24 fear the Lord thy God always. But if the way be too long for

thee, and thou canst not carry them up, because the place is far distant from thee, which the Lord thy God hath chosen for 25 his name to be there invoked; seeing the Lord thy God hath

blessed thee, therefore thou shalt sell them for money; and thou shalt take the money in thy hand, and go to the place 26 which the Lord thy God hath chosen; and thou shalt give this money for whatever thy soul may desire-for cattle, or for sheep, or for wine, or strong drink, or for any thing which thy soul may desire; and thou shalt eat there before the Lord thy God, 27 and rejoice with thy household, and the Levite who is in thy 28 cities, because he hath no portion nor lot with you. And, at

the end of three years, thou shalt carry out all the tenth of thy products in that year, and lay it up in thy cities, and the Levite shall come, because he hath no portion nor lot with thee, and the proselyte, and the orphan, and the widow, who is in thy cities, and they shall eat and be filled, that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the works which thou dost.

XV. Every seven years thou shalt make a release. And this 2 is the ordinance touching this release. Thou shalt remit every private debt which thy neighbour oweth thee, and shalt not demand it of thy brother; for the release for the Lord thy 3 God is proclaimed. Of a stranger thou mayst demand what may be due to thee from him; but to a brother thou shalt make a release of what he oweth thee, because among you 4 there is to be none in want; because the Lord thy God will, with blessing, bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God 5 giveth thee for an inheritance, that you may possess it, if you will but hearken to the voice of the Lord your God, to keep, and perform, all these commandments which I this day com6 mand you. Because the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in the

manner he promised thee, therefore thou shalt lend to many nations and shalt not borrow; and thou shalt rule over many 7 nations, and they shall not rule over thee. If then there chance to be among you a needy person-one of thy brethren, in one of thy cities in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thy hand from thy 8 brother who is in want. Thou shalt open thy hands liberally to him, and lend him what he is in want of, according to his

9 necessity. Take heed to thyself that there be not a lurking thought in thy heart-a wicked suggestion, saying, The seventh year, the year of remission is near at hand. When thou shalt look with an evil eye at thy brother who is in want, and not give him, he will cry to the Lord against thee, and it will 10 be a great sin in thee. Thou shalt surely give him, and lend him freely, what he is in want of, according to his necessity. And thou shalt not be grieved at heart when thou givest to him; for on this account the Lord thy God will bless thee in 11 all thy works, and in all the labours of thy hands. Because thy

land may never be without some indigent person in it, therefore I give thee a charge to do this thing, saying, Thou shalt open thy hands liberally to thy brother who is in want, and to 12 the needy in thy land. And if thy brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, be sold to thee, he shall serve thee six years; and on the seventh thou shalt send him away from thee, free. 13 And when thou shalt send him away free from thee, thou shalt 14 not send him away empty. Thou shalt furnish him liberally

with provision for the journey, from thy flock and from thy corn, and thy wine. According as the Lord thy God hath bless15 ed thee, thou shalt give him; and remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that thence the Lord thy God redeemed thee; therefore I command thee to do this 16 thing. And if he shall say to thee, I will not go away from thee, because he hath loved thee, and thy family, and is well 17 with thee; then thou shalt take an awl, and bore his ear against

the door, and he shall be thy servant forever. And in the same 18 manner thou shalt treat thy maid servant. It shall not seem

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hard to thee that they are let go free from thee; for they have saved thee the wages of an hireling. He hath served thee six years.

When the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all thou doest, every firstling of thy herds, and thy flocks, even all the 20 males, thou shalt dedicate to the Lord thy God. Thou shalt

not work a firstling bull, nor shear the firstlings of thy flock. Thou shalt eat them before the Lord, year after year, in the place which the Lord thy God shall chuse, thou and thy house21 hold. But if any hath a blemish in it—if it be lame, or blind,

or any way blemished, thou shalt not sacrifice it to the Lord

22 thy God. In thy cities thou mayst eat it—the unclean with thee as well as the clean may eat it, like the roebuck or deer. 23 But the blood you shall not eat. Thou shalt pour out that on the ground, like water.

XVI.

Observe the month of New things, and keep the passover to the Lord thy God, because in the month of New things thou didst come out of the land of Egypt, by night. 2 And at the passover thou shalt sacrifice to the Lord thy God, sheep, and kine, in the place which the Lord thy God shall 3 chuse for his name to be there invoked. At it thou shalt not eat leaven. Seven days, at it,thou shalt eat unleavened breadthe bread of affliction, because you came in haste out of Egypt, that you may remember the day of your coming out of the 4 land of Egypt, all the days of your life. No leaven shall be seen in all thy borders for seven days, and none of the flesh of that which you shall sacrifice on the evening of the first day 5 shall be left till the morning. Thou shalt not be at liberty to keep the passover in any of the cities which the Lord thy God 6 giveth thee, but only in the place which the Lord thy God

shall chuse, for his name to be there invoked. Thou shalt kill the passover in the evening, at the setting of the sun, in the 7 season thou didst come out of Egypt. And when thou hast

cooked, and roasted, and eaten it, in the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen, in the morning thou mayst return and 8 go home. Six days thou shalt eat unleavened bread; and on the seventh day shall be the Exod-a festival to the Lord thy God. On it thou shalt not do any work, but what is necessary for life.

