◄ Deuteronomy 17:12 ►
But the man who acts presumptuously, refusing to listen either to the priest who stands there to serve the LORD your God, or to the judge, must be put to death. You must purge the evil from Israel.
Study Bible
But the man who acts presumptuously
The Hebrew word for "presumptuously" is "זָדוֹן" (zadown), which conveys a sense of arrogance or willful defiance. In the context of ancient Israel, acting presumptuously was not merely a personal failing but a direct challenge to the divinely established order. This phrase underscores the seriousness of rebellion against God's appointed leaders, emphasizing that such actions are not just personal sins but threats to the community's spiritual health.

by refusing to listen
The phrase "refusing to listen" translates from the Hebrew "לֹא יִשְׁמַע" (lo yishma), which implies a deliberate choice to ignore or disobey. Listening, in the biblical sense, often involves obedience and submission. This refusal is a conscious decision to reject divine authority, highlighting the importance of heeding God's word as delivered through His chosen representatives.

to the priest who stands there to serve the LORD your God
The priesthood in Israel was established by God to mediate between Him and the people. The phrase "stands there to serve" indicates a position of divine appointment and responsibility. The priests were not merely religious functionaries but were seen as standing in the presence of God, serving as His mouthpiece. This underscores the gravity of ignoring their counsel, as it was tantamount to ignoring God Himself.

or to the judge
Judges in Israel were appointed to interpret and apply God's law. They were seen as instruments of divine justice. The inclusion of judges alongside priests in this verse highlights the comprehensive nature of God's governance over Israel, encompassing both religious and civil spheres. Disobedience to the judge was a rejection of God's justice and order.

must be put to death
The severity of the punishment—death—reflects the seriousness with which God views rebellion against His established order. In the theocratic society of ancient Israel, such rebellion was seen as a cancer that could spread and corrupt the entire community. The death penalty served as a deterrent and a means of preserving the holiness and integrity of the nation.

You must purge the evil from Israel
The phrase "purge the evil" comes from the Hebrew "וּבִעַרְתָּ הָרָע" (u'viarta hara), which means to remove or eradicate. This command reflects the necessity of maintaining the purity and sanctity of the community. In a broader spiritual sense, it serves as a reminder of the need for vigilance against sin and rebellion, both individually and corporately, to ensure that the community remains aligned with God's will.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The Priest
A religious leader appointed to serve the LORD and guide the people in spiritual and legal matters.

2. The Judge
A civil authority responsible for interpreting and applying the law among the Israelites.

3. The LORD your God
The covenantal name of God, emphasizing His relationship with Israel.

4. Israel
The nation chosen by God, bound by His laws and commandments.

5. The Man Who Acts Presumptuously
An individual who defies the established authority of the priest or judge, representing rebellion against God's order.
Teaching Points
Respect for Authority
God establishes leaders to maintain order and justice. Disrespecting them is akin to rebelling against God Himself.

The Seriousness of Presumption
Acting presumptuously is a grave sin because it undermines the community's spiritual and social fabric.

Purging Evil
The command to purge evil highlights the need for a community to maintain holiness and integrity.

Obedience as Worship
Listening to God’s appointed leaders is an act of worship and submission to God’s will.

Community Responsibility
The community is responsible for upholding God's standards and ensuring that rebellion does not spread.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the role of the priest and judge in Deuteronomy 17:12 reflect God's order and structure for His people?

2. In what ways can we apply the principle of respecting authority in our modern context, both within the church and in society?

3. How does the concept of purging evil from the community relate to the New Testament teachings on church discipline?

4. What are some practical steps we can take to ensure we are not acting presumptuously in our daily lives?

5. How do the teachings in Deuteronomy 17:12 connect with the New Testament instructions on submitting to authority, and what does this mean for our personal walk with God?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Exodus 22:28
This verse emphasizes the importance of respecting God's appointed leaders, similar to the command in Deuteronomy 17:12.

