Podcast
The KJV Audio Bible
Hosted by Elizabeth Whitworth · EN
I’m recording the King James Version of the Bible, one chapter at a time. The KJV is renowned for its linguistic beauty, and the New Testament of the KJV is based on the Received Text, which I believe is the most trustworthy and original text of the New Testament books. There’s a certain power in reading Bible books as a whole. Bible-in-a-year plans are great, but they have a few pitfalls: (1) They typically chop the Bible up into unnatural parts (readings from several books each day). This makes it harder to understand each book and remember it distinctly. (2) If it’s not January 1, we aren’t likely to start a Bible-in-a-year reading plan. Every day is an excellent day to start reading the Bible. (3) At the end of the year — once we’ve completed reading the whole Bible — we might think we’re “done.” Our goal shouldn’t simply be to read the whole Bible; our goal should be to read the whole Bible and to read the Bible every day of our life. We’re never done.
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Exodus 23
May 800:05:21Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 23. Exodus 23 continues the LORD God's instructions to Moses and the children of Israel by outlining a series of laws governing justice, honesty, and fair treatment among the Israelites. The LORD commanded that no one spread false reports or join with the wicked to act as a malicious witness. The people were told not to follow a crowd in doing wrong, nor to pervert justice simply by siding with the majority. Even showing partiality to the poor in a lawsuit was forbidden. The LORD also instructed the Israelites on how to treat their enemies fairly. Even if a person disliked his neighbor, he was still required to return a stray ox or donkey and to help an overburdened animal, regardless of whether the owner was a friend or foe. In the courts, the people were not to deny justice to the poor, they were to avoid false charges, and they were to not accept bribes, since bribes blind the wise and twist the words of the innocent. Exodus 23 then turns to the sabbatical laws governing agricultural life. The Israelites were commanded to sow and harvest their fields for six years, but in the seventh year they were to let the land rest and lie fallow, allowing poor people and wild animals to eat whatever grew on its own. Similarly, they were to work for six days each week but rest on the seventh, so that their servants, animals, and foreigners among them could also be refreshed. The LORD then gave three specific commands related to religious integrity. The people were told not to invoke the names of other gods or even let those names be heard on their lips. They were required to observe three annual feasts: the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of harvest, and the feast of ingathering. All men were to appear before the LORD God three times a year in connection with these celebrations. Additional instructions accompanied these feasts — no one was to offer the blood of a sacrifice along with leavened bread, the fat of a festival offering was not to remain until morning, and the best of the firstfruits of the land were to be brought to the house of the LORD. The well-known prohibition against boiling a young goat in its mother's milk was also given here. Exodus 23 closes with the LORD's promise to send an Angel before the Israelites to guard them on the way and bring them to the land prepared for them. He warned the people to pay attention to this Angel and obey him, for the LORD's name was in him and he would not pardon sin. If the Israelites obeyed and did not worship the gods of the Canaanite peoples, the LORD promised to be an enemy to their enemies and to oppose those who opposed them. The Angel would go before them and drive out the various peoples of Canaan little by little, so that the land would not become desolate and overrun by wild animals before Israel could fill it. Finally, the LORD defined the boundaries of the land Israel would inhabit — from the Red sea to the sea of the Philistines, and "from the desert unto the river." He charged the people not to make any covenants with the inhabitants of Canaan or with their gods, and not to allow those peoples to live in the land with them; if the Israelites let them to stay, they would become a snare, drawing Israel into sin and unfaithfulness to the LORD God.
