Beginning

24 “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and he does not like her because he finds something bad in her, he will write her a paper of divorce and give it to her and send her away from his house. ² When she leaves his house, she may go and become another man’s wife. ³ If the second husband turns against her and gives her a paper of divorce and sends her out of his house, or if the second husband dies who took her for his wife, ⁴ then her first husband who sent her away is not allowed to take her for his wife again, because she has become unclean. It is a hated thing to the Lord and you must not bring sin on the land the Lord your God is giving you.

⁵ “When a man takes a new wife, he must not go with the army or be given any other work. He should be free to be at home one year to make the wife he has taken happy.

⁶ “No one should take a man’s stones that he uses to crush grain as a promise to pay what he owes, for he would be taking away a man’s living.

⁷ “If a man is found stealing one of his brothers of the sons of Israel, and makes it hard for him, or sells him, then that robber must die. You must get rid of the sin from among you.

⁸ “When there is a very bad skin disease, be careful to do all the Levite religious leaders tell you to do. Be careful to do what I have told them. ⁹ Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam on your way out of Egypt.

¹⁰ “When you let your neighbor use anything of yours, do not go into his house to take what he would give you to make his promise sure. ¹¹ Stay outside. The man who is using something of yours will bring the object out to you. ¹² If he is a poor man, do not keep what he gives you through the night. ¹³ Return his coat to him when the sun goes down so he may sleep in it and be thankful for you. You will be doing what is right before the Lord your God.

¹⁴ “Do not make it hard for a paid servant who is poor and in need, if he is one of your brothers or one of the strangers who is living in one of your towns. ¹⁵ Give him his pay on the day he earns it before the sun goes down. He is poor and he needs it. Then he will not cry to the Lord against you and you would be guilty of sin.

¹⁶ “Fathers are not to be put to death for their children. Children are not to be put to death for their fathers. Each man will be put to death for his own sin.

¹⁷ “Do what is fair for a stranger or a child whose parents are dead. Do not take the clothing of a woman whose husband has died to make sure she will pay what she owes. ¹⁸ Remember that you were servants in Egypt, and that the Lord your God set you free. So I am telling you to do this.

¹⁹ “When you gather the grain in your field and have forgotten some of it, do not return to the field to get it. Leave it for the stranger, the child whose parents have died, and the woman whose husband has died. Then the Lord your God will bring good to you in all the work of your hands. ²⁰ When you beat your olive trees, do not beat the branches a second time. Leave the fruit for the stranger, the child whose parents have died, and the woman whose husband has died. ²¹ When you gather the grapes from your vines, do not gather a second time. Leave them for the stranger, the child whose parents have died, and the woman whose husband has died. ²² Remember that you were servants in the land of Egypt. Because of this, I am telling you to do this.

25 “Two men might argue and go to court. The judges will decide between them, saying that the right man is not guilty and that the sinful man is guilty. ² If the sinful man should be beaten, the leader will make him lie down and be beaten in front of him. The number of times he is beaten will be decided upon by how bad his sin is. ³ The number may be as much as forty, but no more. If he is beaten more than this, your brother would be put to much shame in your eyes.

⁴ “When the bull is made to walk on the grain to break it open, do not stop him from eating some.

⁵ “When brothers live together and one of them dies and has no son, the dead man’s wife must not be married outside the family to a strange man. The husband’s brother will take her as his wife and do what he should for her as a brother-in-law. ⁶ The first son born to her will take the name of the dead brother so his name will not be forgotten in Israel. ⁷ But the man might not want to take his brother’s wife. Then his brother’s wife should go to the leaders at the gate and say, ‘My husband’s brother will not make his brother’s name to be remembered in Israel. He is not willing to do the duty of a brother-in-law to me.’ ⁸ Then the leaders of his city will call him and speak to him. If he still says, ‘I do not want to take her,’ ⁹ then his brother’s wife will come to him in front of the leaders. She will pull his shoe off his foot and spit in his face. And she will say, ‘This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother’s house.’ ¹⁰ In Israel his name will be called, ‘The house of him whose shoe is pulled off.’

¹¹ “If two men are fighting together and the wife of one comes to save her husband from the one who is hitting him and if she puts out her hand and takes hold of his sex part, ¹² you must cut off her hand. Do not show pity.

¹³ “You must not have two different weights in your bag, one large and one small. ¹⁴ You must not have in your house different ways of showing how big or small something is. ¹⁵ You must have a full and fair weight. You must have a fair way to show how big something is. Then you will live long in the land the Lord your God gives you. ¹⁶ For the Lord hates everyone who does such things, who lies and is not fair.

¹⁷ “Remember what Amalek did to you on your way out of Egypt. ¹⁸ He met you on the way when you were weak and tired. And he fought with those who were behind. He did not fear God. ¹⁹ When the Lord your God gives you rest from all those around you who hate you, in the land the Lord your God gives you for your own, you must forget all about Amalek, so no one under heaven will remember him. Do not forget to do this.