Romans 13:1-2
Paul speaks about submitting to governing authorities, as they are instituted by God, echoing the principle of obedience to God’s appointed leaders.

Hebrews 13:17
This passage encourages believers to obey their leaders and submit to their authority, reinforcing the idea of respecting those who guide us spiritually.
Sermons
High Court of AppealD. Davies Deuteronomy 17:8-13
The Priest and the JudgeJ. Orr Deuteronomy 17:8-13
The Ruling -Power of the Priests in the Jewish ChurchR.M. Edgar Deuteronomy 17:8-13
People
Levites, Moses
Places
Beth-baal-peor, Egypt
Topics
Act, Acteth, Acts, Contempt, Death, Die, Died, Ear, Evil, Exterminate, Hast, Hearken, Hearkening, Judge, Listening, Minister, Ministering, Obeying, Presumption, Presumptuously, Pride, Priest, Purge, Remove, Serve, Standeth, Standing, Stands, Thus
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Deuteronomy 17:12

     5358   judges
     6021   sin, nature of
     7346   death penalty
     7377   high priest, OT
     7942   ministry
     8243   ethics, social
     8326   purity, moral and spiritual

Deuteronomy 17:8-13

     5025   killing
     5383   lawsuits

Deuteronomy 17:11-12

     8245   ethics, incentives

Deuteronomy 17:12-13

     5896   irreverence
     5931   resistance
     8736   evil, warnings against
     8786   opposition, to sin and evil

Library
Bethphage
There is very frequent mention of this place in the Talmudists: and, certainly, a more careful comparison of the maps with those things which are said by them of the situation of this place is worthy to be made; when they place it in mount Olivet, these make it contiguous to the buildings of Jerusalem. I. In the place cited in the margin, the case "of a stubborn judge" (or elder) is handling. For when, by the prescript of the law, difficult matters, and such things as concerning which the lower councils …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

The Reign of Saul.
I Sam. 8-31; I Chron. 10 The Demand for a King. The last period saw one tribe after another come to the front and assert itself through some leading man as an emergency arose, but now the tribes are to be united into a monarchy and this, too, at their own request made in the form of a desire for a king. Several things no doubt influenced them to make this request. (1) From the days of Joshua there had been no strong national bond. They were only held together by the law of Moses and the annual assemblages …
Josiah Blake Tidwell—The Bible Period by Period

'Make us a King'
'Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel, onto Ramah, 5. And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. 6. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the Lord. 7. And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Adonijah
BY REV. ALFRED ROWLAND, D.D., LL.B. It is notorious that the sons of devout men sometimes prove a curse to their parents, and bring dishonour on the cause of God. When Eve rejoiced over her first-born, she little suspected that passions were sleeping within him which would impel him to slay his own brother; and the experience of the first mother has been repeated, though in different forms, in all lands and in all ages. Isaac's heart was rent by the deceit of Jacob, and by the self-will of Esau. …
George Milligan—Men of the Bible; Some Lesser-Known

Jehoiada and Joash
'And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal. 2. But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king's sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. 3. And he was with her hid in the house of the Lord six years. And Athaliah did reign over the land. 4. And the seventh year Jehoiada …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Bible in the Days of Jesus Christ
[Illustration: (drop cap S) Reading from a Roll--old Roman Painting] Slowly but surely, as time went on, God was adding to His Book, until about four hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ the Old Testament Scriptures, in their present shape, were completed. Many questions have been asked as to how the canon of the Old Testament was formed--that is, how and when did the Jews first begin to understand that the Books of the Old Testament were inspired by God. About the first five Books--the …
Mildred Duff—The Bible in its Making

Josiah, a Pattern for the Ignorant.
"Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before Me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place."--2 Kings …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII

