Deuteronomy 13:5

Deu 13:5 And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn [you] away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.

Ver. 5. Shall be put to death.] This power is still in the Christian magistrate, to inflict capital punishment on gross heretics; such as was Servetus at Geneva, and Campian here, who spider-like was swept down by the hand of justice, and drew his last thread in the triangle of Tyburn, as the historian wittily phraseth it. {a} Quid Imperatori cum ecclesia? was a question moved by the old Donatists. Libertas prophetandi, is much challenged by the Arminians, and other sectaries. But if in matter of religion every man should think what he lists, and utter what he thinks, and defend what he utters, and publish what he defends, and gather disciples to what he publisheth, this liberty, or licentiousness rather, would soon be the bane of any church.

{a} Speed’s Hist of Eng., 1176.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Deu 13:5. Because he hath spoken — Taught, or persuaded you. To turn you away from the Lord — To induce you to forsake God and his worship. This shows that the most certain character of a true prophet is to be taken from his doctrine, rather than from his miracles. To thrust thee out of the way — This phrase denotes the great force and power of seducers to corrupt men’s minds. So shalt thou put the evil away — Thou shalt remove the guilt, by removing the guilty.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13:5 visionaries: Literally dreamer of dreams. • purge (literally burn): God wanted false prophets to be completely eliminated, leaving no residue of their evil ways. See also 17:12; 19:13.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Being convicted by testimonies, and condemned by the judge.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death,.... Which death, according to the Targum of Jonathan, was to be killed with the sword:

because he hath spoken to turn you away from the Lord your God; or "spoken revolt against the Lord" (l), high treason against him, delivering out doctrine that tends to cause his subjects to rebel against him, and revolt from him; and therefore he is justly deserving of death, to draw off a people from him he had been so good and kind unto; so that to apostasy would be added the sin of ingratitude:

which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage; and so was not only their Lord by creation whom they ought to serve, but by redemption, which laid them under double obligation to serve him:

to thrust thee out of the way which the Lord thy God commanded thee to walk in; not by external force, but by the power of persuasion, by enticing words and arguments:

so shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee; the evil man, by putting him to death, and the evil of idolatry, by not listening to the words of the false prophet.

(l) "apostasiam", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "defectionem", Tigurine version.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The context and parallel passages (compare Deu 17:7; Lev 20:2) indicate that there was to be a regular judicial procedure, and that the manner of the execution was to be by stoning. In this the community was to take its part in order to show its horror at the crime, and to clear itself of complicity therein.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Forger. Hebrew, "dreamer," to whom God reveals his secrets in the night, as he does to the prophet while he is awake. --- Slain. Philo says, without any trial or delay; but the Rabbins allow that, although the impostor was not to receive an admonition, no ignorance being able to excuse him, as in other cases, he was to be brought before the Sanhedrim, at Jerusalem, and strangled. See Luke xiii. 33. The Jews, it is thought, condemned our Saviour on the plea that he was a false prophet, Matthew xxvi. 57. They commonly required before this condemnation, that a person should have assumed the character of a prophet, and not barely that he should have performed some wonderful work by his ingenuity. For if he only did the latter, and thereby endeavoured to withdraw the people from the service of the true God, he was punished as a seducer. They also refused to condemn one who had foretold evils, if they did not take place, because God, being merciful, might have pardoned those who did penance, (Calmet) as was the case with Jonas and the Ninivites. (Haydock) --- But those who taught or did any thing contrary to the law, in quality of prophets, were in danger of condemnation, unless their great reputation might screen them from suspicion. Thus Elias offered sacrifice on Mount Carmel, without giving offence, 3 Kings xviii. 23. If a true prophet bore witness to another, the latter might also claim respect. (Calmet) --- Yet though St. John the Baptist had repeatedly commended Jesus Christ, the Jews did not hesitate to call him a seducer, and to put him to death. (Haydock) --- The evil "one," (Syriac,) 1 Corinthians v. 13.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

He hath spoken, i.e. taught or persuaded you.

To turn you away from the Lord; to forsake God and his worship. He shows that the chiefest and most certain character of a true prophet, is to be taken from his doctrine rather than from his miracles.

To thrust thee out of the way: this phrase denotes the great force and power of seducers to corrupt men’s minds. Compare Deu 4:19; 2Ki 17:21; Mat 24:2,14.