Transcribe →Exodus 22
May 400:04:56Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 22. Exodus 22 continues the legal code God gave to Moses, opening with laws concerning theft and property damage. If a man stole an ox or sheep and slaughtered or sold it, he was required to pay back multiple animals in restitution. A thief caught in the act at night could be struck down without guilt, but killing a thief in daylight carried the penalty of blood guilt. If a thief had nothing to repay, he was to be sold into servitude. If the stolen animal was found alive in his possession, he repaid double. The law then addressed damages caused by grazing animals and fire. If a man let his livestock graze in another's field or vineyard, he was to make restitution from the best of his own produce. If a fire spread and destroyed another's grain or field, whoever started the fire was required to make full restitution. God then gave laws governing disputes over property held in trust. If a man entrusted money or goods to a neighbor for safekeeping, and those items were stolen, the thief — if found — paid double. If the thief was not found, the matter was brought before the judges to determine whether the keeper had taken the goods himself. Similarly, disputes over borrowed or hired animals were to be settled before the judges, and the outcome depended on whether negligence or unavoidable misfortune was to blame. Exodus 22 then turns to social and moral laws. If a man seduced an unbetrothed virgin, he was required to pay the dowry and marry her. If her father refused to give her to him, the man still had to pay the dowry. Witches were not to be permitted to live, and anyone who lay with an animal was to be put to death. Those who sacrificed to any god other than the LORD alone were to be destroyed. God then commanded Israel to show compassion to the vulnerable. Foreigners were not to be mistreated or oppressed, since Israel itself had been foreigners in Egypt. Widows and orphans were not to be exploited; if they cried out to God, He warned that His anger would burn and He would strike down the oppressors, leaving their own wives as widows and children as orphans. The poor were to be treated with fairness; if a man lent money to the poor, he was not to charge excessive interest. If a neighbor's cloak was taken as a pledge, it had to be returned before sunset, since it was his only covering for the night. Exodus 22 closes with several brief but weighty commands. "The gods" (possibly the judges) were not to be scorned, and the rulers of the people were not to be cursed. The firstfruits of harvests and the firstborn of sons and livestock were to be given to God. Finally, Israel was called to be a holy people, which in this context meant they were not to eat meat torn by wild animals in the field — such meat was to be thrown to the dogs.
Transcribe →Exodus 21
Apr 3000:05:25Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 21. Exodus 21 continues the body of laws God gave to Moses, focusing primarily on regulations governing human relationships, personal rights, and accountability. The chapter opens with laws concerning Hebrew servants, establishing that a Hebrew man sold into servitude was to serve for six years and go free in the seventh, without any payment required. If he came into service alone, he left alone; if he came with a wife, she left with him. However, if his master gave him a wife and she bore him children, the wife and children remained the master's when the man went free. If the servant declared his love for his master and his family and chose not to go free, his master was to bring him before the judges and pierce his ear with an awl at the doorpost, binding him to service permanently. Exodus 21 also addresses female servants, noting that they did not go free after six years in the same way men did, though protections were established for them: If she displeased her master who had designated her for himself, he was required to let her be redeemed, and he was not permitted to sell her to foreigners. If his son took her, she was to be treated as a daughter. If the master took another wife, he could not diminish the first woman's food, clothing, or marital rights. If he failed in these obligations, she was to go free without payment. The chapter then turns to matters of life and death, establishing serious consequences for violent acts. Anyone who struck another person and caused their death was to be put to death, though God made provision for unintentional killing by designating places of refuge. Deliberate, premeditated murder, however, carried no such exception — even a killer who fled to the altar was to be taken away and executed. Striking or cursing one's father or mother was likewise punishable by death, as was kidnapping a person and selling them or keeping them. Laws about personal injury occupies a significant portion of Exodus 21. When two men quarreled and one struck the other, causing injury but not death, and the injured man recovered enough to walk around, the one who struck him was required to compensate the injured party for lost time and ensure his full recovery. The chapter then addresses the treatment of servants. If a master struck a servant with a rod and the servant died from the beating, the master was to be punished. But, if the servant survived for a day or two, the master faced no punishment, as the servant was his property. These laws also established the foundational principle of proportional justice: a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and so on. However, if a master knocked out the tooth or destroyed the eye of a servant, the servant was to go free as compensation for that injury. The final section of Exodus 21 deals with the liability of owners of dangerous animals. If an ox gored a person to death, the ox was to be stoned, but the owner bore no guilt if the animal had no history of aggression. But, if the ox had been known to gore and the owner took no precautions, both the ox and the owner were subject to death, though the owner could pay a ransom for his life if the victim's family agreed. Similar accountability applied if the ox gored a servant: The owner was to pay thirty shekels of silver to the servant's master. The chapter closes with regulations about open pits. If someone dug or uncovered a pit and an animal fell into it and died, the one responsible for the pit was required to pay the animal's owner, while the dead animal became his own.
