The interpretation timeline

Exod 22:20

How this passage has been read — the sources, oldest to newest.

From the early Church Fathers to now.

Exod 22:20 · Douay-Rheims
“He that sacrificeth to gods, shall be put to death, save only to the Lord.”
Patristic before A.D. 750
254
A.D.
Origen Patristic
c. A.D. 184–253
“Some people give no thought to the question of demons, that is to say, to the fact that these demons, in order to be able to exist in the heavy atmosphere that encircles the earth, must have the nourishment of exhalations and consequently are always on the lookout for the savor of burnt sacrifices, blood and incense. Since they attach no importance to the matter of sacrifice, we would express ourselves also on this subject. If men who give sustenance to robbers, murderers and barbarian enemies of the great king are punished as criminals against the state, how much more will they be punished justly who through offering sacrifice proffer sustenance to the minions of evil and thus hold them in the atmosphere of the earth! And this holds true especially if knowing the text, "He that sacrifices to gods other than the Lord alone will be destroyed utterly," they nevertheless sacrifice to these authors of evil on earth. In my opinion, when there is question of crimes committed by these demons operating against men, they who sustain them by sacrificing to them will be held no less responsible than the demons themselves that do the crimes. For the demons and they that have kept them on earth, where they could not exist without the exhalations and nourishment considered vital to their bodies, work as one in doing evil to mankind.”
Source
176 years pass — nothing from this stretch is hosted yet
430
A.D.
Augustine of Hippo Patristic
A.D. 354–430
“In the law of the true God it is written, "He that sacrifices to gods shall be put to death, save only to the Lord." The dreadful sanction of this command makes it clear that God wanted no sacrifices offered to such gods, good or bad.”
Modern · 1953 →

The in-app commentary runs from the Fathers to the early-modern record, then stops — that's where the public-domain sources end, not where the reading does. For the modern reading, follow the sources directly.