Exodus 23:12
New International Version
“Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the slave born in your household and the foreigner living among you may be refreshed.

New Living Translation
“You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but on the seventh day you must stop working. This gives your ox and your donkey a chance to rest. It also allows your slaves and the foreigners living among you to be refreshed.

English Standard Version
“Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant woman, and the alien, may be refreshed.

Berean Standard Bible
For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, so that your ox and your donkey may rest and the son of your maidservant may be refreshed, as well as the foreign resident.

King James Bible
Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

New King James Version
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.

New American Standard Bible
“For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave, as well as the stranger residing with you, may refresh themselves.

NASB 1995
“Six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave, as well as your stranger, may refresh themselves.

NASB 1977
“Six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor in order that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave, as well as your stranger, may refresh themselves.

Legacy Standard Bible
“Six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your maidservant, as well as your sojourner, may refresh themselves.

Amplified Bible
“Six days [each week] you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall stop [working] so that your ox and your donkey may settle down and rest, and the son of your female servant, as well as your stranger, may be refreshed.

Christian Standard Bible
“Do your work for six days but rest on the seventh day so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave as well as the resident alien may be refreshed.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Do your work for six days but rest on the seventh day so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave as well as the foreign resident may be refreshed.”

American Standard Version
Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest; that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the sojourner, may be refreshed.

Contemporary English Version
Work the first six days of the week, but rest and relax on the seventh day. This law is not only for you, but for your oxen, donkeys, and slaves, as well as for any foreigners among you.

English Revised Version
Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"For six days you will do your work, but on the seventh day you must not work. Then your ox and donkey can rest. The slaves born in your household and foreigners will also be refreshed.

Good News Translation
"Work six days a week, but do no work on the seventh day, so that your slaves and the foreigners who work for you and even your animals can rest.

International Standard Version
You are to do your work for six days, but on the seventh day you are to refrain from work so that your ox and donkey may rest, and so the son of your maidservant and the alien may be refreshed.

Majority Standard Bible
For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, so that your ox and your donkey may rest and the son of your maidservant may be refreshed, as well as the foreign resident.

NET Bible
For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, in order that your ox and your donkey may rest and that your female servant's son and any hired help may refresh themselves.

New Heart English Bible
"Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your handmaid, and the alien may be refreshed.

Webster's Bible Translation
Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thy ox and thy ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

World English Bible
“Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant, and the alien may be refreshed.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Six days you do your work, and on the seventh day you rest, so that your ox and your donkey rest, and the son of your handmaid and the sojourner is refreshed;

Young's Literal Translation
'Six days thou dost do thy work, and on the seventh day thou dost rest, so that thine ox and thine ass doth rest, and the son of thine handmaid and the sojourner is refreshed;

Smith's Literal Translation
Six days thou shalt do thy works, and in the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox shall rest, and thine ass, and the son of thy maid shall be refreshed, and the stranger.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Six days thou shalt work: the seventh day thou shalt cease, that thy ox and thy ass may rest: and the son of thy handmaid and the stranger may be refreshed.

Catholic Public Domain Version
For six days, you shall work. On the seventh day, you shall cease, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the newcomer and the son of your handmaid may be refreshed.

New American Bible
For six days you may do your work, but on the seventh day you must rest, that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and that the son of your maidservant and the resident alien may be refreshed.

New Revised Standard Version
Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest, so that your ox and your donkey may have relief, and your homeborn slave and the resident alien may be refreshed.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your ass may rest and the son of your handmaid; and that the stranger in your towns may be refreshed.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
In six days you shall do your work and in the seventh day you shall rest, so that your ox and your donkey will rest, and the son of your maid Servant will be refreshed, and the stranger that is in your towns.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Six days thou shalt do thy work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest; that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Six days shalt thou do thy works, and on the seventh day there shall be rest, that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and that the son of thy maid-servant and the stranger may be refreshed.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Sabbath Laws
11but in the seventh year you must let it rest and lie fallow, so that the poor among your people may eat from the field and the wild animals may consume what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and olive grove. 12For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, so that your ox and your donkey may rest and the son of your maidservant may be refreshed, as well as the foreign resident. 13Pay close attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.…

Cross References
Genesis 2:2-3
And by the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on that day He rested from all His work. / Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on that day He rested from all the work of creation that He had accomplished.

