Water From the Rock

17 The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin,d traveling from place to place as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim,e but there was no waterf for the people to drink. 2 So they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us waterg to drink.”h

Moses replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?”i

3 But the people were thirstyj for water there, and they grumbledk against Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock diel of thirst?”

4 Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stonem me.”

5 The Lord answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staffn with which you struck the Nile,o and go. 6 I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb.p Strikeq the rock, and waterr will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 And he called the place Massaha s and Meribahb t because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

The Amalekites Defeated

8 The Amalekitesu came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.v 9 Moses said to Joshua,w “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staffx of God in my hands.”

10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hury went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning,z but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset.a 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekiteb army with the sword.

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Writec this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot outd the name of Amaleke from under heaven.”

15 Moses built an altarf and calledg it The Lord is my Banner. 16 He said, “Because hands were lifted up againstc the throne of the Lord,d the Lord will be at war against the Amalekitesh from generation to generation.”i

Protection of Property

22 a “Whoever steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it must pay backw five head of cattle for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.

2 “If a thief is caught breaking inx at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed;y 3 but if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed.

“Anyone who steals must certainly make restitution,z but if they have nothing, they must be solda to pay for their theft. 4 If the stolen animal is found alive in their possessionb—whether ox or donkey or sheep—they must pay back double.c

5 “If anyone grazes their livestock in a field or vineyard and lets them stray and they graze in someone else’s field, the offender must make restitutiond from the best of their own field or vineyard.

6 “If a fire breaks out and spreads into thornbushes so that it burns shockse of grain or standing grain or the whole field, the one who started the fire must make restitution.f

7 “If anyone gives a neighbor silver or goods for safekeepingg and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house, the thief, if caught, must pay back double.h 8 But if the thief is not found, the owner of the house must appear before the judges,i and they mustb determine whether the owner of the house has laid hands on the other person’s property. 9 In all cases of illegal possession of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or any other lost property about which somebody says, ‘This is mine,’ both parties are to bring their cases before the judges.c j The one whom the judges declared guilty must pay back double to the other.

10 “If anyone gives a donkey, an ox, a sheep or any other animal to their neighbor for safekeepingk and it dies or is injured or is taken away while no one is looking, 11 the issue between them will be settled by the taking of an oathl before the Lord that the neighbor did not lay hands on the other person’s property. The owner is to accept this, and no restitution is required. 12 But if the animal was stolen from the neighbor, restitutionm must be made to the owner. 13 If it was torn to pieces by a wild animal, the neighbor shall bring in the remains as evidence and shall not be required to pay for the torn animal.n

14 “If anyone borrows an animal from their neighbor and it is injured or dies while the owner is not present, they must make restitution.o 15 But if the owner is with the animal, the borrower will not have to pay. If the animal was hired, the money paid for the hire covers the loss.p

Social Responsibility

16 “If a man seduces a virginq who is not pledged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price,r and she shall be his wife. 17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must still pay the bride-price for virgins.

18 “Do not allow a sorceresss to live.

19 “Anyone who has sexual relations with an animalt is to be put to death.

20 “Whoever sacrifices to any godu other than the Lord must be destroyed.e v

21 “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner,w for you were foreignersx in Egypt.

22 “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless.y 23 If you do and they cry outz to me, I will certainly hear their cry.a 24 My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless.b

25 “If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not treat it like a business deal; charge no interest.c 26 If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge,d return it by sunset, 27 because that cloak is the only covering your neighbor has. What else can they sleep in?e When they cry out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.f

28 “Do not blaspheme Godf g or curseh the ruler of your people.i

29 “Do not hold back offeringsj from your granaries or your vats.g

“You must give me the firstborn of your sons.k 30 Do the same with your cattle and your sheep.l Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but give them to me on the eighth day.m

31 “You are to be my holy people.n So do not eat the meat of an animal torn by wild beasts;o throw it to the dogs.

Laws of Justice and Mercy

23 “Do not spread false reports.p Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness.q

2 “Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justicer by siding with the crowd,s 3 and do not show favoritismt to a poor person in a lawsuit.

4 “If you come across your enemy’su ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to return it.v 5 If you see the donkeyw of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help them with it.

6 “Do not deny justicex to your poor people in their lawsuits. 7 Have nothing to do with a false chargey and do not put an innocentz or honest person to death,a for I will not acquit the guilty.b

8 “Do not accept a bribe,c for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the innocent.

9 “Do not oppress a foreigner;d you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, …