Good News Translation (GNT)

The Share of the Priests

1 “The priestly tribe of Levi is not to receive any share of land in Israel; instead, they are to live on the offerings and other sacrifices given to the Lord.

2 They are to own no land, as the other tribes do; their share is the privilege of being the Lord’s priests, as the Lord has promised.

3 “Whenever cattle or sheep are sacrificed, the priests are to be given the shoulder, the jaw, and the stomach.

4 They are to receive the first share of the grain, wine, olive oil, and wool.

5 The Lord chose from all your tribes the tribe of Levi to serve him as priests forever.

6 “Any Levite who wants to may come from any town in Israel to the one place of worship

7 and may serve there as a priest of the Lord his God, like the other Levites who are serving there.

8 He is to receive the same amount of food as the other priests, and he may keep whatever his family sends him.

Warning against Pagan Practices

9 “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, don’t follow the disgusting practices of the nations that are there.

10 Don’t sacrifice your children in the fires on your altars; and don’t let your people practice divination or look for omens or use spells

11 or charms, and don’t let them consult the spirits of the dead.

12 The Lord your God hates people who do these disgusting things, and that is why he is driving those nations out of the land as you advance.

13 Be completely faithful to the Lord.”

The Promise to Send a Prophet

14 Then Moses said, “In the land you are about to occupy, people follow the advice of those who practice divination and look for omens, but the Lord your God does not allow you to do this.

15 Instead, he will send you a prophet like me from among your own people, and you are to obey him.

16 “On the day that you were gathered at Mount Sinai, you begged not to hear the Lord speak again or to see his fiery presence any more, because you were afraid you would die.

17 So the Lord said to me, ‘They have made a wise request.

18 I will send them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will tell him what to say, and hewill tell the people everything I command.

19 He will speak in my name, and Iwill punish anyone who refuses to obey him.

20 But if any prophet dares to speak a message in my name when I did not command him to do so, he must die for it, and so must any prophet who speaks in the name of other gods.’

21 “You may wonder how you can tell when a prophet’s message does not come from the Lord.

22 If a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord and what he says does not come true, then it is not the Lord’s message. That prophet has spoken on his own authority, and you are not to fear him.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/18-056f84c66f0125be549bfb8f82f65699.mp3?version_id=68—

The Cities of Refuge

1 “After the Lord your God has destroyed the people whose land he is giving you and after you have taken their cities and houses and settled there,

2-3 divide the territory into three parts, each with a city that can be easily reached. Then any of you that kill will be able to escape to one of them for protection.

4 If you accidentally kill someone who is not your enemy, you may escape to any of these cities and be safe.

5 For example, if two of you go into the forest together to cut wood and if, as one of you is chopping down a tree, the ax head comes off the handle and kills the other, you can run to one of those three cities and be safe.

6 If there were only one city, the distance to it might be too great, and the relative who is responsible for taking revenge for the killing might catch you and angrily kill an innocent person. After all, it was by accident that you killed someone who was not your enemy.

7 This is why I order you to set aside three cities.

8 “When the Lord your God enlarges your territory, as he told your ancestors he would, and gives you all the land he has promised,

9 then you are to select three more cities. (He will give you this land if you do everything that I command you today and if you love the Lord your God and live according to his teachings.)

10 Do this, so that innocent people will not die and so that you will not be guilty of putting them to death in the land that the Lord is giving you.

11 “But suppose you deliberately murder your enemy in cold blood and then escape to one of those cities for protection.

12 In that case, the leaders of your own town are to send for you and hand you over to the relative responsible for taking revenge for the murder, so that you may be put to death.

13 No mercy will be shown to you. Israel must rid itself of murderers, so that all will go well.

Ancient Property Lines

14 “Do not move your neighbor’s property line, established long ago in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

Concerning Witnesses

15 “One witness is not enough to convict someone of a crime; at least two witnesses are necessary to prove that someone is guilty.

