Jethro’s Advice
Torah: Exodus 18:1-20:23
Exo 18:1 Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel His people, how that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.
Exo 18:2 And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her away,
Exo 18:3 and her two sons; of whom the name of the one was Gershom; for he said: ‘I have been a stranger in a strange land’;
Exo 18:4 and the name of the other was Eliezer: ‘for the God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.’
Exo 18:5 And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife unto Moses into the wilderness where he was encamped, at the mount of God;
Exo 18:6 and he said unto Moses: ‘I thy father-in-law Jethro am coming unto thee, and thy wife, and her two sons with her.’
Exo 18:7 And Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and bowed down and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare; and they came into the tent.
Exo 18:8 And Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done unto Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the travail that had come upon them by the way, and how the LORD delivered them.
Exo 18:9 And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the LORD had done to Israel, in that He had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians.
Exo 18:10 And Jethro said: ‘Blessed be the LORD, who hath delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh; who hath delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.
Exo 18:11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods; yea, for that they dealt proudly against them.’
Exo 18:12 And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt-offering and sacrifices for God; and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.
Exo 18:13 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people; and the people stood about Moses from the morning unto the evening.
Exo 18:14 And when Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he did to the people, he said: ‘What is this thing that thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand about thee from morning unto even?’
Exo 18:15 And Moses said unto his father-in-law: ‘Because the people come unto me to inquire of God;
Exo 18:16 when they have a matter, it cometh unto me; and I judge between a man and his neighbour, and I make them know the statutes of God, and His laws.’
Exo 18:17 And Moses’ father-in-law said unto him: ‘The thing that thou doest is not good.
Exo 18:18 Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee; for the thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.
Exo 18:19 Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God be with thee: be thou for the people before God, and bring thou the causes unto God.
Exo 18:20 And thou shalt teach them the statutes and the laws, and shalt show them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do.
Exo 18:21 Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating unjust gain; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
Exo 18:22 And let them judge the people at all seasons; and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge themselves; so shall they make it easier for thee and bear the burden with thee.
Exo 18:23 If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people also shall go to their place in peace.’
Exo 18:24 So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father-in-law, and did all that he had said.
Exo 18:25 And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
Exo 18:26 And they judged the people at all seasons: the hard causes they brought unto Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves.
Exo 18:27 And Moses let his father-in-law depart; and he went his way into his own land.
Israel at Mount Sinai
Exo 19:1 In the third month after the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai.
Exo 19:2 And when they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the wilderness of Sinai, they encamped in the wilderness; and there Israel encamped before the mount.
Exo 19:3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying: ‘Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel:
Exo 19:4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto Myself.
Exo 19:5 Now therefore, if ye will hearken unto My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then ye shall be Mine own treasure from among all peoples; for all the earth is Mine;
Exo 19:6 and ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.’
Exo 19:7 And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the LORD commanded him.
Exo 19:8 And all the people answered together, and said: ‘All that the LORD hath spoken we will do.’ And Moses reported the words of the people unto the LORD.
Exo 19:9 And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and may also believe thee for ever.’ And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD.
Exo 19:10 And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Go unto the people, and sanctify them to-day and to-morrow, and let them wash their garments,
Exo 19:11 and be ready against the third day; for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai.
Exo 19:12 And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying: Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it; whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death;
Exo 19:13 no hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live; when the ram’s horn soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount.’
Exo 19:14 And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their garments.
Exo 19:15 And he said unto the people: ‘Be ready against the third day; come not near a woman.’
Exo 19:16 And it came to pass on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of a horn exceeding loud; and all the people that were in the camp trembled.
Exo 19:17 And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount.
Exo 19:18 Now mount Sinai was altogether on smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.
Exo 19:19 And when the voice of the horn waxed louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by a voice.
Exo 19:20 And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, to the top of the mount; and the LORD called Moses to the top of the mount; and Moses went up.
Exo 19:21 And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish.
Exo 19:22 And let the priests also, that come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them.’
Exo 19:23 And Moses said unto the LORD: ‘The people cannot come up to mount Sinai; for thou didst charge us, saying: Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it.’
Exo 19:24 And the LORD said unto him: ‘Go, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee; but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest He break forth upon them.’
Exo 19:25 So Moses went down unto the people, and told them.
The Ten Commandments
Exo 20:1 And God spoke all these words, saying:
Exo 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any manner of likeness, of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;
Exo 20:5 thou shalt not bow down unto them, nor serve them; for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me;
Exo 20:6 and showing mercy unto the thousandth generation of them that love Me and keep My commandments.
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work;
Exo 20:10 but the seventh day is a sabbath unto the LORD thy God, in it thou shalt not do any manner of work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates;
Exo 20:11 for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day; wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Exo 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Exo 20:13 Thou shalt not murder.
Exo 20:14 (20:13) Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Exo 20:15 (20:13) Thou shalt not steal.
Exo 20:16 (20:13) Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Exo 20:17 (20:14) Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house; thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.
Exo 20:18 (20:15) And all the people perceived the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the voice of the horn, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled, and stood afar off.
Exo 20:19 (20:16) And they said unto Moses: ‘Speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.’
Exo 20:20 (20:17) And Moses said unto the people: ‘Fear not; for God is come to prove you, and that His fear may be before you, that ye sin not.’
Exo 20:21 (20:18) And the people stood afar off; but Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
Laws About Altars
Exo 20:22 (20:19) And the LORD said unto Moses: Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel: Ye yourselves have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
Exo 20:23 (20:20) Ye shall not make with Me – gods of silver, or gods of gold, ye shall not make unto you.
Exo 20:24 (20:21) An altar of earth thou shalt make unto Me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt-offerings, and thy peace-offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen; in every place where I cause My name to be mentioned I will come unto thee and bless thee.