| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1 “Suppose there are prophets among you or those who dream dreams about the future, and they promise you signs or miracles, | 1Suppose a prophet or one who foretells by dreams should appear among you and show you a sign or wonder, |
| 2and the predicted signs or miracles occur. If they then say, ‘Come, let us worship other gods’—gods you have not known before— | 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 them. The LORD your God is testing you to see if you truly love him with all your heart and 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. |
| 4Serve only the LORD your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling 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. |
| 5The false prophets or visionaries who try to lead you astray must be put to death, for they encourage rebellion against the LORD your God, who redeemed you from slavery and brought you out of the land of Egypt. Since they try to lead you astray from the way the LORD your God commanded you to live, you must put them to death. In this way you will purge the evil from among 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. |
| 6“Suppose someone secretly entices you—even your brother, your son or daughter, your beloved wife, or your closest friend—and says, ‘Let us go worship other gods’—gods that neither you nor your ancestors 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, |
| 7They might suggest that you worship the gods of peoples who live nearby or who come from the ends of the earth. | 7the gods of the surrounding people (whether near you or far from you, from one end of the earth to the other). |
| 8But do not give in or listen. Have no pity, and do not spare or protect them. | 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. |
| 9You must put them to death! Strike the first blow yourself, and then all the people must join in. | 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 the guilty ones to death because they have tried to draw you away from the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, 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. |
| 11Then all Israel will hear about it and be afraid, and no one will act so wickedly again. | 11Thus all Israel will hear and be afraid; no longer will they continue to do evil like this among you. |
| 12“When you begin living in the towns the LORD your God is giving you, you may hear | 12Suppose you should hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God is giving you as a place to live, that |
| 13that scoundrels among you are leading their fellow citizens astray by saying, ‘Let us go worship other gods’—gods you have not known before. | 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). |
| 14In such cases, you must examine the facts carefully. If you find that the report is true and such a detestable act has been committed 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 attack that town and completely destroy all its inhabitants, as well as all the livestock. | 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. |
| 16Then you must pile all the plunder in the middle of the open square and burn it. Burn the entire town as a burnt offering to the LORD your God. That town must remain a ruin forever; it may never 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. |
| 17Keep none of the plunder that has been set apart for destruction. Then the LORD will turn from his fierce anger and be merciful to you. He will have compassion on you and make you a large nation, just as he swore to your ancestors. | 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. |
| 18“The LORD your God will be merciful only if you listen to his voice and keep all his commands that I am giving you today, doing what pleases him. | 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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