16 If any of you try to harm another by false accusations,

17 both of you are to go to the one place of worship and be judged by the priests and judges who are then in office.

18 The judges will investigate the case thoroughly; and if you have made a false accusation,

19 you are to receive the punishment the accused would have received. In this way your nation will get rid of this evil.

20 Then everyone else will hear what happened; they will be afraid, and no one will ever again do such an evil thing.

21 In such cases show no mercy; the punishment is to be a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, and a foot for a foot.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/19-c459531eafc5b4f017454bbac2df3362.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 20

Concerning War

1 “When you go out to fight against your enemies and you see chariots and horses and an army that outnumbers yours, do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who rescued you from Egypt, will be with you.

2 Before you start fighting, a priest is to come forward and say to the army,

3 ‘Men of Israel, listen! Today you are going into battle. Do not be afraid of your enemies or lose courage or panic.

4 The Lord your God is going with you, and he will give you victory.’

5 “Then the officers will address the men and say, ‘Is there any man here who has just built a house, but has not yet dedicated it? If so, he is to go home. Otherwise, if he is killed in battle, someone else will dedicate his house.

6 Is there any man here who has just planted a vineyard, but has not yet had the chance to harvest its grapes? If so, he is to go home. Otherwise, if he is killed in battle, someone else will enjoy the wine.

7 Is there anyone here who is engaged to be married? If so, he is to go home. Otherwise, if he is killed in battle, someone else will marry the woman he is engaged to.’

8 “The officers will also say to the men, ‘Is there any man here who has lost his nerve and is afraid? If so, he is to go home. Otherwise, he will destroy the morale of the others.’

9 When the officers have finished speaking to the army, leaders are to be chosen for each unit.

10 “When you go to attack a city, first give its people a chance to surrender.

11 If they open the gates and surrender, they are all to become your slaves and do forced labor for you.

12 But if the people of that city will not surrender, but choose to fight, surround it with your army.

13 Then, when the Lord your God lets you capture the city, kill every man in it.

14 You may, however, take for yourselves the women, the children, the livestock, and everything else in the city. You may use everything that belongs to your enemies. The Lord has given it to you.

15 That is how you are to deal with those cities that are far away from the land you will settle in.

16 “But when you capture cities in the land that the Lord your God is giving you, kill everyone.

17 Completely destroy all the people: the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, as the Lord ordered you to do.

18 Kill them, so that they will not make you sin against the Lord by teaching you to do all the disgusting things that they do in the worship of their gods.

19 “When you are trying to capture a city, do not cut down its fruit trees, even though the siege lasts a long time. Eat the fruit, but do not destroy the trees; the trees are not your enemies.

20 You may cut down the other trees and use them in the siege mounds until the city is captured.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/20-71355e9a9b1aef2b2a4311c6c91dd9c5.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 21

Concerning Unsolved Murders

1 “Suppose someone is found murdered in a field in the land that the Lord your God is going to give you, and you do not know who killed him.

2 Your leaders and judges are to go out and measure the distance from the place where the body was found to each of the nearby towns.

3 Then the leaders of the town nearest to where the body was found are to select a young cow that has never been used for work.

4 They are to take it down to a spot near a stream that never runs dry and where the ground has never been plowed or planted, and there they are to break its neck.

5 The levitical priests are to go there also, because they are to decide every legal case involving violence. The Lord your God has chosen them to serve him and to pronounce blessings in his name.

6 Then all the leaders from the town nearest the place where the murdered person was found are to wash their hands over the cow

7 and say, ‘We did not murder this one, and we do not know who did it.

8 Lord, forgive your people Israel, whom you rescued from Egypt. Forgive us and do not hold us responsible for the murder of an innocent person.’

9 And so, by doing what the Lord requires, you will not be held responsible for the murder.

Concerning Women Prisoners of War

10 “When the Lord your God gives you victory in battle and you take prisoners,

11 you may see among them a beautiful woman that you like and want to marry.

