1 “ Do not give to the Lord your God a bull or a sheep which is not perfect. For that is a hated thing to the Lord your God.

You shall not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or sheep with a blemish or any defect whatsoever, for that is an abomination to the Lord your God.

2 “ You may find among you, within any of your towns the Lord your God gives you, a man or a woman who does what is sinful in the eyes of the Lord your God by sinning against the Lord’s agreement.

If there is found among you within any of your towns which the Lord your God gives you a man or woman who does what is wicked in the sight of the Lord your God by transgressing His covenant,

3 I f he has served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun, or the moon or the stars, which I have told him not to worship,

Who has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or moon or any of the host of the heavens, which I have forbidden,

4 a nd if someone told you about this, then you should do your best to find out if it is true. If it is true that this hated thing has been done in Israel,

And it is told and you hear of it, then inquire diligently. And if it is certainly true that such an abomination has been committed in Israel,

5 t hen bring that man or woman who has done this sinful act to your gates, and kill the man or woman with stones.

Then you shall bring forth to your town’s gates that man or woman who has done that wicked thing and you shall stone that man or woman to death.

6 I f two or three people tell what they know against this person, he who is to die must be put to death. But he should not be put to death if only one person speaks against him.

On the evidence of two or three witnesses he who is worthy of death shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.

7 T hose who speak against him should be first to put him to death. And then all the people should join them. You must get rid of all sin from among you.

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

8 “ There may be a problem too hard for you to decide, between two kinds of killing, between two kinds of questions about the law, between two kinds of hurting, problems argued about in your courts. Then get up and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses.

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment—between one kind of bloodshed and another, between one legality and another, between one kind of assault and another, matters of controversy within your towns—then arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses.

9 G o to the Levite religious leader or the judge who is at work at that time. Ask them, and they will tell you what they decide.

And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them and they shall make clear to you the decision.

10 T hen do what should be done by what they tell you they have decided at that place which the Lord chooses. Be careful to do all they tell you.

And you shall do according to the decision which they declare to you from that place which the Lord chooses; and you shall be watchful to do according to all that they tell you;

11 D o what they teach you about the Law and about what they decide. Do not turn aside from what they tell you to do, to the right or to the left.

According to the decision of the law which they shall teach you and the judgment which they shall announce to you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict they give you, either to the right hand or the left.

12 T he man must die who does foolish things and will not listen to the judge or the religious leader who serves the Lord your God. You must get rid of sin from Israel.

The man who does presumptuously and will not listen to the priest who stands to minister there before the Lord your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel.

13 T hen all the people will hear and be afraid. They will not act in a foolish way again. A King

And all the people shall hear and fear, and not act presumptuously again.

14 “ When you go into the land the Lord your God gives you, and own it and live in it, and you say, ‘I will have a king rule over me like all the nations around me,’

When you come to the land which the Lord your God gives you and you possess it and live there, and then say, We will set a king over us like all the nations that are about us,

15 t hen you will set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses. Set a king over you from among your brothers. Do not give a stranger power over you if he is not your brother.

You shall surely set as king over you him whom the Lord your God will choose. One from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner, who is not your brother, over you.

16 H e must not take many horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get many horses. Because the Lord has told you, ‘You must never again return that way.’

But he shall not multiply horses to himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to multiply horses, since the Lord said to you, You shall never return that way.

17 H e must not take many wives for himself or his heart may turn away. And he must not gather much silver and gold for himself.

And he shall not multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away; neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.

18 “ When he sits on the throne of his nation, he should write this Law for himself in a book in front of the Levite religious leaders.

And when he sits on his royal throne, he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, out of what is before the Levitical priests.

19 I t should be kept with him and he should read it all the days of his life. Then he will learn to fear the Lord his God, by being careful to obey all the words of these Laws.

And he shall keep it with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes and doing them,

20 A nd he will not think he is better than his brothers. He will not turn aside from the Law, to the right or to the left, so that he and his children may live long in his nation in Israel.

That his heart may not be lifted up above his brethren and that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left; so that he may continue long, he and his sons, in his kingdom in Israel.