Deuteronomy 18

1 Preestis and dekenes, and alle men that ben of the same lynage, schulen `not haue part and eritage with the tother puple of Israel, for thei schulen ete the sacrifices of the Lord, and the offryngis of hym;

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.

2 and thei schulen not take ony othir thing of the possessioun of her britheren; for the Lord hym silf is the `eritage of hem, as he spak to hem.

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

3 This schal be the doom of preestis of the puple, and of hem that offren sacrifices; whether `thei offren an oxe, ether a scheep, thei schulen yyue to the preest the schuldre, and the paunche, the firste fruytis of wheete,

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.

4 and of wyn, and of oile, and a part of wollis of the scheryng of scheep.

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.

5 For thi Lord God chees hym of alle thi lynagis, that he stonde and mynystre to `the name of the Lord, he and hise sones, with outen ende.

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.

6 If a dekene goith out of oon of thi citees of al Israel, in which he dwellith, `and wole come and desirith the place which the Lord chees,

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;

7 he schal mynystre in the name of his Lord God as alle hise britheren dekenes, that schulen stonde in that tyme byfore the Lord.

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.

8 He schal take the same part of meetis, `which and othere dekenes schulen take; outakun that that is due to hym in his citee, bi `successioun ethir eritage `of fadir.

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

9 Whanne thou hast entrid in to the lond which thi Lord God schal yyue to thee, be thou war lest thou wole sue abhomynaciouns of tho folkis;

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.

10 noon be foundun in thee that clensith his sone, ether his douytir, `and ledith bi the fier, ethir that axith questiouns of dyuynouris `that dyuynen aboute the auteris, and that taketh hede to dremes and chiteryng of bryddis; nethir ony wicche be,

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,

11 nethir an enchauntere, `that is, that disseyueth mennus iyen that a thing seme that is not; nether a man take counsel at hem that han a feend spekynge `in the wombe, nether take counsel at false dyuynouris nethir seke of deed men the treuthe.

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

12 For the Lord hath abhomynacioun of alle these thingis, and for siche wickidnessis he schal do awei hem in thin entryng.

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.

13 Thou schalt be perfit and without filthe, with thi Lord God.

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

14 These hethen men, `the lond of whiche thou schalt welde, heren hem that worchen bi chiteryng of briddis, and false dyuynouris; forsothe thou art tauyt in other maner of thi Lord God.

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.

15 Thi Lord God schal reise a prophete of thi folk and of thi britheren as me, thou schalt here hym;

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

16 as thou axidist of thi Lord God in Oreb, whanne the cumpany was gaderid, and thou seidist, Y schal no more here the vois of my Lord God, and Y schal no more se `this grettiste fier, lest Y die.

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.

17 And the Lord seide to me, Thei spaken wel alle thingis.

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

18 Y schal reise to hem a prophete, lijk thee, of the myddis of her britheren, and Y schal putte my wordis in his mouth, and he schal speke to hem alle thingis, whiche I schal comaunde to him.

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.

19 Forsothe Y schal be vengere of `that man, that nyle here the wordis `of hym, whiche he schal speke in my name.

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

20 `Sotheli a prophete `schal be slayn, which is bischrewid with pride, and wole speke in my name tho thingis, whiche Y comaundide not to hym, that he schulde seie, ethir bi the name of alien goddis.

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.

21 That if thou answerist bi pryuy thouyt, Hou may Y vndirstonde the word, which the Lord spak not? thou schalt haue this signe,

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

22 `The Lord spak not this thing which thilke prophete biforseid in the name of the Lord, `and it bifallith not, but `the prophete feynede bi the pride of his soule, and therfor thou schalt not drede hym.

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.