Deuteronomy 17:7

7 the hand of the witnesses is on him, in the first place, to put him to death, and the hand of all the people last; and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst.

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 `Then thou hast brought out that man, or that woman, who hath done this evil thing, unto thy gates -- the man or the woman -- and thou hast stoned them with stones, and they have died.

6 By the mouth of two witnesses or of three witnesses is he who is dead put to death; he is not put to death by the mouth of one witness;

7 the hand of the witnesses is on him, in the first place, to put him to death, and the hand of all the people last; and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst.

8 `When anything is too hard for thee for judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke -- matters of strife within thy gates -- then thou hast risen, and gone up unto the place on which Jehovah thy God doth fix,

9 and hast come in unto the priests, the Levites, and unto the judge who is in those days, and hast inquired, and they have declared to thee the word of judgment,