Deuteronomy 5:12-14
Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. / Six days you shall labor and do all your work, / but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox or donkey or any of your livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest as you do.

Leviticus 23:3
For six days work may be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, a day of sacred assembly. You must not do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.

Isaiah 58:13-14
If you turn your foot from breaking the Sabbath, from doing as you please on My holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight, and the LORD’s holy day honorable, if you honor it by not going your own way or seeking your own pleasure or speaking idle words, / then you will delight yourself in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the land and feed you with the heritage of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Matthew 12:8
For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

Mark 2:27-28
Then Jesus declared, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. / Therefore, the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Luke 13:14-16
But the synagogue leader was indignant that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. “There are six days for work,” he told the crowd. “So come and be healed on those days and not on the Sabbath.” / “You hypocrites!” the Lord replied. “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it to water? / Then should not this daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be released from her bondage on the Sabbath day?”

Hebrews 4:9-10
There remains, then, a Sabbath rest for the people of God. / For whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His.

Nehemiah 13:15-22
In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath and bringing in grain and loading it on donkeys, along with wine, grapes, and figs. All kinds of goods were being brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. So I warned them against selling food on that day. / Additionally, men of Tyre who lived there were importing fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah in Jerusalem. / Then I rebuked the nobles of Judah and asked, “What is this evil you are doing—profaning the Sabbath day? ...

Ezekiel 20:12
I also gave them My Sabbaths as a sign between us, so that they would know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them.

Jeremiah 17:21-22
This is what the LORD says: Take heed for yourselves; do not carry a load or bring it through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. / You must not carry a load out of your houses or do any work on the Sabbath day, but you must keep the Sabbath day holy, just as I commanded your forefathers.

Numbers 15:32-36
While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day. / Those who found the man gathering wood brought him to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation, / and because it had not been declared what should be done to him, they placed him in custody. ...

Colossians 2:16-17
Therefore let no one judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a feast, a New Moon, or a Sabbath. / These are a shadow of the things to come, but the body that casts it belongs to Christ.

Acts 20:7
On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Since Paul was ready to leave the next day, he talked to them and kept on speaking until midnight.

Romans 14:5-6
One person regards a certain day above the others, while someone else considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. / He who observes a special day does so to the Lord; he who eats does so to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.


Treasury of Scripture

Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest: that your ox and your ass may rest, and the son of your handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

six days

Exodus 20:8-11
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy…

Exodus 31:15,16
Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death…

Luke 13:14
And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.

and the son

Deuteronomy 5:13-15
Six days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work: …

Isaiah 58:3
Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.

Jump to Previous
Alien Ass Bondmaid Born Cease Donkey Female Handmaid Household Labor Ox Refresh Refreshed Rest Sabbath Servant Seventh Six Slave Sojourner Strange Stranger Themselves Together Work
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Alien Ass Bondmaid Born Cease Donkey Female Handmaid Household Labor Ox Refresh Refreshed Rest Sabbath Servant Seventh Six Slave Sojourner Strange Stranger Themselves Together Work
Exodus 23
1. Of slander, false witness, and partiality
4. Of charitableness
6. Of justice in judgment
8. Of taking bribes
9. Of oppressing a stranger
10. Of the year of rest
12. Of the Sabbath
13. Of idolatry
14. Of the three feasts
18. Of the blood and the fat of the sacrifice
20. An angel is promised, with a blessing, if they obey him














For six days you are to do your work
This phrase establishes a rhythm of work and rest that is foundational to the Judeo-Christian ethic. The Hebrew word for "work" is "מְלָאכָה" (melachah), which refers to occupation, craftsmanship, or business. This commandment reflects the creation narrative in Genesis, where God worked for six days and rested on the seventh. Historically, this pattern has been a cornerstone of societal structure, emphasizing diligence and responsibility. It underscores the value of labor and the divine mandate to engage in productive activities.

but on the seventh day you must cease
The word "cease" is translated from the Hebrew "שָׁבַת" (shavat), which means to rest or desist. This is the root of the word "Sabbath," a day set apart for rest and spiritual rejuvenation. The Sabbath is not merely a cessation of labor but a holy pause, a time to reflect on God's provision and sovereignty. Archaeological findings, such as ancient calendars and inscriptions, indicate that the concept of a rest day was unique to Israel in the ancient Near East, highlighting its countercultural nature and divine origin.

