Exodus 23:20-33
Lexham English Bible
Reasons for Loyal Obedience
20 “‘Look, I am about to send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared. 21 Be attentive to him and listen to his voice; do not rebel against him, because he will not forgive your transgression, for my name is in him. 22 But if you listen attentively to his voice and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes. 23 When my angel goes before you and brings you to the Amorites[a] and the Hittites[b] and the Perizzites[c] and the Canaanites[d] and the Hivites[e] and the Jebusites,[f] I will wipe them out.
24 “‘You will not bow to their gods, and you will not serve them, and you will not act according to their actions, because you will utterly demolish them, and you will utterly break their stone pillars. 25 And you will serve Yahweh your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will remove sickness from among you. 26 There will be no one suffering miscarriage or infertile in your land. I will make full the number of your days.[g]
27 “‘I will release my terror before you, and I will throw into confusion all the people against whom you come, and I will make all your enemies turn their back to you.[h] 28 And I will send the hornet before you, and it will drive out the Hivites,[i] the Canaanites,[j] and the Hittites[k] from before you. 29 I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become a desolation and the wild animals[l] multiply against you. 30 Little by little I will drive them out from before you until you are fruitful and take possession of the land.
31 “‘And I will set your boundary from the Red Sea[m] and up to the sea of the Philistines and from the desert up to the river,[n] because I will give the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you will drive them out from before you. 32 You will not make a covenant with them and with their gods. 33 They will not live in your land, lest they cause you to sin against me when you serve their gods, for it will be a snare to you.’”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Exodus 23:23 Hebrew “Amorite”
- Exodus 23:23 Hebrew “Hittite”
- Exodus 23:23 Hebrew “Perizzite”
- Exodus 23:23 Hebrew “Canaanite”
- Exodus 23:23 Hebrew “Hivite”
- Exodus 23:23 Hebrew “Jebusite”
- Exodus 23:26 Or “give you a full life span”
- Exodus 23:27 Literally “give all your enemies to you back”
- Exodus 23:28 Hebrew “Hivite”
- Exodus 23:28 Hebrew “Canaanite”
- Exodus 23:28 Hebrew “Hittite”
- Exodus 23:29 Literally “the animal of the field”
- Exodus 23:31 Literally “sea of reed”
- Exodus 23:31 Or “the Euphrates”
Exodus 23:20-33
New Living Translation
A Promise of the Lord’s Presence
20 “See, I am sending an angel before you to protect you on your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you. 21 Pay close attention to him, and obey his instructions. Do not rebel against him, for he is my representative, and he will not forgive your rebellion. 22 But if you are careful to obey him, following all my instructions, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will oppose those who oppose you. 23 For my angel will go before you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, so you may live there. And I will destroy them completely. 24 You must not worship the gods of these nations or serve them in any way or imitate their evil practices. Instead, you must utterly destroy them and smash their sacred pillars.
25 “You must serve only the Lord your God. If you do, I[a] will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness. 26 There will be no miscarriages or infertility in your land, and I will give you long, full lives.
27 “I will send my terror ahead of you and create panic among all the people whose lands you invade. I will make all your enemies turn and run. 28 I will send terror[b] ahead of you to drive out the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites. 29 But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals would multiply and threaten you. 30 I will drive them out a little at a time until your population has increased enough to take possession of the land. 31 And I will fix your boundaries from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea,[c] and from the eastern wilderness to the Euphrates River.[d] I will hand over to you the people now living in the land, and you will drive them out ahead of you.
32 “Make no treaties with them or their gods. 33 They must not live in your land, or they will cause you to sin against me. If you serve their gods, you will be caught in the trap of idolatry.”
Read full chapter2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software
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.