The evil; either

1. That evil thing, that wicked doctrine and practice. Or,

2. That wicked and scandalous man, that idolater and seducer.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

5. That prophet, or that dreamer… shall be put to death — The endeavour to turn the people from the worship of Jehovah, in the condition the nation then was, constituted one of the greatest of crimes. The very existence of the nation depended upon their fidelity to the God who had led them out of Egypt and through the wilderness. Idolatry was treason.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

To thrust - This phrase notes the great force and power of seducers to corrupt men's minds. So shalt thou put the evil away - Thou shalt remove the guilt, by removing the guilty.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Israel was to adhere firmly to the Lord its God (cf. Deu 4:4), and to put to death the prophet who preached apostasy from Jehovah, the Redeemer of Israel out of the slave-house of Egypt. להדּיחך, "to force thee from the way in which Jehovah hath commanded thee to walk." The execution of seducers to idolatry is enjoined upon the people, i.e., the whole community, not upon single individuals, but upon the authorities who had to maintain and administer justice. "So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee." הרע is neuter, as we may see from Deu 17:7, as comp. with Deu 13:2. The formula, "so shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee," which occurs again in Deu 17:7, Deu 17:12; Deu 19:19; Deu 21:21; Deu 22:21-22, Deu 22:24, and Deu 24:7 (cf. Deu 19:13, and Deu 21:9), belongs to the hortatory character of Deuteronomy, in accordance with which a reason is given for all the commandments, and the observance of them is urged upon the congregation as a holy affair of the heart, which could not be expected in the objective legislation of the earlier books.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

redeemed

(See Scofield "Exo 14:30").

The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

ואת מצותיו תשמורו HIS COMMANDMENTS YE SHALL KEEP — the Law of Moses,

ובקלו תשמעו HIS VOICE YE SHALL OBEY — the voice of the prophets,

ואתו תעבדו HIM YE SHALL SERVE in His Temple (Sifrei Devarim 85:5).

ובו תדבקון AND UNTO HIM YE SHALL CLEAVE — i.e. cleave to His ways: do kindly actions, bury the dead, visit the sick, as did the Holy One, blessed be He (Sotah 14a).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

AFTER THE ETERNAL YOUR G-D SHALL YE WALK. This is a commandment that we follow His counsel, and of Him alone shall we inquire concerning every hidden thing and inquire concerning the future, as it is written, and she went to inquire of the Eternal; because the people come unto me to inquire of G-d. And so did the Israelites do with the prophets, [as it is said,] Is there not here a prophet of the Eternal, that we may inquire of the Eternal through him?; that the Eternal thy G-d may tell us the way wherein we should walk, and the thing we should do. And in the Sifre it is stated: 85. “After the Eternal your G-d [shall ye walk] — this refers to the cloud [of Glory].” This is as we have explained, that we are to hearken to the “voice” of His signs and follow His counsel.

AND HIM SHALL YE FEAR. You are to believe that it is He in Whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and it is in His power to kill and to make alive, visiting iniquity, and rewarding for meritorious deeds.

AND HIS COMMANDMENTS SHALL YE KEEP. This refers to the Law of Moses.

AND UNTO HIS VOICE SHALL YE HEARKEN — to do whatever He commands us to do aside from the Torah, such as Samuel said [to Saul], Thou hast done foolishly; thou hast not kept the commandment of the Eternal thy G-d [referring to a commandment transmitted to Saul by Samuel]. It is this which is explained further, A prophet will the Eternal raise up unto thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken, and it states, 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, Verse 19. meaning that he will be liable to death by the hand of Heaven, and as it happened because of the prophet’s command, “Smite me, and wound me by the word of the Eternal” [and when the man refused to obey he was slain by a lion]., Verse 36. And so also the Rabbis said in the Sifre: 85. “And unto His voice shall ye hearken — the voice of His prophets.”

AND HIM SHALL YE SERVE, AND UNTO HIM SHALL YE CLEAVE. I have already explained this. Now it has already been stated, Thou shalt fear the Eternal thy G-d, and Him shalt thou serve., 6:13. But he repeated it here to negate [any consideration of obedience to a false prophet,] that we are not to fear the words of a [false] prophet because of the sign or wonder, and that we should not transgress the service of G-d because of the prophet’s words, for it is the Eternal alone that we are to fear, and no other god. [It was also repeated here] to add, and unto His voice shall ye hearken.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.