Deuteronomy 18

1 The priests, the Levites, that is, all the tribe of Levi, will have no part or heritage with Israel: their food and their heritage will be the offerings of the Lord made by fire.

Neither the priests the Levites [nor] any of the tribe of Levi, shall have either portion or inheritance with Israel, —the altar-flames of Yahweh and his inheritance, shall they eat.

2 And they will have no heritage among their countrymen: the Lord is their heritage, as he has said to them.

But inheritance, shall he not have, in the midst of his brethren, —Yahweh, is his inheritance, as he spake unto him.

3 And this is to be the priests' right: those who make an offering of a sheep or an ox are to give to the priest the top part of the leg and the two sides of the head and the stomach.

This, therefore shall be the due of the priests from the people from them who offer the sacrifice whether ox or lamb, —there shall be given unto the priest, the shoulder and the two cheeks and the maw:

4 And in addition you are to give him the first of your grain and wine and oil, and the first wool cut from your sheep.

the firstfruit of thy corn thy new wine and thine oil and the first of the fleece of thy flock, shalt thou give unto him.

5 For he, and his sons after him for ever, have been marked out by the Lord your God from all your tribes, to do the work of priests in the name of the Lord.

For of him, hath Yahweh thy God made choice out of all thy tribes, —to stand to minister in the name of Yahweh of him and his sons all the days.

6 And if a Levite, moved by a strong desire, comes from any town in all Israel where he is living to the place marked out by the Lord;

And when the Levite shall come in out of any of thy gates out of any part of Israel, where he is sojourning, —yea shall come in with all the desire of his soul, into the place which Yahweh shall choose,

7 Then he will do the work of a priest in the name of the Lord his God, with all his brothers the Levites who are there before the Lord.

then may he minister in the name of Yahweh his God, —like any of his brethren the Levites who are standing there before Yahweh.

8 His food will be the same as theirs, in addition to what has come to him as the price of his property.

Portion for portion, shall they eat, —apart from his possessions upon his patrimony.

9 When you have come into the land which the Lord your God is giving you, do not take as your example the disgusting ways of those nations.

When thou art coming into the land which Yahweh thy God is giving unto thee, thou shalt not learn to do according to the abominable doings of those nations.

10 Let there not be seen among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter go through the fire, or anyone using secret arts, or a maker of strange sounds, or a reader of signs, or any wonder-worker,

There shall not be found in thy midst—One who causeth his son or his daughter to pass through fire, —Or who useth divination, hidden arts or enchantments Or who muttereth incantations;

11 Or anyone using secret force on people, or putting questions to a spirit, or having secret knowledge, or going to the dead for directions.

Or who bindeth with spells, —Or who asketh of a familiar spirit or an oracle, Or who seeketh unto the dead.

12 For all who do such things are disgusting to the Lord; and because of these disgusting things the Lord your God is driving them out before you.

For, an abomination unto Yahweh, is everyone who doeth these things, —and on account of these abominations, is Yahweh thy God dispossessing them from before thee.

13 You are to be upright in heart before the Lord your God.

Blameless, shalt thou be with, Yahweh thy God;

14 For these nations, whose land you are taking, give attention to readers of signs and to those using secret arts: but the Lord your God will not let you do so.

for, these nations whom thou art dispossessing, unto them who use hidden arts and unto diviners, do hearken, but as for thee, not so, doth Yahweh thy God suffer thee.

15 The Lord your God will give you a prophet from among your people, like me; you will give ear to him;

A prophet out of thy midst of thy brethren like unto me, will Yahweh thy God, raise up unto thee—unto him, shall ye hearken:

16 In answer to the request you made to the Lord your God in Horeb on the day of the great meeting, when you said, Let not the voice of the Lord my God come to my ears again, and let me not see this great fire any more, or death will overtake me.

according to all which thou didst ask of Yahweh thy God, in Horeb, in the day of the convocation saying, —Let me no further hearken unto the voice of Yahweh my God, and this great fire, let me not see any more lest I die.

17 Then the Lord said to me, What they have said is well said.

And Yahweh said unto me: They have well said what they have spoken.

18 I will give them a prophet from among themselves, like you, and I will put my words in his mouth, and he will say to them whatever I give him orders to say.

A prophet, will I raise up unto them, out of the midst of their brethren, like unto thee, —and I will put my words in his mouth, so shall he speak unto them whatsoever I shall command him.

19 And whoever does not give ear to my words which he will say in my name, will be responsible to me.

And it shall come to pass, that, the man who will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I, myself will require it of him.

20 But the prophet who takes it on himself to say words in my name which I have not given him orders to say, or who says anything in the name of other gods, will come to his death.

Howbeit the prophet who shall presume to speak a word in my name which I have not commanded him to speak, or who shall speak in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.

21 And if you say in your hearts, How are we to be certain that the word does not come from the Lord?

And, when thou shalt say in thy heart, —In what manner shall we know the word which Yahweh hath not spoken!?,

22 When a prophet makes a statement in the name of the Lord, if what he says does not take place and his words do not come true, then his word is not the word of the Lord: the words of the prophet were said in the pride of his heart, and you are to have no fear of him.

When the prophet shall speak in the name of Yahweh and the word shall not come to pass, neither shall come in, that, is the word which Yahweh, hath not spoken, —presumptuously, hath the prophet spoken it, thou shall not be in dread of him.