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Exodus 20
New International Version
Exodus 20
New International Version
The Ten Commandments(A)
20 And God spoke(B) all these words:(C)
2 “I am the Lord your God,(D) who brought you out(E) of Egypt,(F) out of the land of slavery.(G)
3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me.(H)
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image(I) in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship(J) them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,(K) punishing the children for the sin of the parents(L) to the third and fourth generation(M) of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand(N) generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.(O)
8 “Remember the Sabbath(P) day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,(Q) 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath(R) to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth,(S) the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested(T) on the seventh day.(U) Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 “Honor your father and your mother,(V) so that you may live long(W) in the land(X) the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.(Y)
14 “You shall not commit adultery.(Z)
15 “You shall not steal.(AA)
16 “You shall not give false testimony(AB) against your neighbor.(AC)
17 “You shall not covet(AD) your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
18 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet(AE) and saw the mountain in smoke,(AF) they trembled with fear.(AG) They stayed at a distance 19 and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak(AH) to us or we will die.”(AI)
20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid.(AJ) God has come to test(AK) you, so that the fear(AL) of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”(AM)
21 The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness(AN) where God was.
Idols and Altars
22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven:(AO) 23 Do not make any gods to be alongside me;(AP) do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.(AQ)
24 “‘Make an altar(AR) of earth for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings(AS) and fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats and your cattle. Wherever I cause my name(AT) to be honored, I will come to you and bless(AU) you. 25 If you make an altar of stones for me, do not build it with dressed stones, for you will defile it if you use a tool(AV) on it. 26 And do not go up to my altar on steps, or your private parts(AW) may be exposed.’
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:3 Or besides
Exodus 20
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Exodus 20
Holman 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 You must not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,(D) punishing the children for the fathers’ sin, 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 slave, your livestock, or the foreigner who is within your 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 slave, 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 trumpet, 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 thick 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 You must not make gods of silver to rival Me; you must not make gods of gold for yourselves.[d](V)
24 “You must make an earthen altar for Me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats, as well as your cattle. 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, you must not build it out of cut stones. If you use your chisel on it, you will defile it.(X) 26 You must not go up to My altar on steps, so that your nakedness is not exposed on it.
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:18 Lit saw
- Exodus 20:18 Sam, LXX, Syr, Tg, Vg read smoking; the people (or they) were afraid
- Exodus 20:20 Lit that the fear of Him may be in you, and you do not
- Exodus 20:23 Hb obscure
Exodus 20
New Living Translation
Exodus 20
New Living Translation
Ten Commandments for the Covenant Community
20 Then God gave the people all these instructions[a]:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.
3 “You must not have any other god but me.
4 “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. 5 You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. 6 But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those[b] who love me and obey my commands.
7 “You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name.
8 “Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 You have six days each week for your ordinary work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.
12 “Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You must not murder.
14 “You must not commit adultery.
15 “You must not steal.
16 “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.
17 “You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.”
18 When the people heard the thunder and the loud blast of the ram’s horn, and when they saw the flashes of lightning and the smoke billowing from the mountain, they stood at a distance, trembling with fear.
19 And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!”
20 “Don’t be afraid,” Moses answered them, “for God has come in this way to test you, and so that your fear of him will keep you from sinning!”
21 As the people stood in the distance, Moses approached the dark cloud where God was.
Proper Use of Altars
22 And the Lord said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: You saw for yourselves that I spoke to you from heaven. 23 Remember, you must not make any idols of silver or gold to rival me.
24 “Build for me an altar made of earth, and offer your sacrifices to me—your burnt offerings and peace offerings, your sheep and goats, and your cattle. Build my altar wherever I cause my name to be remembered, and I will come to you and bless you. 25 If you use stones to build my altar, use only natural, uncut stones. Do not shape the stones with a tool, for that would make the altar unfit for holy use. 26 And do not approach my altar by going up steps. If you do, someone might look up under your clothing and see your nakedness.
Exodus 20
Good News Translation
Exodus 20
Good News Translation
The Ten Commandments(A)
20 God spoke, and these were his words: 2 “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, where you were slaves.
3 “Worship no god but me.
4 (B)“Do not make for yourselves images of anything in heaven or on earth or in the water under the earth. 5 (C)Do not bow down to any idol or worship it, because I am the Lord your God and I tolerate no rivals. I bring punishment on those who hate me and on their descendants down to the third and fourth generation. 6 But I show my love to thousands of generations[a] of those who love me and obey my laws.
7 (D)“Do not use my name for evil purposes, for I, the Lord your God, will punish anyone who misuses my name.
8 (E)“Observe the Sabbath and keep it holy. 9 (F)You have six days in which to do your work, 10 but the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to me. On that day no one is to work—neither you, your children, your slaves, your animals, nor the foreigners who live in your country. 11 (G)In six days I, the Lord, made the earth, the sky, the seas, and everything in them, but on the seventh day I rested. That is why I, the Lord, blessed the Sabbath and made it holy.
12 (H)“Respect your father and your mother, so that you may live a long time in the land that I am giving you.
13 (I)“Do not commit murder.
14 (J)“Do not commit adultery.
15 (K)“Do not steal.
16 (L)“Do not accuse anyone falsely.
17 (M)“Do not desire another man's house; do not desire his wife, his slaves, his cattle, his donkeys, or anything else that he owns.”
The People's Fear(N)
18 (O)When the people heard the thunder and the trumpet blast and saw the lightning and the smoking mountain, they trembled with fear and stood a long way off. 19 They said to Moses, “If you speak to us, we will listen; but we are afraid that if God speaks to us, we will die.”
20 Moses replied, “Don't be afraid; God has only come to test you and make you keep on obeying him, so that you will not sin.” 21 But the people continued to stand a long way off, and only Moses went near the dark cloud where God was.
Laws about Altars
22 The Lord commanded Moses to tell the Israelites: “You have seen how I, the Lord, have spoken to you from heaven. 23 Do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gold to be worshiped in addition to me. 24 Make an altar of earth for me, and on it sacrifice your sheep and your cattle as offerings to be completely burned and as fellowship offerings. In every place that I set aside for you to worship me, I will come to you and bless you. 25 (P)If you make an altar of stone for me, do not build it out of cut stones, because when you use a chisel on stones, you make them unfit for my use. 26 Do not build an altar for me with steps leading up to it; if you do, you will expose yourselves as you go up the steps.
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:6 thousands of generations; or thousands.
Exodus 20
King James Version
Exodus 20
King James Version
20 And God spake all these words, saying,
2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
13 Thou shalt not kill.
14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
15 Thou shalt not steal.
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.
19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.
21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
22 And the Lord said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
23 Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.
24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Good News Translation (GNT) 
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.