How must Israel respond to calls to serve strange gods from a prophet, a loved person, or a city?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

It must reject the prophet’s words even if his predicted sign comes true, and must not consent to or conceal the loved person’s secret appeal. The chapter gives death penalties in both cases. A report concerning a city requires careful inquiry and certainty before the stated destruction. Challoner separately explains that putting the personal enticer to death means informing the magistrate and proceeding by justice, rather than killing by private authority.

Chapter breakdown

If a prophet or someone claiming to have dreamed a dream rises among Israel, foretells a sign and wonder, and it comes true, Israel must still reject his words if he calls it to follow and serve unknown strange gods. The Lord is testing them so it may appear whether they love him with all their heart and soul. They must follow the Lord, fear him, keep his commands, hear his voice, serve him, and hold fast to him. That prophet or forger of dreams must be slain because he spoke to draw them away from the Lord, who brought them out of Egypt and redeemed them from bondage. He sought to make them leave the commanded way. Israel must take this evil from its midst.

The secret appeal may come from a brother, the son of the same mother; a son or daughter; the wife in one’s bosom; or a friend loved as one’s own soul. The appeal is to serve strange gods unknown to the hearer or his fathers, gods of nations near or far, from one end of earth to the other. The hearer must not consent, listen, spare out of pity, or conceal the person. He is told to put the enticer to death promptly, his hand first and then the hands of all the people. Challoner’s separate note explains that this does not mean killing by private authority. It means informing the magistrate and proceeding by order of justice. The stated penalty is stoning to death because the person would have drawn the hearer from the Lord who brought him out of Egypt and bondage. The stated purpose is that all Israel may hear, fear, and do nothing like this again.

If Israel hears a report about one of the cities the Lord will give it to dwell in, it must examine the report. The report says children of Belial have gone out from its midst, drawn away their city’s inhabitants, and called them to serve strange gods they do not know. Challoner’s separate note explains Belial as “without yoke.” It says Scripture calls the wicked who refuse to be subject to divine law children of Belial. Israel must inquire carefully and diligently, looking well into the truth. The following penalty is conditional on finding the report certain and the abomination really committed.

Once that condition is met, Israel must promptly kill the city’s inhabitants with the sword and destroy the city and everything in it, including cattle. All household goods must be gathered in the midst of its streets and burned with the city, consuming all for the Lord. It must remain a heap forever and never be rebuilt. Nothing of that anathema—the accursed thing—may cling to the hearer’s hand, so the Lord may turn from his furious anger, have mercy, and multiply Israel as he swore to its fathers. These purposes accompany hearing his voice, keeping all his precepts given that day, and doing what pleases him.

The story inside

The chapter presents three kinds of appeal to serve strange gods. In the first, a predicted sign comes true, yet the message must still be rejected when it calls for unknown gods. Moses states that this tests love for the Lord. In the second, the appeal is secret and comes from a named close relation or beloved friend. The commands forbid consent, listening, pity that spares, and concealment. Challoner’s note adds the distinction between informing the magistrate and killing by private authority. The third case begins with a report about a city. It requires careful inquiry and certainty that the reported act really happened before the stated penalty follows. The destruction directions include cattle and household goods, forbid taking anything from the anathema, and forbid rebuilding. These are commands and conditional cases; the chapter narrates no actual execution or destroyed city.

Lessons worth keeping

1
A fulfilled sign does not change the command in this case. If the prophet calls Israel to unknown gods, Israel must not hear him even after the sign comes true. Moses identifies the test as whether they love the Lord with all heart and soul.
2
The secret appeal is not excused by the close relationship. The text names brother, children, wife, and beloved friend and forbids consent or concealment. Challoner separately explains that the death direction proceeds through the magistrate and justice, without private killing.
3
A city report requires careful inquiry before the penalty. The text requires certainty and a real act, then directs destruction without keeping any of the accursed goods. It states the purposes of mercy and multiplication alongside hearing and obeying the Lord.

Test your recall

Why must Israel reject the prophet’s call to serve unknown strange gods even when his predicted sign comes true?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 20019–20042
Deuteronomy Chapter 13 False prophets must be slain, and idolatrous cities destroyed. 13:1. If there rise in the midst of thee a prophet or one that saith he hath dreamed a dream, and he foretell a sign and a wonder, 13:2. And that come to pass which he spoke, and he say to thee: Let us go and follow strange gods, which thou knowest not, and let us serve them: 13:3. Thou shalt not hear the words of that prophet or dreamer: for the Lord your God trieth you, that it may appear whether you love him with all your heart, and with all your soul, or not. 13:4. Follow the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and hear his voice: him you shall serve, and to him you shall cleave. 13:5. And that prophet or forger of dreams shall be slain: because he spoke to draw you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you from the house of bondage: to make thee go out of the way, which the Lord thy God commanded thee: and thou shalt take away the evil out of the midst of thee.
Lines 20044–20066
13:6. If thy brother the son of thy mother, or thy son, or daughter, or thy wife that is in thy bosom, or thy friend, whom thou lovest as thy own soul, would persuade thee secretly, saying: Let us go, and serve strange gods, which thou knowest not, nor thy fathers, 13:7. Of all the nations round about, that are near or afar off, from one end of the earth to the other, 13:8. Consent not to him, hear him not, neither let thy eye spare him to pity and conceal him, 13:9. But thou shalt presently put him to death. Let thy hand be first upon him, and afterwards the hands of all the people. Presently put him to death.... Not by killing him by private authority, but by informing the magistrate, and proceeding by order of justice. 13:10. With stones shall he be stoned to death: because he would have withdrawn thee from the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage: 13:11. That all Israel hearing may fear, and may do no more any thing like this.
Lines 20068–20081
13:12. If in one of thy cities, which the Lord thy God shall give thee to dwell in, thou hear some say: 13:13. Children of Belial are gone out of the midst of thee, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, and have said: Let us go, and serve strange gods which you know not: Belial.... That is, without yoke. Hence the wicked, who refuse to be subject to the divine law, are called in scripture the children of Belial. 13:14. Inquire carefully and diligently, the truth of the thing by looking well into it, and if thou find that which is said to be certain, and that this abomination hath been really committed,
Lines 20083–20100
13:15. Thou shalt forthwith kill the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, and shalt destroy it and all things that are in it, even the cattle. 13:16. And all the household goods that are there, thou shalt gather together in the midst of the streets thereof, and shall burn them with the city itself, so as to comsume all for the Lord thy God, and that it be a heap for ever: it shall be built no more. 13:17. And there shall nothing of that anathema stick to thy hand: that the Lord may turn from the wrath of his fury, and may have mercy on thee, and multiply thee as he swore to thy fathers, 13:18. When thou shalt hear the voice of the Lord thy God, keeping all his precepts, which I command thee this day, that thou mayst do what is pleasing in the sight of the Lord thy God.