1
“If two Israelites have a dispute and they go to a court, the judge will probably decide that one is innocent and that the other one is guilty.
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If the judge says that the guilty person must be punished, he shall command him to lie with his face on the ground and be whipped. The number of times he is struck with a whip will depend on what kind of crime he committed.
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It is permitted that he be struck as many as forty times, but no more than that. If he is struck more than forty times, he would be humiliated publicly.
4
When your ox is walking on the grain to separate it from the chaff, do not prevent it from eating some of grain.
Widowhood and Marriage
5
If two brothers live on the same property, and one of them who has no son dies, the man’s widow should not marry someone who is not a member of his family. The dead man’s brother must marry her and sleep with her. It is his duty to do that.
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If she later gives birth to a son, that son is to be considered the son of the man who died, in order that the dead man’s name will not disappear from Israel.
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But if the dead man’s brother does not want to marry that woman, she must stand at the city gate. She must say to the city leaders, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to marry me in order that I may give birth to a son who will prevent the dead man’s name from disappearing in Israel.’
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Then the elders must summon that man and talk to him. Perhaps he will still refuse to marry that widow.
9
In that case, she must go up to him while the elders are watching, and take off one of his sandals to symbolize that he would not receive any of her property, spit in his face, and say to him, ‘This is what happens to the man who refuses to do what is needed to allow his dead brother to have a son in order that our family name does not disappear.’
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After that happens, that man’s family will be known as ‘the family of the man whose sandal was pulled off.’
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When two men are fighting with each other, and the one man’s wife comes up to help her husband by grabbing hold of the other man’s private parts,
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do not act mercifully toward her; cut off her hand.
Standard Weights and Measures
(Proverbs 11:1–3; Ezekiel 45:10–12)
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When you are buying or selling things, do not try to cheat people by having two kinds of weights,
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one which you use when you buy something and one which you use when you sell something, or two kinds of measuring baskets, one which you use when you buy something and one which you use when you sell something.
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Always use correct weights and correct measuring baskets, in order that Yahweh our God will allow you to live a long time in the land that he is giving to you.
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Yahweh hates all those who act dishonestly, and he will punish them.
Revenge on the Amalekites
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Continue to remember what the Amalek people group did to your ancestors when they were coming out of Egypt.
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They attacked your ancestors as they were traveling, when they were weak and exhausted. Those people were not afraid of God at all, so they attacked your ancestors from the rear and killed all those who were unable to walk as fast as the others.
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Therefore, when Yahweh our God has given you the land that he promised to give you, and when he has enabled you to rest from fighting all your enemies around you, kill all the Amalek people group, with the result that no one will remember them anymore. Do not forget to do this!
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