1 “You are not to sacrifice toAdonaiyour God a cow or sheep that has a defect or anything wrong with it; that would be an abomination toAdonaiyour God.
2 “If there is found among you, within any of your gates [in any city] thatAdonaiyour God gives you, a man or woman who does whatAdonaiyour God sees as wicked, transgressing his covenant
3 by going and serving other gods and worshipping them, the sun, the moon, or anything in the sky — something I have forbidden —
4 and it is told to you, or you hear about it; then you are to investigate the matter diligently. If it is true, if it is confirmed that such detestable things are being done in Isra’el;
5 then you are to bring the man or woman who has done this wicked thing to your city gates, and stone that man or woman to death.
6 The death sentence is to be carried out only if there was testimony from two or three witnesses; he may not be sentenced to death on the testimony of only one witness.
7 The witnesses are to be the first to stone him to death; afterwards, all the people are to stone him. Thus you will put an end to this wickedness among you.
8 “If a case comes before you at your city gate which is too difficult for you to judge, concerning bloodshed, civil suit, personal injury or any other controversial issue; you are to get up, go to the place whichAdonaiyour God will choose,
9 and appear before thecohanim, who areL’vi’im, and the judge in office at the time. Seek their opinion, and they will render a verdict for you.
10 You will then act according to what they have told you there in that place whichAdonaiwill choose; you are to take care to act according to all their instructions.
11 In accordance with theTorahthey teach you, you are to carry out the judgment they render, not turning aside to the right or the left from the verdict they declare to you.
12 Anyone presumptuous enough not to pay attention to thecohenappointed there to serveAdonaiyour God or to the judge — that person must die. Thus you will exterminate such wickedness from Isra’el —
13 all the people will hear about it and be afraid to continue acting presumptuously.
(ii)
14 “When you have entered the landAdonaiyour God is giving you, have taken possession of it and are living there, you may say, ‘I want to have a king over me, like all the other nations around me.’
15 In that event, you must appoint as king the one whomAdonaiyour God will choose. He must be one of your kinsmen, this king you appoint over you — you are forbidden to appoint a foreigner over you who is not your kinsman.
16 However, he is not to acquire many horses for himself or have the people return to Egypt to obtain more horses, inasmuch asAdonaitold you never to go back that way again.
17 Likewise, he is not to acquire many wives for himself, so that his heart will not turn away; and he is not to acquire excessive quantities of silver and gold.
18 “When he has come to occupy the throne of his kingdom, he is to write a copy of thisTorahfor himself in a scroll, from the one thecohanimandL’vi’imuse.
19 It is to remain with him, and he is to read in it every day, as long as he lives; so that he will learn to fearAdonaihis God and keep all the words of thisTorahand these laws and obey them;
20 so that he will not think he is better than his kinsmen; and so that he will not turn aside either to the right or to the left from themitzvah. In this way he will prolong his own reign and that of his children in Isra’el.