Exodus 22:28

Complete Jewish Bible

"You are not to delay offering from your harvest of grain, olive oil or wine. "The firstborn of your sons you are to give to me.

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
"You shall not blaspheme God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

King James Version
Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people.

Lexham English Bible
"‘You will not curse God, and you will not curse a leader among your people.

New Century Version
"You must not speak against God or curse a leader of your people.

New English Translation
"You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

Amplified Bible
"You shall not curse God, nor curse the ruler of your people [since he administers God's law].

New American Standard Bible
"You shall not curse God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Thou shalt not raile vpon the Iudges, neither speake euil of the ruler of thy people.

Legacy Standard Bible
"You shall not curse God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

Contemporary English Version
Don't speak evil of me or of the ruler of your people.

Darby Translation
Thou shalt not revile the judges, nor curse a prince amongst thy people.

Easy-to-Read Version
"You must not curse God or the leaders of your people.

English Standard Version
"You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

George Lamsa Translation
You shall not revile the judge nor curse the ruler of your people.

Good News Translation
"Do not speak evil of God, and do not curse a leader of your people.

Christian Standard Bible®
“You must not blaspheme God or curse a leader among your people.

Literal Translation
You shall not revile God, and you shall not curse a ruler among your people.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Thou shalt not speake euell of the Goddes, and the ruler of thy people shall thou not blaspheme.

American Standard Version
Thou shalt not revile God, nor curse a ruler of thy people.

Bible in Basic English
You may not say evil of the judges, or put a curse on the ruler of your people.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Thou shalt not rayle vpon ye gods, neither blaspheme ye ruler of the people.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Thou shalt not delay to offer of the fulness of thy harvest, and of the outflow of thy presses. The first-born of thy sons shalt thou give unto Me.

King James Version (1611)
Thou shalt not reuile the Gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor speak ill of the ruler of thy people.

English Revised Version
Thou shalt not revile God, nor curse a ruler of thy people.

Berean Standard Bible
You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Thou schalt not bacbyte goddis, and thou schalt not curse the prince of thi puple.

Young's Literal Translation
`God thou dost not revile, and a prince among thy people thou dost not curse.

Update Bible Version
You shall not revile the gods, nor curse a ruler of your people.

Webster's Bible Translation
Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people.

World English Bible
"You shall not blaspheme God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

New King James Version
"You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

New Living Translation
"You must not dishonor God or curse any of your rulers.

New Life Bible
"Do not curse God, or a ruler of your people.

New Revised Standard
You shall not revile God, or curse a leader of your people.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
God, shalt thou not revile, - and a prince among thy people, shalt thou not curse.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou shalt not speak ill of the gods, and the prince of thy people thou shalt not curse.

Revised Standard Version
"You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

THE MESSAGE
"Don't curse God; and don't damn your leaders.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"You shall not curse God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

Contextual Overview

²⁵ If you take your neighbor's coat as collateral, you are to restore it to him by sundown, ²⁶ because it is his only garment — he needs it to wrap his body; what else does he have in which to sleep? Moreover, if he cries out to me, I will listen; because I am compassionate. ²⁷ (iv) "You are not to curse God, and you are not to curse a leader of your people. ²⁸ "You are not to delay offering from your harvest of grain, olive oil or wine. "The firstborn of your sons you are to give to me. ²⁹ You are to do the same with your oxen and your sheep — it is to stay with its mother seven days, and on the eighth day you are to give it to me. ³⁰ "You are to be my specially separated people. Therefore you are not to eat any flesh torn by wild animals in the countryside; rather, throw it out for the dogs. ³¹ "If a thief caught in the act of breaking in is beaten to death, it is not murder; unless it happens after sunrise, in which case it is murder. A thief must make restitution; so if he has nothing, he himself is to be sold to make good the loss from the theft. If what he stole is found alive in his possession, he is to pay double, no matter whether it is an ox, a donkey or a sheep. (iii) "If a person causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over or lets his animal loose to graze in someone else's field, he is to make restitution from the best produce of his own field and vineyard. "If a fire is started and spreads to thorns, so that stacked grain, standing grain or a field is destroyed, the person who lit it must make restitution. "If a person entrusts a neighbor with money or goods, and they are stolen from the trustee's house, then, if the thief is found, he must pay double. But if the thief is not found, then the trustee must state before God that he did not take the person's goods himself. In every case of dispute over ownership, whether of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, clothing, or any missing property, where one person says, ‘This is mine,' both parties are to come before God; and the one whom God condemns must pay the other one double. "If a person trusts a neighbor to look after a donkey, ox, sheep or any animal, and it dies, is injured or is driven away unseen, then the neighbor's oath before Adonai that he has not taken the goods will settle the matter between them — the owner is to accept it without the neighbor's making restitution. But if it was stolen from the neighbor, he must make restitution to the owner. If it was torn to pieces by an animal, the neighbor must bring it as evidence, and then he doesn't need to make good the loss. "If someone borrows something from his neighbor, and it gets injured or dies with the owner not present, he must make restitution. If the owner was present, he need not make good the loss. If the owner hired it out, the loss is covered by the hiring fee. "If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price for her to be his wife. But if her father refuses to give her to him, he must pay a sum equivalent to the bride-price for virgins. "You are not to permit a sorceress to live. "Whoever has sexual relations with an animal must be put to death. "Anyone who sacrifices to any god other than Adonai alone is to be completely destroyed. "You must neither wrong nor oppress a foreigner living among you, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt. "You are not to abuse any widow or orphan. If you do abuse them in any way, and they cry to me, I will certainly heed their cry. My anger will burn, and I will kill you with the sword — your own wives will be widows and your own children fatherless. "If you loan money to one of my people who is poor, you are not to deal with him as would a creditor; and you are not to charge him interest. If you take your neighbor's coat as collateral, you are to restore it to him by sundown, because it is his only garment — he needs it to wrap his body; what else does he have in which to sleep? Moreover, if he cries out to me, I will listen; because I am compassionate. (iv) "You are not to curse God, and you are not to curse a leader of your people. "You are not to delay offering from your harvest of grain, olive oil or wine. "The firstborn of your sons you are to give to me. You are to do the same with your oxen and your sheep — it is to stay with its mother seven days, and on the eighth day you are to give it to me. "You are to be my specially separated people. Therefore you are not to eat any flesh torn by wild animals in the countryside; rather, throw it out for the dogs.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the gods: or, judges, Exodus 22:8, Exodus 22:9, Psalms 32:6, Psalms 82:1-7, Psalms 138:1, John 10:34, John 10:35