12 Take her to your home, where she will shave her head,cut her fingernails,

13 and change her clothes. She is to stay in your home and mourn for her parents for a month; after that, you may marry her.

14 Later, if you no longer want her, you are to let her go free. Since you forced her to have intercourse with you, you cannot treat her as a slave and sell her.

Concerning the First Son’s Inheritance

15 “Suppose a man has two wives and they both bear him sons, but the first son is not the child of his favorite wife.

16 When the man decides how he is going to divide his property among his children, he is not to show partiality to the son of his favorite wife by giving him the share that belongs to the first-born son.

17 He is to give a double share of his possessions to his first son, even though he is not the son of his favorite wife. A man must acknowledge his first son and give him the share he is legally entitled to.

Concerning a Disobedient Son

18 “Suppose someone has a son who is stubborn and rebellious, a son who will not obey his parents, even though they punish him.

19 His parents are to take him before the leaders of the town where he lives and make him stand trial.

20 They are to say to them, ‘Our son is stubborn and rebellious and refuses to obey us; he wastes money and is a drunkard.’

21 Then the men of the city are to stone him to death, and so you will get rid of this evil. Everyone in Israel will hear what has happened and be afraid.

Various Laws

22 “If someone has been put to death for a crime and the body is hung on a post,

23 it is not to remain there overnight. It must be buried the same day, because a dead body hanging on a post brings God’s curse on the land. Bury the body, so that you will not defile the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/21-17ff37588bc177e94c6c7024e76da6f5.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 22

1 “If you see an Israelite’s cow or sheep running loose, do not ignore it; take it back.

2 But if its owner lives a long way off or if you don’t know who owns it, then take it home with you. When its owner comes looking for it, give it to him.

3 Do the same thing if you find a donkey, a piece of clothing, or anything else that an Israelite may have lost.

4 “If an Israelite’s donkey or cow has fallen down, don’t ignore it; help him get the animal to its feet again.

5 “Women are not to wear men’s clothing, and men are not to wear women’s clothing; the Lord your God hates people who do such things.

6 “If you happen to find a bird’s nest in a tree or on the ground with the mother bird sitting either on the eggs or with her young, you are not to take the mother bird.

7 You may take the young birds, but you must let the mother bird go, so that you will live a long and prosperous life.

8 “When you build a new house, be sure to put a railing around the edge of the roof. Then you will not be responsible if someone falls off and is killed.

9 “Do not plant any crop in the same field with your grapevines; if you do, you are forbidden to use either the grapes or the produce of the other crop.

10 “Do not hitch an ox and a donkey together for plowing.

11 “Do not wear cloth made by weaving wool and linen together.

12 “Sew tassels on the four corners of your clothes.

Laws concerning Sexual Purity

13 “Suppose a man marries a young woman and later he decides he doesn’t want her.

14 So he makes up false charges against her, accusing her of not being a virgin when they got married.

15 “If this happens, the young woman’s parents are to take the blood-stained wedding sheet that proves she was a virgin, and they are to show it in court to the town leaders.

16 Her father will say to them, ‘I gave my daughter to this man in marriage, and now he doesn’t want her.

17 He has made false charges against her, saying that she was not a virgin when he married her. But here is the proof that my daughter was a virgin; look at the bloodstains on the wedding sheet!’

18 Then the town leaders are to take the husband and beat him.

19 They are also to fine him a hundred pieces of silver and give the money to the young woman’s father, because the man has brought disgrace on an Israelite woman. Moreover, she will continue to be his wife, and he can never divorce her as long as he lives.

20 “But if the charge is true and there is no proof that she was a virgin,

21 then they are to take her out to the entrance of her father’s house, where the men of her city are to stone her to death. She has done a shameful thing among our people by having intercourse before she was married, while she was still living in her father’s house. In this way you will get rid of this evil.

22 “If a man is caught having intercourse with another man’s wife, both of them are to be put to death. In this way you will get rid of this evil.

