hwarapA Parasha

Mishpatim - “Judgments”

Exodus 21:1 - 24:18

Exodus 21:

1"Now these are the judgments (MyFiPAw;mi) which you shall set before them:

2 "If you buy a Hebrew servant (yr9b;fi rb,f,), he shall serve six years; and in the seventh he shall go out free and pay nothing.

3 "If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him.

4 "If his master has given him a wife, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself.

5 "But if the servant plainly says, `I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,'

(ywip;HA cHap-shi = “Prostrate/infirm/set free”)

6 "then his master shall bring him to the judges. He shall also bring him to the door, or to the doorpost, and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him forever (MlAfol;).

7 "And if a man sells his daughter to be a female slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do.

8 "If she does not please her master, who has betrothed her to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt deceitfully with her.

9 "And if he has betrothed her to his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.

10 "If he takes another wife, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, and her marriage rights.

11 "And if he does not do these three for her, then she shall go out free, without paying money.

12 "He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death.

13 "However, if he did not lie in wait, but Elohim delivered him into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.

14 "But if a man acts with premeditation against his neighbor, to kill him by treachery, you shall take him from My altar, that he may die.

15 "And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

16 "He who kidnaps a man and sells him, or if he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death.

17 "And he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

18 "If men contend with each other, and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but is confined to his bed,

19 "if he rises again and walks about outside with his staff, then he who struck him shall be acquitted. He shall only pay for the loss of his time, and shall provide for him to be thoroughly healed.

20 "And if a man beats his male or female servant with a rod, so that he dies under his hand, he shall surely be punished.

21 "Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.

22 "If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follows, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman's husband imposes on him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.

23 "But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life,

24 "eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,

25 "burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

26 "If a man strikes the eye of his male or female servant, and destroys it, he shall let him go free for the sake of his eye.

27 "And if he knocks out the tooth of his male or female servant, he shall let him go free for the sake of his tooth.

28 "If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, then the ox shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be acquitted.

29 "But if the ox tended to thrust with its horn in times past, and it has been made known to his owner, and he has not kept it confined, so that it has killed a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death.

30 "If there is imposed on him a sum of money, then he shall pay to redeem his life, whatever is imposed on him.

31 "Whether it has gored a son or gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him.

32 "If the ox gores a male or female servant, he shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

33 "And if a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls in it,

34 "the owner of the pit shall make it good; he shall give money to their owner, but the dead animal shall be his.

35 "If one man's ox hurts another's, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide the money from it; and the dead ox they shall also divide.

36 "Or if it was known that the ox tended to thrust in time past, and its owner has not kept it confined, he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead animal shall be his own.

Exodus 22:

1 "If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep.

2 "If the thief is found breaking in, and he is struck so that he dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed.

3 "If the sun has risen on him, there shall be guilt for his bloodshed. He should make full restitution; if he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.

4 "If the theft is certainly found alive in his hand, whether it is an ox or donkey or sheep, he shall restore double.

5 "If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed, and lets loose his animal, and it feeds in another man's field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard.

6 "If fire breaks out and catches in thorns, so that stacked grain, standing grain, or the field is consumed, he who kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.

7 "If a man delivers to his neighbor money or articles to keep, and it is stolen out of the man's house, if the thief is found, he shall pay double.

8 "If the thief is not found, then the master of the house shall be brought to the judges to see whether he has put his hand into his neighbor's goods.

9 "For any kind of trespass, whether it concerns an ox, a donkey, a sheep, or clothing, or for any kind of lost thing which another claims to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whomever the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor.

10 "If a man delivers to his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep, and it dies, is hurt, or driven away, no one seeing it,

11 "then an oath of HaShem shall be between them both, that he has not put his hand into his neighbor's goods; and the owner of it shall accept that, and he shall not make it good.

12 "But if, in fact, it is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to the owner of it.

13 "If it is torn to pieces by a beast, then he shall bring it as evidence, and he shall not make good what was torn.

14 "And if a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it becomes injured or dies, the owner of it not being with it, he shall surely make it good.

15"If its owner was with it, he shall not make it good; if it was hired, it came for its hire.

16 "If a man entices a virgin who is not betrothed, and lies with her, he shall surely pay the bride_price for her to be his wife.

17 "If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money according to the bride_price of virgins (whatever amount the father wanted; see Gen. 34:12).

18 "You shall not permit a sorceress to live.

19 (Heb.-18) "Whoever lies with an animal shall surely be put to death.

20 (Heb.-19) (Mr!Hiy! Myhilx<lA Habezo > zo`vecha la`e`lohim ya`cho`ram} "Sacrificing to gods will shut/depress-the-nose/will-be-utterly-destroyed,

( Odbal; y!y4la yTil;Bi > bil`ti la`Adonai le`vado} besides/except to HaShem only/solely/separately.

21 "You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Mitzraim.

22 "You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child.

23 "If you afflict them in any way, and they cry at all to Me, I will surely hear their cry;

24 "and My wrath will become hot, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

25 "If you lend money to any of My people who are poor among you, you shall not be like a moneylender to him; you shall not charge him interest.

26 "If you ever take your neighbor's garment as a pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down.

27 "For that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin. What will he sleep in? And it will be that when he cries to Me, I will hear, for I am gracious.

28 "You shall not revile (lle0q1t4 xlo lo te-qal-lel = “be light; diminished; despised) Elohim, nor curse a ruler of your people.

29 "You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce and your juices. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me.

