Deuteronomy 17

1 Thou shalt offer vnto the Lord thy God no bullocke nor sheepe wherein is blemish or any euill fauoured thing: for that is an abomination vnto the Lord thy God.

“You shall not immolate to the Lord your God a sheep or an ox, in which there is a blemish or any defect at all; for this is an abomination to the Lord your God.

2 If there be founde among you in any of thy cities, which the Lord thy God giueth thee, man or woman that hath wrought wickednes in the sight of the Lord thy God, in transgressing his couenant,

When there will have been found among you, within one of your gates which the Lord your God will give to you, a man or a woman who is doing evil in the sight of the Lord your God, and who is transgressing his covenant,

3 And hath gone and serued other gods, and worshipped them: as the sunne, or the moone, or any of the hoste of heauen, which I haue not commanded,

so as to go and serve foreign gods and adore them, such as the sun and the moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not instructed,

4 And it be tolde vnto thee, and thou hast heard it, then shalt thou inquire diligently: and if it be true, and the thing certaine, that such abomination is wrought in Israel,

and when this will have been reported to you, and, upon hearing it, if you have inquired diligently and have found it to be true, that the abomination is being done in Israel:

5 Then shalt thou bring foorth that man, or that woman (which haue committed that wicked thing) vnto thy gates, whether it be man or woman, and shalt stone them with stones, til they die.

you shall lead forward the man or the woman who has perpetrated this most wicked thing to the gates of your city, and they shall be stoned to death.

6 At the mouth of two or three witnesses shall he that is woorthie of death, die: but at the mouth of one witnesse, he shall not die.

By the mouth of two or three witnesses, he who is to be put to death shall perish. Let no one be killed with only one person speaking testimony against him.

7 The handes of the witnesses shall be first vpon him, to kill him: and afterward the hands of all the people: so thou shalt take the wicked away from among you.

First, the hands of the witnesses shall be upon him who will be put to death, and lastly, the hands of the remainder of the people shall be sent forth. So may you take away the evil from your midst.

8 If there rise a matter too harde for thee in iudgement betweene blood and blood, betweene plea and plea, betweene plague and plague, in the matters of controuersie within thy gates, then shalt thou arise, and goe vp vnto the place which the Lord thy God shall chuse,

If you have perceived that there is among you a difficult and doubtful matter of judgment, between blood and blood, cause and cause, leprosy and leprosy, and if you will have seen that the words of the judges within your gates vary: rise up and ascend to the place which the Lord your God will choose.

9 And thou shalt come vnto the Priestes of the Leuites, and vnto the iudge that shall be in those daies, and aske, and they shall shewe thee the sentence of iudgement,

And you shall approach the priests of the Levitical stock, and the judge, who shall be among them at that time, and you shall inquire of them, and they will reveal to you the truth of the judgment.

10 And thou shalt do according to that thing which they of that place (which the Lord hath chosen) shewe thee, and thou shalt obserue to doe according to all that they informe thee.

And you shall accept whatever they will say, those who preside in the place which the Lord will choose, and whatever they will teach you,

11 According to the Lawe, which they shall teach thee, and according to the iudgement which they shall tell thee, shalt thou doe: thou shalt not decline from the thing which they shall shew thee, neither to the right hand, nor to the left.

in accord with his law, and you shall follow their sentence. Neither shall you turn aside to the right or to the left.

12 And that man that wil doe presumptuously, not hearkening vnto the Priest (that standeth before the Lord thy God to minister there) or vnto the iudge, that man shall die, and thou shalt take away euill from Israel.

But whoever will be arrogant, unwilling to obey the order of the priest who ministers at that time to the Lord your God, and the decree of the judge, that man shall die. And so shall you take away the evil from Israel.

13 So all the people shall heare and feare, and doe no more presumptuously.

And when the people hear about this, they shall be afraid, so that no one, from that time on, will swell with pride.

14 Whe thou shalt come vnto ye land which the Lord thy God giueth thee, and shalt possesse it, and dwell therein, if thou say, I will set a King ouer me, like as all the nations that are about me,

When you will have entered into the land which the Lord your God will give to you, and you possess it, and you live in it, and you say, ‘I will appoint a king over me, just as all the surrounding nations have done,’

15 Then thou shalt make him King ouer thee, whome the Lord thy God shall chuse: from among thy brethren shalt thou make a King ouer thee: thou shalt not set a stranger ouer thee, which is not thy brother.

you shall appoint him whom the Lord your God will choose from among the number of your brothers. You cannot make a man of another people king, one who is not your brother.

16 In any wise he shall not prepare him many horses, nor bring the people againe to Egypt, for to encrease the number of horses, seeing the Lord hath sayd vnto you, Ye shall henceforth goe no more againe that way.

And when he will have been appointed king, he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor lead the people back into Egypt, having been exalted by the number of his horsemen, especially since the Lord has instructed you never to return along the same way.

17 Neither shall hee take him many wiues, lest his heart turne away, neither shall he gather him much siluer and golde.

He shall not have many wives, who might allure his mind, and he shall not have immense weights of silver and gold.

18 And when he shall sit vpon the throne of his kingdo, then shall he write him this Law repeted in a booke, by the Priests of the Leuites.

Then, after he has been seated upon the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself the Deuteronomy of this law in a volume, using a copy from the priests of the Levitical tribe.

19 And it shall be with him, and he shall reade therein all daies of his life, that he may learne to feare the Lord his God, and to keepe all ye words of this Lawe, and these ordinances for to doe them:

And he shall have it with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, and to keep his words and ceremonies, which are instructed in the law.

20 That his heart be not lifted vp aboue his brethren, and that he turne not from the commandement, to the right hand or to the left, but that he may prolong his daies in his kingdom, he, and his sonnes in the middes of Israel.

And so may his heart not become exalted with arrogance over his brothers, nor turn aside to the right or to the left, so that he and his sons may reign for a long time over Israel.”