Exodus 23:1-9
Legacy Standard Bible
23 “(A)You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a (B)malicious witness. 2 You shall not follow [a]the masses in doing evil, nor shall you [b]testify in a case so as to turn aside after [c]the masses in order to [d](C)cause justice to be turned aside; 3 (D)nor shall you [e]be partial to a poor man in his case.
4 “(E)If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey wandering away, you shall surely return it to him. 5 (F)If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying helpless under its load, you shall refrain from leaving it to him, you shall surely release it with him.
6 “(G)You shall not cause the justice due to your needy brother to be turned aside in his case. 7 (H)Keep far from a [f]false charge, and (I)do not kill the innocent or the righteous, for (J)I will not justify the guilty.
8 “(K)And you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and [g]subverts the cause of the [h]just.
9 “(L)And you shall not oppress a sojourner, since you yourselves know the soul of a sojourner, for you also were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Exodus 23:2 Lit many men
- Exodus 23:2 Or answer
- Exodus 23:2 Lit many men
- Exodus 23:2 Or pervert justice, cf. 23:6
- Exodus 23:3 Lit honor
- Exodus 23:7 Lit lying word
- Exodus 23:8 Or distorts the words
- Exodus 23:8 Or righteous
Exodus 23:1-9
Lexham English Bible
Regulations Regarding Justice
23 “‘You will not spread[a] a false report. Do not lift your hand with the wicked to be a malicious witness. 2 You will not follow[b] a majority[c] for evil, and you will not testify concerning a legal dispute to turn aside after a majority[d] to pervert justice. 3 You will not be partial to a powerless person[e] in his legal dispute.
4 “‘If you come upon the ox of your enemy or his donkey going astray, you will certainly bring it back to him. 5 If you see the donkey of your enemy lying down under its burden, you will refrain from abandoning him. You will surely arrange[f] it with him.
6 “‘You will not pervert the justice of your poor in his legal dispute. 7 You will stay far from a false charge,[g] and do not kill the innocent and the righteous, because I will not declare the wicked righteous.[h] 8 And you will not take a bribe, because the bribe makes the sighted blind and ruins the words of the righteous. 9 And you will not oppress an alien; you yourselves know the feelings[i] of the alien, because you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Exodus 23:1 Literally “lift”
- Exodus 23:2 Literally “be behind”
- Exodus 23:2 Or “many” or “the many”
- Exodus 23:2 Or “many” or “the many”
- Exodus 23:3 Or “a poor person”
- Exodus 23:5 Or “restore” or “put in order”
- Exodus 23:7 Literally “word of deception”
- Exodus 23:7 Or “treat as innocent” or “acquit”
- Exodus 23:9 Or “inner self” or “soul”
Exodus 23:1-9
New International Version
Laws of Justice and Mercy
23 “Do not spread false reports.(A) Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness.(B)
2 “Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice(C) by siding with the crowd,(D) 3 and do not show favoritism(E) to a poor person in a lawsuit.
4 “If you come across your enemy’s(F) ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to return it.(G) 5 If you see the donkey(H) of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help them with it.
6 “Do not deny justice(I) to your poor people in their lawsuits. 7 Have nothing to do with a false charge(J) and do not put an innocent(K) or honest person to death,(L) for I will not acquit the guilty.(M)
8 “Do not accept a bribe,(N) for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the innocent.
9 “Do not oppress a foreigner;(O) you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt.
Exodus 23:1-9
King James Version
23 Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.
2 Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:
3 Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.
4 If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
5 If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
6 Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.
7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
8 And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
9 Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
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