30 "Likewise you shall do with your oxen and your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.

31 "And you shall be holy men to Me: you shall not eat meat torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.

Exodus 23:

1 "You shall not circulate a false report. Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.

2 "You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after many to pervert justice.

3 "You shall not show partiality to a poor man in his dispute.

4 "If you meet your enemy's ox or his donkey going astray, you shall surely bring it back to him again.

5 "If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden, and you would refrain from helping it, you shall surely help him with it.

6 "You shall not pervert the judgment of your poor in his dispute.

7 "Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked.

8 "And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the discerning and perverts the words of the righteous.

9 "Also you shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the heart of a stranger, because you were strangers in the land of Mitzraim.

10 "Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce,

11 "but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove.

Exodus 23: 12 "Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed.

13 "And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect

(UrmewA0Ti > tish`shame`ru “be on guard”)

(UryKiz4ta xlo Myr9HexE Myhilox< Mwev4 > ve`shem e’lohim a’cherim lo taz`ki`ru) and make no remembrance/mention of the name of other gods,

( j~yPi-lfa fmawAy9 xlo > lo yi`shama al-pi`ka ) it shall not be heard upon your mouth.

14 "Three times you shall keep a feast to Me in the year:

15"You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread(tOc.ma0ha gHa) (you shall eat maz-zot seven days, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month of Aviv, for in it you came out of Mitzraim; none shall appear before Me empty (Mq!yr2 ynapA Uxr!y2-xlo);

16 "and the Feast of Harvest (ryciq!0ha gHa hag haq-qazir “corn harvest feast”), the firstfruits (yr2UKBi) of your labors which you have sown in the field; and the Feast of Ingathering (JsixAhA gHa) at the end of the year, when you have gathered in the fruit of your labors from the field.

17 "Three times in the year all your males shall appear before HaAdon Adonai.

18 "You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread (CmeHA-lfa); nor shall the fat of My sacrifice remain until morning.

19 "The first of the firstfruits of your land you shall bring into the house of HaShem Elo-hey-ka (j~helox< hvhoy4 tyBe). You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk.

20"Behold, I send an Angel (j`xAl;ma) before you to keep you in the way (j`r,D!Ba j~r;mAw;li “guard your walk/journey) and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.

21 "Beware of Him (vyin!PAmi rm,wA0hi “be on guard of him”) and obey His voice (OlqoB; fmawA “hear his voice”); do not provoke Him (OB rme0Ta-lxa “don’t become bitter”), for He will not pardon your transgressions (Mk,f3w;pil4 xWA0yi xlo yKi “he will not hold/lift/put-up with you falling away”); for My name is in Him.

22 "But if you indeed obey (fmawA “listen to”) His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.

23 "For My Angel will go before you and bring you in to the Emori (yr9mx$ talking voicestrous) and the Hitti (yTiHi fear/terror) and the Perizzi (yzi0r9P; villager) and the Kenaani (ynif3n1K; merchants) and the Hivvi (yUiHi villager) and the Jevusi (ysiUby4 trodden down); and I will cut them off.

24 "You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars.

25 "So you shall serve HaShem your Elohechem, and He will bless lache-me-ka (j~m;H;la “your bread”) and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you.

26 "No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.

27 "I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.

28 "And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivvi (Villager), the Kenaani (Merchant), and the Hitti (fear/terror) from before you.

29 "I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beast of the field become too numerous for you.

30 "Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land.

31 "And I will set your bounds from the Weed Sea (JUs-My!) to the sea, Phe-lishe-tim, and from the desert (rBAd4mi) to the River. For I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you.

32 "You shall make no covenant with them, nor with their gods.

33 "They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me. For if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you."

Exodus 24:

1 Now He said to Mosheh, "Come up to HaShem, you and Aharon, Nadav(spontaneous/liberal) and Avihu (whose father God is), and seventy of the elders of Yisrael, and worship from afar.

2 "And Mosheh alone shall come near HaShem, but they shall not come near; nor shall the people go up with him."

3 So Mosheh came and told the people all the words of HaShem and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, "All the words which HaShem has said we will do."

4 And Mosheh wrote all the words of HaShem. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes(yFeb;wi staff/stick/rod) of Yisrael.

5 Then he sent young men of the son’s of Yisrael, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to HaShem.

6 And Mosheh took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar.

7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant (tyr9B;ha rp,se) and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, "All that HaShem has said we will do, and be obedient (fmAw;n9v4)."

8 And Mosheh took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, "This is the blood of the covenant (tyr9B;ha-Md1) which HaShem has made with you according to all these words."

9 Then Mosheh went up, also Aharon, Nadav, and Avihu, and seventy of the elders of Yisrael,

10 and they saw the Elohey of Yisrael. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity.

11 But on the nobles of the son’s of Yisrael He did not lay His hand. So they saw Elohim, and they ate and drank.

12 Then HaShem said to Mosheh, "Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone, and the Torah and mizvah which I have written, that you may teach them."

13 So Mosheh arose with his assistant Yehoshua, and Mosheh went up to the mountain of Elohim.

14 And he said to the elders, "Wait here for us until we come back to you. Indeed Aharon and cHur are with you. If any man has a difficulty, let him go to them."

15 Then Mosheh went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain.

16 Now the glory of HaShem rested on Mount Sinai (ynaysi rHa), and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Mosheh out of the midst of the cloud.

17 The sight of the glory of HaShem was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the son’s of Yisrael.

18 So Mosheh went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Mosheh was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.