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25 If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge, you shall return it to him before sunset;

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25 “If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not treat it like a business deal; charge no interest.(A)

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Anyone who curses father or mother shall be put to death;[a](A) and having cursed father or mother, such a one will bear the bloodguilt.[b] 10 [c]If a man commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife,(B) both the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death. 11 If a man disgraces his father by lying with his father’s wife,(C) the two of them shall be put to death; their bloodguilt is upon them.

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Footnotes

  1. 20:9 Curses father or mother…put to death: this is more than a simple expletive uttered in anger against one’s parents. See note on Ex 21:17.
  2. 20:9–21 Bloodguilt: these penalties, beginning with cursing one’s parents, reflect the concerns of a patriarchal society that the breakdown of one’s relations with one’s parents can lead to the breakdown of all other familial relationships, resulting in the breakdown of society.
  3. 20:10–21 See 18:6–23 and notes there. It appears that the inclusion of various penalties in 20:10–21 accounts for the different order of the cases here compared to the order found in 18:6–23. The reason why the offenses in 20:10–21 carry different penalties, however, is not clear. Perhaps the cases in vv. 17–21 were considered slightly less serious, being condemned but not criminally prosecuted.

“‘Anyone who curses their father(A) or mother(B) is to be put to death.(C) Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head.(D)

10 “‘If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife(E)—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death.(F)

11 “‘If a man has sexual relations with his father’s wife, he has dishonored his father.(G) Both the man and the woman are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.(H)

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