Exodus 23

Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.

Never spread lies or join forces with the wicked to deceive others.

Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:

Don't let the crowd sway you into doing wrong; and don't let popular opinion influence you to twist justice.

Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.

Do not favor a poor man just because of his poverty in his dispute.

If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.

If you stumble upon your enemy's lost animal, be kind and return it to them.

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.

If you see your enemy's donkey struggling under a heavy load and feel tempted not to help, you must push aside your feelings and lend a hand.

Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.

Do not manipulate the justice due to the poor in their struggles.

Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.

Stay away from false charges; do not put the innocent and the good to death, for I will not acquit the guilty.

And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

Don't accept any bribe; it clouds the judgment of the wise and twists the truth spoken by the good.

Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

Don't oppress a foreigner living among you, for you too have felt the fear and loneliness of being an outsider, just as you were in Egypt.

And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:

For six years, you should lovingly cultivate your land, reaping the bountiful rewards of your hard work.

But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.

Allow your land to rest every seventh year, so the less fortunate can eat from its bounty. Whatever they don't consume, let the wild animals have. Treat your vineyards and olive groves the same way.

Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

Work hard for six days, but on the seventh, take a break. This way, your animals, your servants, and even visitors can rejuvenate.

And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.

In everything I've told you, be careful. Don't even utter the names of other gods, let alone speak about them.

Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.

Celebrate with joy and gratitude, three special feasts for me each year.

Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)

Celebrate the festival of unleavened bread by eating it for seven days, just as I instructed you, during the designated time in the month of Abib. This is to remember your liberation from Egypt. And remember, don't come before me empty-handed.

And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

Celebrate the feast of harvest, rejoicing in the first fruits of your hard work sown in the fields. And at year's end, gather joyfully for the feast, reflecting on the fruits of your labor collected from the fields.

Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the LORD God.

Thrice yearly, every man must present himself before the Lord with reverence and humility.

Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.

Do not mix my sacred offering's blood with bread that has yeast; also, don't let the rich part of my offering stay until dawn.

The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.

Bring the very first produce of your land as an offering to God's house. Never cook a young goat in its mother's milk.

Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.

Look, I'm sending a Guardian Angel to guide and protect you, leading you to the safe haven I've created just for you.

Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.

Be cautious and listen to him, don't upset him; he won't forgive your wrongs, for he carries my name within him.

But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.

If you truly listen and follow my words, I'll stand against those who stand against you.

For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.

My angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I will wipe them out.

Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.

Don't worship or serve other gods, or follow their ways. Instead, completely reject them and destroy their idols.

And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.

Devote yourself to serving God, and He will bless your food and drink. He will also remove any illness from among you.

There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil.

In your land, no creature will lose its young or be infertile. I promise to fill your life with as many days as possible.

I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee.

I will instill a sense of awe and fear in those you encounter, wiping out all who stand in your path. Your enemies will retreat, turning their backs to you.

And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee.

I will unleash a swarm of hornets ahead of you, they will chase away the Hivite, Canaanite, and Hittite, clearing your path.

I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee.

I won't remove them all at once, for fear the land may turn barren and wild animals may overrun you.

By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

Little by little I'll drive them out ahead of you, until you grow numerous enough to claim the land as your own.

And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.

I will define your territory from the Red Sea to the Philistine Sea, and from the desert to the river. I will give you control over the people living there, and you will make them leave.

Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods.

Do not form any agreements with them or their false gods.

They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me: for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee.

Don't let them live in your land, or they might lead you to sin against me. If you worship their gods, it will certainly trap you.