Through the Bible – Day 67

Bible text(s)

Deuteronomy 22

Helping others

Moses said to Israel:

1If you see a cow or sheep wandering around lost, take the animal back to its owner. 2If the owner lives too far away, or if you don't know who the owner is, take the animal home with you and take care of it. The owner will come looking for the animal, and then you can give it back. 3That's what you should do if you find anything that belongs to someone else. Do whatever you can to help, whether you find a cow or sheep or donkey or some clothing.

4Oxen and donkeys that carry heavy loads can stumble and fall, and be unable to get up by themselves. So as you walk along the road, help anyone who is trying to get an ox or donkey back on its feet.

Don't pretend to be the opposite sex

Moses said to Israel:

5Women must not pretend to be men, and men must not pretend to be women. The LORD your God is disgusted with people who do that.

Don't take a mother bird

Moses said to Israel:

6-7As you walk along the road, you might see a bird's nest in a tree or on the ground. If the mother bird is in the nest with either her eggs or her baby birds, you are allowed to take the baby birds or the eggs, but not the mother bird. Let her go free, and the LORD will bless you with a long and successful life.

Put a wall around your flat roof

8If you build a house, make sure to put a low wall around the edge of the flat roof. Then if someone falls off the roof and is killed, it won't be your fault.

Laws against mixing different things

Moses said to Israel:

9If you plant a vineyard, don't plant any other fruit tree or crop in it. If you do plant something else there, you must bring to the place of worship everything you harvest from the vineyard.

10Don't hitch an ox and a donkey to your plough at the same time.

11When you weave cloth for clothing, you can use thread made of flax or wool, but not both together. 12And when you make a coat, sew a tassel on each of the four corners.

When a husband accuses his wife

Moses said to Israel:

13Suppose a man starts hating his wife soon after they are married. 14He might tell ugly lies about her, and say, “I married this woman, but when we slept together, I found out she wasn't a virgin.”

15If this happens, the bride's father and mother must go to the town gate to show the town leaders the proof that the woman was a virgin. 16Her father will say, “I let my daughter marry this man, but he started hating her 17and accusing her of not being a virgin. But he is wrong, because here is proof that she was a virgin!” Then the bride's parents will show them the bed sheet from the woman's wedding night.

18The town leaders will beat the man with a whip 19because he accused his bride of not being a virgin. He will have to pay her father one hundred pieces of silver and will never be allowed to divorce her.

20But if the man was right and there is no proof that his bride was a virgin, 21the men of the town will take the woman to the door of her father's house and stone her to death.

This woman brought evil into your community by sleeping with someone before she got married, and you must get rid of that evil by killing her.

Laws about illegal sex

Moses said:

22People of Israel, if a man is caught having sex with someone else's wife, you must put them both to death. That way, you will get rid of the evil they have done in Israel.

23-24If a man is caught in town having sex with an engaged woman who isn't screaming for help, they both must be put to death. The man is guilty of having sex with a married woman. And the woman is guilty because she didn't call for help, even though she was inside a town and people were nearby. Take them both to the town gate and stone them to death. You must get rid of the evil they brought into your community.

25If an engaged woman is raped out in the country, only the man will be put to death. 26Do not punish the woman at all; she has done nothing wrong, and certainly nothing deserving death. This crime is like murder, 27because the woman was alone out in the country when the man attacked her. She screamed, but there was no one to help her.

28Suppose a woman isn't engaged to be married, and a man talks her into sleeping with him. If they are caught, 29they will be forced to get married. He must give her father fifty pieces of silver as a bride price and can never divorce her.

30A man must not marry a woman who was married to his father. This would be a disgrace to his father.

Deuteronomy 23

Who cannot become one of the LORD's people

Moses said to Israel:

1If a man's private parts have been crushed or cut off, he cannot fully belong to the LORD's people.

2No one born outside a legal marriage, or any of their descendants for ten generations, can fully belong to the LORD's people.

3No Ammonites or Moabites, or any of their descendants for ten generations, can become part of Israel, the LORD's people. 4This is because when you came out of Egypt, they refused to provide you with food and water. And besides, they hired Balaam to put a curse on you. 5But the LORD your God loves you, so he refused to listen to Balaam and turned Balaam's curse into a blessing. 6Don't even think of signing a peace treaty with Moab or Ammon.

7But Edomites are your relatives, and you lived as foreigners in the country of Egypt. Now you must be kind to Edomites and Egyptians 8and let their great-grandchildren become part of Israel, the LORD's people.

Keep the army camp acceptable

Moses said to Israel:

9When you men go off to fight your enemies, make sure your camp is acceptable to the LORD.

10For example, if something happens at night that makes a man unclean and unfit for worship, he must go outside the camp and stay there 11until late afternoon. Then he must take a bath, and at sunset he can go back into camp.

