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Ambassador Baptist Church
1926 Babcock Blvd
Pittsburgh, PA 15209
(412)477-3210
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January 25, 2007

Exodus 22-24

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Following Scripture Verses


Exodus
Chapter 22
  1. If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.
  2. If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.
  3. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.
  4. If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double.
  5. If a man shall cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man's field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution.
  6. If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.
  7. If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man's house; if the thief be found, let him pay double.
  8. If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour's goods.
  9. For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.
  10. If a man deliver unto his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it:
  11. Then shall an oath of the LORD be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour's goods; and the owner of it shall accept thereof, and he shall not make it good.
  12. And if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof.
  13. If it be torn in pieces, then let him bring it for witness, and he shall not make good that which was torn.
  14. And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof being not with it, he shall surely make it good.
  15. But if the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good: if it be an hired thing, it came for his hire.
  16. And if a man entice a maid that is not betrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely endow her to be his wife.
  17. If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.
  18. Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
  19. Whosoever lieth with a beast shall surely be put to death.
  20. He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed.
  21. Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
  22. Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.
  23. If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry;
  24. And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.
  25. If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury.
  26. If thou at all take thy neighbour's raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him by that the sun goeth down:
  27. For that is his covering only, it is his raiment for his skin: wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he crieth unto me, that I will hear; for I am gracious.
  28. Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people.
  29. Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me.
  30. Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me.
  31. And ye shall be holy men unto me: neither shall ye eat any flesh that is torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs.


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Exodus
Chapter 23
  1. Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.
  2. Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:
  3. Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.
  4. If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
  5. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
  6. Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.
  7. Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
  8. And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
  9. Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
  10. And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:
  11. But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
  12. 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.
  13. And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.
  14. Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
  15. Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
  16. And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
  17. Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
  18. Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.
  19. The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk.
  20. Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
  21. Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.
  22. But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.
  23. For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.
  24. Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.
  25. And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.
  26. There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil.
  27. I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee.
  28. And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee.
  29. I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee.
  30. By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.
  31. And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.
  32. Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods.
  33. They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me: for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee.


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Exodus
Chapter 24
  1. And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off.
  2. And Moses alone shall come near the LORD: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him.
  3. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do.
  4. And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.
  5. And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the LORD.
  6. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
  7. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.
  8. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words.
  9. Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:
  10. And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
  11. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.
  12. And the LORD said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.
  13. And Moses rose up, and his minister Joshua: and Moses went up into the mount of God.
  14. And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them.
  15. And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud covered the mount.
  16. And the glory of the LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud.
  17. And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel.
  18. And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.



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Thought for the day:
You may click on verses for Scripture


 One thing that sticks out in my mind from todays Scripture passage is the concept of restitution. This concept is mentioned several times in Exodus 22, and I believe that it is valid for us to consider it today. I am not completely familiar with our court system, but I believe that the focus of justice is often on punishment. While I believe that punishment is appropriate, I also believe that restitution is equally important. If I cause someone harm because of my sinful behavior, or even through an unforeseen accident, I have a responsibility to do my best to make it right; not just spiritually, but financially as well. So often people think that an "I'm sorry" covers everything. The truth of the matter is, if someone has suffered monetary loss because of my actions, the Biblical thing to do is to attempt to make it right. When Zacchaeus came to the Lord, he made the statement,

"If I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold" ( Luke 19:8).
This is a true evidence of repentance, and also of love: both for God and the one who has been cheated.

 Restitution probably includes more than just finances, although that is the most obvious application. If I have slandered someone, when I repent I should

"bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance", ( Luke 3:8),
which would probably include going back to those that I have gossiped to, and telling them that I was wrong in what I said. If I have lied about someone, I need to ask forgiveness not only from the one that I told the lie about, but also from the ones that I have told the lie to. This may require a humbling of myself in front of many people. However, isn't that what true repentance is all about? God is looking for humble ( James 4:6: "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble") and contrite ( Psalm 34:18: "The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit") people who are willing to make restitution in order to be in a right relationship with God and others.

 One last thought: Remember Aaron and Hur from Exodus 17 and the holding up of Moses' hands. Not much was said about them then, even though they had exhausted themselves helping out the man of God. However, here in Exodus 24:14, when Moses prepares to head back up onto the mountain, he instructs the people that, if they have any problems,

"behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them."
God does not forget those who minister unto Him. Menial service today may result in special service tomorrow.

Pastor Dr. Mark J Montgomery

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