American King James Version - AKJV - 1999
Deuteronomy 13
1
If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives you a sign or a wonder,
Reference
Parallel theme
Zechariah 10:2
Prophecy
1 John 4:1
Jeremiah 29:8
Isaiah 9:15
Jeremiah 27:9
1 Kings 13:18
Jeremiah 23:11
Jeremiah 6:13
Zechariah 13:4
Resurrection
Mark 13:22
2
And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spoke to you, saying, Let us go after other gods, which you have not known, and let us serve them;
Reference
3
You shall not listen to the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proves you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Reference
Love
Deuteronomy 6:5
Parallel theme
1 Corinthians 11:19
References God
Psalm 66:10
2 Thessalonians 2:11
Word
Deuteronomy 8:2
Isaiah 8:20
4
You shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and you shall serve him, and join to him.
Reference
References God
Deuteronomy 10:20
Colossians 1:10
Jeremiah 7:23
Deuteronomy 30:20
Micah 6:8
Deuteronomy 6:13
Romans 6:13
References Lord
1 Corinthians 6:17
Word
2 Kings 23:3
2 Chronicles 34:31
5
And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he has spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust you out of the way which the LORD your God commanded you to walk in. So shall you put the evil away from the middle of you.
Reference
Evil
1 Corinthians 5:13
Deuteronomy 22:21
Deuteronomy 17:7
Deuteronomy 24:7
Deuteronomy 19:19
Prophecy
Jeremiah 14:15
Deuteronomy 18:20
References God
Deuteronomy 13:10
6
If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son, or your daughter, or the wife of your bosom, or your friend, which is as your own soul, entice you secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which you have not known, you, nor your fathers;
Reference
Parallel theme
2 Peter 2:1
Ephesians 4:14
Proverbs 18:24
Revelation 12:9
Revelation 20:3
Deuteronomy 28:54
1 Samuel 20:17
1 Samuel 18:3
1 Samuel 18:1
References God
Deuteronomy 29:18
7
Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, near to you, or far off from you, from the one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth;
8
You shall not consent to him, nor listen to him; neither shall your eye pity him, neither shall you spare, neither shall you conceal him:
Reference
9
But you shall surely kill him; your hand shall be first on him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people.
10
And you shall stone him with stones, that he die; because he has sought to thrust you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.
Reference
References Lord
Joshua 7:25
11
And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you.
Reference
12
If you shall hear say in one of your cities, which the LORD your God has given you to dwell there, saying,
13
Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which you have not known;
Reference
Parallel theme
1 John 2:19
John 8:44
2 Corinthians 6:15
1 Samuel 2:12
1 Samuel 25:17
2 Samuel 20:1
References God
Deuteronomy 13:2
Deuteronomy 13:6
1 Kings 21:10
1 Kings 21:13
14
Then shall you inquire, and make search, and ask diligently; and, behold, if it be truth, and the thing certain, that such abomination is worked among you;
Reference
15
You shall surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword.
Reference
16
And you shall gather all the spoil of it into the middle of the street thereof, and shall burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the LORD your God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again.
Reference
17
And there shall stick nothing of the cursed thing to your hand: that the LORD may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and show you mercy, and have compassion on you, and multiply you, as he has sworn to your fathers;
Reference
Curse
Deuteronomy 7:26
Joshua 6:18
Parallel theme
Genesis 26:4
Genesis 28:14
References Lord
Genesis 26:24
Joshua 7:26
Deuteronomy 30:3
18
When you shall listen to the voice of the LORD your God, to keep all his commandments which I command you this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the LORD your God.
Reference
Parallel theme
Matthew 7:24
Deuteronomy 12:32
References God
Matthew 6:33
References Lord
Matthew 7:21
Deuteronomy 12:25
Word
Deuteronomy 12:28
Psalm 119:6
Summary of Deuteronomy 13
Deuteronomy 13 warns the Israelites about people that seeks to lure them into worshipping other gods. Moses said that even if a person does a sign or wonder that comes true, if he tries to get them to follow other gods, they must not listen to him. The chapter prioritizes loyalty to God over signs from him, relationships with others, and even family.
The passage starts by warning the Israelites of a prophet or dreamer that speaks a sign or wonder that comes true. If this person later tells them to follow other gods, they must not listen to him because even though the sign was true, it does not mean that he spoke for God. Moses reminds the Israelites that they are to pursue God, obey his voice, serve and fear Him. They must not be lured by signs and wonders into following other gods even if these prophets tell them to do so.
It also warns the Israelites against a member of their own family tempting them to follow other gods. This includes brothers, sisters, children, a friend, or even a wife. The person is not to be persuaded to follow God because their relationships with them are more important than loyalty to God. Moses said that if someone tried to tempt them to follow other gods, they should be stoned to death. If the people nearby heard what happened and did not stone the person to death, they too were guilty.
They should also be killed even if they are close family members or friends and have been persuading others to follow other gods. Moses said that they were to stone him to death as well. They were to act in accordance to the law for the whole of Israel that said that anyone that enticed another person to follow other gods should be stoned to death.
It also warns the Israelites to not spare even their sons and daughters if they tried to lure them into following other gods. Moses reminded them that if they did that, they will have made their land like the nations that God was giving them. The Israelites were warned that if anyone tried to get them to follow other gods, they should be put to death first before the whole town.
