18 The priests and the whole tribe of Levi will have no land for themselves, as the other Israelite tribes do. Instead, they may eat the meat from the sacrifices that belong to the Lord . 2 They will receive no land among the other Israelites. The Lord himself is the one who gives them everything that they need. He has promised to do that for them.
3 When you bring a bull or a sheep as a sacrifice to the Lord , give the priests their part. You must give them the animal's shoulder, the meat from its face, and its stomach. 4 You must also give them the first part of your grain, your wine and your olive oil. Give them the first wool that you cut from your sheep. 5 Do this because the Lord your God has chosen the Levites to serve him from among all your tribes. He wants them and their descendants to be ready to serve him at all times, for ever.
6 Any Levite may choose to go to the place that the Lord will choose. He can leave the town where he lives, wherever it is in Israel. 7 He may go to serve the Lord his God. He may join the other Levites who are ready to serve the Lord at his special place. 8 A Levite may have sold some of his family's valuable things. He may keep that money and he may receive the same amount of food as the other Levites.
9 When you go into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, be careful! Do not learn to do the evil things that the nations who live there are doing. 10 Nobody among you must ever burn your child in a fire, as an offering. Nobody must use magic or other things to learn about future times. There must not be any magicians or diviners. 11 Never use magic to curse anyone. Never try to speak to the spirits of dead people or other spirits. 12 The Lord hates anyone who does these things. It is because of those evil things that the Lord will chase the other nations out of the land as you move in. 13 You must live in a completely right way that pleases the Lord your God. 14 The people of the nations that you will chase away get help from magicians and diviners. But the Lord your God has commanded you not to do those things.
15 One day, the Lord your God will send to you a prophet like me. He will come from among your own people. You must listen to him. 16 Remember what happened when you all met together at Sinai mountain. You said to the Lord your God, ‘Please do not let us hear your voice again. Do not let us see this great fire again. If we do, we will die!’
17 Then the Lord said to me, ‘The people have said the right thing. 18 I will send them a prophet who will be like you. He will be an Israelite. I will tell him what to say. Then he will tell the people everything that I command him to say. 19 He will speak on my behalf, so I myself will punish anyone who does not listen to his message.
20 A false prophet may say that he speaks with my authority when that is not true. Or he may say that he has a message from another god. You must punish a false prophet with death.’
21 You may say to yourselves, ‘How can we know when a message has not come from the Lord ?’ 22 A prophet may say that he speaks with my authority, and he may say what will happen. But if it does not happen, you will know that his message has not come from me. He has not spoken my message. That prophet has spoken his own ideas. So do not be afraid of him!
18 “The tribe of Levi will not get any share of land in Israel. The priests come from that tribe and they will eat the special sacrifices that are offered as gifts to the Lord . That is the share for the people from the tribe of Levi. 2 The tribe of Levi will not get any share of land like the other tribes. Their share is the Lord himself, as he said to them.
3 “When you kill one of your sheep or cattle for a sacrifice, you must give the priests these parts: the shoulder, both cheeks, and the stomach. 4 You must give the priests the first part of your harvest. You must give them the first part of your grain, your new wine, and your oil. You must give the Levites the first wool cut from your sheep. 5 This is because the Lord your God looked at all your tribes and chose Levi and his descendants to serve him as priests forever.
6 “Any Levite living in any town anywhere in Israel may leave his home and come to the Lord ’s special place. He may do this anytime he wants. 7 And this Levite may serve in the name of the Lord his God, the same as all his brother Levites who are on duty before the Lord . 8 And that Levite will get an equal share with the other Levites, in addition to the share his family normally gets. [ a ]
9 “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, don’t learn to do the terrible things the people of the other nations there do. 10 Don’t sacrifice your sons or daughters in the fires on your altars. Don’t try to learn what will happen in the future by talking to a fortuneteller or by going to a magician, a witch, or a sorcerer. 11 Don’t let anyone try to put magic spells on other people. Don’t let any of your people become a medium or a wizard. And no one should try to talk with someone who has died. 12 The Lord hates anyone who does these things. And because these other nations do these terrible things, the Lord your God will force them out of the land as you enter it. 13 You must be faithful to the Lord your God, never doing anything he considers wrong.
14 “You will force the other nations out of your land. They listen to people who use magic and try to tell the future. But the Lord your God will not let you do these things. 15 The Lord your God will send to you a prophet. This prophet will come from among your own people, and he will be like me. You must listen to him. 16 God will send you this prophet because that is what you asked him to do. When you were gathered together at Mount Horeb, you became frightened and said, ‘Don’t let us hear the voice of the Lord our God again! Don’t let us see that great fire or we will die!’
17 “The Lord said to me, ‘What they ask for is good. 18 I will send them a prophet like you. This prophet will be one of their own people. I will tell him what he must say, and he will tell the people everything I command. 19 This prophet will speak for me, and I will punish anyone who refuses to listen to my commands.’
20 “But a prophet might say something that I did not tell him to say. And he might tell people that he is speaking for me. If this happens, that prophet must be killed. Also a prophet might come that speaks for other gods. That prophet must also be killed. 21 You might be thinking, ‘How can we know if something a prophet says is not from the Lord ?’ 22 If a prophet says he is speaking for the Lord , but what he says does not happen, you will know that the Lord did not say it. You will know that this prophet was speaking his own ideas. You don’t need to be afraid of him.
