Deuteronomy 23

1He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah.

1A man whose male organs have been crushed or cut off may not enter the assembly of the LORD.

2A bastard shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah; even to the tenth generation shall none of his enter into the assembly of Jehovah.

2A person born from an illegal union may not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation, none of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD.

3An Ammonite or a Moabite shall not enter into the assembly of Jehovah; even to the tenth generation shall none belonging to them enter into the assembly of Jehovah for ever:

3No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants may ever enter the assembly of the LORD.

4because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt, and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee.

4This is because they did not provide you with food and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and they even hired Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Mesopotamia to call down a curse on you.

5Nevertheless Jehovah thy God would not hearken unto Balaam; but Jehovah thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because Jehovah thy God loved thee.

5However, the LORD your God refused to listen to Balaam; the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loves you.

6Thou shalt not seek their peace nor their prosperity all thy days for ever.

6You must never seek their peace or their prosperity as long as you live.

7Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian; because thou wast a sojourner in his land.

7Do not despise an Edomite, because he is your brother. Do not despise an Egyptian, because you were a foreigner living in his land.

8The children of the third generation that are born unto them shall enter into the assembly of Jehovah.

8The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the LORD.

9When thou goest forth in camp against thine enemies, then thou shalt keep thee from every evil thing.

9When you go out as an army to camp against your enemies, you must keep yourselves away from everything that is ritualistically unclean.

10If there be among you any man, that is not clean by reason of that which chanceth him by night, then shall he go abroad out of the camp, he shall not come within the camp:

10If any man among you becomes unclean because of a bodily emission during the night, he must go outside the camp and stay there.

11but it shall be, when evening cometh on, he shall bathe himself in water; and when the sun is down, he shall come within the camp.

11But toward evening he must wash himself with water, and when the sun goes down, he may return to the camp.

12Thou shalt have a place also without the camp, whither thou shalt go forth abroad:

12You must designate an area outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself.

13and thou shalt have a paddle among thy weapons; and it shall be, when thou sittest down abroad, thou shalt dig therewith, and shalt turn back and cover that which cometh from thee:

13As part of your equipment, you must have a digging tool; when you go to relieve yourself, dig a hole and then cover up your excrement.

14for Jehovah thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy, that he may not see an unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee.

14The LORD your God moves about in your camp to protect you and to defeat your enemies for you. Therefore, your camp must be holy, so that he does not see anything offensive among you and turn away from you.

15Thou shalt not deliver unto his master a servant that is escaped from his master unto thee:

15If a slave escapes from his master and comes to you for help, do not hand him back to his master.

16he shall dwell with thee, in the midst of thee, in the place which he shall choose within one of thy gates, where it pleaseth him best: thou shalt not oppress him.

16Let him live among you in whatever town he chooses, wherever he likes best. You must not mistreat him.

17There shall be no prostitute of the daughters of Israel, neither shall there be a sodomite of the sons of Israel.

17No Israelite woman or man is to become a temple prostitute.

18Thou shalt not bring the hire of a harlot, or the wages of a dog, into the house of Jehovah thy God for any vow: for even both these are an abomination unto Jehovah thy God.

18You must not bring the earnings of a female prostitute or a male prostitute into the house of the LORD your God to pay any vow; the LORD your God detests them both.

19Thou shalt not lend upon interest to thy brother; interest of money, interest of victuals, interest of anything that is lent upon interest.

19Do not charge your fellow Israelite interest on anything—whether it is money, food, or anything else that can be lent for interest.

20Unto a foreigner thou mayest lend upon interest; but unto thy brother thou shalt not lend upon interest, that Jehovah thy God may bless thee in all that thou puttest thy hand unto, in the land whither thou goest in to possess it.

20You may charge interest to a foreigner, but do not charge interest to your fellow Israelite. Do this so that the LORD your God may bless everything you do in the land you are entering to possess.

21When thou shalt vow a vow unto Jehovah thy God, thou shalt not be slack to pay it: for Jehovah thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.

21When you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to keep it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it from you, and you will be guilty of sin.

22But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.

22But if you choose not to make a vow, you will not be guilty of sin.

23That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt observe and do; according as thou hast vowed unto Jehovah thy God, a freewill-offering, which thou hast promised with thy mouth.

23Be careful to do whatever you have promised with your own lips, because you freely chose to make that vow to the LORD your God.

24When thou comest into thy neighbor’s vineyard, then thou mayest eat of grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel.

24If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you want until you are full, but do not put any in your basket.

25When thou comest into thy neighbor’s standing grain, then thou mayest pluck the ears with thy hand; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy neighbor’s standing grain.

25If you enter your neighbor’s grain field, you may pick the heads of grain with your hands, but do not use a sickle to harvest your neighbor’s standing grain.