Various Laws

1“If a man chooses to enter into marriage with a woman, but she finds herself displeasing to him because he has found something objectionablea about her, he must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her out of his house. 2If she goes out from his house, becomes the wife of another man, 3and this second husbandb dislikes her, he, also, must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her away from his house. Should the second husband die, 4her first husband who married her and divorced her earlier must not remarry her,c because she was defiled, since this is detestable to the LORD. Don’t defile the land that the LORD your God is about to give you as a possession.

5“When a man is newly married, he must not be sent out to war or have a related duty placed on him. Let him stay home for one year and be happy with his wife whom he has married.

6“Don’t take a pair of millstones, especially the upper millstone, as collateral for a loan, because this means taking a man’sd livelihood.

7“If a man is found kidnapping his relative, a fellow Israeli, and mistreats or sells him, that kidnapper must die. By doing this, you will remove this evil from among you.

8“In cases of leprosy, be very careful to observe exactly what the Levitical priests instructed you. Carefully follow what I have commanded them. 9Remember what the LORD your God did to Miriam along the way as you were coming out of Egypt.”

Respecting the Poor

10“When you loan something to your neighbor, don’t enter his house to seize what he offered as collateral. 11Stay outside and let the man to whom you made the loan bring ite out to you. 12If he is a poor man, don’t go to sleep with his collateral in your possession.f 13Be sure to return his garmentg to him at sunset so that he may sleep with it, and he will bless you. It will be a righteous deed in the presence of the LORD your God. 14Don’t take advantage of a hired person who is poor and needy, whether he’s your fellow citizen or a foreigner who lives in your city. 15Pay his wages that same day before the sun sets, because he is poor and his livelihoodh depends on it. Otherwise, he may cry out to the LORD against you, and you will incur guilt.”

Practicing Justice

16“Fathers must not be put to death on account of their children’s sin; nor shall children die on account of their fathers’ sin. Each person is to be put to death for his own sin.

17“Don’t deny justice to a foreigner or to an orphan, nor take a widow’s garment as collateral for a loan. 18Remember to observe this because you were slaves in Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you from there. That is why I am commanding you to do this.

19“When you are reaping in the field, and you overlook a sheaf, don’t return to get it. Let it remain for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow, in order that the LORD your God may bless everything you undertake. 20When you harvest the olives from your trees, don’t go back to the branches a second time. What remains is for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow. 21When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, don’t go back a second time. What remains are for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow. 22Remember to do this because you were slaves in the land of Egypt. That is why I’m commanding you to do this.”