23 “Suppose a man is caught in a town having intercourse with a young woman who is engaged to someone else.

24 You are to take them outside the town and stone them to death. She is to die because she did not cry out for help, although she was in a town, where she could have been heard. And the man is to die because he had intercourse with someone who was engaged. In this way you will get rid of this evil.

25 “Suppose a man out in the countryside rapes a young woman who is engaged to someone else. Then only the man is to be put to death;

26 nothing is to be done to the woman, because she has not committed a sin worthy of death. This case is the same as when one man attacks another man and murders him.

27 The man raped the engaged woman in the countryside, and although she cried for help, there was no one to help her.

28 “Suppose a man is caught raping a young woman who is not engaged.

29 He is to pay her father the bride price of fifty pieces of silver, and she is to become his wife, because he forced her to have intercourse with him. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

30 “No man is to disgrace his father by having intercourse with any of his father’s wives.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/22-0db8a3f8feee9cf95edd7abb3ae1ac22.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 23

Exclusion from the Lord’s People

1 “No man who has been castrated or whose penis has been cut off may be included among the Lord’s people.

2 “No one born out of wedlock or any descendant of such a person, even in the tenth generation, may be included among the Lord’s people.

3 “No Ammonite or Moabite—or any of their descendants, even in the tenth generation—may be included among the Lord’s people.

4 They refused to provide you with food and water when you were on your way out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor, from the city of Pethor in Mesopotamia, to curse you.

5 But the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam; instead he turned the curse into a blessing, because he loved you.

6 As long as you are a nation, never do anything to help these nations or to make them prosperous.

7 “Do not despise the Edomites; they are your relatives. And do not despise the Egyptians; you once lived in their land.

8 From the third generation onward their descendants may be included among the Lord’s people.

Keeping the Military Camp Clean

9 “When you are in camp in time of war, you are to avoid anything that would make you ritually unclean.

10 If a man becomes unclean because he has had a wet dream during the night, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.

11 Toward evening he is to wash himself, and at sunset he may come back into camp.

12 “You are to have a place outside the camp where you can go when you need to relieve yourselves.

13 Carry a stick as part of your equipment, so that when you have a bowel movement you can dig a hole and cover it up.

14 Keep your camp ritually clean, because the Lord your God is with you in your camp to protect you and to give you victory over your enemies. Do not do anything indecent that would cause the Lord to turn his back on you.

Various Laws

15 “If slaves run away from their owners and come to you for protection, do not send them back.

16 They may live in any of your towns that they choose, and you are not to treat them harshly.

17 “No Israelite, man or woman, is to become a temple prostitute.

18 Also, no money earned in this way may be brought into the house of the Lord your God in fulfillment of a vow. The Lord hates temple prostitutes.

19 “When you lend money or food or anything else to Israelites, do not charge them interest.

20 You may charge interest on what you lend to foreigners, but not on what you lend to Israelites. Obey this rule, and the Lord your God will bless everything you do in the land that you are going to occupy.

21 “When you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not put off doing what you promised; the Lord will hold you to your vow, and it is a sin not to keep it.

22 It is no sin not to make a vow to the Lord,

23 but if you make one voluntarily, be sure that you keep it.

24 “When you walk along a path in someone else’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but you must not carry any away in a container.

25 When you walk along a path in someone else’s grainfield, you may eat all the grain you can pull off with your hands, but you must not cut any grain with a sickle.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/23-802aa85149a6fb88f1f0a2b3b5174924.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 24

Divorce and Remarriage

1 “Suppose a man marries a woman and later decides that he doesn’t want her, because he finds something about her that he doesn’t like.So he writes out divorce papers, gives them to her, and sends her away from his home.

2 Then suppose she marries another man,

3 and he also decides that he doesn’t want her, so he also writes out divorce papers, gives them to her, and sends her away from his home. Or suppose her second husband dies.

