Exodus 23:1-9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Justice for All
23 “You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with the wicked to act as a malicious witness.(A) 2 You shall not follow a majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall not side with the majority so as to pervert justice,[a](B) 3 nor shall you be partial to the poor in a lawsuit.
4 “When you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.(C)
5 “When you see the donkey of one who hates you struggling under its burden and you would hold back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.(D)
6 “You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits.(E) 7 Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the right, for I will not acquit the guilty.(F) 8 You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds officials and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.(G)
9 “You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.(H)
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- 23.2 Gk: Heb lacks justice
Exodus 23:1-9
Evangelical Heritage Version
23 You shall not spread a false report. Do not join hands with the wicked to be a malicious witness.
2 You shall not follow a crowd to do evil. Do not go along with the crowd by testifying in court to pervert justice.
3 You shall not show favoritism to a poor man in his lawsuit.
4 If you come upon your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you certainly must bring it back to him again. 5 If you see that the donkey of someone who hates you has fallen down under its load, do not pass him by. You certainly must help him with it.
6 You shall not deny justice to the poor people among you in their lawsuits.
7 Keep your distance from a false charge. Do not put those who are innocent and those who are righteous to death, for I will not acquit[a] the wicked.
8 You shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who have sight and distorts the words of the righteous.
9 You shall not oppress a resident alien, for you know how it feels to be an alien, because you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
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- Exodus 23:7 Or justify
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.