12Set up a place outside the camp to be used as a toilet area. 13And make sure that you have a small shovel in your equipment. When you go out to the toilet area, use the shovel to dig a hole. Then, after you relieve yourself, bury the waste in the hole. 14You must keep your camp clean of filthy and disgusting things. The LORD is always present in your camp, ready to rescue you and give you victory over your enemies. But if he sees something disgusting in your camp, he may turn around and leave.

Runaway slaves from other countries

Moses said:

15When runaway slaves from other countries come to Israel and ask for protection, you must not hand them back to their owners. 16Instead, you must let them choose which one of your towns they want to live in. Don't be cruel to runaway slaves.

Temple prostitutes

Moses said:

17People of Israel, don't any of you ever be temple prostitutes. 18The LORD your God is disgusted with men and women who are prostitutes of any kind, and he will not accept a gift from them, even if it had been promised to him.

Interest on loans

Moses said:

19When you lend money, food, or anything else to another Israelite, you are not allowed to charge interest. 20You can charge a foreigner interest. But if you charge other Israelites interest, the LORD your God will not let you be successful in the land you are about to take.

Sacred promises to the LORD

Moses said:

21People of Israel, if you make a sacred promise to give a gift to the LORD, then do it as soon as you can. If the LORD has to come looking for the gift you promised, you will be guilty of breaking that promise. 22On the other hand, if you never make a sacred promise, you can't be guilty of breaking it. 23You must keep whatever promises you make to the LORD. After all, you are the one who chose to make the promises.

Eating someone else's produce

24If you go into a vineyard that belongs to someone else, you are allowed to eat as many grapes as you want while you are there. But don't take any with you when you leave. 25In the same way, if you are in a grain field that belongs to someone else, you can pick heads of grain and eat the kernels. But don't cut down the stalks of grain and take them with you.

Deuteronomy 22:1-23:25CEVOpen in Bible reader

Mark 10

Teaching about divorce

1After Jesus left, he went to Judea and then on to the other side of the River Jordan. Once again large crowds came to him, and as usual, he taught them.

2Some Pharisees wanted to test Jesus. So they came up to him and asked if it was right for a man to divorce his wife. 3Jesus asked them, “What does the Law of Moses say about that?”

4They answered, “Moses allows a man to write out divorce papers and send his wife away.”

5Jesus replied, “Moses gave you this law because you are so heartless. 6But in the beginning God made a man and a woman. 7That's why a man leaves his father and mother and gets married. 8He becomes like one person with his wife. Then they are no longer two people, but one. 9And no one should separate a couple that God has joined together.”

10When Jesus and his disciples were back in the house, they asked him about what he had said. 11He told them, “A man who divorces his wife and marries someone else is unfaithful to his wife. 12A woman who divorces her husband and marries again is also unfaithful.”

Jesus blesses little children

13Some people brought their children to Jesus so that he could bless them by placing his hands on them. But his disciples told the people to stop bothering him.

14When Jesus saw this, he became angry and said, “Let the children come to me! Don't try to stop them. People who are like these little children belong to the kingdom of God. 15I promise you that you cannot get into God's kingdom, unless you accept it the way a child does.” 16Then Jesus took the children in his arms and blessed them by placing his hands on them.

A rich man

17As Jesus was walking down a road, a man ran up to him. He knelt down, and asked, “Good teacher, what can I do to have eternal life?”

18Jesus replied, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. 19You know the commandments. ‘Do not murder. Be faithful in marriage. Do not steal. Do not tell lies about others. Do not cheat. Respect your father and mother.’ ”

20The man answered, “Teacher, I have obeyed all these commandments since I was a young man.”

21Jesus looked closely at the man. He liked him and said, “There's one thing you still need to do. Go and sell everything you own. Give the money to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come with me.”

22When the man heard Jesus say this, he went away gloomy and sad because he was very rich.

23Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “It's hard for rich people to get into God's kingdom!” 24The disciples were shocked to hear this. So Jesus told them again, “It's terribly hard to get into God's kingdom! 25In fact, it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into God's kingdom.”

26Jesus' disciples were even more amazed. They asked each other, “How can anyone ever be saved?”

27Jesus looked at them and said, “There are some things that people cannot do, but God can do anything.”

28Peter replied, “Remember, we left everything to be your followers!”

29Jesus told him:

You can be sure that anyone who gives up home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or land for me and for the good news 30will be rewarded. In this world they will be given a hundred times as many houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and pieces of land, though they will also be ill-treated. And in the world to come, they will have eternal life. 31But many who are now first will be last, and many who are now last will be first.

Mark 10:1-31CEVOpen in Bible reader
Canadian Bible Societyv.4.24.4
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