyone and has sex with her, he must pay the customary bride price and marry her. ¹⁷ But if her father refuses to let him marry her, the man must still pay him an amount equal to the bride price of a virgin.

¹⁸ “You must not allow a sorceress to live.

¹⁹ “Anyone who has sexual relations with an animal must certainly be put to death.

²⁰ “Anyone who sacrifices to any god other than the Lord must be destroyed.

²¹ “You must not mistreat or oppress foreigners in any way. Remember, you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.

²² “You must not exploit a widow or an orphan. ²³ If you exploit them in any way and they cry out to me, then I will certainly hear their cry. ²⁴ My anger will blaze against you, and I will kill you with the sword. Then your wives will be widows and your children fatherless.

²⁵ “If you lend money to any of my people who are in need, do not charge interest as a money lender would. ²⁶ If you take your neighbor’s cloak as security for a loan, you must return it before sunset. ²⁷ This coat may be the only blanket your neighbor has. How can a person sleep without it? If you do not return it and your neighbor cries out to me for help, then I will hear, for I am merciful.

²⁸ “You must not dishonor God or curse any of your rulers.

²⁹ “You must not hold anything back when you give me offerings from your crops and your wine.

“You must give me your firstborn sons.

³⁰ “You must also give me the firstborn of your cattle, sheep, and goats. But leave the newborn animal with its mother for seven days; then give it to me on the eighth day.

³¹ “You must be my holy people. Therefore, do not eat any animal that has been torn up and killed by wild animals. Throw it to the dogs.

Exodus 23

A Call for Justice

“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. ³ And do not slant your testimony in favor of a person just because that person is poor.

⁴ “If you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey that has strayed away, take it back to its owner. ⁵ If you see that the donkey of someone who hates you has collapsed under its load, do not walk by. Instead, stop and help.

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, ¹¹ but let the land be renewed and lie uncultivated during the seventh year. Then let the poor among you harvest whatever grows on its own. Leave the rest for wild animals to eat. The same applies to your vineyards and olive groves.

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. ¹⁵ First, celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread. For seven days the bread you eat must be made without yeast, just as I commanded you. Celebrate this festival annually at the appointed time in early spring, in the month of Abib, for that is the anniversary of your departure from Egypt. No one may appear before me without an offering.

¹⁶ “Second, celebrate the Festival of Harvest, when you bring me the first crops of your harvest.

“Finally, celebrate the Festival of the Final Harvest at the end of the harvest season, when you have harvested all the crops from your fields. ¹⁷ At these three times each year, every man in Israel must appear before the Sovereign, the Lord.

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. ²¹ Pay close attention to him, and obey his instructions. Do not rebel against him, for he is my representative, and he will not forgive your rebellion. ²² But if you are careful to obey him, following all my instructions, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will oppose those who oppose you. ²³ For my angel will go before you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, so you may live there. And I will destroy them completely. ²⁴ You must not worship the gods of these nations or serve them in any way or imitate their evil practices. Instead, you must utterly destroy them and smash their sacred pillars.

²⁵ “You must serve only the Lord your God. If you do, I will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness. ²⁶ There will be no miscarriages or infertility in your land, and I will give you long, full lives.

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. ²⁸ I will send terror ahead of you to drive out the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites. ²⁹ But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals would multiply and threaten you. ³⁰ I will drive them out a little at a time until your population has increased enough to take possession of the land. ³¹ And I will fix your boundaries from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and from the eastern wilderness to the Euphrates River. I will hand over to you the people now living in the land, and you will drive them out ahead of you.

³² “Make no treaties with them or their gods. ³³ They must not live in your land, or they will cause you to sin against me. If you serve their gods, you will be caught in the trap of idolatry.”

Exodus 24

Israel Accepts the Lord’s Covenant

Then the Lord instructed Moses: “Come up here to me, and bring along Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of Israel’s elders. All of you must worship from a distance. ² Only Moses is allowed to come near to the Lord. The others must not come near, and none of the other people are allowed to climb up the mountain with him.”

³ Then Moses went down to the people and repeated all the instructions and regulations the Lord had given him. All the people answered with one voice, “We will do everything the Lord has commanded.”

