Font Size
Exodus 20
Evangelical Heritage Version
Exodus 20
Evangelical Heritage Version
The Ten Commandments
20 Then God spoke all these words:
2 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from the land of Egypt, where you were slaves.[a]
3 You shall have no other gods beside me.[b] 4 You shall not make any carved image for yourself or a likeness of anything in heaven above, or on the earth below, or in the waters under the earth. 5 Do not bow down to them or be subservient to them,[c] for I the Lord your God am a jealous God.[d] I follow up on[e] the guilt of the fathers with their children, their grandchildren, and their great-grandchildren, if they also hate me. 6 But I show mercy to thousands who love me and keep my commandments.
7 You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not permit anyone who misuses his name to escape unpunished.
8 Remember the Sabbath day[f] by setting it apart as holy. 9 Six days you are to serve and do all your regular work, 10 but the seventh day shall be a sabbath rest to the Lord your God. Do not do any regular work, neither you, nor your sons or daughters, nor your male or female servants, nor your cattle, nor the alien who is residing inside your gates, 11 for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. In this way the Lord blessed the seventh day and made it holy.
12 Honor your father and your mother so that you may spend many days on the land that the Lord your God is giving to you.
13 You shall not commit murder.
14 You shall not commit adultery.
15 You shall not steal.
16 You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.[g]
18 All the people saw and heard the thunder and the lightning and the sound of the ram’s horn and the mountain smoking. The people saw,[h] and they trembled and stood far away. 19 Then they said to Moses, “Speak with us yourself, and we will listen, but do not let God speak with us, or we will die.”
20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid, for God has come to test you, so that you may always fear him, so that you do not sin.”
21 The people stayed at a distance, but Moses approached the thick darkness where God was.
22 Then the Lord told Moses to tell the people of Israel the following things:
You yourselves have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. 23 You shall not make gods of silver or gods of gold and place them beside me. You shall not make them for yourselves.
24 You are to make an altar of earth for me and to sacrifice your whole burnt offerings on it, as well as your fellowship offerings, your sheep, and your cattle. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered, I will come to you and I will bless you.
25 If you make a stone altar for me, you are not to build it out of cut stones, because by applying a tool to it you would pollute it.
26 You are not to go up to my altar by steps, so that your nakedness will not be uncovered upon it.
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:2 Literally the house of slaves
- Exodus 20:3 Literally against my face or besides me or before me or in my presence or because of my presence
- Exodus 20:5 The verb is not the normal form for serve but a special form that implies subservience.
- Exodus 20:5 That is, I am a God who demands exclusive loyalty
- Exodus 20:5 Or demand an accounting for. The Hebrew verb pachad has traditionally been translated visit, but in present-day English visit usually has a social connotation. The term, however, refers to an official visit to bring punishment or reward to someone.
- Exodus 20:8 That is, the day of rest
- Exodus 20:17 Another version of the Ten Commandments appears in Deuteronomy 5:1-21.
- Exodus 20:18 A variant in some ancient versions is feared.
Exodus 20
New International Version
Exodus 20
New International Version
The Ten Commandments(A)
20 And God spoke(B) all these words:(C)
2 “I am the Lord your God,(D) who brought you out(E) of Egypt,(F) out of the land of slavery.(G)
3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me.(H)
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image(I) in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship(J) them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,(K) punishing the children for the sin of the parents(L) to the third and fourth generation(M) of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand(N) generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.(O)
8 “Remember the Sabbath(P) day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,(Q) 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath(R) to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth,(S) the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested(T) on the seventh day.(U) Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 “Honor your father and your mother,(V) so that you may live long(W) in the land(X) the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.(Y)
14 “You shall not commit adultery.(Z)
15 “You shall not steal.(AA)
16 “You shall not give false testimony(AB) against your neighbor.(AC)
17 “You shall not covet(AD) your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
18 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet(AE) and saw the mountain in smoke,(AF) they trembled with fear.(AG) They stayed at a distance 19 and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak(AH) to us or we will die.”(AI)
20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid.(AJ) God has come to test(AK) you, so that the fear(AL) of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”(AM)
21 The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness(AN) where God was.
Idols and Altars
22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven:(AO) 23 Do not make any gods to be alongside me;(AP) do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.(AQ)
24 “‘Make an altar(AR) of earth for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings(AS) and fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats and your cattle. Wherever I cause my name(AT) to be honored, I will come to you and bless(AU) you. 25 If you make an altar of stones for me, do not build it with dressed stones, for you will defile it if you use a tool(AV) on it. 26 And do not go up to my altar on steps, or your private parts(AW) may be exposed.’
Footnotes
- Exodus 20:3 Or besides
Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.