Exodus 17:8–20:26

8  And Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim. 9  And Moses said to Joshua, Choose us men, and go out, fight with Amalek; to-morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand. 10  And Joshua did as Moses had said to him, to fight with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11  And it came to pass when Moses raised his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. 12  And Moses’ hands were heavy; then they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on this side, and one on that side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13  And Joshua broke the power of Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. 14  And Jehovah said to Moses, Write this for a memorial in the book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens. 15  And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi. 16  And he said, For the hand is on the throne of Jah; Jehovah will have war with Amalek from generation to generation!

Chapter 18

1  And Jethro the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done to Moses, and to Israel his people; that Jehovah had brought Israel out of Egypt. 2  And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her back, 3  and her two sons, of whom the name of the one was Gershom—for he said, I have been a sojourner in a foreign land, 4  —and the name of the other, Eliezer—For the God of my father has been my help, and has delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh. 5  And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came to Moses with his sons and his wife into the wilderness, where he encamped at the mountain of God. 6  And he sent word to Moses: I, thy father-in-law Jethro, am come to thee, and thy wife, and her two sons with her.

7  And Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and did obeisance, and kissed him; and they asked each other after their welfare, and went into the tent. 8  And Moses told his father-in-law all that Jehovah had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake; all the trouble that had befallen them on the way, and how Jehovah had delivered them. 9  And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness that Jehovah had done to Israel; that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. 10  And Jethro said, Blessed be Jehovah, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh; who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. 11  Now I know that Jehovah is greater than all gods; for in the thing in which they acted haughtily he was above them. 12  And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt-offering and sacrifices for God; and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.

13  And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people; and the people stood by Moses from the morning to the evening. 14  And Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he did with the people, and said, What is this thing which thou art doing with the people? why dost thou sit alone, and all the people are standing by thee from morning to evening? 15  And Moses said to his father-in-law, Because the people come to me to enquire of God. 16  When they have a matter, they come to me, and I judge between one and another; and I make known to them the statutes of God, and his laws. 17  And Moses’ father-in-law said to him, The thing that thou art doing is not good. 18  Thou wilt be quite exhausted, both thou and this people that is with thee; for the thing is too heavy for thee: thou canst not perform it alone. 19  Hearken now to my voice: I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee. Be thou for the people with God, and bring the matters before God; 20  and teach them the statutes and the laws, and make known to them the way in which they must walk, and the work that they must do. 21  But do thou provide among all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place them over them, chiefs of thousands, chiefs of hundreds, chiefs of fifties, and chiefs of tens, 22  that they may judge the people at all times; and it shall be that they shall bring to thee every great matter, and that they shall judge every small matter, and they shall lighten the task on thee, and they shall bear it with thee. 23  If thou do this thing, and God command thee so, thou wilt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace. 24  And Moses hearkened to the voice of his father-in-law, and did all that he had said. 25  And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, chiefs of thousands, chiefs of hundreds, chiefs of fifties, and chiefs of tens. 26  And they judged the people at all times: the hard matters they brought to Moses, but every small matter they judged. 27  And Moses sent away his father-in-law, and he departed into his land.

Chapter 19

1  In the third month after the departure of the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai: 2  they departed from Rephidim, and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped in the wilderness; and Israel encamped there before the mountain. 3  And Moses went up to God, and Jehovah called to him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: 4  Ye have seen what I have done to the Egyptians, and how I have borne you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5  And now, if ye will hearken to my voice indeed and keep my covenant, then shall ye be my own possession out of all the peoples—for all the earth is mine— 6  and ye shall be to me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak to the children of Israel. 7  And Moses came and called the elders of the people, and laid before the mall these words which Jehovah had commanded him. 8  And all the people answered together, and said, All that Jehovah has spoken will we do! And Moses brought the words of the people back to Jehovah.

9  And Jehovah said to Moses, Lo, I will come to thee in the cloud’s thick darkness, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee also for ever. And Moses told the words of the people to Jehovah. 10  And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to the people, and hallow them to-day and to-morrow, and let them wash their clothes; 11  and let them be ready for the third day; for on the third day Jehovah will come down before the eyes of all the people on mount Sinai. 12  And set bounds round about the people, saying, Take heed to yourselves, not to go up unto the mountain nor touch the border of it: whatever toucheth the mountain shall certainly be put to death: 13  not a hand shall touch it, but it shall certainly be stoned, or shot through; whether it be a beast or a man, it shall not live. When the long drawn note of the trumpet soundeth, they shall come up to the mountain. 14  And Moses came down from the mountain to the people, and hallowed the people; and they washed their clothes. 15  And he said to the people, Be ready for the third day; do not come near your wives.

16  And it came to pass on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunders and lightnings and a heavy cloud on the mountain, and the sound of the trumpet exceeding loud; and the whole people that was in the camp trembled. 17  And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18  And the whole of mount Sinai smoked, because Jehovah descended on it in fire; and its smoke ascended as the smoke of a furnace; and the whole mountain shook greatly. 19  And the sound of the trumpet increased and became exceeding loud; Moses spoke, and God answered him by a voice. 20  And Jehovah came down on mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain; and Jehovah called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. 21  And Jehovah said to Moses, Go down, testify to the people that they break not through to Jehovah to gaze, and many of them perish. 22  And the priests also, who come near to Jehovah, shall hallow themselves, lest Jehovah break forth on them. 23  And Moses said to Jehovah, The people cannot come up to mount Sinai; for thou hast testified to us, saying, Set bounds about the mountain, and hallow it. 24  And Jehovah said to him, Go, descend, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee; but the priests and the people shall not break through to go up to Jehovah, lest he break forth on them. 25  So Moses went down to the people, and told them.

Chapter 20

1  And God spoke all these words, saying, 2  I am Jehovah thy God, who have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3  Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4  Thou shalt not make thyself any graven image, or any form of what is in the heavens above, or what is in the earth beneath, or what is in the waters under the earth: 5  thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them; for I, Jehovah thy God, am a jealous •God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons to the third and to the fourth generation of them that hate me, 6  and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. 7  Thou shalt not idly utter the name of Jehovah thy God; for Jehovah will not hold him guiltless that idly uttereth his name. 8  Remember the sabbath day to hallow it. 9  Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work; 10  but the seventh day is the sabbath of Jehovah thy God: thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy bondman, nor thy handmaid, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. 11  For in six days Jehovah made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; …