Gifts at Gathering Time

26 “When you go into the land the Lord your God gives you, it will be yours and you will live in it. ² You must take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you gather from the land the Lord your God gives you, and put it in a basket and go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to have His name. ³ Go to the religious leader who is working at that time, and say to him, ‘I make known this day to the Lord my God that I have come into the land which the Lord promised to our fathers to give us.’ ⁴ Then the religious leader will take the basket from your hand and set it down in front of the altar of the Lord your God. ⁵ And you will say before the Lord your God, ‘My father was a traveling Aramean. He went to Egypt, few in number, and stayed there. But there he became a nation, great, powerful, and with many people. ⁶ The Egyptians made it hard for us. They brought us much trouble and made us work very hard. ⁷ Then we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers. The Lord heard our voice and saw our troubles, our work, and how hard our lives were. ⁸ And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and a long arm, causing much fear by doing powerful works. ⁹ He has brought us to this place. He has given us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. ¹⁰ Now see, I have brought the first of the fruit of the ground that You have given me, O Lord.’ Then you will set it down before the Lord your God, and worship Him. ¹¹ You and the Levite and the stranger who is among you will be full of joy because of all the good the Lord your God has given you and those of your house.

¹² “When you have finished paying all the tenth of the food you received in the third year, the year of giving a tenth, then give it to the Levite, the stranger, the child whose parents have died, and the woman whose husband has died. So they may eat it in your towns and be filled. ¹³ Then say before the Lord your God, ‘I have taken the share for holy use from my house. I have given it to the Levite, the stranger, the child whose parents have died, and the woman whose husband has died. I have done this because of all Your Laws which You have told me to do. I have not sinned or forgotten any of Your Laws. ¹⁴ I have not eaten of it while in sorrow, or taken any of it while I was unclean, or given any of it to the dead. I have listened to the voice of the Lord my God, and have done all You have told me to do. ¹⁵ Look down from Your holy place in heaven and bring good to Your people Israel. Bring good to the ground You have given us, a land flowing with milk and honey, as You promised our fathers.’

The Lord’s Special People

¹⁶ “This day the Lord your God tells you to obey these Laws. Be careful to obey them with all your heart and with all your soul. ¹⁷ Today you have said that the Lord is your God, and that you will walk in His ways, keep all His Laws, and listen to His voice. ¹⁸ And the Lord today has made it known that you are His own people, as He promised you, and that you should keep all His Laws. ¹⁹ He has told you that He will set you high above all the nations He has made. You will be praised, remembered, and honored. You will be a holy nation to the Lord your God, as He has said.”

The Law Written on Stones

27 Then Moses and the leaders of Israel said to the people, “Keep all the Laws which I tell you today. ² On the day you cross the Jordan to the land the Lord your God gives you, set up large stones and cover them with plaster. ³ Write on them all the words of this Law when you cross the river and go into the land the Lord your God gives you. It is a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, promised you. ⁴ When you cross the Jordan, set up these stones on Mount Ebal and cover them with plaster, as I tell you today. ⁵ Build an altar of stones there to the Lord your God. Do not work on them with an iron tool. ⁶ And build the altar of the Lord your God with stones that are not cut. Then give a burnt gift on it to the Lord your God. ⁷ Give peace gifts and eat there. And be full of joy before the Lord your God. ⁸ Write all the words of this Law on the stones. Make it easy to read.”

What Happens to Those Who Do Not Obey

⁹ Then Moses and the Levite religious leaders said to all Israel, “Be quiet and listen, O Israel! This day you have become the people of the Lord your God. ¹⁰ So obey the Lord your God. Keep all of His Laws which I tell you today.”

¹¹ Moses told the people that same day, ¹² “Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin will stand on Mount Gerizim when you cross the Jordan. They will pray that good will come to the people. ¹³ And Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali will stand on Mount Ebal to tell of the curses. ¹⁴ The Levites will say with a loud voice to all the people of Israel:

¹⁵ ‘Cursed is every man who makes a god or something to look like a god, the work of the hands of the able workman, and sets it up in secret. It is hated by the Lord.’ Then all the people will answer, ‘Let it be so.’

¹⁶ ‘Cursed is the one who puts his father or mother to shame.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

¹⁷ ‘Cursed is the man who moves his neighbor’s land-mark.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

¹⁸ ‘Cursed is the one who leads a blind person on the road the wrong way.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

¹⁹ ‘Cursed is the one who is not fair to a stranger, a child whose parents have died, and the woman whose husband has died.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²⁰ ‘Cursed is the man who lies with his father’s wife because he has taken off the clothes of her who belongs to his father.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²¹ ‘Cursed is the man who lies with any animal.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²² ‘Cursed is the man who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or mother.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²³ ‘Cursed is the man who lies with his mother-in-law.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²⁴ ‘Cursed is the one who hits his neighbor in secret.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²⁵ ‘Cursed is the one who receives pay to kill a person who is not guilty.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’

²⁶ ‘Cursed is the one who does not obey the words of this Law.’ And all the people will say, ‘Let it be so.’