The Story of the Adulteress.
(Jerusalem.) ^D John VII. 53-VIII. 11. [This section is wanting in nearly all older manuscripts, but Jerome (a.d. 346-420) says that in his time it was contained in "many Greek and Latin manuscripts," and these must have been as good or better than the best manuscripts we now possess. But whether we regard it as part of John's narrative or not, scholars very generally accept it as a genuine piece of history.] ^d 53 And they went every man unto his own house [confused by the question of Nicodemus, …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Golden Eagle is Cut to Pieces. Herod's Barbarity when He was Ready to Die. He Attempts to Kill Himself. He Commands Antipater to be Slain.
1. Now Herod's distemper became more and more severe to him, and this because these his disorders fell upon him in his old age, and when he was in a melancholy condition; for he was already seventy years of age, and had been brought by the calamities that happened to him about his children, whereby he had no pleasure in life, even when he was in health; the grief also that Antipater was still alive aggravated his disease, whom he resolved to put to death now not at random, but as soon as he should …
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem

A Sermon on Isaiah xxvi. By John Knox.
[In the Prospectus of our Publication it was stated, that one discourse, at least, would be given in each number. A strict adherence to this arrangement, however, it is found, would exclude from our pages some of the most talented discourses of our early Divines; and it is therefore deemed expedient to depart from it as occasion may require. The following Sermon will occupy two numbers, and we hope, that from its intrinsic value, its historical interest, and the illustrious name of its author, it …
John Knox—The Pulpit Of The Reformation, Nos. 1, 2 and 3.

Subjects of Study. Home Education in Israel; Female Education. Elementary Schools, Schoolmasters, and School Arrangements.
If a faithful picture of society in ancient Greece or Rome were to be presented to view, it is not easy to believe that even they who now most oppose the Bible could wish their aims success. For this, at any rate, may be asserted, without fear of gainsaying, that no other religion than that of the Bible has proved competent to control an advanced, or even an advancing, state of civilisation. Every other bound has been successively passed and submerged by the rising tide; how deep only the student …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Second Stage of Jewish Trial. Jesus Condemned by Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin.
(Palace of Caiaphas. Friday.) ^A Matt. XXVI. 57, 59-68; ^B Mark XIV. 53, 55-65; ^C Luke XXII. 54, 63-65; ^D John XVIII. 24. ^d 24 Annas therefore sent him bound unto Caiaphas the high priest. [Foiled in his attempted examination of Jesus, Annas sends him to trial.] ^b and there come together with him all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes. ^a 57 And they that had taken Jesus led him away to the house of Caiaphas the high priest, ^c and brought him into the high priest's house. ^a where …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Easter Tuesday
Second Sermon. Same Text. Acts 13, 26-39. THE WORD AND THE RESURRECTION.[1] [Footnote 1: This sermon appeared first in the Church Postil, the Explanation of the Epistle and Gospel Texts from Easter to Advent. Printed by Hans Lufft, Wittenberg, 1559.] 1. This sermon was preached by Paul in the synagogue at Antioch of Pisidia, where were gathered with the Jews some Greek converts. Wherever in a city Jews were to be found, there also were their synagogues in which they taught and preached; and many …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. II

The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
THE FALL OF NINEVEH AND THE RISE OF THE CHALDAEAN AND MEDIAN EMPIRES--THE XXVIth EGYPTIAN DYNASTY: CYAXARES, ALYATTES, AND NEBUCHADREZZAR. The legendary history of the kings of Media and the first contact of the Medes with the Assyrians: the alleged Iranian migrations of the Avesta--Media-proper, its fauna and flora; Phraortes and the beginning of the Median empire--Persia proper and the Persians; conquest of Persia by the Medes--The last monuments of Assur-bani-pal: the library of Kouyunjik--Phraortes …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8

Deuteronomy
Owing to the comparatively loose nature of the connection between consecutive passages in the legislative section, it is difficult to present an adequate summary of the book of Deuteronomy. In the first section, i.-iv. 40, Moses, after reviewing the recent history of the people, and showing how it reveals Jehovah's love for Israel, earnestly urges upon them the duty of keeping His laws, reminding them of His spirituality and absoluteness. Then follows the appointment, iv. 41-43--here irrelevant (cf. …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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