1 You shall not sacrifice to Yahweh, your God, an ox or a sheep that has any blemish or defect because Yah weh abhors this.
2 If there is among you, in any of the cities which Yahweh will give you, a man or a woman who does what is evil in the sight of Yahweh to the point of breaking his covenant,
3 if they go to serve other gods and bow before them—to the sun, or the moon, or the stars of heaven—which I have forbidden,
4 and this has been reported to you or you learn of it, you shall begin to investigate the matter well. If you have proved that this abomination has indeed been committed in Israel,
5 you shall bring to the gates of the city that man or woman who committed the misdeed, and you shall stone him or her to death.
6 But you will need the testimony of two or three witnesses to condemn a person to death. No one will be condemned by the accusation of only one witness.
7 The hands of the witnesses shall throw the first stones to kill the accused. Afterwards all the people shall stone him. In this way, you will make the evil disappear from your midst.
8 If a very difficult case is presented to you which you cannot resolve in the city tribunal, either about murder, a legal dispute or a quarrel because of injuries, you shall go up to the place chosen by Yah weh, your God;
9 you shall approach the Levite priests and the judge in office at that time. You shall consult them and they will point out to you the decision on the case.
10 You shall carry out the decision that they have made for you in that place chosen by Yahweh, and you shall act in accordance with what they have instructed you.
11 You shall follow the instructions or the verdict they have given you without turning aside either to the right or to the left from the decision they made for you.
12 He who dares to act in another way and does not listen to the priest who stands there in the service of Yahweh, or to the judge, that man will die. You shall banish evil from Israel.
13 So all the people upon knowing this shall fear and not make decisions without the right to do so.
The kings
14 When you come to the land which Yahweh, your God, gives you, when you have conquered it and live in it, you shall perhaps say: “I would like to have a king like all the neighboring nations.”
15 Then you have to appoint a king chosen by Yahweh from among your brothers. You shall not appoint a foreign king who is not a brother Israelite.
16 Ensure that your king does not acquire many horses, lest he again send his people to Egypt to get more horses. For Yahweh commanded you never to go back that way.
17 Neither shall he have many women lest they pervert his heart. And neither let him pile up gold and silver.
18 When he ascends the throne, let him copy for his use this Law from the book of the Levite priests.
19 He shall bring it with him and read it every day of his life, that he may learn to fear Yahweh, keeping all the sayings of the Law and putting his precepts into practice.
20 So let him not become conceited nor look down on his brothers, nor turn aside from this commandment either to the right or to the left, so that he and his children may lengthen the days of their reign in the midst of Israel.
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Comments Deuteronomy, Chapter 17
• 17.14 Here we have references to the three institutions acknowledged by the Jews: kings, priests and prophets.
17:14-20. The kings of Israel were negotiating with Egypt. In exchange for the horses they wished to purchase, they sent young Israelites to serve in the Pharaoh’s armies.
The sons of Levi shall have no share in the inheritance. About the priests of the tribe of Levi, see the commentary on Numbers 3 and 4.