Exclusion From the Assembly

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

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

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

⁷ Do not despise an Edomite,^(L) for the Edomites are related to you.^(M) Do not despise an Egyptian, because you resided as foreigners in their country.^{(N) 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.^{(O) 10} If one of your men is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.^{(P) 11} But as evening approaches he is to wash himself, and at sunset^(Q) he may return to the camp.^(R)

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^(S) about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy,^(T) so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you.

Miscellaneous Laws

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

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

¹⁹ Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest.^{(AA) 20} You may charge a foreigner^(AB) interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless^(AC) 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,^(AD) for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.^{(AE) 22} But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty.^{(AF) 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.^(AG)

In Iconium

14 At Iconium^(A) Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue.^(B) There they spoke so effectively that a great number^(C) of Jews and Greeks believed. ² But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.^{(D) 3} So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly^(E) for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders.^{(F) 4} The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles.^{(G) 5} There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews,^(H) together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them.^{(I) 6} But they found out about it and fled^(J) to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, ⁷ where they continued to preach^(K) the gospel.^(L)

In Lystra and Derbe

⁸ In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth^(M) and had never walked. ⁹ He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed^{(N) 10} and called out, “Stand up on your feet!”^(O) At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.^(P)

¹¹ When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”^{(Q) 12} Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker.^{(R) 13} The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

¹⁴ But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes^(S) and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: ¹⁵ “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human,^(T) like you. We are bringing you good news,^(U) telling you to turn from these worthless things^(V) to the living God,^(W) who made the heavens and the earth^(X) and the sea and everything in them.^{(Y) 16} In the past, he let^(Z) all nations go their own way.^{(AA) 17} Yet he has not left himself without testimony:^(AB) He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons;^(AC) he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”^{(AD) 18} Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

¹⁹ Then some Jews^(AE) came from Antioch and Iconium^(AF) and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul^(AG) and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. ²⁰ But after the disciples^(AH) had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

The Return to Antioch in Syria

²¹ They preached the gospel^(AI) in that city and won a large number^(AJ) of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium^(AK) and Antioch, ²² strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith.^(AL) “We must go through many hardships^(AM) to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. ²³ Paul and Barnabas appointed elders^[a](AN) for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting,^(AO) committed them to the Lord,^(AP) in whom they had put their trust. ²⁴ After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia,^{(AQ) 25} and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶ From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch,^(AR) where they had been committed to the grace of God^(AS) for the work they had now completed.^{(AT) 27} On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them^(AU) and how he had opened a door^(AV) of faith to the Gentiles. ²⁸ And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.^(AW)