New King James Version

New Living Translation

Punishment of Apostates

“If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder,

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A Warning against Idolatry

a“Suppose there are prophets among you or those who dream dreams about the future, and they promise you signs or miracles,

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and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods’ — which you have not known — ‘and let us serve them,’

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and the predicted signs or miracles occur. If they then say, ‘Come, let us worship other gods’ — gods you have not known before —

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you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

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do not listen to them. The LORD your God is testing you to see if you truly love him with all your heart and soul.

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You shall walk[a] after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.

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Serve only the LORD your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.

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But 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. So you shall [b]put away the evil from your midst.

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The false prophets or visionaries who try to lead you astray must be put to death, for they encourage rebellion against the LORD your God, who redeemed you from slavery and brought you out of the land of Egypt. Since they try to lead you astray from the way the LORD your God commanded you to live, you must put them to death. In this way you will purge the evil from among you.

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“If your brother, the son of your mother, your son or your daughter, the wife [c]of your bosom, or your friend 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,

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“Suppose someone secretly entices you — even your brother, your son or daughter, your beloved wife, or your closest friend — and says, ‘Let us go worship other gods’ — gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known.

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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,

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They might suggest that you worship the gods of peoples who live nearby or who come from the ends of the earth.

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you shall not [d]consent to him or listen to him, nor shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him or conceal him;

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But do not give in or listen. Have no pity, and do not spare or protect them.

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but you shall surely kill him; your hand shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people.

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You must put them to death! Strike the first blow yourself, and then all the people must join in.

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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.

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Stone the guilty ones to death because they have tried to draw you away from the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of slavery.

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So all Israel shall hear and fear, and not again do such wickedness as this among you.

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Then all Israel will hear about it and be afraid, and no one will act so wickedly again.

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“If you hear someone in one of your cities, which the Lord your God gives you to dwell in, saying,

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“When you begin living in the towns the LORD your God is giving you, you may hear

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[e]‘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 —

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that scoundrels among you are leading their fellow citizens astray by saying, ‘Let us go worship other gods’ — gods you have not known before.

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then you shall inquire, search out, and ask diligently. And if it is indeed true and certain that such an [f]abomination was committed among you,

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In such cases, you must examine the facts carefully. If you find that the report is true and such a detestable act has been committed among you,

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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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you must attack that town and completely destroyb all its inhabitants, as well as all the livestock.

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And you shall gather all its plunder into the middle of the street, and [g]completely burn with fire the city and all its plunder, for the Lord your God. It shall be a [h]heap forever; it shall not be built again.

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Then you must pile all the plunder in the middle of the open square and burn it. Burn the entire town as a burnt offering to the LORD your God. That town must remain a ruin forever; it may never be rebuilt.

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So none of the accursed things shall remain in your hand, that the Lord may turn from the fierceness of His anger and show you mercy, have compassion on you and [i]multiply you, just as He swore to your fathers,

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Keep none of the plunder that has been set apart for destruction. Then the LORD will turn from his fierce anger and be merciful to you. He will have compassion on you and make you a large nation, just as he swore to your ancestors.

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because you have listened to the voice of the Lord your God, to keep all His commandments which I command you today, to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord your God.

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“The LORD your God will be merciful only if you listen to his voice and keep all his commands that I am giving you today, doing what pleases him.

Parallel

New King James Version

New Living Translation

Deuteronomy 13

Deuteronomy 13