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 sacrifice to Yahweh your God an ox or a sheep in which is a defect or anything evil; for that is an abomination to Yahweh 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,

If there is found among you, within any of your gates which Yahweh your God gives you, a man or woman who does that which is evil in Yahweh your God’s sight in 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,

and has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun, or the moon, or any of the stars of the sky, which I have not commanded,

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 you are told, and you have heard of it, then you shall inquire diligently. Behold, if it is true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is 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.

then you shall bring out that man or that woman who has done this evil thing to your gates, even that same man or woman; and you shall stone them to death with stones.

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.

At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death. At the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.

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.

The hands of the witnesses shall be first on him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So you shall remove the evil from among you.

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 there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within your gates, then you shall arise, and go up to the place which Yahweh your God chooses.

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,

You shall come to the priests who are Levites and to the judge who shall be in those days. You shall inquire, and they shall give you the verdict.

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.

You shall do according to the decisions of the verdict which they shall give you from that place which Yahweh chooses. You shall observe to do according to all that they shall 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.

According to the decisions of the law which they shall teach you, and according to the judgment which they shall tell you, you shall do. You shall not turn away from the sentence which they announce to you, to the right hand, nor 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.

The man who does presumptuously in not listening to the priest who stands to minister there before Yahweh your God, or to the judge, even that man shall die. You shall put away the evil from Israel.

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

All the people shall hear and fear, and do no more presumptuously.

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 have come to the land which Yahweh your God gives you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, “I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,”

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 surely set him whom Yahweh your God chooses as king over yourselves. You shall set as king over you one from among your brothers. You may not put a foreigner over you, 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.

Only he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he may multiply horses; because Yahweh has said to you, “You shall not go back that way again.”

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 multiply wives to himself, that his heart not turn away. He shall not greatly multiply to himself 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.

It shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write himself a copy of this law in a book, out of that which is before the Levitical priests.

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:

It shall be with him, and he shall read from it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear Yahweh his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them;

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.

that his heart not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he not turn away from the commandment to the right hand, or to the left, to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children, in the middle of Israel.