13
1 If
a prophet or
a dreamer of dreams arises
among you, and
he gives you a sign
or a wonder,
2 and
the sign or
the wonder comes
to pass, of
which he spoke to
you, saying, “Let’s
go after other gods” (which
you have not known)
“and let’s serve
them,”
3 you
shall not listen
to the words of
that prophet, or
to that dreamer
of dreams; for the
LORD your God
is testing you, to
know whether
you love the LORD
your God with
all your heart and
with all your soul.
4 You
shall walk after
the LORD your
God, fear him,
keep his
commandments, and
obey his voice.
You shall serve
him, and cling to
him.
5 That prophet,
or that dreamer
of dreams, shall
be put to death,
because he has
spoken rebellion against
the LORD your
God, who brought
you out of
the land of Egypt
and redeemed you
out of the house
of bondage, to draw
you aside out of
the way which
the LORD your
God commanded you
to walk in.
So you shall remove
the evil from among
you.
6 If
your brother, the son
of your mother, or
your son, or your
daughter, or the
wife of your bosom,
or your friend who
is as your own
soul, entices you secretly, saying,
“Let’s go and serve
other gods”—which you
have not known,
you, nor
your fathers;
7 of
the gods of
the peoples who
are around you,
near to you,
or far off
from you, from
the one end of
the earth even to
the other end of
the earth—
8 you
shall not consent
to him nor listen
to him; neither
shall your eye pity
him, neither shall
you spare, neither
shall you conceal
him;
9 but
you shall
surely kill him.
Your hand shall
be first on him
to put him
to death, and afterwards
the hands of all
the people.
10 You
shall stone him to
death with stones,
because he
has sought to draw
you away from
the LORD your
God, who brought
you out of
the land of Egypt,
out of the house
of bondage.
11 All Israel
shall hear, and fear,
and shall not
do any
more wickedness like
this among you.
12 If you
hear about one
of your cities,
which the LORD
your God gives you
to dwell there,
that
13 certain wicked fellows have
gone out from
among you and
have drawn away
the inhabitants of
their city, saying, “Let’s go and serve other gods,”
which you have
not known,
14 then
you shall inquire,
investigate, and ask diligently.
Behold, if it
is true, and
the thing certain,
that such abomination
was done among
you,
15 you
shall surely strike
the inhabitants of
that city with
the edge of
the sword, destroying it utterly,
with all that
is therein and
its livestock, with
the edge of
the sword.
16 You
shall gather all
its plunder into
the middle of
its street, and
shall burn with fire
the city, with
all of its plunder,
to the LORD
your God. It shall
be a heap forever.
It shall not
be built again.
17 Nothing
of the devoted
thing shall cling
to your hand, that
the LORD may
turn from
the fierceness of
his anger and show
you mercy, and
have compassion on
you and multiply
you, as he
has sworn to
your fathers,
18 when
you listen to the
LORD your God’s
voice, to keep all
his commandments which
I command
you today, to do
that which is
right in the
LORD your God’s
eyes.