The Sabbath day
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, 13 ‘Say to the Israelites, “You must keep my Sabbath days as special days. This will help you and your descendants to remember that you belong to me. You will remember that I, the Lord, have chosen you to be my people.
14 The Sabbath day must be special for you, because it is a holy day. If anyone does not make the Sabbath a special day, you must punish him with death. If anyone does any work on a Sabbath day, he can no longer belong to my people. 15 You may work for six days each week, but the seventh day is a day of rest. It is a holy day that is special to me, the Lord. If anyone does any work on a Sabbath day, you must punish him with death. 16 The Israelites must always keep the Sabbath as a special day. They must obey the rules for the Sabbath day. Those rules are part of my covenant with my people that continues for ever. 17 It will always be a sign that I have chosen the Israelites to be my people. You will remember that the Lord made the heavens and the earth in six days. Then, on the seventh day, he stopped working and he rested.” ’
18 The Lord finished speaking to Moses on Sinai mountain. Then he gave Moses the two flat stones with the special commands that God himself had written on them.
