Deuteronomy 18:7-17

7 and he may minister in the name of Yahweh his God, [just] like all his brothers, {the Levites who stand there} {before} Yahweh.

8 They shall eat {equal portions}, apart from what he may receive from the sale of his patrimony.

9 "When you come to the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you, you must not learn to do like the detestable practices of those nations.

10 [There] shall not be found among you one who makes his son or his daughter go through the fire, [or] {one who practices divination}, [or] an interpreter of signs, or an augur, or sorcerer,

11 or one who casts magic spells, or one who consults [a] spirit of the dead, or spiritist, or one who inquires of the dead.

12 For everyone doing these [things] [is] detestable to Yahweh, and because of these detestable things Yahweh your God [is] driving them out from {before you}.

13 You must be blameless before Yahweh your God.

14 For these nations that you [are] about to dispossess listen to interpreters of signs and to diviners, but Yahweh your God has not allowed you to do the same.

15 "Yahweh your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your midst, from your countrymen, [and] to him you shall listen.

16 [This is] {according to all that you asked} from Yahweh your God at Horeb, on the day of the assembly, {saying}, '{I do not want again to hear} the voice of Yahweh my God, [and] I do not want to see again this great fire, so that I may not die!'

17 And Yahweh said to me, 'They are right [in] what they have said.

Deuteronomy 18:7-17 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 18

This chapter gives an account of the provision made for the priests and Levites, with the reason of it, De 18:1-5, of allowance of a country Levite to minister at Jerusalem, and take his portion with the rest, De 18:6-8, and of several persons of bad practices not to be suffered among the people of Israel, De 18:9-14, and of an extraordinary prophet that should be raised up among them, to whom they should hearken, or it would be the worse for them, De 18:15-19, but a false prophet was to be put to death, of whom a sign is given by which he might be known, De 18:20-22.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "the Levites the ones standing there"
• [b]. Literally "to the face of"
• [c]. Literally "a portion like a portion"
• [d]. Hebrew meaning of these phrases/words is not certain; also could translate as "except [what they receive] from the sale of their fathers' [estates]" (NASB); or "what he may inherit from his father's family"
• [e]. Literally "a diviner of divination"
• [f]. Or "soothsayer"
• [g]. Or "an interpreter of omens"
• [h]. Or "medium"
• [i]. Or "necromancer"
• [j]. Literally "the face of you"
• [k]. Or "practice witchcraft"
• [l]. Or "your brothers"
• [m]. Literally "[just] as all [of] that you asked"
• [n]. Literally "to say"
• [o]. Literally "not I want to do again to hear"