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.

Provisions for the Levites

18 “The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, will have no portion or inheritance with Israel. They will eat the Lord’s food offerings; that is their^[b][c] inheritance. ² Although Levi has no inheritance among his brothers, the Lord is his inheritance, as he promised him.^{(U) 3} This is the priests’ share from the people who offer a sacrifice, whether it is an ox, a sheep, or a goat; the priests are to be given the shoulder, jaws, and stomach. ⁴ You are to give him the firstfruits of your grain, new wine, and fresh oil,^(V) and the first sheared wool of your flock. ⁵ For the Lord your God has chosen him and his sons from all your tribes to stand and minister in his name from now on.^{[d] 6} When a Levite leaves one of your towns in Israel where he was staying and wants to go to the place the Lord chooses, ⁷ he may serve in the name of the Lord his God like all his fellow Levites who minister there in the presence of the Lord. ⁸ They will eat equal portions besides what he has received from the sale of the family estate.^[e](W)

Occult Practices versus Prophetic Revelation

⁹ “When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not imitate the detestable customs of those nations.^{(X) 10} No one among you is to sacrifice his son or daughter in the fire,^[f](Y) practice divination, tell fortunes, interpret omens, practice sorcery, ¹¹ cast spells, consult a medium or a spiritist, or inquire of the dead.^{(Z) 12} Everyone who does these acts is detestable to the Lord, and the Lord your God is driving out the nations before you because of these detestable acts. ¹³ You must be blameless before the Lord your God. ¹⁴ Though these nations you are about to drive out listen to fortune-tellers and diviners, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do this.

¹⁵ “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers.^(AA) You must listen to him. ¹⁶ This is what you requested from the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, ‘Let us not continue to hear the voice of the Lord our God or see this great fire any longer, so that we will not die!’ ^{(AB) 17} Then the Lord said to me, ‘They have spoken well. ¹⁸ I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. ¹⁹ I will hold accountable whoever does not listen to my words that he speaks in my name.^{(AC) 20} But the prophet who presumes to speak a message in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods—that prophet must die.’ ²¹ You may say to yourself, ‘How can we recognize a message the Lord has not spoken?’ ²² When a prophet speaks in the Lord’s name, and the message does not come true or is not fulfilled, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.

²¹ They^(A) forced a man coming in from the country, who was passing by, to carry Jesus’s cross.^(B) He was Simon of Cyrene,^(C) the father of Alexander and Rufus.^(D)

²² They^(E) brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of the Skull^(F)). ²³ They tried to give him wine^(G) mixed with myrrh,^(H) but he did not take it.

²⁴ Then they crucified him and divided his clothes, casting lots^(I) for them to decide what each would get. ²⁵ Now it was nine in the morning^[a] when they crucified him. ²⁶ The inscription of the charge written against him was: The King^(J) of the Jews.^{(K) 27} They^(L) crucified two criminals^[b](M) with him, one on his right and one on his left.^[c]

²⁹ Those^(N) who passed by were yelling insults^(O) at^[d] him, shaking their heads,^(P) and saying, “Ha! The one who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days,^{(Q) 30} save yourself by coming down from the cross!”^{(R) 31} In the same way, the chief priests with the scribes^(S) were mocking him among themselves and saying, “He saved others, but he cannot save himself! ³² Let the Messiah,^(T) the King^(U) of Israel,^(V) come down now from the cross,^(W) so that we may see and believe.”^(X) Even those who were crucified with him taunted him.

The Death of Jesus

³³ When^(Y) it was noon,^[e] darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.^{[f](Z) 34} And at three Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lemá sabachtháni?” which is translated, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”^[g](AA)

³⁵ When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “See, he’s calling for Elijah.”

³⁶ Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, fixed it on a stick, offered him a drink,^(AB) and said, “Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down.”

³⁷ Jesus let out a loud cry and breathed his last. ³⁸ Then the curtain^(AC) of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. ³⁹ When the centurion, who was standing opposite him, saw the way he^[h] breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” ^[i](AD)

⁴⁰ There^(AE) were also women watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene,^(AF) Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. ⁴¹ In Galilee^(AG) these women followed him and took care of him. Many other women had come up with him to Jerusalem.^(AH)

The Burial of Jesus

⁴² When^(AI) it was already evening, because it was the day of preparation (that is, the day before the Sabbath), ⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Sanhedrin who was himself looking forward^(AJ) to the kingdom of God,^(AK) came and boldly went to Pilate^(AL) and asked for Jesus’s body.^{(AM) 44} Pilate was surprised that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had already died. ⁴⁵ When he found out from the centurion, he gave the corpse to Joseph. ⁴⁶ After he bought some linen cloth, Joseph took him down and wrapped him in the linen. Then he laid him in a tomb^(AN) cut out of the rock and rolled a stone^(AO) against the entrance to the tomb. ⁴⁷ Mary Magdalene^(AP) and Mary the mother of Joses were watching where he was laid.