9

Seven weeks thou shalt number for thyself-from thy first beginning to put the sickle to the harvest thou shalt begin to 10 number the seven weeks. And thou shalt keep the festival of weeks, to the Lord thy God, according to the ability of thy hand-according to what the Lord thy God may have given 11 thee. And thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, thy man servant, and thy maid servant, and the Levite, and the stranger, and the orphan, and the widow who is among you, in the place which the Lord 12 thy God shall chuse for his name to be there invoked. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a servant in the land of

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Egypt; therefore thou shalt keep, and perform, these commandments.

The feast of tabernacles thou shalt keep for thyself seven 14 days. When thou hast gathered in from thy threshing floor, and from thy press, thou shalt rejoice at this thy festival, thou and thy son, and thy daughter, thy man servant, and thy maid servant, and the Levite, and the stranger, and' the orphan, and 15 the widow, who is in thy cities. Seven days thou shalt cele

brate this festival to the Lord thy God, in the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen for himself. So when the Lord thy 16 God shall bless thee in all thy productions, and in all the works of thy hands, and thou shalt be made glad, every male shall, three times in the year, appear before the Lord thy God, in the place which the Lord shall chuse at the festival of unleavened bread, and at the festival of weeks, and at the festival of tabernacles. Thou shalt not appear before the Lord thy God 17 empty handed. Every one of you shall bring according to the ability of his hand, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God, which he hath given thee.

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Thou shalt appoint for thyself judges, and promulgators of the law, in the cities which the Lord thy God giveth thee, in every tribe. And they shall administer just judgment to the 19 people. They shall not wrest judgment, nor respect persons, nor shall they receive a gift. For gifts blind the eyes of the 20 wise, and pervert the words of the righteous. Thou shalt pursue righteously what is right, that you may live, and go in, and possess the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

21

Thou shalt not plant a grove for thyself, nor make for thyself a wood near the altar of thy God, nor set up for thyself a pillar these are things which the Lord thy God hateth.

XVII.

2

Thou shalt not sacrifice to the Lord thy God a young bull, or a sheep, in which there is a blemish-any defect; for it is an abomination to the Lord thy God.

If there be found in any of thy cities which the Lord thy God giveth thee, a man, or a woman, who shall do evil in the sight of the Lord thy God, to transgress his covenant, and they have gone, and served other gods, and worshipped them, 3 either the sun, or the moon, or any of the whole host of heaven, 4 which he hath not commanded thee, and information be given

thee, and thou hast made strict inquiry, and behold the thing 5 hath been actually done, and such an abomination hath been committed in Israel, thou shalt bring out that man, or that woman, and you shall stone them with stones, till they die. 6 On the testimony of two or three witnesses the guilty person shall be put to death; but shall not be put to death on the 7 testimony of one witness. And the hand of the witness shall be upon him, among the first, to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of the people. So thou shalt remove the wickedness from among you.

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And if any cause which requireth judicial decision—an action of murder, an action of appeal, a case of leprosy, an action 9 of plaint and denial-any causes which require decision in any of your cities, be too difficult for thee, thou shalt arise, and go up to the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen, and there come to the priests, the Levites, or to the judge, who10 ever he may be in those days, and they shall inquire, and declare to thee the sentence of judgment, and thou shalt act according to what they declare to thee from the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen: and thou shalt be careful to do 11 according to what is expounded to thee for law. According to the law, and according to the sentence of judgment, which they tell thee, thou shalt do. Thou shalt not deviate from what 12 they tell thee, either to the right, or to the left. And if any man

act presumptuously, so as not to hearken to the priest who hath stood to minister to the name of the Lord thy God; or to the judge who may be in those days; that man shall be put to 13 death. So thou shalt remove the evil person from among Israel, and all the people, when they hear, will be struck with awe, and no more act presumptuously.

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And when thou art come to the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and hast taken possession of it, and dwelt therein, if thou shouldst say, I will set a chief over me, as the 15 other nations around me do; thou shalt surely set, as chief over thee, him whom the Lord thy God shall chuse. Thou shalt appoint one of thy brethren chief over thee. Thou shalt not be at liberty to set a stranger over thee, because he is not thy 16 brother. Because he is not to multiply cavalry for himself, he must not even cause his people to go back to Egypt; in order that