Transcribe →Exodus 20
Apr 2700:03:41Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 20. God spoke directly to the Israelites, reminding them that He was the LORD their God who had brought them out of Egypt and out of slavery. He then articulated the ten commandments. The first four commandments concern people's relationship with God Himself. We are to have no other gods before Him, and we are forbidden from making or worshiping idols of any kind — whether they be the likeness of anything in the heavens, on the earth, or in the waters. The LORD declared Himself a jealous God, warning that the consequences of unfaithfulness would extend to future generations but that His love would be shown to those who love and obey Him. He also commanded that His name not be taken in vain, warning that He would not hold guiltless anyone who misused it. The LORD then commanded the people to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. We are to work six days but rest on the seventh, as God Himself had done after creating the heavens, the earth, and the sea in six days. This rest extends to all members of the household, including servants and animals. The remaining six commandments address how people are to treat one another. We are to honor our father and mother, a commandment that carries with it the promise of long life in the land God promises. We are commanded not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to steal, and not to give false testimony against our neighbors. Finally, we are forbidden from coveting anything that belongs to our neighbors — their houses, spouses, servants, animals, or any possessions. When the people witnessed the thunder, lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the smoking mountain that accompanied God's presence, they were afraid and stood at a distance. They pleaded with Moses to be the one to speak to them rather than having God speak to them directly, fearing they would die if He did. Moses reassured them that God had come not to destroy them but to test them, so that the fear of God would remain with them and keep them from sinning. Moses then got closer to the thick darkness where God was, and the LORD gave him instructions. He told Moses to remind the people that they had seen firsthand that God had spoken to them from heaven, and they were not to make gods of silver or gold to stand alongside Him. He instructed them on how to build an altar — made simply of earth or of uncut stones, since using tools on the stones would defile them — and promised to come and bless them wherever they offered their sacrifices and worshiped His name.
Transcribe →Exodus 19
Apr 2200:04:28Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 19. In the third month after the Israelites had left Egypt, they arrived at the wilderness of Sinai and camped at the base of the mountain. Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, delivering a message for the people of Israel. The LORD reminded them of how he had carried them out of Egypt on eagles' wings and brought them to Himself. He then offered them an agreement: If they would obey His voice and keep His covenant, they would be His treasured possession among all peoples, a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. Moses descended and gathered the elders of the people, laying before them all that the LORD had commanded. The people responded with one voice, pledging that they would do everything the LORD had spoken. Moses brought their answer back to the LORD. The LORD then told Moses that He would come to him in a thick cloud so that the people would hear God speaking with Moses and would believe in Moses permanently. The LORD also instructed Moses to return to the people and have them consecrate themselves for two days—washing their garments and abstaining from sexual relations — so that they would be ready for the third day, when God would come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. The LORD set strict boundaries around the mountain, warning that anyone who touched it — whether person or animal — would be put to death. No one was to go up the mountain or even touch it. On the morning of the third day, there was thunder and lightning, a thick cloud on the mountain, and the sound of a very loud trumpet blast. All the people in the camp trembled. Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire, and the whole mountain quaked. As the trumpet blast grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the LORD answered him. The LORD came down on the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to come up. There, God again warned Moses to go back down and instruct the people not to break through to look at Him, or they would die. Even the priests who came near were required to consecrate themselves. When Moses pointed out that the people couldn't come up because God had already warned them to set limits around the mountain, the LORD instructed him to go down and bring Aaron up with him — but the priests and the people were not to break through to come up. Moses went back down and spoke to the people.
Transcribe →Exodus 18
Apr 2000:04:51Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 18. Jethro, the priest of Midian and father-in-law of Moses, heard about everything God had done for Moses and the Israelites in delivering them from Egypt. He came to meet Moses in the wilderness, bringing with him Moses' wife Zipporah and their two sons, Gershom and Eliezer, whom Moses had previously sent away. When Jethro arrived at the camp near the mountain of God, Moses went out to greet him with great respect, bowing down and kissing him. The two men exchanged greetings and went into Moses' tent, where Moses recounted all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and Egypt on behalf of Israel, including the hardships they had faced along the way and how the LORD had delivered them. Jethro rejoiced and praised God, declaring, "Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them." Jethro then offered burnt offerings and sacrifices to God, and Aaron came along with all the elders of Israel to share a meal with him in the presence of God. The next day, Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, who stood around him from morning until evening bringing their disputes and questions about God's decrees and laws. When Jethro saw this, he expressed concern, telling Moses that the approach wasn't good — that both Moses and the people would wear themselves out, since the burden was too heavy for one man to bear alone. Jethro then offered Moses wise counsel. He advised Moses to continue representing the people before God and teaching them the statutes and laws but to delegate the work of judging by selecting capable, God-fearing, men of truth who hated covetousness. These men were to be appointed as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. They would handle the ordinary cases themselves, bringing only the most difficult matters to Moses. Jethro assured Moses that, if he followed this plan — and if God so directed — he would be able to endure, and the people would be served well. Moses listened to his father-in-law and carried out everything he suggested. He chose capable men from all of Israel and appointed them as leaders over the people at various levels. These men judged the people at all times, bringing the hardest cases to Moses while handling the simpler ones themselves. After this, Jethro left and returned to his own land.
