One Year Bible.

Hebrew Servants

¹“These are the ordinances that you are to set before them:

²If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free without paying anything. ³If he arrived alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrived with a wife, she is to leave with him. ⁴If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her master, and only the man shall go free.

⁵But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children; I do not want to go free,’ ⁶then his master is to bring him before the judges. And he shall take him to the door or doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he shall serve his master for life.

⁷And if a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as the menservants do. ⁸If she is displeasing in the eyes of her master who had designated her for himself, he must allow her to be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, since he has broken faith with her. ⁹And if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her as with a daughter. ¹⁰If he takes another wife, he must not reduce the food, clothing, or marital rights of his first wife. ¹¹If, however, he does not provide her with these three things, she is free to go without monetary payment.

Personal Injury Laws

¹²Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death. ¹³If, however, he did not lie in wait, but God allowed it to happen, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.

¹⁴But if a man schemes and acts willfully against his neighbor to kill him, you must take him away from My altar to be put to death.

¹⁵Whoever strikes his father or mother must surely be put to death.

¹⁶Whoever kidnaps another man must be put to death, whether he sells him or the man is found in his possession.

¹⁷Anyone who curses his father or mother must surely be put to death.

¹⁸If men are quarreling and one strikes the other with a stone or a fist, and he does not die but is confined to bed, ¹⁹then the one who struck him shall go unpunished, as long as the other can get up and walk around outside with his staff. Nevertheless, he must compensate the man for his lost work and see that he is completely healed.

²⁰If a man strikes his manservant or maidservant with a rod, and the servant dies by his hand, he shall surely be punished. ²¹However, if the servant gets up after a day or two, the owner shall not be punished, since the servant is his property.

²²If men who are fighting strike a pregnant woman and her child is born prematurely, but there is no further injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband demands and as the court allows. ²³But if a serious injury results, then you must require a life for a life — ²⁴eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, ²⁵burn for burn, wound for wound, and stripe for stripe.

²⁶If a man strikes and blinds the eye of his manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free as compensation for the eye. ²⁷And if he knocks out the tooth of his manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free as compensation for the tooth.

²⁸If an ox gores a man or woman to death, the ox must surely be stoned, and its meat must not be eaten. But the owner of the ox shall not be held responsible.

²⁹But if the ox has a habit of goring, and its owner has been warned yet does not restrain it, and it kills a man or woman, then the ox must be stoned and its owner must also be put to death. ³⁰If payment is demanded of him instead, he may redeem his life by paying the full amount demanded of him.

³¹If the ox gores a son or a daughter, it shall be done to him according to the same rule.

³²If the ox gores a manservant or maidservant, the owner must pay thirty shekels of silver to the master of that servant, and the ox must be stoned.

³³If a man opens or digs a pit and fails to cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, ³⁴the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he must pay its owner, and the dead animal will be his.

³⁵If a man’s ox injures his neighbor’s ox and it dies, they must sell the live one and divide the proceeds; they also must divide the dead animal. ³⁶But if it was known that the ox had a habit of goring, yet its owner failed to restrain it, he shall pay full compensation, ox for ox, and the dead animal will be his.[’’]

Property Laws

¹“If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters or sells it, he must repay five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep.

²If a thief is caught breaking in and is beaten to death, no one shall be guilty of bloodshed. ³But if it happens after sunrise, there is guilt for his bloodshed.

A thief must make full restitution; if he has nothing, he himself shall be sold for his theft. ⁴If what was stolen is actually found alive in his possession— whether ox or donkey or sheep— he must pay back double.

⁵If a man grazes his livestock in a field or vineyard and allows them to stray so that they graze in someone else’s field, he must make restitution from the best of his own field or vineyard.

⁶If a fire breaks out and spreads to thornbushes so that it consumes stacked or standing grain, or the whole field, the one who started the fire must make full restitution.

⁷If a man gives his neighbor money or goods for safekeeping and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house, the thief, if caught, must pay back double. ⁸If the thief is not found, the owner of the house must appear before the judges to determine whether he has taken his neighbor’s property.

⁹In all cases of illegal possession of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or any lost item that someone claims, ‘This is mine,’ both parties shall bring their cases before the judges. The one whom the judges find guilty must pay back double to his neighbor.

