| Holman Christian Standard Bible | NET Bible |
| 1If a prophet or someone who has dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you, | 1Suppose a prophet or one who foretells by dreams should appear among you and show you a sign or wonder, |
| 2and that sign or wonder he has promised you comes about, but he says, 'Let us follow other gods,' which you have not known, 'and let us worship them,' | 2and the sign or wonder should come to pass concerning what he said to you, namely, "Let us follow other gods"--gods whom you have not previously known--"and let us serve them." |
| 3do not listen to that prophet's words or to that dreamer. For the LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul. | 3You must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, for the LORD your God will be testing you to see if you love him with all your mind and being. |
| 4You must follow the LORD your God and fear Him. You must keep His commands and listen to His voice; you must worship Him and remain faithful to Him. | 4You must follow the LORD your God and revere only him; and you must observe his commandments, obey him, serve him, and remain loyal to him. |
| 5That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he has urged rebellion against the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the place of slavery, to turn you from the way the LORD your God has commanded you to walk. You must purge the evil from you." | 5As for that prophet or dreamer, he must be executed because he encouraged rebellion against the LORD your God who brought you from the land of Egypt, redeeming you from that place of slavery, and because he has tried to entice you from the way the LORD your God has commanded you to go. In this way you must purge out evil from within. |
| 6If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you embrace, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, 'Let us go and worship other gods--which neither you nor your fathers have known, | 6Suppose your own full brother, your son, your daughter, your beloved wife, or your closest friend should seduce you secretly and encourage you to go and serve other gods that neither you nor your ancestors have previously known, |
| 7any of the gods of the peoples around you, near you or far from you, from one end of the earth to the other-- | 7the gods of the surrounding people (whether near you or far from you, from one end of the earth to the other). |
| 8you must not yield to him or listen to him. Show him no pity, and do not spare him or shield him. | 8You must not give in to him or even listen to him; do not feel sympathy for him or spare him or cover up for him. |
| 9Instead, you must kill him. Your hand is to be the first against him to put him to death, and then the hands of all the people. | 9Instead, you must kill him without fail! Your own hand must be the first to strike him, and then the hands of the whole community. |
| 10Stone him to death for trying to turn you away from the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. | 10You must stone him to death because he tried to entice you away from the LORD your God, who delivered you from the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. |
| 11All Israel will hear and be afraid, and they will no longer do anything evil like this among you." | 11Thus all Israel will hear and be afraid; no longer will they continue to do evil like this among you. |
| 12If you hear it said about one of your cities the LORD your God is giving you to live in, | 12Suppose you should hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God is giving you as a place to live, that |
| 13that wicked men have sprung up among you, led the inhabitants of their city astray, and said, 'Let us go and worship other gods,' which you have not known, | 13some evil people have departed from among you to entice the inhabitants of their cities, saying, "Let's go and serve other gods" (whom you have not known before). |
| 14you are to inquire, investigate, and interrogate thoroughly. If the report turns out to be true that this detestable thing has happened among you, | 14You must investigate thoroughly and inquire carefully. If it is indeed true that such a disgraceful thing is being done among you, |
| 15you must strike down the inhabitants of that city with the sword. Completely destroy everyone in it as well as its livestock with the sword. | 15you must by all means slaughter the inhabitants of that city with the sword; annihilate with the sword everyone in it, as well as the livestock. |
| 16You are to gather all its spoil in the middle of the city square and completely burn up the city and all its spoil for the LORD your God. The city must remain a mound of ruins forever; it is not to be rebuilt. | 16You must gather all of its plunder into the middle of the plaza and burn the city and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God. It will be an abandoned ruin forever--it must never be rebuilt again. |
| 17Nothing set apart for destruction is to remain in your hand, so that the LORD will turn from His burning anger and grant you mercy, show you compassion, and multiply you as He swore to your fathers. | 17You must not take for yourself anything that has been placed under judgment. Then the LORD will relent from his intense anger, show you compassion, have mercy on you, and multiply you as he promised your ancestors. |
| 18This will occur if you obey the LORD your God, keeping all His commands I am giving you today, doing what is right in the sight of the LORD your God." | 18Thus you must obey the LORD your God, keeping all his commandments that I am giving you today and doing what is right before him. |
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