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Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
New International Version
Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
New International Version
Worshiping Other Gods
21 Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole(A) beside the altar you build to the Lord your God,(B) 22 and do not erect a sacred stone,(C) for these the Lord your God hates.
17 Do not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep that has any defect(D) or flaw in it, for that would be detestable(E) to him.(F)
2 If a man or woman living among you in one of the towns the Lord gives you is found doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God in violation of his covenant,(G) 3 and contrary to my command(H) has worshiped other gods,(I) bowing down to them or to the sun(J) or the moon or the stars in the sky,(K) 4 and this has been brought to your attention, then you must investigate it thoroughly. If it is true(L) and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done in Israel,(M) 5 take the man or woman who has done this evil deed to your city gate and stone that person to death.(N) 6 On the testimony of two or three witnesses a person is to be put to death, but no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.(O) 7 The hands of the witnesses must be the first in putting that person to death,(P) and then the hands of all the people.(Q) You must purge the evil(R) from among you.
Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
Common English Bible
Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
Common English Bible
Rules for worship
21 Don’t plant any tree to serve as a sacred pole[a] next to the altar you make for the Lord your God. 22 Don’t set up any sacred stone either, because the Lord your God hates such things.
17 Don’t sacrifice to the Lord your God any oxen or sheep that have defects of any kind, because that is detestable to the Lord your God.
Capital punishment
2 If someone, whether male or female, is found in your community—in one of the cities the Lord your God is giving you—who does evil in the Lord your God’s eyes, by breaking God’s covenant, 3 by following and serving other gods, and by bowing down to them, to the sun or the moon or any of the heavenly bodies that I haven’t permitted— 4 and you hear news about it, then you must look into this situation very carefully. And if it’s definitely true that this detestable thing was done in Israel, 5 then you must bring out the man or woman who has done this evil thing to the gates of the city. Stone that person until he or she is dead.
6 Capital punishment must be decided by two or three witnesses. No one may be executed on the basis of only one testimony. 7 In the execution, the hands of the witnesses must be against the guilty person from the start; the hand of all the people will be involved at the end. Remove[b] such evil from your community!
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 16:21 Heb asherah, perhaps an object devoted to the goddess Asherah
- Deuteronomy 17:7 Or burn
Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
King James Version
Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
King James Version
21 Thou shalt not plant thee a grove of any trees near unto the altar of the Lord thy God, which thou shalt make thee.
22 Neither shalt thou set thee up any image; which the Lord thy God hateth.
17 Thou shalt not sacrifice unto the Lord thy God any bullock, or sheep, wherein is blemish, or any evilfavouredness: for that is an abomination unto the Lord thy God.
2 If there be found among you, within any of thy gates which the Lord thy God giveth thee, man or woman, that hath wrought wickedness in the sight of the Lord thy God, in transgressing his covenant,
3 And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;
4 And it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and enquired diligently, and, behold, it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel:
5 Then shalt thou bring forth that man or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, unto thy gates, even that man or that woman, and shalt stone them with stones, till they die.
6 At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.
7 The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So thou shalt put the evil away from among you.
New International Version (NIV) 
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Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible