Exodus 23

Laws About Mercy and Fairness 1“Do not spread reports that are false. Do not help a guilty person by telling lies in court. 2“Do not follow the crowd when they do what is wrong. When you are a witness in court, do not turn what is right into what is wrong. Do not go along with the crowd.

3Do not show favor to a poor person in court. 4“Suppose you come across your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering away. Then be sure to return it.

5Suppose you see that the donkey of someone who hates you has fallen down under its load. Then do not leave it there. Be sure you help them with it. 6“Be fair to your poor people in their court cases.

7Do not have anything to do with a false charge. Do not put to death people not guilty of doing anything wrong. I will not let guilty people go free.

8“Do not take money from people who want special favors. It makes you blind to the truth. It twists the words of good people.

9“Do not treat outsiders badly. You yourselves know how it feels to be outsiders. Remember, you were outsiders in Egypt.

Sabbath Laws 10“For six years plant your fields and gather your crops.

11But during the seventh year do not plow your land or use it. Then the poor people among you can get food from it. The wild animals can eat what is left over. Do the same thing with your vineyards and your groves of olive trees.

12“Do all your work in six days. But do not do any work on the seventh day. Then your oxen and donkeys can rest. The slaves born in your house can be renewed. And so can the outsiders who live among you.

13“Be careful to do everything I have said to you. Do not speak the names of other gods. Do not even let them be heard on your lips.

Laws About Celebrating the Three Main Feasts 14“Three times a year you must celebrate a feast in my honor.

15“Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days, eat bread made without yeast, just as I commanded you. Do it at the appointed time in the month of Aviv. You came out of Egypt in that month. “You must not come to worship me with your hands empty.

16“Celebrate the Feast of Weeks. Bring the first share of your crops from your fields. “Celebrate the Feast of Booths. Hold it in the fall when you gather in your crops from your fields.

17“Three times a year all your men must come to worship me. I am your LORD and King.

18“Do not include anything made with yeast when you offer me the blood of a sacrifice. “Suppose the fat from sacrifices is left over from my feasts. Then do not keep it until morning.

19“Bring the best of the first share of your crops to my house. I am the LORD your God. “Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.

God’s Angel Will Prepare the Way 20“I am sending an angel ahead of you. He will guard you along the way. He will bring you to the place I have prepared. 21Pay attention to him. Listen to what he says. Do not refuse to obey him. He will not forgive you if you turn against him. He has my full authority. 22Listen carefully to what he says. Do everything I say. Then I will be an enemy to your enemies. I will fight against those who fight against you. 23My angel will go ahead of you. He will bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites. I will wipe them out. 24Do not do what they do. Do not bow down to their gods or worship them. You must destroy the statues of their gods. You must break their sacred stones to pieces. 25Worship the LORD your God. Then he will bless your food and water. I, the LORD, will take away any sickness you may have.

26In your land no woman will give birth to a dead baby. Every woman will be able to have children. I will give you a long life. 27“I will send my terror ahead of you. I will throw every nation you meet into a panic. I will make all your enemies turn their backs and run away. 28I will send hornets ahead of you. They will drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. 29But I will not drive them out in just one year. If I did, the land would be deserted. There would be too many wild animals for you.

30I will drive them out ahead of you little by little. I will do that until there are enough of you to take control of the land. 31“I will make your borders secure from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. They will go from the desert to the Euphrates River. I will hand over to you the people who live in the land. You will drive them out to make room for yourselves. 32Do not make a covenant with them or with their gods. 33Do not let them live in your land. If you do, they will cause you to sin against me. If you worship their gods, that will certainly be a trap for you.”