⁴ Then Moses carefully wrote down all the Lord’s instructions. Early the next morning Moses got up and built an altar at the foot of the mountain. He also set up twelve pillars, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. ⁵ Then he sent some of the young Israelite men to present burnt offerings and to sacrifice bulls as peace offerings to the Lord. ⁶ Moses drained half the blood from these animals into basins. The other half he splattered against the altar.

⁷ Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it aloud to the people. Again they all responded, “We will do everything the Lord has commanded. We will obey.”

⁸ Then Moses took the blood from the basins and splattered it over the people, declaring, “Look, this blood confirms the covenant the Lord has made with you in giving you these instructions.”

⁹ Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel climbed up the mountain. ¹⁰ There they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there seemed to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, as clear as the sky itself. ¹¹ And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!

¹² Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain. Stay there, and I will give you the tablets of stone on which I have inscribed the instructions and commands so you can teach the people.” ¹³ So Moses and his assistant Joshua set out, and Moses climbed up the mountain of God.

¹⁴ Moses told the elders, “Stay here and wait for us until we come back. Aaron and Hur are here with you. If anyone has a dispute while I am gone, consult with them.”

¹⁵ Then Moses climbed up the mountain, and the cloud covered it. ¹⁶ And the glory of the Lord settled down on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from inside the cloud. ¹⁷ To the Israelites at the foot of the mountain, the glory of the Lord appeared at the summit like a consuming fire. ¹⁸ Then Moses disappeared into the cloud as he climbed higher up the mountain. He remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

Exodus 25

Offerings for the Tabernacle

The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the people of Israel to bring me their sacred offerings. Accept the contributions from all whose hearts are moved to offer them. ³ Here is a list of sacred offerings you may accept from them:

⁸ “Have the people of Israel build me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them. ⁹ You must build this Tabernacle and its furnishings exactly according to the pattern I will show you.

Plans for the Ark of the Covenant

¹⁰ “Have the people make an Ark of acacia wood—a sacred chest 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high. ¹¹ Overlay it inside and outside with pure gold, and run a molding of gold all around it. ¹² Cast four gold rings and attach them to its four feet, two rings on each side. ¹³ Make poles from acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. ¹⁴ Insert the poles into the rings at the sides of the Ark to carry it. ¹⁵ These carrying poles must stay inside the rings; never remove them. ¹⁶ When the Ark is finished, place inside it the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, which I will give to you.

¹⁷ “Then make the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—from pure gold. It must be 45 inches long and 27 inches wide. ¹⁸ Then make two cherubim from hammered gold, and place them on the two ends of the atonement cover. ¹⁹ Mold the cherubim on each end of the atonement cover, making it all of one piece of gold. ²⁰ The cherubim will face each other and look down on the atonement cover. With their wings spread above it, they will protect it. ²¹ Place inside the Ark the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, which I will give to you. Then put the atonement cover on top of the Ark. ²² I will meet with you there and talk to you from above the atonement cover between the gold cherubim that hover over the Ark of the Covenant. From there I will give you my commands for the people of Israel.

Plans for the Table

²³ “Then make a table of acacia wood, 36 inches long, 18 inches wide, and 27 inches high. ²⁴ Overlay it with pure gold and run a gold molding around the edge. ²⁵ Decorate it with a 3-inch border all around, and run a gold molding along the border. ²⁶ Make four gold rings for the table and attach them at the four corners next to the four legs. ²⁷ Attach the rings near the border to hold the poles that are used to carry the table. ²⁸ Make these poles from acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. ²⁹ Make special containers of pure gold for the table—bowls, ladles, pitchers, and jars—to be used in pouring out liquid offerings. ³⁰ Place the Bread of the Presence on the table to remain before me at all times.

Plans for the Lampstand

³¹ “Make a lampstand of pure, hammered gold. Make the entire lampstand and its decorations of one piece—the base, center stem, lamp cups, buds, and petals. ³² Make it with six branches going out from the center stem, three on each side. ³³ Each of the six branches will have three lamp cups shaped like almond blossoms, complete with buds and petals. ³⁴ Craft the center stem of the lampstand with four lamp cups shaped like almond blossoms, complete with buds and petals. ³⁵ There will also be an almond bud beneath each pair of branches where the six branches extend from the center stem. ³⁶ The almond buds and branches must all be of one piece with the center stem, and they must be hammered from pure gold. ³⁷ Then make the seven lamps for the lampstand, and set them so they reflect their light forward. ³⁸ The lamp snuffers and trays must also be made of pure gold. ³⁹ You will need 75 pounds of pure gold for the lampstand and its accessories.

