Exodus 23

1 Not you must bear a report of falsehood may not you put hand your with a wicked [person] to be a witness of injustice.

“Do not tell to others (false rumors/untrue reports) about other people. Do not help someone who is guilty by (testifying falsely/lying) [about what happened].

2 Not you must be after many [people] to wicked deeds and not you must testify on a case at law by turning aside after many [people] to thrust aside.

Do not join a group of people who are planning to do something evil. Do not testify the way the [crowd wants you to], if that will prevent [the judge from deciding the case] justly/fairly.

3 And a poor [person] not you must show partiality in case at law his.

When a poor person is on trial, do not [testify in] his favor [just] because he is poor [and you feel sorry for him].

4 If you will meet [the] ox of enemy your or donkey his wandering off certainly you will return it to him.

If you see someone’s bull or donkey when it is wandering away [loose], take it back to [its owner, even if the owner] is your enemy.

5 If you will see [the] donkey of [one who] hates you lying down under load its and you will refrain from leaving it certainly you will let [it] loose with him.

If you see someone’s donkey that has fallen down [because of its heavy load], help the owner to get the donkey up again, [even if] he is someone who hates you. Do not just walk away [without helping him].

6 Not you must turn aside [the] justice of needy [person] your in case at law his.

Decide the cases of poor people who are on trial [as] fairly [as you decide the cases of other people].

7 From a word of falsehood you will be distant and an innocent [person] and a righteous [person] may not you kill for not I will declare righteous a wicked [person].

Do not accuse people falsely. Do not decide that innocent and righteous [DOU] people should be executed, because I will (punish/not forgive) people who do such an evil thing.

8 And a bribe not you must take for bribe it makes blind clear-sighted [people] so it may pervert [the] words of righteous [people].

Do not accept money that is a bribe, because officials who accept bribes are not able to [MTY] decide what is right to do, and they do not allow innocent people to be treated fairly.

9 And a sojourner not you must oppress and you you have known [the] life of the sojourner for sojourners you were in [the] land of Egypt.

Do not mistreat foreigners [who live among you]. You know [how people often treat] foreigners, because the Egyptians [did not treat you well when] you were foreigners there.

10 And six years you will sow land your and you will gather produce its.

Plant [seeds] in your ground and gather the harvest for six years.

11 And the seventh [year] you will let rest it and you will leave fallow it and they will eat [the] needy [people] of people your and excess their it will eat [the] animal[s] of the field thus you will do to vineyard your to olive grove your.

But during the seventh year you must not plant anything. [If things grow without your planting seeds], allow poor people [to harvest and] eat the crops. If there are still crops (left over/that they do not harvest), allow wild animals to eat them. Do the same thing with your grapevines/vineyards and your olive trees.

12 Six days you will do work your and on the day seventh you will rest so that it may rest ox your and donkey your so he may refresh himself [the] child of female slave your and the sojourner.

[You may] work for six days [each week], but on the seventh day you must rest [and not work]. And on the seventh day you must allow your work animals and your slaves and the foreigners [who live among you] also [to rest and] be refreshed.

13 And to all that I have said to you you will take heed and [the] name of gods other not you will bring to remembrance not it will be heard on mouth your.

Make certain that you obey everything that I have commanded [you to do]. Do not pray to [MTY] other gods. Do not even mention their names.”

14 Three feet you will celebrate a festival to me in the year.

“Every year you must celebrate three festivals to [honor] me.

15 [the] festival of The unleavened bread you will keep seven days you will eat unleavened bread just as I commanded you to [the] appointed time of [the] month of Abib for in it you came out from Egypt and not they will present themselves face my empty.

[The first one] is the Festival of Bread That Has No Yeast. Celebrate it in the month [that is named] Abib. That is the month in which you left Egypt. Celebrate it in the way that I commanded you. And always bring [LIT] an offering when you come to worship me.

16 And [the] festival of the harvest [the] first-fruits of work your which you will sow in the field and [the] festival of the ingathering when goes out the year when gathering you work your from the field.

The second one is the Festival of Harvesting. During that festival you must offer to me the first parts/harvest of your crops that grow from the seeds that you planted. The third one is the Festival of Living in Temporary Shelters. That will be after you finish harvesting your grain and grapes and fruit.

17 Three times in the year he will present himself every male your to [the] presence of the lord - Yahweh.

Every year, at each of these times, all the men must gather together to worship me, Yahweh God.