Transcribe →Exodus 17
Apr 1700:03:09Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 17. The Israelites continued their journey through the wilderness, traveling according to the LORD's command and camping at Rephidim. However, there was no water for the people to drink, and they quickly grew frustrated and began quarreling with Moses, demanding that he provide them with water. Moses, troubled by their complaints, asked them why they were quarreling with him and why they were testing the LORD. The people's frustration escalated into open grumbling against Moses, and they questioned why he had brought them out of Egypt only to let them, their children, and their livestock die of thirst in the desert. Moses cried out to the LORD, expressing his distress and fear that the people were on the verge of stoning him. God responded by instructing Moses to walk ahead of the people, taking along some of the elders of Israel and the staff with which he had struck the Nile River. The LORD told him to strike the rock at Horeb, promising that water would flow from it for the people to drink. Moses did exactly as the LORD commanded, in the sight of the elders of Israel. Moses named the place Massah and Meribah, meaning "testing" and "quarreling," because the Israelites had quarreled and tested the LORD, asking whether He was truly among them. Exodus 17 then shifts to a military encounter. The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses instructed Joshua to choose men and go out to fight against the Amalekites, while Moses himself would stand on top of a nearby hill with the staff of God in his hand. Joshua did as Moses commanded and engaged the Amalekites in battle. As the fighting unfolded, a remarkable pattern emerged: Whenever Moses held up his hand with the staff, Israel prevailed in the battle, but whenever he lowered his hand, the Amalekites prevailed. As the battle wore on, Moses grew weary and his hands became heavy. Aaron and Hur, who were with him on the hill, responded by having Moses sit on a stone while they stood on either side of him and held up his hands — one on each side — keeping them steady until the sun went down. Through this sustained effort, Joshua was able to defeat the Amalekites. Afterward, the LORD instructed Moses to write down an account of the victory as a memorial and to recite it to Joshua, declaring that He would completely blot out the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven. Moses then built an altar and called it Jehovah–nissi, which means "The Lord is my Banner," proclaiming that the LORD would be at war with the Amalekites from generation to generation.
Transcribe →Exodus 16
Apr 1500:06:34Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 16. After leaving Elim, the entire Israelite community set out into the wilderness of Sin, which lay between Elim and Sinai. This occurred on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from Egypt. There, in the wilderness, the whole community began to grumble against Moses and Aaron, complaining that it would have been better to have died in Egypt, where they at least had food to eat. They accused their leaders of bringing them into the desert only to starve the entire assembly to death. The LORD heard their complaints and spoke to Moses, promising to rain down bread from heaven for the people. Each day the people were to go out and gather only enough for that day, as this would serve as a test of whether they would follow the LORD's instructions. On the sixth day, however, they were to gather twice the normal amount. Moses and Aaron then relayed the LORD's message to the people, reminding them that it was not against Moses and Aaron that they were grumbling, but against the LORD Himself. As Aaron spoke to the whole community, they looked toward the wilderness and saw the glory of the LORD appearing in a cloud. That evening, quail came and covered the camp, providing the people with meat. In the morning, a layer of dew surrounded the camp. When it evaporated, thin flakes appeared, like frost on the ground. The people didn't know what it was and asked one another, "What is it?" — which in Hebrew is mān, the origin of the name "manna." Moses told them it was the bread the LORD had given them to eat. They were instructed to gather an omer per person. When they measured what they had collected, those who gathered much did not have too much, and those who gathered little did not have too little — each had exactly what they needed. Moses warned the people not to keep any of it until morning, but some disobeyed and kept part of it overnight. By morning it was full of maggots and began to stink, and Moses was angry with them. Each morning the people gathered what they needed, and, as the sun grew hot, the manna melted away. On the sixth day they gathered twice as much — two omers per person — and the leaders of the community came to report this to Moses. Moses explained that the next day was a holy Sabbath rest unto the LORD, and that they should bake or boil whatever they wished that day, saving the rest for the Sabbath. When they set it aside until morning, it did not spoil or stink, as had happened on the other days. Moses told them to eat it that day because it was the Sabbath and none would be found on the ground. Nevertheless, some of the people went out on the Sabbath to gather manna and found nothing. The LORD expressed his displeasure to Moses, asking how long the people would refuse to keep his commands and instructions. He reminded them that the Sabbath was given to them as a day of rest, and that on the sixth day they would always receive a double portion. So the people rested on the seventh day. The Israelites called the bread "manna." It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. Moses, following the LORD's instructions, directed Aaron to take an omer of manna and place it before the LORD as something to be kept for future generations so that they would be able to see the bread the LORD had provided in the wilderness. Aaron placed it before the Testimony, where it was preserved as God had commanded Moses. The Israelites ate manna for forty years, continuing to do so until they reached the border of Canaan.