⁴⁰ “Be sure that you make everything according to the pattern I have shown you here on the mountain.

Matthew 21

Jesus’ Triumphant Entry

As Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of them on ahead. ² “Go into the village over there,” he said. “As soon as you enter it, you will see a donkey tied there, with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone asks what you are doing, just say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will immediately let you take them.”

⁴ This took place to fulfill the prophecy that said,

⁶ The two disciples did as Jesus commanded. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt to him and threw their garments over the colt, and he sat on it.

⁸ Most of the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of him, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting,

¹⁰ The entire city of Jerusalem was in an uproar as he entered. “Who is this?” they asked.

¹¹ And the crowds replied, “It’s Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Jesus Clears the Temple

¹² Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out all the people buying and selling animals for sacrifice. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves. ¹³ He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves!”

¹⁴ The blind and the lame came to him in the Temple, and he healed them. ¹⁵ The leading priests and the teachers of religious law saw these wonderful miracles and heard even the children in the Temple shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David.”

But the leaders were indignant. ¹⁶ They asked Jesus, “Do you hear what these children are saying?”

“Yes,” Jesus replied. “Haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, ‘You have taught children and infants to give you praise.’” ¹⁷ Then he returned to Bethany, where he stayed overnight.

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

¹⁸ In the morning, as Jesus was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry, ¹⁹ and he noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” And immediately the fig tree withered up.

²⁰ The disciples were amazed when they saw this and asked, “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?”

²¹ Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. ²² You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.”

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

²³ When Jesus returned to the Temple and began teaching, the leading priests and elders came up to him. They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?”

²⁴ “I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. ²⁵ “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human?”

They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask us why we didn’t believe John. ²⁶ But if we say it was merely human, we’ll be mobbed because the people believe John was a prophet.” ²⁷ So they finally replied, “We don’t know.”

And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.

Parable of the Two Sons

²⁸ “But what do you think about this? A man with two sons told the older boy, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ ²⁹ The son answered, ‘No, I won’t go,’ but later he changed his mind and went anyway. ³⁰ Then the father told the other son, ‘You go,’ and he said, ‘Yes, sir, I will.’ But he didn’t go.

³¹ “Which of the two obeyed his father?”

They replied, “The first.”

Then Jesus explained his meaning: “I tell you the truth, corrupt tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the Kingdom of God before you do. ³² For John the Baptist came and showed you the right way to live, but you didn’t believe him, while tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even when you saw this happening, you refused to believe him and repent of your sins.

Parable of the Evil Farmers

³³ “Now listen to another story. A certain landowner planted a vineyard, built a wall around it, dug a pit for pressing out the grape juice, and built a lookout tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenant farmers and moved to another country. ³⁴ At the time of the grape harvest, he sent his servants to collect his share of the crop. ³⁵ But the farmers grabbed his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. ³⁶ So the landowner sent a larger group of his servants to collect for him, but the results were the same.

³⁷ “Finally, the owner sent his son, thinking, ‘Surely they will respect my son.’

³⁸ “But when the tenant farmers saw his son coming, they said to one another, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Come on, let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’ ³⁹ So they grabbed him, dragged him out of the vineyard, and murdered him.

⁴⁰ “When the owner of the vineyard returns,” Jesus asked, “what do you think he will do to those farmers?”

⁴¹ The religious leaders replied, “He will put the wicked men to a horrible death and lease the vineyard to others who will give him his share of the crop after each harvest.”

⁴² Then Jesus asked them, “Didn’t you ever read this in the Scriptures?

⁴³ I tell you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation that will produce the proper fruit. ⁴⁴ Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.”

⁴⁵ When the leading priests and Pharisees heard this parable, they realized he was telling the story against them—they were the wicked farmers. ⁴⁶ They wanted to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowds, who considered Jesus to be a prophet.

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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.