Deuteronomy 17
Lexham English Bible
17 “You shall not sacrifice to Yahweh your God an ox or sheep that has a physical defect[a] of anything seriously wrong,[b] for that is a detestable thing to Yahweh your God. 2 If there is found in one of your towns[c] that Yahweh your God is giving to you a man or a woman that does evil in the eyes of Yahweh your God to transgress his covenant 3 and by going and serving other gods and so he bows down to them and to the sun or to the moon or to any of the host of heaven which I have forbidden,[d] 4 and it is reported to you or you hear about it and you enquire about it thoroughly and, indeed,[e] the trustworthiness of the deed[f] has been established, it has occurred,[g] this detestable thing, in Israel, 5 then you shall bring out that man or that woman who has[h] done this evil thing to your gates; that is, the man or the woman, and you shall stone them with stones to death.[i] 6 On the evidence of[j] two or three witnesses the person shall be put to death.[k] The person[l] shall not be put to death by the mouth of one witness. 7 The hand of the witnesses shall be first against the person[m] to kill the person,[n] and afterward the hands[o] of all the people, and so you shall purge the evil from your midst.
8 “If a matter is too difficult for you,[p] for example disputes between blood and blood,[q] between legal claim and legal claim[r] and between assault and assault[s] and between matters of discernment in your towns,[t] then you shall get up and you shall go to the place that Yahweh your God will choose; 9 then you shall go to the priests and the Levites and to the judge who will be in office in those days, and you shall enquire, and they shall announce to you the verdict.[u]
10 “And you shall carry out exactly the decision[v] that they announced to you from that place that Yahweh will choose, and you shall diligently observe[w] according to all that they instruct you. 11 And so according to the instruction of the law[x] that they teach you and according to the decisions that they say to you, you shall do; you shall not turn from the word that they tell you to the right or to the left. 12 And the man who treats with contempt[y] so as not to listen to the priest who is standing to minister on behalf of Yahweh your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel. 13 And all the people will hear and will be afraid, and they will not behave presumptuously again.
14 “When you have come to that land that Yahweh your God is giving to you and you have taken possession of it and you have settled in it, and you say, ‘I will set over me a king like all the nations that are around me,’ 15 indeed, you may set a king over you whom Yahweh your God will choose, from the midst of your countrymen[z] you must set a king over you; you are not allowed to appoint over you a man, a foreigner, who is not your countryman.[aa] 16 Except, he may not make numerous[ab] for himself horses, and he may not allow the people to to go to Egypt in order to increase horses,[ac] for Yahweh has said to you that you may never return.[ad] 17 And he must not acquire many[ae] wives for himself, so that his heart would turn aside; and he must not accumulate silver and gold for himself excessively.[af]
18 “And then[ag] when he is sitting[ah] on the throne of his kingdom, then he shall write for himself a copy of this law on a scroll before[ai] the Levitical priests. 19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read it[aj] all the days of his life, so that he may learn to revere Yahweh your God by diligently observing[ak] all the word of this law and these rules, 20 so as not to exalt his heart above his countrymen[al] and not to turn aside from the commandment to the right or to the left, so that he may reign long over his kingdom,[am] he and his children in the midst of Israel.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 17:1 Literally “that is on it a physical defect”
- Deuteronomy 17:1 Literally “of any thing bad/evil”
- Deuteronomy 17:2 Literally “gates”
- Deuteronomy 17:3 Literally “which not I have commanded”
- Deuteronomy 17:4 Or “look!”
