Study Desk

They are to receive the first share of the grain, wine, olive oil, and wool.

Then everyone else will hear what happened; they will be afraid, and no one will ever again do such an evil thing.

If they open the gates and surrender, they are all to become your slaves and do forced labor for you.

They are to take it down to a spot near a stream that never runs dry and where the ground has never been plowed or planted, and there they are to break its neck.

The levitical priests are to go there also, because they are to decide every legal case involving violence. The Lord your God has chosen them to serve him and to pronounce blessings in his name.

"Suppose a man has two wives and they both bear him sons, but the first son is not the child of his favorite wife.

"Suppose someone has a son who is stubborn and rebellious, a son who will not obey his parents, even though they punish him.

They are to say to them, ‘Our son is stubborn and rebellious and refuses to obey us; he wastes money and is a drunkard.'

"If this happens, the young woman's parents are to take the blood-stained wedding sheet that proves she was a virgin, and they are to show it in court to the town leaders.

They are also to fine him a hundred pieces of silver and give the money to the young woman's father, because the man has brought disgrace on an Israelite woman. Moreover, she will continue to be his wife, and he can never divorce her as long as he lives.

They refused to provide you with food and water when you were on your way out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor, from the city of Pethor in Mesopotamia, to curse you.

"Do not despise the Edomites; they are your relatives. And do not despise the Egyptians; you once lived in their land.

They may live in any of your towns that they choose, and you are not to treat them harshly.

"Do not cheat poor and needy hired servants, whether they are Israelites or foreigners living in one of your towns.

Each day before sunset pay them for that day's work; they need the money and have counted on getting it. If you do not pay them, they will cry out against you to the Lord , and you will be guilty of sin.

"Parents are not to be put to death for crimes committed by their children, and children are not to be put to death for crimes committed by their parents; people are to be put to death only for a crime they themselves have committed.

When you have picked your olives once, do not go back and get those that are left; they are for the foreigners, orphans, and widows.

They had no fear of God, and so they attacked you from the rear when you were tired and exhausted, and killed all who were straggling behind.

Then, in the Lord 's presence you will recite these words: ‘My ancestor was a wandering Aramean, who took his family to Egypt to live. They were few in number when they went there, but they became a large and powerful nation.

"Every third year give the tithe—a tenth of your crops—to the Levites, the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows, so that in every community they will have all they need to eat. When you have done this,