The Ten Commandments

5 Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “Israel, listen to the statutes and ordinances I am proclaiming as you hear them today. Learn and follow them carefully. 2 The Lord our God made a covenant h with us at Horeb. 3 He did not make this covenant with our fathers, i but with all of us who are alive here today. 4 The Lord spoke to you face to face from the fire on the mountain. 5 At that time I was standing between the Lord and you to report the word j of the Lord to you, because you were afraid of the fire and did not go up the mountain. And He said:

6 I am the Lord your God, k who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. l

7 Do not have other gods besides Me.

8 Do not make an idol for yourself in the shape of anything in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters under the earth. 9 You must not bow down to them or worship them, because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the fathers’ sin to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, m 10 but showing faithful love to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commands.

11 Do not misuse the name n of the Lord your God, because the Lord will not leave anyone unpunished who misuses His name.

12 Be careful to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 You are to labor six days and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. You must not do any work—you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your ox or donkey, any of your livestock, or the foreigner who lives within your gates, so that your male and female slaves may rest as you do. 15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out of there with a strong hand and an outstretched arm. That is why the Lord your God has commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

16 Honor your father and your mother, o as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and so that you may prosper in the land the Lord your God is giving you. p

17 Do not murder. q

18 Do not commit adultery. r

19 Do not steal.

20 Do not give dishonest testimony against your neighbor. s

21 Do not covet your neighbor’s wife or desire your neighbor’s house, his field, his male or female slave, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. t

The People’s Response

22 “The Lord spoke these commands in a loud voice to your entire assembly from the fire, cloud, and thick darkness on the mountain; He added nothing more. He wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me. 23 All of you approached me with your tribal leaders and elders when you heard the voice from the darkness and while the mountain was blazing with fire. 24 You said, ‘Look, the Lord our God has shown us His glory and greatness, and we have heard His voice from the fire. Today we have seen that God speaks with a person, yet he still lives. 25 But now, why should we die? This great fire will consume us and we will die if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any longer. 26 For who out of all mankind has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the fire, as we have, and lived? 27 Go near and listen to everything the Lord our God says. Then you can tell us everything the Lord our God tells you; we will listen and obey.’ u

28 “The Lord heard your v words when you spoke to me. He said to me, ‘I have heard the words that these people have spoken to you. Everything they have said is right. 29 If only they had such a heart to * fear Me and keep all My commands always, so that they and their children will prosper forever. 30 Go and tell them: Return to your tents. 31 But you stand here with Me, and I will tell you every command—the statutes and ordinances—you are to teach them, so that they may follow them in the land I am giving them to possess.’

32 “Be careful to do as the Lord your God has commanded you; you are not to turn aside to the right or the left. 33 Follow the whole instruction the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live, prosper, and have a long life in the land you will possess.

The Greatest Commandment

6 “This is the command—the statutes and ordinances—the Lord your God has instructed me to teach you, so that you may follow them in the land you are about to enter and possess. w 2 Do this so that you may * fear x the Lord your God y all the days of your life z by keeping all His statutes and commands I am giving you, your son, and your grandson, and so that you may have a long life. a 3 Listen, Israel, and be careful to follow them, so that you may prosper and multiply greatly, because * Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has promised you a land flowing with milk and honey. b

4 “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One. c d 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. e 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. f 7 Repeat them to your children. g Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol h on your forehead. i j 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Remembering God through Obedience

10 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land He swore to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that He would give you—a land with large and beautiful cities that you did not build, 11 houses full of every good thing that you did not fill them with, wells dug that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant k—and when you eat and are satisfied, l 12 be careful not to forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. m 13 Fear Yahweh your God, worship Him, and take your oaths in His name. n 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you, 15 for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God. o Otherwise, the Lord your God will become angry with you and wipe you off the face of the earth. 16 Do not test p the Lord your God as you tested Him at Massah. q 17 Carefully observe the commands of the Lord your God, the decrees and statutes He has commanded you. 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that you may prosper and so that you may enter and possess the good land r the Lord your God swore to give your fathers, s 19 by driving out all your enemies before you, as the Lord has said. t

20 “When your son asks you in the future, ‘What is the meaning u of the decrees, statutes, and ordinances, which the Lord our God has commanded you?’ 21 tell him, ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand. v 22 Before our eyes the Lord inflicted great and devastating signs and wonders on Egypt, w on Pharaoh, and on all his household, 23 but He brought us from there in order to lead us in and give us the land that He swore to our fathers. 24 The Lord commanded us to follow all these statutes and to fear the Lord our God for our prosperity always and for our preservation, as it is today. 25 Righteousness will be ours if we are careful to follow every one of these commands before the Lord our God, as He has commanded us.’

