Deuteronomy 16-18
New Living Translation
Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread
16 “In honor of the Lord your God, celebrate the Passover each year in the early spring, in the month of Abib,[a] for that was the month in which the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt by night. 2 Your Passover sacrifice may be from either the flock or the herd, and it must be sacrificed to the Lord your God at the designated place of worship—the place he chooses for his name to be honored. 3 Eat it with bread made without yeast. For seven days the bread you eat must be made without yeast, as when you escaped from Egypt in such a hurry. Eat this bread—the bread of suffering—so that as long as you live you will remember the day you departed from Egypt. 4 Let no yeast be found in any house throughout your land for those seven days. And when you sacrifice the Passover lamb on the evening of the first day, do not let any of the meat remain until the next morning.
5 “You may not sacrifice the Passover in just any of the towns that the Lord your God is giving you. 6 You must offer it only at the designated place of worship—the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored. Sacrifice it there in the evening as the sun goes down on the anniversary of your exodus from Egypt. 7 Roast the lamb and eat it in the place the Lord your God chooses. Then you may go back to your tents the next morning. 8 For the next six days you may not eat any bread made with yeast. On the seventh day proclaim another holy day in honor of the Lord your God, and no work may be done on that day.
The Festival of Harvest
9 “Count off seven weeks from when you first begin to cut the grain at the time of harvest. 10 Then celebrate the Festival of Harvest[b] to honor the Lord your God. Bring him a voluntary offering in proportion to the blessings you have received from him. 11 This is a time to celebrate before the Lord your God at the designated place of worship he will choose for his name to be honored. Celebrate with your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites from your towns, and the foreigners, orphans, and widows who live among you. 12 Remember that you were once slaves in Egypt, so be careful to obey all these decrees.
The Festival of Shelters
13 “You must observe the Festival of Shelters[c] for seven days at the end of the harvest season, after the grain has been threshed and the grapes have been pressed. 14 This festival will be a happy time of celebrating with your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows from your towns. 15 For seven days you must celebrate this festival to honor the Lord your God at the place he chooses, for it is he who blesses you with bountiful harvests and gives you success in all your work. This festival will be a time of great joy for all.
16 “Each year every man in Israel must celebrate these three festivals: the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Harvest, and the Festival of Shelters. On each of these occasions, all men must appear before the Lord your God at the place he chooses, but they must not appear before the Lord without a gift for him. 17 All must give as they are able, according to the blessings given to them by the Lord your God.
Justice for the People
18 “Appoint judges and officials for yourselves from each of your tribes in all the towns the Lord your God is giving you. They must judge the people fairly. 19 You must never twist justice or show partiality. Never accept a bribe, for bribes blind the eyes of the wise and corrupt the decisions of the godly. 20 Let true justice prevail, so you may live and occupy the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
21 “You must never set up a wooden Asherah pole beside the altar you build for the Lord your God. 22 And never set up sacred pillars for worship, for the Lord your God hates them.
17 “Never sacrifice sick or defective cattle, sheep, or goats to the Lord your God, for he detests such gifts.
2 “When you begin living in the towns the Lord your God is giving you, a man or woman among you might do evil in the sight of the Lord your God and violate the covenant. 3 For instance, they might serve other gods or worship the sun, the moon, or any of the stars—the forces of heaven—which I have strictly forbidden. 4 When you hear about it, investigate the matter thoroughly. If it is true that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, 5 then the man or woman who has committed such an evil act must be taken to the gates of the town and stoned to death. 6 But never put a person to death on the testimony of only one witness. There must always be two or three witnesses. 7 The witnesses must throw the first stones, and then all the people may join in. In this way, you will purge the evil from among you.
8 “Suppose a case arises in a local court that is too hard for you to decide—for instance, whether someone is guilty of murder or only of manslaughter, or a difficult lawsuit, or a case involving different kinds of assault. Take such legal cases to the place the Lord your God will choose, 9 and present them to the Levitical priests or the judge on duty at that time. They will hear the case and declare the verdict. 10 You must carry out the verdict they announce and the sentence they prescribe at the place the Lord chooses. You must do exactly what they say. 11 After they have interpreted the law and declared their verdict, the sentence they impose must be fully executed; do not modify it in any way. 12 Anyone arrogant enough to reject the verdict of the judge or of the priest who represents the Lord your God must die. In this way you will purge the evil from Israel. 13 Then everyone else will hear about it and be afraid to act so arrogantly.
Guidelines for a King
14 “You are about to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you. When you take it over and settle there, you may think, ‘We should select a king to rule over us like the other nations around us.’ 15 If this happens, be sure to select as king the man the Lord your God chooses. You must appoint a fellow Israelite; he may not be a foreigner.
16 “The king must not build up a large stable of horses for himself or send his people to Egypt to buy horses, for the Lord has told you, ‘You must never return to Egypt.’ 17 The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate large amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.
18 “When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. 19 He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees. 20 This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way. And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.
