^13:6Suppose your own full brother,⁸ your son, your daughter, your beloved wife, or your closest friend should seduce you secretly and encourage you to go and serve other gods⁹ that neither you nor your ancestors¹⁰ have previously known,¹¹^13:7the gods of the surrounding people (whether near you or far from you, from one end of the earth¹² to the other). ^13:8You 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. ^13:9Instead, you must kill him without fail!¹³ Your own hand must be the first to strike him,¹⁴ and then the hands of the whole community. ^13:10You must stone him to death¹⁵ because he tried to entice you away from the Lord your God, who delivered you from the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. ^13:11Thus all Israel will hear and be afraid; no longer will they continue to do evil like this among you.¹⁶

Punishment of Community Idolatry

^13:12Suppose you should hear in one of your cities, which the Lord your God is giving you as a place to live, that ^13:13some evil people¹⁷ have departed from among you to entice the inhabitants of their cities,¹⁸ saying, “Let’s go and serve other gods” (whom you have not known before).¹⁹^13:14You must investigate thoroughly and inquire carefully. If it is indeed true that such a disgraceful thing is being done among you,²⁰

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Footnotes

8 Heb “your brother, the son of your mother.” In a polygamous society it was not rare to have half brothers and sisters by way of a common father and different mothers.
9 In the Hebrew text these words are in the form of a brief quotation: “entice you secretly saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods.’ ”
10 Heb “fathers” (also in v. 17).
11 Heb “which you have not known, you or your fathers.” (cf. , ; on “fathers” cf. v. 18).
12 Or “land” (so , ); the same Hebrew word can be translated “land” or “earth.”
13 The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with the words “without fail” (cf. “you must certainly put him to death”).
14 Heb “to put him to death,” but this is misleading in English for such an action would leave nothing for the others to do.
15 Execution by means of pelting the offender with stones afforded a mechanism whereby the whole community could share in it. In a very real sense it could be done not only in the name of the community and on its behalf but by its members (cf. Lev 24:14; Num 15:35; Deut 21:21; Josh 7:25).
16 Some see in this statement an argument for the deterrent effect of capital punishment (Deut 17:13; 19:20; 21:21).
17 Heb “men, sons of Belial.” The Hebrew term בְּלִיַּעַל (béliyya’al) has the idea of worthlessness, without morals or scruples ( ). Cf. , “scoundrels”; , “worthless people”; “worthless rabble.”
18 The and read “your” for the ’s “their.”
19 The translation understands the relative clause as a statement by Moses, not as part of the quotation from the evildoers. See also v. 2.
20 Theodotian adds “in Israel,” perhaps to broaden the matter beyond the local village.