Deuteronomy 17:15–22:30

15 Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, twhom the Lord thy God shall choose: one ufrom among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. 16 But he shall not multiply xhorses to himself, nor cause the people yto return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the Lord hath said unto you, zYe shall henceforth return no more that way. 17 Neither ashall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. 18 bAnd it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is cbefore dthe priests the Levites: 19 And eit shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that fhe may learn to fear the Lord his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 20 That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he gturn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: hto the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.

18 The priests the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, ashall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they bshall eat the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and his inheritance. 2 Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the Lord is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them. 3 And this shall be the priest’s due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and cthey shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw. 4 dThe firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him. 5 For the Lord thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, eto stand to minister in the name of the Lord, him and his sons for ever. 6 And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, fwhere he sojourned, and come gwith all the desire of his mind hunto the place which the Lord shall choose; 7 Then he eshall minister in the name of the Lord his God, ias all his brethren the Levites do, ewhich stand there before the Lord. 8 They shall have like kportions to eat, beside †that which cometh of the sale of his patrimony.

9 When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, lthou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you any one mthat maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or nthat useth divination, or oan observer of times, or pan enchanter, or qa witch, 11 Or ra charmer, or a consulter with sfamiliar spirits, or sa wizard, or ta necromancer. 12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and ubecause of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee. 13 Thou shalt be ||perfect with the Lord thy God. 14 For these nations, which thou shalt ||possess, hearkened unto oobservers of times, and unto ndiviners: but as for thee, the Lord thy God hath not suffered thee so to do.

15 wThe Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; 16 According to all that thou desiredst of the Lord thy God in Horeb xin the day of the assembly, saying, yLet me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not. 17 And the Lord said unto me, zThey have well spoken that which they have spoken. 18 aI will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and bwill put my words in his mouth; and che shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 19 dAnd it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him. 20 But the prophet, which eshall presume fto speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or gthat shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. 21 And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? 22 hWhen a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it ipresumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.

19 When athe Lord thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the Lord thy God giveth thee, and thou †succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses; 2 bThou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it. 3 Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither. 4 And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: cWhoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not †in time past; 5 As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the †head slippeth from the †helve, and †lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live: 6 Lest dthe avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and †slay him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not †in time past. 7 Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee. 8 eAnd if the Lord thy God eenlarge thy coast, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and fgive thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers; 9 If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the Lord thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; gthen shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three: 10 That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. 11 But hif any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him †mortally that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities: 12 Then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die. 13 iThine eye shall not pity him, jbut thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee.

14 kThou shalt not remove thy neighbour’s landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it. 15 One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: lat the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established. 16 If ma false witness rise up against any man to testify against him ||that which is wrong; 17 Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the Lord, nbefore the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days; 18 And the judges shall make odiligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother; 19 pThen shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so qshalt thou put the evil away from among you. 20 And those which remain rshall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you. 21 sAnd thine eye shall not pity; but tlife shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

20 When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest ahorses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the Lord thy God is bwith thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 2 And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, 3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts †faint, fear not, and do not †tremble, neither cbe ye terrified because of them; 4 For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, cto fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

5 And dthe officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man is there that hath built a new house, and hath not ededicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it. 6 And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet †eaten of it? let him also go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it. 7 fAnd what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her. 8 And dthe officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, gWhat man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren’s heart †faint as well as his heart. 9 And it shall be, when dthe officers have made an end of speaking unto the people, that they shall make captains of the armies †to lead the people.

10 When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, hthen proclaim peace unto it. 11 And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that is found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee. 12 And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it: 13 And when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, ithou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword: 14 But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou †take unto thyself; and kthou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the Lord thy God hath given …