Deuteronomy 17:7

7 The hand of the witnesses shall first slay him, and at the last the hand of the other people shall be put to, for to throw him down with stones, that thou do away evil from the midst of thee. (The hands of the witnesses shall be the first to stone them, and then the other people shall put their hands to it, and they shall throw their stones, so that thou do away evil from the midst of thee.)

Deuteronomy 17:7 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 17:7

The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him
to death
Of everyone of them, as Aben Ezra; they were to cast the first stone at him, which would be a further trial and confirmation of their testimony; for if they readily and without reluctance first began the stoning of the idolater, it would not only show their zeal for the honour of the divine Being, but an unconsciousness of guilt in their testimony, and be an encouragement to others to proceed with safety:

and afterwards the hands of all the people;
should be employed in taking up stones, and casting at him until he was dead:

so thou shall put the evil away from among you;
both the evil man and the evil committed by him, which by this means would be prevented from spreading, seeing by his death others would be deterred from following his example; as well as the evil of punishment, which otherwise would have come upon the nation, had they connived at so gross an iniquity.

Deuteronomy 17:7 In-Context

5 thou shalt lead out the man and the woman, that did that most cursed thing, to the gates of thy city, and they shall be oppressed with stones (until they die). (thou shalt lead out the man, or the woman, who did this most cursed thing, to the gates of thy city, and they shall be killed with stones.)

6 He that shall be slain, shall perish in the mouth of twain, either of three witnesses; no man be slain, for one man saith witnessing against him. (He who shall be put to death, shall die only after the testimony of two, or three, witnesses; no one shall die because one person saith witnessing against them.)

7 The hand of the witnesses shall first slay him, and at the last the hand of the other people shall be put to, for to throw him down with stones, that thou do away evil from the midst of thee. (The hands of the witnesses shall be the first to stone them, and then the other people shall put their hands to it, and they shall throw their stones, so that thou do away evil from the midst of thee.)

8 If thou perceivest, that hard and doubtful doom is with thee (If thou perceivest, that there is a hard and difficult judgement before thee), betwixt blood and blood, cause and cause, leprosy and not leprosy, and thou seest that the words of [the] judges within thy gates be diverse in their deeming; rise thou, and go up to the place that thy Lord God hath chosen;

9 and thou shalt come to the priests of the kin of Levi, and to the judge that is in that time, and thou shalt ask of them, which shall show to thee the truth of [the] doom. (and thou shalt come to the levitical priests, and to the judge then in office, and thou shalt ask them, and they shall tell thee the correct judgement and sentence.)