so that your ox and your donkey may have rest
This phrase extends the Sabbath rest to animals, demonstrating God's compassion and concern for all creation. The Hebrew word for "rest" here is "נוּחַ" (nuach), which implies a settling down or repose. This provision reflects the ethical treatment of animals, a principle that was advanced for its time. It acknowledges the interconnectedness of life and the responsibility of humans to care for the creatures under their stewardship.

and the son of your maidservant and the foreigner may be refreshed
The inclusion of the "son of your maidservant" and "the foreigner" highlights the egalitarian nature of the Sabbath. The Hebrew word for "refreshed" is "נָפַשׁ" (naphash), meaning to take breath or revive. This provision ensures that rest is not a privilege of the elite but a right for all, including servants and foreigners. It reflects God's justice and mercy, emphasizing that His laws are designed to promote the well-being of every individual, regardless of social status or nationality. This inclusivity is a testament to the universal scope of God's care and the call for His people to embody His character in their treatment of others.

(12) The law of the weekly Sabbath is here repeated in conjunction with that of the Sabbatical year, to mark the intimate connection between the two, which were parts of one and the same system--a system which culminated in the Jubilee year (Leviticus 25:8-13). Nothing is added to the requirements of the fourth commandment; but the merciful intention of the Sabbath day is more fully brought out--it is to be kept in order that the cattle may rest, and the slave and stranger may be refreshed.

Verse 12. - Law of the Sabbath, repeated. Nothing is here added to the teaching of the Fourth Commandment; but its merciful character is especially brought out. Men are called on to observe it, in order that their cattle may obtain rest, and their servants, together with the stranger that is within their gates, may find refreshment. It is to be borne in mind that the foreign population of Palestine was mostly held to hard service. (See 2 Chronicles 2:17, 18.) Verse 13 contains two injunctions - one general, one special: -

1. "Be circumspect" (or cautious, careful) "in respect of all that I command you."

2. "Do not so much as utter the name of any false god." Not even to mention their names, was to show them the greatest contempt possible; and, if followed out universally, would soon have produced an absolute oblivion of them. Moses, it may be observed, scarcely ever does mention their names. Later historians and prophets had to do so, either to deliver the true history of the Israelites, or to denounce idolatries to which they were given. There are many words one would wish never to utter; but while wicked men do the things of which they are the names, preachers are obliged to use the words in their sermons and other warnings.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
For six
שֵׁ֤שֶׁת (šê·šeṯ)
Number - masculine singular construct
Strong's 8337: Six (a cardinal number)

days
יָמִים֙ (yā·mîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 3117: A day

you are to do
תַּעֲשֶׂ֣ה (ta·‘ă·śeh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 6213: To do, make

your work,
מַעֲשֶׂ֔יךָ (ma·‘ă·śe·ḵā)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property

but on the seventh
הַשְּׁבִיעִ֖י (haš·šə·ḇî·‘î)
Article | Number - ordinal masculine singular
Strong's 7637: Seventh (an ordinal number)

day
וּבַיּ֥וֹם (ū·ḇay·yō·wm)
Conjunctive waw, Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3117: A day

you must cease,
תִּשְׁבֹּ֑ת (tiš·bōṯ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 7673: To repose, desist from exertion

so that
לְמַ֣עַן (lə·ma·‘an)
Conjunction
Strong's 4616: Purpose -- intent

your ox
שֽׁוֹרְךָ֙ (šō·wr·ḵā)
Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 7794: A head of cattle (bullock, ox, etcetera)

and your donkey
וַחֲמֹרֶ֔ךָ (wa·ḥă·mō·re·ḵā)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 2543: A male ass

may rest,
יָנ֗וּחַ (yā·nū·aḥ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5117: To rest, settle down

and the son
בֶּן־ (ben-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

of your maidservant
אֲמָתְךָ֖ (’ă·mā·ṯə·ḵā)
Noun - feminine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 519: A maidservant, female slave

may be refreshed,
וְיִנָּפֵ֥שׁ (wə·yin·nā·p̄êš)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Conjunctive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5314: To breathe, refreshed

as well as the foreign resident.
וְהַגֵּֽר׃ (wə·hag·gêr)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1616: A guest, a foreigner


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OT Law: Exodus 23:12 Six days you shall do your work (Exo. Ex)
Exodus 23:11
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