Exodus 23:1-33

Exodus: *Israel becomes a nation

God’s instructions to Moses

Exodus Chapter s 19 to 40

Hilda Bright and Kitty Pride

Chapter 23

Laws about how to be fair and how to be kind – verses 1-9

v1 The *LORD continued to speak. ‘Do not spread false reports. Do not tell lies in order to help a wicked man in court.’

v2 ‘Do not imitate the crowd when they do wrong things. Be honest when you are a witness in court. You must say only what is true. You must say only what is right. Do not change it to what is wrong. The court must be fair. v3 And do not help a poor man in court just because he is poor.’

v4 ‘Suppose that you meet your enemy’s cow or *donkey when it was wandering away. You must take the animal back to its owner. v5 Suppose that you see someone’s *donkey. It has fallen under its heavy load. But it belongs to someone who hates you. Do not turn away and leave the *donkey there. Do what you can to help your enemy with it.’

v6 ‘Be fair to your poor people when they come to court. Poor people are equal to all other people, so make fair decisions. v7 Do not lie when you are accusing someone. Do not punish an innocent man with death. He is honest. And I will not forgive people who behave badly like that.’

v8 ‘People may want you to accept money from them. They want you to believe their lies. Their money will make you unable to know the truth. Then you will not believe what good people say. So do not accept that kind of money.’

v9 ‘Do not be cruel to a stranger. You know how strangers feel. Remember that you were strangers in Egypt.’

Verse 1 emphasises God’s *commandment number 9 (Exodus 20:16). False reports can cause a person to lose his good character. Also they may cause an innocent man to receive death as his punishment.

Verses 2-3 You must tell the truth, whatever other people might say. Both rich people and poor people should receive the same fair judgement. It is wrong to listen to rich people more than to poor people. And it is wrong to listen to poor people more than to rich people.

Verses 4-5 You must not try to punish an enemy when you can help him. An owner, who is your enemy, might let his animals wander away. But then he might lose the animals. People may hurry away from a *donkey that had fallen under its load. But the owner cannot without help. And the animal might hurt itself, or it might die. Someone should rescue the owner’s property. A man must be willing to help his enemy.

Verses 6-9 contain 4 orders to people who have authority as judges.

Verse 6: (1) A judge must be fair to poor people.

Verse 7: (2) A judge must be cautious whether or not he declares death as someone’s punishment. Perhaps people lied when they accused that person. And really that person is innocent. God himself would decide whether the person was guilty.

Verse 8: (3) A judge must not take money from people. If people give money to a judge, it prevents a fair decision. In the *New Testament, a ruler called Felix wanted money. He hoped that Paul would pay him. Then he would free Paul (Acts 24:26).

Verse 9: (4) This repeats the advice in Exodus 22:21. The people must remember their lives when they were strangers in Egypt. And also the judges must remember that when they are carrying out their official duties. Judges should know from their experience what it was like as a stranger. So they should make sure that they behave fairly to strangers.

Laws about the *Sabbath day and year 7 – verses 10-13

v10 ‘For 6 years you should sow seeds in your fields. And you should harvest your crops. v11 But during year 7, do not plough your land. Do not work on it. During year 7, the poor people among you can gather food from your land. And the wild animals can eat what remains. Work in the same way with your *vineyard and your fruit trees.’

v12 ‘Do all your work in 6 days. But do not work on the 7th day each week. Then your *donkey and your *bull, that works with you, can rest. The slave who lives in your house and the stranger among you can rest too. Everyone can relax on the 7th day.’

v13 ‘Be sure to do everything that I have said to you. Do not pray to any other gods. Do not speak their names. Nobody should be able to learn the names of those false gods from you.’

Verses 10-11 Leviticus 25:1-7; Leviticus 25:18-22 record more details about the law for year 7. The *Israelites must allow the land to rest for a year every 7 years. This was a good agricultural method. Also it showed whether the *Israelites believed God. He could supply what they needed for year 7. But they had to trust God. Also it taught them that God cares about everybody, and about animals as well. Psalms 36:6 says this. ‘*LORD, you look after both people and animals.’ And Jesus said that God cares, even about the little birds. They called the birds sparrows, and people bought 2 sparrows for a very small coin. They got an extra bird free if they paid 2 very small coins for 4 birds (Luke 12:6-7).

