Basic Stipulations

5 And then Moses summoned all of Israel and said to them, “Hear, Israel, the rules and the regulations that I am speaking in your ears today,^[a] and you shall learn them, and you must observe them diligently.^{[b] 2} Yahweh our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. ³ It was not with our ancestors^[c] that Yahweh made this covenant, but with these of us who are here alive today. ⁴ Face to face^[d] Yahweh spoke with you at the mountain from the midst of the fire. ⁵ I was standing between Yahweh and you^[e] at that time to report^[f] to you the word of Yahweh, for you were afraid because of the presence of^[g] the fire, and so you did not go up the mountain. He said,^[h]

⁶ ‘I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out from the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery. ⁷ There shall not be for you other gods besides me.^[i]

⁸ ‘You shall not make for yourself a divine image of any type of form that is in the heaven above or that is on the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth.

⁹ ‘You shall not bow down to them, and you shall not serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, punishing the guilt of fathers upon their children and upon the third and upon the fourth generation of those hating me, ¹⁰ but showing loyal love to thousands of those who love me and of those who keep my commandments.

¹¹ ‘You shall not take up the name of Yahweh your God for a worthless purpose, for Yahweh will not leave unpunished anyone who uses his name for a worthless purpose.

¹² ‘Observe the Sabbath day^[j] to make it holy,^[k] just as Yahweh your God has commanded you. ¹³ Six days you shall work, and you shall do all of your work, ¹⁴ but the seventh day is a Sabbath unto Yahweh your God; you shall not do any work, or your son, or your daughter, or your slave, or your slave woman, or your ox, or your donkey, or any of your domestic animals, or your resident alien who is in your towns,^[l] so that your slave and your slave woman may rest as you rest. ¹⁵ And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Yahweh your God brought you out with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm; therefore, Yahweh your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath.^[m]

¹⁶ ‘Honor your father and your mother, as Yahweh your God commanded you, so that it will be good for you^[n] in the land^[o] that Yahweh your God is giving to you.

¹⁷ ‘You shall not murder.

¹⁸ ‘And you shall not commit adultery.

¹⁹ ‘And you shall not steal.

²⁰ ‘And you shall not falsely bear evidence against your neighbor.

²¹ ‘And you shall not covet the wife of your neighbor, and you shall not crave the house of your neighbor, his field or his slave or his slave woman or his ox and his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.’^[p]

²² “These words Yahweh spoke to your whole assembly at the mountain from the midst of the fire and the very thick cloud with a loud voice, and he did not add anything,^[q] and then he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. ²³ And then^[r] when you heard^[s] the voice from the midst of the darkness, and as the mountain was burning with fire, and and all the heads of your tribes and your elders approached me, ²⁴ you said, ‘Look, Yahweh our God has shown us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice from the midst of the fire; this day we have seen^[t] that God can speak with a human being, yet he remains alive.^{[u] 25} And so then why shall we die, for this great fire will consume us if we continue^[v] to hear the voice of Yahweh our God any longer, and so we shall die? ²⁶ For who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the midst of the fire as we have heard it and remained alive?^{[w] 27} You go near and hear everything^[x] that Yahweh our God will say; and then you tell us all that Yahweh our God tells you, and we will listen, and we will do it.’

²⁸ “And Yahweh heard the sound of your words when you spoke to me,^[y] and Yahweh said to me, ‘I have heard the sound of the words of this people that they have spoken to you; they are right with respect to all that they have spoken. ²⁹ If only^[z] they had such a mind’;^[aa] that is, to fear me and to keep all my commandments at all times,^[ab] so that it will go well^[ac] for them and for their children forever.^{[ad] 30} Go! Say to them, “Return to your tents.” ³¹ But you stand here with me, and let me tell you all of the commandments and the rules and the regulations that you shall teach them, so that they may do them in the land that I am giving to them to take possession of it.’

³² “So you must be careful to do just as Yahweh your God commanded you; you shall not turn to the right or to the left. ³³ In exactly the path^[ae] that Yahweh your God has commanded, you must go, so that you may live and it will go well^[af] for you and you may live long^[ag] in the land that you will take possession of.”

Detailed Stipulations

6 “Now this is the commandment, the rules and the regulations, that Yahweh your God charged to teach to you for you to observe^[ah] in the land that you are about to cross over into^[ai] to take possession of it, ² so that you may revere Yahweh your God by keeping all his statutes and his commandments that I am commanding you, you and your children and grandchildren,^[aj] all the days of your life and so you may live long^[ak] lives. ³ And you shall hear, Israel, and be careful to observe these instructions, so that it may go well for you^[al] and that you may multiply greatly, just as Yahweh, the God of your ancestors,^[am] promised^[an] you, in a land with milk and honey.