- Deuteronomy 17:4 Hebrew “the thing”
- Deuteronomy 17:4 Literally “has been done”
- Deuteronomy 17:5 Hebrew “have”
- Deuteronomy 17:5 Literally “and so they die”
- Deuteronomy 17:6 Literally “By the mouth of”
- Deuteronomy 17:6 Literally “he/she shall be put to death, the dead person”
- Deuteronomy 17:6 Hebrew “he/she”
- Deuteronomy 17:7 Hebrew “him”
- Deuteronomy 17:7 Hebrew “him”
- Deuteronomy 17:7 Hebrew “hand”
- Deuteronomy 17:8 Literally “If is difficult/wonderful from you a thing for judgment”
- Deuteronomy 17:8 Or “between one homicide and another”
- Deuteronomy 17:8 Or “one kind of lawsuit and another”
- Deuteronomy 17:8 Or “one kind of abuse and another”
- Deuteronomy 17:8 Literally “gates”
- Deuteronomy 17:9 Literally “the word of the decision”
- Deuteronomy 17:10 Literally “and you shall do according to the mouth of the word”
- Deuteronomy 17:10 Literally “and you shall observe and do”
- Deuteronomy 17:11 Literally “mouth of the law”
- Deuteronomy 17:12 Or “acts presumptuously”
- Deuteronomy 17:15 Or “brothers”
- Deuteronomy 17:15 Or “brother”
- Deuteronomy 17:16 Literally “not multiply”
- Deuteronomy 17:16 Literally “in order to make numerous horse”
- Deuteronomy 17:16 Literally “not you may do again to return”
- Deuteronomy 17:17 Or “make numerous”
- Deuteronomy 17:17 Literally “gold and silver not he must make numerous for him very”
- Deuteronomy 17:18 Literally “And it shall happen”
- Deuteronomy 17:18 Literally “as/when his sitting”
- Deuteronomy 17:18 Literally “to the face of”
- Deuteronomy 17:19 Hebrew “in it”
- Deuteronomy 17:19 Literally “by keeping ... to do them”
- Deuteronomy 17:20 Or “brothers”
- Deuteronomy 17:20 Literally “he may make long his days over his kingdom”
Deuteronomy 17
Christian Standard Bible
17 “Do not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or sheep with a defect or any serious flaw, for that is detestable to the Lord your God.(A)
The Judicial Procedure for Idolatry
2 “If a man or woman among you in one of your towns that the Lord your God will give you is discovered doing evil in the sight of the Lord your God and violating his covenant(B) 3 and has gone to serve other gods(C) by bowing in worship to the sun, moon, or all the stars in the sky(D)—which I have forbidden(E)— 4 and if you are told or hear about it, then investigate it thoroughly. If the report turns out to be true that this detestable act has been done in Israel, 5 you are to bring out to your city gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing and stone them to death.(F) 6 The one condemned to die is to be executed on the testimony of two or three witnesses.(G) No one is to be executed on the testimony of a single witness. 7 The witnesses’ hands are to be the first in putting him to death, and after that, the hands of all the people.(H) You must purge the evil from you.(I)
Difficult Cases
8 “If a case is too difficult for you—concerning bloodshed,(J) lawsuits,(K) or assaults(L)—cases disputed at your city gates,(M) then go up to the place the Lord your God chooses. 9 You are to go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who presides at that time. Ask, and they will give you a verdict in the case. 10 You must abide by the verdict they give you at the place the Lord chooses. Be careful to do exactly as they instruct you. 11 You must abide by the instruction they give you and the verdict they announce to you. Do not turn to the right or the left from the decision they declare to you. 12 The person who acts arrogantly, refusing to listen either to the priest who stands there serving the Lord your God or to the judge, must die. You must purge the evil from Israel. 13 Then all the people will hear about it, be afraid, and no longer behave arrogantly.
Appointing a King
14 “When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you,(N) take possession of it, live in it, and say, ‘I will set a king over me like all the nations around me,’ 15 you are to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses.(O) Appoint a king from your brothers. You are not to set a foreigner over you, or one who is not of your people.(P) 16 However, he must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire many horses, for the Lord has told you, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’(Q) 17 He must not acquire many wives for himself so that his heart won’t go astray.(R) He must not acquire very large amounts of silver and gold for himself.(S) 18 When he is seated on his royal throne, he is to write a copy of this instruction for himself on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. 19 It is to remain with him, and he is to read from it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear(T) the Lord his God, to observe all the words of this instruction, and to do these statutes. 20 Then his heart will not be exalted above his countrymen, he will not turn from this command to the right or the left, and he and his sons will continue reigning many years[a] in Israel.
Footnotes
- 17:20 Lit will lengthen days on his kingdom
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