Verse 12 The *Sabbath day each week was God’s *commandment number 4 (Exodus 20:8-11). It reminded people about God’s work when he created everything at the beginning. He created things for 6 days, and then he rested on the 7th day. In Deuteronomy 5:15, God reminds the people how he rescued them from Egypt. He gave them rest from their work as slaves. The *Sabbath day was an opportunity when both men and animals would rest. They gained new energy in every way. It showed that they were God’s special people. And they used that particular day when they remembered God especially.

Verse 13 It is wrong to pray to another god. Any other god is a false god. And it would show that the people did not trust the *LORD completely. Sometimes people used the name of a false god to emphasise a serious promise. That is wrong too.

The three annual *feasts – verses 14-19

v14 ‘Three times a year you must have a special party to give honour to me.’

v15 ‘You can call the first party the *Feast of bread without *yeast. For 7 days you must eat flat bread that you make without *yeast. I ordered you to do that. And I declared the proper time for this party in the month called Abib. Remember that you came away from Egypt in the month called Abib. You must give the proper gifts to me at that time. You must not come to *worship me with empty hands.’

v16 ‘You can call the next party the *Feast of early harvest. Bring to me my share from the first crops that you harvest.’

‘Your next party will be at the end of the year when you have harvested everything. You can call it the *Feast when we have gathered everything.’

v17 ‘Three times each year all the men must appear in front me. I am the *LORD and I am your King.’

v18 ‘You can give to me the blood from an animal that you killed as a gift for me. But do not give it together with anything that has *yeast in it. Do not keep the fat from these animals until the next morning.’

v19 ‘Bring the best grain of your early harvest to the place where you *worship me. I am the *LORD your God.’

‘And do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.’

Verses 14 and 17 All the men who are adults, must go to God’s holy place three times each year.

Verses 15-16 The three parties called *Feasts were part of the agricultural year. The *Israelites gave honour to God for his gifts of food. Also, they remembered all the things that he had done for them in the past. So they gave honour to God. The *Feast of flat bread without *yeast followed the night called the *Passover. It reminded the *Israelites how God had rescued them from Egypt. This *feast happened when the harvest of the first grain began in April.

7 weeks later was the *Feast of early harvest. Another name for that was the *Feast of weeks. (7 weeks = 49 days. We know that *feast by the name Pentecost, which is the word in the Latin language for day 50.) This came during the harvest of the wheat. At that time they must remember how God gave the Law to them at *Mount Sinai.

The third *feast was in the autumn. That was when they gathered the harvest of the fruit (especially the fruit called grapes and *olives). They called it the *Feast of tents or the *Feast of tabernacles. The *Israelites lived in tents or small shelters during that *feast. That reminded them about how God had looked after them in the *desert (Leviticus 23:39-43). Even today, the *Jews have parties during these *feasts. They build temporary shelters. And live in them during the *Feast of tents in October.

Verse 18 Usually, people use *yeast when they make bread. It makes the bread rise. So bread without *yeast is flat or thin bread. Perhaps the rule reminded the *Israelites about the *Passover. It was not suitable to give bread with *yeast in it to God. Maybe they did not burn all the animal’s fat when they gave it to God. But they must throw it away, because it would become bad fat by the next day.

Verse 19 Only the best grain and fruit from the year’s first crops was good enough to give to God.

It was probably a local *Canaanite custom to cook a young goat in its mother’s milk. The *Canaanites used acts of magic like that. They wanted to encourage things to increase. They wanted good harvests and they wanted plenty of new animals. But the *Israelites must trust God. They must not trust magic.

The promise – verses 20-33

v20 The *LORD continued to speak to them. ‘Listen to me’, he said. ‘I am sending an *angel ahead of you. He will guard you along the way. And he will bring you to the place that I have prepared for you. v21 Listen well to what he says to you. Do not refuse to obey him. He will not forgive you if you oppose him. He has my authority. v22 So listen well to what he says. Obey everything that I say. Then I will be an enemy to your enemies. And I will oppose the people who oppose you. v23 My *angel will go ahead of you. He will bring you into the country where many different kinds of people live. These people are called the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the *Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites. I will kill them all. v24 Do not respect their false gods and do not *worship their false gods. Do not imitate their customs. They have made images and these are their false gods. And you must destroy those images. You must break their holy stones into pieces. v25 *Worship only me, because I am the *LORD your God. Then I will bless you. And I will give to you plenty of food and plenty of water. I will make you strong so that you do not become sick. v26 The women in your country will have healthy babies. And every woman will be able to have children. I will give to you a long life.’

v27 ‘I will send my terror ahead of you. I will confuse every nation that you meet. Then all your enemies will turn their backs to you and they will run away. v28 I will send fierce insects that can sting ahead of you. They will force out the people called the Hivites, the *Canaanites and the Hittites as you approach them. v29 But I will not force out all of them in just one year. If I did that, the country would become empty. Then the wild animals would increase and they would attack you. v30 I will force out those people slowly. Then your nation will have time to become strong. And you can possess the country.’

v31 ‘I will make safe borders for you. And the borders of your country will go from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. They will go from the *desert to the River Euphrates. You will defeat all the people who live in the country. You will defeat them and you will force them out in front of you. v32 But you must not make any agreement with them. And do not make an agreement with their false gods. v33 Do not let any of those people stay in your country. If they do remain with you, they will cause trouble for you. They will cause you to *sin against me. Certainly it will be a trap for you when they *worship their false gods.’

Verses 20-21 *Angel means ‘someone who brings a message’. *Angels are God’s servants who have God’s authority. An *angel speaks on God’s behalf and with his character. It is possible that this particular *angel is God himself. He tells the *Israelites that he will protect them. And he will guide them until they come to the country called *Canaan. God had prepared that place called *Canaan on their behalf.

Verses 22-24 God promised Abraham that he would protect Abraham’s family. God would oppose those people who opposed Abraham’s children and his children’s children (Genesis 12:3). Also that means that we shall be enemies to God’s enemies (Psalms 139:21-22). The *Canaanites had special holy stones. They used the stones when they *worshipped their false gods. The stones were probably a *sign of the male part in plants. The plant needs both male and female parts to produce crops. So those stones were different from other special stones. So the *Israelites must break completely any stones that the *Canaanites used. Sometimes people erect special stones to remember an important event. And that can be a good thing. Jacob erected a stone to remember that God was with him at Bethel (Genesis 28:18). Moses would place 12 stones as a *sign that *Israel’s 12 families had remembered God’s special promise (Exodus 24:4).

Verses 25-26 God promised food and health, the gift of children and a long life to those people who obeyed him. This does not seem to be true all over the world. But people who obey God’s laws will share their food fairly. The *Israelite rules about food meant that they had a better standard of health. The people in other countries near to them were not so healthy. A husband and wife should be loyal to each other. And children should respect their parents. Families that are like this make a better society. But the best things that God gives are for our spirits, not just to help our bodies. Habakkuk said that he would thank God. He would be happy whatever happened. Even if the crops failed, still he would *praise God (Habakkuk 3:17-18). In the *New Testament Paul had learned how to be content, whatever the circumstances (Philippians 4:11-12).

Verses 27-28 The news that the *Israelites were coming would frighten the local people (Joshua 2:11). The fierce insects can give painful stings. And sometimes they can cause death when they sting people. This is probably a description of a powerful army. The fierce insects may be like the *Egyptians. Their attacks were making the nations in the country called *Canaan very weak. So they would be preparing the way. Then the *Israelites would be able to defeat those nations completely.

Verses 29-30 give the reason why the *Israelites advanced slowly into the country called *Canaan. If the country became empty with no people there, then wild animals would live there. This happened hundreds of years later when King Nebuchadnezzar’s army defeated the *Israelites. They took the *Israelites to another country. Then the people called Samaritans came to live in the *Israelite’s country. They found lions there (2 Kings 17:25). In Judges 2:20 – 3:4 we read about another reason. If the *Israelites did not obey God’s instructions, then they would not win battles. Also, if the *Israelites advanced slowly, it would teach them how to fight.

Verse 31 God intended that *Israel’s boundary should be the Gulf of Aqaba (the Red Sea) in the east. The boundary should reach to the Mediterranean coast in the west. The *desert should be the boundary in the south. And the river Euphrates should be the border in the north. However, that whole territory belonged to *Israel only during the time when David and Solomon were kings. Then the nation divided. The territory was never as large again.