Transcribe →Exodus 15
Apr 1000:04:50Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 15. Exodus 15 opens with a, a triumphant hymn of praise sung by Moses and the Israelites to the LORD following their miraculous deliverance from Egypt. The song celebrated the LORD's overwhelming victory over Pharaoh and his army, who had been swallowed up by the sea. The Israelites exalted the LORD as their strength and salvation, declaring Him a warrior whose name was to be glorified above all. The song vividly recounted how God had hurled the enemy's chariots and soldiers into the water, where they sank like stones. The Israelites praised the incomparable majesty and power of the LORD, acknowledging that His right hand had shattered the enemy and that His wrath had consumed them like stubble in a fire. The waters piled up with a blast of the LORD's breath, allowing the Israelites to pass through, while the same waters then crashed down and covered the Egyptians. The song then turned toward the future, describing how the surrounding nations — the inhabitants of Canaan, the Philistines, the Edomites, and the Moabites — would hear of this great act and tremble in fear. The Israelites affirmed their confidence that the LORD would guide them to His holy mountain and plant them there, and He would reign forever and ever. Following Moses' song, his sister Miriam led the women of Israel in praise, taking up a tambourine and dancing as she sang a refrain echoing the opening of the great hymn — praising the LORD for his glorious triumph over the horse and rider thrown into the sea. The chapter then shifts from praise to struggle, as Moses led the people away from the sea and into the wilderness of Shur. After three days without finding water, they arrived at a place called Marah, only to discover that the water there was bitter and undrinkable. The people complained about Moses, asking what they were to supposed to drink. Moses cried out to the LORD, who showed him a tree. When Moses threw it into the water, the water became sweet and drinkable. It was there that the LORD gave the people a statute and a rule, testing them and calling them to listen carefully to the LORD's voice and do what was right in His eyes, promising that, if they obeyed, He wouldn't bring upon them the diseases He had brought on Egypt, for He was the LORD who healed them. The end of the chapter records the journey of the Israelites to Elim, where they found twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there beside the water.
Transcribe →Exodus 14
Apr 800:06:12Tap to summarizeRead Exodus 14. The LORD instructed Moses to lead the Israelites to camp near the Red sea, between Migdol and the sea, opposite Baal-zephon. This was part of a divine plan to harden Pharaoh's heart and draw the Egyptian army into pursuit, so that God could demonstrate His glory and power over Egypt, causing them to know that He was the LORD. When Pharaoh was told that the Israelites had fled, he and his officials wondered why they had let their labor force go free. Pharaoh assembled a massive military force — six hundred of the best chariots along with all the other chariots of Egypt — and set out in pursuit of the Israelites, catching up with them as they camped by the sea. As the Egyptian army approached, the Israelites became terrified and cried out to the LORD. They turned on Moses in anger, accusing him of bringing them into the wilderness to die, saying it would have been better to remain as slaves in Egypt than to perish in the desert. Moses responded by urging the people to stand firm and not be afraid, assuring them that God Himself would fight for them and that they need only to be still and watch the salvation that the LORD would bring that day. Then the LORD told Moses to lift his staff and stretch out his hand over the sea to divide the waters, so that the Israelites could walk through on dry ground. The angel of God and the pillar of cloud that had been traveling ahead of the Israelite camp moved to the rear, positioning itself between the Egyptians and the Israelites. The cloud brought darkness to one side and light to the other, preventing the two camps from coming together throughout the night. Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind throughout the night, turning the seabed into dry land. The waters divided, and the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water standing on either side of them. The Egyptians pursued them, with all of Pharaoh's horses, chariots, and horsemen following them into the middle of the sea. During the night watch, the LORD looked down on the Egyptian army from the pillar of fire and cloud and threw them into confusion. He caused the wheels of their chariots to come off so it was difficult for them to drive. The Egyptians began to cry out that the LORD was fighting against them and urged each other to escape. The LORD then told Moses to stretch his hand back over the sea so that the waters would return upon the Egyptians. Moses obeyed, and, at daybreak the sea returned to its full depth. The Egyptians tried to flee, but the waters swept over them — the chariots, the horsemen, and the entire army of Pharaoh. Not one of them survived. The Israelites, however, had crossed on dry ground with the water forming a wall on either side of them. When the people saw the great power that God had displayed against the Egyptians, and when they saw the bodies of the Egyptians washed up on the shore, they stood in awe of the LORD. The people feared the LORD and put their trust in Him and in his servant Moses.
Transcribe →