But (A)that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has spoken in order to turn you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of bondage, to entice you from the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. (B)So you shall [a]put away the evil from your midst.

(C)“If your brother, the son of your mother, your son or your daughter, (D)the wife [b]of your bosom, or your friend (E)who is as your own soul, secretly entices you, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods,’ which you have not known, neither you nor your fathers, of the gods of the people which are all around you, near to you or far off from you, from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth, you shall (F)not [c]consent to him or listen to him, nor shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him or conceal him; but you shall surely kill him; your hand shall be first against him to put him to (G)death, and afterward the hand of all the people. 10 And you shall stone him with stones until he dies, because he sought to entice you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 11 So all Israel shall hear and (H)fear, and not again do such wickedness as this among you.

12 (I)“If you hear someone in one of your cities, which the Lord your God gives you to dwell in, saying, 13 [d]‘Corrupt men have gone out from among you and enticed the inhabitants of their city, saying, “Let us go and serve other gods” ’—which you have not known— 14 then you shall inquire, search out, and ask diligently. And if it is indeed true and certain that such an [e]abomination was committed among you, 15 you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying it, all that is in it and its livestock—with the edge of the sword.

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 13:5 exterminate
  2. Deuteronomy 13:6 Whom you cherish
  3. Deuteronomy 13:8 yield
  4. Deuteronomy 13:13 Lit. Sons of Belial
  5. Deuteronomy 13:14 detestable action

That prophet or dreamer must be put to death(A) for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn(B) you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil(C) from among you.

If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices(D) you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods”(E) (gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), do not yield(F) to them or listen to them. Show them no pity.(G) Do not spare them or shield them. You must certainly put them to death.(H) Your hand(I) must be the first in putting them to death, and then the hands of all the people. 10 Stone them to death, because they tried to turn you away(J) from the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 11 Then all Israel will hear and be afraid,(K) and no one among you will do such an evil thing again.

12 If you hear it said about one of the towns the Lord your God is giving you to live in 13 that troublemakers(L) have arisen among you and have led the people of their town astray, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (gods you have not known), 14 then you must inquire, probe and investigate it thoroughly.(M) And if it is true and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done among you,(N) 15 you must certainly put to the sword all who live in that town. You must destroy it completely,[a](O) both its people and its livestock.(P)

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 13:15 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.