Israel to Destroy Idolatrous Nations

7 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land x you are entering to possess, y and He drives out many nations before you—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations z more numerous and powerful than you a— 2 and when the Lord your God delivers them over to you and you defeat them, you must * completely destroy b them. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy. c 3 Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, d 4 because they will turn your sons away from Me to worship other gods. e Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, f and He will swiftly destroy you. 5 Instead, this is what you are to do to them: tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, cut down their * Asherah poles, g and burn up their carved images. 6 For you are a holy people h belonging to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be His own possession i out of all the peoples on the face of the earth.

7 “The Lord was devoted to you and chose you, not because you were more numerous than all peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. 8 But because the Lord loved j you and kept the oath He swore to your fathers, He brought you out with a strong hand and redeemed k you from the place of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9 Know that * Yahweh your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His gracious covenant loyalty for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commands. l 10 But He directly pays back m and destroys those who hate Him. n He will not hesitate to directly pay back o the one who hates Him. 11 So keep the command—the statutes and ordinances—that I am giving you to follow today.

12 “If you listen to and are careful to keep these ordinances, the Lord your God will keep His covenant loyalty with you, as He swore to your fathers. p 13 He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will bless your descendants, q r and the produce of your land—your grain, new wine, and oil—the young of your herds, and the newborn of your flocks, in the land He swore to your fathers that He would give you. 14 You will be blessed above all peoples; there will be no infertile male or female among you or your livestock. 15 The Lord will remove all sickness from you; He will not put on you s all the terrible diseases of Egypt that you know about, but He will inflict them on all who hate you. 16 You must destroy all the peoples the Lord your God is delivering over to you and not look on them with pity. Do not worship their gods, for that will be a snare to you.

17 “If you say to yourself, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I drive them out?’ 18 do not be afraid of them. Be sure to remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt: 19 the great trials that you saw, the signs and wonders, the strong hand and outstretched arm, by which the Lord your God brought you out. The Lord your God will do the same to all the peoples you fear. 20 The Lord your God will also send the hornet against them until all the survivors and those hiding from you perish. t 21 Don’t be terrified of them, for the Lord your God, a great and awesome God, is among you. 22 The Lord your God will drive out these nations before you little by little. You will not be able to destroy them all at once; otherwise, the wild animals will become too numerous for you. u 23 The Lord your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion until they are destroyed. 24 He will hand their kings over to you, and you will wipe out their names under heaven. No one will be able to stand against you; you will annihilate them. 25 You must burn up the carved images of their gods. Don’t covet the silver and gold on the images and take it for yourself, or else you will be ensnared by it, for it is abhorrent to the Lord your God. 26 You must not bring any abhorrent thing into your house, or you will be * set apart for destruction like it. You are to utterly detest and abhor it, because it is set apart for destruction.

Remember the Lord

8 “You must carefully follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase, and may enter and take possession of the land v the Lord swore to your fathers. 2 Remember that the Lord your God led you on the entire journey these 40 years in the wilderness, so that He might humble you and test you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands. 3 He humbled you by letting you go hungry; then He gave you manna to eat, which you and your fathers had not known, so that you might learn that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. w 4 Your clothing did not wear out, and your feet did not swell these 40 years. x 5 Keep in mind that the Lord your God has been disciplining you just as a man disciplines his son. 6 So keep the commands of the Lord your God by walking in His ways and * fearing Him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, y a land with streams of water, springs, and deep water sources, flowing in both valleys and hills; 8 a land of wheat, barley, vines, figs, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey; 9 a land where you will eat food without shortage, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and from whose hills you will mine copper. 10 When you eat and are full, z you will praise the Lord your God for the good land a He has given you.

