²² If a man is found sleeping with another man’s wife, both the man who slept^(A) with her and the woman must die.^(B) You must purge the evil from Israel.

²³ If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, ²⁴ you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death—the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man’s wife. You must purge the evil from among you.^(C)

²⁵ But if out in the country a man happens to meet a young woman pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die. ²⁶ Do nothing to the woman; she has committed no sin deserving death. This case is like that of someone who attacks and murders a neighbor, ²⁷ for the man found the young woman out in the country, and though the betrothed woman screamed,^(D) there was no one to rescue her.

²⁸ If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered,^{(E) 29} he shall pay her father fifty shekels^[a] of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

³⁰ A man is not to marry his father’s wife; he must not dishonor his father’s bed.^[b](F)

Exclusion From the Assembly

23 ^[c]No one who has been emasculated^(G) by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the Lord.

² No one born of a forbidden marriage^[d] nor any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.

³ No Ammonite^(H) or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.^{(I) 4} For they did not come to meet you with bread and water^(J) on your way when you came out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam^(K) son of Beor from Pethor in Aram Naharaim^[e](L) to pronounce a curse on you.^{(M) 5} However, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse^(N) into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves^(O) you. ⁶ Do not seek a treaty^(P) of friendship with them as long as you live.^(Q)

⁷ Do not despise an Edomite,^(R) for the Edomites are related to you.^(S) Do not despise an Egyptian, because you resided as foreigners in their country.^{(T) 8} The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord.

Uncleanness in the Camp

⁹ When you are encamped against your enemies, keep away from everything impure.^{(U) 10} If one of your men is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.^{(V) 11} But as evening approaches he is to wash himself, and at sunset^(W) he may return to the camp.^(X)

¹² Designate a place outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself. ¹³ As part of your equipment have something to dig with, and when you relieve yourself, dig a hole and cover up your excrement. ¹⁴ For the Lord your God moves^(Y) about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy,^(Z) so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you.

Miscellaneous Laws

¹⁵ If a slave has taken refuge^(AA) with you, do not hand them over to their master.^{(AB) 16} Let them live among you wherever they like and in whatever town they choose. Do not oppress^(AC) them.

¹⁷ No Israelite man^(AD) or woman is to become a shrine prostitute.^{(AE) 18} You must not bring the earnings of a female prostitute or of a male prostitute^[f] into the house of the Lord your God to pay any vow, because the Lord your God detests them both.^(AF)

¹⁹ Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest.^{(AG) 20} You may charge a foreigner^(AH) interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless^(AI) you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.

²¹ If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it,^(AJ) for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.^{(AK) 22} But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty.^{(AL) 23} Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth.

²⁴ If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. ²⁵ If you enter your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing grain.^(AM)

Psalm 43^[a]

⁴⁶ An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest.^{(A) 47} Jesus, knowing their thoughts,^(B) took a little child and had him stand beside him. ⁴⁸ Then he said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.^(C) For it is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest.”^(D)

⁴⁹ “Master,”^(E) said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.”

⁵⁰ “Do not stop him,” Jesus said, “for whoever is not against you is for you.”^(F)

Samaritan Opposition

⁵¹ As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven,^(G) Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.^{(H) 52} And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan^(I) village to get things ready for him; ⁵³ but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ When the disciples James and John^(J) saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them^[a]?”^{(K) 55} But Jesus turned and rebuked them. ⁵⁶ Then he and his disciples went to another village.

The Cost of Following Jesus^(L)

⁵⁷ As they were walking along the road,^(M) a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

⁵⁸ Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man^(N) has no place to lay his head.”

⁵⁹ He said to another man, “Follow me.”^(O)

But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

⁶⁰ Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”^(P)

⁶¹ Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”^(Q)

⁶² Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”