Gifts for the Priests and Levites
18 “Remember that the Levitical priests—that is, the whole of the tribe of Levi—will receive no allotment of land among the other tribes in Israel. Instead, the priests and Levites will eat from the special gifts given to the Lord, for that is their share. 2 They will have no land of their own among the Israelites. The Lord himself is their special possession, just as he promised them.
3 “These are the parts the priests may claim as their share from the cattle, sheep, and goats that the people bring as offerings: the shoulder, the cheeks, and the stomach. 4 You must also give to the priests the first share of the grain, the new wine, the olive oil, and the wool at shearing time. 5 For the Lord your God chose the tribe of Levi out of all your tribes to minister in the Lord’s name forever.
6 “Suppose a Levite chooses to move from his town in Israel, wherever he is living, to the place the Lord chooses for worship. 7 He may minister there in the name of the Lord his God, just like all his fellow Levites who are serving the Lord there. 8 He may eat his share of the sacrifices and offerings, even if he also receives support from his family.
A Call to Holy Living
9 “When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. 10 For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering.[d] And do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, 11 or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord. It is because the other nations have done these detestable things that the Lord your God will drive them out ahead of you. 13 But you must be blameless before the Lord your God. 14 The nations you are about to displace consult sorcerers and fortune-tellers, but the Lord your God forbids you to do such things.”
True and False Prophets
15 Moses continued, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. 16 For this is what you yourselves requested of the Lord your God when you were assembled at Mount Sinai.[e] You said, ‘Don’t let us hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore or see this blazing fire, for we will die.’
17 “Then the Lord said to me, ‘What they have said is right. 18 I will raise up a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell the people everything I command him. 19 I will personally deal with anyone who will not listen to the messages the prophet proclaims on my behalf. 20 But any prophet who falsely claims to speak in my name or who speaks in the name of another god must die.’
21 “But you may wonder, ‘How will we know whether or not a prophecy is from the Lord?’ 22 If the prophet speaks in the Lord’s name but his prediction does not happen or come true, you will know that the Lord did not give that message. That prophet has spoken without my authority and need not be feared.
Footnotes
- 16:1 Hebrew Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover unto the Lord your God. Abib, the first month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar, usually occurs within the months of March and April.
- 16:10 Hebrew Festival of Weeks; also in 16:16. This was later called the Festival of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1). It is celebrated today as Shavuot (or Shabuoth).
- 16:13 Or Festival of Booths, or Festival of Tabernacles; also in 16:16. This was earlier called the Festival of the Final Harvest or Festival of Ingathering (see Exod 23:16b). It is celebrated today as Sukkot (or Succoth).
- 18:10 Or never make your son or daughter pass through the fire.
- 18:16 Hebrew Horeb, another name for Sinai.
Deuteronomy 16-18
GOD’S WORD Translation
Three Major Festivals
16 Honor the Lord your God by celebrating Passover in the month of Abib. In the month of Abib the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt at night. 2 Slaughter an animal from your flock or herd as the Passover sacrifice to the Lord your God. Do this at the place where the Lord will choose for his name to live. 3 Never eat leavened bread with the meat from this sacrifice. Instead, for seven days you must eat unleavened bread at this festival. (It is the bread of misery because you left Egypt in a hurry.) Eat this bread so that, as long as you live, you will remember the day you left Egypt. 4 There should be no yeast anywhere in your land for seven days. Never leave until morning any of the meat you slaughter on the evening of the first day.
5 You’re not allowed to slaughter the animals for Passover in any of the cities the Lord your God is giving you. 6 Instead, slaughter your animals for Passover in the place where the Lord your God will choose for his name to live. Do this in the evening as the sun goes down. This is the same time you did it when you left Egypt. 7 Cook the meat, and eat it at the place the Lord your God will choose. In the morning you may go back to your tents. 8 For six days eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day hold a religious assembly dedicated to the Lord your God. Don’t do any work that day.
9 Count seven weeks from the time you start harvesting grain. 10 Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God. Bring a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. 11 Enjoy yourselves in the presence of the Lord your God along with your sons, daughters, male and female slaves, the Levites who live in your cities, the foreigners, orphans, and widows who live among you. Enjoy yourselves at the place the Lord your God will choose for his name to live. 12 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and obey these laws carefully.
13 After you have gathered the grain from your threshing floor [a] and made your wine, celebrate the Festival of Booths for seven days. 14 Enjoy yourselves at the festival along with your sons, daughters, male and female slaves, the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows who live in your cities. 15 For seven days you will celebrate this festival dedicated to the Lord your God in the place he will choose. You will enjoy yourselves, because the Lord your God will bless all your harvest and all your work.
16 Three times a year all your men must come into the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Booths. But no one may come into the presence of the Lord without an offering. 17 Each man must bring a gift in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given him.