11 “Be careful that you don’t forget the Lord your God by failing to keep His command—the ordinances and statutes—I am giving you today. 12 When you eat and are full, and build beautiful houses to live in, 13 and your herds and flocks grow large, and your silver and gold multiply, and everything else you have increases, 14 be careful that your heart doesn’t become proud and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. b 15 He led you through the great and terrible wilderness with its poisonous c snakes and scorpions, a thirsty land where there was no water. He brought water out of the flint-like rock for you. 16 He fed you in the wilderness with manna d that your fathers had not known, in order to humble and test you, so that in the end He might cause you to prosper. 17 You may say to yourself, ‘My power and my own ability have gained this wealth for me,’ 18 but remember that the Lord your God gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant He swore to your fathers, e as it is today. 19 If you ever forget the Lord your God and go after other gods to worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will perish. f 20 Like the nations the Lord is about to destroy before you, you will perish if you do not obey the Lord your God.

Warning against Self-Righteousness

9 “Listen, Israel: Today you are about to cross the Jordan to go and drive out nations greater and stronger than you, g with large cities fortified to the heavens. h 2 The people are strong and tall, the descendants of the Anakim. i You know about them and you have heard it said about them, ‘Who can stand up to the sons of Anak?’ j 3 But understand that today the Lord your God will cross over ahead of you k as a consuming fire; l He will devastate and subdue them before you. You will drive them out and destroy them swiftly, m as the Lord has told you. 4 When the Lord your God drives them out before you, do not say to yourself, ‘The Lord brought me in to take possession of this land because of my righteousness.’ n Instead, the Lord will drive out these nations before you because of their wickedness. o 5 You are not going to take possession of their land because of your righteousness or your integrity. Instead, the Lord your God will drive out these nations before you because of their wickedness, in order to keep the promise He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 6 Understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land p to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stiff-necked people. q

Israel’s Rebellion and Moses’ Intercession

7 “Remember r and do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God in the wilderness. You have been rebelling against the Lord from the day you left the land of Egypt until you reached this place. 8 You provoked the Lord at Horeb, and He was angry enough with you to destroy you. 9 When I went up the mountain to receive the stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant s the Lord made with you, I stayed on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. I did not eat bread or drink water. 10 On the day of the assembly the Lord gave me the two stone tablets, inscribed by God’s finger. t The exact words were on them, which the Lord spoke to you from the fire on the mountain. u 11 The Lord gave me the two stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant, at the end of the 40 days and 40 nights.

12 “The Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go down immediately from here. For your people whom you brought out of Egypt have acted corruptly. They have quickly turned from the way that I commanded them; they have made a cast image for themselves.’ v 13 The Lord also said to me, ‘I have seen this people, and indeed, they are a stiff-necked people. 14 Leave Me alone, and I will destroy them and blot out their name under heaven. w Then I will make you into a nation stronger and more numerous than they.’

15 “So I went back down the mountain, while it was blazing with fire, and the two tablets of the covenant were in my hands. 16 I saw how you had sinned against the Lord your God; you had made a calf image for yourselves. You had quickly turned from the way the Lord had commanded for you. 17 So I took hold of the two tablets and threw them from my hands, shattering them before your eyes. x 18 Then I fell down like the first time in the presence of the Lord for 40 days and 40 nights; I did not eat bread or drink water because of all the sin you committed, doing what was evil in the Lord’s sight and provoking Him to anger. 19 I was afraid of the fierce anger the Lord had directed against you, y because He was about to destroy you. But again the Lord listened to me on that occasion. z 20 The Lord was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him. But I prayed for Aaron at that time also. 21 I took the sinful calf you had made, burned it up, and crushed it, thoroughly grinding it to powder as fine as dust. Then I threw it into the stream that came down from the mountain. a

22 “You continued to provoke the Lord at Taberah, Massah, and Kibroth-hattaavah. b 23 When the Lord sent you from Kadesh-barnea, He said, ‘Go up and possess the land I have given you’; you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. You did not believe or obey Him. c 24 You have been rebelling against the Lord ever since I have d known you. e

25 “I fell down in the presence of the Lord 40 days and 40 nights because the Lord had threatened to destroy you. 26 I prayed to the Lord:

Lord God, do not annihilate Your people, Your inheritance, whom You redeemed f through Your greatness and brought out of Egypt with a strong hand. 27 Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Disregard this people’s stubbornness, and their wickedness and sin. 28 Otherwise, those in the land you brought us from will say, ‘Because the Lord wasn’t able to bring them into the land He had promised them, and because He hated them, He brought them out to kill them in the wilderness.’ g 29 But they are Your people, Your inheritance, whom You brought out by Your great power and outstretched arm. h