18 The priests the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and his inheritance.
2 Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the Lord is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.
3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.
4 The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.
5 For the Lord thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, to stand to minister in the name of the Lord , him and his sons for ever.
6 And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourned, and come with all the desire of his mind unto the place which the Lord shall choose;
7 Then he shall minister in the name of the Lord his God, as all his brethren the Levites do, which stand there before the Lord .
8 They shall have like portions to eat, beside that which cometh of the sale of his patrimony.
9 When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations.
10 There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch.
11 Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord : and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
13 Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God.
14 For these nations, which thou shalt possess, hearkened unto observers of times, and unto diviners: but as for thee, the Lord thy God hath not suffered thee so to do.
15 The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;
16 According to all that thou desiredst of the Lord thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not.
17 And the Lord said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken.
18 I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.
19 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.
20 But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.
21 And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken?
22 When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord , if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.
18 “ ( A ) The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, shall not have a portion or inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the Lord ’ s offerings by fire and His [ a ] property. 2 ( B ) They shall not have an inheritance among their countrymen; the Lord is their inheritance, as He [ b ] promised them.
3 “ ( C ) Now this shall be the priests’ portion from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, either an ox or a sheep: they shall give the priest the shoulder, the two cheeks, and the stomach. 4 You shall give him the ( D ) first fruits of your grain, your new wine, and your oil, and the first fleece of your sheep. 5 ( E ) For the Lord your God has chosen him and his sons from all your tribes, to ( F ) stand to serve in the name of the Lord always.
6 “Now if a Levite comes from any of your [ c ] towns throughout Israel where he ( G ) resides, and he comes [ d ] whenever he desires to the place which the Lord chooses, 7 then he shall serve in the name of the Lord his God, like all his fellow Levites who stand there before the Lord . 8 ( H ) They shall eat [ e ] equal portions, except for what they receive from the sale of their fathers’ estates .
9 “When you enter the land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to [ f ] ( I ) imitate the detestable things of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you anyone ( J ) who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, a ( K ) soothsayer, one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who casts a spell, ( L ) or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who consults the dead. 12 For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord ; and ( M ) because of these detestable things the Lord your God is going to drive them out before you. 13 ( N ) You are to be blameless before the Lord your God. 14 For these nations, which you are going to dispossess, listen to ( O ) soothsayers and diviners, but as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do so.
15 “ ( P ) The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen; to him you shall listen. 16 This is ( Q ) in accordance with everything that you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Do not let me hear the voice of the Lord my God again, and do not let me see this great fire anymore, or I will die!’ 17 And ( R ) the Lord said to me, ‘They have [ g ] spoken well. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and ( S ) I will put My words in his mouth, and ( T ) he shall speak to them everything that I command him. 19 ( U ) And it shall come about that whoever does not listen to My words which he speaks in My name, I Myself will [ h ] require it of him. 20 But the prophet who speaks a word ( V ) presumptuously in My name, a word which I have not commanded him to speak, or ( W ) which he speaks in the name of other gods, [ i ] that prophet shall die.’ 21 And if you say in your heart, ‘How will we recognize the word which the Lord has not spoken?’ 22 ( X ) When the prophet speaks in the name of the Lord , and the thing does not happen or come true , that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it ( Y ) presumptuously; you are not to be afraid of him.
18 The Levitical ( A ) priests—indeed, the whole tribe of Levi—are to have no allotment or inheritance with Israel. They shall live on the food offerings ( B ) presented to the Lord , for that is their inheritance. ( C ) 2 They shall have no inheritance among their fellow Israelites; the Lord is their inheritance, ( D ) as he promised them. ( E )
3 This is the share due the priests ( F ) from the people who sacrifice a bull ( G ) or a sheep: the shoulder, the internal organs and the meat from the head. ( H ) 4 You are to give them the firstfruits of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the first wool from the shearing of your sheep, ( I ) 5 for the Lord your God has chosen them ( J ) and their descendants out of all your tribes to stand and minister ( K ) in the Lord ’s name always. ( L )
6 If a Levite moves from one of your towns anywhere in Israel where he is living, and comes in all earnestness to the place the Lord will choose, ( M ) 7 he may minister in the name ( N ) of the Lord his God like all his fellow Levites who serve there in the presence of the Lord . 8 He is to share equally in their benefits, even though he has received money from the sale of family possessions. ( O )
9 When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate ( P ) the detestable ways ( Q ) of the nations there. 10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, ( R ) who practices divination ( S ) or sorcery, ( T ) interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, ( U ) 11 or casts spells, ( V ) or who is a medium or spiritist ( W ) or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord ; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you. ( X ) 13 You must be blameless ( Y ) before the Lord your God. ( Z )
14 The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. ( AA ) But as for you, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do so. 15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. ( AB ) You must listen to him. 16 For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.” ( AC )
17 The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet ( AD ) like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words ( AE ) in his mouth. ( AF ) He will tell them everything I command him. ( AG ) 19 I myself will call to account ( AH ) anyone who does not listen ( AI ) to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. ( AJ ) 20 But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, ( AK ) is to be put to death.” ( AL )
21 You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord ?” 22 If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, ( AM ) that is a message the Lord has not spoken. ( AN ) That prophet has spoken presumptuously, ( AO ) so do not be alarmed.
