Exodus 23
Be fair & kind
“Don’t give inaccurate testimonies in court. You shouldn’t join forces with criminals by being an unfair witness. Don’t follow the crowd when they’re doing what’s wrong. When you testify in court, don’t let them sway you into perverting justice. But also don’t favor the poor in a lawsuit.
“If you notice your competitor’s animal wandering away, you should return it to him. Even if someone hates you but you see his donkey lying helplessly under its load, you should help it instead of neglecting it.
“Don’t take advantage of an underprivileged fellow citizen in a lawsuit. Stay far away from false charges, and don’t kill innocent, law-abiding citizens, because I won’t pardon criminals.
“Don’t accept bribes, because they blind the clear-sighted and corrupt good people.
“Don’t oppress foreigners, because you know what it’s like to be a foreigner since you were foreigners in Egypt.
“When you plant your crops, only harvest their produce for six years, then leave it alone on the seventh year so that poor people can eat from it. If they leave anything behind, just let the wild animals eat it. Do the same thing with your vineyards and olive trees.
“Take six days to get all your work done, and then stop on the seventh day so that your animals, workers, and immigrants can take a breather and refresh themselves. Observe all these things I’ve told you, and don’t commemorate any other gods or let their names be found in your mouth.
Give God your best
“Hold festivals for me three times a year:
• Yeast-Free Feast: Celebrate this feast at the appointed time in the month of Abib (March or April) because that’s when you left Egypt. Only eat yeast-free food for seven days like I instructed you. Being in my company shouldn’t be taken lightly.
• Harvest Feast: Observe this feast every year when you harvest the first crops produced by your labor and your fields.
• Gathering Feast: Celebrate this feast at the end of the year when you harvest the produce from your labors in the field.
“All your males should present themselves before the Existing One three times a year.
“Don’t offer me anything made with yeast when you offer me sacrifices. And don’t let any of the meat at my feasts stay out until sunrise.
“Whenever you harvest the first batch of produce from your crops, bring the best products of your land into the Existing One’s house.
“Never boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.
God will bless Israel if they ignore other gods
“I’ll send a messenger to guard you on your way and bring you to the place I set up for you. Pay attention to him and do what he says. Don’t disobey him, because he won’t forgive your infringements since my reputation is inside of him. But if you follow his voice and do what I say, then I’ll become an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. My messenger will walk with you and bring you into the region where the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites live—and I will annihilate them. Just don’t bow to their gods, serve them, or have anything to do with them. Instead, tear them down and shatter their sacred monuments. Only serve the Existing One, your God, and then he’ll bless your crops and your water. I’ll expel disease from among you. No one in your territory will be childless or have miscarriages, and I’ll maximize your time on earth. I’ll send my terror out in front of you, and confuse everyone you invade. I’ll expose your enemies’ backs to you. I’ll send hornets ahead of you to drive out the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites before you arrive, and I’ll even take longer than a year to do it so that the region doesn’t become a wasteland full of too many wild animals for you. I’ll drive them out gradually until you ripen and acquire the land. I’ll establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea and from the desert to the Euphrates River. I’ll hand over the locals to you, and you’ll push them out. Don’t make any alliances with them or their gods. They aren’t allowed to stay in your territory, because they’ll make you wander away from me. If you serve their gods, that will become a trap for you.”