Deuteronomy 17

1 'Thou dost not sacrifice to Jehovah thy God ox or sheep in which there is a blemish — any evil thing; for it [is] the abomination of Jehovah thy God.

You shall not sacrifice to the LORD your God an ox or a sheep in which is a defect or anything evil; for that is an abomination to the LORD your God.

2 'When there is found in thy midst, in one of thy cities which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, a man or a woman who doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah thy God by transgressing His covenant,

If there is found amongst you, within any of your gates which the LORD your God gives you, a man or woman who does that which is evil in the LORD your God’s sight in transgressing his covenant,

3 and he doth go and serve other gods, and doth bow himself to them, and to the sun, or to the moon, or to any of the host of the heavens, which I have not commanded —

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

4 and it hath been declared to thee, and thou hast heard, and hast searched diligently, and lo, truth; the thing is established; this abomination hath been done in Israel —

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

5 'Then thou hast brought out that man, or that woman, who hath done this evil thing, unto thy gates — the man or the woman — and thou hast stoned them with stones, and they have died.

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 By the mouth of two witnesses or of three witnesses is he who is dead put to death; he is not put to death by the mouth of one witness;

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 hand of the witnesses is on him, in the first place, to put him to death, and the hand of all the people last; and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst.

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 amongst you.

8 'When anything is too hard for thee for judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke — matters of strife within thy gates — then thou hast risen, and gone up unto the place on which Jehovah thy God doth fix,

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgement, 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 the LORD your God chooses.

9 and hast come in unto the priests, the Levites, and unto the judge who is in those days, and hast inquired, and they have declared to thee the word of judgment,

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

10 and thou hast done according to the tenor of the word which they declare to thee ([they] of that place which Jehovah doth choose; and thou hast observed to do according to all that they direct thee.

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

11 'According to the tenor of the law which they direct thee, and according to the judgment which they say to thee thou dost do; thou dost not turn aside from the word which they declare to thee, right or left.

According to the decisions of the law which they shall teach you, and according to the judgement 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 the man who acteth with presumption, so as not to hearken unto the priest (who is standing to serve there Jehovah thy God), or unto the judge, even that man hath died, and thou hast put away the evil thing from Israel,

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

13 and all the people do hear and fear, and do not presume any more.

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

14 'When thou comest in unto the land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, and hast possessed it, and dwelt in it, and thou hast said, Let me set over me a king like all the nations which [are] round about me, —

When you have come to the land which the LORD 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 thou dost certainly set over thee a king on whom Jehovah doth fix; from the midst of thy brethren thou dost set over thee a king; thou art not able to set over thee a stranger, who is not thy brother.

you shall surely set him whom the LORD your God chooses as king over yourselves. You shall set as king over you one from amongst your brothers. You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother.

16 'Only, he doth not multiply to himself horses, nor cause the people to turn back to Egypt, so as to multiply horses, seeing Jehovah hath said to you, Ye do not add to turn back in this way any more.

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 the LORD has said to you, “You shall not go back that way again.”

17 And he doth not multiply to himself wives, and his heart doth not turn aside, and silver and gold he doth not multiply to himself — exceedingly.

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 it hath been, when he sitteth on the throne of his kingdom, that he hath written for himself the copy of this law, on a book, from [that] before the priests the Levites,

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 hath been with him, and he hath read in it all days of his life, so that he doth learn to fear Jehovah his God, to keep all the words of this law, and these statutes, to do them;

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

20 so that his heart is not high above his brethren, and so as not to turn aside from the command, right or left, so that he prolongeth days over his kingdom, he and his sons, in the midst 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.