⁴ “Hear, Israel, Yahweh our God, Yahweh is unique.^{[ao] 5} And you shall love Yahweh your God with all of your heart^[ap] and with all of your soul^[aq] and with all of your might. ⁶ And these words that I am commanding you today^[ar] shall be on^[as] your heart.^{[at] 7} And you shall recite them to your children, and you shall talk about them at the time of your living in your house and at the time of your going on the road and at the time of your lying down and at the time of your rising up. ⁸ And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as an emblem between your eyes. ⁹ And you shall write them on the doorframe of your house and on your gates.

¹⁰ “And then it will happen that when Yahweh your God will bring you to the land that he swore to your ancestors,^[au] to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to you large and fine cities that you did not build, ¹¹ and houses full of all sorts of good things^[av] that you did not fill, and hewn cisterns that you did not hew, vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant, and you have eaten your fill,^{[aw] 12} then take care for yourself, so that you do not forget Yahweh, who brought you out from the land of Egypt from the house of slavery.

¹³ “You shall fear Yahweh your God, and you shall serve him, and by his name you shall swear. ¹⁴ You shall not go after other gods from the gods of the peoples who are all around you, ¹⁵ for Yahweh your God is a jealous god in your midst, so that the anger of Yahweh your God would be kindled,^[ax] and he would destroy you from the face of the earth. ¹⁶ You shall not put Yahweh your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah. ¹⁷ You shall diligently keep the commandments of Yahweh your God and his legal provisions and his rules that he has commanded you. ¹⁸ And you shall do what is right and good in the eyes of Yahweh, so that it shall go well^[ay] for you and so that you may go and you may take possession of the good land that Yahweh swore for your ancestors,^{[az] 19} by driving out all of your enemies before you,^[ba] just as Yahweh has promised.^[bb]

²⁰ “When your child^[bc] asks you in the future, saying,^[bd] ‘What is the meaning of the legal provisions and the rules and the regulations that Yahweh our God commanded for you?’ ²¹ Then you shall say to your child,^[be] ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and Yahweh brought us out from Egypt with a strong hand. ²² And Yahweh gave great and awesome signs and wonders in Egypt against Pharaoh and against his entire household in our presence.^{[bf] 23} But he brought us out from there in order to bring us here to give us the land that he swore to our ancestors.^{[bg] 24} And so Yahweh commanded us to observe all of these rules and to revere Yahweh our God for our benefit^[bh] all the days that we live,^[bi] as it is today.^{[bj] 25} And it shall be righteousness for us if we diligently observe and do all of this commandment before^[bk] Yahweh our God, as he has commanded us.’

7 “When Yahweh your God brings you into the land that you are about to enter into it^[bl] to take possession of it, and he drives^[bm] out many nations before you,^[bn] the Hittites^[bo] and the Girgashites^[bp] and the Amorites^[bq] and the Canaanites^[br] and the Hivites^[bs] and the Jebusites,^[bt] seven nations mightier and more numerous than you, ² and Yahweh your God will give them over to you^[bu] and you defeat them, you must utterly destroy them;^[bv] you shall not make a covenant with them, and you shall not show mercy to them. ³ And you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughter to their son; and you shall not take his daughter for your son.^{[bw] 4} For their^[bx] sons and daughters will cause your son^[by] to turn away from following me,^[bz] and so they will serve other gods, and the anger of Yahweh would be kindled^[ca] against you, and he would quickly destroy you. ⁵ But this is what you must do to them: you shall break down their altars, and their stone pillars you shall smash, and their Asherah poles you shall hew down, and you shall burn their idols with fire. ⁶ For you are a holy people for Yahweh your God; Yahweh your God has chosen you to be for him a people, a treasured possession from among all the peoples that are on the face^[cb] of the earth.

⁷ “Yahweh loved you and chose you not because of your great number^[cc] exceeding all other peoples, for you are fewer than all of the peoples, ⁸ but^[cd] because of^[ce] the love of Yahweh for you and because of his keeping of the sworn oath that he swore to your ancestors,^[cf] Yahweh brought you out with a strong hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. ⁹ So know that Yahweh your God, he is God, the trustworthy God, maintaining his^[cg] covenant and his^[ch] loyal love with those who love him and with those who keep his commandments to a thousand generations,^{[ci] 10} but repaying those^[cj] who hate him in their own person^[ck] to destroy them;^[cl] he is not slow with those who hate him in their own person;^[cm] he repays them.^{[cn] 11} And so you shall keep the commandment and the rules and the regulations that I am commanding you today^[co] to observe them.