Administering Justice
18 Appoint judges and officers for your tribes in every city that the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people fairly. 19 Never pervert justice. Instead, be impartial. Never take a bribe, because bribes blind wise people and deny justice to those who are in the right. 20 Strive for nothing but justice so that you will live and take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
21 When you build the altar for the Lord your God, never plant beside it any tree dedicated to the goddess Asherah. 22 Never set up a sacred stone. These are things the Lord your God hates.
17 Never offer an ox or a sheep that has a defect or anything seriously wrong with it as a sacrifice to the Lord your God. That would be disgusting to him.
2 In one of the cities the Lord your God is giving you, there may be a man or woman among you who is doing what the Lord considers evil. This person may be disregarding the conditions of the Lord’s promise [b] 3 by worshiping and bowing down to other gods, the sun, the moon, or the whole army of heaven. I have forbidden this. 4 When you are told about it, investigate it thoroughly. If it’s true and it can be proven that this disgusting thing has been done in Israel, 5 then bring the man or woman who did this evil thing to the gates of your city, and stone that person to death. 6 The person can only be sentenced to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses, but no one should ever be sentenced to death on the testimony of only one witness. 7 The witnesses must start the execution, then all the other people will join them in putting the person to death. You must get rid of this evil.
8 There may be a case that is too hard for you to decide. It may involve murder, assault, or a dispute—any case which may be brought to court in your cities. Take this case to the place that the Lord your God will choose. 9 Go to the Levitical priests and the judge who is serving at that time. Ask for their opinion, and they will give you their verdict 10 at the place that the Lord will choose. Do what they tell you. Follow all their instructions carefully, 11 and do what they tell you to do in their verdict. Do exactly what they tell you to do in their decision. 12 If anyone deliberately disobeys the priest (who serves the Lord your God) or the judge, that person must die. You must get rid of this evil in Israel. 13 When all the people hear about it, they will be afraid and will never defy ⌞God’s law⌟ again.
14 You will enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you. You will take possession of it and live there. You will say, “Let’s have our own king like all the other nations around us.” 15 Be sure to appoint the king the Lord your God will choose. He must be one of your own people. Never let a foreigner be king, because he’s not one of your own people.
16 The king must never own a large number of horses or make the people return to Egypt to get more horses. The Lord has told you, “You will never go back there again.” 17 The king must never have a large number of wives, or he will turn away ⌞from God⌟. And he must never own a lot of gold and silver.
18 When he becomes king, he should have the Levitical priests make him a copy of these teachings on a scroll. 19 He must keep it with him and read it his entire life. He will learn to fear the Lord his God and faithfully obey everything found in these teachings and laws. 20 Then he won’t think he’s better than the rest of his people, and he won’t disobey these commands in any way. So he and his sons will rule for a long time in Israel.
Laws for the Levites
18 The Levitical priests—in fact, the whole tribe of Levi—will receive no land or property of their own like the rest of the Israelites. They will eat what has been sacrificed to the Lord. These sacrifices will be what they receive.[c] 2 So the Levites will have no land of their own like the other Israelites. The Lord will be their inheritance, as he promised them.
3 This is what the people owe the priests whenever they sacrifice an ox, a sheep, or a goat: the shoulder, jaws, and stomach. 4 Also, give them the first produce harvested: grain, new wine, olive oil, and the first wool you shear from your sheep. 5 Out of all your tribes, the Lord your God has chosen the Levites and their descendants to do the work of serving in the name of the Lord forever.
6 A Levite from any of your cities in Israel may come from where he has been living to the place the Lord will choose. He may come as often as he wants 7 and may serve in the name of the Lord his God like all the other Levites who do their work in the Lord’s presence. 8 If he does, he’ll get the same amount of food as they do, in addition to what he gets from selling his family’s goods.
Laws about Prophets
9 When you come to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, never learn the disgusting practices of those nations. 10 You must never sacrifice your sons or daughters by burning them alive, practice black magic, be a fortuneteller, witch, or sorcerer, 11 cast spells, ask ghosts or spirits for help, or consult the dead. 12 Whoever does these things is disgusting to the Lord. The Lord your God is forcing these nations out of your way because of their disgusting practices. 13 You must have integrity ⌞in dealing⌟ with the Lord your God. 14 These nations you are forcing out listen to fortunetellers and to those who practice black magic. But the Lord your God won’t let you do anything like that.
15 The Lord your God will send you a prophet, an Israelite like me. You must listen to him. 16 This is what you asked the Lord your God to give you on the day of the assembly at Mount Horeb. You said, “We never want to hear the voice of the Lord our God or see this raging fire again. If we do, we’ll die!”
17 The Lord told me, “What they’ve said is good. 18 So I will send them a prophet, an Israelite like you. I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. 19 Whoever refuses to listen to the words that prophet speaks in my name will answer to me. 20 But any prophet who dares to say something in my name that I didn’t command him to say or who speaks in the name of other gods must die.”
21 You may be wondering, “How can we recognize that the Lord didn’t speak this message?” 22 If a prophet speaks in the Lord’s name and what he says doesn’t happen or come true, then it didn’t come from the Lord. That prophet has spoken on his own authority. Never be afraid of him.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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