不可拜假神

13 “如果你们中间出现了先知或解梦的人,要显神迹奇事给你们看, 劝你们随从、供奉素不认识的神明,即使他们显的神迹奇事应验了, 你们也不可听从他们。因为这是你们的上帝耶和华在试验你们,要看看你们是否全心全意地爱祂。 你们要跟从你们的上帝耶和华,敬畏祂,遵守祂的诫命,听从祂的话,事奉祂,倚靠祂。 必须处死那些先知或解梦的人,因为他们怂恿你们背叛你们的上帝耶和华、偏离祂吩咐你们当走的道路。你们的上帝耶和华曾带你们离开埃及,救你们脱离奴役。你们必须清除你们当中的邪恶。

“如果你们的兄弟、儿女、爱妻或挚友引诱你们去拜你们和你们祖先都不认识的神明, 引诱你们去拜你们周围各族的神明,或在附近或远在天边, 你们不可迁就、听从他们,不可怜惜他们,不可放过或包庇他们。 必须处死他们。你们要首先下手,然后众人一起打死他们。 10 你们要用石头打死他们,因为他们企图使你们背弃你们的上帝耶和华,祂曾把你们从受奴役之地——埃及领出来。 11 这样,所有以色列人听了就会害怕,必无人再敢做这种恶事。

12-13 “在你们的上帝耶和华将要赐给你们居住的各城中,如果你们听说某城里有恶人引诱城中的居民偏离正路,唆使他们去供奉你们不认识的神明, 14 你们要认真查明真相。如果传闻属实,你们当中确有此恶行, 15 你们一定要杀光那城中的居民和牲畜。 16 你们要把城中的财物堆在广场中心,然后放火焚烧那城和城中的财物,作为燔祭献给你们的上帝耶和华。城要永远荒废,不可重建。 17-18 你们不可保留任何应当被毁灭的东西,这样耶和华就不再向你们发怒,转而施恩怜悯你们。

“只要你们遵守我今天吩咐你们的一切诫命,做耶和华视为正的事,祂必按照祂对你们祖先所起的誓,怜悯你们,使你们人丁兴旺。

13 If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,

And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;

Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the Lord thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.

If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers;

Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth;

Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him:

But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people.

10 And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.

11 And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you.

12 If thou shalt hear say in one of thy cities, which the Lord thy God hath given thee to dwell there, saying,

13 Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known;

14 Then shalt thou enquire, and make search, and ask diligently; and, behold, if it be truth, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought among you;

15 Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword.

16 And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the Lord thy God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again.

17 And there shall cleave nought of the cursed thing to thine hand: that the Lord may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and shew thee mercy, and have compassion upon thee, and multiply thee, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers;

18 When thou shalt hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep all his commandments which I command thee this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the Lord thy God.

Chapter 13

Punishing False Prophets. Do whatever I command you to do. Do not add anything to it, nor ignore anything from it.

If a prophet or one who foretells the future through dreams arises among you and performs some miraculous sign or wonder and that miraculous sign or wonder occurs, and he says to you, “Let us seek after other gods which we have not previously known and serve them,” you are not to listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer of dreams.[a] The Lord, your God, is testing you to see whether you love the Lord, your God, with all your heart and your soul. It is the Lord, your God, whom you are to follow. You must fear him and observe his commandments and obey what he tells you and serve him and hold fast to him. But that prophet or the one who told the future through dreams is to be put to death for he counseled you to turn away from the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. He was driving you away from the way that the Lord, your God, had ordered must be your path. You must purge this evil from your midst.

[b]Even if your brother, the son of your mother, or your son, or your daughter, or your wife, or your closest friend secretly tempts you saying, “Let us go and serve other gods whom neither you nor your forefathers have known,” the gods of the people living around us, whether they be near or far, wherever they are upon the whole face of the earth, you are not to agree to do this with him or even listen to him. You must show him no pity, you should not spare or conceal him. 10 You must put him to death. You must be the first to lay hands on him to put him to death, and then all of the people after you. 11 Stone him to death! He sought to turn you away from the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 12 Then all of Israel will hear of this and be filled with fear, and no one will ever do such an evil thing again in your midst.

13 If you hear it said that in one of the cities that the Lord, your God, has given you to live in 14 there are evil men who have come out from among you and who have misled the inhabitants of the city saying, “Let us go and serve other gods whom we have not previously known,” 15 then you will inquire, and probe, and investigate it thoroughly. If it is clearly proven that this detestable thing has been done among you, 16 you are to put the inhabitants of that city to the sword and you are to demolish it. Destroy everything in it, even killing the cattle with the edge of the sword. 17 Gather all of the plunder from it in the middle of its streets, and burn the city and all the spoil in it to the ground. It is to be like a burnt offering to the Lord, your God. It is to remain a ruin forever, never to be rebuilt. 18 You are not to hold on to any of those cursed things, so that the Lord may turn from his fierce anger and show you mercy. He will have compassion on you, and make you numerous, as he promised your fathers, 19 for you will have heeded the voice of the Lord, your God, and observed all of the commandments that I gave you today and done what the Lord, your God, considered to be right.

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 13:4 Dreamer of dreams: this admonition to avoid false prophets does not discount the possibility of genuine revelations proceeding from dreams (see Gen 20:3, 6; 37:5, 9; Mt 1:20).
  2. Deuteronomy 13:7 Like Jesus, who was tempted by his friend Peter (see Mt 16:21-23), we must also be vigilant and strong against temptation especially from those closest to us.