¹⁰Here are things you must not do. Don’t sacrifice your children in the fire to other gods. Don’t practice any kind of evil magic at all. Don’t use magic to try to explain the meaning of warnings in the sky or of any other signs. Don’t take part in worshiping evil powers. ¹¹Don’t put a spell on anyone. Don’t get messages from those who have died. Don’t talk to the spirits of the dead. Don’t get advice from the dead.

¹²The Lord your God hates it when anyone does those things. The nations that are in the land he’s giving you practice the things he hates. So he will drive out those nations to make room for you. ¹³You must be without blame in the sight of the Lord your God.

The Prophet of the Lord

¹⁴You will take over the nations that are in the land the Lord is giving you. They listen to those who practice all kinds of evil magic. But you belong to the Lord your God. He says you must not do those things.

¹⁵The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me. He will be one of your own people. You must listen to him. ¹⁶At Mount Horeb you asked the Lord your God for a prophet. You asked him on the day you gathered together. You said, “We don’t want to hear the voice of the Lord our God. We don’t want to see this great fire anymore. If we do, we’ll die.”

¹⁷The Lord said to me, “What they are saying is good. ¹⁸I will raise up for them a prophet like you. He will be one of their own people. I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him to say.

¹⁹“The prophet will speak in my name. But someone might not listen to what I say through the prophet. Then that person will be accountable to me.

²⁰“But suppose a prophet dares to speak in my name something I have not commanded him to say. Or he speaks in the name of other gods. Then that prophet must be put to death.”

²¹You will say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message hasn’t been spoken by the Lord?” ²²Sometimes a prophet will announce something in the name of the Lord. And it won’t take place or come true. Then that’s a message the Lord hasn’t told him to speak. That prophet has dared to speak on his own authority. So don’t be afraid of him or what he says.

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