New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Deuteronomy 13
1
Suppose a prophet appears among you. Or someone comes who uses dreams to tell what's going to happen. He tells you that a miraculous sign or wonder is going to take place.
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
The sign or wonder he has spoken about might really take place. And he might say, "Let's follow other gods. Let's worship them." But you haven't known anything about those gods before.
Reference
3
So you must not listen to what that prophet or dreamer has said. The Lord your God is putting you to the test. He wants to know whether you love him 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 must follow him. You must have respect for him. Keep his commands. Obey him. Serve him. Remain true 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
That prophet or dreamer must be put to death. He told you not to obey the Lord your God. The Lord brought you out of Egypt. He set you free from the land where you were slaves. He commanded you to live the way he wants you to. But that prophet or dreamer has tried to make you turn away from it. Get rid of that evil person.
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
Suppose your very own brother or sister secretly tempts you to do something wrong. Or your child or the wife you love tempts you. Or your closest friend does it. Suppose one of them says, "Let's go and worship other gods." But you and your people long ago hadn't known anything about those gods before.
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
They are the gods of the nations that are around you. Those nations might be near or far away. In fact, they might reach from one end of the land to the other.
8
Don't give in to those who are tempting you. Don't listen to them. Don't feel sorry for them. Don't spare them or save them.
Reference
9
You must certainly put them to death. You must be the first to throw stones at them. Then all of the people must do the same thing.
10
Put them to death by throwing stones at them. They tried to turn you away from the Lord your God. He brought you out of Egypt. That's the land where you were slaves.
Reference
References Lord
Joshua 7:25
11
After you kill those who tempted you, all of the people of Israel will hear about it. And they will be too scared to do an evil thing like that again.
Reference
12
The Lord your God is giving you towns to live in. But suppose you hear something bad about one of those towns.
13
You hear that evil men have appeared among you. They've tried to get the people of their town to do something wrong. They've said, "Let's go and worship other gods." But you haven't known anything about those gods before.
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
So you must question people. You must check the matter out carefully. If it's true, an evil thing has really happened among you. It's something the Lord hates.
Reference
15
Then you must certainly kill with your swords everyone who lives in that town. Destroy it completely. Wipe out its people and livestock.
Reference
16
Gather all of the goods of that town into the middle of the main street. Burn the town completely. Burn up everything in it. It's a whole burnt offering to the Lord your God. The town must remain a pile of stones forever. It must never be built again.
Reference
17
Don't keep anything that should be destroyed. Then the Lord will turn away from his burning anger. He will show you mercy. He'll have deep concern for you. He'll increase your numbers. That's what he promised your people long ago. He took an oath when he made the promise.
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
The Lord your God will do those things if you obey him. I'm giving you his commands today. And you must obey all of them. You must do what is right in his eyes.
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.