¹² “And then^[cp] because you listen to these regulations and you diligently keep and you do them, then Yahweh your God will maintain his^[cq] covenant and his^[cr] loyal love that he swore to your ancestors.^{[cs] 13} And he will love you, and he will bless you, and he will multiply you, and he will bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your soil, your grain, your wine, and your olive oil, and newborn calves of your cattle, and the newborn lambs^[ct] of your flocks in the land that he swore to your ancestors^[cu] to give you. ¹⁴ You shall be blessed more than all of the peoples; among you there shall not be sterility and bareness, even^[cv] among domestic animals.^{[cw] 15} And Yahweh will turn away from you all the illness and all the harmful diseases of Egypt that you experienced; he will not lay them on you, but he will lay them on all of those who hate you. ¹⁶ And you shall devour all of the peoples that Yahweh your God is giving to you; you shall not pity them,^[cx] and you shall not serve their gods, which will be a snare for you.

¹⁷ “If you think in your heart, ‘These nations are more numerous than I, so how can I dispossess them?’ ¹⁸ then remember you must not be afraid of them; you must well remember what Yahweh your God did to Pharaoh and to all of Egypt: ¹⁹ the great trials that your eyes saw and the signs and the wonders and the workings of the strong hand and the outstretched arm by which Yahweh your God brought you out; so Yahweh your God will do to all of the peoples because of whom^[cy] you are in fear before them.^{[cz] 20} And, moreover, Yahweh your God will send the hornets^[da] among them until both the survivors and the fugitives are destroyed^[db] before you.^{[dc] 21} You must not be in dread from the presence of them, because Yahweh your God, who is in your midst, is a great and awesome God. ²² And Yahweh your God will clear away these nations from before you^[dd] little by little; you will not be able to finish them off quickly, lest^[de] the wild animals^[df] multiply^[dg] against you.^{[dh] 23} But Yahweh your God will give them to you,^[di] and he will throw them into great panic until they are destroyed.^{[dj] 24} And he will give their kings into your hand, and you shall blot out their names^[dk] from under the heaven; anyone will not be able to stand against you^[dl] until you destroy them.^{[dm] 25} You shall burn the images of their gods with fire; you shall not covet the silver or gold that is on them, and so you take it for yourself, so that you are not ensnared by it, for it is a detestable thing to Yahweh your God. ²⁶ And you must not bring a detestable thing into your house, or you will become a thing devoted to destruction like it; you must utterly detest it, and you must utterly abhor it, for it is an object devoted to destruction.

The Triumphal Entry

11 And when they came near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples ² and said to them, “Go into the village before you, and right away as you^[a] enter into it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it.^{[b] 3} And if anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say^[c] ‘The Lord has need of it, and will send it here again at once.’” ⁴ And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. ⁵ And some of those who were standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” ⁶ So they told them, just as Jesus had said, and they allowed them to take it.^{[d] 7} And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, and he sat on it. ⁸ And many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread^[e] leafy branches they^[f] had cut from the fields. ⁹ And those who went ahead and those who were following were shouting,

¹¹ And he went into Jerusalem to the temple, and after^[i] looking around at everything, because^[j] the hour was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.

A Barren Fig Tree Cursed

¹² And on the next day as^[k] they were departing from Bethany, he was hungry. ¹³ And when he^[l] saw from a distance a fig tree that had leaves, he went to see if perhaps he would find anything on it. And when he^[m] came up to it he found nothing except leaves, because it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴ And he responded and^[n] said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you any more forever!”^[o] And his disciples heard it.^[p]

The Cleansing of the Temple

¹⁵ And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered into the temple courts^[q] and^[r] began to drive out those who were selling and those who were buying in the temple courts,^[s] and overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who were selling doves. ¹⁶ And he did not permit anyone to carry objects^[t] through the temple courts.^{[u] 17} And he began to teach^[v] and was saying to them, “Is it not written,

but you have made it a cave of robbers!” ¹⁸ And the chief priests and the scribes heard it,^[x] and began considering^[y] how they could destroy him. For they were afraid of him because the whole crowd was astounded by his teaching.