Marriage and Divorce Laws
(Matthew 5:31–32; Luke 16:18)

1When a man taketh a wife, and marrieth her, if so be shee finde no fauour in his eyes, because hee hath espyed some filthinesse in her, then let him write her a bill of diuorcement, and put it in her hand, and send her out of his house. 2And when she is departed out of his house, & gone her way, and marrie with an other man, 3And if the latter husband hate her, & write her a letter of diuorcement, & put it in her hand, and send her out of his house, or if the latter man die which tooke her to wife: 4Then her first husband, which sent her away, may not take her againe to be his wife, after that she is defiled: for that is abomination in the sight of the Lord, and thou shalt not cause the land to sinne, which the Lord thy God doeth giue thee to inherite.

5When a man taketh a new wife, he shall not goe a warfare, neither shalbe charged with any businesse, but shalbe free at home one yeere, and reioyce with his wife which he hath taken.

Additional Laws

6No man shal take the nether nor the vpper milstone to pledge: for this gage is his liuing.

7If any man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh marchandise of him, or selleth him, that thiefe shal die: so shalt thou put euil away from among you.

8Take heede of the plague of leprosie, that thou obserue diligently, and doe according to all that the Priestes of the Leuites shall teach you: take heede ye doe as I commanded them. 9Remember what the Lord thy God did vnto Miriam by the way after that ye were come out of Egypt.

10Whe thou shalt aske again of thy neighbour any thing lent, thou shalt not goe into his house to fet his pledge. 11But thou shalt stand without, and the man that borowed it of thee, shall bring the pledge out of the doores vnto thee. 12Furthermore if it be a poore body, thou shalt not sleepe with his pledge, 13But shalt restore him the pledge when the sunne goeth downe, that he may sleepe in his raiment, and blesse thee: and it shalbe righteousnesse vnto thee before the Lord thy God.

14Thou shalt not oppresse an hyred seruant that is needie and poore, neyther of thy brethren, nor of the stranger that is in thy land within thy gates. 15Thou shalt giue him his hire for his day, neither shall the sunne goe downe vpon it: for he is poore, and therewith susteineth his life: lest he crye against thee vnto the Lorde, and it be sinne vnto thee.

16The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children put to death for the fathers, but euery man shalbe put to death for his owne sinne.

17Thou shalt not peruert the right of the stranger, nor of the fatherlesse, nor take a widowes rayment to pledge. 18But remember that thou wast a seruant in Egypt, and howe the Lorde thy God deliuered thee thence. Therefore I commaund thee to doe this thing.

19When thou cuttest downe thine haruest in thy fielde, and hast forgotten a sheafe in the fielde, thou shalt not goe againe to fet it, but it shalbe for the stranger, for the fatherles, & for the widowe: that the Lorde thy God may blesse thee in all the workes of thine hands. 20When thou beatest thine oliue tree, thou shalt not goe ouer the boughes againe, but it shalbe for the stranger, for the fatherlesse, and for the widowe.

21When thou gatherest thy vineyard, thou shalt not gather the grapes cleane after thee, but they shalbe for the stranger, for the fatherlesse, and for the widowe. 22And remember that thou wast a seruant in the land of Egypt: therefore I command thee to doe this thing.