Through the Bible – Day 29

Bible text(s)

Exodus 22

Property laws

The LORD said:

1If you steal an ox and slaughter or sell it, you must replace it with five oxen; if you steal a sheep and slaughter it or sell it, you must replace it with four sheep. 2-4But if you cannot afford to replace the animals, you must be sold as a slave to pay for what you have stolen. If you steal an ox, donkey, or sheep, and are caught with it still alive, you must pay the owner double.

If you happen to kill a burglar who breaks into your home after dark, you are not guilty. But if you kill someone who breaks in during the day, you are guilty of murder.

5If you allow any of your animals to stray from your property and graze in someone else's field or vineyard, you must repay the damage from the best part of your own harvest of grapes and grain.

6If you carelessly let a fire spread from your property to someone else's, you must pay the owner for any crops or fields destroyed by the fire.

7Suppose a neighbour asks you to keep some silver or other valuables, and they are stolen from your house. If the thief is caught, the thief must repay double. 8But if the thief isn't caught, some judges will decide if you are the guilty one.

9Suppose two people claim to own the same ox or donkey or sheep or piece of clothing. Then the judges must decide the case, and the guilty person will pay the owner double.

10Suppose a neighbour who is going to be away asks you to keep a donkey or an ox or a sheep or some other animal, and it dies or gets injured or is stolen while no one is looking. 11If you swear with me as your witness that you did not harm the animal, you do not have to replace it. Your word is enough. 12But if the animal was stolen while in your care, you must replace it. 13If the animal was attacked and killed by a wild animal, and you can show the remains of the dead animal to its owner, you do not have to replace it.

14Suppose you borrow an animal from a neighbour, and it gets injured or dies while the neighbour isn't around. Then you must replace it. 15But if something happens to the animal while the owner is present, you do not have to replace it. If you had leased the animal, the money you paid the owner will cover any harm done to it.

Laws for everyday life

The LORD said:

16Suppose a young woman has never been married and isn't engaged. If a man talks her into having sex, he must pay the bride price and marry her. 17But if her father refuses to let her marry the man, the bride price must still be paid.

18Death is the punishment for witchcraft.

19Death is the punishment for having sex with an animal.

20Death is the punishment for offering sacrifices to any god except me.

21Do not ill-treat or abuse foreigners who live among you. Remember, you were foreigners in Egypt.

22Do not ill-treat widows or orphans. 23If you do, they will beg for my help, and I will come to their rescue. 24In fact, I will get so angry that I will kill your men and make widows of their wives and orphans of their children.

25Don't charge interest when you lend money to any of my people who are in need. 26Before sunset you must return any coat taken as security for a loan, 27because that is the only cover the poor have when they sleep at night. I am a merciful God, and when they call out to me, I will come to help them.

28Don't speak evil of me or of the ruler of your people.

29Don't fail to give me the offerings of grain and wine that belong to me.

Dedicate to me your firstborn sons 30and the firstborn of your cattle and sheep. Let the animals stay with their mothers for seven days, then on the eighth day give them to me, your God.

31You are my chosen people, so don't eat the meat of any of your livestock that was killed by a wild animal. Instead, feed the meat to dogs.

Exodus 23

Equal justice for all

The LORD said:

1Don't spread harmful rumours or help a criminal by giving false evidence.

2Always tell the truth in court, even if everyone else is dishonest and stands in the way of justice. 3And don't favour the poor, simply because they are poor.

4If you find an ox or a donkey that has wandered off, take it back where it belongs, even if the owner is your enemy.

5If a donkey is overloaded and falls down, you must do what you can to help, even if it belongs to someone who doesn't like you.

6Make sure that the poor are given equal justice in court. 7Don't bring false charges against anyone or sentence an innocent person to death. I won't forgive you if you do.

8Don't accept bribes. Judges are blinded and justice is twisted by bribes.

9Don't ill-treat foreigners. You were foreigners in Egypt, and you know what it is like.

Laws for the Sabbath

The LORD said:

10Plant and harvest your crops for six years, 11but let the land rest during the seventh year. The poor are to eat what they want from your fields, vineyards, and olive trees during that year, and when they have all they want from your fields, leave the rest for wild animals.

