Deuteronomy 24

1 When a man taketh a wife, and marrieth her, it shall be if she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some unseemly thing in her, that he shall write her a letter of divorce, and give it into her hand, and send her out of his house.

Should a man marry a woman, but then isn't pleased with her because he finds out something shameful about her, he is allowed to write out a certificate of divorce for her, give it to her, and send her out of his house.

2 And she shall depart out of his house, and go away, and may become another man's wife.

Suppose that after leaving his house, she goes marries another man,

3 And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a letter of divorce, and give it into her hand, and send her out of his house; or if the latter husband die who took her as his wife;

and suppose the second man also ends up hating her, writes out a certificate of divorce for her, gives it to her, and sends her out of his house—or he may happen to die.

4 her first husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for it is an abomination before Jehovah; and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.

The first husband who divorced her is not permitted to marry her again after she was shamed, for that offends the Lord. You are not bring guilt upon the land that the Lord your God is giving you to own.

5 When a man hath newly taken a wife, he shall not go out with the army, neither shall any kind of business be imposed upon him; he shall be free for his house one year, and shall gladden his wife whom he hath taken.

If a man has just got married, he is not to be sent to war or made to do any other duties. He is free to stay at home for one year and make his wife happy.

6 No man shall take the hand-mill or the upper millstone in pledge; for it would be taking life in pledge.

Don't accept a pair of millstones, or even just an upper millstone, as security for a debt, because that would put the borrower's life in danger.

7 If a man be found who hath stolen one of his brethren of the children of Israel, and who hath treated him as a slave and sold him, that thief shall die; and thou shalt put evil away from thy midst.

Anyone caught kidnapping a fellow Israelite must be executed, whether the kidnapper makes him a slave or sells him. You must eliminate the evil from among you.

8 Take heed in the plague of leprosy, that thou take great heed, and do according to all that the priests the Levites shall teach you: as I commanded them shall ye take heed to do.

When it comes to infectious skin diseases, make sure you follow carefully all the instructions of the Levitical priests. Be careful to follow the orders I've given them.

9 Remember what Jehovah thy God did unto Miriam on the way, after that ye came forth out of Egypt.

Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam on the journey out of Egypt.

10 When thou dost lend thy brother anything, thou shalt not go into his house to secure his pledge.

If you lend anything to someone, don't go into their house to take some kind of security.

11 Thou shalt stand outside, and the man to whom thou hast made a loan shall bring out the pledge to thee without.

Stand outside while they go inside and bring the security out to you.

12 And if the man be needy, thou shalt not lie down with his pledge;

If he is a poor man he may give his cloak as security, but you must not keep it when you go to sleep.

13 in any case thou shalt return him the pledge at the going down of the sun, that he may sleep in his own upper garment and bless thee; and it shall be righteousness unto thee before Jehovah thy God.

Make sure you give it back by sunset, so that he can sleep in his own cloak and thank you, and you will be counted as doing good by the Lord your God.

14 Thou shalt not oppress a hired servant [who is] poor and needy of thy brethren, or of thy sojourners who are in thy land within thy gates:

Don't mistreat a paid servant who is poor and needy, whether he's an Israelite or a foreigner living in one of your towns.

15 on his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and his soul yearneth after it; lest he cry against thee to Jehovah, and it be a sin in thee.

Pay his wages every day before sunset, because he is poor and is relying on them. If you don't he may complain to the Lord about you, and you will be found guilty of sin.

16 The fathers shall not be put to death for the sons, neither shall the sons be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.

Fathers are not to be executed because of their children, and children are not to be executed because of their fathers. Each person is to be executed because of their own sin.

17 Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, [or] of the fatherless; and thou shalt not take in pledge a widow's garment.

Don't treat foreigners or orphans unjustly; don't take a widow's cloak as security.

18 And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt, and that Jehovah thy God redeemed thee from thence; therefore I command thee to do this thing.

Remember that you were once slaves in Egypt, and the Lord your God rescued you from that place. That's why I'm ordering you to do this.

19 When thou reapest thy harvest in thy field, and forgettest a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not return to fetch it; it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow; that Jehovah thy God may bless thee in all the work of thy hands.

If when you're harvesting in your field you forget a sheaf there, don't go back for it. Leave it for the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you do.

20 When thou shakest thine olive-tree, thou shalt not go over the boughs again; it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow.

When you shake the olive trees to knock down the olives, don't go over the branches again. What's left is for the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows.

21 When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterwards; it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow.

When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, don't go over the vines again. What's left is for the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows.

22 And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt; therefore I command thee to do this thing.

Remember you were once slaves in Egypt. That's why I'm ordering you to do this.