| English Standard Version | New International Version |
| 1“If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, | 1If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder, |
| 2and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ | 2and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place, and the prophet says, "Let us follow other gods" (gods you have not known) "and let us worship them," |
| 3you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or 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. | 3you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. |
| 4You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him. | 4It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. |
| 5But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has taught rebellion against the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you out of the house of slavery, to make you leave the way in which the LORD your God commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. | 5That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the LORD your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you. |
| 6“If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or your daughter or the wife you embrace or your friend who is as your own soul entices you secretly, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods,’ which neither you nor your fathers have known, | 6If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, "Let us go and worship other gods" (gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, |
| 7some of the gods of the peoples who are around you, whether near you or far off from you, from the one end of the earth to the other, | 7gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), |
| 8you shall not yield to him or listen to him, nor shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him, nor shall you conceal him. | 8do not yield to them or listen to them. Show them no pity. Do not spare them or shield them. |
| 9But you shall kill him. Your hand shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. | 9You must certainly put them to death. Your hand must be the first in putting them to death, and then the hands of all the people. |
| 10You shall stone him to death with stones, because he sought to draw you away from the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. | 10Stone them to death, because they tried to turn you away from the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. |
| 11And all Israel shall hear and fear and never again do any such wickedness as this among you. | 11Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and no one among you will do such an evil thing again. |
| 12“If you hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God is giving you to dwell there, | 12If you hear it said about one of the towns the LORD your God is giving you to live in |
| 13that certain worthless fellows have gone out among you and have drawn away the inhabitants of their city, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods,’ which you have not known, | 13that troublemakers have arisen among you and have led the people of their town astray, saying, "Let us go and worship other gods" (gods you have not known), |
| 14then you shall inquire and make search and ask diligently. And behold, if it be true and certain that such an abomination has been done among you, | 14then you must inquire, probe and investigate it thoroughly. And if it is true and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done among you, |
| 15you shall surely put the inhabitants of that city to the sword, devoting it to destruction, all who are in it and its cattle, with the edge of the sword. | 15you must certainly put to the sword all who live in that town. You must destroy it completely, both its people and its livestock. |
| 16You shall gather all its spoil into the midst of its open square and burn the city and all its spoil with fire, as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God. It shall be a heap forever. It shall not be built again. | 16You are to gather all the plunder of the town into the middle of the public square and completely burn the town and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God. That town is to remain a ruin forever, never to be rebuilt, |
| 17None of the devoted things shall stick 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 swore to your fathers, | 17and none of the condemned things are to be found in your hands. Then the LORD will turn from his fierce anger, will show you mercy, and will have compassion on you. He will increase your numbers, as he promised on oath to your ancestors-- |
| 18if you obey the voice of the LORD your God, keeping all his commandments that I am commanding you today, and doing what is right in the sight of the LORD your God. | 18because you obey the LORD your God by keeping all his commands that I am giving you today and doing what is right in his eyes. |
| ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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