nor curse: Exodus 21:17, 1 Samuel 24:6, 1 Samuel 24:10, 1 Samuel 26:9, Ecclesiastes 10:20, Acts 23:3, Acts 23:5, Romans 13:2-7, Titus 3:1, Titus 3:2, 1 Peter 2:17, 2 Peter 2:10, Jude 1:8

Reciprocal: Exodus 12:12 - gods Exodus 21:6 - the judges 1 Samuel 28:13 - gods ascending 2 Samuel 16:5 - cursed 2 Samuel 16:9 - curse 2 Samuel 19:21 - Shall not 1 Kings 2:9 - hold him 1 Kings 21:10 - Thou didst blaspheme Job 34:18 - General Psalms 82:6 - General Isaiah 8:21 - curse

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Thou shalt not revile the gods,.... Meaning not the idols of the Gentiles, which they reckon gods, and worship as such; which is the sense of Philo, and some others, particularly Josephus i, who, to curry favour with the Roman emperors given to idolatry, has from hence inserted the following among the laws given to Moses;

"let no man blaspheme the gods, which other cities think are such, nor rob strange sacred places, nor receive a gift dedicated to any deity;''

but this cannot be the sense of the text, being contrary to Deuteronomy 12:2 nor can it be thought that care should be taken, lest the honour of the Heathen deities should be detracted from; but civil magistrates, the judges of the land, and the like, are meant, who are powers ordained of God, are in his stead, and represent him, and therefore respect should be shown them; nor should they be treated with any degree of slight and contempt, which may discourage and intimidate them, and deter them from the execution of their office: the Targum of Jonathan interprets them of judges very rightly, agreeably to Psalms 82:1 and so Aben Ezra says,

"they are the judges and the priests, the sons of Levi, with whom the law is:''

nor curse the ruler of thy people whether civil or ecclesiastic; the last mentioned Jewish writer intend of the king, who is the supreme ruler in things civil, and ought to be honoured and loved, served and obeyed, and not hated and cursed, no, not secretly, not in the bedchamber, nor in the thought of the heart, since not only the thing is criminal but dangerous; it is much if it is not discovered, and then ruin follows upon it, Ecclesiastes 10:20. The Apostle Paul applies it to the high priest among the Jews, who was the ruler in sacred things, Acts 23:5 and may be applicable to the prince of the sanhedrim, or chief in the grand court of judicature; and even to all dignified persons, who ought not to be spoken ill of, and to be abused in the execution of their office, and especially when they perform well.

i Antiqu. l. 4. c. 8. sect. 10. Contr. Apion. 1. 2. c. 33.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The gods - Heb. אלהים 'ělôhı̂ym. See Exodus 21:6 note. Many take it as the name of God (as in Genesis 1:1), and this certainly seems best to represent the Hebrew, and to suit the context.

Curse the ruler ... - See Acts 23:5.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Exodus 22:28. Thou shalt not revile the gods — Most commentators believe that the word gods here means magistrates. The original is אלהים Elohim, and should be understood of the true God only: Thou shalt not blaspheme or make light of [תקלל tekallel] God, the fountain of justice and power, nor curse the ruler of thy people, who derives his authority from God. We shall ever find that he who despises a good civil government, and is disaffected to that under which he lives, is one who has little fear of God before his eyes. The spirit of disaffection and sedition is ever opposed to the religion of the Bible. When those who have been pious get under the spirit of misrule, they infallibly get shorn of their spiritual strength, and become like salt that has lost its savour. He who can indulge himself in speaking evil of the civil ruler, will soon learn to blaspheme God. The highest authority says, Fear God: honour the king.