Verses 32-33 Chapter 24 describes how Moses and the *Israelites accepted God’s special promise to them. So it was right to warn the *Israelites. They must not make an agreement with any other people nor with other people’s false gods. To *worship the *Canaanite gods would not be loyal to God. It would cause the *Israelites to *sin. They would be like animals that fall into a trap. And they would die because they could not rescue themselves.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.
LORD ~ God gave this special name to himself. It translates the word ‘Yahweh’ in the Hebrew language. It links to the words ‘I am’; it means that God has been here always.

Lord ~ a name for God. It translates the Hebrew word ‘Adonai’, which means ‘my ruler’. The word ‘lord’ (without a capital letter) means an ordinary ruler.

Hebrew ~ the language that the Israelites spoke. A Hebrew is a Jewish person or an Israelite

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything that belongs to the Jews.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
donkey ~ an animal that is like a horse with long ears. People use donkeys as animals to do work. They can carry people or loads. And they can pull carts or ploughs.
commandment ~ a rule or an order that God gave to the Jews. The 10 rules that God gave to Moses on the mountain called Mount Sinai (or Horeb); an order from someone who has authority.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.

Mount ~ another name for mountain.

'New Testament ~ the second part of the Bible. It tells about Jesus Christ and his followers.
Sabbath ~ the 7th day in a Jewish week. It is from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday The day on which God rested when he created the world. So he wants people to rest on that day. Anything that has a relationship with the Sabbath.

Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything that belongs to the Jews.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
vineyard ~ a field where they grow the fruit called ‘grapes’. People make wine from juice that comes from grapes.
bull ~ male farm animal; (the female is called a cow). The Israelites made a metal image of a bull, which they worshipped as an idol.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a gift to God.

idol ~ an object that people worship instead of God; an object made out of wood, stone or metal that people worship.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
feast ~ a special meal, usually with special food. Often a feast reminds people about an important event so they repeat it regularly. For example, God said that Israelite men should gather together for 3 feasts each year. Jews continue to remember these feasts.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.
feast ~ a special meal, usually with special food. Often a feast reminds people about an important event so they repeat it regularly. For example, God said that Israelite men should gather together for 3 feasts each year. Jews continue to remember these feasts.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.
yeast ~ a substance that people use to make bread. Yeast makes the bread rise. Without yeast, bread is flat and hard.
worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a gift to God.
Passover ~ an important holy day for the Jews. They ate a special meal on this day every year; the Passover feast reminds the Jews about how God rescued them from *Egypt.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.

feast ~ a special meal, usually with special food. Often a feast reminds people about an important event so they repeat it regularly. For example, God said that Israelite men should gather together for 3 feasts each year. Jews continue to remember these feasts.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.
Mount ~ another name for mountain.
olive ~ a fruit tree; people press its green or black fruit to obtain olive oil. People use the oil for cooking and for fuel in their lamps. The Israelites gave it to God as one of their gifts to him.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
desert ~ a wild place where there are small bushes and not much water. It has poor soil and people cannot grow crops there. So, not many people live there.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
Canaanite ~ the people who originally lived in the country called Canaan; something that comes from the country called Canaan.

Canaan ~ the country that God gave to Israelites. Canaanites lived here, and people called Amorites, Hittites, Hivites, Jebusites and Perizzites lived there also.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
angel ~ a servant of God who sometimes brings messages from him.
worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a gift to God.
sin ~ the wrong things that people do against God or against other people; or, not to obey God.
angel ~ a servant of God who sometimes brings messages from him.
Canaan ~ the country that God gave to Israelites. Canaanites lived here, and people called Amorites, Hittites, Hivites, Jebusites and Perizzites lived there also.

Israelite ~ a person from the nation called Israel. Israelite is another name for the Jews. Anything that has a relationship with Israel.

Canaanite ~ the people who originally lived in the country called Canaan; something that comes from the country called Canaan.

Israel ~ the nation of people from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the name of the country that God gave to that nation.

Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
sign ~ a signal; a mark to show that something is special; a powerful act.
Egyptian ~ someone from the country called Egypt; anything that has a relationship with Egypt.