4 In either case, her first husband is not to marry her again; he is to consider her defiled. If he married her again, it would be offensive to the Lord. You are not to commit such a terrible sin in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

Various Laws

5 “When a man is newly married, he is not to be drafted into military service or any other public duty; he is to be excused from duty for one year, so that he can stay at home and make his wife happy.

6 “When you lend someone something, you are not to take as security his millstones used for grinding his grain. This would take away the family’s means of preparing food to stay alive.

7 “If any of you kidnap Israelites and make them your slaves or sell them into slavery, you are to be put to death. In this way your nation will get rid of this evil.

8 “When you are suffering from a dreaded skin disease, be sure to do exactly what the levitical priests tell you; follow the instructions that I have given them.

9 Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam as you were coming from Egypt.

10 “When you lend someone something, do not go into his house to get the garment he is going to give you as security;

11 wait outside and let him bring it to you himself.

12 If he is poor, do not keep it overnight;

13 return it to him each evening, so that he can have it to sleep in. Then he will be grateful, and the Lord your God will be pleased with you.

14 “Do not cheat poor and needy hired servants, whether they are Israelites or foreigners living in one of your towns.

15 Each day before sunset pay them for that day’s work; they need the money and have counted on getting it. If you do not pay them, they will cry out against you to the Lord, and you will be guilty of sin.

16 “Parents are not to be put to death for crimes committed by their children, and children are not to be put to death for crimes committed by their parents; people are to be put to death only for a crime they themselves have committed.

17 “Do not deprive foreigners and orphans of their rights; and do not take a widow’s garment as security for a loan.

18 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God set you free; that is why I have given you this command.

19 “When you gather your crops and fail to bring in some of the grain that you have cut, do not go back for it; it is to be left for the foreigners, orphans, and widows, so that the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.

20 When you have picked your olives once, do not go back and get those that are left; they are for the foreigners, orphans, and widows.

21 When you have gathered your grapes once, do not go back over the vines a second time; the grapes that are left are for the foreigners, orphans, and widows.

22 Never forget that you were slaves in Egypt; that is why I have given you this command.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/24-6aeea11b32fd985c896a85695a2b88d2.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 25

1 “Suppose two Israelites go to court to settle a dispute, and one is declared innocent and the other guilty.

2 If the guilty one is sentenced to be beaten, the judge is to make him lie face downward and have him whipped. The number of lashes will depend on the crime he has committed.

3 He may be given as many as forty lashes, but no more; more than that would humiliate him publicly.

4 “Do not muzzle an ox when you are using it to thresh grain.

Duty to a Dead Brother

5 “If two brothers live on the same property and one of them dies, leaving no son, then his widow is not to be married to someone outside the family; it is the duty of the dead man’s brother to marry her.

6 The first son that they have will be considered the son of the dead man, so that his family line will continue in Israel.

7 But if the dead man’s brother does not want to marry her, she is to go before the town leaders and say, ‘My husband’s brother will not do his duty; he refuses to give his brother a descendant among the people of Israel.’

8 Then the town leaders are to summon him and speak to him. If he still refuses to marry her,

9 his brother’s widow is to go up to him in the presence of the town leaders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face, and say, ‘This is what happens to the man who refuses to give his brother a descendant.’

10 His family will be known in Israel as ‘the family of the man who had his sandal pulled off.’

Other Laws

11 “If two men are having a fight and the wife of one tries to help her husband by grabbing hold of the other man’s genitals,

12 show her no mercy; cut off her hand.

13-14 “Do not cheat when you use weights and measures.

15 Use true and honest weights and measures, so that you may live a long time in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

16 The Lord hates people who cheat.

The Command to Kill the Amalekites

17 “Remember what the Amalekites did to you as you were coming from Egypt.

18 They had no fear of God, and so they attacked you from the rear when you were tired and exhausted, and killed all who were straggling behind.

19 So then, when the Lord your God has given you the land and made you safe from all your enemies who live around you, be sure to kill all the Amalekites, so that no one will remember them any longer. Do not forget!

