Exodus - Chapter 20 | Good News Translation

  • 1. God spoke, and these were his words:
  • 2. "I am the LORD your God who brought you out of Egypt, where you were slaves.
  • 3. "Worship no god but me.
  • 4. "Do not make for yourselves images of anything in heaven or on earth or in the water under the earth.
  • 5. Do not bow down to any idol or worship it, because I am the LORD your God and I tolerate no rivals. I bring punishment on those who hate me and on their descendants down to the third and fourth generation.
  • 6. But I show my love to thousands of generations of those who love me and obey my laws.
  • 7. "Do not use my name for evil purposes, for I, the LORD your God, will punish anyone who misuses my name.
  • 8. "Observe the Sabbath and keep it holy.
  • 9. You have six days in which to do your work,
  • 10. but the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to me. On that day no one is to work---neither you, your children, your slaves, your animals, nor the foreigners who live in your country.
  • 11. In six days I, the LORD, made the earth, the sky, the seas, and everything in them, but on the seventh day I rested. That is why I, the LORD, blessed the Sabbath and made it holy.
  • 12. "Respect your father and your mother, so that you may live a long time in the land that I am giving you.
  • 13. "Do not commit murder.
  • 14. "Do not commit adultery.
  • 15. "Do not steal.
  • 16. "Do not accuse anyone falsely.
  • 17. "Do not desire another man's house; do not desire his wife, his slaves, his cattle, his donkeys, or anything else that he owns."
  • 18. When the people heard the thunder and the trumpet blast and saw the lightning and the smoking mountain, they trembled with fear and stood a long way off.
  • 19. They said to Moses, "If you speak to us, we will listen; but we are afraid that if God speaks to us, we will die."
  • 20. Moses replied, "Don't be afraid; God has only come to test you and make you keep on obeying him, so that you will not sin."
  • 21. But the people continued to stand a long way off, and only Moses went near the dark cloud where God was.
  • 22. The LORD commanded Moses to tell the Israelites: "You have seen how I, the LORD, have spoken to you from heaven.
  • 23. Do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gold to be worshiped in addition to me.
  • 24. Make an altar of earth for me, and on it sacrifice your sheep and your cattle as offerings to be completely burned and as fellowship offerings. In every place that I set aside for you to worship me, I will come to you and bless you.
  • 25. If you make an altar of stone for me, do not build it out of cut stones, because when you use a chisel on stones, you make them unfit for my use.
  • 26. Do not build an altar for me with steps leading up to it; if you do, you will expose yourselves as you go up the steps.
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