18 Not you must sacrifice with leaven [the] blood of sacrifice my and not it will remain overnight [the] fat of festival sacrifice my until morning.

When you sacrifice an animal [and offer it] to me, you must not offer bread that has been baked with yeast. [When you] offer sacrifices, [burn] the fat [from the animals on that same day]. Do not allow any fat to remain until the next morning.

19 [the] beginning of [the] first-fruits of Ground your you will bring [the] house of Yahweh God your not you must boil a kid in [the] milk of mother its.

Each year, when you harvest your crops, bring to the place where you worship me, Yahweh God, the first part of what you harvest. When you kill a (young animal/kid [or lamb or calf)], do not [prepare to eat it by] boiling it in its mother’s milk.”

20 Here! I [am] about to send an angel before you to guard you on the journey and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.

“Note this: I am going to send an angel ahead of you, to guard you as you travel and to bring you safely to the place that I have prepared [for you]. Pay attention to what he says and obey him. Do not rebel against him, because he will have my authority [MTY] and he will (punish/not forgive) [LIT] you if you rebel against him.

21 Take care from before him and listen to voice his may not you cause bitterness in him for not he will forgive to transgression your for name my [is] within him.

22 That except carefully you will listen to voice his and you will do all that I will say and I will be an enemy to enemies your and I will be a foe to opposers your.

But if you pay attention to what he says and if you do all that I tell you [to do], I will fight strongly [DOU] against all of your enemies.

23 For he will go angel my before you and he will bring you to the Amorite[s] and the Hittite[s] and the Perizzite[s] and the Canaanite[s] the Hivite[s] and the Jebusite[s] and I will annihilate it.

My angel will go ahead of you, and will take you to where the Amor and Heth and Periz and Canaan and Hiv and Jebus people-groups live, and I will completely get rid of them.

24 Not you must bow down to gods their and not you must be enticed to serve them and not you must make like works their for completely you will tear down them and totally you will shatter into pieces sacred pillars their.

Do not bow down before their gods/idols or worship them. And do not do the things [that they think that their gods want] them to do. Completely destroy their gods/idols, and smash to pieces their sacred stones.

25 And you will serve Yahweh God your and he will bless food your and water your and I will remove sickness from midst your.

You must worship me, Yahweh God. [If you do that], I will bless your (OR, bless [you by giving you]) food and water, and I will protect you from becoming sick.

26 Not anyone will be miscarrying and barren in land your [the] number of days your I will complete.

No women in your land will have (miscarriages/babies that will die after being born prematurely), and no women will be unable to become pregnant. And I will enable you to live a long time.

27 Terror my I will send before you and I will confuse every people which you will go among them and I will give all enemies your to you neck.

I will cause the people who oppose you to become very afraid of me. I will cause the people whom you fight against to become very confused. And then I will cause them to turn around and run away from you.

28 And I will send the hornet before you and it will drive out the Hivite[s] the Canaanite[s] and the Hittite[s] from to before you.

I will cause your enemies to become terrified. And I will expel the Hiv, Canaan, and Heth people-groups from your land.

29 Not I will drive out it from before you in a year one lest it should become the land a waste and it will become many on you [the] animal[s] of the field.

I will not expel [all of] them in less than one year. If I did that, your land would become deserted, and there would be very many wild animals ([that would attack you/you would not be able to control]).

30 Little little I will drive out it from before you until that you will be fruitful and you will possess the land.

I will expel those people-groups slowly, a few at a time, until the number of your people increases and you are able to live everywhere in the land.

31 And I will fix border your from [the] sea of reed[s] and to [the] sea of [the] Philistines and from [the] wilderness to the River for - I will give in hand your [the] inhabitants of the land and you will drive out them from before you.

I will cause the borders of your land to extend from the (Red Sea/Gulf of Aqaba) [in the southeast] to the Mediterranean Sea [in the northwest], and from the [Sinai] Desert [in the southwest] to the [Euphrates] River [in the northeast of the country]. I will enable you [MTY] to expel the people who live there, so that you will expel them as you occupy more of the country.

32 Not you must make to them and to gods their a covenant.

You must not make any agreement/treaty with those people or with their gods.

33 Not they will dwell in land your lest they should cause to sin you to me for you will serve gods their for it will become for you a snare.

Do not allow [those people] to live in your land, in order that they do not cause you to sin against me. If you worship their gods, [you will not be able to escape from worshiping them and sinning against me, just like someone caught] in a trap [is unable to escape] [MET].”