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The Passover(A)

16 (B)“Honor the Lord your God by celebrating Passover in the month of Abib; it was on a night in that month that he rescued you from Egypt. Go to the one place of worship and slaughter there one of your sheep or cattle for the Passover meal to honor the Lord your God. When you eat this meal, do not eat bread prepared with yeast. For seven days you are to eat bread prepared without yeast, as you did when you had to leave Egypt in such a hurry. Eat this bread—it will be called the bread of suffering—so that as long as you live you will remember the day you came out of Egypt, that place of suffering. For seven days no one in your land is to have any yeast in the house; and the meat of the animal killed on the evening of the first day must be eaten that same night.

5-6 “Slaughter the Passover animals at the one place of worship—and nowhere else in the land that the Lord your God will give you. Do it at sunset, the time of day when you left Egypt. Boil the meat and eat it at the one place of worship; and the next morning return home. For the next six days you are to eat bread prepared without yeast, and on the seventh day assemble to worship the Lord your God, and do no work on that day.

The Harvest Festival(C)

(D)“Count seven weeks from the time that you begin to harvest the grain, 10 and then celebrate the Harvest Festival, to honor the Lord your God, by bringing him a freewill offering in proportion to the blessing he has given you. 11 Be joyful in the Lord's presence, together with your children, your servants, and the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows who live in your towns. Do this at the one place of worship. 12 Be sure that you obey these commands; do not forget that you were slaves in Egypt.

The Festival of Shelters(E)

13 (F)“After you have threshed all your grain and pressed all your grapes, celebrate the Festival of Shelters for seven days. 14 Enjoy it with your children, your servants, and the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows who live in your towns. 15 Honor the Lord your God by celebrating this festival for seven days at the one place of worship. Be joyful, because the Lord has blessed your harvest and your work.

16 “All the men of your nation are to come to worship the Lord three times a year at the one place of worship: at Passover, Harvest Festival, and the Festival of Shelters. Each man is to bring a gift 17 as he is able, in proportion to the blessings that the Lord your God has given him.

The Administration of Justice

18 “Appoint judges and other officials in every town that the Lord your God gives you. These men are to judge the people impartially. 19 (G)They are not to be unjust or show partiality in their judgments; and they are not to accept bribes, for gifts blind the eyes even of wise and honest men, and cause them to give wrong decisions. 20 Always be fair and just, so that you will occupy the land that the Lord your God is giving you and so that you will continue to live there.

21 (H)“When you make an altar for the Lord your God, do not put beside it a wooden symbol of the goddess Asherah. 22 (I)And do not set up any stone pillar for idol worship; the Lord hates them.

The Passover(A)

16 Observe the month of Aviv(B) and celebrate the Passover(C) of the Lord your God, because in the month of Aviv he brought you out of Egypt by night. Sacrifice as the Passover to the Lord your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the Lord will choose as a dwelling for his Name.(D) Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction,(E) because you left Egypt in haste(F)—so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt.(G) Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening(H) of the first day remain until morning.(I)

You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God gives you except in the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary[a](J) of your departure from Egypt. Roast(K) it and eat it at the place the Lord your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents. For six days eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day hold an assembly(L) to the Lord your God and do no work.(M)

The Festival of Weeks(N)

Count off seven weeks(O) from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.(P) 10 Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. 11 And rejoice(Q) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name(R)—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites(S) in your towns, and the foreigners,(T) the fatherless and the widows living among you.(U) 12 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt,(V) and follow carefully these decrees.

The Festival of Tabernacles(W)

13 Celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor(X) and your winepress.(Y) 14 Be joyful(Z) at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns. 15 For seven days celebrate the festival to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy(AA) will be complete.

16 Three times a year all your men must appear(AB) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(AC) the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles.(AD) No one should appear before the Lord empty-handed:(AE) 17 Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.

Judges

18 Appoint judges(AF) and officials for each of your tribes in every town the Lord your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly.(AG) 19 Do not pervert justice(AH) or show partiality.(AI) Do not accept a bribe,(AJ) for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the innocent. 20 Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.

Worshiping Other Gods

21 Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole(AK) beside the altar you build to the Lord your God,(AL) 22 and do not erect a sacred stone,(AM) for these the Lord your God hates.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 16:6 Or down, at the time of day