¹⁰If a man gives a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any other animal to be cared for by his neighbor, but it dies or is injured or stolen while no one is watching, ¹¹an oath before the LORD shall be made between the parties to determine whether or not the man has taken his neighbor’s property. The owner must accept the oath and require no restitution.

¹²But if the animal was actually stolen from the neighbor, he must make restitution to the owner.

¹³If the animal was torn to pieces, he shall bring it as evidence; he need not make restitution for the torn carcass.

¹⁴If a man borrows an animal from his neighbor and it is injured or dies while its owner is not present, he must make full restitution. ¹⁵If the owner was present, no restitution is required. If the animal was rented, the fee covers the loss.

Laws of Social Responsibility

¹⁶If a man seduces a virgin who is not pledged in marriage and sleeps with her, he must pay the full dowry for her to be his wife. ¹⁷If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, the man still must pay an amount comparable to the bridal price of a virgin.

¹⁸You must not allow a sorceress to live.

¹⁹Whoever lies with an animal must surely be put to death.

²⁰If anyone sacrifices to any god other than the LORD alone, he must be set apart for destruction.

²¹You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

²²You must not mistreat any widow or orphan. ²³If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to Me in distress, I will surely hear their cry. ²⁴My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword; then your wives will become widows and your children will be fatherless.

²⁵If you lend money to one of My people among you who is poor, you must not act as a creditor to him; you are not to charge him interest.

²⁶If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset, ²⁷because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

²⁸You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

²⁹You must not hold back offerings from your granaries or vats. You are to give Me the firstborn of your sons. ³⁰You shall do likewise with your cattle and your sheep. Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but on the eighth day you are to give them to Me.

³¹You are to be My holy people. You must not eat the meat of a mauled animal found in the field; you are to throw it to the dogs.[’’]

Waiting on God

¹For the choirmaster. According to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.

In God alone my soul finds rest;

my salvation comes from Him.

²He alone is my rock and my salvation.

He is my fortress;

I will never be shaken.

³How long will you threaten a man?

Will all of you throw him down

like a leaning wall

or a tottering fence?

⁴They fully intend to cast him down from his lofty perch;

they delight in lies;

with their mouths they bless,

but inwardly they curse.

Selah

⁵Rest in God alone, O my soul,

for my hope comes from Him.

⁶He alone is my rock and my salvation;

He is my fortress; I will not be shaken.

⁷My salvation and my honor rest on God, my strong rock;

my refuge is in God.

⁸Trust in Him at all times, O people;

pour out your hearts before Him.

God is our refuge.

Selah

⁹Lowborn men are but a vapor;

the exalted are but a lie.

Weighed on the scale, they go up;

together they are but a vapor.

¹⁰Place no trust in extortion

or false hope in stolen goods.

If your riches increase,

do not set your heart upon them.

¹¹God has spoken once;

I have heard this twice:

that power belongs to God,

¹²and loving devotion to You, O Lord.

For You will repay each man

according to his deeds.

Jesus and Nicodemus

¹Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. ²He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him.”

³Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

⁴“How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born?”

⁵Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. ⁶Flesh is born of flesh, but spirit is born of the Spirit. ⁷Do not be amazed that I said, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸The wind blows where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

⁹“How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.

¹⁰“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and you do not understand these things? ¹¹Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony.

¹²If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? ¹³No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven— the Son of Man. ¹⁴Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, ¹⁵that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.

¹⁶For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. ¹⁸Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

¹⁹And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil. ²⁰Everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come into the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. ²¹But whoever practices the truth comes into the Light, so that it may be seen clearly that what he has done has been accomplished in God.”

John’s Testimony about Jesus

²²After this, Jesus and His disciples went into the Judean countryside, where He spent some time with them and baptized.

²³Now John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because the water was plentiful there, and people kept coming to be baptized. ²⁴(For John had not yet been thrown into prison.)

²⁵Then a dispute arose between John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the issue of ceremonial washing. ²⁶So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Look, Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about — He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.”

²⁷John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. ²⁸You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but am sent ahead of Him.’ ²⁹The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. ³⁰He must increase; I must decrease.

³¹The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all. ³²He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony. ³³Whoever accepts His testimony has certified that God is truthful. ³⁴For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.

³⁵The Father loves the Son and has placed all things in His hands. ³⁶Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”