Exodus 20
English Standard Version
The Ten Commandments
20 (A)And (B)God spoke all these words, saying,
2 (C)“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 (D)“You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
4 (E)“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 (F)You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am (G)a jealous God, (H)visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands[b] of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 (I)“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.
8 (J)“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 (K)Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the (L)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, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the (M)sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For (N)in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 (O)“Honor your father and your mother, (P)that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
13 (Q)“You shall not murder.[c]
14 (R)“You shall not commit adultery.
15 (S)“You shall not steal.
16 (T)“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17 (U)“You shall not covet (V)your neighbor's house; (W)you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.”
18 Now when all the people saw (X)the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid[d] and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, (Y)“You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 (Z)Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to (AA)test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the (AB)thick darkness where God was.
Laws About Altars
22 And the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have (AC)talked with you from heaven. 23 (AD)You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. 24 An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. (AE)In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and (AF)bless you. 25 (AG)If you make me an altar of stone, (AH)you shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. 26 And you shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness be not exposed on it.’
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:3 Or besides
- Exodus 20:6 Or to the thousandth generation
- Exodus 20:13 The Hebrew word also covers causing human death through carelessness or negligence
- Exodus 20:18 Samaritan, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Masoretic Text the people saw
Exodus 20
Amplified Bible
The Ten Commandments
20 Then God spoke all these words:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself any idol, or any likeness (form, manifestation) of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth [as an object to worship]. 5 You shall not worship them nor serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous (impassioned) God [[a]demanding what is rightfully and uniquely mine], visiting (avenging) the iniquity (sin, guilt) of the fathers on the children [that is, calling the children to account for the sins of their fathers], to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,(A) 6 but showing graciousness and steadfast lovingkindness to thousands [of generations] of those who love Me and keep My commandments.
7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, irreverently, in false affirmations or in ways that impugn the character of God]; for the Lord will not hold guiltless nor leave unpunished the one who [b]takes His name in vain [disregarding its reverence and its power].
8 “Remember the Sabbath (seventh) day to keep it holy (set apart, dedicated to God). 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath [a day of rest dedicated] to the Lord your God; on that day you shall not do any work, you or your son, or your daughter, or your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock or the temporary resident (foreigner) who stays within your [city] gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and everything that is in them, and He rested (ceased) on the seventh day. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy [that is, set it apart for His purposes].
12 “Honor (respect, obey, care for) your father and your mother, so that your days may be prolonged in the land the Lord your God gives you.
13 “You shall not commit murder (unjustified, deliberate homicide).(B)
14 “You shall not commit [c]adultery.(C)
15 “You shall not steal [secretly, openly, fraudulently, or through carelessness].(D)
16 “You shall not testify falsely [that is, lie, withhold, or manipulate the truth] against your neighbor (any person).(E)
17 “You shall not covet [that is, selfishly desire and attempt to acquire] your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”(F)
18 Now all the people witnessed the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the smoking mountain; and as they looked, the people were afraid, and they trembled [and moved backward] and stood at a [safe] distance. 19 Then they said to Moses, “You speak to us and we will listen, but do not let God speak to us or we will die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him [that is, a profound reverence for Him] will remain with you, so that you do not sin.” 21 So the people stood at a [safe] distance, but Moses approached the thick cloud where God was.
22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven. 23 You shall not make other gods [to worship] besides Me; gods of silver or gods of gold, you shall not make [these lifeless idols] for yourselves. 24 You shall make an altar of earth for Me, and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I cause My Name to be recorded and remembered [through revelation of My divine nature] I will come to you and bless you. 25 If you make an altar of stone for Me, you shall not build it of cut stones, for if you use a chisel on it, you will [d]profane it. 26 Nor shall you go up to My altar on steps, so that your nakedness will not be [e]exposed on it.’
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:5 God does not tolerate the transfer of the honor and worship that is due Him to any other being or object.
- Exodus 20:7 Using the name of God in a casual, frivolous way establishes a mindset that diminishes and dishonors the omnipotent God. Using the name of God to abuse, manipulate, or deceive invites judgment.
- Exodus 20:14 Jesus amplified this commandment in Matt 5:27, 28. Not only is adultery forbidden, but also any act of sexual impurity or unchastity, and any form of pornography or other obscenity.
- Exodus 20:25 I.e. make it common and unholy.
- Exodus 20:26 How the “nakedness” (private parts) would be exposed is not clear. Even the rabbis were puzzled because the regulation in 28:42 about linen undergarments would appear to solve any problem (according to the Talmud).
Exodus 20
Christian Standard Bible
The Ten Commandments
20 Then God spoke all these words:
2 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.(A)
3 Do not have other gods besides me.(B)
4 Do not make an idol(C) for yourself, whether in the shape of anything in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters under the earth. 5 Do not bow in worship to them, and do not serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,(D) bringing the consequences of the fathers’ iniquity on the children to the third and fourth generations(E) of those who hate me, 6 but showing faithful love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commands.(F)
7 Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God, because the Lord will not leave anyone unpunished who misuses his name.(G)
8 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy:(H) 9 You are to labor six days and do all your work,(I) 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. You must not do any work—you, your son or daughter, your male or female servant, your livestock, or the resident alien who is within your city gates.(J) 11 For the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy.
12 Honor your father and your mother(K) so that you may have a long life in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
13 Do not murder.(L)
14 Do not commit adultery.(M)
15 Do not steal.(N)
16 Do not give false testimony against your neighbor.(O)
17 Do not covet your neighbor’s house. Do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.(P)
The People’s Reaction
18 All the people witnessed[a] the thunder and lightning, the sound of the ram’s horn, and the mountain surrounded by smoke. When the people saw it[b] they trembled and stood at a distance.(Q) 19 “You speak to us, and we will listen,” they said to Moses, “but don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.”(R)
20 Moses responded to the people, “Don’t be afraid, for God has come to test you, so that you will fear him and will not[c] sin.”(S) 21 And the people remained standing at a distance as Moses approached the total darkness where God was.(T)
Moses Receives Additional Laws
22 Then the Lord told Moses, “This is what you are to say to the Israelites: You have seen that I have spoken to you from heaven.(U) 23 Do not make gods of silver to rival me; do not make gods of gold for yourselves.(V)
24 “Make an earthen altar for me, and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, your flocks and herds. I will come to you and bless you in every place where I cause my name to be remembered.(W) 25 If you make a stone altar for me, do not build it out of cut stones. If you use your chisel on it, you will defile it.(X) 26 Do not go up to my altar on steps, so that your nakedness is not exposed on it.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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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.