Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
English Standard Version
Forbidden Forms of Worship
21 “You shall not plant any tree as (A)an Asherah beside the altar of the Lord your God that you shall make. 22 And you shall not set up a pillar, which the Lord your God hates.
17 (B)“You shall not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep in which is a blemish, any defect whatever, for that is an abomination to the Lord your God.
2 (C)“If there is found among you, within any of your towns that the Lord your God is giving you, a man or woman who does what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, (D)in transgressing his covenant, 3 and has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or (E)the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven, (F)which I have forbidden, 4 and it is told you and you hear of it, then you shall inquire (G)diligently, and if it is true and certain that such an abomination has been done in Israel, 5 then you shall bring out to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you (H)shall stone that man or woman to death with stones. 6 (I)On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses the one who is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. 7 (J)The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. So (K)you shall purge[a] the evil[b] from your midst.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 17:7 Septuagint drive out; also verse 12
- Deuteronomy 17:7 Or evil person; also verse 12
Deuteronomy 16:21-17:7
New American Standard Bible
21 “(A)You shall not plant for yourself an [a]Asherah of any kind of tree beside the altar of the Lord your God, which you shall make for yourself. 22 And (B)you shall not set up for yourself a memorial stone, which the Lord your God hates.
Administration of Justice
17 “(C)You shall not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep which has a blemish or any [b]defect, for that is a detestable thing to the Lord your God.
2 “(D)If there is found in your midst, in any of your [c]towns which the Lord your God is giving you, a man or a woman who does what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, by violating His covenant, 3 and that person has gone and (E)served other gods and worshiped them, (F)or the sun, the moon, or any of the heavenly [d]lights, (G)which I have commanded not to do, 4 and if it is reported to you and you have heard about it, then you shall investigate thoroughly. And [e]if it is true and the report is trustworthy that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, 5 then you are to bring out to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil deed, that is, the man or the woman, and (H)you shall stone them to [f]death. 6 (I)On the [g]testimony of two witnesses or three witnesses, the [h]condemned shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the [i]testimony of only one witness. 7 (J)The hands of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. (K)So you shall eliminate the evil from your midst.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 16:21 I.e., wooden symbol of a female deity
- Deuteronomy 17:1 Lit bad thing
- Deuteronomy 17:2 Lit gates
- Deuteronomy 17:3 Lit host
- Deuteronomy 17:4 Lit behold, true
- Deuteronomy 17:5 Lit death with stones
- Deuteronomy 17:6 Lit mouth
- Deuteronomy 17:6 Lit one dying
- Deuteronomy 17:6 Lit mouth
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
