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Exodus 18:18-23
King James Version
Exodus 18:18-23
King James Version
18 Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.
19 Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God:
20 And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do.
21 Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:
22 And let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee.
23 If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace.
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Exodus 18:18-23
New International Version
Exodus 18:18-23
New International Version
18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.(A) 19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you.(B) You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes(C) to him. 20 Teach them his decrees and instructions,(D) and show them the way they are to live(E) and how they are to behave.(F) 21 But select capable men(G) from all the people—men who fear(H) God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain(I)—and appoint them as officials(J) over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case(K) to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share(L) it with you. 23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”
Exodus 18:18-23
English Standard Version
Exodus 18:18-23
English Standard Version
18 You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. (A)You are not able to do it alone. 19 Now obey my voice; I will give you advice, and God be with you! You shall (B)represent the people before God and (C)bring their cases to God, 20 and you shall warn them about the statutes and the laws, and make them know (D)the way in which they must walk and (E)what they must do. 21 Moreover, look for (F)able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. 22 And (G)let them judge the people at all times. (H)Every great matter they shall bring to you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will (I)bear the burden with you. 23 If you do this, God will direct you, you will be (J)able to endure, and all this people also will go to their place in peace.”
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Exodus 18:18-23
Christian Standard Bible
Exodus 18:18-23
Christian Standard Bible
18 “You will certainly wear out both yourself and these people who are with you, because the task is too heavy for you. You can’t do it alone.(A) 19 Now listen to me; I will give you some advice, and God be with you. You be the one to represent the people before God and bring their cases to him. 20 Instruct them about the statutes and laws, and teach them the way to live and what they must do.(B) 21 But you should select from all the people able men, God-fearing, trustworthy, and hating dishonest profit.(C) Place them over the people as commanders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens.(D) 22 They should judge the people at all times. Then they can bring you every major case but judge every minor case themselves. In this way you will lighten your load,[a] and they will bear it with you.(E) 23 If you do this, and God so directs you, you will be able to endure, and also all these people will be able to go home satisfied.”[b]
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Exodus 18:18-23
New American Standard Bible 1995
Exodus 18:18-23
New American Standard Bible 1995
18 (A)You will surely wear out, both yourself and [a]these people who are with you, for the [b]task is too heavy for you; (B)you cannot do it alone. 19 Now listen to [c]me: I will give you counsel, and God be with you. [d]You be the people’s representative before God, and you (C)bring the [e]disputes to God, 20 (D)then teach them the statutes and the laws, and make known to them (E)the way in which they are to walk and the work they are to do. 21 Furthermore, you shall [f]select out of all the people (F)able men (G)who fear God, men of truth, those who (H)hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, [g]of hundreds, [h]of fifties and [i]of tens. 22 Let them judge the people at all times; and let it be (I)that every major [j]dispute they will bring to you, but every minor [k]dispute they themselves will judge. So it will be easier for you, and (J)they will bear the burden with you. 23 If you do this thing and God so commands you, then you will be able to [l]endure, and all [m]these people also will go to [n]their place in peace.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Exodus 18:18 Lit this
- Exodus 18:18 Lit matter
- Exodus 18:19 Lit my voice
- Exodus 18:19 Lit You be for the people in front of God
- Exodus 18:19 Lit matters
- Exodus 18:21 Lit see
- Exodus 18:21 Lit leaders of
- Exodus 18:21 Lit leaders of
- Exodus 18:21 Lit leaders of
- Exodus 18:22 Lit matter
- Exodus 18:22 Lit matter
- Exodus 18:23 Lit stand
- Exodus 18:23 Lit this
- Exodus 18:23 Lit his
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.