12Work the first six days of the week, but rest and relax on the seventh day. This law is not only for you, but for your oxen, donkeys, and slaves, as well as for any foreigners among you.

13Make certain that you obey everything I have said. Don't pray to other gods or even mention their names.

The LORD said:

14Celebrate three festivals each year in my honour.

15Celebrate the Festival of Thin Bread by eating bread made without yeast, just as I have commanded. Do this at the proper time during the month of Abib, because it is the month when you left Egypt. And make certain that everyone brings the proper offerings.

16Celebrate the Harvest Festival each spring when you start harvesting your wheat, and celebrate the Festival of Shelters each autumn when you pick your fruit.

17Your men must come to these three festivals each year to worship me.

18Do not offer bread made with yeast when you sacrifice an animal to me. And make sure that the fat of the animal is burnt that same day.

19Each year bring the best part of your first harvest to the place of worship.

Don't boil a young goat in its mother's milk.

A promise and a warning

The LORD said:

20I am sending an angel to protect you and to lead you into the land I have ready for you. 21Carefully obey everything the angel says, because I am giving him complete authority, and he won't tolerate rebellion. 22If you faithfully obey him, I will be a fierce enemy of your enemies. 23My angel will lead you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, and I will wipe them out. 24Don't worship their gods or follow their customs. Instead, destroy their idols and shatter their stone images.

25Worship only me, the LORD your God! I will bless you with plenty of food and water and keep you strong. 26Your women will give birth to healthy children, and everyone will live a long life.

27I will terrify those nations and make your enemies so confused that they will run from you. 28I will make the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites panic as you approach. 29But I won't do all this in the first year, because the land would become poor, and wild animals would be everywhere. 30Instead, I will force out your enemies little by little and give your nation time to grow strong enough to take over the land.

31I will see that your borders reach from the Red Sea to the River Euphrates and from the Mediterranean Sea to the desert. I will let you defeat the people who live there, and you will force them out of the land. 32But you must not make any agreements with them or with their gods. 33Don't let them stay in your land. They will trap you into sinning against me and worshipping their gods.

Exodus 22:1-23:33CEVOpen in Bible reader

Matthew 18

Who is the greatest?

1About this time the disciples came to Jesus and asked him who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 2Jesus called a child over and made the child stand near him. 3Then he said:

I promise you this. If you don't change and become like a child, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven. 4But if you are as humble as this child, you are the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5And when you welcome one of these children because of me, you welcome me.

Jesus continued:

6It will be terrible for people who cause even one of my little followers to sin. Those people would be better off thrown into the deepest part of the sea with a heavy stone tied around their necks! 7The world is in for trouble because of the way it causes people to sin. There will always be something to cause people to sin, but anyone who does this will be in for trouble.

8If your hand or foot causes you to sin, chop it off and throw it away! You would be better off to go into life crippled or lame than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the fire that never goes out. 9If your eye causes you to sin, poke it out and get rid of it. You would be better off to go into life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fires of hell.

Jesus continued:

10-11Don't be cruel to any of these little ones! I promise you that their angels are always with my Father in heaven. 12Let me ask you this. What would you do if you had a hundred sheep and one of them wandered off? Wouldn't you leave the ninety-nine on the hillside and go and look for the one that had wandered away? 13I am sure that finding it would make you happier than having the ninety-nine that never wandered off. 14That's how it is with your Father in heaven. He doesn't want any of these little ones to be lost.

Jesus continued:

15If one of my followers sins against you, go and point out what was wrong. But do it in private, just between the two of you. If that person listens, you have won back a follower. 16But if that one refuses to listen, take along one or two others. The Scriptures teach that every complaint must be proved true by two or more witnesses. 17If the follower refuses to listen to them, report the matter to the church. Anyone who refuses to listen to the church must be treated like an unbeliever or a tax collector.

Allowing and not allowing

Jesus continued:

18I promise you that God in heaven will allow whatever you allow on earth, but he will not allow anything you don't allow. 19I promise that when any two of you on earth agree about something you are praying for, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20Whenever two or three of you come together in my name, I am there with you.

Matthew 18:1-20CEVOpen in Bible reader
Canadian Bible Societyv.4.24.4
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