Deuteronomy 5
New Century Version
The Ten Commandments
5 Moses called all the people of Israel together and said: Listen, Israel, to the commands and laws I am giving you today. Learn them and obey them carefully. 2 The Lord our God made an Agreement with us at Mount Sinai. 3 He did not make this Agreement with our ancestors, but he made it with us, with all of us who are alive here today. 4 The Lord spoke to you face to face from the fire on the mountain. 5 (At that time I stood between you and the Lord in order to tell you what the Lord said; you were afraid of the fire, so you would not go up on the mountain.) The Lord said:
6 “I am the Lord your God; I brought you out of the land of Egypt where you were slaves.
7 “You must not have any other gods except me.
8 “You must not make for yourselves any idols or anything to worship that looks like something in the sky above or on the earth below or in the water below the land. 9 You must not worship or serve any idol, because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. If people sin against me and hate me, I will punish their children, even their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. 10 But I will be very kind for a thousand lifetimes to those who love me and obey my commands.
11 “You must not use the name of the Lord your God thoughtlessly, because the Lord will punish anyone who uses his name in this way.
12 “Keep the Sabbath as a holy day, as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 You may work and get everything done during six days each week, 14 but the seventh day is a day of rest to honor the Lord your God. On that day no one may do any work: not you, your son or daughter, your male or female slaves, your ox, your donkey, or any of your animals, or the foreigners living in your cities. That way your servants may rest as you do. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there by his great power and strength. So the Lord your God has commanded you to rest on the Sabbath day.
16 “Honor your father and your mother as the Lord your God has commanded you. Then you will live a long time, and things will go well for you in the land that the Lord your God is going to give you.
17 “You must not murder anyone.
18 “You must not be guilty of adultery.
19 “You must not steal.
20 “You must not tell lies about your neighbor.
21 “You must not want to take your neighbor’s wife. You must not want to take your neighbor’s house or land, his male or female slaves, his ox or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
22 The Lord spoke these commands to all of you on the mountain in a loud voice out of the fire, the cloud, and the deep darkness; he did not say anything else. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets, and he gave them to me.
23 When you heard the voice from the darkness, as the mountain was blazing with fire, all the leaders of your tribes and your elders came to me. 24 And you said, “The Lord our God has shown us his glory and majesty, and we have heard his voice from the fire. Today we have seen that a person can live even if God speaks to him. 25 But now, we will die! This great fire will burn us up, and we will die if we hear the Lord our God speak anymore. 26 No human being has ever heard the living God speaking from a fire and still lived, but we have. 27 Moses, you go near and listen to everything the Lord our God says. Then you tell us what the Lord our God tells you, and we will listen and obey.”
28 The Lord heard what you said to me, and he said to me, “I have heard what the people said to you. Everything they said was good. 29 I wish their hearts would always respect me and that they would always obey my commands so that things would go well for them and their children forever!
30 “Go and tell the people to return to their tents, 31 but you stay here with me so that I may give you all the commands, rules, and laws that you must teach the people to obey in the land I am giving them as their own.”
32 So be careful to do what the Lord your God has commanded you, and follow the commands exactly. 33 Live the way the Lord your God has commanded you so that you may live and have what is good and have a long life in the land you will take.
Deuteronomy 5
English Standard Version
The Ten Commandments
5 And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the rules that I speak in your hearing today, and you shall learn them and be careful to do them. 2 (A)The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. 3 (B)Not with our fathers did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive today. 4 The Lord spoke with you (C)face to face at the mountain, out of the midst of the fire, 5 (D)while I stood between the Lord and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the Lord. For (E)you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up into the mountain. He said:
6 (F)“‘I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
7 “‘You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
8 “‘You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in 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 or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 10 but showing steadfast love to (G)thousands[b] of those who love me and keep my commandments.
11 “‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
12 “‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but (H)the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, (I)that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. 15 (J)You shall remember that you were a slave[c] in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there (K)with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.
16 “‘Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you, (L)that your days may be long, and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
17 (M)“‘You shall not murder.[d]
18 (N)“‘And you shall not commit adultery.
19 “‘And you shall not steal.
20 “‘And you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
21 “‘And you shall not covet your neighbor's wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor's house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.’
22 “These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly (O)at the mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and he added no more. And (P)he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. 23 And (Q)as soon as you heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes, and your elders. 24 And you said, ‘Behold, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and (R)greatness, and (S)we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man (T)still live. 25 Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us. (U)If we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, we shall die. 26 (V)For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of fire as we have, and has still lived? 27 Go near and hear all that the Lord our God will say, and (W)speak to us all that the Lord our God will speak to you, and we will hear and do it.’
28 “And the Lord heard your words, when you spoke to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘I have heard the words of this people, which they have spoken to you. (X)They are right in all that they have spoken. 29 (Y)Oh that they had such a heart as this always, to fear me and to keep all my commandments, (Z)that it might go well with them and with their descendants[e] forever! 30 Go and say to them, “Return to your tents.” 31 But you, stand here by me, and (AA)I will tell you the whole commandment and the statutes and the rules that you shall teach them, that they may do them in the land that I am giving them to possess.’ 32 You shall be careful therefore to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. (AB)You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. 33 (AC)You shall walk in all the way that the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live, and (AD)that it may go well with you, and that you may live long in the land that you shall possess.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 5:7 Or besides
- Deuteronomy 5:10 Or to the thousandth generation
- Deuteronomy 5:15 Or servant
- Deuteronomy 5:17 The Hebrew word also covers causing human death through carelessness or negligence
- Deuteronomy 5:29 Or sons
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