If a report reaches the Israelites that a city among them had followed other gods and worshipped them, they should not go and attack it immediately. They were to investigate the matter first and if it was true, the whole city was to be destroyed including its possessions. They were not to keep any of the plundered goods from the city. The goods were to be dedicated to God because He had made them conquer the city.
They were to destroy everything in the city that worshipped other gods because they have rejected God and gone after other gods. Moses said that if they did otherwise and tolerated those that worshipped other gods, they would be like them. The passage shows that not tolerating false worship was more important than family relationships, friends, and even signs from God.
A comparison of the three cases that Moses highlighted in the chapter show the different levels of seriousness that the Israelites should give to false worship. In the first case, it talks of prophets or dreamers that attempted to get the Israelites to follow other gods and used signs and wonders to persuade them. In the second case, it says that no one should follow other gods even if it is a close family member or friend. In the third case, it talks about the whole city following other gods.
The whole city becoming involved in worshipping other gods was the most serious offence and the punishment was that the whole city should be destroyed. It shows that false worship was a priority over relationships with friends or family. Moses prioritizes loyalty to God over other relationships. This was important to him because of the experiences they had at Sinai and the challenges they would face in Canaan.
They were about to enter Canaan where they would come across peoples that worshipped other gods and used different rituals. Moses wanted them to realize that the biggest threat was not other nations but the fact that they would become like them and forget the God that had brought them out of Egypt. The Israelites were to be careful not to fall into idolatry and if they did, it meant that they had turned away from God and rejected His Torah.
Deuteronomy 13 has important lessons for believers today. Believers must be careful about the influence that people have on each other and how they respond to their teachings. They should not believe someone just because they speak impressively and claim that they know what God wants, even if they do miraculous things as a sign that they speak for God. Moses wanted the Israelites to understand that just because someone can do signs and wonders, it does not mean that they speak for God. The truth is that God has given them the Torah that they should use to test such claims and see if the person truly spoke for Him.
The passage starts by warning the Israelites of a prophet or dreamer that speaks a sign or wonder that comes true. If this person later tells them to follow other gods, they must not listen to him because even though the sign was true, it does not mean that he spoke for God. Moses reminds the Israelites that they are to pursue God, obey his voice, serve and fear Him. They must not be lured by signs and wonders into following other gods even if these prophets tell them to do so.
It also warns the Israelites against a member of their own family tempting them to follow other gods. This includes brothers, sisters, children, a friend, or even a wife. The person is not to be persuaded to follow God because their relationships with them are more important than loyalty to God. Moses said that if someone tried to tempt them to follow other gods, they should be stoned to death. If the people nearby heard what happened and did not stone the person to death, they too were guilty.
They should also be killed even if they are close family members or friends and have been persuading others to follow other gods. Moses said that they were to stone him to death as well. They were to act in accordance to the law for the whole of Israel that said that anyone that enticed another person to follow other gods should be stoned to death.
It also warns the Israelites to not spare even their sons and daughters if they tried to lure them into following other gods. Moses reminded them that if they did that, they will have made their land like the nations that God was giving them. The Israelites were warned that if anyone tried to get them to follow other gods, they should be put to death first before the whole town.
If a report reaches the Israelites that a city among them had followed other gods and worshipped them, they should not go and attack it immediately. They were to investigate the matter first and if it was true, the whole city was to be destroyed including its possessions. They were not to keep any of the plundered goods from the city. The goods were to be dedicated to God because He had made them conquer the city.
They were to destroy everything in the city that worshipped other gods because they have rejected God and gone after other gods. Moses said that if they did otherwise and tolerated those that worshipped other gods, they would be like them. The passage shows that not tolerating false worship was more important than family relationships, friends, and even signs from God.
A comparison of the three cases that Moses highlighted in the chapter show the different levels of seriousness that the Israelites should give to false worship. In the first case, it talks of prophets or dreamers that attempted to get the Israelites to follow other gods and used signs and wonders to persuade them. In the second case, it says that no one should follow other gods even if it is a close family member or friend. In the third case, it talks about the whole city following other gods.
The whole city becoming involved in worshipping other gods was the most serious offence and the punishment was that the whole city should be destroyed. It shows that false worship was a priority over relationships with friends or family. Moses prioritizes loyalty to God over other relationships. This was important to him because of the experiences they had at Sinai and the challenges they would face in Canaan.
They were about to enter Canaan where they would come across peoples that worshipped other gods and used different rituals. Moses wanted them to realize that the biggest threat was not other nations but the fact that they would become like them and forget the God that had brought them out of Egypt. The Israelites were to be careful not to fall into idolatry and if they did, it meant that they had turned away from God and rejected His Torah.
Deuteronomy 13 has important lessons for believers today. Believers must be careful about the influence that people have on each other and how they respond to their teachings. They should not believe someone just because they speak impressively and claim that they know what God wants, even if they do miraculous things as a sign that they speak for God. Moses wanted the Israelites to understand that just because someone can do signs and wonders, it does not mean that they speak for God. The truth is that God has given them the Torah that they should use to test such claims and see if the person truly spoke for Him.