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/25-41ad146a537fc6fe1fb34be7b592ed50.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 26

Harvest Offerings

1 “After you have occupied the land that the Lord your God is giving you and have settled there,

2 each of you must place in a basket the first part of each crop that you harvest and you must take it with you to the one place of worship.

3 Go to the priest in charge at that time and say to him, ‘I now acknowledge to the Lord my God that I have entered the land that he promised our ancestors to give us.’

4 “The priest will take the basket from you and place it before the altar of the Lord your God.

5 Then, in the Lord’s presence you will recite these words: ‘My ancestor was a wandering Aramean, who took his family to Egypt to live. They were few in number when they went there, but they became a large and powerful nation.

6 The Egyptians treated us harshly and forced us to work as slaves.

7 Then we cried out for help to the Lord, the God of our ancestors. He heard us and saw our suffering, hardship, and misery.

8 By his great power and strength he rescued us from Egypt. He worked miracles and wonders, and caused terrifying things to happen.

9 He brought us here and gave us this rich and fertile land.

10 So now I bring to the Lord the first part of the harvest that he has given me.’

“Then set the basket down in the Lord’s presence and worship there.

11 Be grateful for the good things that the Lord your God has given you and your family; and let the Levites and the foreigners who live among you join in the celebration.

12 “Every third year give the tithe—a tenth of your crops—to the Levites, the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows, so that in every community they will have all they need to eat. When you have done this,

13 say to the Lord, ‘None of the sacred tithe is left in my house; I have given it to the Levites, the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows, as you commanded me to do. I have not disobeyed or forgotten any of your commands concerning the tithe.

14 I have not eaten any of it when I was mourning; I have not taken any of it out of my house when I was ritually unclean; and I have not given any of it as an offering for the dead.I have obeyed you, O Lord; I have done everything you commanded concerning the tithe.

15 Look down from your holy place in heaven and bless your people Israel; bless also the rich and fertile land that you have given us, as you promised our ancestors.’

The Lord’s Own People

16 “Today the Lord your God commands you to obey all his laws; so obey them faithfully with all your heart.

17 Today you have acknowledged the Lord as your God; you have promised to obey him, to keep all his laws, and to do all that he commands.

18 Today the Lord has accepted you as his own people, as he promised you; and he commands you to obey all his laws.

19 He will make you greater than any other nation that he has created, and you will bring praise and honor to his name.You will be his own people, as he promised.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/DEU/26-3c56a534cbce92849d9951e3afdcfbdc.mp3?version_id=68—

Deuteronomy 27

God’s Laws Written on Stones

1 Then Moses, together with the leaders of Israel, said to the people, “Obey all the instructions that I am giving you today.

2 On the day you cross the Jordan River and enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you are to set up some large stones, cover them with plaster,

3 and write on them all these laws and teachings. When you have entered the rich and fertile land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you,

4 and you are on the other side of the Jordan, set up these stones on Mount Ebal, as I am instructing you today, and cover them with plaster.

5 Build an altar there made of stones that have had no iron tools used on them,

6 because any altar you build for the Lord your God must be made of uncut stones. There you are to offer the sacrifices that are to be burned,

7 and there you are to sacrifice and eat your fellowship offerings and be grateful in the presence of the Lord your God.

8 On the stones covered with plaster write clearly every word of God’s laws.”

9 Then Moses, together with the levitical priests, said to all the people of Israel, “Give me your attention, people of Israel, and listen to me. Today you have become the people of the Lord your God;

10 so obey him and keep all his laws that I am giving you today.”

The Curses on Disobedience

11 Then Moses said to the people of Israel,

12 “After you have crossed the Jordan, the following tribes are to stand on Mount Gerizim when the blessings are pronounced on the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin.

13 And the following tribes will stand on Mount Ebal when the curses are pronounced: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.

14 The Levites will speak these words in a loud voice:

15 “‘God’s curse on anyone who makes an idol of stone, wood, or metal and secretly worships it; the Lord hates idolatry.’